Chapter 7
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There were only six suspects left. Five of them each had their suspicions, but not entirely certain just who the killer was. There were two factions, so a vote would be irrelevant. But even among the factions, cracks were starting to show. Lindsay and Danielle were off to one side, the only two left who had never murdered children. Clarke and Atlanta were together. Having both grown up in dystopian worlds they felt a certain bond. Laura and Eve also bonded, they had deluded themselves into believing that they were saving their victims, sparing them from pain and damnation. Thus there were now three distinct groups, each of these three groups vowed to never vote for the other one. But even among the groups, there were some differences. Lindsay had originally quit smoking when she learned she was pregnant, but saw little reason to not start up again here in Hell. She offered Danielle a cigarette, but Danielle refused. She had once promised her parents that she would never start. Even here she wanted to keep that promise to her parents. Atlanta had smoked on her world due to the stress from the reproductive camps and of being a terrorist. Clarke had grown up in a space station. With all of the oxygen, she would have exploded if she'd smoked up there. After going to Earth, and another planet, she never saw any point in starting. That admittedly had been one advantage in the dystopian world Clarke had grown up in. There was the same difference between Eve and Laura. Eve's father had been a religious fanatic. He taught her to never smoke, never do drugs, never drink alcohol of coffee, and preferably not to eat meat. Laura had smoked to cope with the stress of being a serial killer. Five of these suspects needed to trust their partner, but to also keep her own guard up.
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The killer devised a new strategy, to manipulate the others into voting for another suspect. She had to be subtle, had to make the other four suspects that this was her own idea, or the killer was likely to be voted off next. The killer made her excuses and left to go to the ladies room, and to plot her strategy. There was another reason she left, to briefly get away from the stench of tobacco. Why anyone would ever think that was a good idea she could not begin to guess.
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There was a brief truce between the two factions. Five of the remaining six suspects had agreed to talk. The only one absent was Eve.
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Lindsay: I think Eve is the killer.
Atlanta: I agree.
Clarke: So, do we vote on her.
Laura: We agreed not to vote for our own faction.
Clarke: I know she's your friend, but if we're right she will have to kill you eventually.
Laura: I don't believe she would do that. Lindsay here is the one with a history of collaborating with the network.
Lindsay: She's the one who has a history of murdering children, yet still pretending that she's too good to be down here with the rest of us.
Laura: She's always been honest about who she is and what she did. Even on Earth she and her father were open about their desire to end the human race.
Danielle: Maybe she was honest in life, but being stuck in Hell has changed many souls.
Laura: Let's say I do vote for her, I'd be losing my only real ally. What's to stop the rest of you from voting me out?
Clarke: Because if we're wrong, me and Atlanta couldn't afford to lose you.
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After some persuasion, Laura agreed to a vote. The minion was summoned, and the voting began. Each woman, except for Eve herself, wrote on a piece of paper either "Guilty" or "Not guilty." The five pieces of paper were then drawn from a hat. In theory this was anonymous, unless the verdict was unanimous. One by one he pulled it out and pronounced "Guilty." Five votes for guilty. Eve was disappointed, knowing that her friend Laura had betrayed her. But she tried to maintain her dignity and braced herself for the firing squad. The five other suspects were given guns, and shot Eve all at once. They all waited until the announcer finally said "Eve is dead. She was not the killer."
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Laura: Great, I just killed my friend for nothing. I still say Lindsay might be the killer.
Danielle: Don't bother voting because I'm not voting for my friend.
Laura: Ever fight a duel Lindsay?
Lindsay: Once, my opponent cheated, and I don't trust you.
Laura: You're just worried you'd lose.
Lindsay: I can only think of one fair way to settle it at this point. How many of you know what "Russian Roulette" is?
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All of them raised their hands.
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Lindsay: Good, that will save time. I say we get a gun with six chambers, and this minion here spins it randomly. Five of us so we play until one is dead. If we all survive, we have it spun again. Whoever dies, we wait until the announcer tells us if she was the killer. If she wasn't we play again until the killer, or the rest of us, are all dead. Is that acceptable for this game?
Minion: Yes, that would be acceptable.
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The other four all agreed that this was the most fair way to pick a winner. Atlanta suggested that they each have a last meal before the final game. For at least one of them this would be the last meal she would have before once again being a slave laborer in Hell. Why not enjoy it while they still could. The five of them agreed to meet back here in one hour.
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Note: We're nearing the end of this mystery. The next chapter is the final one and I will reveal the killer's identity in it. I've given three clues as to the killer's identity.
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1: She was unfamiliar with reality television before this.
2: She is a non smoker.
3: She admits that while some of her victims got what they deserved, others were completely innocent.
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If you've been paying attention, there really is only one suspect left who fits all three categories. Have you figured out who she is?