The riddle was now over. Hotchkiss called the three men to come have a seat in the main tent. They followed silently behind her, not daring to speak or look at one another. Hotchkiss stood at the entrance and let them walk inside first. There were three chairs in the middle of the room, so they each took a seat and waited for Hotchkiss. Only she never came in. Wade stood to go look for her. He peeked outside and immediately tensed up.
“Look. I know you both know I’m the killer. But there’s something you don’t know. I’m being forced to do all of this, against my will. There isn’t enough time to explain anything. Both of you have to leave right now,” Wade said urgently. Kit and Henry stared at him, frozen by confusion.
“Get up and run! Now, or you’ll die. Get on a camel and head east, you should find a small town five miles from here. GO NOW,” he said and the others finally stood and ran from the tent. Wade watched them reach the camels and escape. He walked back inside the main tent and sat down, dreading what was coming next. He didn’t have long to wait.
A hand pulled back the flap of the tent, and Wade checked his pocket for his small hand gun he was afraid he would need.
“Well well well, is the job finished?” Dwayne Powers asked as he entered the tent.
“Yes. I’ve..killed them both. They’re buried with the others,” Wade lied.
“Excellent. That means all of our plans have worked.”
“What about Hotchkiss?” Wade asked, concerned for the elderly scholar.
“She’s been taken care of,” Dwayne said with a careless wave of his hand. He noticed Wade flinching, and added, “Oh don’t worry, she’s still alive. The old bag thought this was some tv show or something,” Dwayne said and laughed. Wade faked a laugh then stood up.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Dwayne asked in a dangerously low voice.
“Look, I did everything you said. Every awful, hideous thing. I’ve paid you my debt now let me go.”
“Paid your debt? You think that you can just walk away from this? We’re not done here, until Nancy Drew has been accused of these crimes. Then your debt to me will be paid in full.”
“I thought you were gonna plant all the evidence after we all left.”
“You’re going to help. Just like I helped you plant evidence for the game. Well, me a few others. They’ve been paid and should be gone any minute now. It’s just you and me left. Together again, just like we were in prison.”
Wade repressed a shudder at the memory. He had gone to jail and got out. He met Nancy Drew shortly after that. And that changed his life forever. He wanted to settle down with his sweetheart, Savannah. But he didn’t have any money. He had no head for business and no interest in the family company. So, stupidly, he stole money from the family business and thought he could get away with it. Well, he hadn’t. He was sent to prison and there met Dwayne Powers, who had been transferred to a prison in the south. He and Dwayne had formed a friendship of sorts, and Wade had confided to him about his past. Dwayne went berserk when he found out Wade knew Nancy Drew too.
One day Wade woke up and Dwayne was gone. He had found some way to escape. Wade thought he would try to find Nancy Drew, since he wanted so much revenge. What Wade hadn’t expected, was Dwayne to find a way to get Wade of prison. He paid for the best lawyer in the country to file an appeal and got Wade out on a technicality. Then Dwayne paid Clara back for the money Wade had stolen, and even set Wade up with a nice home and the promise for a monthly income. All Wade had to do in return was help Dwayne get his revenge on Nancy.
Of course, Wade had nothing against Nancy. But the choice between a life with Savannah or a life in prison, was no choice at all. He hadn’t known then what the cost would be.
“Wade, I said, let’s go.” Dwayne said, clearly not for the first time. Wade looked at him and nodded. He followed Dwayne outside.
“Okay, there’s too much evidence against you as of right now. Even though you always wore gloves, there’s too much chance that you missed something. So, here’s what we’re going to do…” Dwayne said as he pulled out a scrolled piece of paper from his back pocket. He unfurled it quickly and smiled in delight. His plan was basically to explode the entire site and surrounding areas. The bodies were all buried in a mass grave back behind the tomb site. There they would plant the evidence against Nancy.
The next fifteen minutes were spent with Wade and Dwayne covering everything in sight with gun powder. Even all of the tunnels and tents were covered. Dwayne led Wade to the grave site. There he put the large metal box from Izzy’s death. Inside were all kinds of weapons and tools, used by Wade as he was forced to kill people. Each one had Nancy’s prints on it, faked of course by Dwayne. There were faked papers that incriminated Nancy as well. Dwayne buried the box with the bodies. As he did so, he realized two people were missing.
“Where are Kit and Henry?” Dwayne asked. He turned around and saw Wade pointing a gun at his chest.
“Wade?” Dwayne asked, gritting his teeth in anger.
“I let them go. They were innocent, just like everyone else. And besides,” he added as an afterthought, “they tied on the riddle.”
“Nooooooooo,” Dwayne yelled, in a fair imitation of Luke after finding out Vader is his father.
“Now, I’m leaving here on that helicopter,” Wade said, pointing the distance to a chopper. “You’re not invited.”
“Wade, don’t you dare do this to me. After all I’ve done for you! After all I’ve sacrificed!” he screamed.
“I have to,” he said. Out of nowhere came Hotchkiss came on a camel.
“Hop on Wade. The chopper is ready to go!” Wade got on the back of the camel, gun still pointed at Dwayne the whole time.
“You won’t get away with this! There’s still all the evidence against you! And the witnesses!” Dwayne hissed.
“I’ve got that taken care of,” Wade said, and pulled out a match. He lit it and tossed it on the trail of gunpowder that led to the site.
“I”ll find you!!” Dwayne screamed after the retreating figures of Wade and Hotchkiss. They reached the helicopter and took off, just as the explosion started. It was so big that it shook the helicopter. Wade could feel the heat of the giant fireball that encased the entire site. The flew out of sight soon, but Wade thought for just a moment, that he had seen a small figure creeping away from the explosion.
Kit and Henry arrived at the small town. They didn’t know what to do, or where to go. Their lives had been spared, but what if they were being followed?
“We have to stick together,” Kit said. Henry nodded in agreement. They found a small hotel and used the phone. Henry called Ned Nickerson. He was a good guy and would probably try to help. Ten minutes later, they had flights booked to go home, thanks to the help of Ned.
“We’re going home,” Henry whispered. He felt like he had just woke up from a nightmare, and it was suddenly a brand new day. Kit hugged Henry, both men trying not to cry. The next day they arrived in their respective homes, and both found identical notes and presents waiting for them.
“Sorry for all the trauma I’ve put you through. I was forced to do everything by a crazy man I owed a debt to. I know you can’t really forgive me, and I understand. Take this as a token of my good will towards you. Saving you was the best decision I’ve made in a long time. -Wade”
In the present they both found $10,000. Somehow their nightmare had turned into some kind of dream.
Wade and Savannah were on a beach in a small island in the middle of nowhere. Wade still hadn’t told her about what happened, but he knew one day he would have to. How Savannah would react, he didn’t know. He would cross that bridge when they got there.
Hotchkiss was at home, sipping hot cocoa and watching the news. She stared in amazement at the screen. “Nine bodies have been found buried in a mass grave, at a tomb site in Egypt. Police are still investigating, but an explosion destroyed most everything that could have been evidence. More details will come as we find them,” the news reporter said.
“What a coincidence. I was just there doing a theater piece. Weird,” Hotchkiss said, and took another sip of cocoa.
And that’s the end! I hope you’ve enjoyed this game as much as I have! I look forward to playing with you in other whodunnit games. <3 Cami :)
