"Cop, you're lying," Vincent Moretti said coldly.
"Hmph, I knew you'd say that, but what evidence do you have to prove I'm lying? Just because someone attacked me?"
"Of course not," Vincent Moretti smiled slightly. "But here's the thing—up until now, everyone's stories have had some connections, right? Many shared characters in those stories. If you take geography out of it, everyone's stories make sense."
"So what?"
"The problem lies right there," Vincent said, pointing at attorney Vivian Hart. "You and the lawyer's stories share a common character—the 'fraudster who stole two million.' But your stories contradict each other, which means one of you is lying."
Officer Logan paused, then asked, "Where's the contradiction?"
Vincent shook his head, looking at Officer Logan. "Attorney Hart said she was preparing for a trial, which means the suspect was already caught in her story. But you're still waiting on the suspect, which means in your story, the suspect hasn't been caught yet. Isn't that a contradiction?"
Officer Logan thought for a moment, then said, "I have to admit, you have a point. But I think you're too caught up in this 'game.' First, you need to understand one big thing—everyone who told their story is from a different city. In other words, even if their experiences seem similar, they can't possibly be about the same event. Different places mean different outcomes."
Elliot Hayes quietly observed the two arguing without interrupting.
Let them argue, he thought. The more they argue, the better.
As long as either one of them votes for the other, the liar wins.
The rules are absolute. If anyone votes wrong, everyone else will pay the price.
Although Officer Logan had given an explanation, Vincent Moretti's words still lingered in everyone's mind.
It was the first time they'd noticed a contradiction in two people's stories.
Elliot Hayes couldn't help but look at this guy, Vincent Moretti, in a new light.
He might seem like a troublemaker, but he was smarter than expected.
"Alright… my turn…" a woman spoke up.
Everyone turned to look at her.
This girl had screamed loudly when the first body was discovered.
Now she seemed calmer, though her eyes still wouldn't look directly at the body.
"Hello, everyone, my name is Seraphina Grace. I'm a psychotherapist."
Elliot Hayes paused, intrigued by the name Seraphina Grace.
Seraphina: Derived from Hebrew, meaning "burning" or "holy," and in Christianity, it refers to a rank of angels, symbolizing wisdom and pure power.
That name was impressive.
Maybe her parents had wanted their daughter to have a unique name, but clearly, this name might just get her killed here.
Among them were a writer, a teacher, a lawyer, a doctor, and a cop—all of them could recognize what the name Seraphina meant.
If they kept it in mind, the story Seraphina Grace was about to tell would leave an impression.
Seraphina Grace noticed no one reacting, so she covered her mouth and nose and continued, "I'm from Tucson. Before I came here, I was waiting for a client. She's a preschool teacher."
Everyone glanced at Emily Parker, the preschool teacher, who was sitting quietly. This time, the stories seemed to connect.
"According to her, being a preschool teacher is tough. You can't hit or scold the kids. Parents treat teachers like nannies, and the kids treat us like servants. Every classroom has surveillance cameras, and parents are always monitoring. If your tone is even a little strict, parents will call the head of the preschool."
"But aren't the kids supposed to learn morals at preschool?"
"If teachers can't be firm, how can the kids learn their mistakes?"
"She feels confused and repressed because of it."
"So, I gave her a treatment plan that would last about a month."
"But for some reason, she never showed up for her appointment. I just kept waiting in my office."
"When the earthquake struck, I didn't have a chance to escape. My office was on the 26th floor."
"The higher the floor, the stronger the tremor. The whole building was shaking."
"I didn't even know Tucson could have earthquakes until that moment."
"Then I vaguely remember the ceiling collapsing. Everything went black, and then I lost consciousness."
After hearing Seraphina Grace's story, it seemed like the group had an idea.
Vincent Moretti was the first to speak up. "I have two questions."
"Go ahead," Seraphina Grace asked, covering her mouth.
"You said every classroom has 'surveillance cameras.' What do you mean by that?"
Everyone was surprised that Vincent Moretti focused on this point, but Seraphina Grace, being a psychotherapist, calmly explained, "I think the cameras are there so parents can monitor the classroom from anywhere."
"Ah, so it's CCTV… Is it a fancy preschool?" Vincent Moretti muttered, then asked, "So the preschool teacher you were seeing—was it this Emily Parker?"
"I don't know," Seraphina Grace shook her head. "We only added each other on Facebook. I was planning to meet her in person."
"Facebook?" Vincent Moretti looked confused.
Officer Logan interrupted, "You're at it again. Emily Parker is from Indianapolis, and Seraphina Grace is from Tucson. Who would travel so far to see a therapist?"
Vincent Moretti wasn't backing down, "I just find it suspicious. This is the first time someone's story mentioned another participant."
Dr. Clarke, the middle-aged doctor, seemed to agree with Vincent Moretti. He nodded and asked Emily, "Emily Parker, does the reason you went to see a therapist match what Seraphina Grace described?"
"Um…" Emily Parker hesitated, then said, "Not exactly. I went because a parent had been criticizing me for a long time, and it made me depressed."
"Well, that clears it up," Dr. Clarke nodded. "After all, these are two different regions. We don't need to connect them."
Everyone went quiet for a moment, but then Vivian Hart suddenly spoke up, "Ms. Lin, half of your story is just about that preschool teacher. Isn't that a violation?"
"Ah?" Seraphina Grace was momentarily stunned. "I talked about the preschool teacher to help you understand my work better…"
"Don't misunderstand. I'm not accusing you," Vivian Hart smiled. "What I'm saying is, if the preschool teacher's experience is made up, it would contradict Emily Parker's story. And that could prove you're lying."
"You…!" Seraphina Grace hadn't expected the lawyer to be so confrontational, and she could only defend herself, "Dr. Clarke and Officer Logan both said we're in different cities. This is all just a coincidence!"
"A coincidence, huh?" Vivian Hart crossed her arms and continued, "Think about it. Why were we nine people specifically chosen to be here? Remember, we're strangers to each other. If we're supposed to find the liar in these stories, there has to be a clue. And that clue is that all our stories are connected. After hearing each story, I feel like we were picked for a reason. This way, we can identify the liar, or else this whole game would be ridiculous, because the liar's chance of winning is just too high."