part 3

Part 3

(After White makes the announcement she begins to walk out of the study, the three remaining guests follow her.  The four walk across the hall over to the Lounge).  

Peacock (talking to Scarlet):  Do you really think there’s a secret passage?  It seems so random

Scarlet:  I don’t know.  Steve never mentioned it! 

Peacock:  It’s not something you would mention, then it’s not exactly secret.

(The four enter the Lounge and Mrs. White pushes on the upper corner of the painting and it swings open)

White (looking at Scarlet):  its okay Ms. Scarlet, we all know he trusted you in other ways.

(Everyone walks through the passage)

Mustard:  It’s mighty dark in here!

White:  Yes it is. 

(Mrs. White bends down and reaches in the dark to find a candlestick.  She pulls some matches out of the pocket of her maid’s uniform.  She is able to light the candlestick and light their path)

Scarlet:  What is this?

Mustard:  What is what?

Scarlet:  This!

(Scarlet is holding a large metal tube-like contraption, White shines the candlestick on it closer).

Mustard:  I think that’s a silencer!

Peacock:  For your gun?

Mustard:  Well yes I assume but I never owned a silencer.  Someone must have brought one tonight.

Peacock:  Someone?   Awfully convenient that it’s not you.  I mean who else would know what kind of attachment to buy?

Scarlet:  That’s a good question!

(Scarlet, White and Peacock stare at Mustard suspiciously).

Mustard:  Why would I leave behind the silencer to my gun?

Peacock:  Easy, it’s in the secret passage and maybe you thought no one else knew about the secret passage.

Mustard:  Clearly, Mrs. White knew about the secret passage.

Peacock:  You didn’t know that at the time!

White:  Enough!  Let’s just take this silencer or whatever it is with us.  We can take a closer look at it in the light.  Let’s get to the other side of this secret passage!

(White holds onto the silencer).

Mustard:  Where does it even come out?

White:  In the conservatory

Peacock:  I didn’t even know you had a Conservatory!

White: Yes, we, do.  It’s where Steve and I grow…grew the white lilies that he gave me.

Peacock:  What is the significance of the white lilies anyways?

White:  Over the years, many of my loved ones have passed away. After each time Steve would pick me some white lilies to help comfort me!

Scarlet:  Death just seems to follow you!

White (biting back):  That’s right, and yet here I am still standing. 

Peacock:  Is that why he nicknamed you Mrs. White?

 (White bangs into an object in the dark)

White:  Ow! 

Mustard:  Are you OK, Mrs. White?

Peacock:  Help her, Col. Mustard!

White:  I’m fine, I’m fine.  Stop fussing!

Peacock:  What did you run into? 

White:  I have no idea, the last time I was in here it was totally empty. 

Scarlet (suspicious):  So, you’ve been in here before?

White:  Well, obviously.  How else would I know about it?  It’s just it was a long time ago.  Steve made me promise I wouldn’t come in here as it was his one place in the house people wouldn’t think to look for him. 

Mustard: and how exactly did you find out about this in the first place?  It seems like something he would have shared with me!

White:  It does?  You have been back 3 months and you have a history of sleeping with his wife.

Mustard:  No need to get nasty Mrs. White.  I am still his brother and I can respect people’s privacy. 

(Mrs. White puts the lit candlestick on top of the safe)

Scarlet:  What’s in the safe?

White:  Easy Scarlet, you’ll get what’s coming to you soon enough

Scarlet:  Is that a threat?

White:  it’s empty!

Scarlet:  No threats are empty!

White:  No, I meant the safe, it’s empty

(White points to the safe)

Mustard:  What?  Totally empty?!?!?

White:  well there are a few items he kept as mementos but the money is gone.

Scarlet:  and HOW exactly do you know there was money here in the first place?

White:  It’s a safe, it stores money, that’s what they are used for. 

Mustard:  No, no…it’s obvious that the money was here but recently moved.

Peacock:  the question remains, moved by whom?  Steve or maybe the killer.

Scarlet:  I’m guessing Steve moved it maybe he sensed that someone was after it.

Mustard:  Why do you say that?

Scarlet:  Well, if the killer moved it he….or she…would have left by now

Peacock:  Not exactly.  They still have to do away with the competition.

(Mustard, Scarlet and White look at Peacock suspiciously after that statement)

Peacock:  What?  It’s no secret that the killer wants the money to themselves and there’s only one way to accomplish this.

Scarlet:  She’s right!

(White begins to go through the mementos in the safe)

Mustard:  What is in there?  I’m curious

(White begins to pull out an item in the safe but it is hard to make out in the dark, even with the small amount of light emanating from the candlestick.)

White:  It’s hard to make out. 

(Mustard unexpectedly grabs the candlestick from White’s hand)

White:  Hey, what are you doing?

Mustard:  Just helping you see what it is.

White:  You call that help?

Scarlet: and what is it?

White:  I think it’s the picture of Steve and I when we first met

Peacock:  You think?

White:  Yes, It’s so dark in here we can’t see anything.  Let’s gather everything from the safe along with this silencer and proceed to the conservatory. 

(White and Mustard work together to gather everything from the safe.  White holds the candlestick over the open safe while Mustard grabs everything in his arms.  Everyone begins walking towards the end of the secret passage leading into the Conservatory.)

White:  Did you need any help carrying this, Col. Mustard?

Mustard:  No, I’m fine.

White:  Are you sure, it seems like a lot!

Mustard (firmer):  I’m fine.

Scarlet:  How much further is it?

White:  Just keep going until you can’t go any further.  If my memory is right you just have to climb up the small staircase at the end.  Just be careful, you have to push a heavy potter’s plant out of the way.  It may take some strength!  Once you push it out of the way there is a small opening that you have to crawl through.  

(Scarlet reaches the staircase first and tries to push the potted plant out of the way)

Scarlet:  I can’t get it

(Peacock jumps in and pushes Scarlet out of the way.  Peacock has no problem with pushing the plant out of the way. White and Scarlet are the first to exit the secret passage and enter the conservatory.  At first the room isn’t that much brighter than the secret passage.)

White:  Alright, once everyone gets out of the secret passage I will turn on the lights.

Scarlet:  Why are they off?

White:  This room has been closed more or less. We’ve had some plumbing problems so we’ve been working on getting the sink fixed.  It keeps on leaking.  Steve was trying to fix it in time for tonight’s party but he never got around to it.

Scarlet:  It seems like a good job for a maid!

White:  Ordinarily I would agree but I’m not strong enough to get the pipe off.  Steve had been loosening it so we can clean it. 

(Peacock and Mustard enter the Conservatory.  Mustard puts the items on a table while Peacock moves back the potted plant. White flips the switch turning the lights on in the Conservatory.)

White:  Oh, I remember this!  It was one of the first days I worked for him.  He wanted a picture of us together. 

Peacock:  Who took the picture?

White:  Amy did

Scarlet:  See, she can’t be all bad!

White:  Yes, she can!  I don’t believe it!

(White picks up a clipping of the classified ad)

Peacock:  What?

White:  Steve even kept a clipping of the classified ad he put in the paper.  I had no idea he kept any of this.

Scarlet:  I thought you knew him.  Steve was very sentimental like that.

(Peacock picks up a picture from the pile of items.  It appears to be a family picture with Steve, col. Mustard and their parents.)

Peacock:  Now this is the Steve I remember

(Mustard jerks the picture out of Peacock’s hand)

Peacock:  What is it with you and grabbing things without any warning?

Mustard (seemingly in his own little world, talking to himself):  I can’t believe he kept it.  He said he didn’t have it, I wanted to take this photo to Africa with me. 

Scarlet:  What is it a picture of?

Mustard:  It’s a family photo of my brother and me with our parents taken some twenty years ago. 

(Mustard begins to tear up)

Mustard:  I can’t believe they are really all gone.  First my parents died in the plane crash, then Amy telling me it was over and now tonight.  I still can’t believe my brother is dead. 

(White picks up a small rectangular box)

White: What is this? 

Mustard:  That’s the box I bullets I gave Steve as soon as I got back from Africa. 

(Mustard opens the box and reacts in surprise)

Mustard:  Some of the bullets ARE missing, but only two of them!

Scarlet:  Strange, whoever took them didn’t take them all.

White: Well one of us knows exactly what they are doing…these bullets were hidden.  The killer not only knew about the secret passage but they had to know the combination assuming it wasn’t locked.

Peacock:  It’s pointless to have a safe if you are going to keep it open. 

Scarlet:  which means Mrs. White since you are the only one who knew about the secret passage, you are looking incredibly guilty.

White:  Why would I show you the secret passage only to reveal to you how I killed people? 

(Scarlet, Mustard, and Peacock look at each other trying to find a reasonable answer but there is none).

Scarlet:  How about to create confusion?  You could have recognized yourself as the primary suspect so you purposefully threw a curve into the scenario.

White:  No, just because I showed it to you doesn’t mean that I was the only one who knew about it.  We all have spent enough time in this house to find out about it, either by discovering on accident or maybe Steve showed it to one of you.

Peacock:  Well, everyone but me.  Before tonight, I hadn’t seen Steve in nearly 10 years.  I have never seen this house before!

Mustard:  Enough!  Prof. Plum was right all these constant accusations is getting us nowhere. We still haven’t figured out how the electricity went out right at the exact time Mr. Green was killed!

Peacock:  Maybe it wasn’t planned ahead of time!  Maybe they just went out and whoever killed Mr. Green was simply taking advantage of the situation?

White (said with disdain):  Do you see the obvious in anything, Mrs. Peacock?

Mustard: No one can be that stupid

Peacock (in a firm tone): EXCUSE ME?

Mustard:  We know that the killer is either you or Miss Scarlet. 

Scarlet:  We do?

Mustard:  Yes, we do.  Mrs. White and I were together so there’s no way either of us did it.

Peacock:  Yes, there is.  Maybe you two are in on it.

Mustard:  What did you just say to me?  Did you just accuse me of killing my own brother?

Peacock (getting in Mustard’s face): I sure did.  All night long you’ve been saying “whoever did this”, it’s an obvious ploy to get us thinking it wasn’t you.  The fact remains Prof. Plum was killed with your gun! A silencer was found to go with your gun.  Since Mrs. White knows about the secret passage maybe you two are in on it!

(Mustard loses all semblance of control and snaps on Peacock)

Mustard:  I CAN’T FUCKING BELIEVE THIS!  WE HAVE 3 DEAD BODIES IN THIS HOUSE AND I’M ACCUSED.  NOT THE WHORE! (turning to Scarlet)

Scarlet:  Watch it Col. Mustard, you’re on thin ice

Mustard:  NOT THE CONTROLLING, OBSESSED, MANIPULATIVE MAID! (turning to White)

White:  I’m on your side…or at least I was.

Mustard:  AND NOT THE BATTERED WIFE TURNED BUTCHER! (turning to Peacock).

Peacock:  Now, I KNOW you did it!

(Mustard runs over to the sink where he finds a wrench in a plastic tub under the sink.  He proudly holds it up)

Peacock:  A wrench?  What are you going to do with that?

Mustard:  Protect myself!  One of you is a killer!

Scarlet:  Why do we have weapons just lying around?

White:  I told you we’ve been trying to fix the sink and we’ve been loosening up the pipes.

Peacock:  Great and now we have a madman wielding a wrench.

Mustard:  Mad man!?!?!?

(Peacock goes over to the sink and starts pulling on the pipe connected to the sink)

White:  What are you trying to do?  Yank the sink from the wall?

(Peacock struggles with tearing off the lead pipe but finally does)

Peacock:  No, just the lead pipe. 

(Peacock goes over to Mustard with the lead pipe)

Peacock:  Now, we’re even!

Scarlet:  Enough you two, put those weapons down!

(Peacock & Mustard simultaneously):  WHY?

Scarlet:  because neither one of you is the killer.

(Scarlet turns to face White.)

Scarlet:  It’s been a very good performance but enough is enough. 

White:  What exactly are you referring to?

Scarlet:  Col. Mustard was right about one thing!    You are a lonely, desperate, manipulating old shrew who undoubtedly feels entitled to Steve’s life savings.  You never had what it took to be with him so you must feel entitled to his life savings.

White:  Well since we are detailing motives with such brutal honesty, you are nothing more than a cheap, gold-digging, scantily-clad slut who will do ANYTHING to get her way.   You’ve been after Steve’s money from the get-go and no one is buying your little innocent “love knows no age” bullshit.  You won’t get away with this.

Scarlet:  with what?

White:  Murder!

(Scarlet quickly walks up to Scarlet, they are nose to nose. Scarlet slaps White right in the face.  White returns the slap which leads to a physical altercation spilling out into the hallway.  Peacock runs to try to break them up but Mustard blocks her from leaving the room)

Mustard:  We’re not done here!

Peacock:  What do you mean?  Those two could kill each other!

Mustard:  They could, you’re right.  Even if they did, you’re still guilty of killing my brother and you must pay for that. 

(Peacock is initially intimated by this but then grips the lead pipe tighter to suggest she isn’t afraid.)

Peacock:  I’m not afraid to use this

Mustard:  Neither am I!

(Meanwhile, White and Scarlet’s fight is now in the ballroom. They are punching and kicking each other.  While they are fighting they can each her loud banging noises coming from the Conservatory.)