“We need to be careful of our next move, Henry. Let’s think about what’s happening here. Someone brought that statue tonight. Before we ask who, let’s ask why. If they know what we did, why wouldn’t they go to the police?”

“They’re trying to blackmail us,” Henry said.

“But then why wouldn’t they confront us directly? Why go through the trouble of putting the statue in the Secret Santa game? That seems unnecessarily elaborate for a blackmailer. Unless that is the point. They want to see us squirm. They want to torture us. So, the question is: Who from this group hates us the most?”

“Us”? Henry thought. Why “us”? He wanted to say, maybe it’s just you they want to destroy. Everyone hates you equally. The staff hates you because you’re mean. You put them through humiliations like this stupid Secret Santa game. The Alpine brothers hate you because you never appreciate their work, only tell them how it falls short. The Tigglemans hate you because they know you gouged them on the price of the last house you sold them. Kevin and Jerry hate you because you use them, constantly asking for their help with city government connections and never offer so much as a simple thank-you. Steve hates you because you used him, then dumped him. Everyone hates you as much as they possibly can, Claudine. Everyone except me. Somehow I love you. Which I guess makes me just as hateable as you. So then, yes, I suppose you are right. It is “us.”

“Well, we can definitely rule out Zara,” Henry said. “And also Alice, Mrs. Tiggleman, John, and Rashida. They made it pretty clear that they brought the gifts that have been opened already.”

“Steve, too, then,” Claudine said. “He obviously brought that fishing package.”

“I don’t know,” Henry said. “I wouldn’t rule him out. Maybe we shouldn’t rule anyone out.”

“But that’s why you traded it with Bobby for the dice he stole from you, right?”

“Maybe that’s what he wanted us to think. Maybe he was lying. Maybe those other four were too. People playing the game and following the poem’s instructions. Like it says: ‘Now is the time to put your treachery to the test.’”