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HARPER'S ISLAND 2
EPISODE FIVE: "VROOM"

[THEME SONG: Immediate Music - "Dark Side of Power"]
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Gasps, screams, and sobs echoed throughout the church. They were the only noises anyone could think to make at a moment like this.

Julie Mathis had let out a loud scream of her own as her eyes were transfixed on the dead body; small splats of blood from the corpse of Bronson Deeley had now stained her perfectly white dress. Her groom, Graham Deeley, had a very opposite reaction: he simply stood rigidly still, emotionless, in a complete state of shock.

"Oh my Lord..." uttered Vance White, the minister, whose eyes were also glued, horrified, upon the body laying before him.

Bronson Deeley's body was contorted, twisted, and completely naked; it was almost artistic in a way, yet horribly gruesome. And his body was a sign to everyone within the church that there was a killer out there, and any one of them could be next.

Hours passed since the wedding ceremony, and everyone had gone their separate ways, all of them still very shaken up by the day's events.

Graham and Julie had returned to their room. Graham hadn't spoken a word since saying "I do" at the wedding, which now seemed like an eternity ago to him. His mind was swimming; he kept replaying that horrible encounter he had with his father, the very last time he had ever spoken to him, seen him alive. And Graham had lashed out at him, lost his temper, thrown his own father out of his room. Graham had been furious with his dad, but now none of that anger existed within him. It had all been replaced now by guilt.

The newlywed couple sat in complete silence in their large suite. Julie couldn't bear seeing Graham so distraught, yet she knew he didn't want to talk. So, without saying a word, she excused herself from the room and went down the hall to room 215.

She knocked on the door and it almost immediately swung open. Gail Mathis immediately outstretched her arms and Julie lunged herself at her mother, giving her a hug and starting to cry.

She was still wearing her blood-stained wedding dress.

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Shea Allen could barely control her emotions anymore. Abby Mills, one of the only survivors from the original Harper's Island massacre, was now dead, in front of her very eyes. As the tears streamed down her face, a million thoughts were running through her mind.

Everything she had suspected and feared were now coming to fruition: there was a killer on the island. She then immediately started to fear and panic about her daughter, Madison's safety as well. In spite of the fact she was back home on the mainland, Shea had a terrible suspicion that this killer was perhaps coming after her and her daughter, maybe even Jimmy Mance as well, possibly in order to wipe out any of the original survivors of the massacre.

An hour passed by, which to Shea felt like seconds, and Abby's corpse was still dangling from the Tree of Woe, pale and lifeless. Shea finally gathered enough strength to bring herself to her feet, with only one thing now in her mind.

She needed to get off this island.

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[MUSIC FROM THE EPISODE: "Fur Elise" - Ludwig van Beethoven]

Amanda Mathis, Andrea Northcott, Andrew McCaffrey, Haley Mathis, and Josh Weeks were all gathered in the ballroom of the Candlewick Inn, the very scene where they found the bloody cloth and their suspicions began.

"Didi's gotta be dead. That was definitely part of her shirt we found here, and the killer definitely wrote that note that was in her room," Andrew said aloud, trying to piece everything together.

"But everyone else who's gone missing... Stacy, Maria... Mikey... you think they're all dead too?" said Haley quietly, but nobody responded. Even though they all knew it was probably true, none of them wanted to make themselves believe it.

Andrew suddenly covered his face with his hands. The thought of his little brother being dead was not something he wanted to think about right now. Several seconds passed and he felt a warm hand caressing his back; he looked up to see it was the beautiful redheaded Andrea, smiling slightly at him, trying to ease his pain.

And without warning, without thinking, Andrew leaned in and started kissing Andrea. He didn't know exactly why he did it; perhaps the pain of knowing his brother could be gone was too much for him to bear, and he wanted to do anything possible to rid himself of that pain. Nonetheless, the two remained liplocked for several seconds, but nobody around them seemed to really notice or care. Except for one person, who stared at the kissing couple with a horrible scowl on her face. This was the guy she had set her sights on, the one she was hoping to call her boyfriend by the end of this week.

Amanda Mathis was suddenly burning up with jealousy.
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Yulissa White lay on the soft cushiony couch in the living room of her father's house, staring blankly at the ceiling, thinking about nothing except for Graham Deeley. Sure, the events of the wedding were gruesome and it was terrible that a man was now dead, but Yulissa couldn't stop thinking about Graham, her only true love in life, and how much he must be grieving right now.

Vance White stood in the kitchen, fixing up a pot of coffee. He was still a bit shaken up by the day's events, but he was also feeling a great sense of joy that his daughter was actually under his roof. His relationship with Yulissa had seriously fractured over the last few years; she had always wanted to be independent and live on her own, and it got to the point where the two rarely spoke. And now, after so many years, Yulissa was here in his house.

Vance brought two mugs filled with coffee into the living room. He set one of them on the coffee table, and then sat down in an armchair, sipping on his own cup. Several seconds of silence went by; Vance tried his hardest to think of something to say. He wanted to take advantage of every moment he had alone with his daughter.

"Well... interesting day to say the least, huh?" he said awkwardly. It was the only thing he could think of to say.

Yulissa didn't give a response; she kept staring at the ceiling. Eventually, she turned over and sat up, facing her father.

"I can't even imagine how Graham must be feeling right now," she said suddenly; it was more of a vocalized thought rather than a comment to her father.

"I'm sure he's in a lot of pain. It's a lot to take in; seeing your father's battered dead body drop a mere feet away from you, on your wedding day. It's unfathomable, really," said Vance, shaking his head and taking another sip of coffee.

Yulissa stared absently at the floor, still thinking intently about Graham.

"Drink some of your coffee, honey. It'll make you feel better," Vance said after another long stretch of silence.

He didn't get the response he was hoping for, however; instead, Yulissa got to her feet.

"Thanks Dad, but I can't. I need to go see Graham," she said hurriedly, and before Vance could protest, she was out the door. The reverend let out a heavy sigh; Yulissa was slipping away from him more and more by the second, and with a killer on the loose once again, he wanted nothing more than to spend every moment possible with his only daughter.

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Dale Mooney sat on the edge of the king-sized bed, which, just a few hours ago, was occupied by him and his boyfriend, Ryan MacPherson. After the horrific events of the wedding, however, that moment seemed like an eternity ago to Dale. The images kept replaying in his mind, of Graham's father's body laying there, bloody and broken, in the middle of the church. It was a gruesome scene, and whoever had done this to Bronson Deeley clearly managed to accomplish what they were after: the killer had instilled fear in all the wedding guests.

Ryan MacPherson stepped out of the bathroom, having just washed his face with warm water, which Dale suggested to help ease his mind. As much as Ryan was fascinated by death and murder, the events at the church were a lot for him to handle as well. This was the father of one of his best friends, his college roommate, that had been brutally murdered. It was a lot to soak in.

After drying his face, Ryan joined Dale on the end of the bed. Dale's first instinct was to hug his boyfriend, the only person with whom he truly felt close on this island, the only person that he could confide in, the only person with whom he felt safe. And then, Dale began to cry uncontrollably into Ryan's shoulder. Everything that had happened was just so overwhelming to him, he could think of nothing else to do. Ryan returned the hug, embracing his boyfriend, but didn't shed a tear of his own.

While Dale was clearly expressing a great deal of fear and grief, Ryan was feeling quite the opposite.

Ryan MacPherson felt nothing but anger.

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Rachael Bingham was probably one of the most emotionally shaken up of all the wedding guests. The family of four - her husband, Franklin, and her children, Bri and Luke - were all gathered in her bedroom, feeling that they needed to stay together as a family more than ever right now. Franklin gave Rachael a tall glass of water and sat down beside her on the bed, caressing her back as tears streamed down her face. It was perhaps the kindest Bri and Luke had ever seen their father act toward their mother.

Neither Bri nor Luke showed very much emotion; Bri sat upright, her eyes glazed over, clearly in deep thought, a million things running through her mind. Luke simply sat hunched, cracking his knuckles, looking at the floor.

"I'm sure by the end of the day we'll all be outta here. We'll take some boats and we'll go back to the mainland," said Franklin in an uncharacteristically calm and soothing voice.

Rachael sniffed. "I can't leave my father's body here. And I can't leave here without knowing who did this."

"She's right," muttered Luke. "As much as I'd love to get out of this **** hole, how are we ever gonna find out who's been doing this? All the evidence is right here on the island."

"We've got the police here to handle that," replied Franklin.

"How do we know they're not dead too?" said Luke, very matter-of-factly.

There was a long pause. Bri suddenly stood up, a panicked look on her face.

"What is it, honey?" asked Rachael.

"We have to find Shea."

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Shea Allen raced to the marina, desperate to find a boat and get the hell off this island. She couldn't even think about the fates of the other wedding guests at this point; she couldn't bear it. All she cared about now was to get off this island, away from the murders, and get back home safely to her daughter Madison.

But Shea's heart lurched when she saw what was at the marina. Or rather, her heart lurched when she saw what wasn't at the marina.

There wasn't a single boat attached to the docks.

Immediately, Shea began to panic. She sprinted over to the harbormaster's office on the other side of the marina. Without even knocking, she burst through the door. Lying motionless on the floor in their own blood were the two harbormasters, both brutally slaughtered. Shea didn't even scream; the emotion of finding Abby's dead body had practically desensitized her. Instead, Shea looked at the bodies, noticing that their blood was still somewhat wet: they couldn't have been dead for any longer than 24 hours.

And instantly, an overwhelming fear came over Shea Allen.

A killer was most definitely on this island. And there was no way out.

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Amanda Mathis was lying on her bed, alone in her room, with nothing but her thoughts to keep her company. In spite of everything that had gone on in the church earlier that day, Amanda could think of nothing else but that kiss between Andrea and Andrew. Being single at 32 years old was never something Amanda had imagined for herself, or hoped for. She had never had a boyfriend, never had someone to care about her; her own family hardly cared about her. All this made Amanda Mathis a very lonely person.

Andrew McCaffrey was someone Amanda was indeed attracted to, but alas, just like every other guy she had had her eyes set on, he barely knew, or cared, that she existed. Perhaps it was just Amanda's lack of social skills that was her biggest fault; she certainly didn't see herself as ugly or mean. She was just a very quiet person, which always made her sort of the black sheep of her family.

Suddenly, a knock came at Amanda's door, which surprised and startled her. 'Who could possibly be wanting to see me right now?' she thought. Nonetheless, she got up and opened the door. There at the threshold stood Julie Mathis, her own sister, the woman whom had hurt her so much by refusing to ask her to be in her own wedding party.

Julie grinned slightly at her sister. "Hi. Can I come in?"

Amanda didn't respond, but she stepped aside to allow her sister to enter. The two women sat down and a rather uncomfortable silence followed.

"So... um, how is Graham doing?" asked Amanda awkwardly.

"Not so great. He hasn't said a word," replied Julie.

"Look... I'm really sorry about all this, about how your wedding was ruined..."

"Don't be sorry. This is something really serious, and really scary. And to be honest, it's something I've kind of been expecting ever since we got here," added Julie.

"You've been expecting it?" asked Amanda suspiciously.

"Well, not specifically what happened today. But with all the terrible history that this island has... it always really worried me and scared me that we would be having our wedding on the same island where another wedding was brutally murdered," said Julie quietly, and she literally shivered as a chill went down her spine.

Another long silence occurred between the two women, before Amanda once again broke it.

"So, um... so why exactly did you come to see me?" she asked.

Julie looked up at her sister, finally looking her in the eye, and Amanda could see a tear trickling down Julie's face.

"I'm scared, Amanda. And ever since all this started happening, I've been really scared for our family. One of us could be next. And at a time like this... family is more important to me than anything."

Amanda didn't respond; instead, she slightly scoffed and looked almost offended.

"So you're saying it took the death of your fiance's father in order for you to finally come to me? You've been a terrible sister, Julie. I've been your big sister for 30 years and you still barely even acknowledge me. You ask me to your wedding but you don't put me in your wedding party? That hurts, Julie. It hurts that you chose a joke like Stacy Stone over me..."

Julie jumped to her feet, now looking angry. "Stacy's probably dead, Amanda! How can you be so goddamn selfish at a time like this?!"

"I'm not being selfish, Julie," said Amanda, remaining calm. "I just want an answer why, after all these years, you've been so distant. Why everyone in our family has treated me like the outcast."

Julie did not sit back down. She stood with her arms folded, tears still rolling down her cheeks, her face now red with anger. "I think you've just proven why, you cold-hearted bitch."

And without waiting for a response, Julie left the room and slammed the door behind her.

Gail Mathis sat alone in her room, staring blankly at an arbitrary spot, deep in thought. Like most of the other wedding guests, she kept thinking of the scene in the church, of Bronson Deeley, the man who had confronted her before the wedding, the man who, just hours later, was brutally murdered and put on display in front of everyone.

The conversation she had had with Bronson before his death remained embedded in her brain. Her guilt about her criminalistic past had been building suddenly over the last couple days, but seeing Bronson explode at her so viciously had sent her over the edge. She couldn't bear to deal with the guilt of her actions anymore.

Just then, a knock came at her door. Gail opened it to find Laurie Northcott standing there; surprisingly, she was grinning at her sister-in-law. The two women sat down, but Gail avoided eye contact. The last discussion she had had with Laurie had been similar to the one with Bronson; it had ended with Gail feeling miserable with guilt.

"Look, Gail... I know what I said to you a couple days ago, well... kind of upset you," said Laurie. "But after everything that happened today... well, it just allowed me to put things into perspective. And I apologize for the things I said."

Gail simply sat there; she did not respond, and she did not look Laurie in the eye.

"I'm not expecting you to accept my apology just yet," continued Laurie. "I just want you to know how I feel. I'm sure you're a little freaked out just like everyone else is, I'm sure." And with that, the beautiful country singer stood up and excused herself from the room.

Truth be told, Laurie Northcott still had an extreme hatred for Gail Mathis. She was the woman who framed her husband, she was the reason he was stuck behind bars.

But with a killer now on the loose, Laurie much preferred to be safe than sorry.

Graham Deeley had locked himself in his room for hours. The sun was now starting to set. He could think of nothing else but his father, his horrible last moments with him, and how guilty he felt for what he had said and done to the man that had loved him and raised him.

The more he thought about it, the more trivial the whole blowout seemed to him. Bronson had simply been concerned for his son; he was giving Graham a warning. And the more Graham thought of it, perhaps his father's concerns were true. It seemed as though everything had been going downhill ever since he came to the island, with the entire Mathis family in his company.

Perhaps a Mathis was behind all this.

Graham tried his hardest to rid himself of these thoughts; this was his bride's family he was now suspecting of murder. He knew the Mathis family had a few blemishes on their criminal records, but he knew none of them could be killers.

...Or could they?

[MUSIC FROM THE EPISODE: "Points of Authority" - Linkin Park]

Nonetheless, Graham knew above all else that he needed to protect the people he loved and cared about, the people that were still alive. He got to his feet for the first time in hours, and he walked over to the large chestnut dresser on the other side of the room. He opened one of the top two drawers, and sitting there was a pistol. Graham had been carrying a gun on him for years; he was the first person to admit that he was a paranoid person, but he felt he could never be too safe.

And now was a more perfect time than ever to be armed. There was a killer out there on the island, someone who had just brutally murdered his father, along with several other innocent people, no doubt.

Whoever that person was... Graham Deeley was going to make sure they'd pay.

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Dusk began to fall on Harper's Island. Julie Mathis had called up the trolley conductor to transport all the wedding guests to the marina so they could leave the island. It needed to be done.

As Julie, accompanied by several other wedding guests, waited outside for the trolley to arrive, she noticed someone in the distance, wearing what once had been a bright red dress, but was now dirt-stained and faded. Shea Allen was running, as fast as she could, toward the inn. She was clearly emotionally disheveled.

"Shea! What's going on?" Rachael Bingham asked her friend as Shea approached the crowd.

Shea took a few seconds to catch her breath before she could speak. "The marina... all the boats are gone. The harbormasters are dead..."

Several gasps were heard among the crowd, many of their faces showing complete terror.

"There's a killer on the island again!" screamed Shea.

"We know, Shea... at the wedding... my dad..." began Rachael, but her voice cracked and she stopped speaking.

Shea shook her head, still breathing heavily. "I can't.... I can't handle this..."

Julie, who perhaps looked the most terrified out of anyone, spoke up in as calm of a tone as she could muster. "Okay, everyone, seriously, let's try not to panic. Maybe we can get to the police station... if they're still there, I'm sure they can help us out. Maybe get a plane or helicopter or boat or something to come get us off this island."

"That's a good idea," said Rachael, who had now suddenly regained her composure.

"I don't know if we should all go, though," said Andrea Northcott. "I'd say maybe one or two people go and get some help. The rest of us stay here, where we're all together and... I dunno, maybe at least a little bit safe..."

"I saw a truck out in the lot, we might be able to use that," said Rachael.

"Perfect. Who wants to volunteer?" asked Ryan MacPherson.

Haley Mathis, the maid of honor, looked over at her boyfriend, Josh Weeks, who returned her stare. She nodded at him, and he very subtly nodded back.

"Josh and I will go. You guys stay here at the inn; stay together. We'll get there as soon as we can, and we'll call you up when we get some info," said Haley.

Julie suddenly started crying, and she threw her arms around her little sister. "Please be careful," she whispered.

Haley patted Julie on the back, then broke from the hug, grabbed Josh's hand, and pulled him along to the lot of the Candlewick, where a single green truck was parked. The doors were unlocked and the keys sat perfectly on the driver's seat, as if welcoming someone to just jump right in and drive it. Despite the suspicion of it all, Haley hopped right into the driver's seat as Josh took his place on the passenger's side. She thrust the keys into the ignition, turned it on, and drove out the gravely parking lot as music started blasting from the stereo system.

[MUSIC FROM THE EPISODE: "Falling Down" - Atreyu]

Due to the rocky conditions of the unpaved roads, Haley barely accelerated the car. At the same time, she was taking extra caution to keep an eye out for any surprises that might jump out. With a killer on the loose, needless to say it made her a bit nervous.

The road from the Candlewick to the police station brought the couple through a thick part of the woods, and the rocky street steadily began to steepen; the fact that the Candlewick was set on the highest point of Harper's Island meant that, naturally, the road would eventually be going downhill. As the angle of the road increased, the large truck began to pick up speed. Haley gently tapped the break.

Nothing happened.

Suddenly, Haley's heart began to rapidly beat. Josh looked over at his girlfriend, noticing she was starting to panic.

"Josh... Josh... the brakes..." she stuttered, gripping the steering wheel tightly, now trying to slam on the brakes, but with no result. The car was continuing to gain speed as the road grew even steeper. "JOSH!"

The road grew steeper and the car moved faster. There was nothing they could do. The car was moving too fast now for them to jump out; surely they'd be killed if they even tried. Haley spotted a giant, menacing oak tree right ahead of them, when the otherwise straight rocky road would finally make a turn. She knew she only had seconds left.

Haley Mathis looked over at her boyfriend, panicking and terrified, tears already forming in her eyes.

Josh Weeks looked over at her as well, showing hardly any emotion of his own. But Haley could have sworn she saw a single tear glimmering in his eye. A split second before the truck crashed explosively into the massive oak tree, Josh uttered three words, loudly and clearly.

"I love you."
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QUESTIONAIRE:

01. Who is/are the killers?
02. Who will die in Episode 6?
03. Who will escape Harper's Island?

Claudia, I know you're mad Haley died, but rejoice, Josh died with her.

HARPER'S ISLAND 2
EPISODE SIX: "SHATTER"

[THEME SONG: Immediate Music - "Dark Side of Power"]

An hour had passed since Haley Mathis and Josh Weeks had left for the police station; the sun had now set, nobody had heard anything from the couple, and Julie Mathis could only think the worst as she stood at one of the giant windows, glaring out into the darkness.

She ran her hands through her long blond hair, tears forming in her eyes, starting to panic. "There's something wrong. They should have called by now. The killer...the killer must have got them," she gasped, unable to hold back her tears any longer. She checked her phone again to see if she had missed a call, but there was nothing.

Andrea Northcott walked up behind her cousin and began to rub her shoulders to calm her down. "You can't assume the worst, babe. They could be lost, or they could have no service... there's, like, a million reasons why they haven't called."

Andrea's stepmother, Laurie, suddenly stepped into the scene. "I hate to be the wet blanket here, but this killer... I mean, they could be anywhere."

"If there is a killer on this island," said Gail Mathis, sitting on a nearby armchair, listening to the whole conversation, "it must be someone in this wedding party."

All three women shot looks of fear and terror at Gail after hearing this.

"You say you think Didi the innkeeper's been killed. Nobody else but this wedding party has access to this hotel for the entire week. And Bronson... he was killed and put on display at the wedding ceremony. It's got to be one of us."

Consumed so much by all the emotions that had overwhelmed her over the past few days, Gail spoke in a very matter-of-fact and desensitized tone. Even the prospect of her own daughter, Haley, being dead hadn't seemed to phase her. But all the while, the truth of Gail's statement hit Julie Mathis like a bag of bricks.

It only made sense for the killer to be a wedding guest.
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The Bingham family sat in an adjacent room; Luke and Bri sat on the large, plush couch while Rachael sat cuddled up on a sleeping Franklin's lap in a large chair. Shea Allen sat on a nearby stool, twiddling her thumbs, being able to think of nothing but all the death she had witnessed in just one day.

Bri broke the long stretch of silence that lingered in the room, and she turned to face Shea.

"You said your friend Abby's dead... what about the other guy who survived last time? Abby's boyfriend?" she asked quietly.

Rachael perked her head up and glared at her daughter. "Bri! Leave Shea alone!"

Shea simply waved her hand at Rachael. "It's okay, Rachael." She then looked Bri in the eye. "I'm going to tell him in due time, Bri. But for now, I don't think it would be a good idea to get him involved. For all I know, this killer could be out to kill all the survivors of the original massacre, and if that's true, I don't want to bring him, or Madison, into the mix."

Bri smirked comfortingly and patted Shea on the hand. "I think that's the best idea, Shea. We all need to get through this together."

Rachael and Luke exchanged concerned looks; perhaps it was the possibility that Bri had been summoning her Wicca powers to predict more things for the future? Perhaps it was the fact Bri was starting to become too close to Shea, who was essentially like a walking target? Or perhaps it was something else...

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Graham Deeley stood in his room, staring at the pistol in his hand. Every fiber of his being wanted so badly to find the culprit, find the person responsible for killing his father, and quite possibly killing other people he cared about, like Didi and Mikey.

Suddenly, without warning, someone burst through his bedroom door. His reflexes caused him to cock the gun and point it at the intruder, who let out a high-pitched scream.

It was Yulissa White.

"Graham! What the hell do you think you're doing?!" she shrieked.

Graham immediately put down the gun. "Yulie, what are you doing here?"

"I-I came here to see you! And I'm damn glad I did! Why are you holding a gun?!" she shouted.

"Shhh!" Graham shushed her and approached her, placing an arm on her shoulder to calm her down. "Relax, Yulie, I'm not gonna kill anyone."

"You... you didn't kill your dad, did you?" asked Yulissa, though she immediately regretted saying the words as soon as they left her mouth; she couldn't believe she was accusing Graham of murder. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean that."

"No, it's okay. It's okay. I didn't kill him. But whoever did is sure as hell gonna pay," he said, eying the gun again, and Yulissa looked uneasily at him.

Several seconds passed; Yulissa's heart pounded against her chest. She had come here to comfort Graham, to see how he was doing... but above all else, she came here to tell him something. To tell him her true feelings.

"Listen... Graham... there's something I have to tell you..." she said, her voice shaking.

"What is it, Yulie?" Graham asked after she went quiet for several seconds.

Yulissa took a deep breath, trying to find the strength to get the words out.

"Graham... I love you."

And suddenly, a rush of courage went through Yulissa. She did something that she had never had enough guts to do in her entire life, in spite of having these feelings for as long as she could remember. Yulissa lunged at Graham, threw her arms around him, and began to kiss him.

And, to Yulissa's delight, Graham did not pull away.

[MUSIC FROM THE EPISODE: Fiona Apple - "Criminal"]

The moment happened all so fast; it was like a blur. Yulissa pulled Graham's shirt off and began running her hands down his chiseled abs. He reciprocated and began to undress her as well. The two of them fell backwards onto the large, plush bed of the honeymoon suite.

The very bed that Julie and Graham were supposed to be happily sleeping in as the newly married couple.

_________________________________

Ryan MacPherson, Dale Mooney, Andrew McCaffrey, and Amanda Mathis were all gathered in the sitting room on the first floor, right near the front entrance of the Candlewick. The wedding guests had all agreed to stay in groups of at least three or four, as there was always strength in numbers.

Dale was sleeping soundly, his head laying on Ryan's shoulder, who in turn was stroking Dale's arm lovingly. Amanda, on the other hand, sat awkwardly beside Andrew. So many feelings were bottled up inside her. This was her moment, her chance... she was finally alone with Andrew, or as alone as she would likely ever get with him. She looked over at the gay couple sitting across from her, longingly wishing she had someone to care about her like that. The kiss between Andrea and Andrew kept replaying in her brain, as much as she tried to erase it completely.

Amanda decided it was finally time to act on her feelings. She looked over at Andrew, stared at him for several seconds, but he never returned her gaze. Instead, he simply stared into space, thinking about his brother, and how he was likely dead. He also was thinking of Andrea Northcott, the beautiful redhead, whom he had shared that passionate moment with earlier in the day. He thought of how much she had eased his pain, and how he wished she was here right now to comfort him again.

Suddenly, Amanda Mathis leaned in and awkwardly placed a kiss on Andrew's cheek, and he immediately turned his head to look at Amanda. She immediately blushed and pulled away.

"I'm... I'm sorry," she stuttered.

"Sorry Amanda, but now's really not the time," he said, and he looked away again, rubbing his temple, returning to his thoughts about his brother.

Amanda curled up into a ball on her chair and hugged her knees. She wanted to cry. She had been given this one chance, a perfect chance, to finally score with someone, to maybe finally get a boyfriend.

And she totally blew it.

_______________________________

More time had passed; it was almost 4 AM, and Julie was losing patience.

"Alright, I'm done waiting. We need to go out there and get help. It's been hours," she said, finally leaving her spot by the large window. Julie prayed for the best, that Haley and Josh had made it to the police station in one piece, that they were getting help and that everyone would soon be rescued... but she couldn't help but think the worst.

"Julie, it's not safe..." said Gail meekly.

"Mom! Haley's out there! She could be dead! Why aren't you as worried as I am?!"

Before waiting for a response from her mother, Julie looked around the large room, noticing it was emptier than it had been before. Her heart began to race.

"Where's Andrea and Laurie?"

The country singer and her beautiful stepdaughter had left the room, feeling Julie and Gail needed their space; after all, Haley had now gone missing. It was all very hard for Andrea to comprehend as well... she had been very close to her cousins Julie and Haley growing up (she had never really bonded much with Amanda). And with these murders occurring now, it was all very scary to her.

But there was one person here on the island with her that she trusted and loved more than anything. Laurie Northcott may not have been Andrea's biological mother, but she was the closest thing she had ever known to a real mother. The two had so much in common; in fact, Andrea considered Laurie as more of a sister than a mother. She felt so secure and safe with Laurie nearby.

As the two women strolled through the Candlewick, they made sure to remain extra cautious. Gail's statement had kept replaying in their minds, about how the killer had to have been one of the wedding guests. If that was the case, then the killer was almost definitely here in this building. Andrea almost started to regret leaving Julie and Gail, but she was a strong woman, and, together with Laurie, she felt confident she'd be able to take down any foe.

"How 'bout we go to the ballroom and play a little music? Calm our minds a bit?" asked Laurie in her Southern drawl.

Andrea nodded in agreement and the two women reached the giant doors leading to the ballroom, which was very dimly lit, the moonlight shining through the giant windows. As the women made their way to the other end of the ballroom where the grand piano sat majestically, Andrea could have sworn she heard a third pair of footsteps behind them.

Laurie took her seat on the cushy piano bench as Andrea stood nearby, resting her elbow upon the shiny piano top. Laurie began to play a soothing tune, which echoed eerily throughout the empty ballroom.

[MUSIC FROM THE EPISODE: Rascal Flatts - "Bless The Broken Road"]

Andrea and Laurie sang in unison, smiling and laughing as they did so. And then, Laurie stroked one of the higher keys on the piano, but scrunched her face in confusion when no noise emitted from the piano. They both stopped singing; Laurie tapped the key several times again, but no music was heard.

"Hmm. That's funny," she said.

Andrea lifted the cover of the piano to look inside; she immediately noticed one of the piano wires had been snapped and was missing.

"There's a wire missing..." said Andrea, still looking inside the piano. She was suddenly startled by a loud gasping and gagging sound. Andrea bolted upright to find the missing piano wire wrapped tightly around Laurie Northcott's neck. Laurie clawed at the wire, trying to get it off, but there was someone behind her pulling it tighter and tighter.

"Andrea... help..." Laurie choked, but the wire dug deeper into the country singer's neck, ripping into her vocal chords. Andrea was paralyzed with fear; she simply stood and watched the scene play out before her, not even getting a glance of the person strangling her stepmother.

Laurie kicked and struggled, but she was losing strength. Her eyes began rolling into the back of her head, and the wire was now cutting through her neck. Blood seeped from the cut, and with one final, powerful yank, the killer pulled on the wire. Laurie Northcott's head became detached from her neck and dropped on the floor with a loud thud. Andrea screamed, but the killer lunged forward and covered the redhead's mouth with their hand, silencing her cries for help, making sure nobody in the Candlewick heard her.

Andrea could think of nothing to do now but sob. Watching Laurie get murdered in front of her, Andrea suddenly felt powerless, defenseless. And then, the wire that had just killed her stepmother was now being wrapped around her own neck. Unlike Laurie, however, Andrea didn't put up a fight. She had lost all energy, all hope. Andrea had already accepted her fate.

In the moments before the piano wire beheaded the gorgeous Andrea Northcott, she looked up into the eyes of her killer; those wicked, remorseless eyes that seemed to smile with evil pleasure. Andrea couldn't believe that this was the person responsible for terrorizing the wedding.

But before she could think of anything else, everything went black, and Andrea's head plopped onto the floor, conveniently rolling and stopping right next to the head of her beloved stepmother.

______________________________

Hours passed, and sunlight finally began to peer its way over Harper's Island. Most of the wedding guests had fallen asleep in their positions, many of them exhausted after the long and stressful day. Gail had convinced Julie to get some rest and not worry about looking for people until the morning; as difficult as it was for her, Julie managed to fall asleep in her mother's arms.

Miles away from the Candlewick, in the small house of the Whites, Vance the reverend lay on his couch, having hardly gotten any sleep at all the night before. He felt terribly lonely, now more than ever, after the murder of Bronson Deeley. He had been unfortunate enough to live through both Harper's Island massacres, but had also been quite fortunate to have survived, along with his beloved daughter, Yulissa.

But now, he didn't feel quite so secure. He and Yulissa were involved now in this wedding. They were part of the central group that seemed to be getting targeted. This, to Vance, was not a good sign.

And, unlike the last two massacres, Yulissa had seemed so willing to leave her father's side and go off on her own. It made Vance nervous; he worried about his daughter every day, despite the fact that she was slipping away from him further and further by the minute, it seemed. But Vance couldn't help but be concerned about his daughter's safety. With yet another murderer on the loose, all he wanted right now was to be close with his daughter.

As much as he hated to think about it, each second they had spent together could possibly be their last.

As the sunlight started to peek through the windows of the Whites' house, glistening the glass and creating unique shapes and patterns on the walls and floors, Vance sprung up off the couch for the first time in hours and rushed to the closet near the front door. He snatched his black coat off the hanger, flung it over his shoulders, and forcefully stormed out the door.

He couldn't take it anymore. He wasn't going to sit here in his house, alone, doing nothing. He needed to be with the wedding party to support them, to help protect them. And most importantly, he needed to be with his daughter.

___________________________________

Julie Mathis woke up as soon as the sun began to slightly light up the room in which she had been sleeping. Her mother, Gail, was still snoring slightly in the large armchair. The pretty young blonde stood up; she had been well rested, but she had certainly not forgotten anything about last night. She needed to find her friends and family. But first, there was one person she wanted to see more than anyone else right now.

Her groom. Graham Deeley.

Julie briskly walked through the hotel, searching for the love of her life. She needed to see him, to have him comfort her, to help her deal with all the stress she was feeling. She was sure he was also going through a lot of stress and heartache right now, and she figured he would need Julie to comfort her as well.

One of the last places she looked was the honeymoon suite. She opened the door, walked in, and her heart dropped.

There, on the bed, under the covers, with no clothes on, sleeping in each other's arms, were Graham Deeley and Yulissa White.

_______________________________

More and more of the wedding guests began to wake up, and eventually they all met together in the large sitting room. Julie had returned, but was remaining very quiet. Tears were streaming down her face, but nobody questioned her, assuming she had just been overcome with emotion over the events at the wedding.

"Alright, we haven't gotten any word from Haley or Josh, right?" said Andrew McCaffrey, who had decided to conduct the meeting.

There was no response, so Andrew continued.

"We're not gonna get anything accomplished by sitting here in the Candlewick, so I think the best thing for us to do is to stick together and just search the island, see if anybody else is around. We'll be fine if we stay together in a group, but we'll need to be armed. I know there's a gun cabinet here in the inn, and there should be enough for about half of us."

The group agreed; Andrew led them all to the cabinet located right near Didi's room. Inside were shotguns, which he handed to himself, Ryan, Dale, Franklin, and Luke. There was a sixth gun inside.

"Do any of the women know how to shoot a shotgun?" asked Andrew, but before he got an answer, another male voice spoke up.

"I'll take that last gun, Andrew." Graham Deeley stood in the back of the group, with Yulissa standing by his side.

Julie suddenly felt a surge of anger and hatred. Graham stepped forward, received the gun from Andrew, and rubbed Julie's shoulder as he walked past her again. Another tear fell down her face, but she quickly wiped it away. Now was not the time to let her emotions get the better of her; first and foremost, she needed to get off this island safely.

The group of thirteen - Amanda Mathis, Andrew McCaffrey, Bri Bingham, Dale Mooney, Franklin Bingham, Gail Mathis, Graham Deeley, Julie Mathis, Luke Bingham, Rachael Bingham, Ryan MacPherson, Shea Allen, and Yulissa White - all traversed the island together, in a tight cluster, trying to stay safe. None of them for certain knew who or what exactly they were trying to stay safe from; for all they knew, the killer could have been within their cluster of people right now. But if that was the case, the killer would be absurd to do anything now, with six people armed with powerful shotguns.

They walked down deserted roads, through thick forests, up rocky hills, all the while seeing no sign of human life. The island was like a ghost town.

"Where the hell is everyone?" muttered Ryan under his breath, holding his shotgun up high, ready to fire at any disturbance.

Ryan, Graham, Andrew, Dale, and Franklin were all cautiously walking with their guns, while Luke, at only 18 years old, was smiling the whole time. It was his first time ever holding a real gun, one with a lot of power, one with the ability to kill just about anything with only one blow. He couldn't think of any greater pleasure than this.

Suddenly, Franklin heard something rustling as the group made its way through some woods. He immediately raised his gun up to eye level and put his finger on the trigger. Someone stumbled out from behind a thicket of trees, and Franklin was just about to fire when Vance White yelled out and threw his arms into the air.

"Don't shoot! Don't shoot!" he begged.

"Franklin, put the gun down!" screamed Rachael, lunging at her husband and grabbing his wrists, pulling his arms down and seeming almost deranged as she did so.

"Dad! What are you doing out here?" Yulissa said as she made her way to the front of the group, getting closer to her father.

Vance didn't respond, but simply embraced his daughter in a hug and started to sob.

"Oh Yulie... I was so worried about you..."

After a few seconds, Yulissa pulled herself out of the hug and looked her father in the eye. "Dad, is there anybody else on the island? Anyone?"

"I... I haven't seen anyone... the place is practically deserted," he said, hiccuping through his tears.

"How the hell did everyone get off the island? This murderer couldn't have possibly killed every single person on this island in one night," said Gail.

"Who knows? Maybe Haley and Josh got to the police station okay, told them what was going on, and the island got evacuated," said Dale.

"Then why weren't we informed? And why haven't Haley and Josh gotten back to us?!" snapped Julie.

"Well, actually..." said Vance, starting to regain his composure. "There is something I should tell you all. The day before the wedding, I received a phone call from the police saying that they were evacuating the island temporarily. I asked why, but they wouldn't give me an answer. I... I should have told you all, but I figured we would continue with the wedding and leave immediately after. But... but then I got word that all the boats in the harbor were gone, and now we haven't heard anything from the police..."

"Dad... why, why wouldn't you have told us?! If they were evacuating the island, of course it had to have been serious!" shouted Yulissa.

"I know, I know! When I got that call I thought it was some kind of sick prank; the voice didn't sound anything like any police officer I know on this island! He told me he was Officer Rick when I asked, but the guy on the phone sounded nothing like Rick..."

"Alright, alright, now's not the time to worry about that. There's nothing we can do about it now," said Andrew, trying to take control of the situation. "It still wouldn't hurt to search the island and see if anyone else stayed behind. We're gonna need all the help we can get."

With Vance White now part of the group, there were now fourteen wedding guests roaming the island together - the only fourteen survivors remaining.

It wasn't much longer before they reached what was commonly known to locals as the "Harper's Plaza"; it was where all the major businesses were located, mainly the Cannery and the Harper's Island clinic. The group figured both were perfect places to search and scope out; as two of the biggest landmarks on the island, they would probably be good hiding places for anyone who may have encountered the killer, and they would also be good places to search for more weapons and, in the case of the clinic, some First Aid supplies to carry around with the group.

The fourteen survivors divided themselves in half to search the two places - Andrew, Bri, Graham, Luke, Shea, Vance, and Yulissa all went to the Cannery to gather up supplies and search for bodies or survivors. The rest of the group - Amanda, Dale, Franklin, Gail, Julie, Rachael, and Ryan - all went to the clinic to search for medical kits as well as bodies or survivors.

___________________________

As expected, the Cannery was empty. Nonetheless, the seven people exploring the Cannery decided to go their separate ways to find anything they could use; Andrew, Graham, and Shea stayed in the main bar area to find any supplies they thought they would need; Bri and Yulissa searched the storage room together; Vance went into the tool shed in the backyard to find any possible weapons; and Luke searched the small garage.

In the storage room of the Cannery, Yulissa frantically searched through the various cabinets, trying to find anything useful besides alcohol. Meanwhile, Bri Bingham simply propelled herself up onto one of the counters and sat there, dangling her feet and watching Yulissa.

"You have a thing for my uncle, don't you?" asked Bri, very bluntly.

Yulissa stopped what she was doing and shot Bri a look. "...What?"

"You and my uncle Graham. You're having an affair, aren't you?"

"Honey, I don't think that's any of your business," snapped Yulissa, and she continued looking through the cabinets.

Bri shrugged. "I guess it's not... but if you do wind up with my uncle, I just gotta warn you. My family is really messed up."

Yulissa stopped again and looked back at Bri. "What do you mean by that?"

"I mean, my grandpa, he wasn't all there in the head. My dad's a psycho and I think he's messed my mom up pretty bad. Luke, my brother... he's got some anger management issues or something. And then there's me... I mean, I'll be the first to admit I'm a weird, weird girl."

"What are you trying to say?" snapped Yulissa impatiently.

"From what I know about him, Graham seems pretty normal. But I'm just letting you know the history of the Deeley family. I know you've known him since you were kids or whatever. But... I'd be careful if I were you."

Yulissa raised an eyebrow at Bri, seeming a bit freaked out by the conversation. She paused before asking her next question. "Did you tell any of this to Julie when she started dating Graham?"

A contorted smile appeared on Bri's face, and she shook her head. "You're way nicer than that bitch Julie Mathis."

_______________________________

The tool shed behind the Cannery was much bigger than Vance had expected; he knew his daughter Yulissa had never even gone inside as long as she had been manager of the bar. The shed must have been used by whoever originally built the Cannery, as carpentry tools lined the walls left and right.

Vance walked to the back of the shed where he found several large metal rods. He figured these would be perfect to use as combat weapons.

It seemed as though someone else had the same idea.

Vance had left the shed door open after he had entered, so he didn't even hear someone walk in behind him. He also didn't hear one of the metal rods being carefully removed from its hinges on the wall of the shed.

He did, however, hear the words spoken by the intruder.

"You should have left the island when you had the chance, you dumb bastard."

Vance's heart skipped several beats as he whirled around, but before he could even get a clear look at the killer, his head was smashed by the heavy metal rod, cracking his skull and killing him immediately.

The body crumpled to the floor like a sack of potatoes. The killer lay the rod gently beside the corpse, trying to make as little noise as possible to avoid being detected by any of the other wedding guests. The killer walked back towards the door of the tool shed, creaked the door shut, and walked away.

____________________________________

At the Harper's Island clinic, which was also completely deserted, the group of seven had decided to go their own separate ways as well, each searching the various areas of the rather large medical facility to find any supplies.

Amanda, Gail, and Julie had all begun to search the lower level. There was quite a bit of awkward tension between Amanda and Julie, as neither of them had spoken to each other since their heated falling-out. In addition, each of them had their own built-up anger that was bringing them both to their boiling points; Amanda had been turned away by Andrew, while Julie had found her own fiance in bed with her friend.

"I just want you to know, Jules... you won't be getting an apology from me," said Amanda bitterly as the three women searched one of the hospital rooms.

"I'm not expecting anything from you, you bitch," sneered Julie.

"Girls, girls... what is going on here?" asked Gail. "This is not the time to be arguing."

There was a long pause, but then Gail spoke again. "But I think this is a good time for me to confess something to both of you, since I've got you both here." Gail took a deep breath, ready to lay out her dirty laundry. She told her daughters everything she had done; from the embezzlement, to framing her own brother, to having an affair with the family doctor.

"Mom... I don't know what to say...." said Julie, in a state of shock at what she was hearing. It seemed everything that people had told her about her mother, for all these years, had actually been justified. And she had been so oblivious to it all. She always thought her mother was perfect.

"I don't expect your forgiveness. But this is something that needed to be said. And with all this going on right now... who knows if this is the last time I'll get the chance to tell you..." Gail suddenly started to break down, and the three women joined together in a hug.

Gail Mathis sobbed into her two daughters' shoulders. She didn't want this moment to end.

_____________________________________

Rachael and Franklin Bingham had gone to the third floor, which had been were all of the more powerful medical drugs and supplies were securely stored. Franklin kept his shotgun tightly in his hands, still ready to fire at any moment in spite of the clinic being completely deserted.

"Franklin... you need to relax," snapped Rachael at her husband. "For one second at least, put the damn gun down."

"What are you so edgy about? You don't want me to protect you, is that it?" said Franklin, almost in a growl.

Rachael paused; her anger was starting to build up. "Oh, I see. After 20 years of abusing me and treating me like scum, now you're deciding to protect me? That's a load of bull****, Frank. You've been a terrible husband to me and you've been a terrible father!" yelled Rachael. She was angry, but at the same time, she felt great. This was the first time in 20 years of being married to Franklin that she was finally getting to express her true feelings to him.

Franklin stopped in his tracks, still holding the gun. He slowly turned his head to look at Rachael. "...What did you say to me?"

Rachael's face was turning bright red with anger. "You heard me. You've treated me like I was less than human, you've never been there when the kids need you... hell, you spent almost half our marriage locked up behind bars. You're a pathetic excuse for a human being."

There was a pause, but then Franklin chuckled. "Oh yeah? So why the hell have you been my wife for 20 years?!"

"Oh, trust me, I would have left you in a second if I wanted to! But in case you've forgotten, Franklin, we have two kids who are both unstable as it is! If we left each other it would have sent them both over the edge!"

"Well I don't know if you've noticed, sweetheart... but you come from an entire family of nutcases! If anything, our kids are unstable because of you!"

Franklin pointed an accusatory finger at Rachael, whose face was now contorted in anger. She began to shake and shudder, clenching her fists so tightly that her knuckles began to turn white.

"I have nothing more to say to you," she said in a quiet voice, tears now forming in her eyes. She couldn't bear to have her husband see her break down again, so she walked away briskly and left the room they were standing in, slamming the door on her way out.

Franklin Bingham was a bit taken aback by what had just happened; Rachael had always been quite the pushover over the years. He was the king of his home, and she had been like his loyal queen. If she did something he didn't like, he would punish her. It had become like a routine. But now, all of a sudden, she was lashing out at him, letting her true feelings be known. Franklin had assumed, for 20 years, that Rachael was perfectly content with her life.

Apparently, he was wrong.

Franklin continued to search the third floor of the clinic by himself; he knew his wife didn't want to see him now, and at the same time, he didn't really want to see her either. Part of him wanted to raise the gun and blow her brains out as she was telling him off and insulting him... but part of him still loved the woman, too. He didn't know why... but he still loved Rachael.

The ex-convict tried to forget about what had just happened, as there were bigger things going on right now. A killer was on the loose and he needed to get off this island.

The third floor of the clinic was full of small rooms and long corridors; Franklin would have never guessed the building was this big looking at it from the outside. He searched each small room individually, grabbing any medical supplies he thought would be useful. He reached the end of the main corridor, where he saw that one of the doors was wide open. The sign posted next to the door read "LABORATORY: PROCEED WITH CAUTION". Franklin chuckled slightly at the sign and, shotgun still in his grip, he entered the lab.

Chemicals and toxins were stored in vials and beakers all throughout the lab. It was all very fascinating to Franklin; he examined each one of them closely, wondering what each of them was used for. They were all labeled with crazy medical mumbo-jumbo names that Franklin barely understood, but he was still intrigued by it all. As he made his way around the room, he noticed there was one empty slot: liquid nitrogen.

As Franklin thought of why this one chemical would be missing, he heard the faint sound of clinking glass behind him. He gripped his gun tighter than ever and whirled around. He caught a quick glimpse of someone else standing in the room with him, but before he could react, something was thrown at his face... a liquid.

Suddenly, all the muscles in Franklin's face began to tighten at an extreme rate and extremely painfully; he could hear crackling as his entire face began to harden. He could no longer see and could no longer breath; his face was completely frozen solid.

For the first time since he left the Candlewick, the shotgun slipped from his hands. The killer grabbed the shotgun and forcefully slammed the butt of the gun into Franklin's frozen face, shattering it into several dark red pieces, the color of Franklin's blood.

The body crumpled to the floor like a sack of potatoes. The killer lay the gun gently beside the corpse, walked back towards the door of the lab, creaked the door shut, and walked away.