The May Day King Is Dead: A Free Mystery Plotting Game | Cover Up the Murder

April 26, 2026

The May Day King Is Dead

You don't solve this mystery. You build it.

This time, we're doing something different. You're choosing your weapon. You're meeting seven suspects. And you don't find out who the killer is until Step 6, because the killer is whoever you decide it is.

All you need is a journal, a pen, and a willingness to frame innocent people. This game is replayable. Pick a different weapon next time and the whole mystery changes.

Let's go.

The Setting

Founders' Park sits in the center of Millbrook like a postcard somebody forgot to update. There's a white gazebo, a duck pond nobody's cleaned since the Clinton administration, and a freshly painted maypole rising twenty feet out of a grassy clearing ringed with vendor tents, flower garlands, and enough passive aggression to power the Eastern Seaboard.

Today is May Day. The whole town is here. There are paper cone baskets stuffed with foxglove and sweet william. There are ribbons streaming from the maypole in every pastel color the hardware store had in stock. Inside Town Hall, a bronze Medal of Honor sits in a velvet case in the mayor's office, polished and ready for tomorrow's ceremony. A chunky beaded necklace of painted wooden beads is draped over the May Day King's throne near the stage.

The May Day King won't be needing any of it. Because the May Day King is dead.

The Victim

Grant Holloway

Real estate developer. Con artist. Millbrook's prodigal son.

Grant left town eight years ago after a Main Street renovation project ate through a $400,000 community development grant and produced exactly nothing. Half the storefronts on Maple Avenue still have plywood in the windows. He made a fortune in the city, came back with a tan and a publicist, and somehow convinced the town council to crown him May Day King.

Everyone smiled. Nobody forgot.

Step 1: Roll the Bones

Choose your weapon. Meet your suspects. Don't get attached.

Welcome to Millbrook. Population: nosy. Median age: old enough to hold a grudge. Primary industry: gossip.

It's May Day. The park smells like fresh-cut grass and resentment. Grant Holloway is dead, and you've got six suspects, three possible weapons, and one very uncooperative cat sitting on the gazebo railing like it knows something.

It does. It always does.

YOUR FIRST MOVE: CHOOSE YOUR WEAPON

This is new. You don't get the weapon handed to you this time. You choose it. Roll a die (1-2, 3-4, or 5-6), close your eyes and point, or just pick the one that makes your brain itch. Each weapon changes everything about how this mystery works.

Roll 1-2: The Medal of Honor
A heavy bronze Medal of Honor on a thick ceremonial ribbon, stored in a velvet case in the mayor's locked office at Town Hall. Grant was supposed to receive it at tomorrow morning's ceremony. Instead, he was found on the ground behind the gazebo, the ribbon twisted tight around his throat, the medal itself pressed into the bruising like a signature.

Grant was intoxicated. The festival had been generous with the wine, and witnesses confirm he was unsteady on his feet by 9 PM. That makes the strangulation possible for someone without overwhelming strength. But here's the problem: this medal was locked in the mayor's office. Whoever used it knew it existed, knew where it was stored, and had access to Town Hall after hours. This wasn't a crime of passion. This was planned.

Roll 3-4: The Beaded Necklace
A ceremonial necklace of chunky hand-painted wooden beads, each about the size of a walnut. It was draped over the May Day King's throne before the ceremony. Grant was found slumped behind the gazebo. The necklace was gone, but the marks on his throat tell the story: deep, round impressions that could be mistaken for fingerprints if you weren't paying attention.

Someone got close enough to loop this around his neck and pull. Someone strong enough to hold on while he fought. Or someone who caught him when he couldn't fight back.

Roll 5-6: The Maypole Ribbons
Twenty satin ribbons, each fifteen feet long, streaming from the top of the maypole. Grant was found tangled in them, suspended two feet off the ground, ribbons wrapped tight around his throat and torso. It looked almost decorative. Almost festive. Almost like an accident.

But ribbons don't tie themselves into knots. And the bruising says he was alive when they tightened. Someone used the pole's own rigging, maybe a ladder, maybe the crank mechanism for the ribbon spools. Someone who understood how the maypole worked.

Got your weapon? Good. Jot it down. Everything that follows depends on this choice.

WHY YOUR WEAPON MATTERS

The medal points to premeditation. Someone planned this. The necklace and ribbons point to opportunity. Someone snapped. That distinction changes your entire mystery. A premeditated killer covers their tracks differently than someone who acted in the moment. A killer who planned this is cool, methodical, and has an alibi prepared. A killer who grabbed what was available is panicking, sloppy, and desperate. Your weapon tells you who your killer is before you even know their name.

THE CASE FILE

Case Number: MM-0501
Setting: The Millbrook May Day Festival, Founders' Park
Victim: Grant Holloway
Cause of Death: Determined by your weapon choice
Scene: Founders' Park, during the May Day Festival. Body found behind the gazebo.

YOUR MISSION

You don't know who killed Grant Holloway. Not yet. This time, you're building the mystery from the ground up. You've got six suspects below, and over the next six steps, you'll discover complications, eliminate possibilities, and by Step 6, you'll choose the killer yourself.

You'll decide who did it. How they did it. Whether they had help. And why.

But first, you need your lineup.

Meet Your Suspects

Suspect 1: Mayor Diane Kettrick | Mayor of Millbrook
Diane greenlit Grant's original Main Street project eight years ago. When it collapsed, she lost the next election by eleven votes. She clawed her way back into office on a platform of fiscal responsibility and very public grudge-holding. She's the one who proposed crowning Grant as May Day King. She says it was about healing. Everyone else says it was about optics.

She's been pressuring the police chief to solve this fast, which is exactly what someone who wants to control the narrative would do.
Motive: Power
Why they're suspicious: Controlling the investigation. History of public humiliation by victim. Political motive to either honor OR destroy him.

Suspect 2: Derek Holloway | Grant's Cousin, Owner of Holloway Construction
Derek's the family man. He stayed in Millbrook, married his high school sweetheart, built a construction company from his dad's old pickup truck. When Grant left, Derek's company almost went under because the Main Street project contracts dried up overnight. He spent five years paying off the debts.

Now Grant's back, promising to restart development, and Derek stands to make a fortune. He's the first one crying at the crime scene, and the last one anyone wants to suspect. Family loyalty runs deep in Millbrook. So does family debt.
Motive: Money
Why they're suspicious: Financial ties to victim. Family access. Publicly grieving (maybe too publicly). Knows the park grounds from construction work.

Suspect 3: Reggie Farnham | Owner of Farnham's Landscape & Nursery
The Farnham family has run the nursery on Route 9 for three generations. When Grant's project collapsed, the landscaping contracts that would've kept them flush for two years vanished. Reggie's father had a heart attack that winter. Reggie blames Grant personally and has said so, loudly, at every town meeting since.

He's also the one who supplied the foxglove for the May baskets. He knows which flowers are pretty and which ones will kill you. He's strong enough to overpower most people. And he's been seen near the maypole all morning.
Motive: Fear
Why they're suspicious: Access to poisonous plants. Physical strength. Public grudge. Present near crime scene all day.

Suspect 4: Lacey Yun | May Day Festival Committee Chair (Grant's Ex)
Lacey dated Grant in their twenties, back when he was charming and she believed in renovation projects. She's the one with the clipboard and the walkie-talkie and the color-coded volunteer schedule. She planned this entire festival, including the ceremony that crowned the man who ghosted her.

She says she's over it. She organized his coronation, didn't she? But the volunteer who handled the maypole ribbons reported to Lacey. The person who placed the ceremonial necklace on the throne reported to Lacey. Everything in this park today went through Lacey's clipboard.
Motive: Love
Why they're suspicious: Ex-girlfriend. Controlled every logistical detail of the festival. Access to all props and staging. Still bitter? Or just organized?

Suspect 5: Tomas Reyes | Parks and Recreation Director (Grant's Other Ex)
Tomas runs every park, trail, and public green space in Millbrook. He and Grant had a thing nobody talked about back when Grant still lived here. Then Grant left. Tomas stayed. He threw himself into his work, cleaned up Founders' Park, planted the memorial garden, fought for the duck pond budget.

He was seen arguing with Grant behind the gazebo an hour before the body was found. He also knows something about toxic runoff that was dumped on the east side of the park during Grant's original construction project. Something he may have helped cover up.

One more thing: Tomas has his right arm in a sling. He took a bad fall during last weekend's disc golf championship and tore something in his shoulder. He's been doing everything one-handed all day, which the whole festival noticed. That makes wielding a heavy weapon very difficult. Difficult, but maybe not impossible.
Motive: Fear
Why they're suspicious: Secret romantic history. Arguing with victim before death. Environmental cover-up. Knows every inch of the park. Arm in a sling (convenient excuse, or genuine injury?).

Suspect 6: Bev Marston | President of the Millbrook Garden Club
Bev is seventy-two years old and has won the county flower competition for eleven years running. She organized the May basket station, taught a foxglove arrangement class that morning, and has been making passive-aggressive comments about Grant's return since the town council vote.

Her late husband invested their retirement savings in Grant's Main Street project. She lost everything. She volunteers at every town event, knows everyone's business, and has a greenhouse full of plants that could kill a man six different ways. She smiles a lot. It doesn't reach her eyes.
Motive: Money
Why they're suspicious: Lost retirement savings to victim. Expert knowledge of poisonous plants. Access to all festival decorations. Quiet fury.

THE GUILT CHECKLIST

For each suspect, track these four things:

Means and Opportunity: Could they access the weapon? Were they near the victim?
Visible Motive: What's their reason to want Grant dead?
No Alibi: Can they account for their time?
Acting Suspicious: What about their behavior feels off?

THINK IT OVER

Who's your gut pick for guiltiest right now? Jot it down. We'll see if you still feel that way by Step 6.

Which suspect made you feel a little bad? The one where you thought, "I hope it's not them." That one's going to be important.

Look at your weapon. Who, physically, could have done this? Who couldn't?

STUCK? Consider this: Mayor Kettrick has a master key to Town Hall. Lacey Yun controlled every prop and staging detail at the festival. And Bev Marston helped decorate the gazebo that morning, which means she was alone with the crime scene before anyone else arrived. Sometimes access matters more than strength.

Tomorrow, things get creepy. You're adding a seventh suspect, and this one's going to make you uncomfortable.

Step 2: The Seventh Suspect

Your editor called. She wants you to add a child to the suspect list. Yes, really.

Your editor called. She's eating something crunchy and she has notes.

"The lineup's fine," she says, which from her is practically a Pulitzer nomination. "But it's too safe. Everyone's an adult with a motive and a grudge. That's Tuesday in a cozy mystery. I need something that makes the reader's skin crawl. Add a kid."

You heard her.

TODAY'S COMPLICATION: ADD A MIDDLE SCHOOLER

Wren was supposed to carry the May Day crown in the processional. They were backstage with Grant right before the ceremony. They were seen running from the direction of the maypole fifteen minutes before the body was found. And they haven't said a word to anyone since.

Here's the thing. Wren overheard something. Or saw something. Or both. They're thirteen and terrified, and every adult in this park has a reason to want them to stay quiet.

Your challenge: make this kid your primary red herring. A thirteen-year-old who looks guiltier than everyone else in your lineup. How? That's your problem. That's what makes it creepy. That's what makes it Agatha Christie (I won't spoil the book but if you know...you know).

Name: Wren Kettrick
Role: Mayor Kettrick's 13-year-old grandchild
Why they're suspicious: Alone with victim before ceremony. Fled the scene. Won't talk. Connected to the mayor. Too young to suspect, which is exactly why a reader would.

THE CRAFT: WHY THIS WORKS

Agatha Christie did this. She put children near crime scenes and let the reader squirm. A child suspect isn't about whether the kid actually did it. It's about what the kid represents: an investigation so desperate that nobody's safe from suspicion. It's about adults who would let a child take the fall.

The real question isn't "did the kid do it?" It's "who benefits from making it look like the kid could have?"

Think about your weapon. Could a thirteen-year-old have used it? Probably not alone. But what if they helped? What if they were there when it happened? What if they're covering for someone they love?

YOUR CHALLENGE

Make Wren your primary red herring. Not the killer. The person who looks guiltier than anyone else in your lineup. A reader should be able to argue, with evidence, that this thirteen-year-old committed murder. Think about:

Proximity to the crime scene at the right time.
A reason to hate Grant (what did Wren overhear about what Grant did to their grandmother's career?).
Access to the weapon, even if it seems implausible.
Why every adult in the park would point at Wren instead of each other.

THINK IT OVER

What did Wren see behind the gazebo? Which adult suspect benefits most from Wren looking guilty? That person just became 30% more suspicious.

STUCK? Wren is the mayor's grandchild. The mayor has a key to Town Hall. If Wren grabbed grandmother's keys and was seen near the mayor's office, that looks very bad, even if Wren was just returning them. Now think about who would plant that idea. Also consider: what if Wren didn't see the murder at all, but saw someone moving the weapon afterward? That's scarier, because now Wren is a witness the killer needs to silence.

Step 3, someone confesses. And you're going to have to decide whether to believe them.

Step 3: The Confession

Someone says they did it. They're lying. Probably. Maybe. Are they?

Your editor called again. She sounds delighted, which is terrifying.

"Chapter 9," she says. "Someone walks into the police station and confesses. Full confession. Motive, method, opportunity. They're crying. It's very convincing. Now make me doubt it."

TODAY'S COMPLICATION: SOMEONE CONFESSES

One of your suspects walks into the Millbrook Police Department and says they killed Grant Holloway. They describe the weapon. They describe the moment. They have a motive that makes sense.

Pick your confessor. This is your choice. But here's what you need to figure out:

THREE TYPES OF FALSE CONFESSIONS

1. The Protector. They're confessing to protect someone else. Who? The obvious answer is a family member, a lover, or the kid. But what if it's someone unexpected? What if the person they're protecting isn't even a suspect yet?

2. The Gambler. They're confessing because they think it will get them OFF the hook. In mystery plotting, this is the suspect who figures that a dramatic confession followed by a dramatic recantation makes them look innocent. "I was so distraught I said anything." It's a calculated move to remove themselves from suspicion permanently.

3. The Guilty One Playing Innocent. What if the person confessing actually did it, and the confession is the cover? A confession that's mostly true but wrong about one key detail. The weapon. The timing. The motive. A confession that will fall apart in court, guaranteeing they can never be tried again.

YOUR CHALLENGE

Choose your confessor. Then figure out:

What exactly do they confess to? (Method, motive, timing)
What's the one detail they get wrong?
Why are they really confessing? (Protector, Gambler, or Guilty?)
Who benefits from this confession?
Who panics when they hear about it?

THE CRAFT: WHY CONFESSIONS MATTER

A confession in Chapter 9 does three things to your mystery. It gives the reader a false sense of resolution. Just when they thought they were getting somewhere, the ground shifts. It reveals character. The type of person who would confess to murder, whether guilty or not, tells you everything about who they are. And it reshuffles the suspect ranking. Everyone who was number one on the guilt list? They just dropped. Everyone who was flying under the radar? They just became interesting.

THINK IT OVER

Does the confessor's story actually work with the physical evidence from your weapon? Where does it break?

STUCK? Try Derek Holloway as the Protector. He's Grant's cousin, family loyalty runs deep, and what if he's covering for someone in his family? His confession describes the necklace in perfect detail, but he gets the time wrong by an hour. Why? Because he wasn't there. He only knows what somebody told him. Now ask: who told him? That's your real suspect climbing the ranks. Or try Bev Marston as the Gambler. A seventy-two-year-old woman confessing to murder is so dramatic, so unlikely, that when the confession falls apart, nobody will ever suspect her again. Unless that's exactly what she's counting on.

Step 4, the confession falls apart. And two of your suspects are about to be cleared.

Step 4: The Collapse

The confession crumbles. Two suspects walk. Your weapon just became your biggest problem.

Your editor called. She's in a good mood, which means she's about to make your life difficult.

"The confession doesn't hold," she says. "Obviously. But here's what I need: by the end of this chapter, both men with the physical strength to have done this are cleared. Solid alibis. Surveillance footage. Ironclad. Gone. Which means whoever killed Grant Holloway did it without brute force. Figure it out."

TODAY'S COMPLICATION: THE STRONG SUSPECTS ARE CLEARED

The confession has fallen apart. Your confessor has recanted, lawyered up, or been caught in their own lie. But the investigation shook loose something useful: alibis.

Derek Holloway and Reggie Farnham, the two men most physically capable of wielding your weapon, are now cleared. Security camera footage from Farnham's truck shows him on Route 9 during the window. Derek was on a phone call with a client, cell tower records confirmed.

They didn't do it. They couldn't have.

SO WHO DID?

Look at your remaining suspects: Mayor Kettrick. Lacey. Tomas (with his arm in a sling). Bev. Wren.

Now look at your weapon.

If you rolled the Medal: Grant was strangled with the ribbon of a medal locked in the mayor's office. He was drunk, which helps, but someone still had to get into Town Hall, get the medal, get to Grant, and get close enough to loop that ribbon around his neck. This was premeditated. So who among your remaining suspects had the planning ability, the access to the mayor's office, and the cold blood to execute it?

If you rolled the Necklace: Close-contact strangulation with a heavy beaded necklace. Grant was intoxicated, which makes this more plausible, but someone still had to grab the necklace and get behind him without him noticing. This looks unplanned. A weapon of convenience, grabbed in a moment of rage or panic. Who among your remaining suspects was close enough to snap?

If you rolled the Ribbons: Grant was tangled in maypole ribbons, wrapped and suspended. The rigging alone would take time and mechanical knowledge. This also looks unplanned, a weapon of opportunity, but one that required knowing how the maypole mechanism worked. Who among your remaining suspects understands the equipment?

YOUR CHALLENGE: THE PHYSICS PROBLEM

Don't skip this. This is the puzzle at the heart of your mystery. Think through:

Which remaining suspects had access to the weapon?
For each one, how could they have physically accomplished this? Be specific. Think about tools, leverage, timing, surprise.
Could two suspects have worked together? If so, which pair? And what does that do to your motive structure?
What if the victim cooperated? What if Grant didn't know what was happening until it was too late?

LEVERAGE HINTS

Let's set a constraint to help you navigate a plot that is quickly becoming complicated.

Say Grant was intoxicated by 9 PM. Witnesses confirm it. That changes the math for all three weapons. A drunk man doesn't fight back as hard, doesn't notice someone behind him, doesn't question why someone's leading him behind the gazebo. The mayor's office key hangs on a hook in the Town Hall lobby during festivals (the building's open for restrooms). The beaded necklace was on an unguarded table near the stage. The maypole has a crank mechanism for the ribbon spools. Access is your friend. Strength is overrated.

THINK IT OVER

Pick your most unlikely suspect. Now figure out exactly how they could have done it. Be specific about body mechanics, tools, and timing. Did the killer act alone, or is there an accomplice?

STUCK?

Ideation requires a spark to get your brainstorming session going. Here's a few:

Think about Bev Marston. She's seventy-two, but she doesn't need to overpower anyone. Grant was drunk. Bev is always helpful, always around, always offering things. What if she offered to walk him to his car? What if she led him behind the gazebo? If your weapon is the Medal, she doesn't need strength. She needs the ribbon looped and Grant too intoxicated to react. If your weapon is the Necklace, she was at the throne setting up decorations all day. She had access. If your weapon is the Ribbons, she helped decorate the maypole and knows the crank mechanism.

Or consider Tomas. His arm is in a sling, which makes him seem like the least capable suspect. But does it? What if the injury is exaggerated? What if he can use his left hand just fine? What if the sling is the best alibi a killer ever wore? (Ahem, Ted Bundy).

And don't overlook a pair: what if Lacey Yun set up the logistics and someone else delivered the blow? The person with the clipboard always knows where everyone will be and when.

On to Step 5, the killer made a mistake. They tried to frame someone else, and it's going to tell you more about them than any alibi ever could.

Step 5: The Frame Job

The killer planted evidence. They were sloppy about it. That's how you catch them.

Your editor called. She sounds impressed. Don't get used to it.

"Okay, I'll admit it," she says. "The suspect pool is tight. But your killer is too clean right now. They need to have made a mistake. Not a big one. A small one. The kind of mistake someone makes when they're panicking and trying to point the finger somewhere else."

TODAY'S COMPLICATION: PLANTED EVIDENCE

Your killer didn't just kill Grant Holloway. They tried to make someone else look guilty. And the evidence they planted is about to be found.

THE PLANTED EVIDENCE

Think about your weapon. Now think about what the killer would want to get rid of, and where they'd want it found.

If you have the Medal: The velvet case is found in someone else's possession. The mayor's office key was wiped clean and slipped into someone's jacket pocket. Who is the killer pointing at? And how did they get access to plant these things without being seen? Remember: premeditated killers plan their frame jobs in advance, too.

If you have the Necklace: The necklace was removed from the scene and hidden somewhere it would be found. Where did the killer stash it? Whose tent, bag, or car did it end up in? And why was it found "too easily"?

If you have the Ribbons: The crank mechanism was tampered with. But the tool used to tamper with it was found in someone else's toolkit. Who was framed, and why would the killer choose them?

THREE RULES OF PLANTED EVIDENCE

1. It's always too convenient. Real evidence is messy, partial, and hard to interpret. Planted evidence is neat, obvious, and points at one person like a neon sign. Your sleuth notices this.

2. It tells you more about the killer than the person being framed. The killer chose this person for a reason. They had access to this person's belongings. They knew where this person would be. The frame job is a map of the killer's knowledge and access.

3. It eliminates the person being framed. In a well-plotted mystery, the person who looks most guilty because of planted evidence is almost never the killer. The frame job actually clears them, because the evidence is too perfect.

YOUR CHALLENGE

Figure out:

What evidence was planted? The physical object and where it was found.
Who is being framed? Why did the killer choose this person?
What mistake did the killer make? What's the one detail that proves the evidence was planted?
Who finds the planted evidence? Are they trustworthy?
How does this change the suspect ranking?

THE CRAFT: EVIDENCE AS CHARACTER

The frame job is one of the most revealing moments in a mystery. It's the killer acting under pressure, making choices that expose their relationships, their fears, and their blind spots. A killer who frames the teenager is different from a killer who frames the ex. A killer who frames the old woman is different from a killer who frames the cousin. Who your killer targets tells you who they fear and who they think the investigation will believe.

THINK IT OVER

If your sleuth picked up the planted evidence, what would immediately feel wrong about it? What's too neat, too convenient, too perfectly placed?

STUCK? Think about who has access to whose belongings. As an author you could make any of the following clear:

Lacey Yun has a master volunteer list with everyone's assigned station, including where they stashed their bags.

Mayor Kettrick has access to every locked room in Town Hall.

Tomas Reyes knows where every maintenance closet and storage shed is in the park. The killer has to be able to reach the framed person's belongings without being noticed. That narrows it down.

Also consider: what if the killer framed Wren? A teenager's backpack found with the evidence is devastating to the investigation, but it's also the most obvious frame job in the world, because who would believe a thirteen-year-old planned this? The frame job's weakness is the killer's arrogance in thinking anyone would buy it.

One step left. And the biggest question hasn't been answered yet: how did someone get close enough to Grant Holloway, a man who didn't trust anyone, to kill him with your weapon?

Step 6: The Last Ribbon

A secret comes out. You choose the killer. The cat already knew.

Your editor called one last time. She's quiet, which is worse.

"There's one thing that doesn't make sense," she says. "Grant Holloway was careful. He was paranoid. He didn't trust anyone in this town, and he was right not to. So how did someone get close enough to use that weapon? He should have seen it coming. Unless he didn't want to."

TODAY'S REVELATION: THE SECRET RELATIONSHIP

Grant Holloway was seeing someone. Secretly. Recently. The kind of relationship nobody talks about in a small town but everybody suspects.

This changes everything. Because if Grant was in a secret romantic relationship with one of your suspects, then the weapon problem solves itself.

Think about it:

A man who's paranoid about everyone in town lets his guard down for one person. The person he's sneaking around with. The person he trusts enough to meet alone, behind the gazebo, near the maypole, after dark.

If your weapon was the medal, Grant was drunk and trusting, alone with someone he was involved with. They had all the time in the world. If your weapon was the necklace, Grant let them get close, maybe leaned in, maybe didn't flinch when they reached for his neck. If your weapon was the ribbons, Grant waited while they played with the maypole rigging, thinking it was something else entirely.

The romantic relationship explains the how. Now you need the why.

YOUR CHALLENGE: CHOOSE THE KILLER

This is it. Six steps of complications, evidence, confessions, and frame jobs. You've built the suspects. You've eliminated the obvious choices. You've wrestled with the physics of your weapon. Now decide.

Answer these five questions. This is your mystery.

1. WHO IS THE KILLER?
Pick one suspect. Just one. (Unless you're using an accomplice, in which case, pick two and identify who struck the killing blow.)

2. HOW DID THEY DO IT?
Be specific about the weapon. How did they get access? How did they overcome the physical challenges? Did the secret relationship play a role?

3. DID THEY HAVE AN ACCOMPLICE?
If yes: who? Why would that person agree to help? What did the accomplice gain? What do they have to lose if the truth comes out? If no: how did they manage alone?

4. WHAT WAS THE MOTIVE?
Choose one:

Love: Obsession, jealousy, heartbreak, betrayal. The romance turned toxic, or someone found out about it.
Money: Financial ruin, inheritance, insurance, business deals. Grant's death benefits someone's bank account.
Power: Control, reputation, political survival, status. Grant alive was a threat to someone's position.
Fear: A secret is about to come out. Blackmail. Self-preservation. The toxic runoff. The financial fraud. The thing nobody was supposed to know.

5. WHAT IS THEIR CONCEALMENT STRATEGY?

How is your killer hiding in plain sight? Choose one:

The Deflector: Loudly blames everyone else. Points fingers. Creates chaos so nobody looks at them.
The Ghost: Barely noticed. Forgettable. The wallpaper person nobody remembers seeing.
The Victim: Acts like they were targeted too. Creates a false threat against themselves.
The Performer: Over-the-top reactions. Dramatic grief or dramatic outrage that masks calculation.
The Peacemaker: Mediates every conflict. Positions themselves as the neutral party. The one everyone trusts.

THE WRAP-UP

Six steps. One murder. Seven suspects. A weapon you chose yourself. A confession that lied. A teenager who saw too much. Two strong men who didn't do it. Planted evidence that backfired. A secret romance that explained the impossible.

You didn't solve a mystery this week. You built one. From the maypole up.

If your lineup survived all six steps, congratulations. You've got something worth plotting. If it didn't survive, even better. You know exactly where the cracks are, and cracks are where the good stories grow.

THINK IT OVER

Does your mystery track from Step 1 to Step 6? Could a reader follow the clues and arrive at your killer before the reveal? If not, where do you need to plant a hint earlier?

What's the one moment in your mystery you're most proud of? The twist you didn't see coming until you plotted it? That's your hook. That's the scene that sells the book.

STUCK? If you can't pick a killer, try it backward. Which concealment strategy is the most fun to you? The Peacemaker who mediates every conflict while secretly being the murderer? The Performer whose dramatic sobbing at the crime scene is all an act? Pick the strategy, then ask which suspect fits it best. That's your killer. Now reverse-engineer the weapon access and motive. Or play the game again with a different weapon. The Medal makes a completely different mystery than the Ribbons. That's the whole point.

REPLAY IT

This game is designed to be played more than once. Each weapon creates a fundamentally different mystery. The Medal is premeditated. The Necklace is impulsive. The Ribbons require mechanical knowledge. Pick a new weapon, keep the same suspects, and the killer, the motive, and the entire plot can change. Three weapons. Three mysteries. One very patient cat.

The cat sidekick knew who did it from Step 1. It was sitting on the maypole base the whole time, watching the ribbons like they were exactly what they were: evidence.

About This Game

Cover Up the Murder: Maypoles and Mayhem is a free mystery plotting game from Tara Casey. Each installment is a week-long (or bingeworthy) challenge where you build a murder mystery from the ground up: choosing weapons, creating suspects, planting clues, and choosing the killer yourself.

Want more? Follow @getcozywithtara on Instagram for mystery plotting tips, Murder Board puzzles, and the next Cover Up the Murder game.

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