Late afternoon on Day 277. Alice and Victoria walked down the hallway, with bags of laundry, heading to the Place where laundry is processed. They passed by Lili's door. Alice knocked lightly. Lili was quick to open up, and handed them a see-through bag filled with clothes. Through it, Victoria could easily spot the blouse Lili had been wearing the day before, the one that had been stained with red tea.

Victoria noticed something strange. The stain on the blouse wasn't just a tiny smudge anymore. It had spread, now covering nearly 25% of the fabric.

"Did you spill more of your tea on it?" Victoria asked.

Lili chuckled nervously. "Oh, yeah. Silly me. I didn't know what was going through my mind yesterday. I wasn't acting straight."

Victoria gave her a long look. "You might be sick." she said softly. "You were looking a little off yesterday. Go to the hospital, get checked out, just in case."

Lili looked a little taken aback. "Yeah, I'll go. I do feel kind of off. I'll go right now, so i can catch you by dinner."

Alice and Victoria continued their walk toward the Place where laundry is processed. As they walked, Victoria spoke again. "I think you should be careful around Lili."

Alice stopped walking, looking at Victoria. "Careful about what?"

Victoria hesitated. "Until we're sure of things, just... be careful around her."

"Sure of what, Vic?"

Victoria tried to find the right words. "I'm not saying she's involved in the murders." she said, almost defensive. "But... you saw the blouse, right? It had more tea on it than before. And yesterday, near the victim, there was a drink spilled..."

Alice's face hardened. "What are you getting at, Vic? Yesterday, there was no juice. It was just blood. Just blood. And why were you looking at her laundry? Were you trying to see her panties or something? Are you into that kind of stuff? Because if you are, I don't mind it."

The teasing tone didn't land the way Alice intended, and Victoria didn't smile. She kept, serious. "Just be careful around her," she said again. "Don't leave her alone with your mom. We don't know what she's gonna do."

Alice's face filled with anger. "Stop. Stop talking. Don't say another word. Lili is not the killer. She's not. And shame on you. She is our friend. Instead of supporting her, you're laying accusations?"

Victoria said nothing more. She simply nodded, her own thoughts drifting off. Alice's had left no room for argument.

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