That afternoon, Avery talks with Max in Avery's bedroom while studying a photograph of Tobias Hawthorne's small house in Cartago. Nash and Libby have agreed to go to Costa Rica, but Avery is unsettled by Jameson's unusual willingness to stop pushing the puzzle and wonders what his angle is.

A knock interrupts the conversation. Because of the earlier bloody heart left in Avery's room, Avery reacts fearfully when a staff member enters with towels, though Eli confirms the woman is cleared. The staff member, Mellie, takes the towels into the bathroom and immediately screams.

Avery rushes in and sees Mellie slam the bathroom armoire shut after finding a snake inside. Eli pulls Avery back and calls for help; guards arrive quickly. Oren tells Avery and Max that the snake is a dead rattlesnake, meaning there is no immediate danger but the act is clearly meant as a threat.

Avery concludes that someone is trying to frighten her away from investigating Toby. An hour later, Avery returns to Toby's wing with Max and Oren and finds that the whole wing has been bricked up again. Avery suspects the Laughlins are responsible for either the wall, the snake, or both, because they do not want Avery asking questions about Toby.

Oren assures Avery that the threat level is being continually assessed. Grayson arrives, having heard about the snake and spoken to Jameson about the Cartago numbers. Understanding that they are waiting for Nash and Libby, Grayson offers Avery and Max a friendly distraction: a game.