The Westing Game
- The reading of the will continues in the game room, where there are eight card tables, each with two chairs, set up. Theo sees a chess game set up, and moves a piece.
- Sydelle shushes everyone and keeps taking notes.
- Part seven of the will says the rules of the game. There are sixteen players, in teams of two. Each team gets $10,000 and their own clues. If anyone drops out of the game, his or her partner is also out. Pairs who aren't at the reading of the will lose the money and don't get their clues till the next session. The teams get two days' advance notice before the next session, where they can give one answer.
- Otis asks Crow if she's glad he made her come to the reading, with $10,000 at stake.
- Turtle shushes them to keep reading.
- Part eight says that the heirs must go to assigned tables with their partners when their names and positions are read, but it's the other players who will "discover who [they] really are" (7.9).
- Table one has Madame Hoo, "cook," and Jake Wexler, "standing or sitting when not lying down" (7.9). Grace and Mr. Hoo try to explain why their partners aren't there, but since they're not, table one gets no money and no clue.
- Table two is Turtle Wexler, "witch," and Flora Baumbach, "dressmaker" (7.11). Everyone else is relieved not to be partnered with Turtle, because of the kicking.
- At table three are Christos Theodorakis, "birdwatcher," and Dr. D. Denton Deere, "intern, St. Joseph's Hospital, Department of Plastic Surgery" (7.13). Theo thinks he should be his brother's partner, and Grace thinks Dr. Deere should be Angela's. Dr. Deere is silently annoyed because he's not in this to give free consultations. Chris is so excited to have him as a partner, though, and thinks the game's more fun than watching TV.
- Team four is Alexander McSouthers, "doorman," and J. J. Ford, "judge, Appellate Division of the State Supreme Court" (7.16). People are surprised Sandy's first name isn't just Sandy, while Judge Ford is embarrassed that she put such an elaborate title when everyone else was so simple. She calls herself "Josie-Jo" and tells herself to stay cool.
- At table five are Grace Windsor Wexler, "heiress," and James Shin Hoo, "restaurateur" (7.19). Both of them are mad to have lost $5000. People laugh at Grace for calling herself an heiress, but she thinks she'll have access to other people's clues and will win the game no problem. Mr. Hoo thinks that whoever did murder Westing should be rewarded.
- Team six is Berthe Erica Crow, "Good Salvation Soup Kitchen," and Otis Amber, "deliverer" (7.22). Crow wonders why everyone's looking at her and if people believe she murdered Windy. Chris sees that Crow limps.
- The next team is Theo Theodorakis, "brother," and Doug Hoo, "first in all-state high-school mile run" (7.25). On their way to the table, Theo makes another chess move, and wonders if his position is only "brother." Angela tells Sydelle that makes them partners.
- At table eight are Sydelle Pulaski, "secretary to the president," and Angela Wexler, "none" (7.29). Angela is relieved her partner's not the murderer, although she is a little embarrassed to be with Sydelle—then she feels bad, because she knows her mother is really embarrassed.
- Sydelle thinks she'll be noticed even more with a partner who's so beautiful, and Dr. Deere wonders why his fiancée called herself a nun.
- Plum keeps reading the will. Part nine says that all the pairs there will get checks for $10,000, and gives the advice, "May God thy gold refine" (7.34).
- Crow screams; the lawyer stepped on her sore foot.
- Sandy asks Judge Ford if it's legal, and she says yes.
- Part ten of the will says everyone will get a unique set of clues... and it's not what clues they get, but what clues they don't get that's important.
- Dr. Deere says the clues make no sense. Chris is trying to put the words in order, but he knocks one off the table.
- Flora picks it up and puts it back, saying she didn't see it. But she did: the clue was "plain."
- Everyone looks at their clues except team eight; Sydelle thinks they should observe everyone else, and look at their own clues later.
- Otis says he and his partner are king and queen; Doug asks if a clue is "on" or "no"; Judge Ford says it's insulting, but Sandy asks her not to quit so he won't lose the money, and she relents.
- Turtle asks Flora if she's memorized the clues, and then swallows them so no one else can see.
- Mr. Hoo and Grace think their clues don't mean anything. When Sandy jokes, "purple waves," Grace rearranges some clues.
- Since no one understands, they ask for copies of the will. But Plum says they won't be available till after the game is over. Sydelle finally gets some attention, as people realize she was making a shorthand copy.
- At Sandy's request, Plum reads the rest of the will: part eleven says death and life are senseless, and that not everyone is who they appear to be. It tells everyone to go home, and to buy Westing paper products.