As a counterargument to my own argument (because I already voted in contradiction to this):
The poker game alibi is too perfect; and a straightforward interpretation of the death message watch is too face-value. Isn't a watch with the time of death precisely the sort of clue that a criminal thinking to cover themselves would leave behind?
What if we don't accept that the watch is in fact legitimate evidence; and presume instead that it was planted? At that point, the poker game alibi evaporates, and the murder becomes something that could've taken place at any time, before or after the period of time wherein Adamska, Aaron, Ann, Hawthorne, and Wu were engaged.
The question then becomes, who would be able to enter Chris' room, by force or by deceit? The obvious answer is the Marble Company, because they have access to all parts of the building and grounds. If Wu or Ann desired it, locked doors wouldn't obstruct their efforts at forcing an entrance; and being that Chris trusts in the two of them, forcing their way in isn't even necessary. Once they have access to his person, both of them could've easily killed him, and thereon planted evidence to mislead the investigation.
It's already been established that if Wu were hostile, he could kill anyone within the mansion almost instantly; and going through the trouble of arranging for a poison and so forth is a step that he wouldn't need to take. On the other hand, if the investigator is made aware of Wu's combat capabilities, a complicated means of murder is precisely the sort of thing that would exclude him from the list of suspects if employed.
Ergo, merely because there isn't any necessity for Wu to adopt such a complicated method of murder doesn't mean that he cannot do so. If engineering a specific outcome between the two families is the motive, and averting suspicion from himself is a caveat observed, it would be child's play for him to orchestrate a theatrical murder to drive things home.
The problem with Wu is, no motive can be established for him per the event dialogue as it presently stands. He has no reason to kill Morris, and even less of a reason to kill Chris.
What about Ann, then? Would the culprit intentionally leave behind a dying message that apparently incriminates herself? Obviously not.
Or rather, that's what a very gullible detective would think.
Ann has a rock-solid alibi, and the murderer ineptly attempted to incriminate her anyways. Moriarty and Mashu's hypothesis that Ann is Chris' mother is entirely reasonable -- and any Watson that examines Aaron's unnatural testimony regarding Chris' adoption as a Company ward would immediately conclude that there's a good chance that Ann is Chris' biological mother. Even if she isn't, Chris might regard her as a mother figure anyhow. Ergo, if Chris names the culprit as 'mom' in a dying message, it would obviously refer to Ann.
Therefore, supposing that the dying message is entirely the work of the culprit -- Ann cannot be the culprit.
Except, that's wrong -- for precisely the same reason it's wrong to presume that it would be impossible for Wu to engage in the poisoning of a victim. It's entirely possible that Ann planted clues to incriminate herself so as to convince the investigator that the culprit couldn't have been her.
And for her, we do have a motive.
Let's suppose it's true that she was Aaron's former lover, and Chris' biological mother; and that Aaron set her aside to marry Morris' mother. Thereon, let's suppose that for whatever reason, she was forced bury the fact of her relationship with Chris; but nevertheless fostered a complete loyalty within him. Taking this as a starting premise, let's suppose that she one day arrives at a position whereby she holds the agency to entirely destroy just about everything that Aaron ever cared about. She can kill his sons. She can shatter his family. She can make inevitable the annihilation of his organization.
Would she fire the shot?
Chris stated at one point early on that if necessary, he would die on behalf of the Marble Company. Does Ann privately hold an antipathy toward him, merely because he was born of Aaron's seed? Is Chris' loyalty sufficient that he would literally die for her if she asked?
In short, is the victim an accomplice to the culprit?
