One evening, during a campus ghost hunt, Daisy stumbled upon an old, rusty key and a worn-out diary. Alex identified the diary as dating back to the early 1900s. As they opened it, a cold breeze swept through them, leaving everyone with goosebumps.

The diary belonged to a former student, Martha, who wrote about a series of murders at the university. She suspected a professor, identified only by the initials “J.B.” The diary ended abruptly, hinting that Martha might have been the final victim.

Alex, an ardent fan of Sherlock Holmes, proposed that they solve the mystery. The rest, despite being creeped out, agreed, expecting it to be more amusing than terrifying.

Over the following days, they embarked on their investigation, splitting responsibilities according to their strengths. Daisy explored the campus’ old buildings for clues, Rex trawled through digital archives, Holly interviewed elderly locals, and Alex studied the diary meticulously.

They found an old news article reporting the unsolved murders. The victims were all students, found in locked rooms, and each left a note saying, “J.B. has my heart.” The article gave them chills but also led them to the fact that there was a Professor Bartholomew’s ancestor, named John Bellinger, who taught at the university during that period.

However, this investigation took a turn for the worse when they found a fellow student, Ethan, dead in his locked room with the same message on a note, “J.B. has my heart.” The mystery was no longer a mere intriguing curiosity but a chilling reality.

As they shared the news with Professor Bartholomew, his reaction was a mix of shock and delight. He promptly said, “Now this is what I call active learning!” His joviality, despite the grim circumstance, struck them as odd.

As the campus was seized by fear, Daisy noticed something uncanny. The old key she had found fit the lock of a secret compartment in the statue of the university’s founder. Inside was a blood-chilling sight: a small, glass jar containing a preserved human heart.

With the campus under police lockdown, our four friends decided to confront Professor Bartholomew. To their surprise, he wasn’t surprised. Instead, he laughed uproariously, exclaiming, “Oh, brilliant! You’re onto something, but not quite there yet.”

Exasperated and frightened, they decided to consult their psychology professor, Dr. Harper. Sharing their findings, they noticed her growing increasingly pale. She revealed that she was a direct descendant of John Bellinger and that she had discovered the same diary years ago.

“But I thought it was just a family legend. I never took it seriously.” Dr. Harper confessed. “J.B., the murderer, was my ancestor, but I swear I have nothing to do with Ethan’s death.”

Then came the plot twist that no one saw coming. Dr. Harper’s assistant, a soft-spoken grad student named Brian, revealed himself. He was the one committing these murders, inspired by the legend of J.B. to revive the century-old mystery. His initials, “J.B.,” were a creepy coincidence, or perhaps a twisted destiny.

Brian, who was expecting the students to accuse Professor Bartholomew, was taken aback when they confronted him instead. The quartet had deduced the truth from the oddities in his behavior and his peculiar interest in their investigation.

As it turns out, Brian had also found Martha’s diary independently and started the deadly game. The professor’s strange behavior and creepy ancestor story were merely red herrings that added a touch of humor to their eerie adventure.

In the end, Brian was arrested, and our heroic foursome was commended for their bravery and keen investigative skills. And although the murders were solved, the legend of the ghost tours became even more chilling, with Professor Bartholomew delighting in adding this real-life murder mystery to his tales.

And so, the laughter, chills, and frights continued in the hallowed halls of the university, where murder mysteries were as much a part of the curriculum as were history and psychology.

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Lights from the crescent moon coruscated on the nearly vacant building where Grace Fultz waited to begin her first graveyard shift in the factory that was known for making paper products such as paper plates, toilet paper, and even lined paper. The company was known as a very popular one, and many people couldn’t help but want to work there if they were without a college degree. Grace was excited to finally help provide for her mother, now that she turned eighteen. She was hoping that they would finally make it, because she knew they had spent one to many years struggling to put food on the table since her father had ceased to exist.  She couldn’t even remember his real name at this point.

Grace pushed it out of her mind as she pulled her keys out of the ignition as she began to grab her lunch— a simple apple, that she grasped tight in her hand as she opened the driver side door.  A part of her was nervous about her first day considering she heard stories about how many employees had a habit of getting fired or disappearing without a trace. She didn’t want to be one of those people she needed this job, because college wasn’t an option for her.

Grace couldn’t help but glance towards the side of the factory. She noticed a dark forest. Grace wasn’t afraid of much, other than the things that were rather superficial, but as she looked off to the distance, she instantly got chills down her spine, and the longer she looked into the forest, as the trees stood completely she began to feel something intense within her. The intense feeling that came over her could have been quickly noted as death— her own death if she decided to go anywhere near the trees or within the forest at all. She quickly pulled herself together, ignoring the notion within her that was telling her that she should leave this unsettling place; as she walked in the direction of the entrance to the small building that was connected to the factory half.    

Grace pulled open the single door that was separating her from the inside of the factory from what may have lived in the outdoors. She saw a number of people standing in the main hallway waiting for direction from their supervisor. Cerulean eyes peered in the direction of the many men and women— her eyes first looked upon a man who appeared brawny with short brown hair, and dark tan skin. Her eyes quickly bounced to the women standing next to him— she appeared gawky in the way that she stood there waiting for orders with eyes like silhouettes gazing at the door. Grace’s lips had tightened to a tight lipped smile as she stood next to a female with brown skin— she had a compact build, but she had no doubt in her mind that she was stronger than she looked. If there was one that that was for sure— all these people were lifers, as in they were in this job for life.

“Has our supervisor notified us as to what we should being doing yet?” Grace asked as the women turned to her. Grace looked into her and noticed how lifeless her faded umber eyes were— it was as if she was a walking zombie.

“We are quiet until it’s time— you will know when it is time,” she spoke in a whisper. The women spent no time in turning her head back to the door where the supervisor was undoubtedly located. Grace quickly looked around at the others and she did not understanding what they were doing. She was anxious waiting as her hands were fidgeting.

Ten minutes had past since their supposed start time and no one had had shifted or moved even an inch and Grace grew impatient as she pulled out her rather tiny android cellular device to check the time. She heard a loud slam of a door as it smashed into the wall.

“As many of you know I am Derek , and I’m your supervisor,” the man said as he quickly glanced in the eyes of every new and old employee that was in the hallway, “New Employees— there should be at least three of you. Many of you won’t make it here, but until we weed out the weaklings— here are a few rules. Until you get your own uniforms, I have a list that you can use that I will hand to you once I send off the elder employees to work. Do not, and I repeat do not differ from that list,” Derek said with a grim look upon his face that quickly turned to a smile. The smile was enough to give Grace chills down her spine.
Grace couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow after hearing this. She didn’t understand what this meant, she quickly raised her hand before speaking, “I’m sorry, I don’t really understand what that is supposed to mean. What if we run out of what you guys consider appropriate uniforms? Do we then use ones that are not on the list?” Grace said tilting her head to the side waiting for a response from her supervisor. Grace watched as Derek smiled again scratching his chin.

“If that happens I suggest you come to me. Any use of unapproved uniforms is grounds for termination,” Derek said, umber eyes filled with a dark hatred. Grace held onto her assumption that he hated his job— she could tell from the way he spoke and held himself.

Grace didn’t really know what else to say to that, she quickly looked down at the checkered tile that looked out of place, She thought it had belonged in a bathroom floor.  She had hoped that Derek wouldn’t consider this slight outburst grounds for termination. She couldn’t seem to shake the feeling that her father may have once worked here, but she could remember nothing about him or this place. She thought that maybe she had made the whole thing up.

“ All new employees need to meet with me right now. Everyone else get to your machines. The owner of this company is doing a walk through tonight. We don’t need to give him a reason to ‘clean house’,” Derek said smirking slightly as he glanced his eyes to the lifeless machines as they inched slowly though the doors that lead out on the floor where they would start the long shift.

Grace slowly walked with her head turned down to the ground as she walked toward her new supervisor. She could feel her chest throbbing as it filled with anxiety each and every step she took edging to Derek. She dreaded the moment when her eyes would have to meet his. Her thoughts raced to what this meeting could possibly be about. What could he have needed from her? Maybe it’s just about the uniforms, she thought to herself— mind bouncing back and forth to possible reasons this could be about.

Once Grace was standing face to face with Derek— her heart felt like drums beating out of time. She was contemplating many things in her mind such as; How long she was going to last here, considering she was nothing like the other employees that worked here. She couldn’t help but ask herself why they were so weird? Why were they just staring at the supervisor office like they were mindless zombies? More importantly why did they have such a strict uniform rules. She looked at Derek’s face and he showed no sign of empathy for his employee. Maybe getting this job was a bad idea altogether, she thought just before he began speaking.

“Grace, In the locker room use the locker 666, and I suggest that you don’t put any valuables in it. Our lockers don’t have the combination locks on them, because they’re strictly for clothing only. You may also use uniforms with numbers 10, 101, 110, 130. These are uniforms of former employees that are no longer with us,” Derek said.

Grace peered behind her and noticed two males waiting to talk to the supervisor. One of the males Grace couldn’t help but notice how attractive by appearance he was. He had raven black hair, and emerald green eyes. She quickly turned her head back to Derek, his face looked more angry because it was clear that she wasn’t paying attention as attentive as she should have been.

“I’m sorry— thank you sir,” Grace said before turning around and walking to the locker room.

The locker room was different than she had imagined— there was one door that she had to walk through.  Within that door there was another door, and inside that door, there was two more doors, both doors had the names of the basic genders on them— male and female. The uniforms were on hangers in the room as the entrances for both locker rooms.  Grace fumbled through the uniforms looking for any of the numbers that Derek had given her. It was when she came across uniform labeled number ten. There was a name that struck the interest with Grace— on the cotton light blue uniform top read the name, Dean. Grace remembered that her mother mentioned something before what the doctors called an early onset of Alzheimer’s; that her father’s name was Dean.

Grace could feel a dark chill running down her spine once again, as she could have sworn she heard a whisper. Something wanted her to put the uniform that she held in her hands on and after doing so she felt an utter relief— it was just a simple feeling that she felt in her chest, and in the back of her mind— she didn’t understand it.

After changing into the uniform of the forgotten employee, she quickly made her way out of the joint locker room doors. She quickly moved to look in the supervisor’s office to see where the other two guys she had started with were at. She wasn’t sure if her eyes were betraying her but what she saw she couldn’t unsee. Grace slowly stepped closer to the door— All she could see was Derek talking to a man in black with a crinkled hood covering his face. Grace backed away so that she could listen in without being seen.

“She didn’t wear the right uniform,” the nameless man in black said as he pulled out a list of papers. “You’re going to have to find a way to fix this Derek. Denise cannot be allowed to continue this journey with us.” he said as he handed the list to the supervisor. Derek grabbed the list from the hand that handed it to him. “Devdan— what do you expect me to do? This list would have come in handy before these new people started don’t you think.” Grace couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow about what she was hearing. Confusion filled her mind quickly like water in a glass.

“Like I said, figure it out before you’re the one who gets replaced,” the man’s voice was stern as he looked at his employee. It was clear what the man wanted, Grace didn’t know what to do at this point she didn’t know whether she should just run and look for a new job herself. Before she got a chance to even decided what she was going to do— she heard her name come out of Devdan’s mouth, “ Isn’t Grace the daughter of our fallen employee?” Her heart was heavy as they talked about her late father— she still had questions about his disappearance, she listened in as she hoped that maybe she would finally get answers. One thing was certain, as Grace stood there in her father’s uniform carelessly shaking because she was stricken with fear of this man— this man wasn’t human.

“She is here I see, and she should be working now It would be a shame if she suffered the same as her father. I don’t think old Teresa could handle that.” he hesitated before speaking again, “Work no? Well then Grace, approach me now,” Devdan said as he turned to the door— waiting for her. Grace was speechless and completely filled with fear as she quickly stepped into the room scrambling for words to say to her supervisor and the owner. Every nerve in her body felt like it was being pinched and severed at the same time.

“I’m sorry— I just don’t know where I’m expected to be at sir,” Grace said with full sincerity, but from what Grace had gathered from the man, he would definitely be able to see through her and find her insecurities as well as dismay.

“Very well then— Derek tell our new employee what she should be doing, I was under the impression that you knew what your position would be when we hired you, but I have been out of commission for a while.” Devdan said as he turned his eyes away from Grace and placed them on Derek.

It was clear that Derek was on Devdan’s bad side at the moment and Grace felt like it was partially her fault, “Look I’m sorry— I just don’t know where I’m expected to go. I haven’t even had a plant tour yet, and I’m extremely nervous if you can’t tell,” Grace spoke up as she shot her cerulean eyes in Devdan’s direction. She didn’t want Derek to get in trouble because of her, and not to mention she was worried that he would find out as well that she heard what he had to say about her father.

“I’m a demon Grace, not an imbecile such as yourself or anyone else that works here. The point that I am getting across right now is that this isn’t  going to work— You have heard too much and you are becoming a predicament. I can’t have someone working here that knows what I know, such as what you now know— Derek dispose of her now please, and dispose of Denise after— before I decide to dispose of you, my least favorite heathen hound.” Grace quickly glanced over at Derek who was turning into an animal like creature such as a wild dog hellhound with red eyes and large canine teeth, and he loomed near her with unearthly speed. Grace began running as fast as she could out of the entrance door as the thing chased after her. She quickly ran into the dark forest off to the side of the where the factory was located. The same dark forest that Grace had an uneasy feeling about similar to the one that she had before she had even walked through the door.    

The only things that she could think about at that point was if she were to died now would she be where her father was, and what would happen to her mother. She had no one else other than her daughter that was about to be slaughtered on her first day of work. She could feel the beast as it breathed down her neck as she stopped in her tracks. “Take me if you have to, but you better go take my mother too. She can’t live on this earth without me or my father.”

“Why do you think you’re here?” Devdan said as he stepped out from behind the Hellhound that was formerly known as Derek.  “Your mom told you to come apply here right? Truth is your mother was done with you and your father long ago, and the fact that you were always so demanding and always selfish. In short she wanted you both gone so she made a deal with me that if I took both you and your father, she would give me whatever I wanted, and she would gain eternal life. Now tell me is loving your family unconditionally really worth it?”

Grace didn’t get a chance to answer as Derek began charging after her again— as Grace tried to run away from him again. She didn’t get far, a small hole and a twig prevented her from getting away as she tripped and fell to the ground. Knees dirty as she felt the claws going threw the skin in her back; clearly leaving extremely large claw marks. Grace quickly flipped onto her back in attempts to crawl away backwards, but that gave the beast easier access to claw at her chest. Yet she couldn’t scream, she just laid there in defeat looking at the red eyes of the monster that was taking the life away from her.  It wasn’t long before her cerulean eyes went lifeless, and her stiff corpse was left alone and forgotten on rocky ground, as blood lightly spilled out of the body. Large bloody footprints trailed off from where Derek had left with Devdan to take care of the next victim— Denise. The wind blew the trees lightly in the abandoned dark forest as echoes of voices could be heard throughout the forest belonging to Devdan’s and Derek’s former victims, and soon to be home to many future ones as well.

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