The morning sun felt like an insult. After a night spent watching a girl who wasn’t there, James found the bright, bustling energy of the Oakhaven University campus jarring.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2AYvxu7K35
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He hadn't slept. Every time he closed his eyes, he heard the echo of Rebecca’s voice: The dirt was so heavy. She was currently back at his apartment, anchored to the shadows of his bedroom, unable to face the daylight.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgGb7qQ1pDP
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James walked straight to the Student Union building. He bypassed the coffee stands and headed for the "Community & Safety" board in the back hallway. He searched through layers of flyers for lost keys, tutor services, and club meetings until he found it.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFbltuFjoxd
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It was tucked behind a bright neon advertisement for a spring formal. The paper was yellowed at the edges, the ink slightly faded from the sun.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9WhAJfrnHL
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MISSING: REBECCA JENKINS98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCBQ4acwjmg
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Last seen: October 14th.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEWGX1tVkh7
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Major: Elementary Education. Junior Year.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnv8ziViESy
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In the photo, Rebecca was beaming. Her hair was pulled back, her eyes bright with life, and she was wearing a lanyard with a "Student Teacher" badge. She looked like someone who believed the world was fundamentally good.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWMsM3XtZoz
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"It’s a tragedy, isn't it?"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbXHYjxong8
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James stiffened. He turned to find a man standing just a few feet away. He recognized him instantly from the department's Dean's List photos: Mark Vance.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgsK9WROmQt
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Mark was the image of the perfect student. His polo shirt was crisp, his hair perfectly styled, and he carried a heavy leather satchel. He looked like the kind of man who would become a principal or a senator. But as James looked at him, he remembered Rebecca’s whisper from the night before: He’s walking in the sun.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡARFp4yNuPh
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"You knew her?" James asked, his voice carefully neutral.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz3fYaFFURA
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Mark sighed, stepping closer to the poster. He reached out and touched the corner of the paper with a practiced, somber grace. "Everyone knew Rebecca. She was... the light of the Education Department. I was her study partner. We were supposed to go to the state internship together."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO5oSWo1NDI
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"Supposed to?" James prodded.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd5QLmqJC2l
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Mark’s jaw tightened for a fraction of a second—a crack in the porcelain mask. "Well, she disappeared the week the selections were announced. Since she didn't show up for the final interview, the spot went to me. I’d give it back in a heartbeat just to know she was safe, of course."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtsy2xlyspz
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James noticed something then. Mark’s eyes were darting toward the woods at the edge of the campus, a subtle, nervous twitch. James leaned in, his horror-trained intuition humming.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCEY7kcQI2u
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"The police said she likely ran away from the pressure," Mark continued, looking at James with a forced smile. "Why the sudden interest? You aren't with the campus paper, are you?"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKsg9wummRJ
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"Just a fan of mysteries," James replied, his tone chillingly dry. "I heard she was the top of the class. It’s strange that someone so successful would just... walk away from everything they worked for."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJG1ZtTRnEj
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Mark’s smile didn't reach his eyes. "Sometimes people aren't who they seem to be, James. You shouldn't go digging into things that don't concern you. It can be... distracting."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRpw3VWKHZ6
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Mark patted James on the shoulder. The contact was brief, but James felt a sudden, sharp chill—the same biting frost he felt when Rebecca passed through him. It was a coldness that didn't belong to the living.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtHZ2TMCVff
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James spent the afternoon in the university archives. He looked up the internship Mark had mentioned. It was a prestigious, one-person-only placement at the city’s top magnet school. Rebecca had been the front-runner. Mark had been second.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnAbWAYFFbN
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By the time he returned home, the sun was setting, casting long, bloody shadows across his living room.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuDXmRFXIWr
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"He was there," a voice whispered from the corner.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkmqvEvReqK
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James didn't jump. He was getting used to her presence. Rebecca was standing near his bookshelf, her form more solid now that the light was fading.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb8QB3Df39M
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"I met him," James said, setting his bag down. "Mark Vance. He’s the one who took your spot, isn't he?"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ7sqOYoZ3g
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Rebecca walked toward him. As she moved, the air grew thick with the smell of damp pine and freshly turned earth. She looked down at her hands, which were flickering like a dying lightbulb.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSl8uRocWzx
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"We went for a drive," she said, her voice trembling. "He said he wanted to celebrate. He bought me a bouquet of white lilies. He told me... he told me he was proud of me. But when we got to the trail, his face changed. He started talking about the grades. About how he needed to be first."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNSF8z1yh0d
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She looked at James, her eyes black with a sudden, terrifying grief. "He hit me with something heavy. I tried to run into the woods, but it was so dark, James. I fell. And then... the shovel. I can still hear the sound of the shovel."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcbuHgQKBVx
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"Where, Rebecca?" James asked, stepping toward her. "Where did he take you?"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs2uKHhgq8F
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Rebecca closed her eyes. Suddenly, the temperature in the room dropped to sub-zero. The glass of the window began to frost over, and in the ice, a map began to form. It was a jagged outline of the Oakhaven Blackwood Forest, marked with a single, glowing "X" near the old creek.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe8WXpdXVFn
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"There," she whispered. "Under the roots of the willow tree. It’s so cold there, James. Please... I don't want to be there anymore."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX6pEXbaucK
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James looked at the frosted glass, then at the girl who was literally coming apart at the seams. "Pack your things," he said, grabbing his heavy coat and a flashlight.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1bbbjeGAJy
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"Where are we going?"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGp58ntZXBH
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James looked at his reflection in the TV, seeing only himself, but feeling the weight of the girl standing beside him.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9ZYPNLU5A0
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"We’re going to the woods," James said. "We're going to get you back. And then, we're going to make sure Mark Vance never has another 'perfect' day in his life."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZHOIfMyPbW
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