The Journal

Shadowy humanlike figures sit and lie among attic insulation as a tall silhouetted figure stands before a bright window at the far end.

A New Mission: Protecting Candle Face's Fugitives

I finally decided to box up the crystal ball, and as I lowered it in, it showed me something I'd missed for months: about thirty...

Arthur Mills

Candle Face's Master Shadow: The Broomstick Killer

Two weeks after the Master Shadow left me that riddle, I've solved it. Freed to kill but bound again, a name yelled that brings silence,...

Arthur Mills
A traditional hand drum with a hide-covered top and wooden beater rests against a softly blurred background in warm, earthy tones.

Candle Face Chronicles: The Rhythmic Connection

I sat down to practice, but a Lost Soul had other plans. The kitchen lights started pulsing, and then my own heartbeat picked up the...

Arthur Mills
A shadowy figure reaches from behind stained glass panels glowing red, orange, and green, creating an ominous scene against deep darkness.

Candle Face Chronicles: The Master Shadow Cometh

I sat down with the crystal ball, and a Lost Soul came, warm, gentle, mid-sentence. Then the ball went dark and she screamed one word...

Arthur Mills
A weathered bronze ring door knocker mounted on an aged wooden door with peeling white paint, suggesting an old, seldom-used entrance.

Candle Face Victim #45: The Friend Who Didn’t Answer

Lupe came in through the sunroom door, not the crystal ball, with a bullet hole through her forehead. She was 21 in 1993, a young...

Arthur Mills
A pair of worn brown combat boots splattered with fresh red blood, isolated against a black background in a stark, ominous image.

Candle Face Chronicles: The Night I Became The Murderer

I stopped waiting for help and pushed the crystal ball as far as it would go. I wanted to see through a killer's eyes, and...

Arthur Mills
A pale, ghostly woman with long black hair and a stained white dress stands rigidly against a dark, blurred background.

Candle Face Victim #44: The Lost Soul from Bryan, Texas

A teenage girl came through the crystal ball this time, from Bryan, Texas. She'd fallen in with friends who followed Candle Face, and their "meetings"...

Arthur Mills

Candle Face's Crystal Ball: The Figures Begin to Stir

Two days later, I went back to the crystal ball and found the same shadowed figures waiting. This time they were sharper. I could almost...

Arthur Mills
A shadowy figure presses both hands against a frosted surface, its blurred silhouette creating an eerie sense of confinement and fear.

Still and Silent: Unclear Figures Appear in the Crystal Ball

This time I tried the crystal ball in daylight, and I didn't call on anyone. I just wanted to see what would come on its...

Arthur Mills
Austin skyline along Lady Bird Lake, with the Congress Avenue Bridge crossing the water beneath downtown high-rises on a clear day.

Candle Face Victim #43 Pushed from Congress Avenue Bridge

I went back to the crystal ball after midnight, and this time it showed me a killing as it happened. Three people forced a young...

Arthur Mills

Is Candle Face Using My Crystal Ball to Watch My Every Move?

Candle Face told me my crystal ball is a window she looks through, and four nights later it's still eating at me. Because it explains...

Arthur Mills
A human skull model with the top removed to reveal a detailed pink brain, shown in side profile against a plain white background.

Candle Face Victim #42: The Crown of Bone

A young woman came to me last night, scalped and bleeding but still cracking jokes about her "hairstyle." It was the anniversary of her death....

Arthur Mills
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