A dense fog blanketed the sleepy town, obscuring the moon and casting eerie shadows on the deserted cobblestone streets. Detective Clara Stone stepped out of her car, her trench coat flapping in the chill of the autumn night. She approached the old, dilapidated mansion where a single flickering light hinted at long-forgotten secrets waiting to be unveiled. Inside, the grandfather clock struck midnight, its chimes echoing through the empty hallways like a sinister harbinger of doom. The dim light revealed a crumpled body, lifeless on the ornate rug, blood pooling ominously around the victim's motionless form. Clara knelt beside the corpse, noting the precise knife wound as her mind began piecing together the grim puzzle.