fiction

Mystery, crime, murder, unsolved cases. Contribute your own tales of crime to Criminal.

No Quitters Allowed
Scrolling through ads I notice an ad guaranteeing twenty thousand dollars in a week or less, not trusting what I was seeing I called my wife to the table and pointed out the ad to her. Her eyes widened in disbelief, shaking her head and telling me "these things are scams or its a catch to it". Who would have known her words would hit so close to home.
By Dashaun Maldonado5 years ago in Criminal
Little Black Book
She watched helplessly as the pages floated from her hand to the floor. The news of her father’s sudden death came as a shock. As the last page flutters quietly to rest, one single tear slips slowly down her pale cheek. Music starts to play from down the long hallway leading to her office door. It is a forlorn ballad fitting for the moment and her shoulders tense as she regains her composure. Straightening her shoulders and clearing her voice, she proceeds to retrieve the packet of papers that served to inform her of her father’s demise. Peter Wakefield was a fraud, a deceiver, a villain. He left years ago, but here he was back in her life once more, only dead this time.
By LJ Harvey5 years ago in Criminal
The Black Book
The year is 2018. The weather is cold. It’s snowing. The sun is setting. It’s the weekend before Thanksgiving. And also the worst time to be incarcerated. “Take him up to booking,” says the intake officer. The booking officer tells Dan, “Stand there. We’re gonna take your picture.” Dan proceeds to walk to the tape on the floor that marks where to stand. Though he has had many pictures taken before, he has never had one taken in jail. Dan is feeling a mix of emotions - anger disappointment, rage and frustration - but for some strange reason, he asks himself, “Should I smile?” Before he makes his decision, he hears the click of the camera and sees a flash of light. “Turn to your left so I can take a side view picture,” says the officer. “What am I charged with,” Dan asks. “Battery and second-degree assault,” the officer replies. “But I was just defending myself. The guy tried to shoot me,” Dan protested. “Save it. You don’t need to plead your case to me. Tell it to the judge,” the officer says. He adds, “Since it’s Friday night, you’re spending the weekend here.” The officer proceeds to give Dan his jumpsuit, picks up a mattress, and puts him in a holding cell. “This is your room till we find you a cell.”
By Shu keyaka5 years ago in Criminal
To Hell in a Handbasket
Grammy died when I was nine. We were close; I remember that. She was my dad’s and Uncle Ed’s mom, and about the nearest thing I ever had to a mom myself. Towards the end, she wasn’t quite all there. In those last months, she would stare for hours out the window or at the blank television, raving on and on about how the world was “going to hell in a handbasket.” Even at nine, I knew that Grammy was not a credible source for world news. I knew better than to take her words to heart, but there was always a murmuring sort of uneasiness in the pit of my stomach at the end of our visits. I wasn’t even sure what a handbasket was, but I never could quite shake the feeling that Grammy might be right about it.
By Killian5 years ago in Criminal
The Shadow Man
It was a night like any other, the cool air brought a red hue to my cheeks as the winter air drew near. I wore my favourite brown coat and red scarf as I headed to work unable to stop the shivering from taking over my body. I hated the cold; I could see my work place come in to view and quickened my pace in anticipation of the warmth. The entrance was below the street, as shady as one could get I believe. I looked over my shoulder with a feeling of dread deep in my stomach that I could not shake no matter how many times I had done it.
By Pixie Bean5 years ago in Criminal
My Little Black Book
Yes, I had a book. Yes, it was small and black. Yes, it was Moleskine. I felt a little bit fancy using my ink pen to make shapes and draw caricatures of people on the smooth creamy paper inside. True story. Never in a million years did I think I would be looking at one of my copied creations staring back at me from the wall of the Louvre. Never in a million years would I have known the power of my little black book.
By Anna Killick5 years ago in Criminal
Flat Tire
It was the best holiday we had ever had! We upgraded our room from the cheapest to the presidential suite. We had the best meals from our balcony overlooking the golden sands of the beach. We went out to the best clubs with brand new clothes (sometimes with the price tags still on!). We jet skied and drove the fastest cars (on loan from the dealership, we didn't have that much!). It was the best 2 weeks of our lives.
By Rock T.5 years ago in Criminal
The Accidental Witness
“Do you think she knows we are here?” That’s my identical twin, Jodie. She’s standing at the end of the bed where I lie strapped to machines. “Do you think she can hear us?”
By R.S. Sillanpaa5 years ago in Criminal
Unpaid Fare
Ed was walking towards the front doors of his town’s Chase Bank as a man in a ski mask was running out of it. Ed’s attention snapped to the handgun, followed by the drawstring gym bag brimming with cash the robber clutched against his stomach. Most of the robber’s face was covered with the exception of the eyeholes. Through those small windows into the armed man’s soul, Ed could make out that the robber was wide-eyed and panicking.
By Max Russell5 years ago in Criminal
Blank Pages: Mission 00
Blank Pages: Mission 00 Let No Good Deed Go Undone... I hate taking the subways. They smell. And there’s always some weirdo on board doing some random circus act. Ugh! I just want to get home and sit down. Boots off, whiskey in one hand and a smoke in the other. This entire city smells for that matter. Maybe I should move to the hills.
By Netavius Davis5 years ago in Criminal
Black Book
As far as eye can see, black masks swarm in groups of six. They have to, that’s their limit. Christmas and Thanksgivings are the holidays we know no more. Families have been shrinking since humans have grown apart from each other. And more and more A-families stop supplying the new patient serum. Patients are what we call them; since the new presidency, everyone that’s born has to get the vaccine. I wouldn’t want to take them either, so Thank God I’m not having any. The kids look happy but I can tell , the kids have this unsuspected trust about them, kind of like a pig to his trusted farmer right before he gets shot between his eyes for bacon, and grits. That’s what kills me, the kids. They’re the only ones who hold the patient serum. They are taken to a lab that runs the entire day, 12-6. Which is governed by the city and run by the riches. The elites. Their wish is that by the time it’s year 3000, there will be no one alive besides the premeditated demographic and clinically constructed. No ones ever seen them before but my only guess is they don’t come outside else, there faces will be exposed.
By Cyn Kitt5 years ago in Criminal
A Little Black Book
.- ... ... . ... ... -- . -. - He had every indicator of a perfect mark. His simple clothes bore designer labels, and the watch peeking out from under his sleeve displayed a notorious swiss logo. On his finger was one of the largest rings I’d ever seen. At first glance he was perfectly ordinary, but I'd learned to recognize wealth when I saw it. And just to annoy me, he walked around confidently, like nothing could possibly stand in his way. I was banking on that confidence as I moved off the wall and into the throng of people in the Concourse Terminal.
By Taylor Evans5 years ago in Criminal