Malcolm Morgan woke up in the back doorway of Powder Books with another massive headache and a bad attitude. The sun was rising earlier than he was ready, but Malcolm knew he had to pack up before people started hitting the streets to avoid someone calling the cops. This alley had been Malcolm’s home for almost a month and he didn’t want to lose this location that had everything he needed. Cardboard was always in great supply behind the store to make a private draft free bedroom in the doorway …

Short story derived from the photo below.
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Detective John Raven pulled his rental car up to the massive gates of the Sutton estate and felt a pain in the pit of his stomach that screamed you never should have come here. He was out of his league and he should have made the Carson County Sheriff’s department deal with this and been done with it. The entire property was surrounded by 10-foot high stone walls and the gates in front of him were even taller. Every inch was covered in a …

Short story derived from the photo below.
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Four women died while Jessica Ford tried to make a decision. The number could be higher, but she knew about four. As horrible as it was she couldn’t be rushed into such a big life change. After 45 minutes alone, sobbing and retching into a trash can in her daughter’s bedroom she began to think clearly again.
It was amazing how normal the morning had started out. She had cooked breakfast and then said goodbye as Daniel headed out to drop Olivia at school on …

Short story derived from the photo below.
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“We’ll page you when we get another table going,” said the kid working the poker room desk, without even glancing up. This meant it was going to be an even longer night for Charlie. He hated waiting for a table; it could be 10 minutes or 2 hours. He couldn’t risk lingering since the goal was to go unnoticed and it was hard to be inconspicuous sitting by himself in a poker room. He also didn’t want to waste any money at the table …

The porch creaked under Luther’s weight as he sat on the top step with one leg perched under him for support and the other lazily stretched out spanning the other four steps. He was a tall, thick man and he made everything around him look miniature as he now did with the stairs and porch. It had been about 30 minutes since he arrived and he hoped to avoid going inside a bit longer. The guilt was overwhelming and everything in him told him to race back to his rented …