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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#241: Et Tu, Brute?

“Beware the Ides of March!” In Shakespeare’s play, these fateful words are thrown at Julius Caesar during a procession through Rome, warning him of the day his compatriots will betray him. In the play, and in reality, this warning came to fruition. On March 15, he was stabbed thirty times by his fellow Roman senators, including Brutus, someone he thought he could trust. As that date is just around the corner, I find myself thinking a lot about Caesar’s story, and about other stories of betrayal.

It’s the ultimate breaking of trust. You thought they were a friend, a mentor, a close confidant, a person you could trust through thick and thin — only to find yourself stabbed in the back at the most inopportune moment. What leads people to make such a drastic decision, and sever a once unshakeable bond? How do you move on when your faith in the people around you is shaken? These are just a few of the questions to consider as we look towards the fateful Ides this week.

This week's prompts

Write about someone who is convinced they’re going to be betrayed.

Dramatic – 55 stories

Write about someone who is stuck between two opposing sides and can’t decide which one to choose.

Fiction – 49 stories

Set your story at a tense event where everyone is unsure whose side they’re on.

Thriller and Suspense – 27 stories

Start your story with an unexpected betrayal.

Adventure – 81 stories

Write about a backstabbing (literal or metaphorical) gone wrong.

Horror – 43 stories

Stories

“The Chime of Trust” by Sofia Mullan

Submitted to Contest #241

Thomas, the renowned clockmaker, hunched over his latest masterpiece. Not a mere timekeeper, this was a symphony of gears and chimes, its intricate dance designed to predict the tides. Yet, the rhythmic click-clack of the mechanism offered little solace to Thomas’ troubled mind. He was convinced he was on borrowed time. Every customer who lingered by his stall, every whispered conversation across the marketplace, felt like a prelude to a heist. He meticulously monitored his apprentices, John and Anya, their youthful enthusiasm misinterpreted...

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“Bitter Twisted” by Bec Newton

Submitted to Contest #241

Everything felt off and I couldn’t place my finger on it.The air had an unseasonal bite to it tonight, prickling my skin and setting my nose running. Usually this time of year the weather would be calm and cool but lately the winds had taken to screaming through the streets, turning every bit of rain into shards of ice, biting and cruel. Squalls of it pounded me now as I crouched in a rancid alleyway waiting for the remainder of my team.Whilst the weather was a discomfort, it was not the reason for my disquiet. Things had not been going well...

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“It's Not Funny Anymore” by Misty Dearing

Submitted to Contest #241

It started as a joke that everyone laughed at. Those laughing never thought such a silly thing would come to this. As everyone gathered outside the church, dressed in black, there was no more laughter, only tears and sadness. Two years earlier Jonathon met Anna and they instantly fell in love. She was attracted to him for so many reasons. One of those reasons was the fact that he had no ex-wife and no children. To her this meant he had no baggage. Anna had two children, a boy and a girl, in their teens.&nb...

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“Which Job Should I Choose?” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #241

Now I have to choose. I applied for two different jobs, and both potential employers said that they were interested in interviewing me. Both jobs looked to be essentially the same. I mean, I am an accountant. How different can the two jobs be? I had both interviews today, and both companies expressed an interest in hiring me. You’d think I would be able to see which one is best suited for me. But it wasn’t going to be easy. It had been a long time since I had applied for a job. The small company that...

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“Mommy and Daddy” by Natalie Meador

Submitted to Contest #241

They sat across from one another on the carpet of Talia’s bedroom. Talia eyed her mother with scrutiny. She looked different now. Still beautiful, still lovely and graceful…but different. She didn’t look like a mom anymore. She looked like a person. A lying, gross, scrupulous…person. Talia wanted to yell, but no words would come, they were all scrambled up in her brain. “Please, say something. Do you hate me?” Christy asked with tears running down her face. “Why… How could you?” Talia finally spoke. “I—I—You gotta let me try to explain. C...

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“Poppy and Johnny” by Jeffrey McDonald

Submitted to Contest #241

Two lifelong friends just trying to get by in life get the opportunity to make a big score and move up in the drug ring they work in. Johnny the older of the two and more aggressive plays front man for the two of them with the heavy hitters of the drug ring and sets up a money drop for some product they had received recently. The next day Johnny shows up at Poppy’s house to give him the good news, but he doesn’t seem to be happy for the opportunity to make some money and make Bull The Animal happy. Bull has run the ring for a year now since ...

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“"Someday We'll Walk Together in the Raysof the Beautiful Sun"” by Pauline Taylor

Submitted to Contest #241

“Someday We’ll Walk Together in the Rays of the Beautiful Sun” In the fading sunlight, I could hear birds calling to each other as if they were signaling that it was time for me to go home. But, I didn’t want to go home. I knew he would be there sitting on the couch acting as if he isn’t sitting there waiting for me to come in the door, daring me to come in after the clock struck 6:05pm. It takes me exactly 45 minutes at the most to get home from work and I bet not step in that door a minute after 6:05pm, 6:06pm and I was sure...

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“Panoramic Deception” by Crymes King

Submitted to Contest #241

Her -- Them -- He -- Conundrum ... Death?Sad truth in matters is he ultimately never knew such an ominous end was possible, and even still, never in his God given did he expect "she" would be the culprit to deliver such a sinister possibility. Life -- Death and all in between flash as he stares down three corrivals, a burgundy bodied King James version bible, three perfectly placed Bambu ready rolled J's of exotic weed, and 1 (Sig Sauer P226 MK25 9mm pistol, with one bullet). As off current, his hands bound, nylon and sisal piercing the skin...

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“A Boy's Best Friend” by Bumble Bree

Submitted to Contest #241

Three Days AgoI could never hate him. I truly couldn’t. But there was an ache in my brain thinking about what he had done to me, bringing such heavy guilt to set on my back during what I had coveted for years. Anything but that life. That life was as useless to me as a sword was to a librarian or a match to a blacksmith. How could he? I was devastated, alone, and left with a future of sharing meals with the vermin and making deals with the devil. I couldn’t still help but wonder if I was the coward. Current Day Twelve days. Twelve...

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“A Walk Reveals the Unexpected” by Sam Newsome

Submitted to Contest #241

A Walk Reveals the Unexpected Jamie loved the long walks with grandpa. At ten years-of-age, he found the weekly walks with grandpa special. They loved the stream that bordered the farm and usually the walk included an exploration of the creek bank. The older man would point out the plants, birds, and animals to be found in the water as well as things to be avoided. They also carried a bag to fill with garbage left by those with less regard for nature. On this occasion, they had collected...

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“The Vengeful Earth” by SL Brandon

Submitted to Contest #241

The hardest part about betrayal is that it’s like an earthquake in Bozeman. You know it’s possible; after all Yellowstone is an easy morning’s drive. And we all know that Old Faithful’s homestead is just a super-volcano waiting for the right moment to show off. But you don’t actually expect it. Those worries are for the people who live in Alaska or California. Not Montana. I woke up that morning, wishing I didn’t have to. The betrayal I’d endured the day before was a 9.5 magnitude that I never saw coming. I’d given five years to ...

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“The torment of a conscience ” by Silent Mumbler

Submitted to Contest #241

TW// sexual violence, suicide, and mental healthThere is a day that I will never forget.The day I betrayed myself, my conscience.To this day, I did not know what came over me to act the way I did.But against all morals, against the boundaries I have put on myself, I watched him burn with satisfaction as I listened to his pleas while flames steadily approached him.“This is probably what they felt too, you know, the people you hurt.” I said softly.I could have saved him.I knew I could have, yet, I didn’t.He did not deserve to be saved, he dese...

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“The Phoenix” by Kim Olson

Submitted to Contest #241

Everyone had scattered after the shootout. Everyone that is, except Cal. He couldn’t run. He had been shot. Nothing to do but just lay there on the cold, hard pavement. Waiting, bleeding. Gritting his teeth, biding his time. Off in the distance, he could hear the wail of sirens getting closer, ever closer. That wasn’t good. He really didn’t want to go to the hospital. Too many questions, too much paperwork. It wasn’t a good idea for him to be in the system. Not at all. For many reasons.He’d rather just have one of the guys in his posse fix h...

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“Sword of Honor, Shield of Lies” by J.B. Redel

Submitted to Contest #241

Alrick stared in horror as sounds faded and his vision tunneled. What did a soldier do when the one he pledged his loyalty to used it to incite a war?~*~Alrick, Paladin Commander, strode down the stone corridors of the palace, his metal-clad boots and armor clacking with each step. At the end of the corridor, he pushed a pair of double doors open on silent hinges. His position allowed him to enter the royal study without permission or proper introduction, a privilege granted to very few.Four men turned at Alrick’s arrival, two of whom wore C...

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“Blood on the Sandstone” by Aeryn Goodspeed

Submitted to Contest #241

“Hey, Trish? Who’s this? He looks like Aunkie.”Purrtrice looked up from her book, over the frames of her glasses, at the calico kit that had just spoken. She had found an old platebell and figured out how to unlock it while Trish wasn’t paying attention. Her fingerpads had scored lines through the dust as she looked through the pictures saved on it, and the hologram screen was displaying a photo Trish had forgotten existed.She kept her face straight as she looked at the kit, inwardly noting the page number she was on and closing the book.“Da...

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$250

Prize money

255

Contest entries

116

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Mar 15, 2024 EST

Won by Liz Grosul 🏆

Title: When I Read Beckett

Submissions must be between 1,000 - 3,000 words and will be approved and published on Reedsy Prompts within 7 days of the contest closing.

Read the full terms & conditions or check out the FAQ if you have any questions!

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