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Discover weekly, the best short stories

Looking for a steady supply of suspense short stories? Every week thousands of writers submit stories to our writing contest.

8830+ Suspense Short Stories to read

Submitted by writers on Reedsy Prompts to our weekly writing contest. From bizarre characters to creeping threats, this collection of suspense short stories gives you an exciting array of bone-chilling tales.

Suspense Short Stories – Page 398 of 589

The Witch of Brimley Falls

Submitted to Contest #100

Goats bleated recklessly their warning. Oh no! She’s back. I scrambled around the one-room cabin, splashed a bit of lukewarm water on my face, and dove under the blankets she secured me with before leaving. The cabin sat far away from the village. No one ever came here, not with all the rumors and whatnot, so I knew the approaching footfalls belonged to her. If she caught me out of bed, there would surely be hell to pay.  I don’t know where she’d been, but she believed me to be sick enough that I could be trusted to be on my own. Ha! A ...

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Wrongly Invited

Submitted to Contest #100

Wrongly Invited By Sudip Mukherjee It's raining outside.But we have to go somewhere.An invitation came to us a few days back for a birthday dinner at a friend's house.But question is "No name was mentioned in the invitation letter.And the address is also not known to us."Oh.Forget to tell.We are five friends.We are partners in every crime(may be futile or huge blunders).We always go together.We eat together and even more interestingly we are all alone.We are orphans and now all are settled in home business together.We are friends since ch...

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Cold Soup

Submitted to Contest #100

It was 8 PM, the wind was howling outside, and you could feel each blow through the open window that was next to us. The sun was slowly setting, and the view made this restaurant way better than it already was. It was cold outside, but the warmth of the well-lit restaurant felt amazing. We both had a warm, cheesy potato soup It was still to hot to eat, so we kept on switching our gazes from the bowl to the window… ...and to each other. But who was he? Who was I? We were sitting at the same table for the past hour. How do I realize this just ...

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Meet Me There

Submitted to Contest #100

I knew that I had to accept this unexpected invitation for dinner. I felt it like butterflies in my stomach and here I was now, the time had gone by so quickly since the invitation, to meet this special person whom I hardly knew and had never met before. I could only imagine what he might look like, but the real surprise was awaiting me, to see his face. The only thing I knew about him was his gentle, persuasive, and still small voice. He called me and said that he had something important to tell me and that he didn't have time to give me al...

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Your Last Meal (Fifth And Sixth Courses)

Submitted to Contest #100

“It looks like there are ten of you remaining. For your next course, I have prepared something healthy, though it won’t be so healthy for those who choose the wrong dish.” He laughed at his own joke, but seemed displeased when no one laughed with him. “Anyways, the next course will be a salad. This time, individual plates will not be poisoned. Rather, I have two salads. A caesar salad and a greek salad. One salad is poisoned and one is not. Choose wisely. And those who survive will get to indulge themselves with a wonderful dessert that I ha...

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Your Last Meal (The Third And Fourth Course)

Submitted to Contest #100

Maggie shifted in her seat as the servers brought out the palate cleanser. It was sorbet, but not like the kind one bought at the grocery store. She watched as her boyfriend chose his and then picked one opposite to his. That had been a strategy Pierce—her boyfriend—had come up with once they started.          They didn’t know which dishes were poisoned, so he figured that if they chose the dishes that weren’t close together, they would have a better chance of picking the servings that weren’t poi...

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Your Last Meal (The First And Second Course)

Submitted to Contest #100

Julia tried to shake herself from the dark abyss she found herself in, but it took a long time to do so. When she finally did, she realized that she was not alone. She, along with what looked to be roughly nineteen others, lay on the ground in an empty room. But what was more disorienting and frightening was the fact that they were all tied up.          She tried to twist her hands free, but she could not. Her legs, she soon found out, were also bound.        &n...

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Dinner

Submitted to Contest #100

“Hey, Emily, can you pass me the salt?” Fred asked, breaking the silence. Without replying Emily slid the salt over to Fred. “So, how’s work been, Greg?" Asked Fred. “I heard that you got a promotion.” “Tss, you know how work gets,” Greg said before getting back to his meal.  Fred, paused before saying, “So, do you guys like this restaurant? It used to be one of my favorites when I was a teenager.” “I’ll be back,” Sarah said without answering Fred. She appeared to walk in the direction o...

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When Monsters Feast

Submitted to Contest #100

I’ve amassed an army, humans are terrified and I have become a king. The abyss no longer holds me hostage and humanity as I’ve known it has advanced. But no level of technology could have made them foresee me.  And as I stood on top of the world, the poor little girl that held my hand in the abyss walked in. Her face inhuman, her stride was calm, she stopped in front of me with a new form I failed to recognize at first glance.  “I see you’re doing well Vi.” I tell her, as her gaze looks up at me, and empty eyes stare back. ...

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What To Eat?

Submitted to Contest #100

Three men are approaching the ruins of the fortress very tired. They were walking for hours. Inside they try to find shelter from the harsh winter. They start the fire, without any conversation. It seems that it has been prepared for them; just to ignite it. Everyone sits to his place around it as cold winds are the only thing to be heard, apart from hauling of the wolves.  -“Fetch the wood”, silence is broken in commanding voice to the fattest man. Also he has a dark beard all over his face. He goes out, but he is not coming ...

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The Price of a Drop of Blood

Submitted to Contest #100

HIM Jess Hart was never one for compassion. He never helped an old woman with groceries or led the blind man across the street. So how was he cooking a meal for a complete stranger today? Jess came from a long line of shamans- his father, his grandfather, his great-grandfather and so on had all been shamans. Jess, however, had never believed any of it. It was nonsense, utter rubbish to him. His family had all been about helping people live a better life but he had never partaken in their practices.  But today was different, it was...

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Share and Share Alike

Submitted to Contest #100

The first explosion shook the underground train right off its track. I had just gathered my belongings and was waiting for others to get off at the end of the line stop before stepping out onto the platform myself. Through the shock and surprise, I stupidly thought that whatever had happened, at least it was at a moment when the doors of the train were open so nobody would be trapped inside. Those few passengers who waited to be last at least had shelter when the second blast went off. That one filled the stairwell with rubble, probably th...

11 likes 2 comments 2
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Breaking Bread for Love and Dread

Submitted to Contest #100

“This is an exquisite throne room, Your Highness.”  I stood rigid as I watched the dark-haired man lounge in the magnificent gold and silver throne that dominated the end of the hall; The throne that had rightfully belonged to my twin brother, Roshan. A part of me wished he would burst through the doors of the throne room and slay this man, but I knew that wish was in vain. My brother had been killed on the field by this usurper, The Black Prince, Iarlaith. I had heard many stories of this ambitious young man, heir to the throne of t...

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Different, but the Same

Submitted to Contest #100

       Silence engulfs them across the room. The tension is palpable, as four stony faces all stare at each other suspiciously. It suffocates them, an invisible glove around all of their necks. They await further instructions, whilst they sit at an empty table. “The feast will begin in a few minutes.” A monotonous voice calls out from a speaker attached to the wall. “Be there, or don’t.” The threat hangs in the air, and slices through them like a knife. They all shift uncomfortably in their seat. Theres...

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A Cold Party

Submitted to Contest #100

“Ah, Donna… welcome… please, come in.” The older woman’s voice was warm, but her face was sharp and curt, and her blue eyes held more chill than the piles of snow outside her massive home. She stepped away from her mahogany double doors and allowed Donna, a large woman with a hostile face, to walk in. “How was your drive?”  “Fine,” said Donna shortly, taking off her shoes and speeding past the old woman. She walked down a spacious hallway filled with pictures, recognizing her own smiling face in a few of them. Her feet carried her mech...

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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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