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Discover weekly, the best short stories

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

6300+ Thriller Short Stories to read

Submitted by writers on Reedsy Prompts to our weekly writing contest. Looking for a story that will keep you on the edge of your seat and holding your breath? Don’t skip our collection of thriller short stories.

Thriller Short Stories – Page 341 of 420

Mr. Hoover's Nephew

Submitted to Contest #60

Ron Hoover’s love of classical music didn’t fit well with his rough-around-the-edges persona, but he didn’t care. He woke up early in a dark room on the second floor. Waddled out to the hallway, past the empty guest bedroom, into the bathroom. Turned the light on, groaned in pain as his eyes shrunk to raisins. Why do they sell such damn bright light-bulbs? He brushed his teeth, shaved, and went back to his room. Got dressed in the dark, always a plain t-shirt and jeans. Skipped breakfast, it didn’t fit well with his lanky figure, then headed...

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Mundus

Submitted to Contest #60

The rain pelted down onto the vast fields and caused the ground to become slippery, brown sludge. As a consequence, this made the task of toiling much harder for the workers who hammered into these grounds, which belonged to their ruler, the Whore of Babylon, Ulrika. She was the supreme matriarch who governed the Democratic People’s Republic of Mundus.     ‘Worker 088068-666!’ screamed a voice from the megaphone.     Aki, one of the young workers, recognised the voice of their ruler. He looked up into ...

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Fleshers

Submitted to Contest #60

Heidi Benet was getting ready for the first shift of her new night-clerk position at a local theatre the day that it happened. She was nervous but excited. Heidi was only 19 and this was her first real job. She was also an English major at the local university. She was known to be a little uptight and “stuck-up”, but she was also a little kind. She expected a lot from herself and wanted to make her mark in the world one day. As she looked in the mirror at herself, she practiced her “professional” face whilst applying the finishing touches to...

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Scavenger Salute

Submitted to Contest #60

           The hare stopped. It looked up from its grazing, ears tall and twitching. A soft shift in the forest floor alerted it and it turned, ready to flee, when the arrow pierced its heart.            Halley emerged from the brush. She slung her bow over her shoulder and pulled out her skinning knife, placing the handle between her teeth as she crouched to remove her arrow. Still sharp. She wiped the edges against the loose part o...

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Eden's Cage

Submitted to Contest #60

You have no idea what is coming for you once the sun sets. You—my savior, the man who found me taming beasts—can never understand. You—my salvation—are my shackles. Watery ash streams down the walls of the domed aviary and pools in front of us, suffocating what little green survives in the Wastes. You mention how fortunate we are to be far from the coast. I force a chuckle at your joke that at least the hurricane did us some good. It did little good for the Burrowers. I wish I could drown their screams with those of our conures. I wish I...

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Pestilence

Submitted to Contest #60

It was the first time Billy saw someone die. His grandpa was sitting in his grey leather recliner, craning his neck to talk to Aunt Carole behind him. He suddenly looked bewildered, and his body stiffened. Aunt Carole, confused at first, walked closer to grandpa. Then she screamed, her hands clawing at her mouth. Billy wasn’t sure what had just happened, but he knew it must have been bad because his mother scooped him up and ran into the nearest bedroom. Tears were soaking her face. “Stay here Billy, ok?” She said. “What’s wrong mommy?” A...

7 likes 1 comment 1
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Living Things

Submitted to Contest #60

Your heartbeat matched the pace of your feet. Faster. The trees around you were just a blur of greens and browns. You jumped over rocks and fallen trunks, your usual trail long lost. You wouldn’t give up, though. You were decided you wouldn’t go down without a fight. Or, at least, a last attempt at fleeing. The burning in your lungs worsened with the smell of their stench—they were getting closer. You were running out of time. That was when you stumbled upon a clearing, the sudden light blinding your desperate eyes. The outline of a tall b...

11 likes 1 comment 1
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So Long

Submitted to Contest #60

I sob when I see her.I’m not a crier; I didn’t shed a tear during the Great War, not even when my girlfriend died in my arms. She was neither the first nor the last.But I just spent the last decade peering into every corner of the continent. I stopped thinking the words “what if” around year five, and I started drinking my way through the looted liquor stores around year eight.So, when the girl appears around the corner of the half-bombed grocery store, I fall to my knees and cry until there isn't a drop of liquid left in my body.“Um—hi.”She...

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Transformed

Submitted to Contest #60

I was at work when it happened. Helping a customer find the absolute perfect book to give her nephew for his first birthday. We’d been through most of the children's department, and I was starting to have second thoughts about my career choice when she finally settled on one. I led her to the register, thanking any and all gods that might exist for the reprieve. As we rounded the corner, the earth shook like something I had never felt and never would again.  The customer and I collapsed to the ground. I wish I was the kind of person w...

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The Storm

Submitted to Contest #60

The storm brought a winter-like-chill to the middle of summer and we smiled. The heat was destroying the scrap we called our homes and we were close to joining those that filled the sewers, but the rain changed that. It was the first we felt on our skins in months. We thought it would be the last for several more. Animals were hard to find but water was harder. We followed the animals and we found our pocket. It gave us just a little bit longer to live. This simplicity brought us back to our cores. Problems seemed to fall away. People were l...

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The Harmonies of Fatality

Submitted to Contest #60

A Lutist heard screaming in the streets over the violent and raucous noises of the tavern. Yet another fight had broken out.  But this came as no surprise to the Lutist who gently plucked out a mellow tune. It was a song for only her ears; no-one else cared to listen. There were, of course, genuinely good people who visited the sad little casino. The Friar would come for fellowship, while the peasants would come for a desperately needed laugh. But by nightfall, they would vanish, but the tavern would not go quiet. The slums would come...

106 likes 2 comments 2
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Brain Dead

Submitted to Contest #60

      Zombies. Jessie hated apocalyptic novels because they were always the same. It was always zombie virus this, infection that. The novels had bored her to no end before The Event. Now, she just wished she could go back to the normal world with zombies that were only present in stories. The Event was the zombie outbreak, but no one wanted to talk about it. It was given a neutral nickname and then speaking of it was forbidden. At first, The Event did not seem overly terrifying. Scientists had found a new speci...

6 likes 0 comments 0
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Spies + Zombie Training = Really Big Bonuses (Part 2)

Submitted to Contest #60

Author's note: This is a part 2 to my story "Spies + Zombie Training = Really Big Bonuses (Part1)". So if you haven't read that story yet, maybe check it out because there will be spoilers. If you don't want to, have no fear, a recap, and a fantastic day! Thanks for reading :)Recap: Agent Lincoln and Agent Connors are secret agents that work for rival organizations. They were both dumped into a zombie farm along with other agents to prepare for a possible zombie apocalypse with a warning to be out before night. They had a contest, killing ma...

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~Eutopia~

Submitted to Contest #60

'Boot 3 reporting- error, error, error'. Molly had his battery half dead, though he wasn't of much importance as his only ability was to receive information from the satellite which was not in Eutopia's orbit anymore.  Dread filled in every one of us present there, not knowing was there even any human alive out there too. 'No chances, they're all capable of scanning human presence. The eyes are sensor with PIR', said Carl. 'We aren't safe here for much longer', Louis said in a painful agitation. 'Are we?' Me, trying to act n...

22 likes 12 comments 12
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Lurkers

Submitted to Contest #60

1Walking with a limp, Hunter grits his teeth down route sixty-two feeling all sorts of emotions, holding hands with his son Dalton. He takes a look back to see the city of Hillsboro, Ohio, where he was born and raised, in flames and destruction. Wondering to himself that this was far worse than anything he ever imagined when he thought about the end of times. Every time he takes a second to stop because of his ballooned up ankle that he twisted, he hears moaning and horrible screams of torment and savagery. “Daddy?” His nine year old so...

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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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