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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.

6170+ 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 411 of 412

If you go into the woods tonight

Submitted to Contest #13

My name is Teresa, I’m sixteen and Halloween is by far my favorite time of the year but it also has some anxiety for me. You see my specialty is creating the costume, no sexy kitty for me it has to have references and it has to show skill. I’ve done the werewolf, I’ve done the vampire, I’ve done so many things it’s getting hard to think of what to do next.After much deliberation I’ve settled on the ghost this year. I keep quiet about this choice, not even telling best friend Jess. She and I go to the same high school and much as I love her, ...

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Trick or Trick

Submitted to Contest #13

My name is Roy Peterson, I’m a handyman and we get the weirdest jobs. Anything people deem to difficult or disgusting to do themselves is what I get called out for. That’s why it was not unexpected that Mrs Celia Walsh called me to clean out her gutters. The drawback to this job is that the Walsh house is as close to a mansion as this town has, that’s if you think of mansions as Gothic monstrosities like the one in the Adams family movies. It has gutters all right but they are way up high. My instinct was to suggest she call a roofer but we ...

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untimely Death

Submitted to Contest #13

This morning I woke to the sound of my alarm and the sweet aroma of coffee I got out of bed and did my natural thing of having a morning shower then I would make my way into the sitting room to have my breakfast this morning it would be two medium rear fry eggs, toast and a three fry sausage`s and a cup of coco tea. All Prepared by Doreen oh did I forget to tell that Doreen is my wife and a fantastic cook as I take my place at the table, and go through the morning papers, and it was then that I came across a small column about a long time fr...

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Incandescence

Submitted to Contest #13

I have to get out... I have to get out! I have to-!I sit upright immediately, spluttering and coughing until my throat felt sore. I blinked around, feeling disorientated. I was on my front porch, supine, and for a few seconds, my mind is as blank as new canvas. Everything felt fine, like I had no cares in the world anymore, and that I was ethereal.Slowly rising to my feet, I brushed the dirt off of my black jeans...Why am I covered in soot?I turn to open my front door (which looked like it was made of charcoal) and jiggle the handle. It was ...

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Carnevil

Submitted to Contest #13

When I found myself sitting on a chartreuse carousel elephant and holding a funnel cake, I knew something was wrong. Besieged with raucous tinny music and blinded by flickering neon, my motion-sickness worsened by the smell of fried fat, I looked around for my family. They were the ones who had wanted to come to the carnival. Funnel cake fumes rose as the elephant dropped with a sickening lurch. I thought of throwing the plate, but didn’t want to add to the congealing piles of garbage all around. When the carousel finally slowed, I loo...

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Ghosted by the Neighbor

Submitted to Contest #13

I recently moved into a new neighborhood. Kind of one of those idyllic southern places with manicured lawns, Spanish moss hanging from ancient oak trees lining the streets...you know the type of place. The type of place most people only dream of living. And I got the opportunity through a lot of work, and some loss, to call it home. Anyway, I moved into this gorgeous old plantation style home on about a half an acre of land -basically a life size doll house- with a few of those moss covered trees in the yard. The neighborhood is small and t...

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A TRAIL OF LIES

Submitted to Contest #13

"Impossible.""Ma'am, I swear I am telling the truth.""Do you expect me to believe that Miss Emerald- a lady who I met many days ago -has been dead for ten years?"I glared at the man standing in the doorway. "Let me in. Now."He blocked me. "Not until you tell me who you are."I dropped the bag I had been carrying, ruffled through my jeans pockets, and brought out my driver's license. "Here."He was a lanky young man, and he wore glasses. He scratched his rust coloured untidy hair, and peered at my license. I studied him as he came up closer. Th...

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The day my life changed

Submitted to Contest #13

November 11th, 2575"I can't believe I'm late…" I murmured as I tried to walk as fast as I could with my heels.I stopped myself before a red light. I wanted to scream for it to change. Just when it turned green, someone bumped me."Hey, watch where you're….!" The youngster in front of me looked angry, but…For some reason, he stopped the sentence. I wanted to punch him."Aren't you the one who should be apologizing?" I told him."Wait a minute…" he looked confused "I did bump into someone, didn't?""That's not funny, young man. Apologize! I'm even...

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Where Mr. Joe-Bob?!

Submitted to Contest #13

Every year, especially around the holidays Mr. Joe-Bob has his home decorated Soo nicely according to whatever holiday it was at that particular time. Him and his wife, Mrs. Sally Mae have been married for nearly 40years. They met when they were middle school as the best of friends. Their relationship didn't become serious until college. They ended up getting married after their 1st years of college... Only 18 and 19 years old young in love, yet ambition for the life they wanted to share together. They worked as creative writers for the youn...

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A Burning Spirit

Submitted to Contest #13

The air around his head grew warmer than usual as the typical clunk of the AC grew quiet, now just a hum. Stretching his arms and legs out straight, pushed the ball of his feet against the sheet at the foot of the bed. A familiar and distinct sound of ripping cloth broke the silence as the big untrimmed toes pushed through the worn threads of the sheet. Wiggling them looked like Casper the ghost winking at him from the foot of the bed; it was Halloween after all. His eyes hurt and felt like a pail of sand had fallen in them from last ni...

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Cahoots

Submitted to Contest #13

Kevin dimmed the lights in the basement and joined his friends, legs crossed Indian-style, in a circle on the old concrete floor. He picked up an old aluminum flashlight from behind him and illuminated the underside of his chin.“Legend has it, that before my mom and dad bought this house, and before the old man they bought it from moved to Florida, that the old couple who lived here were in cahoots with real live witches.”The kids in the circle, all pimply middle school boys, hung onto Kevin’s every word.“Where’s cahoots?” asked a chubby, be...

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A spoonful of sugar

Submitted to Contest #13

The smell of pumpkin spice and cinnamon brought me from my hole of a room as the sound of "Monster Mash" emitted from my mother's old radio. My mother was a lonely woman, divorced from my father when I was eleven years old. Now, I was sixteen and dragged into the horrid activity of decorating she had done for every holiday, every year for the past five years. Decorating was the only vice she had. "Oh, Mia!" My mother exclaimed, garish red lips spread into a grin. Her hands were covered with orange goop, encasing her fingers like a lurid c...

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You go for a walk and accidentally bump into someone. They feel the bump, but the person can't seem to hear or see you.

Submitted to Contest #13

You go for a walk and accidentally bump into someone. They feel the bump, but the person can't seem to hear or see you.I move into 38 Brynteg terrace on the 24 of November 2014. yes it was summer time, and it was really or should or should I say very hot as I remembered very clearly I got out the car that my landlord was driving black ford focus he open the front door and we walked into that place well the ground floor there was a flight of stairs that lead upstairs into the bed rooms and the toilet and the artic and on the ground floor...

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Dreaming

Submitted to Contest #13

Anything can be a dream until it isn’t. Lilith awoke with a pounding headache that made her want to go back to sleep to get away from the pain, but the world seemed to have another plan as the sun from the curtains hit her eyes with its full brightness.  She let out a long breath of annoyance and covered her head with a pillow but knew there was nothing she could do. Today was, of course, a workday meaning, she needed to get up and just like everyone else go to work at her retail job until the clock hit seven and she was allow...

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Parlor Games

Submitted to Contest #13

Virginia knocked hard on the door. “I’m coming!” she could hear old Mrs. Wambly scrambling to get to the door. Suddenly the door opened and her neighbor stuck her head out. “Hey neighbor, what can I do for you?”, she asked in a pleasant voice. Virginia noticed the tired eyes, but the gentle smile as Mrs. Wambly tried her best to be neighborly. “Just wanted to borrow a cup of sugar. I forgot it at the market, you know me, always running! I can’t keep up with myself anymore. Halloween is tomorrow night so the kids are begging for homemade...

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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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