Tag Archives: drabble

A Brief Errand in Time

cotton

PHOTO PROMPT © Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

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Miles Jackson strolled past the bistro to The Cotton Exchange. His contact said he had to depart from someplace that existed both now and at the target date. He wouldn’t have much time once he arrived, which was ironic. But in 2024, he couldn’t walk down the streets of Wilmington dressed like a Civil War era slave.

The vaccine was secure in his pocket. Miles knew that ten-year-old Caleb would be in a house just two doors down on the morning of August 16, 1862. He had to inoculate him for the Yellow Fever so his ancestor would grow up.

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Solved: The Locked Room Murder Mystery

susan

PHOTO PROMPT © Susan Rouchard

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Stephanie’s grandfather had been murdered in his study. The police said the room had been locked from the inside. No one could have gotten in or out.

He was strangled by hand so it wasn’t a suicide. The police determined the murderer could not still be in the room.

Steph knew better. She had been part of his writing since she was six and old enough to compose her first childish mystery.

She worked through the stack of books on his desk. The one he’d received by mail just before he died; his latest novel. Grandfather’s killer was hiding inside.

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A Rose for Amélie

bridge

PHOTO PROMPT © Sandra Crook

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His name is Alec Plisken now. Periodically, he found it convenient to change identities. That didn’t mean he could change his past.

This night he stood on the Pont de Pierre. His steady hand placed a red rose on the walkway. This was where his wife had fallen.

There was peace now, but not so in Nazi occupied Bordeaux in 1940. He had been sent to England not realizing his beloved wife would not escape France, even with a falsified Portuguese visa. This is where she was shot and killed by the fascists. Unlike him, Amélie was not an immortal.

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No Dancing For Me

door

PHOTO PROMPT © Dale Rogerson

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Jeffrey stood at the bottom of the steps confronted by a barrier and closed doors.

“The bloody thing’s closed. Dodged that one,” he said aloud.

He was turning to leave when he felt a hand on his shoulder and heard her say, “Where do you think you’re going?”

He gritted his teeth behind his lips, then choked out, “It’s closed, Marcia”

“Keeps folks from sleeping on the landing. I can unlatch it and have a key.” She pulled him up the steps.

“I don’t want to dance,” he complained.

“Come on. It’s fun.” The gleam in her eye was evil.

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Visiting Mom

roger

PHOTO PROMPT © Roger Bultot

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Every morning, she opens the window and walks out onto her small balcony. Her apartment is the only one like it.

Every morning, I wait for her to come out and I watch her. I keep my curtains shut so she doesn’t know she’s being spied on. I’m still deciding what to do.

Nineteen years ago, she went to have an abortion. The baby survived and was born, but she was told it wouldn’t live long. She left without another thought.

Should I confront her, tell her I’m the son she abandoned, or use my rifle and kill her now?

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So This Is Romantic?

beach

PHOTO PROMPT © Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

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“Come on, Scott. What’s the point of renting a beach house for a week if we don’t walk along the beach?” Jeannie tugged at her husband’s arm, coaxing him along.

“What’s the point of freezing my ass off? It’s March, not July. What possesses those nuts to bundle up under some tent just to watch the waves?”

“Spoilsport. This is supposed to be romantic.”

“Watching the ocean through the window with a roaring blaze in the fireplace is romantic.”

“Some romance. You just want to be writing that story of yours. I should never have let you bring your laptop.”

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Death by Incense

gas

PHOTO PROMPT © Rowena Curtin

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Henry only needed to turn the gas back on for a little while. He’d arranged for the stove to have a significant leak. Rachel would smell it, but he would tell her she’s imagining things. Then he’d go outside pretending to tend to the garden.

When she came out complaining of a headache or dizziness, he’d suggest she stay with her sister Jeannie for the weekend. Anything to get rid of her and her damned nagging. Then he’d fix the leak, air out the house, and finally be able to relax.

He didn’t count on her lighting an incense stick.

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Of Stuff and Muses

fleur

PHOTO PROMPT © Fleur Lind

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“Well, write something about it,” Muse demanded. In such an ordinary setting, her ephemeral existence, blond hair flowing as water-like as her sheer gown, she was so out of place.

I answered in dismay, “Write what? It’s just someone’s family room. I have no idea what the image on the TV screen is supposed to mean except in the literal sense.”

“Hurry up, James. You do this every week. I have a 10 o’clock with another client.”

“It reminds me of…” I looked around my home office. “Everyone keeps stuff no one else understands.”

She vanished in an impatient puff.

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Baffel’s Last Day

wagon

PHOTO PROMPT © Alicia Jamtaas

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Baffel cautiously walked toward the now antique Conestoga wagon as if it might vanish. He perfectly remembered the wagon train’s journey along the Oregon Trail in 1824.

The families had suffered such hardships. He did the best he could, but he was there to observe and encourage, not to change things.

Nearly a third died of disease and regrettably the hostility of the others whose land upon which they were encroaching. He was ordered not to change that either.

Today, his span was at an end. After 200 years, mankind would have to find their path without the alien android.

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One Pale Blue Dot on Ice, Please

freezing

PHOTO PROMPT © Dale Rogerson

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Another Valentine’s Day alone. Cassandra considered turning the heat up in her small apartment but her rental agreement said she paid for heating and cooling. She pulled the blanket higher around her while watching TV. The big news was that Voyager 1 had sent back what would be the “Pale Blue Dot” photo of Earth.

“Whoopie.” She tucked her freezing feet under her butt. It was no use. The streets were paved with ice so she wasn’t going out. “Screw it.” Cass got up and opened the chest. “Now where did I put those global warming potions?” thought the witch.

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