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Discover weekly, the best short stories

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

150+ Mystery Short Stories to read

Submitted by writers on Reedsy Prompts to our weekly writing contest. No need to go out hunting for clues — you’ve solved the puzzle of where to find the newest mystery short stories just by landing on this page.

Mystery Short Stories – Page 10 of 10

My Little Family

Submitted to Contest #327

‘Onyx!’ the firm yet tender voice bounces off every wall of the huge empty house, soon followed by the faint thud of a bowl touching the floor. She stands there for a couple of minutes, waiting for her cat to appear for dinner, but no cat sets foot in the living room. ‘It’s okay, you eat when you’re hungry,’ she murmurs. The cat is gone, he is gone. Everyone she’s loved – everyone she’s had – is gone. She’s on her own now. But the cat must be here somewhere, he’s probably just playing hide and seek with her. There was no carcass after all. N...

12 likes 2 comments 2
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The Cracks we Hide

Submitted to Contest #327

WARNING: Some possible triggers: Kidnapping, Coercion, and Threats of Violence. The old abandoned shed by the docks smelled of salt and ozone. Seagulls were heard squawking in the distance, and the familiar toll of the bell echoed in the distance as a ship began to leave harbor. Cole yanked the sack from Ben’s head, restoring his sight once again. His head spun slightly from the sudden movement and the brightness of things around him. The shed was small, its entire structure illuminated by a bright light mounted on the ceiling...

3 likes 0 comments 0
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The Love

Submitted to Contest #327

My mother lay motionless in the bush, showing no trace of life. I wept until every tear was gone, and until I was left exhausted and starving. I had no choice but to wait for death and reunite with my mother in heaven. The last morsel of meat was stale, maggots crawling from it; though it sickened me, survival demanded I eat. I devoured it in haste, but I choked as it caught in my throat. I was breathless and soon my vision blurred. Beside my ears, my mother whispered again and again, “you’ll be only yourself, until the person who matters mo...

9 likes 4 comments 4
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The Two Detectives

Submitted to Contest #327

“I told you we were close, Bobby! Patience is a virtue, my friend.” The old man anxiously rubbed at the gray stubble on his chin. He lived for these moments—when a solution to a confounding problem suddenly revealed itself. He had spent most of his adult life chasing this feeling. The man sipped from his coffee mug gloatingly and prepared to make his move. He felt a sudden pang of melancholy knowing that his work was nearly finished. “Let’s get on with it then.” He worked slowly, his hands shaking more than usual. His doctor had lectured hi...

8 likes 0 comments 0
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Room 222

Submitted to Contest #327

“Well well well, look at who the cat dragged in.”When she opened the door, for a minute I almost forgot who she was. In fact, when I realized it was her, I started to get aggravated. I mean who did she think she was to take that attitude with me? The last time we were in each other’s company we had an argument, ok fine, it was a full-blown fight, but what was I supposed to do? Take it? I mean she used to batter me with names, all kinds of expletives, and not just once, but constantly, but that time it was in front of my own family with peopl...

5 likes 0 comments 0
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Lil Boo's Tale

Submitted to Contest #327

They named me Lil Boo because people like their fears soft and furry. It’s easier to love the thing you should be running from.To Queenie Washington, I’m a pet — an all-black cat with green eyes and too much attitude. She hears only my meows. But I’m talking, always talking. Just not in her language.It started one gray October afternoon when Queenie pulled a shoebox from the hallway closet. Dust puffed up like ghosts leaving for vacation. “Old family photos,” she said, kneeling on the rug.I jumped onto her bed, tail flicking. Inside that box...

6 likes 3 comments 3
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Pratum's Last Whisper

Submitted to Contest #327

The frigid night air stung my lungs, a biting reminder that I was somewhere I shouldn't be. They told me to avoid spirits, yet never explained why. Maybe that's how I ended up with this tiny floating soul before me. My lungs ached, and I had already broken over ten Pratum rulings, but I couldn't hide my fascination. Ever since I was young, voices have called to me wherever I went, and even in my dreams. They whispered of answers to find a new world. A future for Pratum beyond what the people could imagine. They led me here to start our desti...

3 likes 0 comments 0
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The Cat of Cecil Manor

Submitted to Contest #327

I stretch, catching my claws in the woollen rug and soak up the heat from the embers creeping around the coals. The house is still, though the wind whistles through gaps in the window frames and, in the distance, I can hear Peter sobbing. Katherine will be with him, holding him and singing softly.I yawn, and as I do, a closer sound pricks my ears - a scratching, a scuttling. I follow the sound until my gaze falls upon a brown mouse creeping along the floor toward the kitchen doorway. Slowly, silently, I turn my body, staying low, creeping cl...

15 likes 6 comments 6
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All Hallows Eve

Submitted to Contest #327

CW: This story contains explicit language, graphic horror imagery, and violence. The streets were scattered with curled brown and orange leaves that fell like snow, only less frequent, even gentler somehow. A smooth wind teased its way through the treetops, making them sway like waves viewed from beneath the depths of an autumn tide. Halloween. I'm too old to trick or treat now, but the feeling I get still fills me with warmth. A collective sense of wonder, the unknown, spookiness. Childish I know. I smile as I watch my little brother go off...

6 likes 2 comments 2
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Ember

Submitted to Contest #327

The first thing I remember was warmth, the press of her hands around my small body, the scent of rosemary and smoke. She hummed a song I didn’t understand, but somehow it wrapped around me like protection. “Nine moons, nine souls, nine chances to roam,One heart to wander, one heart to come home.When death takes the breath, let the moon take the pain.Born today, dear Ember, and let it be again and again.” The air shimmered. Above me, the moon bled light through the cracks of the thatched roof, washing the world in pale magic. I blinked up at ...

7 likes 3 comments 3
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The Princess Awakes

Submitted to Contest #326

There it goes again. Another round of this disappointed sun was going down, and it went down sending a look towards me.I thought maybe looking outside just one more time would help me accept this gruesome silence. It was always so silent. So still. I knew the lack of boots pounding up the cobblestone mocked me day and night. If it had a voice, it would whisper, "What a shame.""Prince Charming isn't coming." I whispered, while staring at the invisible moon. Now the stars were looking down too, wondering what's next, just as I am. Sighing, I ...

5 likes 1 comment 1
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Transcript of Diana Torres' Interview

Submitted to Contest #326

I’m not usually the last one out of the office. I mean, if it were up to me, I’d leave at five on the dot, you know? And most days, I do. And that week? I wanted to get out of there ASAP. Who wants to stay during hell week? Every article’s been reviewed, every spread checked; the entire magazine, cover to back, was already seen and touched by everyone, from the ground up. The November issue was locked. But of course, Dex had to fuck—sorry, can I curse? I mean, my frustration is understandable, don’t you think? What kind of idiot forgets to ...

6 likes 0 comments 0
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Ghost Light

Submitted to Contest #326

I’ll share with you this little story, which might sound like pure fantasy, but I’ll stay true to the facts as faithfully and precisely as I can.It was close to midnight, and my uncle Abel and I were getting ready to work in my grandfather’s cornfield. The property spanned nearly fifty acres of crops; right at the northern edge stood the house where we stayed during harvest season. We had only one combine harvester and a tractor to pull it. We’d been told to start working at night so we could finish the entire field by daylight. It might’ve ...

14 likes 3 comments 3
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Silence Is Golden

Submitted to Contest #326

Silence is Golden Nellie-Rae hustled as quickly as she could away from the grip of her disgusting smelly neighbor, Otis Crawford. Ducking under cover of the woods before slowing to take a breath, she continued to clutch two heavy bags of deer meat she managed to carve off the carcass of the buck she broad-headed on her property before the injured animal crossed the boundary line and died. If Otis's son, Cody, hadn't interrupted him, the greedy man would have taken a piece of her hide for claiming her own game. Nervous energy made her chuckle...

24 likes 20 comments 20
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A Feywell

Submitted to Contest #326

That Halloween night, a Feywell awaited her — though she did not know it yet. They were invited to the neighbors’ house that evening. Her mother had dressed her as the princess from her favorite storybook. She had even added a touch of light, colorful makeup; the area around her eyes shimmered with glitter. A soft wind stirred outside, carrying with it the rustle of dry, golden leaves gathered along the fences and lawns. Paper ghosts swayed from the porch rails, their soft rustling echoing the laughter of children running from door to door. ...

5 likes 0 comments 0
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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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