Posts Tagged ‘Murder’
Jan
Contemplation And Cowardice
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
On an exceptionally hot evening early in July a young man came out of the garret in which he lodged in S. Place and walked slowly, as though in hesitation, towards K. bridge.
He had successfully avoided meeting his landlady on the staircase. He owed her money, and the thought of seeing the old crone–whose heavenly recommendations on judgement day will not take up much of her inquisitor’s time–and hearing her bleat about the rent was enough to make him contemplate murder.
But as with most things in life, the thought was never more than a pleasant diversion.
The Daily Theme from Figment for Jan. 18, 2012
Courtesy of Lev Grossman
T.S. Eliot wrote: “Immature poets imitate; mature poets steal.” It’s just as true of novelists as it is of poets. Try stealing something from a writer you like: a style that works for you, or a character you love, or a situation or a moment that really floored you. See if you can work it into your own plot. Often you’ll find that by the time you’re done, you’ve made the style or the character or the situation your own, and what started out as theft has turned into inspiration.
I stole the first two sentences from Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment, and did my best to make it my own. Obviously, Dostoevsky had a lot more space to play around with his characters.
Dec
The Grandfather Paradox
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
They had told Christopher that time travel was impossible, that it violated the laws of physics. It took twenty years of obsession, but he proved them wrong.
Christopher had always been that way. Whatever walls surrounded him, he knocked them down. He remembered what Grandfather Warren had said, that he would never amount to anything. The insult burned at him every day, spurring him on.
So it was with great regret he discovered there was one law of physics he would never be able to break. No matter how hard he tried, Christopher was never able to kill Grandfather Warren.
Dec
Manufactured
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
The murder scene was wiped clean long before the police arrived to trample it in their carelessness. It didn’t matter. Their best evidence was always manufactured.
Carl would maintain his innocence until the day he was executed. Most non-biased observers believed him. He was a convenient fall guy to take the blame for a crime that couldn’t be solved. Yet no one dared leap to his defense. If the court system officially concluded Carl had murdered a family of seven while at the same time driving his taxi on the other side of the city, who was anyone to argue.
Sep
No Explanation Necessary For Looking Good
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
Detective Stephens surveyed the scene, trying to make sense of it. He could be certain of only one thing. The man was dead.
Stephens could find no explanation for the manner of death. The victim was fully dressed in a suit and tie, but had died from several bullet wounds to his heart. His clothes did not have any holes or blood on them. No one reported hearing any gunshots. A note read that despite his death, he refused to leave the neighborhood.
The mystery was never explained, but the man’s ghost never did leave. At least it was well-dressed.
Jul
A Darkness Of Mind
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
Drake’s fate was determined the day his father was killed.
Ghosts do not often commit murder. They haunt. They instill fear. They might so inhabit a person’s psyche as to drive her to suicide. But actual slaughter is rare.
Drake’s father was murdered by a ghost, and on that day Drake became a ghost hunter.
He inhabited the darkness. He learned about betrayal and lonely hearts and the isolation of eternity. He drank in whispers and sang of misfortune.
He became a lost soul. So it was that upon his death, he knew that he himself would become a ghost.
Jan
Institutional Negligence
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
They found her body–tattered, ripped open at the seams with the fluff bleeding out–in the middle of the sidewalk. The authorities labeled it accidental murder; she was the victim of circumstance.
But murder is never an accident. It takes nerve and planning and years of resentment piled on top of envy and systematic failures. Triggers don’t just pull themselves.
Neither of the authorities wanted to hear about it. They refused to own the fact their institutional negligence had allowed Mrs. Cassidy to be chewed to death by Chocolate, the cocker spaniel. Her parents were always skirting the blame.
Aug
No Remorse
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
Peter scanned the document, making note of the many black marks against the latest supplicant.
“Deceit. Petty Theft. Cursing. Coveting your neighbor’s wife. Murder. Excessive Pride. You managed quite a tally.”
The man laughed conspiratorially. “Yes, I was quite the sinner in my day.”
Peter took off his glasses and stared down at the man. “And it seems you show little remorse.”
“Well, I figure remorse is for the Europeans, or people from developing countries.”
“Yes, it’s true, God is an American. But when it comes to your final judgement, your nationality is only a small percentage of the evaluation.”
Apr
Tag, You’re Dead
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
His eyes spoke carefully, were impossible to read, and made me ill at ease. He flashed his badge, hoping to provoke a reaction.
“May I come in, Mr. Collins?” he asked.
“Please.”
After a smattering of ill-fitting pleasantries, he got to the point.
“Your 100 words blog, it’s interesting, the most popular tag is murder.”
“Murder fascinates me. In the theoretical sense.”
“And, as you know, six residents in the neighborhood have been murdered in the last three months. All in precisely the same fashion as depicted in your stories.”
“Unfortunately, for your sake, that number will be seven after tonight.”
Mar
The Mustache
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
Last Tuesday morning, I woke up with a moustache. It had not been there the day before. It appeared, fully formed, overnight.
My new moustache seems to have a mind of its own. I used to smoke regularly, but it will not abide by any kind of flame close to my face. It also has a taste for jerky.
My girlfriend, thinking it was one of those fake ‘staches you wear for Halloween, tried to pull it off my face. Let’s just say I’m single now.
And I know it is only a matter of time before it kills again.
Feb
The Good Lieutenant
by thegooddoctor in 100 Words
Recently, Officer Hanson spent most of his days seething. It seemed almost every cop in the city was on the take, whether for the mob or the corporate executives. It was giving him and the entire department a bad name.
With all the internal affairs investigations, it was becoming impossible to write a simple traffic citation without getting hauled before the citizen’s review board.
Hanson prided himself on being a by the book cop. Sure, he might kidnap the occasional tourist and murder them in cold blood, but that was on his own time.
Maybe it was time for retirement.