Week 478 of #ThursThreads had many fantastic tales. What an amazing feat we’ve pulled off. Nine years! If you’ve been doing it a while, thank you for coming back each week. If you’ve just found us, welcome! You’re in good company. May you come back again and write more great flash. A thousand thanks to George Varhalmi for judging this week. Check out the #ThursThreads #flashfiction group on Facebook or the #ThursThreads Group on MeWe to keep up with news, etc.
Entries:
- Katheryn J. Avila | @katheryn_avila
- Miya Kressin | @miya_kressin
- Richard Gibney | @ragtaggiggagon
- Silver James | @SilverJames_
- Joe Hesch | @JAHesch
- Siobhan Muir | @SiobhanMuir
- Kelly Heinen | @Aightball
- Bill Engleson | @billmelaterplea
- David A. Ludwig | @DavidALudwig
- Mark A. Morris
- Sheilagh Lee | @SweetSheil
- M.T. Decker | @mishmhem
Honorable Mentions
Mark A. Morris
George says: Good tale with intrigue. Sometimes you need to have a little crazy to survive. Well written with good mix of tension and brevity. In other weeks that I have judged could’ve won hands down but this time because of the volume of excellent stories it fell just short.
Kelly Heinen | @aightball
George says: Great tale, I loved the humor especially having to go talk to Horace. I think someone’s going to the doghouse, even if its a god. Just like Mark, this tale would’ve won but it didn’t stand out as much with the number of excellent other tales.
M.T. Decker | @mishmhem
George says: Great tale, I guess being dead has its advantages and someone’s not going to like finding out. Well written and fun but like Mark & Kelly it didn’t stand out as much with the number of excellent other tales.
winner announcement
Week 478 Winners
Miya Kressin | @miya_kressin Silver James | @SilverJames_
George says: These two stories were phenomenal, actually all the stories were so good this week to pick out clear winners and HMs. After re-reading, these two were equally good. I was drawn to the sadness and maturity of Miya’s young protagonist who has had to do so much in such a short amount of time. Whereas, I was drawn to the tension of Silver’s tale with the intensity of finding the escape and what lies next. In short, both stories were well written, captivating and drew me in wanting more and because of those reasons these two tales really stood out.
Miya’s Tale
She wiped smears of dirt and blood from her face as she looked in the mirror. Her hair was a mess; she’d cut out the knots days ago. No one was around to tell her she was too little to cut her own hair. She knew her birthday had been sometime around now, when tulips came up. She remembered her fourth birthday— it was before Grampa came back and had to be buried again. Was she six now? Seven?
Her bandages were already falling off the blisters on her hands. She’d come in for fresh ones. If she was lucky (and when had that happened recently?) she had enough food and water to stay up in the treehouse until her hands were better or Dad came back. She just had to climb out the window and cross the tree branch to the little room. The dead couldn’t climb trees that high, and the living wouldn’t get through the door before she could escape across the rope bridge to the other tree. It had been a good safehouse; there was just too much blood downstairs, and that would draw the dead.
“You need to be careful,” she told her reflection. It was what Dad said before he went to find a new safehouse. He wasn’t back yet. She wasn’t going to think of what that meant. It was going to be hard enough finding the words to tell him she’d had to bury Mama yesterday.
~~~~~~~
Silver’s Tale
Maura stared at the answering machine. She poked the button again. The whispery voice ghosted from the speaker. “You need to be careful.” Click
Goosebumps pebbled her bare skin as a shiver spiraled around her backbone. She didn’t recognize the voice. And she had been careful. She’d avoided Ronan O’Connor like the plague. He still managed to appear in close proximity but she ignored him. She had too.
Heir apparent, she reminded herself. Irish mob. A dangerous man with dangerous pursuits and dangerous friends. Trouble should be his middle name. Yet there was something…there. Between them. He’d brush against her in a crowd and she’d suddenly feel safe. And desired. Like he’d always protect her even if he was busy kissing her. No! That way lay dragons.
Her cell phone rang and she jumped. Heart pounding, she stared at the screen. ALEX CALLING. Her boss. And the man she was investigating. She ignored it. Her house phone rang. After the voice mail instructions, there was only a click. Someone hammered on the front door and rattled the doorknob.
A man appeared through her back door and she choked back a scream as he held his index finger up to his lips. She recognized him as one of Ronan’s. He beckoned and she scuttled to him, grabbing only the clutch holding her keys, ID, and credit cards. No cell. Phones could be traced.
“Yeah, goons’re at the door but I’ve got her,” he said into his cell. “She’s safe now.”
~~~~~~~
Congratulations Four Time Winner Miya and FIFTY-TWO TIME WINNER Silver, and Honorable Mentions Mark, Kelly, and Mary! Don’t forget to claim your badges and display them with pride. You certainly earned it!
Pass on the great news on Twitter, Facebook, MeWe, shiny mirrors, Morse Code, and signal flags. Check out all the original tales HERE. Thanks for stopping by and happy reading! 🙂
