Ancestral treasures

Posted on by Fatima Fakier

PHOTO PROMPT © Renee Heath

Tshepo was silhouetted against the setting sun, beer bottle raised against the dying light. “To our success!”

“Cheers to that!” Brenda, Gift and Tshepo tipped their bottles together.

“Do you think the police will find out we stole it?” Gift whispered.

“Nah.” replied Tshepo, after some thought. “It’s not worth much anyway. Doubt anyone will miss it.”

“It is priceless to us.” said Gift, firmly.

“Gogo was a great artist.” mused Brenda, gazing at its colours as a tear fell onto her cheek. “She’d be happy to know her painting is home. After all these years.”

96 words

I based this loosely on true stories of Jewish families who have had their family assets, arts and jewellery, seized by the Nazis. And whose living relatives fight court battles to reclaim these priceless treasures today.

Gogo means grandmother in some African languages, particular to the Zulu language.

Written for Friday Fictioneers hosted by Rochelle Wisoff-Fields. Write a story in 100 words or less. Submit your story by clicking the blue frog, and read more awesome flash fiction too.

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Unrequited love

Posted on by Fatima Fakier

PHOTO PROMPT © Yvette Prior

 

Amarah tore her eyes away from David’s face. Focus! She shook fantasy images out of her head. Under the lamplight they studied the crime scene photo’s for the hundredth time.

“We’re missing something.” David pondered.

Reciprocation.

“The victim was alone. Husband’s alibi is watertight.”

“From all those tissues and drinks, it looks like she was upset.”

“We know they argued.”

“Yeah, still..” Amarah stared at the photo. Her intuition poked at something. She picked up the photo of the body. No lipstick. “There’s lipstick on some of those cigarette butts.”

“So?”

“Another woman was there that night. An unidentified woman.”

100 words

 

Wowee! I struggled with this week’s prompt. Wrote one story, deleted the whole thing. After repetitive attempts, this is the final piece. If it’s not up to scratch, I may have over-thought everything. What an awesome prompt, (courtesy of Yvette Prior) it really conjured up so many possibilities that it was difficult to settle on just one.

Written for Friday Fictioneers hosted by Rochelle Wisoff-Fields. Write a story in 100 words or less.

 

 

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Job satisfaction

Posted on by Fatima Fakier

PHOTO PROMPT © Ronda Del Boccio

Andersen found mowing the lawn unexpectedly therapeutic. At first he loathed it. Now he found it strangely satisfying to see it cleanly cut. A car pulled up at the house opposite. A tall man emerged. Andersen smiled, waved at his neighbour. It had only been a few months but he knew him so well already.

He waited till he closed his front door. Then Andersen lit a cigarette, eyeing the plumbing van on the street.

Swat teams emerged in stealth mode from the van, surrounding his neighbour’s house.

Oh yes, Andersen loved the satisfaction of a job well done.

99 words

Grass to marijuana to drugs to human trafficking or other crime syndicates. That was my thought process for an undercover agent story 😉

Written for Friday Fictioneers hosted by Rochelle Wisoff-Fields. Write a story in 100 words or less.

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Dead men tell no lies

Posted on by Fatima Fakier

PHOTO PROMPT © Liz Young

The human body is capable of amazing things. Contortion is one. Bending with extreme flexibility. Just like Jimmy was now, crumpled into a lobster trap. Except that John had to break Jimmy’s legs at the knees to get it to fit. His face was blank and slack. Nothing left  of the shock that twisted his features looking down the barrel of John’s gun. Six bullets fired into his chest.

Now, pushing the trap off the boat into the water, John felt nothing of the cold shock that seeped into him when he found out Jimmy had betrayed him.

98 words

Brought back an old character from one of last year’s flash fiction, John the Baptist. Organised crime boss and ruthless with his enemies.

Written for Friday Fictioneers hosted by author Rochelle Wisoff-Fields.

Click the icon to read more flash fiction by other amazing writers. It is amazing to see the different stories and genre’s that an image can prompt. I’ll be impressed if this image courtesy of Liz Young inspires any romance stories!

Rendezvous in the woods

Posted on by Fatima Fakier

PHOTO PROMPT © Karen Rawson

He gazed at the delicate line of her neck, tracing with his eyes along her collar-bone.

“Josh, are you listening?” Carrie cocked her head to one side, blue eyes sparkling, blonde hair flowing with the breeze.

“Huh? What were you saying?” He slipped his hand into his pocket.

“So you always come here?” she looked at the bubbling creek, and bare trees.

“It’s better in the spring.” He tried not to think of the other women.

She shivered. “It’s cold.”

He drew a blade from his pocket. Only the trees heard her screams, but they would never tell.

98 words

Written for Friday Fictioneers hosted by Rochelle Wisoff-Fields. Write a story in 100 words or less. Thanks to Karen Rawson for this week’s prompt which inspired me to write my thriller-date-gone-horribly-wrong flash fiction.

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Goodnight kiss

Posted on by Fatima Fakier

PHOTO PROMPT © Dale Rogerson

He shut the closet door and sank into the darkness. Mark clasped his hands over his ears to silence the buzzing. But he was helpless against the visions that replayed in his mind.

Blood. On a single gold hoop earring. Matted brown hair. He tasted bile in the back of his throat.

Three days later his wife’s body was found near the beach and he was arrested. The detective presented the evidence bag containing the stained earring they found in his car. Nausea enveloped him as he tried to remember. He had kissed her goodnight. But after that – nothing.

99 words

I struggled with this image. Everytime I tried to think of something, all I could see was crinoline… Probably because I had read Rochelle’s post first.

So I went back to my thriller roots, and saw jewellery instead in those suspended circular artwork things. I’m not sure if my main MC is guilty or not. Looking forward to seeing your thoughts in the comments. Thank you, Dale Rogerson, my friend, for this week’s image!

Written for Friday Fictioneers hosted by Rochelle Wisoff-Fields. The challenge is to write a story in 100 words or less. Click the blue frog icon to read more flash fiction from other super cool writers.

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A friend in need

Posted on by Fatima Fakier

 

PHOTO PROMPT © Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

Bindi split the wood with a satisfying crack. Sarah always asked her why she did men’s work. Sarah did nothing but sit pretty. And since she had come to her homeless and in need, Bindi had come to hate her backstabbing, ungrateful ways.

“Have you seen Sarah anywhere?” Her husband Greg appeared unexpectedly. Wouldn’t you like to know? she thought.

Gazing off into the forest bordering their farm, she shrugged. “Probably ran away again.”

A smear of blood near the axe handle caught her eye.

“We ought to get a new axe. This one has seen its last.”

99 words

This serene picture of chopped wood discs, (thanks to Rochelle for this week’s image) inspired me back to thrillers. Guess where Bindi hid Sarah’s body?

Written for Friday Fictioneers, hosted by Rochelle where the challenge is to write a story in 100 words or less.

Click the blue frog to read more flash fiction from other great writers.

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Abduction or adventure?

Posted on by Fatima Fakier

PHOTO PROMPT © What’s His Name

Abdul stared at the smartphone. Cold fear gripped his heart. It seemed Karima left an audio diary on her phone. The police wouldn’t help him if they heard this.

He pressed play again, “Frankfurt. That’s where I’ll go. Simply pointed to a place on the map, blindfolded. That’s how much I don’t care anymore. Life is dreary here. My soul longs for adventure.”

His sister’s voice pulled at his heart through the mounting fear. He had to find her. Human trafficking was on the rise. Girls disappeared every week.

Karima was always reckless, but she’d never leave without saying goodbye.

100 words

Had a busy few weeks at work handling crisis after crisis, and kept me away from writing and Friday Fictioneers. But I’ve clawed my way back and I’m glad to be here this week!

Written for Friday Fictioneers hosted by Rochelle. The challenge is to write a full stroy in 100 words or less.

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Ransom

Posted on by Fatima Fakier

PHOTO PROMPT © Roger Bulltot

 

They watched her from behind a damaged pillar. She came alone as they instructed her to do. She opened the ransom note they sent her and studied its contents.

It should have struck Jason as odd. There was nothing but a few lines in it. Chris grinned as he gripped the boy’s arm with one hand. The gag stuffed in his mouth muffled the boy’s pleas.

The next minute a helicopter droned overhead.

“It’s the damned police!” Jason yelled, “Get rid of the boy!”

Chris pulled a firearm from inside his jacket with a sly grin, “Sorry Jason. Game’s over.”

100 words

 

Written for Friday Fictioneers where the challenge is to write a complete story in 100 words or less. Hosted by Rochelle.

 

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When we were friends 

Posted on by Fatima Fakier

           PHOTO PROMPT © Liz Young

Shona pulled up her collar. A fine mist gathered around the group, complicit in their betrayal.

Everything about death was cold. Light leaves the eyes. Blood stops flowing, warmth dissipates. But this arm, though limp in her grasp, felt warm.

She wished she could turn back time. Just an hour. Before it all went wrong. She knew they were on the point of no return as they tossed their friend into the shallow hole in the ground, and covered her with dirt. Shona watched till the dirt piled high, then they patted it flat and covered it with dry leaves.

100 words

Written for Friday Fictioneers hosted by the awesome Rochelle where we’re challenged to write flash fiction, an entire story with beginning, middle and end in 100 words or less.

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