Category Archives: short story

Unexpected Revelations ~ On the trail of a mastermind – #JulyWriting

05 Thursday Jul 2018

Posted by in July Writing, short story

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Join me every day at Noon EST for the continuing adventures of the bungling detective, N. Owl, in her quest to bring the mastermind, ~M, to justice!  If you’ve  missed any episodes, you can find them HERE!


As luck would have it, it was my room key and soon we were all slumped over the small coffee table in the middle of the room. Ideas went back and forth, some good, some not, until Mildred (not her real name, of course. I’d be silly to tell you that), had an unexpected revelation.

Now if I told you about this revelation, it would give it all away, right? So I’ll just let you stew a bit before bringing it to the forefront. I’m sure you understand. Okay, back we go.

Cory (not his name either), Fred (you know) and I waited as Mildred let us in on her idea. What if ~M was not as powerful as she had led us all to believe? What if she not only had a flaw, but a soft spot, too?. Mildred’s revelation? Dirt. Yep. Dirt. Imagine that.

It seemed we need only to deliver fresh dirt to ~M’s home so she could stick her feet in it. But here’s the catch. After more thought, we decided it wouldn’t be real dirt. Nope, it would be wet cement, disguised as dirt. Once she stuck her feet in, she’d never be able to get out.

Wait, what did you say? You don’t think that will work? The cement will dry too quickly? Sigh. I think you’re right. Back to the drawing board. Surely, there had to be a way to get to this mastermind once and for all.

Again? Now what? Just use regular dirt to keep her occupied? You really think that will work? Looking around, I realized there was no one else in the room, except the other three, who had worried looks on their faces, while trying to figure out who I was talking to. I guess it was time to take a break and get some food into us. Grabbing a menu, we ordered Chinese, had it delivered and worked while we ate.  Chop sticks were never my cup of tea, so after much of my dinner was on me, instead of in me, I reached for a fork and finished what was left of my dinner.  Hoping the fortune cookie had the answers, I quickly broke one open and read it.  No such luck.  It said “Better luck next fortune”.  Who writes these??

Stay tuned for more from this crime solving wordsmith…

 

July Writing Prompt – Unexpected revelations – Day 5/31

©2018 Dorinda Duclos All Rights Reserved
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Spontaneous Eruptions ~ On the trail of a mastermind – #JulyWriting

04 Wednesday Jul 2018

Posted by in July Writing, short story

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Join me every day at Noon EST for the continuing adventures of the bungling detective, N. Owl, in her quest to bring the mastermind, ~M, to justice!  If you’ve  missed any episodes, you can find them HERE!


I waited, impatiently, pacing like a junkyard dog looking for its next meal. The plane was late. The last I saw was a delay of 30 minutes. There was only so long I could hang around the baggage claim before someone got suspicious. I watched, as each jet taxied in from the tarmac, hooked up with its gate, and let the passengers off, into the airport. Time was running thin. Finally, the board lit up, announcing the arrival of Flight 608 from Newark. But something wasn’t right.

As the plane came to a stop, and the ramp attached, the door was immediately thrown open, and the passengers fled in all directions. Some of them were green, still others holding their hands over their nose and mouth, while one woman was actually carried off in a stretcher. There was no sight of the team I was waiting for. My heart sank. What on Earth could have happened?

I stopped one of the passengers, who had slowed down enough for me to do so, and asked what was going on. He preceded to tell me, in between gagging, that there had been several passengers on board with excessive gas issues, so much so, the plane had to be evacuated as soon as it hit the gate. I believed he referred to it as spontaneous eruptions. So that was their plan. It was all I could do to keep from laughing in the poor man’s face.

I felt my cell phone vibrate. It was my team, who had exited the plane through the baggage compartment in the underbelly. Everyone was so busy trying to get away from the stench, they never noticed them slip away. Genius, I say, pure genius. But there was no time to celebrate now. We needed to get back to my hotel and get busy. Except, I forgot the name of my hotel. Good thing I had my room key! I think it’s my room. I guess we’ll find out soon enough.

 

Stay tuned for more from this crime solving wordsmith…

 

July Writing Prompt – Spontaneous eruptions – Day 4/31

©2018 Dorinda Duclos All Rights Reserved
Photo via Pixabay CC0

Vigilant Vigilantes ~ On the trail of a mastermind – #JulyWriting

03 Tuesday Jul 2018

Posted by in July Writing, short story

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Join me every day at Noon EST for the continuing adventures of the bungling detective, N. Owl, in her quest to bring the mastermind, ~M, to justice!  If you’ve  missed any episodes, you can find them HERE!


I was awakened abruptly by the sound of knocking on my hotel door. Still a bit foggy, I made my way to it, bumping into the service tray that contained my uneaten dinner. What time was it? As I approached the door, I took caution as to walk to the side of it and not directly in front, in case someone had the cockamamie idea to shoot me.

“Who’s there?” I inquired.

“Room service, ma’am, here with your breakfast order.”

So it was morning. I must have worked through the night and fallen asleep without touching my dinner. A waste of a good burger, I imagined. I carefully opened the door and sure enough, there was the breakfast tray and the young lad from the kitchen. I waved him in, eying him every step of the way. I guess he felt the stare because he turned with a curious look on his face. I motioned for him to take the other cart and, handing him a $5 tip, escorted him to the door, closing and locking it behind him.

As I glanced around the room, I saw the bed scattered with papers. I walked to it, grabbing a piece of French toast on the way. No point in ruining two meals. That would just be silly. Right? Okay, enough about my breakfast, back to where I was. Where was I? Oh right, Wisconsin and that mastermind, ~M!

I had sketched out my plan to enter ~M’s living quarters, and realized I would need more help than just me, to achieve this. I needed to call in my minions, a group of vigilante’s, ever vigilant when it came to orders from me. I couldn’t ask the local law enforcement for help, they’d think me insane. But not this group. They were always ready when I called. I picked up my cell phone and tapped out the number. An immediate response, information from me, and they were on their way.

I would wait for them at the airport, dressed as a baggage handler, near the gate. They needed to exit the plane as unnoticed as possible. This, I might add, takes great skill. I had no doubt they’d pull it off.

 

Stay tuned for more from this crime solving wordsmith…

 

July Writing Prompt – Vigilant Vigilantes – Day 3/31

©2018 Dorinda Duclos All Rights Reserved
Photo via Pixabay CC0

Turning Back Tuesday ~ On the trail of a mastermind – #JulyWriting

02 Monday Jul 2018

Posted by in July Writing, short story

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Join me every day at Noon EST for the continuing adventures of the bungling detective, N. Owl, in her quest to bring the mastermind, ~M, to justice!  If you missed any episodes, you can find them HERE!


I could see exactly what she was trying to do here. It was beginning to feel like Groundhog’s Day. She wanted us to repeat Monday over again. No thanks. One a week was more than enough, we all knew that. Did she really think we’d fall for it? Her mastermind tactics had a flaw. I would have to jump on this opportunity to find out exactly what ~M was up to.

I had to be covert about it. There was no way I could let her know I was on to her. The problem was, I was never one to be quiet about anything. Just ask my family. If I had something to say, I said it. It got me into trouble more times than I could count. Oh, so sorry, I’m babbling again. Where was I? Oh yes…

So, back to ~M. I hopped a plane to Wisconsin, hoping she’d never realize I was that close by. I wasn’t really sure where her hideout was, but I figured if I found piles of dirt in someone’s yard, that had to be hers! Sure enough, as I casually walked past a house, carefully piled mounds of dirt scattered the lawn, and a brown haired woman lazily sitting on the grass with, you guessed it, her feet in the dirt.

Now I had to figure out how to get inside without her being even remotely suspicious. I suppose I could just stop to chat, but she might recognize my face. I’m famous, you know. Ok, maybe in my own mind, but that has to count for something. I went back to my hotel room, ordered room service, and began to plot out my next move…

 

Stay tuned for more from this crime solving wordsmith…

 

July Writing Prompt – Turning back Tuesday – Day 2/31

©2018 Dorinda Duclos All Rights Reserved
Photo via Pixabay CC0

The Rights of Wrongs ~ On the trail of a mastermind – #JulyWriting

01 Sunday Jul 2018

Posted by in July Writing, short story

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Join me every day at Noon EST for the continuing adventures of the bungling detective, N. Owl, in her quest to bring the mastermind, ~M, to justice!


There was no right as to what I was about to do. In fact, I’m not even sure it was wrong. But that didn’t make any sense at all. Isn’t there always a right to a wrong and vice versa? Let’s get down to the facts.

It all began back in September 2017. Words began appearing in a numerical order on a website called “Putting My Feet in the Dirt”. That should have been my first clue. Who puts their feet in dirt? Maybe I should give it a try? Okay, I’m going off the scent here. Where was I? Oh yes, the dirt. No, words! That’s it. These words were carefully placed upon the page, and taunting others to take them and do with them as they pleased. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity so of course, I took a few. A few grew into more and more.

I think I finally figured out her plan of attack. The more she listed, the more you fell into her trap. Every day, people would pop over to see what words of wisdom she was sharing with the world. Sometimes, she even wrote a poem herself. I’m sure it was, merely, to throw us off the track.

It’s a new month, and alas the infamous ~M has come up with yet even more unscrupulous ideas, and still, they are disguised as writing prompts. You see, I know what she’s up to. I’ve been following this trail for some 10 months now, heading into month eleven. I’m determined to find out just what this mastermind has in store for those she has reeled in with her shenanigans.

Stay tuned for more from this crime solving wordsmith…

 

July Writing Prompt – The rights of wrongs – Day 1/31

©2018 Dorinda Duclos All Rights Reserved
Photo via Pixabay CC0