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A man confesses on his trial for murder. Reading time: 4 minutes. Just a Precaution The courtroom was silent; no one said a thing. The prosecutor had just summed up his case. The judge had asked the convict if he wanted to say something. The convict had asked for a glass of water. The doorman entered with a glass of water. He walked up to the booth and handed it to the convict, who gulped it down and handed it back. “I did it,” he said finally. Everyone in the courtroom gasped. The judge ordered them to settle down, and the convict went on. “I killed my best friend. I didn’t want to, but he threatened to throw me to the police for murder. Yes, I killed the barman too. It all happened in a spur of the moment.” The convict was lost in his memories. “It was late, and I had been thrown out of three bars consecutively. This was fourth. The barman said they had closed, but I begged him to serve me one last drink. My alcohol addiction got the best of me. He refused, and I lost my tempe

A family moves into a new house, and the horrors follow. Reading time: 4 minutes. Cliché “Honey, did you hear?” she asked, whispering. “About what?” he inquired with his mouth full of toast. They were sitting at the table in the kitchen having breakfast. “The kid of the new couple across the street went missing. Poor guys. They’d just moved into their new house.” He couldn’t understand her need to whisper. “I’m sure they’ll find the kid,” he said rather coldly. “Do you know if the police said anything?” he asked. “Same old bullshit! ‘We are doing our best' blah blah—” He finished his breakfast and grabbed his case. “I should head out. See you in the evening, hon.” They kissed each other and walked towards the door. “Do you think I should go see them?” she asked. “Yeah, sure,” he quickly replied without even thinking. “Okay, bye.” It almost seemed to her as if he didn’t care. She shrugged her shoulders and went in. Later that afternoon, she went to see the couple across the stree

A forest guard's account of the final case of his life that made him retire from his job. Reading time: 23 minutes. The Forest Never Forgets 1 The year was 1993. I listened to the downpour on the shed of the local administration office of my district's forest department as I waited for the Forest Officer who, like usual, was late and going to be later because of the heavy rain. Everything looked grey and discoloured. A gloom covered the village. There was no sound except for the rain on the shed. I sat thinking, in a dark hallway with no lights because of the power cut due to the rain. I remembered my last few weeks as the newly appointed Forest Guard here and it gave me a strange feeling. I had been a forest guard for three decades. All my colleagues got promoted, one even got retired and I was still doing this job. In those thirty years, I had seen some unsettling things that kept me awake at night, or I should say days because that’s when I used to sleep. Maybe that was

A heart wrenching story of two lovers-turned-enemies, one of them is a drug lord and the other works for a secret organization. Reading time: 26 minutes. Previously - The End and the Beginning — The serial killer is back. He is out killing again and it's up to Roy to catch and stop him . ( See the full chronology ) Chapter One The night was singing a beautiful lullaby as if it was trying to make everyone go to a peaceful sleep, trying to make them drift away into a dreamy world, heaven without any worries of their busy lives or responsibilities. Everything was as quiet as it could be. The wind tip-toed above the lazy and sleepy city. It knew the people only had a few hours before they had to get back to the race. Preeti circled the house one last time, checking everything. She was sure that she had locked every door and window but one can’t be too careful, she thought. The house was in complete dark, everything was at rest. Even the air seemed to have stopped. Preeti walked past

The serial killer is back. He is out killing again and it's up to Roy to catch and stop him. Reading time: 15 minutes 8 seconds. Previously - Killer vs Killer & Shadows Chapter One  The Night O h, night. Moonless night, dark and quiet. The kind of night that brings fear to people's hearts and joy to his. He was strolling around the dark street. The night was calling. Oh, it’s been months, he thought, since I played that little game with that killer. I doubt if it’s going to be that much fun but I'll make the best of the situation, I always do. He looked at the house, it was dark. Of course, he thought, he is at the office and probably thinking about what he is doing with his life, thinking that it would be better if he died. I might relieve him from his burden of breathing tonight. He sneaked into the house from the back door. He circled the house, took his time getting comfortable as if he was back home after a long time. He turned on the light of the living room, an