Nocturnal Nibbles

By Miranda Kate

Nocturnal Nibbles is a collection of thirty bite-sized pieces of flash fiction for you to devour. Containing short sharp tales of murder, revenge, penance, sacrifice, supernatural scares, monsters and spooks, it offers an array of horror to delight.

So buckle up and dive on in, you won’t regret it – but your nightmares might.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Purple Queen Publishing
• Release date: Oct 23, 2023
• ISBN: 9798215452899

Miranda Kate

Miranda started out life wanting to be a film director, but when directing people didn't work, she turned to words instead, finding them much easier to deal with – most days.Miranda has been featured in several Flash Fiction anthologies and ezines, and published several books, including three collections, four novels, and a novella. She writes across genres, which include Horror, Science Fiction Fantasy, Time Travel and Paranormal Fantasy, often mixing them together – the one constant being that they are all dark.Under the pen name, M K Boers, she writes psychological thrillers.Miranda Kate, spent her early childhood in Surrey, in the south of England, and her teens and early adulthood moving round the UK, but currently resides in the Netherlands.

Book preview

Jackson shoved the spade into the ground while the music blared in his ears. He loved his new MP3 player, it fit so snugly into the pocket of his favourite plaid shirt. Ignoring the light drizzle coming through the saturated trees, his hips swayed from side to side as he dug.

He felt the spade snag the necklace and threw it down. Kneeling beside the hole, Jackson scrabbled in the dirt feeling for the pendant. His fingers registered the cold flesh it hung from, but he wasn’t concerned about that; he was only here for the stone. When he found it, Jackson gave it a sharp tug and it came away easy.

The song came to a crescendo as he stood, and he danced, the necklace swinging from his hands as he played out the final drum beats. Then he carefully filled the hole in again, making sure it looked untouched.

By the time Jackson returned to the cabin he had to hustle; it wouldn’t be long before she arrived, and he needed to be ready. He smiled at the feel of the pendant in his pocket; this was going to be a special night.

When he heard tyres on gravel Jackson was stoking the fire. He moved over to the stereo and picked out a song. It played in sync to the sound of her footsteps crunching on the driveway and then on the deck. The door was open so she walked straight in.

Jackson grinned at the sight of her; the short, tight dress pleasing him. She knew what he liked. Juliet paused for effect then joined him at the fireside, giving him a long, hard kiss. She wasn’t messing about tonight.

They didn’t waste any time, and moved fast and furious until they were both fully satiated. Then later in bed, Jackson handed her a little box.

She raised her eyebrows and said, For me?

He smiled but didn’t speak.

Juliet opened the box and froze when she saw the contents, not daring to touch her sister’s pendant.

Jackson waited; the fear in her eyes giving him the kick he’d been longing for. He could feel the tension in her body through the sheets, and even the subtle movement as she tried to move away from him.

He leaned into her, nuzzling at her neck, and said, Party’s over now, baby. He ran his fingertips along her leg. She was rigid.

Juliet whispered, Where is she? What did you do to her?

He paused. Are you sure you wanna know? It’ll be much more fun finding out, don’t you think?

Jackson heard her swallow. Her mouth had gone dry. This was his favourite part.

***

The next morning Jackson reached for his MP3 player and plugged in the earphones starting up a roar in his head. While preparing everything, he found the pendant discarded on the floor and picked it up.

It brought back such sweet memories that for a moment he considered keeping it, but he knew better. He grabbed the spade on his way out the door and danced down the steps. He had work to do.

Published in ‘100 Doors of Madness’ October 2013

Captivated

Roger looked through his balcony telescope as he did every morning, reviewing the iron statues scattered across the estuary beach, checking the number of rusty men as they looked out to sea.

The first ones had appeared a century ago, but no sculptor had stepped forward to claim them. Many had thought it was some kind of hoax, but as the decades passed more appeared and no one discovered the culprit. And despite a stream of researchers it remained a local mystery.

The appearance of a new statue a couple of years ago had renewed Roger’s interest. They had captivated him as a child, when they had come here on family holidays, and been the initial inspiration for his career in photography. Not being tied to anything in the city, he’d moved up here to examine them closer.

He purchased a cliff top house overlooking the bay, which gave him the perfect vantage point to ponder his fascination. He kept written and photographic records, logging how they stood through tides and seasons, but he didn’t uncover any secrets or patterns. And today, like every day, they stood majestic keeping their enigma, silently observing the sea.

The sea. The thought triggered an idea.

Roger went inside and hurried to his desk, remaining there all day, referencing the wall of photos he’d built up of the statues in all kinds of light and weather. By dusk he had finished, and he returned to the deck, realigning the telescope and tripod camera to look at the sea rather than the male effigies this time.

He lingered, taking in his new perspective, until hunger drew him back inside, but as he stepped into the lounge, facing the photographs, he saw it.

Only in the encroaching evening light was it visible in the photographs. He pulled two pictures off the wall to inspect them, but under lamplight the strange effect disappeared, although when he returned to the balcony it was there.

The water had come alive with an effervescent shimmer; the ocean glowing as though lit from beneath. How could he have missed it before? He looked through the telescope but it wasn’t enough, he needed to experience it.

Roger grabbed his coat and a handheld camera and took the path down along the cliffs.

When he reached the sand, the candescence had grown in strength, the edges turning a deep turquoise, beginning to move and swirl. It intrigued him, he felt drawn to it, the urge to be closer pulling at him.

However, when passing other statues, he began to notice a sound emanating from them and slowed to a stop.

He couldn’t be sure if it was in the sound or in the light, but between the two there seemed to be a place of euphoric tranquillity; a calm perfection of light and sound. A sense of heightened joy filled his entire body.

He stood poised and balanced, letting it wash over him like the movement of the sea. He didn’t want to move ever again.

Published in the National Flash Fiction