Tiny Windows: A Collection Of Flash Fiction

Digging Up The Former President's Grave

At three in the morning, less than two weeks before Halloween, Norman was awakened by the persistent ringing of his cell phone. Grudgingly, he picked it up and heard the voice of his superior at the other end of the line. "Go to this cemetery," his superior said. "A crime has just occurred there, investigate it."

An hour later, Norman was already inside the cemetery looking at a desecrated grave. Chuck, another cop, stood beside him. The grave had been dug up, and at the hollowed ground, Norman could see two spooky things: one of them was a skeleton, which probably owned the dug-up grave, and the other one was a female cadaver who looked like she died just a few hours ago.

The skeleton's bony hands were wrapped up tightly around the neck of the woman, like it was strangling her. Her tongue was hanging and her eyes open. Few stains of blood were on her mouth while brown-colored stains could be seen on the skull of the skeleton. Near the grave, a shovel and a mug of Unified Coffee latte could be seen.

"I know that woman," Norman said.

"Yes," Chuck groaned. "She was Nora Bufete, the vice-president of Unified Coffee, the biggest coffee shop in the country, next to Istarbox, of course. The skeleton, do you know who that is?"

Norman looked at the gravestone and saw that the skeleton was Ferdie Magnus, the former president and owner of Unified Coffee. Last week, on her Facebook Live, Nora threatened to dig up the remains of Ferdie and throw it in the sea. Their quarrel? Ferdie's family was threatening to kick Nora out of the company.

"Apparently, she went here to make good of her threat to dig him up," Chuck said.

"So what happened here? Why is she dead?"

"I'm still trying to wrap my mind around it," Chuck said, lighting up his vape with slightly shaking fingers. "But it seems that Ferdie's skeleton came to life, fought back and killed her by strangling and choking her. Then, he drank her coffee." ®