5 Twists

These five flash stories from the Daring Novelist blog each have a twist. Some are hard-boiled, others light and fluffy. The stories include:

"Burning Bridges" A hard-boiled woman must guide a young bimbo in trouble.
"Balancing Act" A klutzy woman, a charming man and a the theft of a jewel. The question is whether the fellow was just a bit too charming....
"Deadmen Don't Eat Fruitcake" It's a Noir Christmas when tough guys get their stolen jewels mixed up with fruitcake and on tough old lady.
"Power Is Greater Than Love" A dictator knows only power, a simple woman knows only love. Which is stronger?
"The Unexpurgated Story of the Baby Shoes Which Were Sold Unused" The story behind Hemingway's famous six word story: "For sale, baby shoes. Never used" may be more complicated than he expected, as an upright Victorian spinster explains to a newspaperman.

This collection is approximately 8500 words long.