Whiteley Worlds Issue 14: A Case Most Personal A Bettie Private Eye Mystery Novella: Whiteley Worlds, #14

By Connor Whiteley

Over 55,000 words of gripping, enthralling fiction from best-selling writer Connor Whiteley in one amazing collection. Featuring two novellas and 5 short stories from some of his most popular series, you know you're in for an amazing treat and will be reading late into the night.

Issue 14's Intriguing Short Stories Includes:

• Negative Jubilation: A Matilda Plum Fantasy Short Story
• Jubilee Thief: A Jane Smith Amateur Sleuth Mystery Short Story
• Jubilee, Terror, Celebration
• Ghostly Jubilation: An Amelia Private Investigator Mystery Short Story
• Love In The Street Party: A Gay Sweet Romance Short Story

Also includes two addictive novellas:

• Kingmaker: A Science Fiction Assassin Novella
• A Case Most Personal: A Bettie Private Eye Mystery Novella

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• Language: English
• Publisher: CGD Publishing
• Release date: Jun 2, 2023
• ISBN: 9798215643709

Connor Whiteley

Hello, I'm Connor Whiteley, I am an 18-year-old who loves to write creatively, and I wrote my Brownsea trilogy when I was 14 years old after I went to Brownsea Island on a scout camp. At the camp, I started to think about how all the broken tiles and pottery got there and somehow a trilogy got created.Moreover, I love writing fantasy and sci-fi novels because you’re only limited by your imagination.In addition, I'm was an Explorer Scout and I love camping, sailing and other outdoor activities as well as cooking.Furthermore, I do quite a bit of charity work as well. For example: in early 2018 I was a part of a youth panel which was involved in creating a report with research to try and get government funding for organised youth groups and through this panel. I was invited to Prince Charles’ 70th birthday party and how some of us got in the royal photograph.Finally, I am going to university and I hope to get my doctorate in clinical psychology in a few years.

Book preview

INTRODUCTION

Welcome everyone to another great, and very, very special issue of Whiteley Worlds. And the reason why this issue is very special in my opinion is because this issue truly does and doesn’t embody the sheer gripping craziness of Whiteley Worlds.

Since I first got the theme for this month’s issue last June actually since the UK and the commonwealth celebrated the platinum Jubilee. Meaning our Queen, Queen Elizabeth the Second had been ruling for 70 years on the throne and there were lots of celebrations, parties and good food.

Hence the Jubilee theme of the short stories in this issue as I think it’s impressive and extremely fun to take five different perspectives on the Platinum Jubilee within five very different worlds.

For example, we start off this issue with a Bettie English Private Eye short story and as will all these stories they’re fun, gripping and rather shocking. Welcome to the world of Bettie English.

Then we will see Bettie later in the issue with the 4th novella of the series which is just flat out enthralling as Bettie fights for justice after her nephew is stabbed. That is a gripping book you will not want to miss!

Then we travel to the contemporary fantasy world with Matilda Plum’s first story in these pages. Just think superhero psychologist and all the very fun and exciting possibilities that come with that.

Again it’s definitely a world you don’t want to miss!

Also if memory serves me, you get to experience for the first time the great world of Jane Smith Amateur Sleuth. Think my version of two elderly women solving crime in their wonderful and flat out weird way. That is definitely worth exploring for the characters alone.

Then finally you get to enjoy a wonderful romance and another mystery with short stories Ghostly Jubilation from my mystery series The Amelia Pinkie Private Eye mysteries (and of course Harvey The Ghost makes a faithful experience!) and Love In The Street Party.

And that’s all before we make it to the action-packed, page turner called Kingmaker from my Agents of The Emperor series.

So this issue truly shows the enthralling craziness of Whiteley Worlds with all these great stories from different worlds and genres right next to each other.

There is something for everyone.

Turn over the page and let’s get exploring!

NEGATIVE JUBILATION

A Matilda Plum Fantasy Short Story

If you’ve been alive for as long as I have then you would have seen a lot of coronations, deaths and celebrations of British Monarchs. Personally, I’ve seen at least three of them come to the throne, die or abdicate.

Well. That isn’t strictly true because thankfully Glorious Elizabeth the second is still alive and kicking, and I am almost embarrassed to say that I actually remember her being coronated in 1953. And let me tell you that was definitely an exciting time to be alive, especially as she had already been ruling for over a year at that point.

My name is Matilda Plum, a superhero in the counselling, therapy and psychology sector. It’s my job to travel around helping people solve their problems, protect the innocent and maintain their mental health.

So I was more than looking forward to a wonderful long weekend of the Platinum Jubilee of partying, celebrating and enjoying life to celebrate the 70 years of the Queen’s reign.

But I seriously doubted my long weekend was going to be that perfect and I wasn’t going to be that free to do what I wanted.

As I walked down Canterbury high street it was a very hot sunny day with the sun high in the sky beaming down on me. The air was crisp and boiling with hints of sweat, cakes and delicious puddings. I definitely got the sense something was wrong.

The wonderfully warm cobblestone high street was always a joy to walk down. Especially on this Friday lunchtime with union jacks in every single little shop window, and massive sale signs were outside along with hundreds of people.

It was rare to see so many people of different shapes, heights and ages out together on a public holiday. And with it being early June most university students were studying harder than ever.

But given how this was a once in a lifetime opportunity (because no British Monarch had ever reigned for 70 years before) it seemed that everyone was out and about shopping, talking and celebrating.

Personally I was just looking forward to Sunday with the massive street parties. I was actually more excited about seeing my superhero friends Jack and Aiden and hearing about their holidays than the street party itself.

But given how the entire length of Canterbury High Street was meant to be closed off on Sunday so the entire City could come together. That was definitely going to be a sight to behold.

And with any luck, I would get to pick up a nice woman or man to take back to my house and celebrate long and hard into the night.

That was the plan anyway.

In amongst all the people that were walking the high street today, I was slightly plagued by feelings of happiness, pride and joy as everyone spoke to each other.

That was one of the problems of being a superhero psychologist, because all the myths and misconceptions about psychologists were my superpowers. So I really could analyse everyone by what they were saying.

And I was so shocked to hear and feel and see that not a single person out of the hundreds here was grumpy or angry or negative in any way.

That was something that I had always loved about the Queen. She wasn’t a typical Queen in the slightest because it didn’t matter who you were she would always give you her full attention and she would talk to you like you were a real person. Instead of some disgusting dumb peasant like so many older monarchs have done over the centuries and many politicians did today.

With me walking to the halfway point of the high street, I really wasn’t sure if I wanted to walk up to the very end and beyond to the train station in search of people who needed help. Not because I didn’t want to do my job but because I really wanted to do a quick round of a new homeless camp in the woods before I went back to my house to watch some of the Jubilee celebrations.

After a few people almost bumped into me, I was about to start heading back the way I came and towards the homeless camp when my spidey sense activated.

Personally I just hate the word spidey sense because it sounds so childish and makes what I do sound like a joke. But when my senses activate it means only one thing.

Someone is very much in danger.

Knowing that I had to help someone I continued walking down the high street, I merged into the stream of happy, joyous people as they walked up and down the high street with their friends, family and children.

It didn’t take too long until I found myself being drawn to the edge of the high street and to the doorway of a closed supermarket.

I ducked out of the crowd and went over to the supermarket. It had nothing more than large discount signs, glass doors and a large blue sign over the top of the doors. It was nothing special.

But the supermarket wasn’t what was important.

The sound of crying made the hairs on my neck stand up and I turned my head ever so slightly to see a young man wearing some cargo shorts, a light blue shirt and some sunglasses were in his hand.

He definitely looked smarter than I did with my long jeans, black t-shirt and dirty white trainers. It really wasn’t the best outfit for a boiling hot day but I didn’t want to change too badly.

Since he was crying I couldn’t help but feel like he was the person I was meant to help, but unless I could get him to talk. I wouldn’t be able to use my powers on him.

Hello? I asked, going over to him.

The young man immediately stopped crying and looked at me like I was crazy.

You can see me? the young man asked.

I quickly tapped into my superpowers and I was shocked with what I found.

This young man was the weirdest I had ever seen before. It was like his memories were made of candyfloss and he was both as old as I was and only had the memories of a twenty year old.

There were so many names, identities and pasts mixed into his mind that I didn’t know what to believe and what not to.

But there was a single emotion that I got from him.

Dread.

Whatever was going on with him, this young man (or however old he actually was) he was scared or terrified about it. He was the very, very opposite of jubilation.

Of course I can see you, I said.

The young man looked so confused.

What year is it? he asked.

2022. 3rd June actually, I said.

That only seemed to confuse him even more.

What is your name? I asked.

Harry. No... Nick. No... Henry. I don’t know! the young man shouted.

But no one else in the high street seemed to hear him.

Now this was just flat out weird. How could a man not know who he was? Or maybe this was a part of all those false memories in him?

Then why couldn’t other people see him?

I tapped into my superpowers again and tried to really understand him. And as much as a myth it was about psychologists, I really had to look at his childhood.

He didn’t have one.

In all my years as a psychologist and then a superhero one, I have never ever encountered a person who didn’t have a childhood.

Then I searched for his first ever past. Maybe that would be his real one and then perhaps all the other pasts were added in later or something.

I couldn’t find a past that started before any of the others. But I did manage to find that those names he mentioned earlier were ones of thousands of pasts.

Apparently the past called Harry was a footballer in the 1930s. The person called Nick was actually called Nickson and he was a politician in the 1930s, and the man called Henry was a callboy from the 1930s.

There was no pattern in any of them.

I was going to need some help.

Natalia! I shouted.

Everyone in the high street looked at me like I was some kind of weirdo for a moment then everything turned blurry for a split second. A stunning fit woman wearing a golden dress, white high heels and long golden flowing hair appeared. And everyone acted like she had always been there.

I absolutely loved calling in my boss Natalia, Goddess of Counselling, Therapy and Psychology. And even though I had worked with her plenty of times in recent months, she was still the most beautiful and stunning woman I had ever seen.

No wonder she was a goddess!

I pointed to the young man.

Natalia looked like she didn’t understand what was so important about him.

He seems to have over a thousand different pasts and no childhood, I said.

Natalia cocked her head and I knew she was using her divine powers to scan him.

What the hell is going on! the young man shouted.

There was something flashing behind his eyes and I was starting to realise that he could actually feel Natalia coursing through him. No normal person could ever feel a Goddess using her powers on them.

That was a fact.

Who are you? I asked again.

The young man’s face twisted into rage.

I DON’T KNOW! he shouted as loud as he could.

My superpowers were telling me to run or something because that shouting angry voice was not the same young man I saw standing in front of me. It was like he was a different person for a split second.

Then I had a strange idea.

You know you were teaching Jack and Aiden about the history of the Gods, Goddesses and Superpowers? I asked.

Natalia nodded. She was so beautiful.

I remember something about living prisons. Like when a God or Goddess was found guilty of a crime and the divine prisons were full. They were sent to living prisons, I said.

Natalia nodded regally. Of course. We called them Prison Hulks. We would use a normal human that swore service to us and we would wipe their mind, cast our prisoners into him or her and then the prisoners would live out their days inside him,

And if the Prison Hulk died. The prisoners would die too?

Natalia nodded. Yes. This was certainly before I became a Goddess. This was an awful barbaric practice that hasn’t been done for centuries,

I was more than glad about that.

Is it possible this is an escaped one? I asked.

Natalia stared at him intensely then the young man slowly started smiling. It was not a normal smile in the slightest. It was strange, psychotic and deranged.

Whatever used to live inside this young man had died a long, long time ago.

Is it possible that a prisoner learnt to control a Prison Hulk and feed it using the life force of the other prisoners? I asked.

The young man slowly nodded.

You are correct Matilda Plum, superhero of the Traitor Goddess, the young man said in a voice that definitely wasn’t his own.

Who are you? Natalia asked firmly.

Do you not recognise me Sister. I was your brother. I was your protector. I was your better, the young man said.

Natalia looked blank. I was very scared all of a sudden. Natalia never had a blank face unless something was seriously wrong.

My brother died when I was a baby, Natalia said.

The young man grinned. I was the God of Psychology, Therapy and Counselling. I am the rightful heir to your power. I was derailed by our parents,

Tapping into my superpowers I instantly knew that the young man wasn’t lying, and Natalia had no idea that she ever had a brother.

But clearly the centuries had not been kind to him.

How did you do this? I asked.

The young man laughed. The mind, the human psyche, behaviour. It is mine to control and feed off. I can control anyone. It is basic psychology. And as a god I know everything about human behaviour, I know what makes a person tick just by looking at them,

I looked at Natalia and even behind all that stunning beauty I knew that his words were troubling her. It was only now I was starting to understand the extent of her power that she wielded every day, but never dared to use.

Because she had heard the rumours of what happened if you abused that power.

Natalia! the young man shouted. Kneel!

I watched Natalia try to fight it off but she did as she was commanded. I had never ever seen a Goddess do as she was commanded by someone before.

He was that powerful.

See Sister. All this power could be yours. I am only able to do that because of the life forces inside this Prison Hulk. But you... you have the power. I could teach you how to be the most powerful Goddess in all of creation,

I just laughed at that.

You really think this is about power, I said. Natalia has never wanted power and look at where your power hungry ambitions got you,

The young man laughed. All the other gods and superheroes were my puppets. I controlled Zeus and Jupiter and Thor and so many others. I ruled through them and when people found out I controlled them,

I just shook my head, not because I didn’t believe him. But because I wanted to annoy him.

I don’t believe you,

Kneel! he shouted at me.

But I felt no compulsion to do so, he didn’t have any life force left in his Prison Hulk to command me. He was probably still using it to command and control Natalia.

If I could just get him to use up more of his power then I might be able to free her.

You stupid woman!