The Case of the Jilted Juliet: The North Hollywood Detective Club, #5

By Mike Mains

A mysterious note found in a school library book leads Jeffrey and his friends to suspect that a girl who committed suicide thirty years ago was actually murdered. Their investigation leads them to a quiet teenage girl with a secret past, an ex-con with a motive for murder, and a list of suspects that includes their own high school principal.

 

Jeffrey Jones is a kid with a problem. A lot of problems. He's laughed at in school. The neighborhood bully has it out for him. And his parents treat him like a six-year-old. However, Jeffrey does have one ace up his sleeve: He's a master investigator.

 

When his best friend Pablo Reyes finds a blood-written note in a school copy of Romeo and Juliet, they trace it back to a girl at their school who committed suicide thirty years ago. Or did she?  The deeper they dig into the girl's death, the more obvious it becomes that the girl didn't kill herself - she was murdered.

 

Teen Mystery Books for Boys and Girls

 

Book 5 in the North Hollywood Detective Club series, appropriate for readers age 10 and up.

 

Buy this book today and join the thousands of readers who have thrilled to these tales of mystery, action and suspense!

 

Riveting and Twisting Young Adult Mystery Books

 

Book 1: The Case of the Hollywood Art Heist - Teen detectives race to free an innocent man from jail. For ages 10 and up.

Book 2: The Case of the Dead Man's Treasure - Teen detectives investigating a hit-and-run accident stumble upon the clues to a lost treasure. For ages 10 and up.

Book 3: The Case of the Christmas Counterfeiters - Teen detectives uncover a plot to flood the city with billions of dollars in counterfeit currency. For ages 12 and up.

Book 4: The Case of the Deadly Double-Cross - Teen detectives are framed for murder. For ages 12 and up.

Book 5: The Case of the Jilted Juliet - Teen detectives investigate a thirty-year-old murder at their high school. For ages 11 and up.

Book 6: The Case of the Redheaded Princess - For ages 11 and up. Coming in 2023

 

 

Book 7: The North Hollywood Detective Club Ultimate Companion Book - Not a series book, but chock full of interesting info, character bios and other fun facts about the book series, including the original short story that started it all and a special chapter with tips for young writers.

 

Mystery Book Lovers Chime In:

 

Just a short note to let you know that I have assigned your book, "The North Hollywood Detective Club" as one of the textbooks at our little school, which is located right outside Paris, France. We currently have 16 students in the process of reading it. -- Mario C.

Amazon Reviews

 

Utterly Fantastic!!!!! I absolutely adored this novel, as a thirteen year old girl I have found friendship, mystery and enjoyment of this book. It was such a great book that I stayed up until 1:32 am!!!! ... I could not put this book down. I followed along to the story being told and was engaged into finding out who was guilty it was like I was there being a part of the "North Hollywood Detective Club" with the four teens/tweens!! Please write more of these books cause I will not stop reading these!!!!! - Jordan

 

Really good books. I absolutely loved these books. They're very well thought out and a great read for anyone. I would recommend them for anyone, especially teens and young adults. - Ami

 

Buy The Case of the Jilted Juliet and start your adventure today!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Mystery Adventure Detective Books
• Release date: Nov 7, 2022
• ISBN: 9781953006363

Book preview

A Haunted Library and a Ghostly Scream

It was a crazy plan—a plan to catch a killer—and for a moment

Jeffrey thought the whole thing might blow up in his face. He wished he’d never come up with the idea, never followed through with it. But now it was too late. Before him stood eight adults; four of them suspects in a murder case and one of them a cold-blooded killer.

Jeffrey said to the group gathered around him, As you know the body of Julie Baker, seventeen-years-old, was found dead and lifeless here on the library floor exactly thirty years ago. Legend has it that her ghost roams the hallways of our school in search of the boy who jilted her and that on the last Friday of every month, at exactly midnight, her scream is heard here in the library and echoes down the hall.

He glanced at the grandfather clock and said, It’s now one minute to midnight. We’ll soon find out the truth. He nodded at Susie, standing by the light switch, and a second later the room was plunged into darkness.

There were gasps from everyone.

A woman whispered, Do we have to do this?

Shhh, Jeffrey said. The ghost of Julie Baker is coming.

They could hear the wind howling outside the school and the heavy rain coming down in sheets, but not a sound from the room they were in other than the ticking of the old clock and the frantic beating of their own hearts. Jeffrey sensed the people around him tensing. It was now or never.

The grandfather clock began to chime midnight. In the quiet of the library it sounded like the gong of a church bell; twelve times and then they all heard it: the high-pitched scream of a young girl. It seemed to erupt from out of the darkness itself; a haunted, ghostly scream, a scream of the dead.

Jeffrey heard gasps and shrieks of terror all around him and then another scream, much closer than the first, and he knew that the killer he was seeking was standing directly behind him.

Chapter One

Reading the note made Pablo Reyes’s skin crawl.

Help me! Help me please! was all it said.

At first, Pablo thought the words were written in red ink. But they weren’t. They were written in blood.

He thumbed through the book that the note fell from, William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. There were no additional notes imbedded between its pages and no markings inside the book. It looked perfectly normal, except for the note that fluttered to the floor when he pulled the book from the school library shelf.

Pablo wondered whether the note was meant for him personally. It couldn’t have been, yet there it was in his hand—a cry for help from someone in trouble or maybe even in danger. It was a mystery, one he couldn’t solve, but there was one person in the world who could. He felt his pulse quickening and he made his decision. He would take the note to the one person he knew who was capable of deciphering its meaning, his best friend, Jeffrey Jones.

Pablo clutched the book tightly and strode through the maze of library shelves. He passed an ancient grandfather clock that stood like a tower at the end of an aisle and quickened his pace. The ticking of the old clock and his quiet footfalls on the carpeted floor were the only sounds. He carried the book and the note to a corner table in the crowded high school library and slipped into an empty seat across the table from a studious-looking boy in glasses.

Jeffrey, take a look at this, Pablo whispered, and slipped the note to his friend.

Jeffrey Jones frowned at the interruption. He was in the middle of a scathing report on everything he hated about the play Romeo and Juliet, which was a lot, but the urgency in his friend’s voice and the gleam in Pablo’s brown eyes told him it was a matter of importance. He unfolded the note and read it and immediately his voice rose with excitement. Where did you get this?

High school students seated at tables around them looked up with surprise from their books, phones, and laptops.

Perched stiffly behind the checkout counter, Miss Hornsby, the school librarian, flinched. She slid a finger between the pages of the book she was reading to mark her place, straightened her glasses, and peered across the library floor in search of the offending voice.

Pablo slid the slim volume of Romeo and Juliet across the table to Jeffrey and said, It was in here. Jeffrey picked up the book and flipped through its pages.

Pablo whispered, When I pulled that book off the shelf, the note fell out.

Jeffrey nodded. He was fifteen-years-old, the same age as Pablo, though quite different in appearance. Pablo was known for his athletic build, easy charm, and winning smile. Jeffrey wasn’t athletic, preferred being quiet to charming, and rarely smiled. His face seemed forever locked in an expression of seriousness. He slid the book and the note back across the table to Pablo and whispered, Show me.

Seated at a table on the other side of the library floor, Susie Norris stared blankly at a computer screen and tapped a pencil on the tabletop. She’d spent the last forty minutes writing her own book report, and now her mind was tiring. She sighed, glanced up from the table, and saw Jeffrey and Pablo crossing the far side of the room. Look, she cried.

Her voice was louder than intended and carried across the library floor. Kids at nearby tables turned and shushed her.

Miss Hornsby slapped her hand down on the counter. She marked her place in her book again and her eyes scoured the library floor. Close behind her, a frail teenage girl, dark-haired and blue-eyed, stopped loading books onto a cart and glanced at the librarian. The name tag on the girl’s shirt read Carol.

Susie’s companion at the table, Marisol Rodriguez, was sitting slumped in her chair with a look of utter boredom on her face when she heard Susie’s shout. She shifted her angular body to an upright position and watched as Pablo, the taller of the two boys, led Jeffrey across the room. She knew both boys well and immediately saw something furtive, something catlike about the way they were moving. They looked like they had something to hide. Her suspicions were confirmed when she saw Jeffrey cast a quick, nervous glance over his shoulder just before he and Pablo disappeared behind the library shelves. She heard Susie whisper, They’re up to something.

Pablo led Jeffrey to the shelf where he found the book that the note fell from, an area hidden from the rest of the library. It was here, he said, and pointed to a slim gap between books.

Jeffrey stepped closer. The entire shelf contained copies of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. He pulled out the two books on either side of the gap that Pablo had pointed to and flipped through their pages. Finding nothing unusual, he re-shelved them. He motioned for Pablo to hand him the note again and he studied it.

It looks like blood, Pablo said quietly.

Jeffrey gave a grim nod. It was blood, all right. And the cursive penmanship looked like a girl’s handwriting. He wondered what such a girl might look like and pictured someone his own age, maybe a year younger. Staring down at her note, he felt as if he were reading something private, something he wasn’t meant to see, and a feeling of shame swept over him. Perhaps it was too late to save her, he thought. Perhaps she was already dead; murdered right here in the library.

He shuddered at the thought, but hidden behind the library shelves, as he was now, murder would be a simple act. The victim could be approached silently from behind and quickly disposed of. No one would be the wiser until an unsuspecting person—perhaps Miss Hornsby herself—discovered the cold dead corpse on the library floor.

The fingers of death, Jeffrey thought; cold, clammy, and ever reaching. His body tensed and he suddenly sensed an eerie presence—something dark and sinister—lurking close behind him. He started to turn when he felt cold fingertips grab hold of the fleshy part on the back of his upper arm, pinch his skin tight, and squeeze. Jeffrey yanked his arm free and leapt back with the loudest yell of his life. His body thumped against the bookshelf behind him. The wooden shelf creaked and groaned and dozens of books spilled out in a splatter across the floor.

Back at the tables, heads snapped in the direction of the library shelves.

Miss Hornsby slammed her book shut, stood up, and glowered across the room. Carol stepped closer. The spindly girl’s face held a dazed and frightened look.

Jeffrey stood splayed against the library shelf, his face flushed red and his heart thudding hard against his chest. He saw that the fingers of death that squeezed his arm from behind belonged to Susie Norris.

He whispered hoarsely, What’s wrong with you?

"What’s wrong with you?" Susie whispered back.

She stood a head shorter than Jeffrey and staring down at her he realized that what others had told him was true: with her black-framed glasses and questioning face, Susie resembled a female version of himself. He wanted to tell her off, but fought against the urge. Instead he whispered, Don’t you know not to sneak up on people like that?

It was just a joke. I didn’t know you were such a baby.

Jeffrey turned to the girl standing behind Susie. Marisol was six months younger than the others, but in the same grade. Like Pablo, she had playful brown eyes and light-brown skin. She brushed black hair back over her ears with both hands, held it there, and smiled.

Instantly Jeffrey felt his mood soften. He knew he could never stay mad at Marisol. Susie Norris was another story.

Marisol said, We’re sorry, Jeffrey.

"You don’t have to apologize, it’s her fault," he said, and nodded at Susie. He bent down, picked up a pile of books from the floor, and shoved them back onto the shelf where they fell from. The others picked up books to help.

Pablo said, Should we tell them?

No, Jeffrey answered, and shoved another pile of books onto a shelf.

Susie rose with a stack of books in her hands. Tell us what? When neither boy responded, she shelved the books, dusted her hands together, and said, Tell us what, Pablo?

I can’t tell you, it’s a secret.

A secret? Susie’s eyes grew wide. Now you have to tell us.

No way.

Come on, we won’t tell anyone, will we? Susie turned to Marisol, who shook her head. Please, Pablo? Susie said.

Nope.

Please, Jeffrey? I’m sorry I scared you.

She gazed up at him with pleading eyes and Jeffrey winced. He knew exactly what she was doing—using her girlish charm to get him to talk—and he refused to play along. Still he considered the consequences. If he didn’t tell Susie about the note Pablo found, she would badger him into oblivion. Like a bloodhound following a scent, she would be yapping at his heels, day and night, night and day, and if he still didn’t give in, she’d go to work on Pablo, sweet-talking him instead of badgering, because Pablo was good-looking and the girls at school all liked him.

Jeffrey knew Pablo wouldn’t talk, but he didn’t want to put his friend through such an annoyance. He didn’t want to put anyone, not even his worst enemy, through the annoyance of trying to keep a secret from Susie Norris.

Then he thought about Marisol. He had a soft spot for her, a deep longing in his heart that he’d never told anyone. If she asked him about the secret he’d almost certainly tell her. Susie, sensing his weakness, might even put Marisol up to asking him about it. If that happened, his feelings for Marisol would be out in the open for everyone to see.

That decided him. He knew Pablo liked Marisol and if it ever got out that he liked her too, it would be the ultimate betrayal of friendship on his part; something he could never forgive himself for. He would rather die than let that happen.

Please, Jeffrey? Susie said.

Jeffrey, sweaty now with shame, handed the note to Pablo.

Pablo passed the note to Marisol and said to her, I found this note in a library book. It’s written in blood.

Blood? Susie leaned in close to look. We should call the police.

It’s just a note, Pablo said.

But whoever wrote it could be in danger. Don’t you think we should tell someone? She turned to Marisol for agreement.

Marisol said, What do you think, Jeffrey?

Jeffrey took the note back from her and studied it. He knew whoever wrote it was probably in danger, but they would look foolish if they took it to the police. He said, The first thing we need to figure out is who wrote these words. If we knew who the last person was who checked out the book where Pablo found it that might give us a clue. The last person who checked out the book is probably the same person who wrote the note.

Pablo said, Let’s go then. He led the way back through the shelves and onto the main floor. As they stepped past the tables, Jeffrey saw Miss Hornsby standing behind the checkout counter waiting for them, eyes seething behind her glasses, and he knew they were all in trouble.

They reached the counter and Pablo spoke first. Can you tell us the last person who checked out this book? He showed Miss Hornsby the copy of Romeo and Juliet.

Certainly not, the librarian snapped. She plucked the book from Pablo’s hand and passed it to Carol, standing by her side. We never release that information to anyone.

Jeffrey thought of showing her the note Pablo found, but he knew if he did she’d snatch it away and they’d never see it again. Instead he said, The last person who checked out that book—we think it’s a girl—might be in trouble.

Miss Hornsby scoffed. In a voice that carried across the library floor, she said, The only person in trouble right now is you. People come here to study and work, not to engage in horseplay. I’ve half a mind to revoke library privileges for all four of you.

The group stiffened. Jeffrey stared back at the woman. She’d yelled at him before—he hadn’t forgotten it—and he hadn’t liked her since. Now she was doing it again, making him feel small. He didn’t want to lose his temper, like he almost did with Susie. So he started again, trying with all his might not to be rude, not to make the situation worse. He said, This is important.

The librarian’s brow contracted to form a thick line over her glasses. "What’s important is silence in the library. Now I want you all to leave before I really get