The Missing Juliet

by Sam Cameron

  Synopsis

  Summer’s sizzling in the Florida Keys and Robin McGee should be planning for college. Instead, she’s passionately in love with beautiful movie starlet Juliet Francine. Too bad it’s a one-way crush shared by millions of others. Robin’s better off sticking to her summer job and fighting for the equal treatment of GLTBQ teens everywhere. But when Juliet is kidnapped from a film set in Key West, Robin turns amateur sleuth and recruits her friends to help in the search. Soon the FBI, police, and paparazzi are hot on the case as well. As time ticks down and the ransom notes grow dire, Robin will get just one chance to pull off a Hollywood happy ending—and maybe a shot at true love after all.

  The Missing Juliet: A Fisher Key Adventure

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  The Missing Juliet: A Fisher Key Adventure

  © 2013 By Sam Cameron. All Rights Reserved.

  ISBN 13: 978-1-62639-001-0

  This Electronic Book is published by

  Bold Strokes Books, Inc.

  P.O. Box 249

  Valley Falls, New York 12185

  First Edition: November 2013

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission.

  Credits

  Editor: Cindy Cresap

  Production Design: Susan Ramundo

  Cover Design By Sheri (GraphicArtist2020@hotmail.com)

  By the Author

  Kings of Ruin: Adventure in Music City

  The Fisher Key Adventures:

  Mystery of the Tempest

  The Secret of Othello

  The Missing Juliet

  Dedication

  For my mom, who always believed.

  Chapter One

  “I hope you realize we’re trespassing on federal property,” Sean Garrity whispered, pushing a palm frond away from his face. “The Truman White House is a national landmark.”

  “Shut up,” Robin McGee whispered back. She kept crawling through the thick hedges, doing her best to ignore the rough branches and tropical heat. She didn’t care if they got arrested. A stint in jail was nothing compared to meeting Juliet Francine for just one minute. Those perfect blue eyes, crystal bright. That strawberry-blond hair and long, loose curls, perfect for running fingers through. Sweet pink lips that would probably taste like summer cherries—

  Not for the first time, Robin realized the ridiculousness of it all. She was seventeen years old. Far too old to be daydreaming about a Hollywood starlet. She should be home in Fisher Key right now, editing new videos about cyberbullying and gender discrimination for her channel on YouTube. Someone had to speak up about the injustices of the world. Instead, she was getting her favorite lesbian pride T-shirt dirty and risking a permanent criminal record.

  Love was crazy.

  Sean scratched his arm furiously. “If this is poison ivy, you’re paying for my rash.”

  “I don’t want to hear about your rashes.” Robin reached the edge of the bushes and dropped low to the ground. Sean followed. Several feet away, amid white benches and flowerpots, cast members milled around in costumes of the 1940s. According to the Internet, the movie Then Again Christine and John was a time travel romance. Or a thriller. Or a who-knows-what. The script was eyes-only and ultra top secret, and no one outside the cast had seen all the pages.

  Unfortunately, the romantic aspect was not a sweet girl-meets-girl story, the kind Robin sometimes penned in her notebook. Juliet’s character was set to hook up with a daring time bandit played by Hollywood’s favorite bad boy, Liam Norcott. Who also happened to be Sean’s favorite actor of all time.

  “There he is!” Sean said, poking Robin’s side. “I’m going to die.”

  Not too far away stood a green awning with several chairs and tables set out underneath. Sulking in a chair with his name on it was Liam himself, dressed in a white shirt and long slacks and brown leather shoes. He had tousled blond hair and pouty red lips, perfect for magazine covers and movie posters. Robin supposed he was devastatingly handsome, if you were a ditzy teenage girl who longed for that sort of thing.

  Robin had never longed for boys. Not ever, never would, and was very proud of it.

  Aside from his good looks, Liam Norcott was the kind of self-absorbed, egocentric, ridiculously rich Hollywood star that was ruining the entire film industry. He and Juliet had starred in the Disney sitcom Rhoda Dakota for six years. Since leaving the Mouse House, he’d headlined three box office hits with the teenybopper crowd. Robin had given each one a scathing review online. He was always on TMZ and the front pages of tabloids, and what did he give back to the world? Nothing. You never heard the words “Liam Norcott” and “charity” in the same sentence. He thought he was entitled to everything.

  Right now Liam was punching a message into his phone and complaining in a whiny voice. “Michael, if she’s not here in the next sixty seconds, I’m going back to my trailer. This is ridiculous.”

  Not as ridiculous as his diesel-belching double-decker trailer parked in the street nearby. How could someone be so environmentally insensitive? Someone should steal the keys to that thing and dump it into the ocean. Well, okay, not the ocean, because that would pollute the water with oil and diesel fuel and non-biodegradable plastics. Maybe take it to a scrap yard. Melt it down and donate the profits to starving Third World children.

  “I’m dead,” Sean whispered into Robin’s ear. “I’ve died and he’s my guardian angel come to take me to heaven.”

  Robin wanted to poke him in the eyes. Being infatuated with Juliet Francine was perfectly normal, because she was beautiful and awesome. Crushing on Liam Norcott was deliberately sacrificing all standards and common sense.

  “Look for Juliet,” Robin ordered. “She’s why we’re here.”

  “Speak for yourself,” Sean replied.

  The movie’s director, Michael Lake, turned away from Liam and spoke into his cell phone. Bald, trim, and dressed in his signature black T-shirt and jeans, Michael Lake was a legend of modern filmmaking. He’d started out as an assistant to Steven Spielberg and subsequently carved his own niche in ridiculously over-the-top action extravaganzas. His movies lacked even the faintest glimmer of social awareness and were shamefully short on diversity. The only reason Robin had ever watched any of them was because of his beautiful leading ladies, like Juliet.

  “She’ll be here any minute,” Michael Lake said to Liam.

  A makeup girl tried to dust Liam’s nose. He shooed her off and took a swig from a water bottle.

  “I’m not putting up with this again,” he warned.

  As if he had the moral high ground. Everyone knew that by the last season of Rhoda Dakota, Liam was the one who’d partied too much, or too hard, or with the wrong people. He’d show up late and cause the whole schedule to fall behind. He’d call in sick, although he was really hung over. Juliet had stood by him even when he went to rehab. And now he was badmouthing her for being a little late.

  “Hey, look,” Sean said. “There’s Aaron.”

  Among the extras practicing their meager lines was Aaron Lipstein from Fisher Key High. Robin tried not to hate him too much. Like her, he’d gone to the open casting call the producers had hosted in Miami, where much of the shooting had occurred. Unlike him, she hadn’t bee
n picked. Aaron had pleasant features and kind eyes and was as skinny as a toothpick. Robin figured her own face was okay, but she was shaped like a pear, and she kept her brown hair short to avoid fuss. She never wore makeup. She hadn’t pierced her ears, and the only earrings she owned were clip-on, recycled typewriter letters. When she was annoyed, she wore the U in one ear and the F in another.

  Okay, so maybe she was a little butch. Whatever that meant. She and her online friends were constantly debating what, exactly, defined butchness—whether you had to act like a boy, or act and dress like a boy, or if you could have girl hair and girl clothes but still a boy attitude. It was all confusing, and Robin didn’t care. She didn’t believe in gender borders or markers. Let the beautiful people of the world have their movie roles. She’d change the world by producing, directing, and editing her own work. She was going to have her own media empire, like Rachel Maddow.

  If Aaron Lipstein noticed them in the bushes, he didn’t give it away. It was his recon and intel that had allowed Robin and Sean to sneak past the guards last night. She owed him big-time. If caught, they could never reveal his name.

  “Michael!” a voice rang out across the green lawn, and there she was, hurrying toward the tent—Juliet herself, petite and golden-haired.

  Robin’s heart started beating thunderously fast. This was it—her one and only chance to meet the girl she’d been adoring for years and years. And Juliet would see her not as some creepy stalker, but as a kindred soul, someone cool and interesting, and after signing an autograph, she’d suggest they go out for iced coffee and fall in love—

  But wait, that was not Juliet at all. The girl hurrying toward Michael Lake was slender and blond but older than Juliet, pretty but not quite as beautiful. Karen Francine was Juliet’s older sister. She’d played some minor roles in TV commercials when she was younger, and might have become a big star if Juliet hadn’t started charming casting agents and directors with her brilliant smile. Now Juliet was a star, and Karen had long ago been relegated to the role of personal assistant and confidante.

  Karen thrust a piece of paper into Michael Lake’s hands. Clearly upset, she said, “You have to read this.”

  He scanned it. “What is this? A joke?”

  “Is what a joke?” Liam Norcott snatched the paper away, read it, and snorted. “Oh, come on! You’re kidding me.”

  Karen Francine turned on him. Her face was pale, her hands shaking.

  “It’s no joke!” she said. “Juliet’s been kidnapped!”

  In the bushes, Sean exclaimed, “Kidnapped!”

  Robin elbowed him sharply. “Shut up!”

  A dozen awful possibilities raced through Robin’s mind. Juliet, dragged away. Taken by strangers and harmed by their rough hands. Surely she had bodyguards. Where were they? Why hadn’t anyone helped her? It was impossible to think someone of Juliet’s fame and visibility could be snatched on the streets of Key West—

  “Robin,” Sean said.

  She elbowed him again. “Quiet. I’m thinking.”

  “I think it’s too late for thinking,” he said dismally.

  A shadow fell across Robin’s face. Long legs in brown trousers blocked her view of Karen Francine. Robin tilted her head up, up, and up some more until she could see the square-jawed, middle-aged man in a guard’s uniform frowning down at them. He looked exactly like the kind of person who enjoyed throwing true fans off movie sets. He probably carried pepper spray for fun.

  “Hello, officer,” she said politely. “How are you today?”

  The guard lifted his small black radio and said, “I’ve got trespassers on the north lawn. Call the police.”

  *

  “You don’t need the police,” Robin protested as she pulled herself to her feet. “We’re just getting some pictures.”

  Sean brushed grass from his knees. “For our school newspaper. Extra credit.”

  The guard didn’t look impressed. Considering that school was out for the summer, Robin didn’t blame him. Plus, technically, she and Sean had graduated last month and couldn’t claim any connection to the Fisher Key High School newspaper anymore. She’d tried to appoint herself as editor emeritus, but the new editor was a snot and had shot her down.

  Over under the green awning, Michael Lake noticed what was happening. “Bill, who are those kids?”

  “They’re leaving, Mr. Lake,” the guard said. “No problem.”

  Robin called out, “We can help find Juliet!”

  Some of the extras on the porch looked their way curiously. Aaron buried his head in his script pages and pretended not to notice. Karen Francine turned, her face twisted with worry, and Liam Norcott raised his eyebrows.

  Michael Lake frowned and waved his hand. “Bring them over here, Bill.”

  The guard motioned toward the tent. Robin squared her shoulders and tried to appear confident as she led the way. Sometimes she blurted out ideas before they were ready to be heard in the world. Impulsive, her dad called her. Inspired, her mother said. With everyone staring at her, Robin hoped her mom was right and a brilliant idea would flit into her mind in the next thirty seconds or so.

  Nothing brilliant flitted anywhere. Robin’s face warmed with embarrassment.

  “Do you know where my sister is?” Karen Francine asked anxiously. Up close, she was prettier than her pictures made her out to be. She was wearing a short turquoise skirt that showed off her long legs, and a white blouse cut demurely across her large breasts. Okay, not as drop-dead perfect gorgeous as Juliet, but Robin’s heart did a little triple-beat anyway. She’d always had a thing for blondes.

  Liam kicked back in his chair with a sneer. “Of course she doesn’t. They’re kids.”

  Sean started talking fast. “I’m a big fan. I’ve seen all your movies—”

  Robin wedged herself between Sean and Liam before he could make a big fool out of himself. Sean was smart and funny, but when it came to social niceties, he was like a handbell that always rang flat. In fact, he’d been ruthlessly dismissed from the handbell choir in middle school because he couldn’t tell flats from sharps. He still held a grudge about that.

  With her chin up, Robin said, “We heard what you said about Juliet and we can help. We know Key West and all of these islands inside out. We have friends who can help look for her.”

  Michael Lake sighed. “You’re wasting my time. Get them out of here, Bill.”

  The guard put his left hand on Robin’s shoulder.

  “Wrong,” she said sharply and slapped at his hand. “You don’t get to touch me.”

  “Feisty,” Liam Norcott said condescendingly. She hated him even more.

  Bill looked surprised, then annoyed. “You’re going to jail, missy, and I hope they—”

  Robin focused only on Michael Lake. “You can send us away, but we have the power of social media on our side. The whole world’s going to want to know about Juliet going missing in Key West and how no one would help her.”

  She walked away so he could think about that. Sean hesitated, then followed. Up on the porch, the oblivious extras continued to practice their lines and Aaron kept up with his charade of not knowing who they were. Seagulls whirled in the sky, backlit by the brilliant Key West sun.

  “Wait! Stop right there,” Michael Lake burst out.

  Robin returned. Sweetly she asked, “Yes?”

  The director rubbed his bald head. She could see the thin sheer of sunscreen on it. He said, “Juliet Francine has the stomach flu. That’s what’s keeping her off the set. A terrible, awful case of the stomach flu.”

  Sean said, “But what about the—”

  Robin nudged him to be silent. Karen Francine’s eyes had gone wide, but she didn’t argue.

  Michael Lake continued, “The last thing she needs during her recuperation is for some kids to start blabbing about some kind of kidnapping. She’s already been wounded enough by gossip in her life.”

  Robin tilted her head. “You want to buy our silence?”

  “
Good idea,” Sean said enthusiastically. “I can totally be bought.”

  He was probably envisioning an autograph by Liam on one of the pictures he’d brought in his backpack. Robin wouldn’t mind an autograph by Liam, either, so that she could auction it on eBay and donate the money to a worthy cause.

  Karen Francine stepped forward, the ransom note clutched in her hand. “Please. This note says that if word gets out, they’ll hurt her. I want my sister back safely. If you’re a real fan, that’s what you want, too.”

  Robin felt shamefaced. “Of course. We won’t tell. But if you need help, you should contact me at the Fisher Key Bookmine. I’m Robin and this is Sean.”

  Liam rolled his eyes. “Yes, we’ll be sure to call Nancy Drew and Joe Hardy.”

  “Thank you,” Karen said sincerely. Her blue eyes locked onto Robin. “I appreciate it.”

  Michael Lake said, “Let’s go discuss this stomach flu in private,” and swept Liam and Karen off with him. Karen cast one last worried look Robin’s way, and Robin tried to look reassuring. Everything was going to be okay. Maybe it was only a hoax after all, and Juliet would be back soon.

  “Did you hear him?” Sean said wistfully as Bill the guard marched them toward the gate. “Liam called me Joe Hardy.”

  Robin said, “I don’t think it was meant as a compliment.”

  Chapter Two

  “So this is the part where we go back to Fisher Key and forget all about the kidnapped actress who might have the flu, right?” Sean asked on the sidewalk outside the Truman House.

  Robin gazed at the fans and onlookers standing behind white ropes in the intense summer heat. All sorts of locals and tourists had also shown up this Monday morning to take pictures or try to get autographs. Professional paparazzi were there, too, camped out in vans with satellite dishes attached to the roofs. The whole neighborhood smelled like popcorn and hot dogs thanks to the food carts lined up across the street, and souvenir hawkers wheeled around on tricycles, offering Juliet and Liam T-shirts and key chains and other trinkets.