“Jessamine, come on let us go to the zoo. I really want to celebrate my 22nd birthday. Ask Neil to come as well.”
“Yes, my detective cousin.”
“The party will be tomorrow i.e. my birth day. We would celebrate my birthday as well as the success of my last book.”
“Of course sister!”
“Ok then.”
Bella brown the amateur detective along with her friends Neil and Jessamine went to the zoo. There they saw a girl drowning. On saving her she thanked Bella.
“I am Jacqueline. Thank you for saving me. Tonight is my concert. You have to come. This is my way of thanking anyone. Can I have your name please?”
“Oh Jacqueline Ken, the famous singer.”
“Oh, no no, not famous just a singer.
“Bella and she is Jessamine and the boy is Neil.”
“Take the tickets. 7pm sharp. You and your family.”
“Thank you.”
After visiting the zoo they went back home.
“Sister, a concert then a party. Nice birthday plan.”
“ I know. Come on. Give Neil a missed call to be at the 230 bus stop. We will pick him.”
On reaching the venue they learnt that the hall had been burnt.
“Burnt!” Bella said.
“Yes, actually Jacqueline was to have a concert but it caught fire as the fuse was not working. No need of disappointment Mam. The concert will shift to fort square tomorrow at 7pm.”
“Oh thanks a lot.”
Then they started for the restaurant. During the party Mr George and Mrs Enid Brown the parents of Bella gifted her pug puppy.
“Thank you mom and dad. Jessamine he is so sweet and cute. I am going to call him –Ruffy.”
“Sweet name sister!”
“Bella it is 10. I better rush lest mom won’t allow me in.”
“Ok, Neil. Tomorrow at 6pm.”
“Sure, happy birthday once again.”
“Thank you.”
Next day Neil came at time.
“Hi Bea.”
“No, pet names please. Bella is ok.”
“Ok Bella, so are you working on that Jacqueline case.”
“Sure. Any doubt?”
“No.”
“Good to the concert now.”
They arrived at the concert.
“Bon soir. S’amusons sil-vous-plait.”
“Merci.”
They went inside and met Jacqueline.
“Hello Jacqueline, Bella remember.”
“Of course you saved my life.”
“Nothing of that sort. Come on now.”
“No you should be thanked by me.”
“You want to thank me, do you?”
“Yes, of course.”
“I want to investigate who burnt that auditorium. Will you help me?
“For sure. Come on be seated.”
Next Morning they went to Jacqueline’s house.
“I have come here for some interrogations.”
“Sure, carry on.”
“Do you think you know him/her? Or whom do you suspect?”
“I do not really know. I feel my contemporaries like my work so I do not think pointing anyone will be correct. Actually I was in the hall. So it may be an attempt to kill me.”
“Still, no one.”
“No Bella.”
“Ok fine. What about your family?”
“I have my parents of course, my brother Kit Ken and sister Daisy Ken.”
“Do you think anyone considers you enemy? With whom your ideas contradict?”
“My brother................... Chill now it was just a joke. No one actually.”
“Ok.”
“Bella yesterday I got a threatening call after the show asking me to drop the next project at around 7pm but I failed to recognise the voice somehow. I usually don’t but somehow.”
“No idea who?”
“Not really.”
They went back home. Bella was looking outside the window. Jessamine came in after taking Ruffy for a walk. Suddenly Jessamine’s phone rang.
“Oh God! Neil again. We just fought. He is calling to say sorry. That is why I also forgive him.”
“Hello.... No Jessamine here..................Wrong number.” Jessamine answered the call in a very odd tone.
“It is the solution. Anybody even her own family members could have spoken to her in an odd tone. Thank you Jessamine.”
“ Sister let Ruffy sit on your lap.”
“No I need to go to Jacqueline’s house once.”
“Fine.”
Bella went to Jacqueline’s house.
“Hey Jacqueline.”
“Hey Bella. I needed to tell you something.”
“Sure”
“Bella yesterday I went for a concert at Fort Square and suddenly the chandelier fell. Luckily I shifted a bit lest it would have fallen on me. But it is not possible because it was intact.”
“It is possible to go there?”
“Sure. Come on.”
They went to the hall. The chandelier was broken into pieces.
Suddenly Bella’s phone rang
“Hello.”
“Hello Madam. Drop the case.” “If you do not I will kidnap your Mom and Dad. If you do then I will give you a lot of money.”
“Ok I agree.”
“Take the money from the dust bin near The fort square Bus stop at 7pm.”
“Fine.”
She took Jessamine, Neil and her dad, a police officer with her. As soon as she took the money a person started leaving. Neil ran and caught him.
“Take us to the person who sent you.”
“No.”
“He is already captured if you take us then you will be spared.”
Everybody supported in this lie. The foolish man thought it was true and took them.
“Kit you. Jessamine this is Jacqueline’s brother.”
“Yes, I tried to kill her. She is a famous singer but she refused to promote me. She said that it was not always necessary that everyone does everything well but I wanted to be like her. I cannot sing so what she could have promoted me but she is too obstinate. I decided that if I can’t be popular then I will not allow her to be popular. I often asked her to stop shows but she said that Music meant everything to her and she couldn’t live without it. I tried to kill her, I called her and I destroyed the fuse as well as the chandelier . And now I am going to kill you.”
Before they could escape Kit locked them in his farmhouse and started releasing smoke. They started to choke and were trapped. They waited and waited. Every second seemed an hour making their breathing more difficult. Finally Jacqueline came a like a saviour and opened the lock.
“I had suspected Kit but after all he was my brother so I thought he couldn’t have been so unfair and hence I believed him but thanks to Bella while that mad was confessing she had called me and I could hear everything over phone. Kit cannot sing so I discouraged him to but I can’t understand how he took such a step. I being a sister am saying Arrest him.”
Hence Bella solved her 9th case.
