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Books. Change. Lives.

Title Page

Copyright

Copyright © 2022 by Sourcebooks

Cover and internal design © 2022 by Sourcebooks

Cover design by Maryn Arreguín/Sourcebooks

Internal design by Michelle Mayhall/Sourcebooks

Cover and internal illustrations by Alessia Trunfio

Sourcebooks and the colophon are registered trademarks of Sourcebooks.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems—except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews—without permission in writing from its publisher, Sourcebooks, Inc.

All brand names and product names used in this book are trademarks, registered trademarks, or trade names of their respective holders. Sourcebooks, Inc., is not associated with any product or vendor in this book.

Published by Sourcebooks Young Readers, an imprint of Sourcebooks

P.O. Box 4410, Naperville, Illinois 60567–4410

(630) 961-3900

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Cataloging-in-Publication data is on file with the Library of Congress.

Contents

Front Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

About the Author

Back Cover

In loving memory of my brother Caleb, who taught me that no matter where you are in life, if you stay true to yourself, you’re already where you’re meant to be.

Chapter One

I’ve never been so scared in my life.

But I have to press forward. Everyone else is too chicken to go inside the haunted trailer on this dark, spooky morning. What will be inside? A clue? Something that will help me solve the mystery?

I touch the silver doorknob slowly. The latch gives. The trailer door creaks open with a banshee-like wail, and dust wafts out in a huge, gray cloud. A hairy spider lurks in a web by the window. My heart pounds as I poke my head in, and…

“Hayley?”

I whip around with a yelp. My beloved cat, Salmon, who I’ve been holding in my arms, squirms in annoyance. Standing behind me are my two best friends, Aubrey Rivera and Cody Smith. Aubrey, who’s tall, dark-haired, and thirteen—same age as me—has her jean cuffs rolled, and her soccer jersey is covered in dog hair from her giant Saint Bernard. Cody is twelve, a little taller than Aubrey, and has sparkling blue eyes, white-blond hair, and a wry prankster’s smile. They’re both staring at me like they don’t know whether to laugh or call an ambulance.

“Are you okay?” Aubrey asks.

“And what were you saying about solving the mystery?” Cody adds.

Oops. Have I been talking out loud?

I turn around and look at the trailer. It’s my trailer, and as far as I know, there’s nothing mysterious inside. My name is Hayley, and my friends and I are actors—this is a TV set in Los Angeles, California. We star in a show called Sadie Solves It. I play Sadie, the main character, who’s an amateur sleuth. Mysteries are Sadie’s life—in fact, one of her catchphrases on the show is “I eat clues for breakfast.” (I giggle at that when the writers aren’t around. I mean… What would clues taste like? Donuts? Bacon?)

Aubrey and Cody are Sadie’s on-screen friends, Kiki and Markus. The three of us solve a mystery an episode. Today is the start of our second season—which is a huge deal. If your show goes to a second season, it means people like to watch you. For me, that means even more time to spend with my best friends.

But this morning, I also feel a little…nervous.

“I was trying to get into Sadie’s character,” I tell my buddies, adjusting Salmon in my arms. His fur is silky black, and he has glowing yellow eyes—the perfect Halloween cat. “It’s been a while, and I feel rusty.”

Our show has been on a break for three months. This is our first official day back at work. Aubrey, Cody, and I reunited yesterday in our special tree house in my backyard, and today, we get down to business.

Cody reaches out to stroke Salmon under his chin. “So you’re sneaking around, looking for something to investigate?” He holds up his hands. “Not judging. I love that for you. But you nearly gave me a heart attack!”

“I just want to be the best Sadie I can be,” I insist.

Cody loops an arm around my shoulder. “You already are.”

“Aw!” Cody always says the nicest things. “C’mon, group hug!”

The three of us squeeze each other tight. I suspect we’re all feeling nervous. It’s not just because we’re starting a new season either—we’re also at a whole new studio. Last year, we shot Sadie Solves It on a soundstage way out in the Valley, a part of Los Angeles that’s to the northeast of the city, full of studios, but pretty remote.

However, because the show was so popular, the network moved us to Stage Five at Silver Screen Studios this year, right in the center of Hollywood! You know the streets with the stars on the sidewalks? That’s Hollywood. My trailer has a perfect view of the famous Hollywood sign on the hill!

But it’s a big change for all of us. It kind of feels like how it was when I went from elementary to middle school—all-new buildings, all-new people, a whole new schedule. Our old set in the Valley felt like a comfortable old Converse sneaker, worn in all the right ways. I knew which table in the old studio’s commissary—that’s a fancy word for the cafeteria—had the wiggly leg. I was used to the smell of the cedar trees near my old trailer. We even had a resident dog, Popcorn, who belonged to a producer on a show one stage over.

But this place? When my parents dropped me off at Silver Screen this morning, everything felt just a little bit…off. There’s no comfortable hum of traffic from the freeway like there was at the old studio. I hear they don’t have a frozen yogurt machine in the commissary. There’s no Popcorn the dog! Some of the faces are familiar, brought over from our old team, but a lot of people are strangers.

Also, it seems like everyone takes things a little more seriously at Silver Screen. It’s barely 7 a.m., and crew and staff are already rushing around, headsets on, clipboards in hand. I spot Tina, who worked at craft services at our old place, carrying a crate of goodies. Craft services are the amazing people who bring the actors meals and snacks on the set. I give Tina a wave, grateful for someone familiar. She turns and waves back.

“Hayley Bo-Bailey! Made those banana muffins you love—and got some tuna for Salmon!” Tina gestures at the palm trees that jut over the buildings. “Isn’t it amazing to be in Hollywood now?”

“You know it!” I answer back.

It’s true: despite all of this being new, I do love Hollywood. There’s something so historic about this part of town. Practically in front of every building is a plaque saying that some important film star once lived there. I love walking past Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, where they’ve held the Oscars, and imagining myself sweeping up the red carpet to win an award someday. Getting the part in Sadie Solves It has been my proudest achievement, so it feels fitting that I get to shoot the show actually in Hollywood.

“There you are,” calls a voice.

The three of us turn. Cody groans inwardly. Coming toward us is ten-year-old Amelia Hart, who plays Pepper, Sadie’s little sister. Her brown pigtails stick out from the sides of her head like two paintbrushes. Her gray eyes dart back and forth. Amelia is a drama queen, a major snoop, and she has bat-like hearing. I swear, she can hear gossip two miles away in the middle of a thunderstorm.

“How long have you guys been here?” Amelia looks us up and down, moving slightly away when she notices Salmon. She claims she’s allergic, but secretly, I think she’s just afraid of black cats. “Do you have your scripts yet? What’s the episode about? Pepper better have good lines this year, or I swear I’m quitting. Why haven’t I gotten mine?”

“Hello to you too, Amelia,” I mutter. “And no, we don’t have our scripts. No one got theirs before you.” Amelia is constantly worried she’s being left out.

As if on cue, Paul Chin, the show’s creator, steps onto the little landing outside Stage Five, where we’re shooting the show. He spies us and smiles. “How are my stars? Want to come on set? I’d love to introduce you to some people.”

He gestures to a guy who’s stepped onto the landing behind him. To our surprise, it’s Morton York, a producer who created this other kids’ show called Motor Clowns that was using Stage Five before us. It had been unexpectedly canceled mid-season, which was why we were able to move in. Honestly, I can’t believe the show ever made it on air—it was about race car–driving clowns. Personally, I couldn’t get through a single episode without feeling a little weirded out by all that clown makeup. Guess I wasn’t the only one.

But even though that one show was a flop, Morton’s famous—he’s won a ton of Kids’ Choice Awards, has a million followers on social media, blah blah blah. My friends and I exchange a glance.

“What’s he doing here?” I whisper.

“Didn’t you hear?” Amelia has her know-it-all voice. “Mr. York’s consulting on season two of Sadie Solves It.” She stands a little taller. “I’ve been talking to him a lot. He’s looking to cast people in a new movie, and I think I have a great shot. Last one there’s a rotten egg!” She sprints for the door to Stage Five.

Aubrey rolls her eyes. We’re all on the same page when it comes to Amelia’s annoyingness.

We walk over to the stage as well. As I head up the ramp, I notice a plaque on the wall bearing the names of all the other shows that have filmed here. A lot of the names are ones I recognize. There are even some really famous movies, and the dates go all the way back to the 1960s. I feel an excited shiver. Soon, our show’s name will be on the plaque too!

I push through the heavy door that leads to sets. The stage is freezing. All stages are. That’s because the lights on the sets get really hot, and that makes the actors sweaty, but sweaty people don’t look so great on TV. The crew makes it extra-chilly to balance things out.

Workers are rushing around, building sets and arranging lighting. A few sound people rush by. There’s a crash in the distance, and someone laughs. I stare up at the rafters. The soundstage is at least three stories high.

“Hayley?” Aubrey pulls on my sleeve.

When I look up, the three of us are standing in a corridor, but Paul and Amelia have vanished. The huge building has become strangely quiet, suddenly—all of the banging and hammering has stopped. The only sound is Salmon’s motor-like purrs. Maybe the workers took a coffee break all at the same time?

“Paul?” I call out. “Amelia?”

My voice echoes. No answer.

I feel a surprising gush of warm air. It’s like a blast you might feel if you’re on the sidewalk and a big truck whooshes by. But there’s no truck, obviously. No nothing.

“Wha…?” I whirl around. My heart skips a beat. “What’s going on?”

“Did you feel that?” Aubrey whispers.

Next, a light on the wall near Aubrey flickers. And then, a light near Cody clicks off, bathing us in darkness.

“Who’s there?” Cody exclaims.

But in the very next moment, the air turns frigid again. The lights snap back on. Even the hammers start back up at a regular rhythm.

“What just happened?” I whisper. Everyone looks freaked out.

Then I hear a new voice.

“Don’t panic,” someone says, “but I think you’ve just met the stage’s ghost.”

Chapter Two

When we turn, we see a scruffy guy in his early twenties. He wears a plaid work shirt and ripped jeans, and he holds a hammer in one hand and a walkie-talkie in another. I don’t recognize him from our old studio in the Valley.

“I-I’m sorry,” I stammer. “What did you just say?”

“I’m Mike.” He offers his hand for us to shake. “I build your sets. Worked at Silver for a few years now. You didn’t hear? Thought I already told you kids—it must have been another group.”

“Hear what?” I ask impatiently.

Mike smiles mysteriously. “Classic Hollywood story. Some people think this place is haunted.”

“Silver Screen Studios?” I cry. “Are you serious?” I feel nervous. Part of me wants to call Mom and Dad and tell them to come get me.

But Aubrey jiggles excitedly. “You’re kidding!”

Cody waves his hand and scoffs. “There’s no such thing as ghosts.”

“There might be in Hollywood.” I look at my friend. “Remember that open-air bus tour we took last year? All the ghost stories they talked about?”

“Yeah, the piano player at that comedy club on Sunset Boulevard,” Aubrey adds. “The people would hear music even when no one was sitting at the piano.”

“And Fritz?” I remind Cody. “At Grauman’s Chinese Theatre?” The tour guide told us that the famous theater has a resident ghost who’d worked at the theater years before and never left. Everyone there knows Fritz. They aren’t even afraid of him.

I look at Mike. “So who’s haunting this place? Do you know their name? Do they try to be in the scenes? What do they want?” My mom often says that when I get excited, I ask so many questions and don’t give the other person an opportunity to answer. But I just want as many facts as possible. I want to understand.

Mike chuckles. “I’ll try to answer as much as I can. Gather round.”

He gestures to a small couch near the craft services tables, and we sit. Well, Aubrey, Salmon, and I sit. Cody leans against the couch with a frown like he thinks all of this is nonsense. I also spy Paul down the hall. I remember that he wanted to speak to us, but now he’s deep in conversation with Monique, our show’s director.

Mike rubs his hands together. “First of all, Silver Screen Studios was founded about eighty years ago, during the golden age of movies. Back then, many of the films were big, spectacular productions—musical numbers, dancing, great costumes, the works.”

“I love musicals,” Aubrey gushes.

I give her an encouraging grin. Aubrey is a beautiful singer, but for whatever reason, she’s afraid to sing in front of other people. Her secret, deep-down goal is to be on Broadway someday, or maybe cut a record.

Mike nods. “Long ago, Silver Screen Studios was filming a big musical. There were two teen starlets, Betty and Ella, competing for the same lead role. The director couldn’t figure out which girl he wanted to cast, so he had both of them come to the first days of shooting, figuring he’d decide then.”

Cody makes a face. “That must have been rough.”

I agree. Casting is the toughest part of being an actor. That’s when you go to “try out” for a part. The competition is fierce. There are so many talented people competing for the same spot.

“It was day one of rehearsals,” Mike says in a low, spooky voice. “Betty and Ella were dancing their hearts out on this huge spiral staircase on the set. The director said he was going to decide which girl got the part after this particular dance number, so it was important they both did their best. Their feet were flying. The dance had them climbing to the top of the stairs. The music got louder and louder. Both the girls wanted to prove they deserved the role. But then…”

He takes a deep breath and looks around at us. We’re all on the edge of our seats.

“Then what?” Aubrey cries.

“Betty fell off the top step,” Mike says sadly. “It was a long drop. And… She didn’t make it.”

We all gasp. “That’s terrible!”

Mike nods. “There were rumors that Ella pushed her. She didn’t want Betty to get the part.” He shrugs. “But that was never proven.”

“So Betty’s the ghost?” I’m aghast with a mix of excitement and horror.

“Well, if you choose to believe in ghosts,” Mike says. “Some say Betty’s never left Stage Five. Rumor has it that she doesn’t want anyone to succeed—or any show.” He gives us a knowing look. “I mean, why do you think Motor Clowns was canceled so quickly?”

Because the show was about clowns? I almost say.

“Anyway, that’s the story,” Mike says, standing and grabbing his walkie-talkie. “Is it real? Who knows? But that’s Hollywood for you! All kinds of weird stuff happens in this town.” At that, he walks off, whistling.

My friends and I stare at each other in shock. I have to say, I’ve definitely experienced a lot of firsts today.

First time on a soundstage in Hollywood.

First time meeting a new crew.

And the first time maybe meeting someone else too.

A ghost.

Chapter Three

After Mike heads off, I realize what I need to do. I grab my friends’ arms. “Group meeting. Now.”

“What about Paul?” Aubrey whispers. “He wanted to talk to us.”

“Paul can wait.” This is big. Really big. Besides, Paul is still talking to Monique. He’s using expressive hand gestures, which means they’re having a disagreement. This might take a while. I just hope Paul doesn’t have a run-in with Betty the ghost too.

That is, if Betty is even real.

We head down the ramp, across the alleyway, and into my trailer. It’s a basic movie-set trailer with a couch, a table, a mini fridge, and a bathroom. Someone has sprayed it with woody vanilla, my favorite scent. I can finally put Salmon down, and my kitty gratefully stretches his legs and then hops up on the windowsill.

But then, a shadow fills the doorway. It’s Morton York, the famous producer who’s helping out with season two. He catches the door before it can fully close.

“Hayley, right? And…Cody? Aubrey?” His gaze flits between us. “Everything okay? I saw you run out of there like the place was on fire.”

I can feel my friends shift. Does Mr. York know about Betty? Did she haunt Motor Clowns too? Should we ask him?

But maybe he’ll think we’re being silly. We all want to impress this guy—it’s really true that he can turn actors just starting out into major stars. How amazing would it be if he cast all three of us in his new movie?

“We’re great,” I tell him, smiling broadly. “Just getting ready for the day.”

“And really excited you’re here, Mr. York,” Aubrey adds.

“Call me Morty.” His eyes crinkle as he smiles. “Okay, I’ll leave you to it.” He steps down from the trailer’s door. “See you soon!”

After he’s gone, I shut the door and face my friends. “Okay. What do we think?”

Aubrey looks at me strangely. “What do you mean? This is incredible! I’ve always wanted to meet a ghost! Haven’t you?”

“Not really…” I mutter, nervously twisting the sapphire ring I always wear. Sapphire’s my birthstone, and Sadie’s. Last season, Sadie wore a sapphire necklace, but the necklace kept getting caught on things during my scenes. At the end of the season, the writers decided that Sadie lost the necklace in one of the final cliff-hanger moments. Sadie’s mom gives her the new ring as a replacement at the very end of the episode. Sapphires give Sadie the strength and courage to solve mysteries—and me too.

I’m not surprised Aubrey wants to meet a ghost. She’s always up for adventure. Aubrey’s one of those people who’s calm in the scariest of situations—like in the final moments of a major soccer tournament, or when she has to give a speech in front of a group of kids, or even when she has to get a filling at the dentist. In fact, the only thing that scares her is singing in front of people. Cody and I are the only people who’ve heard her great voice.

“You don’t want to meet a ghost because you don’t believe in ghosts, right, Hayley?” Cody asks. “There’s no scientific proof that ghosts exist.” Cody might have a wicked sense of humor, but he’s practical and doesn’t like taking risks…or believing in things like ghosts.

“I don’t know if I believe or not.” I look at Aubrey again. “You honestly think Betty is real?” It feels strange to call a ghost by her name.

“Totally!” Aubrey’s eyes shine. “Think about it. Betty’s probably trapped in Stage Five, bitter about her tragic death. What if we could help her? Maybe we could set her free! Let her live her best ghost life!”

Cody sighs in exasperation. “Aubrey, that is the silliest thing you’ve ever said.”

“What?” Aubrey’s hands fly to her hips. “Why?”

“Because you can’t talk with something that doesn’t exist.”

“But what about that whoosh we felt?” I ask him. “Those flickering lights?”

He shrugs. “Lights flicker. And the whoosh was probably just the air vent.”

“What about the rumor that Betty doesn’t want anyone to succeed? What if she wants that for our show? What if she’s trying to scare us away?”

“Nothing’s going to scare me away,” Cody says stubbornly, crossing his arms. “Not even a ghost.”

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