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16 year old girl sleuth Holly Holmes was waiting on the railway station with her mum and dad. Holly was travelling to Scotland to stay with her mum’s good friend Christine Hamilton and her daughter Isobel.
They lived in a castle and as everyone knew, Scottish castles always had a ghost!
The train pulled in and Holly turned and hugged her mum and dad.
‘Remember, no mysteries while you are in Scotland’ said her dad.
‘Definitely not’! said Holly.
When Holly got off the train, Christine’s maid was there to meet her with the car.
After a short drive, they arrived at the castle.
As Holly entered a blond haired girl ran over and hugged her.

‘Thank goodness you are here Holly, my mum is not well, she keeps thinking she has seen a ghost. The doctor is with her now’
Holly thought of the last thing her dad had said to her – no mysteries, but she HAD to help.

Isobel took Holly up to her room.
Holly showered and then changed into a blue sweatshirt and a pair of skin-tight blue jeggings.
She then went to Isobel’s room.
‘Can we see your mum’ said Holly.
‘The Doctor is with her but I am sure we can look in’ said Isobel
Isobel’s mum was pleased to see Holly.
‘Where do you see the ghost’, said Holly
‘It wakes me up in my room and then disappears down the corridor into the dungeon’ said Christine.
‘So it only appears at night’ said Holly, ‘I will stay in your room and we can see the ghost together’
The Doctor said ‘You need something to eat first’

The Doctor went down stairs with the two girls and into the dining room where the maid, Helga, was preparing the table.
‘This is the famous teenage sleuth, Holly Holmes’ said the doctor.
He then went over to the maid and whispered ‘we can not allow this Holmes girl to stay awake all night, make her tea and I will slip some knock-out drops into Holly Holmes drink’!
‘Would you like to try my herbal tea, Holly’ said the maid ‘It is unusual’
‘I guess’ said Holly. Out of site of the girls, Helga made the tea. The Doctor then took a small bottle from his pocket and emptied several drops of liquid into Holly’s tea!

Totally unaware, Holly put the cup to her lips however, she noticed a strange odour. ‘Probably the herbs’, thought Holly.
Then the young sleuth tipped the cup and drank a mouthful of her drugged drink!

After a few minutes, Holly began to feel dizzy. The Doctor took her out onto the balcony to get some fresh air.
It did not help.
‘You are probably exhausted from the long journey’ said the Doctor.
However his voice seemed to come from miles away and his face was becoming distorted.
‘I think….I…am… going…..to…….faint!’ said Holly.
She vaguely remembered the strange odour – was it herbs or have I been drugged, thought Holly.
That was the last thing the teen sleuth remembered for some time.
Holly fainted and drifted into drugged unconsciousness!

The Doctor smiled to himself, there would be no ghost searching for Holly Holmes that night.
He picked the teen sleuth up and carried her unconscious body back into the room.
Isobel gasped ‘What’s wrong with Holly’ she said.
‘I am afraid Holly has fainted’ said the Doctor ‘probably the long journey’

Isobel knew Holly well and was sure Holly would not faint just because of a long journey. She knew Holly often suffered from fainting spells but usually because of something someone had done to her.
The Doctor took Holly up to her room, knowing the schoolgirl sleuth would have a great nights sleep thanks to all the knock-out drops Holly had unwittingly taken. He left the room and closed the door behind him.

Next morning, Holly woke up and looked at the clock – 10.00o’clock.
She had been asleep all night and yet when she sat up, her head was pounding. Holly was also still wearing the t-shirt and skin-tight jeggings she had been wearing the previous evening.

Holly sat on her bed trying to remember what had happened the previous evening.
‘Oh yes, after I drank the herbal tea, I suddenly became dizzy’ thought Holly
Then Holly recalled that after going onto the balcony with the Doctor, she must have fainted.
‘I must have been drugged – the herbal tea probably had knock-out drops in’ thought Holly.
Holly left her room and soon found Isobel.
‘What happened to you last night’ said Isobel
Holly explained that she had fainted on the balcony but felt sure this had been bought on because her drink had been drugged.

‘The doctor could easily have some of those in his bag’, said Isobel ‘Holly, do you think the Doctor knocked you out’.
Holly was unsure.
‘I know something, though’ said Holly, ‘I am certainly ghost hunting tonight’!
Isobel decided to join Holly in her mum’s room that night and wait. After a couple of hours, a chill fell across the room and suddenly a beautiful girl surrounded by a brilliant white and blue light appeared.
‘The ghost’ said Isobel’s mum, ‘I must be going mad’
‘No, we can all see her’ said Holly.
After a few minutes the ghost disappeared.
‘Stay with you mum, Isobel’ said Holly, ‘I am going to follow the ghost’
‘Oh be careful Holly, the castle is full of corridors and secret rooms’.
Holly ran to follow the ghost until she came to a room where there was no exit. However, as Holly approached the ‘ghost’, it disappeared through a wall!
Holly could not believe it. The schoolgirl sleuth started to feel the wall for an opening when suddenly the floor gave way beneath Holly’s feet!
Holly felt herself falling, but her fall came to an abrupt halt when she hit the ground. Holly was winded by her fall but when she recovered, looked around her for a way out. Holly did not notice a shadowy figure slip into the room. The figure took a bottle from its pocket and emptied the contents onto a thick pad.

Holly though she heard a shuffling behind her. Suddenly, the young sleuth was grabbed from behind and the cloth held firmly over Holly’s nose and mouth. A sickly sweet odour drifted up Holly’s nose and into her mouth and Holly quickly began to feel faint. The cloth had been soaked with knock-out liquid!
‘A knock-out pad’ thought Holly, but it was no good.
Holly became uncontrollably dizzy and within seconds Holly Holmes fell unconscious!
Holly was helpless in her captor’s arms!!

The figure lifted Holly’s unconscious body and carried her through the door at the back of the room and up some steps. There waited the mysterious doctor.
‘Ah, you have her and knocked her unconscious, excellent’, he said.
‘Take her to her room, soon Holly Holmes will be in my power – she will be helpless to resist!

Some hours later, Holly’s eyes began to open. For a few minutes she wondered where she was, then her brain started to clear and saw Isobel in her room.

‘Oh Holly, what happened’.
‘First I fell through a trap door’ said Holly ‘then someone grabbed me and knocked me out with a drugged pad’
‘That’s terrible’, said Isobel, ‘who could it have been’
‘The doctor probably carries drugs for medicinal purposes’ said Holly, ‘perhaps he is using them to try and put me off the case. I must see in his bag. How is your mum’.
‘It’s almost as if she is not here’ said Isobel, ‘could she be drugged too’.
‘Maybe and then there is the ghost, its almost as if someone is trying to send your mum crazy’, said Holly. ‘I am going to find the Doctor’.

Holly went down to the kitchen, there was no sign of the Doctor but his bag was on the table. Holly walked over to the bag and opened it.
There she saw two bottles, one marked KNOCK-OUT DROPS and the other CHHLOROFORM.
Suddenly there was a voice
‘Ah the inquisitive schoolgirl’ said the Doctor.
Holly quickly pressed a button on her watch which was also a mini recorder.
‘You are drugging Isobel’s mum and trying to make her think she’s going crazy with the projection pretending there is a ghost’ said Holly.
‘Quite right’ Miss Holmes, ‘and very soon she will sign the property over to Helga’.
So that’s his idea thought Holly.
Next moment Holly was grabbed from behind and her arms pinned to her sides. She glanced round. It was Helga.
‘So you are in this together’, exclaimed Holly.
The Doctor smiled and then took the bottle marked CHLOROFORM from his bag and emptied some of the contents onto a thick cloth.
Holly struggled in the maids grip but it was useless.
The doctor smiled and then applied the pad to Holly’s nose and mouth.
Holly recognised the sickly sweet odour that had been used to knock her out earlier.
However, recognition was no use at all, nor was struggling.
The teen sleuth was quickly overcome by the knock-out drug.
The room began to spin and Holly started to faint. A few seconds later, Holly Holmes fell unconscious into the maid’s arms!

Had Holly been conscious she would have felt Helga lift her and the doctor say, ‘Take Miss Holmes to her room, we will start the next part of the process when she starts to regain consciousness’

It was some hours later when Holly began to stir.
‘Ah, Miss Holmes, welcome back’. It was the doctor ‘Do you believe in hypnosis, my dear’.
‘I think its all mind over matter’, said Holly weakly, ‘although in my weakened state, I doubt if I could resist’.
‘I doubt it too, Miss Holmes’.
The doctor laughed, then took a small shiny object from his pocket and dangled it in front of Holly’ face.
Holly tried to concentrate on something but soon felt herself drifting towards semi-consciousness!
‘Concentrate on the stone, Miss Holmes, you have searched the castle and can find no trace of what is happening, all you know is the doctor is totally innocent of any wrong doing do you understand’.
‘Yes’ said Holly, in almost a trance like state.
‘When I click my fingers you will faint and fall deeply unconscious, Holly Holmes’ said the doctor.

With that, the evil doctor clicked his fingers!
The schoolgirl sleuth gave a low moan and her head lolled to one side.
Holly Holmes fainted and lapsed into unconsciousness yet again!!

The doctor turned and spoke to Helga who was in the back of the room.
‘If Holly Holmes even begins to stir give her more chloroform, we must keep her unconscious until I have dealt with Mrs Hamilton’.

He left the room and seconds later, in came Isobel.
‘What’s wrong with Holly’ she said accusingly.
‘I am afraid Holly Holmes keeps losing consciousness’ said Helga, ‘we must keep her sedated until the doctor finds out what’s wrong’
Happy that Holly was going to be unconscious for several hours, Helga left the room.

As soon as the door closed, Holly opened her eyes.
‘Holly’ exclaimed Isobel, what’s happening’.
Holly explained how the doctor and Helga had knocked her out with chloroform in the kitchen and the doctor had tried to hypnotise Holly, but be concentrating her mind, Holly had resisted and only pretended to faint and fall unconscious.
She then explained how the doctor was trying to get her mum to sign over the property.
She then took of her watch and passed it to Isobel.
‘It’s a mini recorder and contains a full confession, please try and get it to the police, quickly’ said Holly.
Then the door opened and Helga reappeared.
Holly closed her eyes, apparently totally unconscious.
‘Call me if she regains consciousness, please’ said Isobel.
‘OK’, said Helga, ‘just for a few seconds before I sedate Miss Holmes once more’!

Isobel sneaked out of the castle and after what seemed a long time Holly began to start regaining consciousness.
Helga walked over to the bottle of chloroform and doused a pad with the contents.
‘Can’t have you waking up just yet, Miss super sleuth’ laughed Helga.
However, Holly was fully awake. She lashed out at Helga with a karate kick and then hit Helga with a chop on the neck, knocking the maid out.

‘Now to find the doctor’ thought Holly.

She went to Christine’s room and found the doctor.
‘Holly Holmes, you are far too nosy for your own good’ said the doctor.
Holly kicked out with her right leg in her favourite karate kick move, but the doctor was quick. He moved to one side and then grabbed Holly around the waist. He pulled another chloroform pad out of his pocket and placed it over Holly’s nose and mouth.
‘You stupid schoolgirl’ if you think you are going to foil my plans, you are mistaken, I am far too strong for you'.
The chloroform hit Holly and she instantly began to black-out!
However, just as Holly was about to faint, the door swung open and in came Isobel and the police.
That was the moment she succumbed to the chloroform and Holly fainted!!

Holly Holmes eyes began to flutter open and she saw Isobel’s worried face looking over her.
‘Oh thank goodness you are coming too’ said Isobel.

Isobel quickly explained that after Holly had fainted from the effects of the chloroform, the police had arrested both the evil doctor and the maid and had a full confession on Holly’s mini recorder.

Holly stayed for a few extra days to recover from her ordeal.

However, she was happy in the knowledge that another villain had fallen foul of Holly Holmes, teen sleuth and could not wait for her next case to begin!