by Bettie Jane
Once the applause began to quiet, Meredith looked at Julia and said, “Julia Barlow, will you please stand and come to the stage so we can welcome you to the Piccadilly Ladies Club!”
Overnight, it seemed, Julia’s life gained a freedom and a momentum that she couldn’t have imagined only a week ago.
She was settled, semi-permanently, at the Goodall residence. Opal had been ecstatic for Julia’s new found membership in the Piccadilly Ladies Club and thus motivated to intensify her efforts at mastering painting. Her other friends’ lives had returned mostly to normal, too, if not slightly influenced by the events of the past week.
The ordeal of Oscar going missing was all but forgotten by him and his friends. He’d been relieved to discover that Eliza hadn’t even been pregnant at all and was enjoying his time with Cecil, frequenting cabarets and jazzy parties. Jimmie Hutchins’ reputation as a photographer was solidified with the incredible pictures he’d taken of the Armistice Day Murders that had accompanied Julia’s multiple articles on the subject. Mattie Hawkins had finally come out of her shell, after having been so easily manipulated by Sidney Guinness and, tired of pining from a distance, found the courage to ask Jimmie Hutchins to dinner and dancing. He accepted, much to everyone’s surprise. It was a budding relationship that Julia had her doubts about, but after learning of Eliza’s scandalous affairs and the way she’d manipulated so many of the men around her, most of Julia’s close friends were eager to have somewhat of a calmer life, at least for now.
Frankie Sutton’s family left London, too embarrassed by their financial ruin to remain in Mayfair. However, Frankie had taken up residence with Jimmie, unwilling to leave his friends behind. He had no immediate plans for the future, but there was plenty of gin in the West End to keep him occupied for a bit. Edith’s crush on Frankie wasn’t the slightest bit encumbered by his theft and subsequent jettison of Eliza’s ring into the Thames. The ring was bad luck, she’d said, and it should stay at the bottom of the river.
The biggest surprise in Julia’s life outside of the induction into the PLC was her parents’ response to the Sidney Guinness situation.
Her mother and father had both apologized, to which she nearly passed out, for their having insisted on marrying Sidney. They begged her to move back in, but Julia thought it best to keep some distance between them. She didn’t have a lot of faith that they would remain supportive of her insistence for freedom. She did have hope, maybe for the first time in a long time, that it was possible to forge a better relationship with them and maybe, someday, even enjoy spending time with them. One thing at a time, though. For now, at least they weren’t fighting.
Julia’s next challenge was to get through a dinner with Inspector Gibbs without making a complete nuisance of herself. With the case wrapped up, he’d finally asked her out and she waited anxiously in the Goodall parlor for him to arrive.
She heard the bell ring and the butler answer the door, inviting him in.
She stood and greeted him with a smile and another of their famous lingering handshakes.
“Good evening, Julia. It’s wonderful to see you. You look beautiful.”
“Thank you, Inspector. You look quite dashing yourself.”
He bowed dramatically in response to her complement and she laughed.
“Julia?”
“Yes, Inspector?”
“Call me Jacob.”
The End
This book would not be possible without the unending support from readers, writers, my family, and friends. Much appreciation to editors, cover designers, and mystery fans everywhere.
I owe a special debt of gratitude to my husband and children for riding the roller coaster that is authoring and publishing. I hope you find joy in my stories long after I’m gone.
xoxo
bj
As the newest inductee of the Piccadilly Ladies Club, Julia Barlow has never been more optimistic about her future. When the president of the PLC and activist for the suffragette movement, Meredith Watson, is accused of a brutal murder on the East End of London, Julia finds herself embroiled in a mystery that will have her and her companions traversing all over the city as they follow the clues.
Despite tremendous personal risk to her own safety, Julia must solve the murder or face the ruin of her new, beloved ladies club.
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