by C Jane Reid
“That night, on the stairs.” He looked at her with eyes sunken with misery and guilt. “I’m as much a killer as Marilyn.”
“Gordie, no . . .”
He pulled his hand away and put it over his eyes as though too ashamed to face her. “He was nearly to the top of the steps when he saw me. I was so angry. His arrogance. Marilyn’s flirting. Losing my arm. All the deaths.” He drew in a shuddering breath. “I could see he was in trouble. He’d leaned back too far to look at me. I knew he was going to fall, and I did nothing. Nothing!” Gordie bent over as though ill. “I watched. Dear Lord, I watched as he fell, and I did nothing to help him.”
“Oh, Gordie.” Lola moved to his side and wrapped her arm around him. “You didn’t cause his death.”
“I could have kept him from falling.”
“You know that wouldn’t have saved him.”
“We can’t know that for certain.” He looked at her with hollow eyes. “You lived.”
Lola’s mouth went dry at the memory of those hours when the methanol poison had taken hold of her. “Yes, I did. But there were some moments I wished I hadn’t.”
“Please don’t say that.”
Lola caught hold of his hand again. “Have you considered that what you did was a mercy?”
“By letting a man fall and break his neck?”
“Yes. It was a quicker death than he would have had if he survived the fall.”
Gordie thought on that. The guilt began to lift from him. “I hadn’t considered that.”
“Because you are a good man and you’d naturally hold yourself responsible for his death if you thought he might have otherwise survived.”
Tight-lipped, he nodded.
“And you are a good man, Gordie Canfield.”
He finally smiled. “Thank you, Lola. It means a great deal that you think so.”
They looked at one another for a long moment before Gordie finally stood.
“I think I will join you at Vera’s,” he said, “if you don’t mind.”
“Not at all.”
“But no cocktails.”
“Absolutely not.”
“And you can’t stay too late.”
Lola laughed. “How long am I to be under such constrictions by you all?”
“I’d say at least until we are all secure in the belief that you are completely recovered.”
“Then I shall do my utmost to make it so.”
She saw him to the door, where he paused. He looked as though he wanted to say more, but instead, he leaned in and kissed her cheek.
“I’ll see you soon.”
Lola watched him until he reached the lift, then she closed the door. Her mother stood in the middle of the room with an amused look on her face as Lola sagged against the door.
“I’m in trouble.”
“Yes. You rather are.”
“The two of them, Mother. They are both so, so . . .”
Her mother came to her and patted her arm. “At least they both live in London.”
Lola couldn’t help by laugh and the situation grew less fraught. “I should visit Miss Edie. I’m sure she’ll want to hear all about my woes.”
“Most likely she will.”
Lola turned to open the door.
“And Lola,” her mother called, “try not to interfere with any more investigations on the way to the penthouse.”
Lola grinned. “I make no promises.”
Lola Rose and the Regal Rose Hotel will return in July 2019 with
The Second Floor Murder
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Curious about the song lyrics quoted in the book? They are all taken from songs of the Lola’s day. Here are the song titles:
“Second Hand Rose”
“You’d Be Surprised!”
“All Over Nothing At All”
You can find the playlist link on my website.
Also by C. Jane Reid
The Donaghue Histories Saga
The Secret Stitch
The Sojourners
The Lost Soldier
The Kentuckian
The Boatman’s Daughter (coming June 2019)
The Lady of Castanola (coming August 2019)
The Spellbound House (coming October 2019)
Wolves of the Argonne (coming December 2019)
The Hooverville Happening (coming February 2020)
A Fence Between (coming April 2020)
The Madness of Adelaide Rourke (coming July 2020)
The Last Stitch (coming January 2021)
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The Lola Rose Mysteries
“Lola and the Secret at the Regal Rose Hotel”
Mystery at the Regal Rose Hotel
The Second Floor Murder
(coming July 2019)
The Rose Garden Engagement
(coming September 2019)
The Wedding Day Death
(coming November 2019)
Under the pen name Cari Reid:
The Soldier Poet
A historical novel inspired by actual events during WWI
About the Author
C. Jane Reid lives in the Pacific Northwest where she loves the rain because it makes being a writer even easier with few bright, sunny days to draw her out of the house. She credits her early adulthood in the West Texas Panhandle for her fascination with the High Plains and the need to put it in every book series in some way. She is also fascinated with stories of the rich and eccentric living in hotels and wishes she had access to all the amenities, which would also make life as a writer easier.
She spends much of her free time avoiding laundry and dishes by searching the web for interesting facts on things like how to make a Sidecar and what sort of handbag a Bright Young Thing should carry. She loves old maps, old books, and old handcrafts. She also keeps a genealogy of all her characters but sadly hasn’t had time to work on the one for her own family. Life is funny like that.
If you would like to learn more about her books and research, you can find more information on her website:
www.cjanereid.com