Enduring Hope

Ida Dempsey has grown up in a privileged life of luxury thanks to her aunt and uncle. Although Second Street—where women of ill repute ply their wares—is off limits to respectable citizens, her heart of compassion compels her to frequent the area, hoping to make a difference in their lives. Ida has also befriended Qui Shau, a Chinese woman who keeps house for her family, but friendships between the whites and Chinese are taboo in Eureka. Ida tries to keep secret her forbidden compassion, but someone is watching and will use it against her.

Henrietta “Etta” Maxwell, heiress to the Maxwell fortune, is a hard-hitting investigative reporter for The Enterprise Daily. The catch? Etta must pen her columns under the nom de plume, Henry Mason—a fact that routinely puts a knot in her knickerbockers. Leo Eriksson is a second-generation firefighter with a passion for rendering aid to those in need. When Leo discovers that Henry Mason is really Henrietta Maxwell, the fire department’s wealthy benefactress, he agrees to keep her identity secret.

Lealie Bevard, a determined Tuskegee Institute student, attends the Shiloh Baptist Church convention in Birmingham on September 19, 1902, to request a scholarship for continued education at Harvard. But a beautiful gathering turns tragic when a stampede breaks out and Lealie is injured. While convalescing at the home of fellow Tuskegee student Milton Rafferty, Lealie's concerns for her future are set aside to help Milton uncover a mystery revolving around missing church funds and a possible murder. Perhaps a pause in Lealie's well-laid plans can be used for good and lead to love.