When the Music Stops
(2025)(The fourth book in the O'Malley Investigations Mystery series)
A Story by Daniel Pelfrey
Chicago, 1923. Some secrets are worth killing for.
Private investigator Patrick O'Malley and his brilliant secretary Catherine "Kit" Ashworth have built a reputation solving cases the Chicago Police won't touch. But when a desperate aunt hires them to find her missing nephew—a talented jazz trumpeter who's vanished without a trace—they stumble into the deadliest investigation of their careers.
David Steinberg played his trumpet at the most exclusive parties in Chicago's Gold Coast, moving seamlessly between territories controlled by rival gangs. The police dismiss his disappearance as just another musician running off. But Kit discovers a cryptic note suggesting David knew his life was in danger: "If the music stops, tell them I kept my word."
As Kit and Paddy dig deeper, they uncover David's dangerous secret: he's been photographing and documenting the hidden cooperation between Chicago's warring criminal empires. Now both sides want him dead—and anyone asking questions about him.
With only forty-eight hours before David's "insurance policy" triggers a gang war that will tear Chicago apart, Kit and Paddy must:
Private investigator Patrick O'Malley and his brilliant secretary Catherine "Kit" Ashworth have built a reputation solving cases the Chicago Police won't touch. But when a desperate aunt hires them to find her missing nephew—a talented jazz trumpeter who's vanished without a trace—they stumble into the deadliest investigation of their careers.
David Steinberg played his trumpet at the most exclusive parties in Chicago's Gold Coast, moving seamlessly between territories controlled by rival gangs. The police dismiss his disappearance as just another musician running off. But Kit discovers a cryptic note suggesting David knew his life was in danger: "If the music stops, tell them I kept my word."
As Kit and Paddy dig deeper, they uncover David's dangerous secret: he's been photographing and documenting the hidden cooperation between Chicago's warring criminal empires. Now both sides want him dead—and anyone asking questions about him.
With only forty-eight hours before David's "insurance policy" triggers a gang war that will tear Chicago apart, Kit and Paddy must:
- Decode musical cipher hiding the location of explosive evidence
Navigate between corrupt police, ruthless gangsters, and desperate witnesses
Rescue two hostages from organizations that never forgive interference
Survive a negotiation where everyone at the table wants them dead
In Prohibition-era Chicago, the most dangerous truth isn't that gangs control the city. It's that they're working together.
Perfect for fans of Jacqueline Winspear's Maisie Dobbs series and lovers of atmospheric 1920s mysteries with smart, resourceful protagonists navigating a world of corruption, jazz, and deadly secrets.
Book 4 in the O'Malley Investigations series • Can be read as a standalone
Genre: Historical Mystery
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