Stairwell Into Time
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About this ebook
Stairwell Into Time is a time travel romance novelette by bestselling novelist R. Barri Flowers, and is the first book in the Stairway in Time romance novelette series.
In the year 2020, graduate student and Victorian Era enthusiast Katie Judson finds herself living in 1890 London, England, and beyond, courtesy of a mysterious stairwell. There, she meets fellow American Spencer Brennan, a member of the Pennsylvania State Capitol Police Force, who is in search of his younger sister, Felicity, who has been forced into prostitution on the dark streets of Whitechapel. As they attempt to rescue her, Katie and Spencer must also grapple with their mutual passion, romance, and the mind-bending nature of time travel.
Bonus material includes a complete short story, “The Phone Call,” and excerpts of the author’s heartwarming contemporary romance novel, Forever Sweethearts.
R. Barri Flowers
R. Barri Flowers is an award winning and Publishers Weekly bestselling author of romantic suspense, mystery, thriller and crime novels, with twenty Harlequin titles published to date, such as Honolulu Cold Homicide and Special Agent Witness. Chemistry and conflict between the hero and heroine, attention to detail, and incorporating the very latest advances in criminal investigations, are the cornerstones of his crime thriller fiction.
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Stairwell Into Time - R. Barri Flowers
STAIRWELL INTO TIME
Stairway in Time Romance Novelette
By R. Barri Flowers
STAIRWELL INTO TIME: Stairway in Time Romance Novelette is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, business establishments, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
STAIRWELL INTO TIME
Stairway in Time Romance Novelette
Copyright 2020 by R. Barri Flowers
All rights reserved.
Cover Image Copyright Yes Photographers, 2020
Used under license from Shutterstock.com
To the love of my life, in which time is forever in our corner. You have always encouraged me to put my best foot forward as an author, dreamer, husband, and best friend.
To fans of time travel romance fiction, I hope you enjoy this novelette exploring the timeless nature of love.
* * *
OTHER BOOKS BY R. BARRI FLOWERS
FICTION
A Reason to Live
Alive in the Rose City
Before He Kills Again
Dark Streets of Whitechapel
Dead in Kihei
Dead in Pukalani
Dead in the Rose City
Deadly Defense
Fractured Trust
Justice Served
Kaanapali Beach Paradise
Kauai Killer
Killer Connection
Killer in The Woods
Murder in Honolulu
Murder in Maui
Murder of the Hula Dancers
Murder on Kaanapali Beach
Murdered in the Gourmet Kitchen
Murdered in the Man Cave
Night Killers
Persuasive Evidence
Seduced to Kill in Kauai
State’s Evidence
TEEN FICTION
Christmas Wishes: Laura’s Story
Count Dracula’s Teenage Daughter
Danger in Time
Daughter of Count Dracula
Ghost Girl in Shadow Bay
Out for Blood
Summer at Paradise Ranch
Teen Ghost at Dead Lake
* * *
PRAISE FOR R. BARRI FLOWERS
MURDER ON KAANAPALI BEACH is among the best of his tales. This one deserves to be at the top of your must read list.
— John Lutz, Edgar winning bestselling mystery author
R. Barri Flowers gives readers a fine procedural along with appealing characters and great local color.
— Bill Crider, Edgar winner and bestselling crime writer on MURDER ON KAANAPALI BEACH
A top flight police procedural and a must read for all fans of suspense. The contrast of seamy crime to the beautiful paradise setting adds to the gripping tension.
— Joe Moore, bestselling co-author on MURDER ON KAANAPALI BEACH
R. Barri Flowers weaves a riveting crime tale set in Hawaii oozing with authenticity, grit, and drama.
— Kim Cresswell, bestselling author on MURDER ON KAANAPALI BEACH
A police procedural with a complex plot, told from multiple viewpoints. The reader gets the added benefit of a virtual vacation on Maui.
— Laurie Hanan, mystery author on MURDER ON KAANAPALI BEACH
Flowers delivers the goods. An exotic setting, winning characters, and realistic procedural details make MURDER IN MAUI a sure hit with crime-fiction readers.
— Bill Crider, Edgar winner and author
MURDER IN MAUI is a steamy, non-stop thrill-ride through the seamy underbelly of Hawaii.
— Allison Leotta, Federal Sex Crimes Prosecutor and author
Vivid details of police procedure one would expect from top criminologist. A gripping novel in what promises to be an outstanding series.
— Douglas Preston, New York Times bestselling author on MURDER IN MAUI
Gripping, tightly woven tale you won’t want to put down. Author neatly contrasts the natural beauty of tropical paradise with ugliness of murder and its aftermath.
— John Lutz, Edgar winner and bestselling author on MURDER IN MAUI
MURDER IN HONOLULU is an exquisitely rich and masterfully constructed mystery. Flowers now lays fitting claim to the beautiful island paradise as his territory.... A savvy, smooth, and sumptuous read that’s as hot as Waikiki beach sand.
— Jon Land, mystery author
Infidelity and murder in paradise lead to a one of a kind case for PI Skye McKenzie Delaney, and an enjoyable ride for the reader. Definitely put this one on your list.
— John Lutz, Edgar winner and bestselling author on MURDER IN HONOLULU
Flowers once again has written a page-turner legal thriller that begins with a bang and rapidly moves along to its final page. He has filled the novel with believable characters and situations.
— Midwest Book Review on STATE’S EVIDENCE
A clever mystery with many suspects.... Vividly written, this book holds the reader’s attention and speeds along.
— Romantic Times on JUSTICE SERVED
A model of crime fiction.... Flowers may be a new voice in modern mystery writing, but he is already one of its best voices.
— Statesman Journal on JUSTICE SERVED
An excellent look at the jurisprudence system...will appeal to fans of John Grisham and Linda Fairstein.
— Harriet Klausner on PERSUASIVE EVIDENCE
STATE’S EVIDENCE will make the top sellers list because it’s fast-paced, intriguing, satisfying, and I highly recommend it to you.
— Romance Reader at Heart
A rocket of a read. Not only a heart-thumping thriller, this is that rare novel that is downright scary.
— John Lutz, Edgar winner and bestselling author on BEFORE HE KILLS AGAIN
It gets no better than this! R. Barri Flowers has written another thriller guaranteed to hold onto its readers!
— Huntress Reviews on DARK STREETS OF WHITECHAPEL
Selected as one of Suspense Magazine’s Best Books.
— John Raab, CEO/Publisher on THE SEX SLAVE MURDERS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Epilogue
The Phone Call – bonus short story
Forever Sweethearts – bonus excerpts
About the Author
* * *
CHAPTER ONE
On a dreary Friday afternoon on March 20th, 2020, Katie Judson sat languidly in the library at Birkbeck College, University of London, in Bloomsbury, a trendy area in London’s West End. At twenty-four, she was working on her Master’s degree in Victorian Studies, having found the time period fascinating ever since being handed a copy of the novel, Cranford, by her mother when Katie was a teenager. Back then, she lived with her family in a suburb of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, as a typical American girl with big dreams and probably too much imagination for her own good. She’d often imagined living in another time, such as England during the Victorian Era, where she could experience firsthand the birth of a new dawn and facing head-on the social inequities as well as the industrialization of and high hopes that came with it during the period.
Attending Penn State, Katie majored in English Lit and then jumped at the chance to study abroad when she was offered a full studentship for the MA program at Birkbeck. Now halfway through her studies, while missing her parents and younger sister Stella, Katie felt at home in London, embracing all it had to offer as an international metropolis with everything you could ask for. Still, she was even more captivated by 19th century London, finding herself being drawn more and more into it, as though it was where she truly belonged. She had chosen to do her thesis on Felicity Fletcher, an American social reformer and poet living in London, who used her dreadful experience as a forced prostitute to help others escape the horrid sex trade and better their lives.
I could use another cup of coffee, Katie groaned inward while turning bold blue eyes at her empty reusable cup. She ran a hand haphazardly through her long black hair and readjusted herself in the uncomfortable wooden chair while wearing a cashmere sweater and jeans. But she was too zoned in to stop now. Besides, too much coffee was bad