The Shadow in the North

Miss Walsh walks into Sally Lockhart's office and accuses Sally of giving poor business advice that ruined her savings. Sally vows to recover the lost money and begins digging into Anglo-Baltic's affairs. This marks the start of Sally's intensified investigations in late 1878.

Jim Taylor helps stage magician Alistair Mackinnon escape two men who are after him. They take Mackinnon to the photography shop/private investigations office on Burton Street, where he can be protected and questioned. The incident binds Jim, Frederick and Webster to Mackinnon for safety.

Jim and Frederick attend a spiritualist seance as part of their private-detective work. The medium Nellie Budd appears in trance, and Frederick photographs her arms during the session. The items discussed point toward a link between North Star and Anglo-Baltic, deepening Sally's suspicions.

Frederick relays what he learned, and Sally tells him she suspects Axel Bellmann is behind Anglo-Baltic's collapse to fund North Star. She identifies Bellmann as the current owner of North Star and resolves to confront him. The stakes rise as Sally tightens her investigation.

Mackinnon takes the stage at a charity event, and Frederick asks Charles to accompany him for protection. During the performance, Mackinnon spots a dangerous figure in the audience, revealing the reach of Bellmann's covert threat. He disappears, leaving Sally and the others anxious.

Windlesham, an associate of Bellmann, tries to intimidate Sally at her office to stop her investigations. Sally refuses to back down, showing her resolve to uncover the truth behind Bellmann's schemes. The confrontation raises the danger she faces.

Bellmann makes a deal with the debt-strapped Lord Wytham: if Bellmann marries Lady Mary Wytham, Wytham's debts are paid. Wytham reluctantly accepts to avoid debtor's prison. The arrangement ties major players into a dangerous web of power.

Nellie Budd is seriously injured and hospitalized, while Windlesham pays a hitman to kill Sally. In the ensuing chaos, Isabel Meredith is attacked indirectly; though Chaka is killed in the broader turmoil, Sally remains focused on the North Star threat. The events heighten the sense that Bellmann will stop at nothing to silence the truth.

Isabel tells Jim about her feelings for Mackinnon, complicating loyalties. Charles discovers that Bellmann is engaged to Lady Mary Wytham, while Jim meets Lady Mary in Hyde Park and is drawn to her. Rumors swirl about Mackinnon’s marriage and Nellie Budd’s ties to Bellmann’s plans.

Frederick and Jim confront Bellmann's henchmen during an attack on Mackinnon and manage to overpower them with help from Mackinnon. They escort the captured men to a police station, securing Mackinnon’s safety for the time being. The trio returns to Burton Street to regroup.

In a private moment, Sally admits she loves Frederick and they sleep together. Sally then invites Frederick to propose marriage, and he accepts as they begin to plan a future together. The relationship becomes a personal anchor amid the dangerous investigations.

Windlesham and Bellmann bring their plan to a climax with the creation of the Steam Gun, intended to target the population. Sally and the others deduce the weapon's purpose and prepare to confront Bellmann at North Star. The stake is power— Bellmann's power over the people.

Sally uses Bellmann's own plan against him by triggering the Steam Gun and causing his death. The building collapses, but Sally, Jim and Mackinnon manage to escape the rubble. In the aftermath, Miss Walsh recovers her money and plans to invest with Garland & Lockhart, while Nellie Budd recovers and returns north with Jessie.

In the spring of the next year, the trio finds a potential new Garland & Lockhart location, beautiful and spacious but rumored to be haunted. Charles presents a photograph of Frederick to Sally, sealing a sense of closure. The novel closes with Sally announcing she is pregnant with Frederick's child, signaling a personal triumph amid the public victory over Bellmann.