On April 4, 1935, Eunice Hunton Carter, the only Black woman on Special Prosecutor Thomas Dewey’s team of 20 assistant district attorneys, learns of Mad Dog Coll’s murder. Dewey instructs the team to find a link to Schultz. Eunice’s friend and colleague Murray Gurfein informs her of Polly’s arrest. Though officially assigned to handle public complaints about organized crime, Eunice has been secretly investigating a potential organized sex-work racket. Her work in Women’s Court has revealed a pattern where sex workers represented by specific lawyers, like Abe Karp and Max Rachlin, consistently have their charges dismissed. Believing that Polly’s arrest could be a breakthrough, Eunice decides to visit her in jail. At the 30th Precinct, she faces racial and professional condescension from a police officer.

In her jail cell, Polly hears the distinctive sound of a woman’s oxford pumps approaching. The visitor is Eunice. Surprised to meet a Black female assistant district attorney, Polly immediately suspects that she’s one of Dewey’s prosecutors sent to pressure her for information about Schultz. Eunice assures Polly that she’s not interested in the pandering charges but wants to understand how her business operates. Wary of being a “rat,” Polly denies running a brothel, claims that her arrest was a mistake, and refuses to cooperate. She ends the brief, tense conversation by telling Eunice that no woman aspires to be a sex worker.

Early on April 5, Eunice’s husband, a successful dentist named Lisle Carter, confronts her about the dangers of her job following Mad Dog Coll’s murder. He demands that she quit for the safety of their family, especially their son, Junior. Eunice refuses, creating a deeper rift in their marriage. Later, Eunice discusses the argument with her mother, Addie Hunton, who lives with them. Eunice admits that she believes Lisle is threatened by her growing professional prominence, which has shifted the public’s focus from him to her. Addie, a lifelong activist who was herself frequently absent from Eunice and her brother, Alphaeus, during their childhood, encourages Eunice to persevere, acknowledging that pursuing a calling carries a cost.

After being released on an unusually high bail, Polly returns to her elegant brothel, which is concealed within the Majestic apartment building and accessed through a series of secret doors. She finds one of her part-time girls, a Columbia student named Mabel, waiting for her. They discuss the arrest, which Polly attributes to a tip from a hotel employee. Polly reflects on the loyalty of her staff, particularly her bodyguard, Jerry, and her devoted housekeeper, known as “the Lion.” She concludes her conversation with Mabel by warning her that they must now be wary of Eunice.

On April 25, 1935, Eunice analyzes bail records in her office. A suspicious pattern emerges: Sex workers represented by Rachlin are consistently bailed out by a small circle of bondsmen whose names appear to be variations of “Jacobs” and “Klingsberg,” with “Jesse Jacobs” appearing repeatedly interspersed among all the variant names. All 52 arraignment sheets share identical handwriting, suggesting that a single person is signing under multiple aliases, which would constitute forgery. That same day, the dockets that her assistant Lisa LaFrance delivers show that Polly is scheduled for a court appearance. Eunice heads to Women’s Court, hoping to learn more. District Attorney William Dodge announces that he’s reached a deal with the defendants that will give Polly’s girls a suspended sentence of 90 days in exchange for pleading guilty. Eunice is surprised because she expected Dodge to insist on a trial to demonstrate that he’s taking a tough stance on crime.

Now an inmate at the Women’s House of Detention, Polly reflects on the trial that landed her a 30-day sentence. During the proceedings, she was approached by a scruffy-looking redhead who tried to recruit her into a “Combination,” an organization offering madams guaranteed bail money and no convictions for $10 per girl per week. She ignored him. In court, she realized that Dodge was determined to make an example of her. To avoid a long prison term and a trial that would expose her powerful clients, Polly struck a “secret deal,” the details of which are not yet revealed. As she was led from court, she made eye contact with Eunice. 

In prison, she’s summoned to meet with her “lawyer,” who turns out to be Eunice. Terrified of being seen with a prosecutor, Polly creates a scene, banging on the door and warning Eunice that cooperating with her would get them both killed by the Mob.

The next day, April 26, Eunice tells her mother that she and Lisle have decided to send Junior to Barbados to live with his paternal grandmother. When Eunice breaks the news to Junior after school, he’s heartbroken, accusing her of sending him away because she and his father don’t want him. The incident reminds Eunice of her own childhood feelings of abandonment when her activist parents left her for long periods. Addie reassures her that the sacrifice is necessary and that Junior will one day understand, just as Eunice came to understand her own parents’ choices. Eunice asks her mother to move in with Alphaeus because she fears for her safety, but Addie resolves to stay and reminds her that she’s stood up to the Ku Klux Klan: “If I didn’t back down from men who carried torches and hatred, I sure as hell am not backing down now” (62). She encourages Eunice to persevere in her work, praises her ambition, and says that Lisle will remember that he fell in love with a woman who is always “reaching for the stars” (63).

Polly immigrated from Russia to the United States when she was 12. She arrived alone, worked hard at a factory, and sent the money she made to her father. However, he failed to bring his wife and sons with him when he came to the US years later. Her family has no idea that she’s a madam, as she’s told them that she manages a corset factory.

By September 1935, Polly’s business is flourishing again, with regulars like investor Jock Whitney and columnist Walter Winchell frequenting her exclusive King Tut bar. Her success has come at a price, however. To secure her shorter sentence, she struck a deal with Schultz. The bar’s lively atmosphere is shattered when Schultz himself arrives, reminding everyone of the dangerous new element now present in Polly’s establishment.

On September 12, Eunice interviews a Harlem resident whose complaints about a new brothel confirm her theory that an organized, police-protected sex-work ring is expanding. She meets with Dewey to present her findings, but he dismisses her work. He insists that his office will not pursue “vice cases,” which he considers minor offenses, and tells her to focus on major rackets like extortion and gambling. Eunice argues that sex work is an organized criminal enterprise, citing historical data from the Committee of Fourteen, a civic anti-vice organization active in New York in the early 20th century, but Dewey is unmoved. He tells her to continue handling public complaints but to look for evidence related to anything but sex work. Eunice leaves the meeting uncertain whether Dewey hired her to do real investigative work or to make himself appear progressive.

On October 10, 1935, Polly cleans up the destruction left by Schultz and his men the previous night. Schultz has become increasingly volatile and obsessed with his ongoing battle with Dewey, and Polly’s brothel has become “his de facto office” due to their deal (80). He tells Polly that leaving the criminal life is impossible and that the only way to stop Dewey is to give him a “good beating” to put him off the scent.

Later that day, Eunice is in Women’s Court when she observes a police officer recant his testimony, leading to the dismissal of charges against a sex worker represented by Rachlin. She then overhears the sex worker angrily complaining about the “Combination” and a woman named “Red Sadie.” As Eunice leaves the courthouse, a boy hands her a note asking, “How is your son in Barbados?” (87). Terrified, Eunice contacts Dewey, who arranges for police protection in Barbados and reveals that other prosecutors on his team have also been threatened. When Lisle learns of the note, he once again demands that she quit her job. As Eunice wavers, her mother intervenes, announcing that she will travel to Barbados herself to protect her grandson.

Two weeks later, on October 23, Eunice and Lisle attend a fundraiser for the Harlem Commission. Lisle has maintained silence toward her since she refused to resign. Eunice confides in her friend Regina Andrews about her marital strife. Taking Regina’s advice, Eunice suggests a weekend trip to Martha’s Vineyard to reconnect with Lisle. He agrees, breaking the tension between them. However, their reconciliation is short-lived; upon returning to their apartment, they receive a telegram. After reading it, Lisle’s demeanor turns cold again, and he tells Eunice that their trip is off.