The Hornet's Nest
Summary
Muriel Fletcher, barely nineteen, finds herself ensnared in a labyrinth of avarice and duplicity orchestrated by her custodians, William and Freda Whitefield. Convinced that the Whitefields intend to strip her and her estranged cousin, Fletcher Hempstead—now the notorious burglar dubbed the "Hornet"—of their rightful inheritance, Muriel engineers a seemingly innocent ploy: she discards her purse, tucking a cryptic invitation inside, hoping the finder will return it. The purse lands in the hands of Ashe Colvin, a gentleman who, moments earlier, had rescued an elderly woman from a bustling thoroughfare. Ashe’s encounter with Freda triggers a flash of recognition; she is the very woman whose machinations toppled his career as district attorney years before. As the plot unfurls, the Hornet seeks refuge with Ashe, and together they contrive a daring heist of the Whitefields’ safe, extracting documents that exonerate Ashe and substantiate Muriel’s claim. The police, misled by Ashe’s disguise as Fletcher, apprehend him, yet the Hornet coerces a confession from Freda, unraveling the Whitefields’ treachery. Upon his liberation, Ashe and Muriel, bound by shared peril and burgeoning affection, embrace their uncertain future.
Synopsis
Nineteen-year-old Muriel Fletcher suspects her severe guardians, William and Freda Whitefield, of trying to rob her and her cousin, Fletcher Hempstead, of their inherited estate. For romance, and to find someone to help her, Muriel decides to drop her purse with a note inside inviting the retriever to return it, but when she sees Ashe Colvin helping an elderly lady across a busy street, she puts the purse in his hands. When Ashe meets Freda, he recognizes the woman who years earlier ruined his career as district attorney in a scandal. Muriel's lost cousin Fletcher, who was driven to forgery by the Whitefields and is now a burglar known as the "Hornet," takes refuge from the police with Ashe, who gets him to rob the Whitefield's safe of documents clearing Ashe's name of scandal and confirming Muriel and Fletcher's inheritance. After the police arrest Ashe, disguised as Fletcher, for the robbery, Fletcher makes Whitefield confess. Upon his release, Ashe embraces Muriel.
