The Detective's Assistant by Kate Hannigan

She also worries about some friends of hers who used to be her neighbors when she lived in New York. Though she is proud of their successes, Cornelia still worries that her aunt is going to send her to an orphanage. It would seem that though they are not blood relatives, Cornelia and Aunt Kitty are similar and they are well matched.

The detectives at the Pinkerton Detective Agency are very impressed with Cornelia’s performance and she is asked to help out with other cases, playing parts as needed to support her aunt. Between then they manage to convince the mistress to spill the beans and tell the truth about what her beloved has done.

Aunt Kitty plays the part of a fortune teller, and Cornelia helps her in her task by pretending to be her servant. Aunt Kitty is given the job of proving that a man has killed his wife so that he might marry his lover. She is an honest to goodness detective who goes after miscreants who break the law, and soon enough Cornelia herself sees how good Aunt Kitty is at her job. How can she be a child’s guardian under such circumstances?Ĭornelia is shocked when she finds out that Aunt Kitty works as an agent for the Pinkerton Detective Agency. It is also the fact that Aunt Kitty has a job that she loves, one that requires her to face dangerous situations. It is not just that Aunt Kitty has very little money and no home of her home. Perhaps, if she proves to be no trouble and is useful, Aunt Kitty will not try to send Cornelia away.Ĭornelia soon finds out why Aunt Kitty does not want Cornelia in her life. Cornelia promises to do her part to pay for her keep and soon she is helping the owner of the boarding house with her grocery shopping and other chores. One look at one of the pitiful residents of the home is enough to soften even Aunt Kitty’s heart and she takes Cornelia back to the boarding house where she lives. The very morning after Cornelia’s arrival Aunt Kitty takes her to the Chicago Home For the Friendless. Cornelia is not looking her best - dressed as she is in her dead father’s boots, boy’s pants and a shirt - and Aunt Kitty is clearly very displeased that she has turned up. Aunt Kitty has no interest in taking in Cornelia, but the Right Reverend manages to make his escape, leaving Cornelia behind. Thus is it that Cornelia and the Right Reverend travel from New York state all the way to Chicago so that the man can deliver the unwanted child to her uncle’s widow. Not having a home, friends, or close kin it seems a sure thing that she is going to end up in an orphanage, but her local pastor, the Right Reverend is determined to find Cornelia a home. In close succession she has lost her mother, brothers, and recently her father was shot and killed. To say that Cornelia Warne has been singularly unlucky over the last few years is an understatement.

The Detective's Assistant by Kate Hannigan