Dorothy's Double. Volume 1 (of 3)

A young woman in a respectable household becomes the focus of a sinister extortion plot as anonymous demands and hinted exposure threaten her family. Parallel scenes of genteel domestic life and the ragged streets show conspirators using theft, disguises, and secret river rendezvous to secure leverage and stolen goods. Relatives, rascally acquaintances, and local policemen probe the mystery while social reputation and personal identity are put at risk. The story weaves suspenseful episodes of pursuit and discovery with examinations of deception, class contrasts, and the fragile boundary between respectability and criminality.