Miss Scarlet

WILLIAM: Being a detective is a job for a man, Eliza.

And yet you do it every day, William.

(struggling) I'm a private detective!

(grunting): Yeah... Father... EDWARDS: He's had a cardiac arrest.

I'm sorry to say he has passed.

ELIZA: Word will soon spread that my father has died, and any day now, all our accounts will be called in.

This isn't about ambition, Ivy, this is about money.

(thunder claps) (whimpers) (click) (lock being picked) (birds chirping) (lockpicking continues) (opens drawer) (closes drawer) (closes drawer) (tumbler clicks) (coins jingling) HARRIET: Who are you?

I, um... A friend of your father's.

We're... playing hide and seek.

But Father's not here.

And you know this since you saw him leave for work this very morning.

I saw you watching our house.

Why are you here alone?

I have a cold.

My mother's gone to buy me some honey.

(front door opens) She's back.

Can I have some of your money?

So I can buy myself a new dolly?

No.

(closes drawer) Now, I must go.

If you do not give me some of the money, I shall scream.

Mother will come and you'll be sent straight to prison.

(deep inhale) (Eliza sighs, coins jingle) All of it.

Absolutely not.

Your father had hired me to do a job and thinks he can get away with not paying me because I'm a woman.

It's unfortunate, but I've had no choice but to take the law into my own hands.

Give me the rest of the money or I will scream.

(coins jingle) (screaming) (screaming) (gun fires) RUPERT: Miss Scarlet, how delightful to see you, and welcome to my new abode.

And what an abode it is, Mr. Parker.

Mm, please let me introduce you to my dear friend, Dr. Moorhouse.

When Rupert told me of your meeting, I insisted I had to come.

(giggles) I've been beside myself with excitement to finally meet his lady detective.

Well, I, um...

I had hoped to update you on our financial situation, Mr. Parker.

Right, uh, take a seat.

So, uh... Miss Scarlet has insisted that we meet once a month so I may be, uh, appraised of how our detective agency is doing.

Then she is exactly how you described, Rupert, as bright as a button.

RUPERT: Yes.

I will bet that your little investment is doing splendidly.

Well, Mr. Parker, um...

I'm afraid to say there's, uh...

I will be unable to pay the first repayment on your loan.

But be assured this is just the teething problems of a new business.

Miss Scarlet... Now, I know we are business partners, but are we not now friends, also?

And as a friend, I can assure you there is no rush to make the repayment.

Thank you, Mr. Parker.

Rupert, please... Eliza.

(men laughing) Right, we must celebrate.

Being a detective must be such fun.

How I wish I had a little hobby just like it.

Tell me, Miss Scarlet, what happens when you catch your villain?

Do you hit the scoundrel with your purse?

(giggling) And, um... How did your mother react to the news of your leaving home?

Well, she tried to persuade me otherwise, but...

I did as you suggested.

I stuck to my guns.

Well, I hope you did not tell her that I had encouraged this declaration of independence?

Oh, but he did, and she was furious.

(chuckling) Shh!

Do not worry-- see, now that Mother knows we are not to be married, there's no reason for her to call on you anymore.

To the future.

(horse hooves clomping) Miss Scarlet!

Mrs. Parker, how lovely to see you.

I, uh...

I do hope you will stay for tea.

This is no social call.

This must be a mistake.

My father would never make such an oversight.

I have heard your father had many distractions since the death of your mother.

The lease renewal on this house was no doubt the last thing on his mind.

But I do not have the money.

Then I will have to find new residents.

You cannot do this.

I have lived in this house all my life.

I own the freehold of seven houses in this street, the very bricks and mortar.

I cannot give you special treatment.

Why no notice?

You must've known of this for some time.

I assumed, mistakenly, that you were soon to become my daughter-in-law, and as such would be moving in with myself and Rupert.

So this is about me declining your son's offer of marriage.

It was not done out of spite.

But encouraging him to move out was.

He was perfectly content, before you filled his head with outrageous ideas.

Mrs. Parker, please... You have until the end of the week.

If you cannot pay the renewal by then, I will have no choice but to evict you.

Good day, Miss Scarlet.

(sighs) ELIZA: That woman...

I'll do whatever it takes to keep this house.

This is our home.

For all three of us.

Kitty's gone.

Got another position.

Well, I know I haven't paid her for two weeks... Three.

But there are bound to be issues in these early days.

My agency has only been open four weeks.

Six!

I suppose you will leave me, too.

(exhales) There's only one thing for it.

What's the best dress I own?

The burgundy one, I think.

Are we brought so low that you have to sell your clothes?

I'm not selling it, Ivy.

But I do need it pressed.

Oh, William?

Eliza.

To what do I owe this unexpected delight?

Oh, I was just passing and thought I'd take tea with an old friend.

How thoughtful, but I am six men down, so I'm afraid I cannot.

(clears throat) I have not frequented the pie shop on the Charing Cross Road.

Nor shall I if that's the source of your men's illness.

It's, uh, far from ideal.

With your staffing so diminished, you must be extremely busy.

(chuckles): I've, uh, five murders, three missing persons, and the blackmail of a High Court judge to deal with, so yes, you could say that.

An idea has just popped into my head.

I've not thought this through, but... (murmurs): I doubt that very much.

I could offer my assistance.

For a small fee, of course.

(chuckles) It's tempting, but unless you carry the badge of the Metropolitan Police, then I'm afraid I'm unable to accept that offer.

It's of no consequence.

I'm extremely busy with my own clients.

Mmm...

Yes, I've heard how busy you are.

Two cases since you opened your agency, three if you count the mysterious scratching from Mad Mr. Mead's attic.

Rats, wasn't it?

Have you been spying on me?

No, not me personally, no.

(knock on door) FRANK: I need backup, Duke, We got an arson attack at the Mackintosh factory in Hackney.

Take Davey with you.

He's on the Shoreditch murder.

There must be someone else.

Well, there ain't.

(sighs) Excuse me, one moment.

Come on.

(sniffs) (recaps bottle) (footsteps approach) I have an urgent message for Inspector Wellington.

Oh, leave it on his desk, I will see that he reads it as soon as he returns.

(crying softly) Don't go up there, it's dangerous.

I've sent for the police.

Wait, stop, where are you going?

(screams) Edward!

Edward!

What have you done?

(whimpering) Down!

(Tabitha screams) Let my husband go!

Frank, get him down the station.

EDWARD (shouts): I did not kill him!

FRANK: Of course you didn't, son.

How dare you hurt him!

Let him go!

Please!

Edward!

You must listen to me, please, let him go!

How dare you read a police telegram.

But surely curiosity is an essential attribute in our line of work.

This is my line of work, not yours.

If I'm to make a name for myself, I need as much experience of crime scenes as possible.

It may have escaped your notice, but I'm having a particularly bad day, so I suggest that you take my advice and leave.

Now.

And here's some advice for you... Eliza, I'm warning you, one more word, and you will find yourself in court.

You might find your focus sharper and your workload lighter if you toned down your drinking, gambling, and womanizing.

MAGISTRATE WILKES (voiceover): You are charged with obstructing police business.

A fine will be issued for 40 shillings.

But I do not have 40 shillings.

Then a month in prison it is.

I will pay the fine for Miss Scarlet.

(court murmuring) TABITHA: I begged the inspector to listen to me, but it's clear he thinks my husband... a murderer, which is why I came to find you.

I heard mention you were a private detective.

Inspector Wellington singing my praises, no doubt.

I want you to find the real murderer.

My husband is innocent.

He is... a gentle and kind man.

(tearfully): I...

I pray that he can cope in prison.

(crying) Edward bought me this coat when we first married.

He said he always wanted to see me in a crowd.

It's too exuberant for my taste.

I only wear it now to be close to him.

Um, Mrs., Mrs. Butler, your husband was found with a knife in his hand covered in the blood of a murdered man.

So whatever the outcome, I must be sure that I will receive my fee.

Money is not an issue.

You will be paid, whatever the outcome.

All right, then.

Uh, tell me, uh... Tell me about the dead man, every detail, no matter how small.

His name was Sebastian Ridley.

He owned a saloon in Mayfair.

Edward did his accounts.

It's how the two were acquainted.

(knocking) (Tabitha scoffs) I had little time for Mr. Ridley.

He was a loud, brash man.

(Eliza picking lock) (lock clicks) Hello?

MOSES: Hello, Miss Scarlet.

Um, Mr. Moses, isn't it?

It's just Moses.

I've spent many hours thinking of you, Miss Scarlet.

Nice things, I hope.

When the governor at The Black Cat found his head of security handcuffed to a radiator, by a woman, no less, it didn't go down too well.

Lost me my job.

I do not come to make trouble.

I'm working the Ridley murder case on behalf of the accused's wife.

Perhaps you could help me with my enquiries?

I must warn you... (unsheathes pen knife) I am armed.

(sighs lightly) Mr. Ridley was a cautious man.

I do not want to die, Mr. Moses.

Like I said, it's just Moses.

I'm not going to kill you, Miss Scarlet.

I'm going to hire you.

(relieved sigh) You want me to find a snuff box?

It was my father's.

He was taken from Jamaica in the slave ships to London.

His owner gave him the box as a parting gift with the abolition.

Apparently, he was a fair man, for a slaver.

But when I was a boy, I saw those scars on my father's back.

I saw how he must've suffered.

He was the bravest man I ever knew.

The box is all I have left of him.

I asked Mr. Ridley to keep it in his safe.

When I heard of his death, I wanted my box back, but no one had a key.

Then, late last night, someone come, cleared out everything.

Did you see who it was?

It was the accountant's wife.

Tabitha Butler cleared the safe?

I was here late, fixing up a broken table, when she let herself in.

Her husband, being Mr. Ridley's accountant, had a key to the bar and the safe.

But it doesn't make any sense.

She never see me.

The place was shut up and dark when she slipped in here.

And in her hand was a green carpet bag, empty when she arrived, full when she left.

If it was dark, how could you tell the carpet bag was green?

Come to think of it, why were you fixing a table in the dark?

(pounds bar): Fine!

I wasn't fixing a table.

I was trying to break into the safe when I hear footsteps.

I hid in the shadows and watched Mrs. Butler empty the contents into her bag, including my father's snuff box.

I might've stop her if I wasn't already in trouble with the law.

That box is the only thing I have left of my father, and you will get it back for me.

But it would be unethical to investigate my own client.

Unless, of course, you too will pay me a fee?

The fee is that I let you live.

I'll just fetch my mistress.

So you're a private detective?

I am.

Miss Scarlet.

I apologize for having to receive you in the hall, but as you can appreciate, I cannot entertain in that room ever again.

Here is the money I owe you.

(coins jingling) But this is not the advance that we discussed.

This is no advance, this is money to sever our contract.

I sent a note to your office last night ending our agreement.

But I've not been in my office since yesterday evening, when we shook on that agreement.

Well, I no longer need your services.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm extremely late for church.

Annie.

Please show Miss Scarlet out.

But what about your husband, Mrs. Butler?

Only yesterday you wore this coat to show your love for him.

Why the sudden change of heart?

He can be damned to hell as far as I'm concerned.

This whole business has left me feeling rather queasy.

May I just trouble you for a glass of water?

(sighs): Fetch Miss Scarlet a glass of water before she goes on her way.

Just a small glass will suffice.

I think we both know it's not water you want.

Make it worth my while and you can snoop as much as you like.

(paper rustling) Clear out the cells, Frank.

Get rid of the drunks, the whores, and the insane.

I'm a senior detective, Duke, I ain't clearing out no cells.

I have spent the morning doing house-to-house calls in the Holborn slums.

I haven't done that since I was a constable.

I had an apple core thrown at my head and a parcel of feces waiting for me on the seat of my carriage.

I assume that it was dog, but who knows?

The point is, Frank, that I am enjoying this week as little as you are, so clear out the damn cells, eh?

Good lad.

Oi!

No eating on duty, that's a bloody disgrace!

(people chattering in background) Oh, for God's sake.

Eliza, what are you doing here?

The deeply religious Mrs. Tabitha Butler was having an affair with Sebastian Ridley.

I found love letters from her to him.

(sighs) So her husband did have a motive.

It was a crime of passion, and she would've known this.

It explains why Mrs. Butler dismissed me, but not why she hired me in the first place.

Oh, she's dismissed you?

Already?

And what of her change of heart?

One moment, she protests her husband's innocence, then she damns him to hell, it makes no sense.

My prime suspect has pleaded guilty.

End of story.

Since when?

Since this morning, which means I have one less case in... (chuckles): ...what is proving to be an extremely vexing week.

So Mr. and Mrs. Butler suddenly change from innocent to guilty?

Something's amiss here.

Tabitha Butler's not a woman to be trusted-- she's a liar and a thief.

I found the contents of Mr. Ridley's safe at her house.

Don't tell me that you broke into Mrs. Butler's house.

Do you want to end up in court again?

Oh, yes, thank you for that.

You'll have me spend a month in prison?

(chuckles): Magistrate Wilkes is an old friend.

I merely wished to put the wind up you.

I didn't expect Mrs. Butler to bail you.

Exactly my point!

She bails me out, hires me to prove her husband is innocent, and then dismisses me, you see?

(sighs) Something is amiss.

The case is closed.

In fact, I am on my way to the morgue right now to complete the paperwork to release Mr. Ridley's body for burial.

Just another lowly task that I'm forced to cover.

You're going to see the body of Mr. Ridley?

Yes.

And no, you may not come.

And if you could also sign here, here, and here.

How many bloody signatures do you need?

Everything must now be in triplicate.

(scoffs) And out of respect for the dead, if you could kindly refrain from swearing, Inspector?

I'm a God-fearing man.

(sighs) Just take me to the body, please.

Of course.

But I will need one more signature... here.

Of course, I am used to dealing with one of your detectives.

It's most unusual that we have the honor of an inspector.

Even more unusual that he should bring his wife.

My wife?

I have requested that she wait for you outside.

Women are not allowed in the mortuary, you see.

It would not be proper.

(sighs): My wife?

Mm.

I specifically requested that you wait outside for your husband, madam!

She's not my wife.

I found something most interesting, William.

The cut across the throat takes a left to right formation.

Inspector, this is most irregular.

In all my years, I have never allowed a lady into this room!

This suggests the perpetrator was right-handed, but the accused, Edward Butler, picked up the knife with his left hand when woken by his wife's screaming.

I do not have time for your musings; my only task here is to identify that this is Sebastian Ridley.

Which it is.

My work is done.

Oh, then you will need to sign here, here, and here.

There are no fragments of cotton from the collar in the neck wound.

The perpetrator has taken time to pull down the collar and cut knife to skin-- this was no frenzied attack.

Inspector, I really must insist that you remove your wife!

She's not my bloody wife!

And if you could please refrain from swearing!

There are often anomalies in knife wounds.

You would know this if you were a police officer.

But you're not.

Good day.

Well...

Seems like you have no business being here, madam.

I just need five more minutes.

Quite impossible.

Maybe this would help.

You are charged with attempting to bribe an official of the crown at the city's morgue.

A fine will issue for 60 shillings.

60?

It was 40 before.

70 for insolence.

(court murmuring) (sighs) (horse nickers) Thank you for speaking to Magistrate Wilkes.

I will not put you in that situation again.

I doubt that very much.

Eliza, I would like to find a way that we can coexist without causing each other constant agitation.

So would I.

Father would not want us to be at odds.

Good.

Then we are agreed.

You will drop the case of Sebastian Ridley and inconvenience me with it no longer.

Hey up!

What?

That's not what we agreed.

(shouting): William!

That's not what we agreed!

(people calling in background) HENRY: I know that look-- it is one of confusion, puzzlement, discombobulation; it is the same look you reserved for your schoolwork.

Actually I'm, I'm remembering something you once told me.

Oh, I told you many things, most of which quite useless, I fear.

You said that a, a tattoo found on an unidentified body was a, a prize indeed.

How macabre.

It certainly sounds like me.

You said that it, it gave insight to a person's past, perhaps a badge of belonging, like to the Navy or a... quiet rebellion hidden on one's body for one's eyes only.

How is it you remember my musings in such detail, yet you could never recite one word of your Latin homework?

(chuckles) (horse whinnies in distance) I knew I had seen that rose before.

Your friend, Dr. Moorhouse, also wore one in his lapel when we met.

Do you hit the scoundrel with your purse?

ELIZA (voiceover): Mr. Ridley had the dark blue rose tattooed onto his arm.

It means something, does it not?

(clears throat) I swear that whatever you tell me will remain between us.

They're called the Midnight Rose.

And they send a message that you are... a like-minded fellow.

(mirthless chuckle) "A like-minded fellow"?

That is, a man whose tastes do not lie with... women.

I take a great risk confiding in you, Eliza.

Now, men like me, we are damned by the church and by, by the law.

Though as I am not a religious man, thanks to Mr. Darwin, eternity in Satan's fire, it does not concern me.

Imprisonment and... the disgrace that would bring to my mother... (exhales sharply) I can't.

Well, if anyone finds out, it will not be through me.

(chuckles softly) Thank you.

(clears throat) But Sebastian Ridley was having an affair with a woman.

(laughs): I can assure you, Mr. Ridley had a huge appetite for many things, but, uh, women were not one of them.

You knew him?

Each Wednesday, he ran a special night at his saloon.

It was our safe haven.

A less secure meeting place could land a man ten years hard labor.

We were all very grateful to him and so saddened by his loss.

It makes no sense, Eliza.

The man who he loved most, his dearest Teddy, would be the one to murder him.

It was a shock indeed.

Teddy?

Oh, uh, Edward Butler, his, his accountant.

We all knew him as Edward at the saloon, only, uh, it was Sebastian who nicknamed him Teddy.

He, too, was a regular on those nights.

T was for Teddy, not Tabitha.

Sorry?

Sebastian and Edward were lovers?

I do not believe that Edward Butler killed Sebastian Ridley.

Is there someone you know who might wish him ill?

Maybe someone in that circle?

Uh, no one I can think of.

You, you might want to have a word with the doorman at the saloon who worked those particular nights.

For the life of me, I cannot remember his name, only he was Jamaican.

(horse hooves clomping, bells pealing, birds squawking) (knocks) Moses?

(places bag down) JIM: It's all right, Albert, it's not the coppers.

Do you belong to the Jamaican?

I think we might've killed him, sorry about that.

You could stay, keep us company if you like.

I think I will leave you gentlemen to carry on with whatever it is you're doing.

Stealing.

All this booze is no good to a dead governor now, is it?

(chuckles) I, I suppose not.

(slams against door) Don't touch me.

You've got two choices, pretty: keep your mouth shut, or Albert here will cut your tongue out.

(yelps): Get your hands off me!

(Jim grunts) (laughs) You're a real gentleman now, Albert!

(laughing, Albert sniffs) (body thuds) Witch!

What have you given Albert?

(Eliza gasping) No... no, no, no!

Whoa!

No, no... (gunshot) Whoa!

That was a warning shot.

Now get out, and take your friend with you, or the next bullet will be in your head.

(Moses stirring) Where are those scum?

I dealt with them.

You dealt with them?

It wasn't that hard.

Then why are your hands shaking?

I don't wish to discuss those men.

You can deal with them in your own time.

No, don't worry, I will.

I'm more interested in this.

Opium, and in a quantity that's illegal.

Are you involved in drug smuggling?

More to the point, does it involve Mr. Ridley's death?

The opium isn't mine.

And neither is the snuff box.

Nor was my father a slave.

Just some drunk who never left Jamaica and died falling into a pond.

So the box belongs to Sebastian Ridley, and now that he's dead, you saw an opportunity to steal it?

This place will soon be sold off.

I have no job, no home, nothing.

Do not expect sympathy from me, sir.

I am faced with similar problems of my own.

I know that you worked the door on Ridley's special nights.

Tell me what you know of him and Edward Butler.

Nothing.

Kept myself to myself.

Those men here today thought they'd killed you.

If they'd seen you wake, they'd have finished you off.

Is this your way of telling me I owe you my life?

(sighs) I know who supplied the opium.

He was a regular on those nights.

A doctor.

Do you remember his name?

Well, uh, I'll give you some privacy.

I admit, I was Sebastian's doctor.

I am the doctor to many at the bar.

And I know the restrictions on supplying opium grow tighter, but, uh, I made an exception in this case.

"In this case"?

Sebastian was dying-- he had a tumor to the stomach.

Only months to live.

I see.

He begged me for pain relief, but the opium ceased having effect.

The end was near for dear Sebastian.

Who else knew about this?

He wanted it a secret between us, which is why I was so shocked that the wife of his accountant knew.

Tabitha Butler?

But it was my belief that she disliked him.

Are you certain she knew?

The evening Sebastian died, I went to see Mrs. Butler.

I was concerned that if the opium was found, it might be traced back to me.

I arrived to find her sobbing in the very room of his murder.

When I expressed my sorrow over what had happened, her response was surprising indeed.

How so?

She said she hoped Sebastian suffered to the last with his tumor, and her husband would soon join him in hell.

Her fury was such that her hands were shaking.

She could barely hold the letter.

Oh, she was reading a letter?

Mrs. Butler left my office at 5:00 that same day protesting her husband's innocence.

You saw her one short hour later, and suddenly, she despises him.

Whatever was in that letter changed her mind.

Did you see the contents?

Only the name on the envelope, bloodied and screwed up on the floor.

Uh, it was addressed to Teddy.

Teddy?

That was the name only Sebastian used for Edward.

(uncaps flask) You're not allowed in here.

How many times, Eliza?

Mr. Potts is at the coroner's office attending to an urgent message.

How do you know?

I sent it.

(sighs) Edward Butler did not murder Sebastian Ridley.

In just under one hour, Mr. Butler, my prime suspect-- and guilty by his own admission-- will be leaving his prison cell to walk the few yards to his public execution.

The case is closed.

You may wish to prepare yourself for what I'm about to tell you.

(sighs) Edward Butler and Sebastian Ridley were lovers.

I thought you'd be more shocked.

Horrified, even.

If you saw the things that I see on a daily basis, nothing would shock you-- now... Sebastian Ridley was ill.

He was dying.

It was he who killed himself-- the cuts on his throat are consistent with this.

He wrote Edward Butler a suicide letter.

Mrs. Butler has concealed it.

She is going to let her unfaithful husband be sent to the gallows for a murder he did not do.

William...

I know you are stretched, but if an innocent man is hanged for a crime he did not commit, it will be on you and your reputation.

ANNIE: She's on her way to Euston, catching the 4:00 train to Liverpool.

She's leaving for America, sir.

Then why are her things still here?

ANNIE: I am to pack the rest of her possessions and then follow on.

This is the receipt for Mrs. Butler's train ticket, sir.

ELIZA: You should be the one to bring Tabitha Butler in, William.

It benefits me, too, that we protect your reputation.

Euston Station, Arthur.

ARTHUR: Yes, sir!

(crows cawing) (crowd murmuring) (door opens) (door slams) Your husband gave you that coat.

So that he'd see you in a crowd.

And here you are.

When I saw it gone, I knew there could only be one reason why you'd ever wear it again.

I understand you want revenge, but we both know your husband is innocent.

Sebastian Ridley killed himself.

There was a suicide letter, wasn't there?

Where is it, Mrs. Butler?

He betrayed me.

What he did with that man was an abomination.

But is it still right to let an innocent man die?

Mrs. Butler!

Tabitha!

Give me that letter, please.

Please!

(sobbing) Stop the execution!

I have evidence of Edward Butler's innocence!

EDWARD (voiceover): When Sebastian told me he was ill, he wanted us to go away, live out his final months together.

He was terrified of dying alone.

But I refused.

I could not live with the shame of Tabitha knowing the truth.

Next morning, I returned home to find Sebastian in my drawing room.

He placed his suicide note on my mantelpiece and stood with a knife to his throat.

He said I betrayed him, that I would be with him at the end, like it or not.

You tried to stop him, but he knocked you unconscious.

In my cell that night, I thought about his letter, how it was knocked to the ground when we fought.

How Tabitha would soon discover it in its hiding place, and how ironic it was that the one thing that would absolve me of murder would also condemn me to a life as an outcast.

So you pleaded guilty?

I wanted to die.

But you're a free man now.

I am grateful for what you did for me, Miss Scarlet, but I will never be free.

My marriage, my life, my reputation, all destroyed.

(clears throat) If I gave you a compliment, do you promise not to make me suffer for it?

You have my word.

That was good work.

Your father would've been proud.

Thank you, that means a great deal.

(door opens, closes) Has Mrs. Butler really committed a crime?

She didn't break into Mr. Ridley's safe for the money, she merely wanted to burn the love letters to stop news of the affair.

It's still theft.

Not to mention obstruction of justice for concealing that letter.

You knew that Mrs. Butler wasn't on that train.

So much for protecting my reputation.

There's no one in this city more respected than you, William.

Me, on the other hand, I must build my reputation.

I needed this more than you did.

Try telling that to my superiors.

You can handle them.

You can handle everyone.

(inhales sharply) I cannot handle you.

(inhales): Now I must round up my entire team of two and brief them on my man in the canal.

In the meantime, please do try to stay out of trouble, Eliza.

For my sake.

Of course, William.

Of course.

Rupert!

(shuts door) What are you doing here?

So, my... My mother's here to see you, and I am to wait for you here.

I found him loitering outside the door, so I invited him in for a cup of tea.

Can you go and tell Mrs. Parker that I'll be with her in a moment?

Of course.

She's come about the lease.

Yes.

I, I did try to persuade her otherwise, but, uh, as you know, she's difficult to reason with.

I hadn't noticed.

(chuckles) I don't blame you for wishing to upset her in some way, since she herself, she's... Well, she's shown you little kindness.

I, I don't think there's anything I could say that would upset your mother.

Is there not?

It's just, sometimes, Eliza, we may say things in, in the heat of the moment... No, no, Rupert.

No, there is not.

There is nothing I could or would say.

I've given you my word.

(exhales) Right.

You are a dear friend indeed, Eliza.

Now, I do not want to keep your mother any longer than is necessary, for all our sakes.

Who knows, she might be feeling in a charitable mood and wish to give me more time?

Absolutely not-- full payment of the lease renewal today, or eviction, I'm afraid.

As you wish.

(opens drawer) (closes drawer) I think you will find it all there.

IVY (voiceover): You paid her the full amount?

And here is something for you.

Your back pay and a little extra.

I decided to take on more staff.

Uh, a debt collector, if you will.

(birds chirping) HARRIET: Your go, Ethel.

(knock at front door) Good afternoon, miss.

May I speak with your father, please?

(click) ELIZA: Before you start yelling and thumping the desk, will you at least listen to what I have to say?

No.

ELIZA: You can forget about any help from me in the future.

Thank the Lord.

ELIZA: I'm working a murder case and I need your help.

WILLIAM: You're trying to shoehorn yourself into my investigation and it won't work.

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