Queens of Mystery

Previously on "Queens of Mystery"...

Oh, I do hope you win.

You people are killing me with your constant demands.

The winner is...

- -Thank you.

- -

-Oh, my God! -Help!

Oscar Prescott, 42, single.

Oscar and I were lovers.

Snake!

You don't think Beth had anything to do

-with Oscar's death, do you? -Not without good reason.

-Are those the...? -Missing pages? Yes.

The inspector wants this investigation done by the book.

Anybody here?

What's happened?

Oh, my goodness.

Oh. How...

How...

The how was apparent to anyone

acquainted with the rudimentary physics

of the domino effect.

What's over there?

The real question...

Oh, my Lord.

Was, "Why?"

Beth?

An ardent campaigner,

double-murder suspect Beth Stone

has spent a lifetime fighting against injustice.

Today, however, she did not fight.

She did not even declare her innocence.

She did precisely nothing.

For Beth Stone had something more pressing on her mind

than the possibility of a lifetime in prison --

The future happiness of her beloved niece, Matilda.

All ready? On my count, then.

Right. Three, two, one, lift.

It's Tobias Young.

Oscar Prescott's new agent.

Suggesting there was an old agent.

Guy Ashton.

Not wanting to state the obvious,

the victim's body shows signs consistent with crush injuries.

Death was most likely instantaneous.

That's one small mercy.

As is the fact we don't have to look far to find our culprit.

With respect, sir.

Your aunt was caught red-handed, Stone.

But anyone could've come in here under the cover of darkness.

Matilda...

Sergeant Stone's right, Inspector.

There are several points of entry.

I hope this isn't a reluctance to face the facts, Sergeant.

If Aunt Beth had anything to do with these murders,

I won't hesitate to charge her.

T-R-U --truncheon.

We've come to see our sister.

Not possible, I'm afraid.

We thought you'd say that.

Terry? Terry? Is that you? Pick up the phone.

Mum?

-Terry, is that you? -Yes, Mum.

No, Mum.

-What are you playing at, Terry? -But...

I didn't know you knew each other.

I will, yes.

-What do you want for dinner? -Tea?

Alphabetti Spaghetti.

Thank you.

If you'd like to follow me.

10 minutes.

We know you lied to Matilda about knowing Oscar Prescott.

I saw the pair of you arguing.

-We weren't arguing. -You were manhandling him.

I was trying to get him to show me something in the library.

Then why not tell Mattie that instead of lying to her?

It was for Matilda's own good.

Oscar found out about Dragomir.

Oscar Prescott had spent the previous summer

as a writer-in-residence,

working in the castle's extensive library,

where he came across an article from an obscure local journal

about the town's Edgar Allan Poe Appreciation Society

and a visiting academic, Professor Alexander Dragomir,

a biographer researching the mysterious death of Poe,

the founding father of the modern detective story.

I thought we'd heard the last of Dragomir.

So did I.

But the article also mentioned

that he hired a local research assistant.

-Eleanor. -Eleanor.

Although Matilda's mother

working for a visiting Bulgarian academic

wasn't in itself a scandal...

the timing of said employment,

precisely nine months and nine days

before the date of Matilda's birth,

was a secret her aunts were determined to take with them

to their graves.

Oscar saw Eleanor's surname,

asked if we were related.

What you saw was me trying to get Oscar

to show me the article, except he was too busy.

If I tell Matilda the truth,

she'll find out about Dragomir, and none of us want that.

So where's the article now?

That's the problem. I have no idea.

Despite past generations of the Hiddledean family

being enthusiastic bibliophiles,

archivists they were not.

Of the tens of thousands of books, newspapers, and journals

collected over the years,

not a single one had ever been catalogued.

Beth?

I've been searching for it ever since.

So how do we get you out of this mess

without Matilda finding out about Dragomir and that article?

So you do believe I'm not the murderer?

Of course.

We were never in any doubt.

If we could only find the real murderer,

Matilda would be forced to let me go,

and all of this could be forgotten.

What?

Don't tell me you already have a suspect in mind?

In fact, Cat and Jane Stone

had two possible suspects in mind.

It's Cat. I'm coming in.

I hope you brought coffee.

Do you want to explain, or shall I make an educated guess?

I met Sadie Hanson at last year's festival.

She said she wanted to be a writer herself someday,

and she'd written some Catherine Parr fan fiction,

and I promised to read it.

And?

I kept my promise.

It was good.

I mean, it was really good.

So you changed the title, made a few tweaks,

and submitted it as your own work.

The rumors were true.

I was burned out.

It had been three years since my last book.

My publisher was threatening to take back my advance,

for God's sake.

And Sadie Hanson?

She read "Murder on the Mary Rose"

and recognized it as her own work.

Please don't do this to me.

And then I did something I'll regret for the rest of my life.

I told her if she didn't keep her mouth shut...

Isabella, please.

I'd ruin any chance she had of becoming a writer.

And two days ago, Oscar came to my room.

Sadie had sent him a copy of her manuscript.

Yeah?

And when he saw my book,

he knew I'd plagiarized her work.

I tried to persuade him to see my point of view.

You're a murderer 'cause she's dead.

You killed her.

And that's when he told me...

-Because of you. -No!

That Sadie had taken her own life.

It was the first I knew about it.

And what did Oscar want? Money?

Justice.

Justice for Sadie.

He said I had 48 hours to come clean,

or he'd tell the world what I'd done.

And you knew if the truth came out, it would ruin your career.

You can't seriously think I killed Oscar.

You all but killed Sadie Hanson.

She killed herself!

Yeah, you keep telling yourself that.

Oh, Cat.

-I'll see you around, Isabella. -Cat.

Please don't go. No one can know about this.

Cat!

Interview between Detective Sergeant Matilda Stone

and Elizabeth Margaret Stone.

P.C. Terry Foster is also present.

The accused has waived her right to counsel.

You lied when you told me you didn't know Oscar Prescott.

No comment.

A witness saw you arguing with him

on the morning of his death.

What were you arguing about?

No comment.

Please, Aunt Beth. I'm trying to help you.

Why were you in the library last night?

You've known me all your life, Matilda.

I couldn't love you more if you were my own child.

Well, because in many ways you are.

I won't tell you why I was talking with Oscar Prescott,

and I won't tell you why I was in the library.

I want you to trust me when I tell you

that I did not kill anyone.

Sergeant Stone, a word.