Arabella – The episode begins with William “The Duke” Wellington (Stuart Martin) and Eliza Scarlet (Kate Phillips) working undercover utilizing the aliases, Dr. and Mrs. Evans. He informs her that patrons of the restaurants have reported their homes being broken into while dining there. She watches as an old classmate, Arabella Acaster (Sophie Robertson) approaches. Arabella tells The Duke about her last memory of Eliza emerging from a mud puddle looking like a swamp creature. She’s the owner of Arabella’s.

Eliza and The Duke witness a crime as they emerge from the restaurant. After The Duke takes off after the suspect, Tibor (Stefan Vukic) orders Eliza to hand over her brooch. She warns him that the police have the place surrounded. He rips off her brooch before fleeing.

The Duke tells Arabella that the police are investigating jewel thefts reported by her restaurant patrons. Eliza admits to being a private detective. He suggests it wasn’t a coincidence that two robberies took place simultaneously. She says the first crime was a diversion. He tells them that the lavender peddler is most likely part of the crime syndicate as well.

Ivy (Cathy Belton) marvels at Arabella being a businesswoman. Arabella informs her that the restaurant belonged to her deceased husband’s family. She says her father was a jeweler.

The Duke informs Eliza that the lavender peddler and robber were paid to create a diversion from her broach. She insists on accompanying him to confirm Tibor’s identity. Upon arriving at the tavern, he orders her to wait in the carriage. Detective Fitzroy (Evan McCabe) tells her that he’s been doing boxing training. The landlord (Igor Filipovic) denies knowing Tibor who quietly slips outside. Eliza slams open the carriage door as he passes. Arabella Acaster’s business card with “Lady Blue Dress Spilla” is hidden inside his pocket.

Eliza researches Spilla which means “Brooch” in Italian.

Tibor claims to have found the business card on the street. He has a tattoo of Budapest’s Vac Prison on his arm. The Duke threatens to have him shipped back to the Hungarian prison if he doesn’t say where the note came from.

Eliza walks into the restaurant as Arabella terminates Grace (Tafline Steen). Arabella gives her a tour of the restaurant that employs workers from different countries. Arabella says their pastry chef, Paolo, and a waiter, Enzo Moretti (Nikola Stankovic) are from Italy when The Duke approaches. He informs her that Enzo is working with a street thief to rob the restaurant patrons.

Grace tells Eliza that Arabella has been laying off workers because she can no longer afford to pay them. Eliza suggests there may be something she can do to help her. Grace claims to have witnessed Arabella putting a wad of cash from a loan in her safe.

Eliza tells Mrs. Herbert (Abigail Thaw) that she and her husband, an MP for Chalfont St. Giles came from Hertfordshire and she was hoping to see Arabella. Mrs. Herbert tells her that Arabella’s husband died owing a considerable amount of debt. Eliza claims Arabella told her that she was helping her financially. After denying the allegations, Mrs. Herbert says all of Arabella’s loan applications were rejected.

Eliza follows Arabella to where she meets the Lavender Woman (Sam Bell). She asks a police officer to send for The Duke. They enter the building to find Arabella serving food to homeless people. She denies knowing the Lavender Woman was a robber. Eliza tells her that she spoke with her mother about her “thriving business.” Arabella admits to being in debt but having pride. The Duke suggests Eliza let the grudges go.

Eliza admits to allowing her personal feelings to interfere with her work. She’d pick fights with Arabella because she was angry about not fitting in. She wanted Arabella and her friends to dislike her behavior not who she was as a child. Ivy assures her that those girls would have never agreed with anything she would have done. Eliza’s Victoria sponge cake didn’t turn out as she’d hoped.

While waiting for Arabella in her office, Eliza picks the lock on her safe. She finds an invoice from R. Bennett’s Pawnbrokers. Arabella opens her office door to discover Eliza is already gone.

Fitzroy informs The Duke that Enzo works with his uncle, Frankie who was part of a theft investigation. The Duke asks if Frankie may have returned to London. Fitzroy says Frankie’s former workshop is now back in operation. Arriving at the workshop, The Duke kicks in the door. They return to the police station with a box of evidence.

The Duke tells Eliza about Enzo and Frankie’s workshop. He returns her mum’s brooch. She says Arabella sold six pieces of jewelry valued at 300 pounds over the last three months.

The Duke tells Eliza that Arabella had proof of ownership for each of the six pieces of jewelry. She points out a heart-shaped sapphire ring on the list was inside the safe in Arabella’s office. He suggests Arabella owned two similar rings. She asks why he refuses to see the information as evidence. He assures her that his every decision is based on motive before leaving. When she rubs her finger across her mum’s brooch, a gem pops out of a setting.

The Duke and Fitzroy discuss Frankie’s former employer, a jewelry store owned by a family from the old country.

Solomon’s Emporium – When Eliza asks for advice from Solomon, he complains of failing eyesight. She assures him that his eyesight is good and he’s a very rich man. He gives in when she agrees to acquire two items from him. He informs her that the brooch is fake with red gems made of Murano glass, not real rubies.

The Duke and Fitzroy find the jewelry store where Frankie used to work close. They prepare to leave when Fitzroy spots a brooch that looks like Eliza’s. The Duke orders him to go get a bolt cutter. Fitzroy questions if a search warrant is needed to legally enter the property. The Duke pretends to hear a woman in distress inside the store.

Eliza tells Arabella that she’s selling replicas of her real jewelry. Arabella pleads with her to wait until the patrons are seated. Eliza agrees to wait in her office when she encounters Grace who has a bag of jewelry.

The Duke identifies the brooch as Eliza’s. Fitzroy says Enzo and Frankie were from Murano popular for the glass utilized to mimic gems. They both agree the jeweler is connected to the crime syndicate. The jeweler swaps the real jewelry for a replica before giving it to the customer.

Eliza asks Grace who ordered her to steal the jewelry. She claims Enzo threatened to harm Arabella if she didn’t do it.

The Duke tells Mrs. Herbert that he’d like to speak with Arabella. She says Arabella isn’t home right now before going back inside where Enzo’s holding her maid at knifepoint. The Duke approaches when he threatens Mrs. Herbert and punches him in the face. Arabella rushes to her mother.

Arabella sold her jewelry and wore replicas to look like her clients. The Duke doesn’t charge her because she only did it to save her mother. After reminding Eliza how she talked about her father, she says her father had no interest in her. She admits to being jealous of Eliza.

Ivy teaches Eliza how to make a Victoria sponge cake which she delivers to The Duke. Her cake is pushed aside for Arabella’s pastries. She returns Eliza’s necklace and invites her for dinner but she refuses as the episode comes to an end.

 

Miss Scarlet & The Duke Review

Eliza and The Duke are staking out a restaurant in which patrons reported being robbed and their houses broken into while dining. It turns out, the restaurant is owned by Eliza’s old schoolmate, Arabella. Eliza remembers Arabella as a bully and the thief who stole her necklace.

The Lavender Woman and a man create a diversion while a Hungarian immigrant named Tibor robs Eliza of her mum’s brooch. Tibor is working with Murano, Italian immigrants, Enzo and Frankie who are running a crime syndicate.

Eliza believes Arabella is involved because she’s in debt. Enzo and Frankie make replicas of the stolen jewelry for a local family jewelry store. The jeweler displays the genuine pieces but switches them out once they are sold.

Arabella is not charged with a crime, only Enos and Tibor.

The investigation kind of took a backseat to Eliza’s look back at her childhood. She was forced to put her feelings aside to investigate the crime connected to Arabella’s. She didn’t fit in as a child. What she didn’t know was Arabella who never really knew her father envied Eliza and her father’s close relationship.

The episode deserves a 6.5. Get more Miss Scarlet & The Duke recaps here. Support Reel Mockery by clicking the link. Do not forget to advertise with us.