Moriarty hires Holmes to investigate the murder of a Wallace Rourke, who had been found stabbed in a alley, assumed victim of a mugging. If Holmes solves the case, Moriarty promises Holmes answers about Irene Adler.
And Gregson hits Watson up to act as sober companion for the daughter of a friend.
Wallace's widow Eileen lets Holmes and Watson take a bunch of Wallace's stuff to paw through. A story about a ruined phone and its replacement lead them to Sutter Risk Management, who supplied the new phone and used it to track Wallace. The Sutters themselves tell our daring duo they were hired to surveille Wallace based on alleged threats he made against a confidential client, but after determining Wallace was not a danger, they quit following him.
Meanwhile, in the most abrupt of conversations, Watson asks Holmes what Irene was like. And he willingly spills, even dubbing her "The Woman" (per Doyle's original). An American (so why cast Natalie Dormer? oh, because of her connections . . . Maybe they'll spin it that she was lying about that?) who restored Renaissance paintings . . . Hmm. Maybe Moriarty could use someone who fixes (or forges) old art?
Further research into Sutter v Rourke leads to the idea that Wallace was the lead suspect in a decades-old murder of Sutter's sister. But why would Moriarty want Sutter taken down for murder? How would Moriarty profit?
Gregson continues to nudge Watson toward the sober companion job in Boca Raton, and when Watson asks if he's trying to get rid of her, Gregson admits to a certain amount of concern for her welfare. Holmes, according to Gregson, manages to avoid bad luck, but the people around him (like Irene) get hurt.
Sutter turns up at the police station and confesses to the murder of Wallace Rourke.
Hey! Let's start a band and name it The Assassin Pimps!
Now. Moriarty tells Holmes that Sutter killed the wrong man (Wallace, according to Moriarty, was in Saudi Arabia at the time of the murder of Sutter's sister) and orders Holmes to find out the real murderer.
So the question: Is Moriarty pulling Holmes's strings just to watch him dance? Is this fun for him? Or does he have real use/need for Holmes? And is that need the reason he hasn't had anyone murder Holmes?
Looking at things via a more personal filter, Watson realizes that Sutter's wife may have sought to help her husband feel better by setting him up with the option/ability to find and kill his sister's murderer. You know, closure. Peace. (Because Watson would do the same thing for Holmes? No, probably not, but she'd understand Mrs. Sutter's motivation.)
As reward for his sleuthing, Moriarty sends Holmes an address. Holmes lies to Watson about it, but she's learned a lot from her mentor and, having tracked his phone, meets him at the large estate. Where one room is filled with paintings and art supplies. Oh, and Irene Adler. Called it! (In the fine print.)
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