With his hat being tossed in his direction, Mr French is accused of being a thief. Nanny Ribble believes the only reason he was at the exhibition is to take Benjamin’s sketches of Isabella.

In the driveway, we see a package is delivered directly to Benjamin. We soon discover that the package contains a revolver.

Rose, standing looking down at the entrance to the house from a first floor (British definition) window, observes Bunty and Father Brown speaking with Benjamin. Rose doesn’t like Bunty modelling for Benjamin. With bad timing, hoping to hit Bunty, Rose pours red paint on Mrs M’s hat. Bunty doesn’t try to hind her facial expression. She seems positively bemused by the happening.

Katie is tending cuts on her arm when Mr French walks into the kitchen. Mr French insists on treating the injury. As Mr French treats the injury, Katie notes his gentle touch. When Katie kisses Mr French, he pulls away. She feels it’s the scar on her face that makes men not interested in her.

Father Brown notices Nanny Ribble trying to get his attention. Bunty mistakenly thinks she is merely waving at them, but Father Brown correctly sees she’s in trouble. As they rush into the house, we find Mrs M exiting. She’s annoyed about her new hat being ruined. Little does she realise they don’t have time to worry about her new hat. Bunty kicks a door open and finds Nanny Ribble dead.

Image Credit: IMDb.com

Inspector Mallory hopes it had been an accident. He surmises she might have been knitting, dozed off and fell on her own knitting needle. Father Brown notes that Nanny Ribble’s knitting is beside her bed. The two knitting needles, sticking out of the yellow wool, are clearly viable.

Mrs M speaks to Bunty again about her modelling for Benjamin. Bunty tells Mrs M that she told the artist that she doesn’t want to model for him anymore.

When Benjamin tells his sister about Nanny Ribble’s death, she was already aware of what happened and didn’t seem to care. He wants his sister to return to the house. When Benjamin hugs his sister, with him having whispered something in her ear, she pushes him away. Inspector Mallory and Sergeant Goodfellow walk into the scene as Benjamin and Father Brown leave. The police inspector wants to know if Katie has an alibi for when Nanny Ribble was murdered. She tells Inspector Mallory she was with Mr French.

As Father Brown looks for clues as to who could have murdered Nanny Ribble, on hearing footsteps approaching the room, he hides in a closet. It’s Benjamin. He pours himself a drink. Shortly thereafter, we see Mr French enters the room. He speaks with Benjamin about his now late nanny. The conversation quickly turns to the artwork Benjamin created of Isabella. The art collector wants to buy every piece. Benjamin isn’t interested in selling his artwork to Mr French because he tried to break into his studio. Mr French assures Benjamin that he’s merely mesmerised by Isabella’s beauty. Father Brown reveals his presence.

Rose intimates she will smash Bunty’s car if she continues to model for Benjamin. Bunty incorrectly concludes from her words that she might have been the one that smashed the bust Benjamin created of Isabella.

Benjamin speaks to Mrs M about the possibility of her sitting for a painting. When Benjamin references the rumour of him asking his models to undress, Mrs M states she doesn’t listen to idle gossip. If you have been watching Father Brown as long as I have, you’ll know idle gossip is one of the many things Mrs M listens to on a regular basis.

When Benjamin mentions a bishop having commissioned a series of paintings titled The Catholic Flock, Mrs M changes her tone. Mrs M doesn’t want anyone knowing she’s modelling for Benjamin. Considering how she spoke to Bunty about her modelling for Benjamin, it’s a bit hypocritical of her to agree to Benjamin’s request.

When Mr French asks Katie why she lied to the police about her having been with him when Nanny Ribble was murdered, she tells him that she didn’t want them to find out. Before the conversation goes any further, the scene transitions to Father Brown, Mrs M, and Bunty at the presbytery.

Katie, according to Bunty hates Benjamin. As for Rose, she’s upset that Benjamin replaced her with Isabella. Father Brown looks on with a deeply thoughtful expression. Mr French, according to Mrs M, was angry with Nanny Ribble because she wanted to prevent him from buying any of Benjamin’s artwork. Isabella, Father Brown correctly recognises, is at the centre of everything that has transpired at the manor house.

Numerous times throughout this episode, we see Benjamin haunted by Isabella. Could it be his mind playing tricks on him? Is his consciousness trying to tell him something? As Benjamin awakens from a nightmare, he finds Rose in his bedroom. She had climbed into his bedroom through an open window. She begs him to not send her away. Rose understands that he misses his nanny and agrees to stay with him for the night.

The following morning, we see Father Brown arriving at the manor. Leaving his bicycle by the stone railing, Father Brown walks over to an open window where he finds Benjamin’s studio has been trashed. The sketches have been defaced. He notes a closet door has scratch marks on the interior side. This indicates someone had been locked inside for an extended period.

At the church, we see Bunty and Mrs M. Considering they are in a church, it’s surprising both women are lying to each other about where they intend to be that day. With lying apparently being a sin, it’s surprising Mrs M would reduce herself to such a level.

Father Brown visits Katie to tell her about her brother’s art studio. As Mr French prepares to leave, he tells Father Brown that his suspicions are correct. Father Brown wants to know why it is she would damage his drawings.

Father Brown recollects, in the gallery, there were no pieces from the broken statue on the floor. Benjamin caused the damage to the statue before moving it to the gallery. Katie confirms that that is what her brother told her when he hugged her the previous day. Katie tells Father Brown that Isabella was her model before he lured her away.

When Katie asks Father Brown if he saw the suicide note, he states that he hadn’t. Katie recites the note from memory. When Father Brown discovers Isabella was Irish, he asks Katie if he can make use of her telephone.

Benjamin has no interest in painting Rose. He considers her ugly. Her appearance disgusts him. Benjamin tells her that he can’t see himself going back to using her as a model.

When Bunty arrives at the manor, she finds Rose sitting outside on the steps leading down to the lawn. Even though modelling for Benjamin is only a bit of fun for Bunty, it means a lot more to Rose. Bunty tells Rose that she should never let a man define who she is.

Seeing Mrs M walking at a brisk pace toward the house, Bunty calls out to her and asks why it is she is there and not with her friend. Mrs M asks the same of Bunty. Both women lied about where they would be that day. Plans change, apparently. Mrs M and Bunty decide they are there to keep an eye on the good father.

Father Brown finds an injured Benjamin. Mr French comes close to attacking Father Brown. With Mrs M and Bunty at the window, Father Brown quickly turns to face Mr French. Father Brown tells Mr French that he knows he killed Nanny Ribble and he planned to kill Benjamin. The electrocution was a pure accident. Mr French was looking to electrocute Benjamin. When he set his plan in motion, it backfired.

Isabella was Mr French’s daughter. Benjamin had apparently been keeping Isabella prisoner. Her existence within the manor was not of her own choosing. When Father Brown asks why it was Isabella didn’t return home to Ireland, he surmises Mr French didn’t treat his daughter any better than Benjamin had done.

Bunty calls the police. When Mrs M asks Katie if she’ll be all right, she states that she will be. Bunty encourages Rose to ask Katie if she will consider using her as a model. Katie agrees to have Rose part of the photographic collection she’s working on.

The episode closes with Father Brown realising Isabella faked her own death so that she could escape the men that had abused her.

Previously …