Both the Needle and the Knife

"Both the Needle and the Knife" is the fourth episode of season one of The Irregulars. It first aired on Netflix on 26 March 2021.
== Summary ==
Jessie comes face to face with Inspector Lestrade at a crime scene, Bea plays cat and mouse with Watson, and Leo feels torn over his life at the palace.
== Plot ==
Leo goes with Bea and Jessie to visit the grave of their mother, Alice. They discuss the recent revelation that Alice had known Dr Watson and Sherlock Holmes. Leo suggests that Alice was probably an ipsissimus like Jessie, and that the two men were probably using her for her power. He shows her some entries in Sherlock's grimoire that suggest Alice had not taken part in their experiments willingly. Jessie wonders if Sherlock and Watson killed her. Bea says they need to find a way to talk to Sherlock, believing him to be the key. They return to the Duck and Quiver, but Bea becomes angry when Leo tells her he needs to leave again. He promises to meet her back at the pub at ten that night.
Jessie has another nightmare, but escapes by pressing the moth on her wrist, which transports her to the Linen Man. She tells him that she learned she is an ipsissimus, and he confirms that he is one two. He tells her that the path of an ipsissimus is a lonely one, and that people won't understand her. He tells Jessie that she has to go deeper into the minds of those touched by the Rip to find its location, but she refuses.
Dr Watson summons Bea and Jessie to 221B. He tells them about the recent murder of a man named Paul Cambridge, whose face was removed by the killer. The murderer had been identified by several witnesses as David Oliver; however, Oliver himself had been found dead several days before the crime, also with a flayed skull. Watson tells them the case is being investigated by the regular police, but that Lestrade, the inspector in charge, has requested Jessie make her abilities available. Before leaving, Bea asks to meet with Holmes. When Watson denies the request, Bea rushes upstairs and discovers that Holmes is missing. To Watson's fury, Bea promises to find Holmes and uncover everything that Watson has been hiding from them.
Jessie, Billy, and Spike go to the scene of Cambridge's murder, where they meet Inspector Lestrade. Despite having requested Jessie's assistance, Lestrade reveals he considers her powers an abomination and treats her with hostility. While milling about the courtyard, Jessie accidentally bushes against a man, which sends her into a memory. She sees the man meeting with the two murdered men and a young girl in a nearby pub. They pay off the landlord and take the girl upstairs; the scene then shifts to the girl meeting with a midwife, complaining of symptoms that she thinks indicate pregnancy. Jessie returns to the present as the man escapes. She tells Lestrade and her friends that the man is the killer, and that he is actually a young girl.
Jessie leads the group to the pub from her vision. She explains the rest of her vision, and says that the girl must be disguising herself using the faces of her victims. Lestrade questions the landlord, who admits to knowing the victims but denies renting them a room, claiming that he is an upstanding family man. However, he tells them a girl matching Jessie's description lives in a taxidermy shop nearby.
Across town, Bea meets with her landlady, Mrs Hudson, to pay off their back rent. As Mrs Hudson also owns 221B, Bea asks her if she knows anything about Holmes, but the landlady dismisses him as a drug addict. Bea shows her the photo of her mother, and Mrs Hudson immediately recognizes her, recalling that the tenants often complained about her screaming. Mrs Hudson gives Bea the name of a Limehouse opium den that Holmes frequents, but warns her to stay away from him.
At the royal palace, Leo arrives to late to breakfast with his mother, the queen. His servant Daimler informs him that the queen suspects he has been sneaking out of the palace, but that Daimler managed to convince her otherwise. Leo notices guests arriving for his sister Louise's birthday, and Daimler tells him he managed to get permission for Leo to attend the party.
Lestrade and the teenagers visit the taxidermy shop and speak to its owner, Mr Dixon. Dixon reveals the suspicious girl's name is Clara, but says he does not know where she is. He lets them into the basement, where Clara sleeps. The room is filled with taxidermies animals, which Jessie notices are all posed like families. Looking inside a cabinet, she finds the faces of the murdered men.
Back at the palace, Leo makes his debut at Louise's party. He is hesitant to stay too long due to his promise to meet Bea at the inn, but his attempts to leave are foiled by a girl named Eleanor.
In Limehouse, Bea looks for Holmes at the opium den. She spots Watson and turns the guards against him by telling them he is with the police. However, she is also forced to flee when another addict reveals that Bea was also asking questions. She and Watson hide in a closet together.
In the taxidermist's shop, Lestrade again interviews Dixon, who explains that he raised Clara and taught her his trade. Jessie returns to the basement, where she finds Clara digging through a cabinet. Clara threatens to kill her, but Jessie doesn't believe Clara will hurt her. She tells Clara that she understands why she killed the men, but Clara insists that Jessie doesn't know, and cries that the men took everything from her. She flees as the others come down the stairs, and Lestrade accuses Jessie of allowing Clara to escape. Jessie criticizes Lestrade for never taking the time to understand people. She explains that Clara was after more than revenge. Jessie reveals that the murdered men had given Clara syphilis. Clara had always wanted a family, but because of her disease would never bear children. Jessie predicts that Clara now plans to steal one of the men's families. Lestrade replies that none of the victims had families, but realizes that the landlord who rented the room does. He tells Jessie and her friends not to interfere, then goes to kill Clara. Meanwhile, Clara enters the pub in disguise, then confronts and kills the landlord. She steals his face and goes upstairs to join his family.
Back in Limehouse, an opium addict gives Bea the name of a hostel where Holmes might be. Bea goes to the hostel, where the clerk gives her a mocking note from Watson. The note reveals that Watson paid off the addict, and announces that the doctor is terminating her employment. She returns to the Duck and Quiver, but Leo is still at the party and misses their meeting. Leo belatedly realizes how much he misses Bea and decides to escape. Daimler catches him on a balcony and rebukes for being ungrateful for all he has. He tells Leo he can never have a normal life due to his condition. However, to Daimler's horror Leo jumps off the balcony and runs away as Daimler calls for the guards.
Jessie, Spike, and Billy arrive at the pub shortly after Lestrade, and find the inspector in shock after discovering the landlord's faceless body. He tells them that Clara escaped into the park out back, disguised as the landlord. Jessie tells Billy and Spike to find the girl before Lestrade, while she attempts to slow him down. However, Jessie becomes suspicious when Lestrade treats her kindly and realizes that the inspector is actually Clara. She takes Lestrade's gun and forces Clara to transform back into herself. Clara admits that she hates herself, and she feels like a freak, which Jessie sympathizes with. Clara asserts that she didn't plan to kill Lestrade, but was forced to when he attacked her. Jessie decides to allow Clara to escape, but first uses her psychic abilities to learn that Clara got her powers after praying for the ability to get revenge on the men who hurt her.
Back at the Duck and Quiver, Jessie tells Billy and Spike that Clara overpowered her and ran away, though they express skepticism. They are surprised to find an injured Leo laying in a cot. In the yard, Bea runs into Mrs Hudson. She asks Mrs Hudson whether Sherlock began using drugs around the time her mother disappeared, which Mrs Hudson confirms. Bea notices that her mother is wearing a ring in the from Sherlock's grimoire, and realizes she and Holmes were together. The epiphany leads her back to Alice's grave, where she finds Sherlock passed out.
In her dreams, Jessie meets with the Linen Man, and shares with him the information she has gathered from her recent adventures. The Linen Man dispels an illusion and reveals that he is actually on a ship headed for London to help Jessie find the Rip.
== Cast ==
=== Main cast ===
*Thaddea Graham as Bea Cook
*Darci Shaw as Jessie Cook
*Harrison Osterfield as Prince Leopold
*Jojo Macari as Billy Chisup
*McKell David as Spike
*Royce Pierreson as Dr John Watson
*Henry Lloyd-Hughes as Sherlock Holmes
*Clarke Peters as the Linen Man
=== Guest stars ===
*Anthony Barclay as Dave Oliver
*Denise Black as Mrs Hudson
*Craig Conway as John Taylor
*Edward Hogg as Daimler
*Nell Hudson as Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll
*Simon Ludders as the Landlord
*Aidan McArdle as Inspector Lestrade
*Henry Miller as Mr Dixon (Taxidermist)
*Adam Shaw as Paul Cambridge
*Imogen Waterhouse as Eleanor Margot
*Eleanor Worthington-Cox as Clara
== References ==
Category:Episodes: The Irregulars