A wealthy banker has been found dead in a S&M bondage suit.
Tropes:
- Abusive Parents:
- Titus Delancey was sexually abusing his oldest son Graham and had started turning his eye towards his younger son.
- Abigail/Anne became infamous as a teenager after she was accused of killing her abusive father. She was eventually cleared of the murder but Sherlock worked out that she had truly done it.
- Asshole Victim: It's unlikely anyone will feel sympathy for Titus after the reveal of what he was doing to his son.
- Casual Kink: The cast learn about Titus' murder when a dominatrix finds him dead and calls Sherlock for advice on what to do. Sherlock answers her call by addressing her as "Mistress" and she later gifts him a bullwhip as thanks for his assistance.
- Heroic Sacrifice: Abigail takes the fall for Titus' murder so Graham won't have to go to prison, as he's a teenager with his whole life ahead of him and she doesn't want him to go through the hell she went through.
- It's All My Fault: The other reason Abigail takes the fall is that she partly blames herself for not seeing what Titus was doing to Graham when it was her responsiblity as the nanny to look out for him.
- I Want You to Meet an Old Friend of Mine: Sherlock and Abigail are former pen pals who were each other's Only Friend. Jonny Lee Miller and Laura Benanti had previously starred together on Eli Stone where their characters went to college and reconnected as adults.
- Whip of Dominance: Mistress Felicia, the dominatrix that found Titus' body, is holding a riding crop while speaking to the police and indicates she used it to try and get a response out of Titus before realising he was dead. She later sends Sherlock a bullwhip as a thank-you gift, and he proves to be quite efficient at handling it.
- Who Murdered the Asshole: Titus' wife's alibi for his poisoning is that she was meeting with someone who was supplying her with the same poison that Graham used to kill Titus with. They both got the idea after learning "Anne"'s true identity and how she killed her own father.
