Episode 2 of Elsbeth begins with a bang, introducing the unfortunate victim of the evening's mystery, Gloria Bletcher. The president of her building's cooperative board, she reigned supreme with her strict demeanor and dictatorial attitude, often contradicting the wishes of her fellow board members and residents, including their desire to sell their apartments.
During the board meeting, however, a ray of hope shines through the gloom as Joanne Lennox, a high-end real estate agent, strides in. She announces that Oprah Winfrey has expressed interest in purchasing four units, a deal that promises to bring life-changing sums to the residents. But Gloria, unmoved by the prospect of such riches, firmly rejects the offer. She fears that celebrities will bring an unwanted influx of paparazzi, disrupting the peaceful serenity of their lives.
Later, as night falls, Gloria and her son Louis venture out for a soup run, unwittingly leaving Joanne with the perfect opportunity. She stealthily climbs up from the unit below, silently loosening the bolts on Gloria's balcony. Suddenly, Gloria remembers she may have left the gas on, and she rushes back to the apartment alone, leaving Louis to complete the errand.
Inside the condo, Gloria hears an odd noise emanating from the balcony, but she brushes it off, assuming it's nothing to worry about. Meanwhile, Joanne descends to the apartment below and waits patiently outside the lounge for Louis. She hands him a listing revealing that his mother has put his apartment up for sale, a revelation that ignites his anger. He storms upstairs, intent on confronting his mother.
As they argue heatedly, Dorothy's dog's incessant barking interrupts the tense confrontation, driving Gloria to the brink of irritation. As always, she strides out to the balcony to shout at the dog. But this time, as she leans against the railing, tragedy strikes. Gloria tumbles over the edge, falling to her death.
Elsbeth arrives in the scene, her sharp eyes scanning the details of the crime. As she listens to Dorothy's eyewitness account, she notices inconsistencies between the story and the evidence at the crime scene. The detective in charge pulls Kaya aside for a private conversation, leaving Elsbeth to probe further with Dorothy. She reveals that Gloria was a typical New York character, but her relationship with her son has been fractured since the departure of her husband 30 years ago.
The following day dawned with a renewed sense of urgency for the detective, who interrogated the doorman with keen scrutiny, while Elsbeth hovered nearby, eavesdropping intently. Joanne arrived soon after, her eyes scanning the property for sale with a professional's eye. She revealed that the police had contacted her due to the discovery of one of her listings for Louis' apartment at the crime scene.
Elsbeth recognized Joanne Lennox immediately and, seizing the opportunity, begged for her assistance in finding a suitable apartment. She requested a business card but admitted sheepishly that she had left her bag at the office. However, as they exited, Elsbeth and Kaya noticed a tell-tale sign: Joanne departed with a handbag in hand, contrary to her earlier claim.
As they engaged in a casual conversation, Elsbeth's phone rang, interrupting their banter. It was Celetano, demanding an update on Captain Wagner's case. Kaya, her curiosity piqued, attempted to eavesdrop on the conversation, but their attention was soon diverted to the detective's interrogation of Louis.
Elsbeth, armed with a plateful of treats, burst into the interrogation room, determined to prevent any coercion of the suspect. She spoke calmly and reassuringly to Louis, who revealed that his mother had seemed surprised by the listing of her apartment. This revelation prompted Elsbeth to suspect that Joanne might have acted prematurely.
However, the detective's patience was tested when Kaya presented the forensic report revealing that the bolts of the railings had been deliberately loosened. This discovery shifted the investigation's focus from a crime of passion to one that was clearly premeditated. Louis, it seemed, was not the culprit. Captain Wagner, displeased with Elsbeth's meddling, ordered her to refrain from active investigation and confine her role to observation and reporting.
Undaunted, Elsbeth called Joanne and arranged to inspect Lenard's apartment below Gloria's. As she snooped around the balcony, she noticed traces of a powdery residue on the walls. Seizing the evidence, she hastened to the forensics lab for analysis.
Before she could depart, Louis returned, shouting his innocence from outside the apartment. Joanne, visibly angered, snatched a wrench and loosened the rails, burying the tool in Louis' weed garden. Little did she know that Dorothy's dog would unearth it soon after.
Elsbeth and Kaya bonded over their shared experiences, and Elsbeth opened up about her son Teddy, who resided in Washington DC. She confessed that she was contemplating settling in New York to facilitate his visits. Their conversation was interrupted by the detective, who delivered the news of the wrench's discovery. Its tell-tale fingerprints pointed to Louis, leaving the investigation more convoluted than ever.
During the intense interrogation, Elsbeth abruptly threw an object towards Louis, who swiftly caught it in his right hand. She argued that he couldn't have used his left hand to loosen the bolts since the fingerprints on the wrench belonged to his left. As they debated the matter, Louis's memory was jogged, recalling how his fingerprints ended up on the wrench while assisting his neighbor in retrieving it. Coincidentally, when interrogating the woman Louis had helped, she echoed the sentiments of the other residents, describing Gloria as a stereotypical New York character.
Elsewhere, Elsbeth tracked down Joanne at a rock climbing gym, discovering that the sticky white powder found on the walls served as an aid for grip. Joanne, annoyed by Elsbeth's persistent questioning, demanded that she send a detective instead. However, Elsbeth clarified that she wasn't there to discuss the case but to finalize the purchase of Lenard's apartment.
Suddenly, Elsbeth mentioned Joanne's original surname, Grozecki, which visibly startled her. Joanne eagerly inquired about how Elsbeth knew her mother's name. Elsbeth calmly explained that while looking up Joanne's contacts, she stumbled upon her mother's obituary. Joanne revealed that her mother was her greatest inspiration.
Elsbeth promptly took the grip powder to the forensics lab, where it matched the powder found on the walls. The detective working on the case concurred with Elsbeth's theory, and they reported the updates to Wagner. Suddenly, a man barged into the police station, demanding to see Wagner and demanding answers about what was happening at "Floral."
As Celetano called, Elsbeth informed him about the confrontation, which piqued his interest. Meanwhile, Kaya and Elsbeth stumbled upon a gold mine - a trove of board meeting agendas spanning 40 years. Elsbeth left Kaya to peruse the minutes while she hurriedly made her way to Joanne to finalize the sale details.
Eager to uncover more, Elsbeth requested the latest board meeting minutes. Upon examination, she noticed that Joanne's copy omitted Oprah Winfrey's offer, and Gloria was firmly opposed to the sale. The mystery deepened, and Elsbeth was more determined to unravel the truth behind the seemingly ordinary apartment sale.
Joanne is enraged and attempts to evict Elsbeth, but Elsbeth is not one to be easily intimidated. With a steely gaze, she firmly commands Joanne to produce her financial records and arrange a meeting with the cooperative board immediately. Then, without hesitation, she returns to peruse the minutes with Kaya.
However, Louis' casual mention of a dumbwaiter unexpectedly provides Elsbeth with the crucial clues she needs to support her findings. Realizing the significance of this information, she waits for the perfect opportunity to reveal the truth.
During the meeting convened by Joanne to assess Elsbeth's suitability to purchase a unit in the apartment complex, Elsbeth seizes her chance. She boldly exposes the conspiracy among the cooperative board members and Joanne, revealing their involvement in Gloria's murder. As she finishes her revelations and the police arrive, the other board members quickly abandon Joanne and strike plea deals, realizing that there was no offer from Oprah after all.
Surprisingly, Joanne's motivation is not money but revenge. After Gloria's husband falls in love with her mother, he decides to leave Gloria and elope with her. Gloria, however, frames her mother for theft and evicts them from the apartment, forcing them to struggle until her mother's untimely death. Joanne remains unrepentant, coldly stating that everything was worth it.
At the end of the episode, Wagner warmly congratulates Elsbeth on her role in solving four homicides, the fourth being the discovery of Louis' mummified body hidden within the walls of Gloria's apartment. The tense atmosphere is finally broken, and a sense of justice and closure prevails.
