Episode 6 of Elsbeth opens with a lively appreciation party, where the renowned plastic surgeon Dr. Vanessa Holmes proudly introduces her protégée, Dr. Astrid Olsen, as her soon-to-be partner in their medical practice. However, to everyone's surprise, Astrid politely declines the offer, revealing her intention to establish her own practice. Astrid's subsequent rise to fame is watched closely by Vanessa, who finds herself engrossed in Astrid's online videos, where the younger doctor harshly criticizes her elders.
Vanessa, angered by Astrid's comments, concocts a diabolical plan to eliminate her rival. She crafts a fictitious patient profile and sends an email to Astrid, purporting it to be from Dr. Yabloski, requesting her attendance to check on a patient. Utilizing the chaos of the museum riots as a convenient alibi, Vanessa engages in conversation with the security guard, ensuring that he remembers her presence.
Captain Wagner, Kaya, and Elsbeth arrive first at the grisly murder scene. Wagner, not the official investigator, introduces Elsbeth to Detective Edwards, who immediately takes a dislike to the infamous Elsbeth and warns her against interfering in the investigation. Undeterred, Elsbeth sneaks around the crime scene and stumbles upon Vanessa in one of the patient rooms.
Elsbeth's conversation with Vanessa reveals the older doctor's unnerving calmness following Astrid's death. This alarms Elsbeth, who mentions her suspicions to Detective Edwards. Despite initial skepticism, Elsbeth insists that Vanessa is not a suspect due to the keycard swipes clearing her.
Back at the precinct, Elsbeth and Kaya delve into Vanessa's movements prior to the murder. Detective Edwards interrupts their investigation to inform them that Vanessa has a solid alibi and that the only person of interest is Dr. Yabloski, who had sent Astrid to the fatal appointment. The forensic report reveals that Astrid was killed by a jab of a Botox knockoff drug injected into her spleen, a finding that suggests the perpetrator possessed medical knowledge.
Elsbeth and Kaya hypothesize that the murderer must have medical expertise, given the spleen's inaccessibility. They attempt to recreate the incident in the conference room and realize that a layperson could not have accurately located the spleen. This realization heightens Elsbeth's suspicion of Vanessa.
Determined to unearth the truth, Elsbeth books a consultation at Vanessa's clinic, using it as an opportunity to snoop around. She notices a photograph that suggests a close relationship between Vanessa and Astrid. As she hears music upstairs, she follows the sound and encounters Vanessa's wife, Carolyn, dancing to release the stress caused by Astrid's murder. Vanessa joins them and escorts Elsbeth to the consultation room, where Elsbeth continues to probe Vanessa about the murder. Vanessa, seemingly unperturbed, remarks that she has many enemies who might want her dead.
Meanwhile, Wagner's curiosity piqued regarding Kaya's discoveries about Elsbeth's ongoing investigation, but just then, Elsbeth unexpectedly appeared on the scene. Detective Edwards summoned Dr. Yabloski to inquire about his patient, yet he seemed utterly baffled by the nature of their inquiries. As Kaya and Elsbeth observed the interrogation, they realized that Dr. Yabloski couldn't have possibly gone through the intricate process of scheduling an email to send while in mid-flight. Elsbeth noticed that it was effortlessly conceivable for others to access his phone, as it was only configured for calls, texts, and emails.
Dr. Yabloski revealed that he had been separated from his phone during Vanessa's dinner party, as he abhorred the presence of phones at the table. Elsbeth convened with Celentano and Wali at Central Park, where Wali informed her that the Captain was receiving kickbacks to hinder investigations into unethical business practices of certain fast fashion companies. They suspected that the kickbacks were funnelled through Wagner's foundation and wanted her to keep tabs on any suspicious behavior exhibited by Wagner. Kaya, following closely behind Elsbeth, spied on her conversation with Celentano and Wali.
Later, Kaya and Elsbeth interrogated the security guard at the museum, who had witnessed Vanessa entering the premises. He confirmed seeing her enter and even confessed to receiving a bribe from her, despite it being against the rules. He attempted to search for her to return the money but was unsuccessful. Elsbeth noticed the paint stains on the guard's shoes and promptly presented them to Captain Wagner. He ordered a forensic investigation to determine if the paint matched the one on Vanessa's shoes. Elsbeth cleverly used the guard's anxiety over the bribe as a ploy to coerce Wagner to disclose any relevant information, but he retaliated by reminding her of his assistance in securing a job for her son.
Detective Edwards remained steadfast in her pursuit of using Astrid's digital footprint to track down the murderer. She delved into the comments beneath her posts and stumbled upon a disturbing one from a user named Viva la Martin. Elsbeth's memory was suddenly jogged as she recalled that Vanessa and Carolyn had attended a Viva la Vida concert on their first date and Vanessa had raved about Chris Martin being an underrated genius. She made another visit to Vanessa to request her shoes, and Carolyn unexpectedly appeared as she was retrieving them. Carolyn chatted amicably with Elsbeth, revealing the extensive work she had done on her, including plastic surgeries and dance-related injuries. Vanessa handed over the shoes to Elsbeth, but the investigation hit a dead end as the paint on both pairs matched identically.
Later, Kaya and Elsbeth scrutinized the fake patient profile and surmised that the killer had gone to great lengths to fabricate the patient's medical history. The report was laden with medical jargon that was unfamiliar to them, but after conducting an online search, Elsbeth realized that the patient's history mirrored the casual anecdotes Carolyn had shared about her dance-related injuries and surgeries. However, they needed confirmation and summoned Dr. Yabloski for consultation. Upon examining the photos, he identified Vanessa's handiwork on the left ear, while Astrid's touch was evident on the right. This implied that Carolyn had sought out Astrid to correct Vanessa's work. Consequently, Elsbeth and Kaya visited Carolyn to verify if she had indeed enlisted Astrid's help, which ultimately confirmed their suspicions about her motive.
Elsbeth, Kaya, Captain Wagner, and Detective Wagner converged at Vanessa's abode, intent on executing an arrest. It transpired that Caroline had spilled the beans, revealing Vanessa's unexpected habit of taking out the garbage, an uncharacteristic task for her. Elsbeth seized this tidbit as they grilled Caroline.
The discovered paint, scattered across a newspaper dated the fateful day of Astrid's murder, painted a revealing picture. It indicated that Vanessa had procured the paint from a hardware store and liberally dusted it on her shoes at her abode, suggesting her boots remained intact during the museum incident. Moreover, her residence's proximity to both the museum and the hospital allowed for a plausible sequence of events. She could have made a quick appearance at the museum, snuck back to the hospital disguised as a patient, procured the paint, dusted her shoes, and then returned home undetected.
Vanessa had naively assumed the prints on the newspaper could belong to anyone, but little did she know that her own boot had inadvertently stamped a telltale logo into the paint, effectively sealing her fate. Captain Wagner promptly ordered Detective Edwards to apprehend her. As she was led away, Vanessa lashed out at Carolyn, accusing her of allowing Astrid to operate on her ears despite all the harm Vanessa had suffered. This outburst only further confirmed her motive.
Later, Kaya confided in Elsbeth about following her to the park, where she had witnessed her secret meeting with Celentano and Wali. Elsbeth, realizing the time was ripe, decided to reveal the truth about her investigation into Captain Wagner. Kaya, startled by this revelation, began to question who she had been working for and which side she should choose. Elsbeth advised her to choose the side of truth, but even she was uncertain which side that truly was. They vowed to figure it out together.
As the episode drew to a close, Lieutenant Dave was caught red-handed, accepting a bribe from a mysterious individual eager to speak with Captain Wagner. However, Lieutenant Dave coldly informed him that he was as close as he would ever get to associating with the esteemed captain.
