As the fifth episode of Lockwood & Co. unfolds, Lucy finds herself seated at the dining table, her gaze fixed upon the eerie skull encased in a jar, willing it to stir, yet it remains eerily still. Lockwood's arrival interrupts her musings, and they embark on a discussion, their destination: the cemetery. Just as George joins them, intent on sipping his morning coffee, Lockwood hastily dismisses the idea, assigning George a task at the archives while he and Lucy venture to the scene of the crime.
George's frustration simmers, fueled by Lockwood's reckless wager with Quill Kipps that threatens their livelihood. Yet, Lockwood exudes confidence, unfazed by the odds. Lucy, sensing the escalating tension, diplomatically intervenes, offering George a seat at the investigation and compelling Lockwood to compensate him with a coin for his unfulfilled coffee break.
Arriving at the cemetery, they find Kipps and his team already lurking, Kipps's taunts echoing through the air, promising another empty-handed endeavor for Lockwood. Pamela Joplin and Sebastian Saunders soon join them, Joplin's distress palpable over the theft of the mirror. George echoes her sentiments, recognizing its invaluable nature.
As they delve deeper into the crime scene, a Tendy's badge catches their eye, lying neglected on the ground, a clue suggesting a two-man operation. Amidst their analysis, George finds himself engrossed in the hypnotic dance of his coffee's swirling contents, his mind momentarily drifting until Lockwood's voice jolts him back to reality.
Lockwood directs George towards the archives, but fate has other plans. George's footsteps lead him astray, through the labyrinthine cemetery, where a grim discovery awaits. A stream's edge reveals a macabre sight—a lifeless body, eyes missing, floating menacingly towards him.
Meanwhile, Lucy and Lockwood engage in a cerebral duel, piecing together how the relic men could have breached and escaped. Their conclusion: they must have scaled a wall adjacent to the canal. Guided by this insight, they race towards the water's edge, where George and the grim find await. Lockwood's solemn voice reveals the deceased's identity—Danny Clough, a seasoned agent who had once saved Lockwood from dire straits. Now, they must uncover his missing partner.
Barnes's solemn announcement confirms the relic man's fate, his fingernails harboring clues of a self-inflicted horror—gouging out his own eyes. The urgency mounts; the mirror, deemed deadly, must be recovered swiftly.
George departs for the archives, while Lucy gently probes Lockwood's emotions over Danny's tragic end. Lockwood's facade cracks, revealing a veil of indifference, yet he assures Lucy they have an appointment with an old acquaintance by the river's edge, hinting at a new chapter in their quest for justice.
George trudges to the archives, his heart filled with anticipation, only to be met with the disheartening news that they are at capacity. As he steps outside, fate intervenes in the form of Joplin, a powerful board member who, upon recognizing George's plight, subtly manipulates matters to grant him access to the research haven.
Meanwhile, Lockwood escorts Lucy to the banks of the serene Thames, where a macabre encounter awaits. Lucy's world is shaken as she comes face to face with the spectral image of a tiny babe, its wail echoing through the night air, swiftly followed by the frigid apparition of a screaming woman—a spectral maiden cloaked in chill. It lunges towards her, then vanishes into thin air, leaving Lucy breathless. A woman approaches, explaining the spirit's disappearance as her own doing, having secured its source. Lockwood introduces her as Flo Bones, a relentless relic hunter, whose eyes glint with the promise of profit.
Lucy's disapproval of monetizing ghostly remnants is palpable, but Flo counters with a cynical truth: all make use of the deceased, differing only in the extent of their involvement with the wealthy elite's schemes. The exchange spirals into a heated debate, until Lockwood steps in, offering Flo a deal—a safe haven and remuneration for her artifacts, in exchange for information on Danny Clough.
George, lost in thought amidst his research, finds himself unconsciously sketching intricate spirals onto a sheet of paper. Joplin's gentle reminder of the curfew snaps him from his reverie, inviting him to share a meal and camaraderie.
Over a dinner filled with intrigue, Flo weaves a tale of Danny's downfall, detailing how his loss of talent rendered him expendable to his agency, forcing him into a world of shadows. Jack Carver, his erstwhile partner, is mentioned with a warning of grave danger. Flo divulges that a message to Carver can be left on the diner's bulletin board and introduces Julius Winkman, an antique dealer with nefarious ties to the relic trade, likely the current keeper of the enigmatic mirror. She cautions that Winkman's shadows are even darker than Carver's. Lockwood presents Flo with Danny's Tendy badge, eliciting a glance of admiration mixed with surprise—as if marveling at his continued existence amidst such peril.
At Joplin's abode, George and she forged a connection rooted in their shared research and profound understanding of the enigmatic Problem. Joplin confided, revealing that her lack of innate Talent as a child fueled an insatiable thirst for knowledge, driving her to amass as much wisdom as possible. Their conversation veered towards the mirror's revelation, with George confessing that it ignited within him a yearning to uncover even deeper secrets.
Lucy, intrigued, inquired about Lockwood's acquaintance with Flo, prompting him to muse that their friendship spanned years, their origins lost in the mists of memory. Undeterred by Flo's warnings of peril, Lockwood urged Lucy towards Winkman's lair, intent on stealing the enigmatic mirror.
Upon infiltrating the premises through a discreet side entrance, they found themselves amidst a clutter of trinkets, each imbued with potent psychic energies. Suddenly, a young boy materialized, prompting Lucy to seek concealment. Lockwood, however, attempted to coax the child into leading him to the mirror, only to be interrupted by the boy's mother, who incapacitated him with a swift strike.
Back at their refuge, George's mind was consumed by his sketches of intricate spirals, his weariness eventually overtaking him as he dozed off at the dining table. But a harrowing vision of Danny's lifeless form jolted him back to consciousness.
Meanwhile, Lockwood awoke to find himself restrained in a chair, facing the menacing glare of Winkman. The collector threatened and coerced, seeking to extract information from Lockwood, but the detective remained steadfast. Frustrated, Winkman resorted to a sinister device, administering electric shocks in an attempt to break him.
Lucy, stealthily navigating the treacherous halls, tracked the mirror's hum to a locked cabinet. Leopold, the boy from earlier, caught sight of her and a conversation ensued, during which Lucy sensed the boy's unspoken pain, inflicted by his own parents. Yet, his mother's sudden appearance once again foiled their plans, incapacitating Lucy as well. She was then dragged to the chamber where Lockwood lay helpless, with Winkman scheming to stage their deaths as a suicide pact.
Lockwood, steadfast in his resolve, pleaded with Winkman to spare Lucy, arguing that she was an innocent bystander in this intrigue. Just as the situation seemed hopeless, Lucy regained consciousness, seizing the moment to unleash a torrent of flammable liquid upon Winkman and his wife. Brandishing a lighter, she held them at bay, freeing Lockwood, and together they fled the sinister premises, narrowly escaping the clutches of fate.
George's gaze once again lingers intently upon his coffee, lost in thought, until a sudden apparition of a ghostly figure outside the house jolts him from his reverie. With a startled gasp, he lunges forward, his fist connecting with the windowpane with a sickening crack, shattering the tranquility. Meanwhile, a spectral presence within a jar silently observes the unfolding drama.
Back within the sanctuary of their home, Lucy's voice is laced with urgency as she demands answers from Lockwood, her eyes blazing with disbelief. How could he so carelessly offer his life as if it were a trifle? Lockwood, his expression cloaked in shadows, insists he had a strategy, albeit one that remains shrouded in mystery. Lucy presses for the truth, but his lips remain sealed, tight as a fortress gate.
Sensing Carver's imminent arrival, the duo hurries back to their abode, hearts pounding in anticipation. Scarcely have they regained their breath when a knock echoes through the stillness, sending a shiver down their spines. Pulling open the door, they behold Carver, his body collapsed in a grotesque sprawl across their threshold, a fatal wound in his back revealing a grim testament to violence. In his dying breath, he utters cryptic words about a bone glass and a number that echoes eerily – "seven, not one" – his voice fading into the ether.
Lucy catches the faint whisper of "come with me," but it escapes the ears of her companions, who are stunned into silence by Carver's sudden demise. Lockwood's solemn pronouncement confirms the grim reality: Carver is gone, leaving behind a trail of riddles and unanswered questions.
