It's been said her stories are smashing, but this is ridiculous.
Maddie has grown concerned with how hard the Rochesters are fighting to go through with their plans, given that they nearly killed Mayor Lawson. However, her concerns are shifted to a new murder case when Isaac and the player are called to the offices of the Pistols and Petticoats magazine, where editor-in-chief Barbara Coldwell has been found dead dead after being pushed out of her window.
Tropes:
- Abusive Parents: Verushka claims her mother was this, though the most she did was meddling into her life about when to marry and criticized her in a public radio broadcast.
- Advice Backfire: Ginny followed Barbara's love advice of leaving her uncaring husband, which severely backfired after his company grew exponentially and he became a millionaire, leaving Ginny without a single penny.
- All Men Are Perverts: Malcolm Rochester is revealed to be a huge one when Leopold shows you a photo of him partying with prostitutes despite being married. This is enough to tarnish his and the Rochesters' reputation in the City Hall, forcing him to resign from his Senator position.
- Big Damn Heroes: Leopold and Katherine end up being the ones preventing the Rochesters from taking over Concordia and abolishing the free press, as Leopold gives you a scandalous photo of Malcolm that, upon being printed by Katherine in the newspaper, is enough to tarnish the whole family's reputation and devoid them of public support.
- Big, Stupid Doodoo-Head: Katherine calls Malcolm "Senator Nincompoop" after telling him to his face his reputation will be ruined by exposing his compromising photo to Concordia.
- Bulletproof Vest: During the Additional Investigation, you help Rose fabricate a bunch of these as a security measure against assassination attempts, as Eleanor Halsted is still at large and could attempt to kill the Flying Squad like she did with Lawson.
- Call-Back: Verushka Coldwell, Callum Edwards, and Mayor Cornelius Castletown reappear as suspects, while Leopold Rochester, Katherine Woolf, and Malcolm Rochester return in the Additional Investigation.
- Captain Obvious: The following exchange between Isaac and Diego, which happens after you show Diego a vandalized bust of the victim.Diego: Judging from this bust, someone was extremely angry with your victim!Isaac: With all due respect, Diego, we didn't need your expertise to see THAT.
- Continuity Nod: The victim was the editor-in-chief of the same magazine first mentioned back in Case 21.
- Curse: Callum believes he's cursed, as this isn't the first time someone he was angry at has been murdered. He even asks you to lock him up to prevent any more murders, though Isaac refuses on accounts of it being ridiculous.
- Destination Defenestration: Barbara was killed when she was shoved through her one story office window. note
- Don't Celebrate Just Yet: At the end of the case, Chief Wright tells you that, even if the Rochester have just lost their influence over Concordia, you shouldn't let your guard down yet, as who knows what tricks they could have under their sleeve.
- Dumbass Has a Point: Mayor Castletown tells you that, even if the victim's death is tragic, he can't afford being preoccupied by it, as he has just returned from a fishing trip only to find out his just-appointed Deputy Mayor almost was a victim of assassination and the Rochester family is planning to overthrow the government.
- Everyone Went to School Together: Verushka and Callum are revealed to be former classmates.
- Evil Is Petty: Verushka ultimately killed her mother because her mother wouldn't let her marry until she was 25, which to Verushka was forever. For sake of reference, she's 21.
- Faint in Shock: Ginny has this reaction when you inform her of Barbara's murder, since she was one of her biggest fans.
- Fallen-on-Hard-Times Job: Callum considered working for the victim this, as he expected to draw detectives, robots, and monsters when he applied to work in a magazine office, but Barbara made him draw beefy bimbos, moonstruck maidens, and seductive vampires instead.
- Fangirl: Ginny Farnsworth, one of the suspects, is a huge fan both of Pistols and Petticoats and Barbara, though this didn't stop her from sending Barbara a threatening gift after her romantic advice left her penniless.
- Forged Message: One clue that is found is a suicide letter written by the victim. Isaac doesn’t believe that Barbara wrote it for one second since it was written so formally. Later on, Diego confirms that the killer forged the letter with the help of a grammar book.
- Goodbye, Cruel World!: The killer tried to leave a suicide note so the police would not investigate the murder. Evidently, even they thought what they wrote was stupid, because they tore the note up.Isaac: <Player's Name>, this letter reads, "To whomsoever this may concern: I, Barbara Coldwell, have foisted my ostentatious person into the face of this world for far too long."
"The authorities need not be involved, as this suicide is an occasion for which I have specifically planned. I am an unromantic, decadent, pink fraud. Sincerely, Barbara Coldwell."
<Player's Name>, is this supposed to be a suicide letter? I've never heard of someone specifying the police should not be called upon before.
And who in the world finishes a suicide letter with "sincerely"?
<Player's Name>, the killer clearly forged this absurd suicide letter, hoping to get us off the case!
They were right to tear the letter to pieces, as no one would ever believe it was real! - Gossipy Hens: The victim was a huge gossiper who knew the secrets of practically everyone in Concordia, which she used as an inspiration and reference for her stories. She even knew about Malcolm's affairs with prostitutes, which you use to tarnish his reputation.
- Happily Married: Well, more like Happily Engaged. At the end of the case, Maddie reveals that she and Charlie are engaged and planning to marry soon.
- Helicopter Parents: Verushka's ultimate reason for killing her mother was this, as she never left her made her own decisions. The breaking point was when Barbara prohibited Verushka from marrying Callum, prompting her to kill Barbara.Verushka: She was like a big, pink mosquito, always buzzing in my ear! I couldn't take it anymore!
- Instantly Proven Wrong: Malcolm tells you there's no way for you to stop the Rochester bill that will give them absolute power over the free press and Concordia seconds before Katherine shows him a scandalous photo of him partying with prostitutes despite his son just being murdered, which tarnishes the entire family's reputation and leaves them without the public support needed for their plans.
- Matricide: Barbara was killed by her own daughter, Verushka.
- Never Suicide: Verushka tried to make her mother's murder look like a suicide. Really, really, really, really badly tried to make it look like a suicide.
- Oblivious to Love: Verushka is in love with Callum, who in return seems oblivious of this fact.
- One of Our Own: Evie gets flagged as a suspect when she tells Isaac and the player that she’s got something important to tell them about their investigation, which turns out to be the fact Barbara was in Evie's office this morning.
- Pink Means Feminine: The victim was always seen wearing pink clothes, and she was the lead editor of a romance magazine.
- Resigned in Disgrace: After Katherine prints Malcolm's scandalous photo in the newspaper, his reputation is so destroyed he's forced to quit working as a Senator.Chief Wright: I have word that Malcolm has already resigned from his position as Senator, disgraced. The bill has been removed from legislation.
- Salt Solution: One of the killer's traits is that they use smelling salts.
- Shout-Out:
- The case's title comes from an episode of the same name in Sherlock, which in return is based on the novel A Study in Scarlet, best known for featuring the first appearance of Sherlock Holmes.
- The victim is a reference to English author Barbara Cartland.
- Skewed Priorities: Verushka's reaction after you inform her of Barbara's death. It probably helps she's the killer.Verushka: No more Pistols & Petticoats! No more writerly society parties! No more romance writers to fawn over me! How could she do that to me, <Rank> <Name>?Isaac: Yes, we can see you're distraught...
- Spanner in the Works: Despite being dead, Barbara indirectly helps you end with the Rochesters when you find out she had knowledge about Malcolm's perverted tendencies, prompting Leopold to give you a photo of him partying with prostitutes and use it against him.
- Starting a New Life: The reason with Callum moved from Grim Chapel to Ivory Hill is this, as he was tired of living in such a creepy district where his friend is dead and the love of his life is in prison for it.
- Superior Successor: Evie was trying to become this for Pistols and Petticoats, replacing Barbara with her own stories due to finding Barbara's ones too soft. Understandably, this didn't set well with the victim.
- Very Loosely Based on a True Story: Barbara used her gossiping tendencies to base the characters of her stories in real people. This included an erotic novel with Mayor Castletown as the protagonist (something he didn't find appealing) and another with Malcolm Rochester, which prompts you to discover about his illicit affairs.
- Who Would Be Stupid Enough?: After Rose finishes creating a bunch of bulletproof vests for the Squad, she asks the player for a way to test them on real people. Cue Dick popping inside their minds.Rose: The last step is to test the thing to see if it works! So, who do we know that's crazy enough to wear this vest and let us fire bullets at them?<Player's Name>, it's like you read my mind! If you can get Dick for the test, I'll prepare everything!
- Wounded Gazelle Gambit: Downplayed. Verushka, the killer, cries when you inform her about her mother's death... because she won't be attending socialite parties anymore.
