Ripper Street S2E6 - "A Stronger Loving World" Recap

Drake purchases a bouquet of flowers for his wife before running into Rose, who has recently quit her job due to mistreatment from her employer. He assures her that things will work out and Rose tells him his wife is a lucky lady. Drake returns home and finds that Bella is not there.

There are attacks on both synagogues and churches, perpetuating tension between Whitechapel's religious communities. Rose visits Susan to ask for a place to stay but Susan tells her she doesn't have anything to offer, following the loss of her money. Jackson and Drake then arrive to enquire after Bella's history in the hopes of finding her. Things are still tense between Jackson and Susan, following the end of their relationship, and between Drake and Rose, with Drake blaming Rose for his not being home to keep Bella from going missing.

A woman named Maggie, the same one that had approached Bella in the street in the previous episode, approaches Rose in a pub and invites her to join her group of friends. Drake returns home and finds Bella with her "uncle Gabriel." She tells him she had left a note, presenting it, and Drake is certain it hadn't been there. Gabriel, a scholar, is visiting following the death of his daughter. Maggie offers Rose a place to stay and Rose insists on only staying one night. The place is home to many and appear to be a religious cult following someone called "Father."

Tracing the ink from some religious-hate fliers, the team heads to Gaddis printing. Not long after arriving, they find Samuel Gaddis, who holds a knife to his own throat and stabs/slices it. The team looks on in horror as he bleeds out and wonder what purpose there was to spread such hate.

In private, Bella's "uncle" is very obviously not her uncle. He guilt-trips the death of Lily, his daughter, on her. They were involved and now Gabriel wants her to bring Drake to him. Gabriel is the "Father" of the religious cult - the place at which Rose is still staying. Rose sneaks up to the door and peeks in, finding Rose and Gabriel kissing. She runs out with some cult followers chasing after her. She ends up hiding in a public toilet.

Gabriel shows up at Drake's place, telling Bella that it's time. She doesn't want to yet and Drake kicks him out, still not knowing what is going on. He tries to get answers from her but all she does is mope and talk about how Rose would have made him happier than her.

Rose finds Drake in the streets and tries to tell him about Bella and Rose but he gets angry and ends up striking her, after which she runs off. Reid follows a lead to meet a woman named Jemima Swan, who puts him on the trail of Cain (Gabriel). He is shown a portrait which reveals Bella as Gabriel's lover and having once been pregnant with his child.

Drake follows Bella to Gabriel's place. She has come to tell him that she will not bring Drake to him. He tells her her love for Drake is not real and that only her love for him is real. Drake comes in and learns that Gabriel's daughter Lily was in fact Bella's child, too. Gabriel informs Drake that he wants him to join his Golden Dawn cult and before he can object, Drake is knocked down and taken captive. Reid heads to Drake's place to tell him what he has learned but does not find him there.

Jackson tells Reid that he found Peyote in the stomach of Samuel. Meanwhile, Drake is forced to consume some peyote himself. Gabriel tells Drake that Rose will be joining them as they transition to the next life. The followers find Rose drunk in a bar and bring her back with little objection. The inspectors trace the sales and import of the peyote to find Gabriel's place. They also find orders of nightshade, realising that they intend to use it to kill themselves. As they prepare to head off for Gabriel's place, Jackson brews up an antidote to bring along.

A ceremony is taking place and Gabriel has Bella pass the poisoned brew along to each of the followers. Maggie and Phillip are in another room, forcing Rose to consume her dose of peyote. The inspectors arrive to find the followers lying on the floor and Gabriel reveals that Drake has had his dose ten minutes ago. Rose manages to smash her way out of her captor's grip and charges in with a fire iron, smashing Gabriel on the skull. Jackson has some officers begin administering the antidote to the followers while he shoves his fingers down Drake's throat, causing him to vomit before giving him the antidote himself. Flight is restraining Bella, but she uses a knife she secretly grabbed to injure him so he'll release her. She then grabs Rose and tells Drake she's always known that Drake loved Rose first and that she'll never be as good as her. She then stabs herself and Drake cries while the Reid and Jackson look on in shock.

Reid enjoys a quiet moment in the synagogue when telling the Rabi that the case has been closed. They speak about faith. Bella is buried and Rose offers comfort to Drake, who yet again coldly rejects her, saying "I am made of nought but death."

Ripper Street airs on Mondays on BBC One at 9PM.