Emmerdale spoilers: Tom hatches a terrifying plan to destroy Belle as things take another dark turn

Tom King (James Chase) has unequivocally showed his hand in Emmerdale when he horrifyingly punched Belle Dingle (Eden Taylor-Draper) in the stomach.

He then went on to ensure she was hospitalised. Now his chilling work begins to cover his tracks.

With his violent streak well out in the open, Tom is now in an oddly vulnerable position. All it takes is for Belle to tell someone what he’s done, and for them to believe her, and he’s finished.

Though he’s laid the groundwork to prepare for this by isolating her from her loved ones and undermining her mental capacity, has he done enough to protect himself?

Likely not when he realises he’s facing a fresh challenge in keeping Belle under his control. She is offered to have a visitor, but she refuses to have it be Tom and instead asks Lydia Dingle (Karen Blick) to visit.

This throws Tom through a loop. Both Lydia and Mandy Dingle (Lisa Riley) have been noticing changes in Belle and he knows it won’t take much for Lydia – who’s been through her own harrowing abusive experiences – to believe Belle’s plight.

Tom must stop Lydia visiting Belle at all costs. He must devise a new plan to drive a wedge between the two so that he can seize back control.

Sadly for Belle, Tom is just too savvy.

He plots against her and comes up with a foolproof plan to prevent her from seeing Lydia and revealing what a monster he is. How far will he go to keep Lydia away?

Is she in danger?