After Tom King (James Chase)’s violent rampage at the holiday cottage in Wales in a recent Emmerdale episode, Belle Dingle (Eden Taylor-Draper) has returned to the apparent safety of her family back in the village.
You would imagine that nowhere in Emmerdale would be welcoming to Tom now, but if we know anything about him we know he’s an arch manipulator – and he’s soon spinning the events around his break-up with Belle to cast himself in a more favourable light.
Previously he tried to make out that it was Belle who had anger issues, and she inadvertently played into this false narrative when she pushed him in the street, in full view of several villagers. Belle’s history of struggles with her mental health have also provided a shield for him, as he gaslit her into thinking she had problems and needed the help of a mental health assessment unit.
To other people, Tom has mainly been successful at putting on a front of being normal and even nice.
Until very recently Belle’s family thought he was the perfect husband for her, with his good job and his caring, considerate manner. It’s only really been Charity Dingle (Emma Atkins) who’s seen through Tom, declaring there was ‘summat evil’ festering beneath his aftershave.
So in upcoming episodes, Tom finds it fairly straightforward to spin a false version of events to his aunt, Nicola King (Nicola Wheeler). He paints himself as the victim, describing how he saw Belle and Vinny Dingle (Bradley Johnson) together and implying that Belle has been only too keen to move on to a relationship with Vinny. He makes Belle sound cold and heartless, and Nicola can’t help but feel sorry for him.
So she tells him he’s very welcome to stay with her, Jimmy King (Nick Miles) and the kids.
Now with a base in the heart of the village, Tom is free to continue keeping a very close eye on Belle. And he starts by telling her that, now he’s staying at the Kings,’ she should take advantage of the empty house and move back home instead of staying at Wishing Well.
Belle agrees, but to be safe she changes the locks. What she doesn’t know is that Tom has tricked the locksmith into giving him a set of keys.
And Belle is now in more danger than ever.
