While Nina Lucas was confused by the sudden move, Gemma Winter-Brown was just relieved for her mother, declaring it “good riddance to bad rubbish”. Her unfazed response made Bernie wonder if she knew more than she was letting on.
Back at home, Bernie quizzed Gemma about her reaction to the shocking news of Mal’s departure. She confirmed that she was happy to see the back of him, but questioned why he had chosen to leave.
“Maybe Jodie [Ramsey] had something to do with it,” Gemma grinned. “She left loads of bad reviews on his business page, all under different names. Like proper bad ones.”
Gemma explained that Jodie wanted to “cause trouble” for Mal because she “hates him” as well. But Bernie was concerned Mal would think the reviews were left by her.
“You won’t have to deal with him no more. He’s done,” Gemma assured her.
Later, Bernie caught up with Nina and Roy before they headed off on their bat-watching trip and gave them a cheery send-off. As the camera zoomed out, viewers saw a disgruntled Mal lurking nearby – clearly not in Inverness.
In Sunday’s episode, Roy feels unwell during the trip and returns home to find the cafe has no electricity. He closes up early and heads to bed to sleep off his ailment.
However, while he’s dozing, the flat mysteriously catches on fire and the beloved character is seen unconscious, surrounded by the deadly smoke. Could the faulty electrics be just a coincidence, or could vengeful Mal be responsible for the fire?
