ITV Emmerdale fans 'work out' who really stabbed Tom King as soap killer 'returns'
Emmerdale enthusiasts are speculating that a familiar baddie might have crept back into the village and was actually behind the stabbing of Tom King, portrayed by James Chase.
During Friday's episodes, audiences saw Belle (Eden Taylor-Draper) racing to the hospital to find out if her spouse had made it through the assault. However, she found Vinny (Bradley Johnson) and Sam (James Hooton) blocking her path.
A bewildered Belle demanded to know "What is going on?" while an adamant Vinny insisted: "You shouldn't be here."
Probing for news about Tom, Sam expressed a grim hope that Tom wouldn't pull through, remarking it would be "that would be the best for all of us."
Driven by desperation, Belle declared "I need to go in there," as she attempted to push past her kin. But Vinny implored her: "You need to go home, I am begging you, Belle," reports Leeds Live.
Sam chimed in to caution her: "Vinny is right, you are going to blow everything."
Confronting her guilt, Belle said: "I already have, haven't I, Sam? If Tom dies, that is another life I have taken, how do I live with myself? And if he survives, if he lands me in it, then my life is over. So whatever happens I am screwed."
Dismayed, Belle broke down: "He has won, hasn't he?"
Belle's confession to her family that she was the one who stabbed Tom doesn't have everyone convinced, with fans at home mulling over alternate theories.
Some predict her brother Cain (Jeff Hordley) could be the 'true' assailant, while others suspect Lydia (Karen Blick). A majority of the fanbase, though, theorise Lachlan (Thomas Atkinson) as the real culprit.
Lachlan, once a central character in the soap's dramatic narratives, met his downfall in 2018 when he was apprehended for a string of horrid acts, including the murder of his mother Chrissie Sugden (performed by Louise Marwood) and grandfather Lawrence White (John Bowe).
Fans on a dedicated Facebook page for the soap have been speculating wildly about current plot twistsone postulated: "I think it's Lachlan who got to Tom. Ross comes back to search for the killer of his wife who is in the village and I think it's Lachlan."
Another pondered: "Why Lachlan? I think somehow it was Cain."
In agreement, another added: "Lachlan could have escaped or got an early release."
And still, another mused: "Lachlan, now that would be interesting, wasn't he worse than Tom? ".
Speculations didn't end there as another fan chimed in: "Could be Ross," while another guess was: "I think it's Lydia."
With Tom's fate hanging in balance due to his injuries if he survives, Belle might avoid trouble, but if not, this could spell disaster for the Dingle favourite.
Emmerdale airs weekdays at 7.30pm on ITV.