Episode 3856 (28th September 2004)

Plot
When Alan tells Steph that he wants to cut back on the number of pills he’s taking, Steph decides to take matters into her own hands. At lunchtime she crushes up one of his pills and adds it to his lunch. Once Alan is drowsy, Steph gets him to sign another blank cheque. While cashing the cheque in the shop, Steph tells Viv that Alan is becoming more forgetful. On her way back to the B&B, Steph gets a shock when she finds Shelley on the doorstep. Shelley claims that she needs to talk to Alan. Steph tells Shelley that Alan is asleep and refuses to let her go up and see him. Determined not to be intimidated by Steph, Shelley tells her that she will wait for Alan to wake up. Steph tells Shelley that Alan doesn’t want to see her because he hates her. Shelley asks to be allowed to collect her things and Steph tells her that they are in the cellar. As Shelley goes through the cellar door, Steph pushes her down the stairs. Steph then follows her downstairs and ties her up. Claustrophobic Shelley cries out for help but Steph covers her mouth with tape and threatens that if she makes another sound it will be her last. Elsewhere, Pearl and Len nervously decide to face their tormentors and go for a walk in the village. Len has a confrontation with Scott, who tells Len that he doesn’t want Len to drop a car off for a customer because it would be bad for business. Edna convinces Pearl to go to work and confront her neighbours head on. Pearl is later horrified when she arrives at the factory for work only for no one to talk to her. Pearl gets a further shock when Eric calls her into the office and tells her that her work is not up to scratch and she no longer has a job. He later explains to Lisa this is the official reason for letting Pearl go because he doesn't want to be sued for unfair dismissal. Debbie sees Andy talking with Katie in the café and jumps to the conclusion that Andy still has feelings for his estranged wife. When Debbie tells Andy that she thinks he wants to get back together with Katie, Andy tells her that their conversation was about Diane. Debbie apologises to Andy for her fit of jealousy and once again they make the most of the fact that Cain is out of the house.