Vicki Fowler (Alice Haig) makes it her mission to protect Joel Marshall (Max Murray) after his commits another sex offence in EastEnders next week.
As viewers of the BBC One soap have seen, Joel is deeply troubled, and is the reason his family were forced to flee from Australia.
After upskirting a school mate, his dad Ross (Alex Walkinshaw) coughed up a whopping $50,000 to keep the girl’s silence, but her family also demanded that they leave the country.
Since settling in Walford, it seems that his behaviour hasn’t changed. Not only has he introduced naïve Tommy Moon (Sonny Kendall) to pornography, but he also decided to record sexual content of his own.
Growing closer to Avani Nandra-Hart (Aaliyah James), he secretly filmed them having sex – a video which a horrified Ross later discovered on his son’s phone.
In upcoming scenes, his behaviour worsens, despite demands from both Ross and Vicki for him to change his ways.
Having spent the day with Tommy, the lads board an underground train and Joel decides to entwine him further into a web of misbehaviour. He pulls out his phone, and instructs Tommy to start recording.
Stumbling through the carriage, he pretends to fall on a fellow passenger named Isla, who he goes onto touch inappropriately.
Tommy is stunned by what he sees, as a terrified Isla rushes to report him to the police that are present in the tube station. Joel is apprehended and hauled in for questioning – just as Ross and Vicki witness what is happening.
Down at the cop shop, Ross demands answers from the teen, as Vicki corners Isla and tries to comfort her.
Vicki is supportive of the girl’s decision to report Joel, and hopes that it will be the kick he needs to stop his alarming behaviour patterns. She then passes on her number in case she needs anything further from the family.
Later that night, she comes up with a cunning plan, inspired by Ross’ actions Down Under.
She offers Isla a sum of cash in exchange for her silence and withdrawal of the complaint, promising to make sure that Joel doesn’t land himself in anymore hot water.
Tommy’s mum Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace) has her own concerns about Joel’s influence over her son, but it soon becomes clear that Vicki is the one who she should be worried about.
When Joel makes attempts at reconciling with his mate, Tommy is left shaken by an ultimatum from Vicki.
She warns that unless he keeps his mouth shut, she will implicate him in the crime.
