EastEnders spoilers follow.
EastEnders has aired a new twist in Bernie Taylor’s exit storyline as a phone call saw her admitting she’s been stealing from the Panesars.
It has been confirmed that Bernie will be leaving Walford this summer, with all clues pointing to her dangerous secret being the reason behind her departure.
Tonight’s episode opened with Ravi Gulati buying a new car and showing it off to Priya, Suki, Eve and the kids.
As Bernie watched on, Vicki Fowler approached her and asked about some unusual invoices she spotted in the Panesars’ books, suspecting Ravi of being involved in some dodgy deals.
BBC
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Vicki had her own reasons for inquiring about her new employers as she is in hot water with Sharon Watts, to whom she owes money.
Vicki begged Bernie for an advance on her wages seeing as the Panesars were forking out on a new car, but Bernie replied bluntly: “They are in a hole too, you know. So just be happy you’re getting paid at all, yeah?”
At the cafe, Vicki went over the invoices again, realising that the costly renovations for a GP practice they referred to never took place.
Her partner Ross backed her theory that something was amiss, prompting Vicki to speak with Ravi.
“Someone must have money to burn,” she told him, enquiring about the fake invoices.
Seeing Ravi act surprised, Vicki insisted: “Come on, Rav. Bernie might be wet behind the ears, but me? Being dirty runs in my blood.”
She offered to give him advice to keep the books immaculate for a fee, trying to pay off her debt to Sharon in the process.
Alerted by Vicki’s revelations, Ravi had a chat with Bernie about the invoices. Catching up with her and Suki at The Prince Albert, Ravi demanded to know what was going on.
“We want to see the paperwork. All of it. Right now,” Suki added.
BBC
Bernie kept calm and explained that a patient had reported mould at the GP practice. She went ahead and sorted it out before it could become a legal problem for the Panesars.
“It ain’t Vicki’s job to sort things, it’s mine. And I’m doing a good job,” Bernie told Suki and Ravi. “So why don’t you just get off my back and leave me to it?”
Suki reined in Ravi, asking Bernie to keep them updated from now on.
But Bernie wasn’t willing to let Vicki get away with bypassing her. The bookkeeper threatened Vicki, bribing her with an offer to pay her early if she agreed to keep things between them.
In the final scenes, Bernie answered a phone call from her mum, confirming she was tweaking the Panesars’ books to pocket some cash.
BBC
Related: EastEnders confirms yet another major character exit in latest show shake-up
“I know mum, but I am being careful. Don’t worry, I’m going to be with you all soon,” she said on the phone.
“I’m just waiting on one more payment and I’m gone,” she added as she amended another document.
In upcoming scenes, Bernie will find herself in a corner when Vicki puts two and two together and realises she’s been stealing from their bosses.
Seeing an opportunity, Vicki asks Bernie to split the money but she’s betrayed when Bernie blames her as the sole culprit.
EastEnders airs on Mondays – Thursdays at 7.30pm on BBC One. The show also streams on BBC iPlayer, where most episodes drop early at 6am ahead of their TV broadcast.
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