There’s drama in next week’s EastEnders when Mel Owen gets a call to say son Hunter Owen has escaped prison. But is he heading for Albert Square, or somewhere else entirely?
Soap fans saw Hunter kill Ray Kelly in cold blood earlier this year during a shocking woodland showdown after Ray and Mel’s twisted wedding. Not for the first time, Ray was trying to kill Mel, and it was Hunter who came to her rescue by shooting his stepdad dead.
Mel then tried to cover up her son’s crime by helping him bury the body in the woods, however, it wasn’t long before Ray’s remains were found and the truth came out.
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But before Hunter went down for the killing, Mel tried to smuggle him out of the country with ex police officer Jack Branning’s help. However, Jack shopped Hunter to the police leaving Mel totally heartbroken by his betrayal.
But next week Mel is horrified to get a call from the prison telling her that Hunter is going to be moved to another prison.
Mel begs Grey Atkins to help find out more, but while the solicitor can’t help Hunter, he does get Mel in touch with someone at the prison to check on her son’s wellbeing.
However, when she gets home later that day Mel is horrified to find the police waiting for her.
As they sit the terrified mum down they reveal that Hunter has escaped prison and they have no idea where he is.
Mel demands an explanation about how her boy could have run away and tells them to find him and bring him back safely. But why has Hunter made a run for it?
Has he spent the last few months in jail plotting against Jack to get revenge for shopping him to the police?
When he was first incarcerated, Hunter told Mel he didn’t regret killing Ray and would do anything to protect her. Does that mean getting rid of Jack permanently?
Or is Mel his target? After he went to jail she signed a statement she had nothing to do with Ray’s death, despite the fact she secretly helped Hunter bury the body.
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Mel told her son that she was keeping herself out of jail so that she could fight for his freedom from the outside… but has Hunter decided that his mum needs to pay for her crimes, too?
Or is Hunter on the run for another reason? If he’s not heading back to Albert Square, just how far will he manage to get before the police catch up with him?
EastEnders airs Monday and Friday at 8pm and Tuesday and Thursday at 7.30pm on BBC One.
Where do you think Hunter is heading? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix and let us know what you think!