There was a terrifying hostage situation for Denise Fox (Diane Parish) and Avani Nandra-Hart (Aaliyah James) on Thursday’s EastEnders – but not everything was as it seemed.

Denise has been on edge since learning Nish Panesar (Navin Chowdhry) had escaped from prison, worried he would seek revenge on The Six and walk back on his agreement to take the rap for Keanu Taylor’s (Danny Walters) murder.

In the latest episode of the soap to air on BBC One, Denise sought an update on Nish from his granddaughter Avani, who admitted she was sick of being kept under lock and key by her fearful family.

As Denise brought her into the salon for a chat, Avani then revealed she was being trolled online over Nish.

Trying to empathise with the teenager, Denise opened up to her about her murderous ex-husband Lucas Johnson (Don Gilet). 

Realising Denise would be able to help her with her anxieties over Nish, she pleaded for a job at the salon. 

Her parents, Ravi Gulati (Aaron Thiara) and Priya Nandra-Hart (Sophie Khan-Levy), were less than keen on the idea, but she ignored their concerns and accepted an offer from Denise. 

Later that evening, the pair were closing up at the salon when two masked men burst in and claimed that Nish had sent them. 

However, Avani soon recognised one of them as someone called Aiden, who was one of the people who had been trolling her, before he and his accomplice left the salon in fits of giggles. 

Despite not being in immediate danger from Nish, Denise was left shaken and started to have a panic attack. 

With her guilt over Keanu’s death still weighing heavy, will her fear of Nish raise suspicions?

EastEnders continues on Friday at 7.30pm on BBC One, or stream the next episode now on BBC iPlayer.