Things are set to get serious in the hunt for missing Lauren Bolton (Cait Fitton) in upcoming Coronation Street scenes when a bloody discovery leads some characters to believe that she may have been murdered.
Lauren disappeared without a trace several weeks ago, leaving Bobby Crawford (Jack Carroll) seriously concerned. After a couple of days with no contact, Bobby reported her missing to police, who promised to look into it, given the suspicious circumstances surrounding her disappearance.
In upcoming scenes, Roy Cropper (David Neilson) unintentionally makes himself a prime suspect in the case when he cleans up Lauren’s flat, following the news that Evelyn Plummer (Maureen Lipman) is having to let it go following her landlord’s discovery that she had been subletting.
With Lauren’s flat now empty, Bobby suggests to Sean Tully (Antony Cotton) that he look at renting it out, but he sparks concerns when he reveals that he’s noticed what appears to be blood on the curtains.
A horrified Bobby and Carla Connor (Alison King) head straight to the police station to report the discovery to DS Lisa Swain (Vicky Myers), and soon she and Craig Tinker (Colson Smith) head over to the flat to survey the scene.
Havin grown suspicious after finding Roy sorting through Lauren’s things, Bobby tells the officers all about his relationship with Lauren, and how he offered her a job and found her a place to live, before cleaning up the mess in the flat after her disappearance.
DS Swain heads to the café to question Roy, but it soon becomes clear that he is not the only one in the frame.
Elsewhere, Max Turner (Paddy Bever) is suspicious of Daniel Osbourne (Rob Mallard), and quizzes him on Lauren’s tutoring sessions. When the dates don’t seem to add up, Max’s suspicions only grow.
When Max goes to the police station to inform DS Swain about Lauren’s O-Vidz account, he is surprised to find out that Ryan Connor (Ryan Prescott) has already told her.
It isn’t a wasted trip for Max, however, as DS Swain questions him on Lauren’s mysterious boyfriend, and though he admits he never met him, Max reveals his suspicions that it could have been Daniel.
Daniel is then pulled in for questioning, and DS Swain is keen to talk about his questionable sexual history, bringing up his relationship with sex worker Nicky Wheatley and inappropriate behaviour towards Summer Spellman (Harriet Bibby).
Later, Daniel and Bethany Platt (Lucy Fallon) are left horrified when they listen to a radio interview with DS Swain, where she suggests that Lauren has been murdered.
The next day, Daniel confides in Ken Barlow (William Roache) that he hasn’t slept a wink, terrified that he’ll be sent to prison for a murder he hasn’t committed.
Elsewhere, when Roy faces trolling online, Carla and Nina Lucas (Mollie Gallagher) warn him not to get involved in Max’s second appeal, fearing that it will garner unwanted attention for him.
When Suki from the Gazette arrives to film the appeal, they are interrupted by the arrival of DS Swain, who tells Roy she is arresting him on suspicion of Lauren’s murder.
Is Roy set to go to prison, and did he really kill Lauren?
