If Debbie’s storyline is about “disappearance,” then Carl’s storyline is about “a clearly suspicious smell.”

The most tense part is that Carl secretly transfers money from Debbie’s account, then sits down to check the balance with a demeanor that doesn’t resemble someone helping their sister at all.

It’s not the worried “are you okay?” vibe, but more like “I’m done, let’s see how much’s left,” which sends chills down your spine.

And, true to Corrie’s style, the first domino effect comes from a seemingly innocent remark: Ronnie mentions that Debbie wants Carl to have control over her finances.

Just hearing that is enough to make Carl’s face change color, a genuine panic, so much so that even outsiders can see something is wrong. A person in power who reacts as if caught red-handed could only mean two things: either Carl is hiding something related to money and is afraid of being scrutinized, or Carl doesn’t want this to be documented because paperwork turns “sneaking around” into “evidence.”

Ronnie hadn’t even figured out what he’d just said when Carl froze, and the atmosphere suddenly became tense. The clever thing is that Corrie didn’t need to explicitly state who Carl was deceiving; they just needed to show you what Carl was afraid of. And when someone fears the power of attorney, it means it’s likely to cause things to go wrong: instead of Carl freely manipulating things, the paperwork could lead to a more thorough investigation, or give Debbie the right to sue, or expose shady dealings. Furthermore, Abi received a call that made her rush out in a panic, and you understand immediately: that call was definitely related to Carl, and it was definitely not a small matter.