Fans didn't see this one coming...
Hollyoaks fans were taken aback when Mercedes McQueen (Jennifer Metcalfe) made a shock decision.
Before Liam Donovan's death (Jude Monk McGowan), the truth came out about Mercedes' shooting.
Thursday's scenes saw James Nightingale (Gregory Finnegan) taking Mercedes to one side, telling her, "I'm here to confess."
As fans have known for a while now, it was James and Grace Black (Tamara Wall) who shot Mercedes, and the two have been trying to keep it hidden.
An emotional James adds, "I wouldn't have been able to live with myself if I was successful".
He also explains he was trying to avenge his ex Harry Thompson (Parry Glasspool) by doing it.
Harry was murdered by psychopathic Breda McQueen (Moyà Brady) last year. Despite the fact Mercedes had nothing to do with it, James admitted he "needed someone to blame" at the time.
But in surprising scenes, Mercedes decided to help James and Grace cover up the shooting.
She tells Grace, who pushed Liam down the stairs, to tell the police that she was responsible for his death.
To make this more convincing, Mercedes revealed she'd pin the shooting on Liam so she can claim self-defense.
The shooting storyline appeared to come to an end when Mercedes met up with James and Grace later in the day, explaining she'd spoken to the police and everything was sorted.
She told them, "All this stops here now, with us."
Fans were quick to praise Mercedes for her decision. One wrote, "Good decision Mercedes #Hollyoaks"
Another added, "Grace, James and Mercedes make a good team! #hollyoaks @Hollyoaks"
A third wrote, "Mercedes is gonna take the blame omg wasn't expecting that #Hollyoaks"
And a fourth added, "Mercedes did something... nice? #Hollyoaks"
But are Mercedes, James and Grace really free? We'll have to wait and find out...
Hollyoaks is shown weekdays on C4 at 6.30pm with the next episode following on E4.
