Hollyoaks airs tense cliffhanger in special Mercedes episode

 Cleo gets a shock.

Hollyoaks has aired a tense cliffhanger at the end of a special episode involving Mercedes McQueen.

Mercedes has been receiving treatment for bowel cancer since during the show’s time jump. This week, her health took a sudden turn for the worse when Prince discovered her collapsed on the floor.

In today’s episode, she was taken to hospital, where Misbah told the McQueens that Mercedes has contracted an infection and wasn’t responding to the antibiotics.

With her life on the line, Myra tried to pretend that everything was okay, but Mercedes realised the severity of her condition and asked her family to take her home – not wanting to die in hospital.

Meanwhile, Cleo was discharged from hospital herself but was anxious about returning home. When Peri told her about what had happened to Mercedes though, she rushed to join her family.

At home, Mercedes told John Paul to call her son Bobby in prison and to tell him that she wasn’t in pain and wasn't scared, even though this was a lie.

As the McQueens gathered at Mercedes’ bedside, she told them that she could see a white feather in her room, and that her late son Gabriel was waiting for her.

Myra broke the news about Mercedes to Freddie and Grace, and while Grace was reluctant, she eventually agreed that they would go and visit her.

Elsewhere, after an emotional chat with Mercedes, Cleo found the courage to finally report Abe’s abuse.

Realising how much pain her daughter was in, Myra told Mercedes that it was okay to stop fighting, and in heartbreaking scenes, the family waited for her to slip away.

When Freddie arrived, he told Mercedes that he loved her but she deserved better than him. He later clashed with Grace and went to The Loft for a drink – where he found Vicky’s scan photo and realised that she is still pregnant with his baby.

Grace returned to see Mercedes, who woke up and said that Freddie loves her. Mercedes then realised that she had some fight left in her and asked Myra to take her back to the hospital.

Meanwhile, Cleo got a shock when she answered the door and found Abe standing in front of her. What does he want from her, and is Cleo in danger?