Liv Flaherty (Isobel Steele)

[Perdita]

Emmerdale fans will be introduced to Aaron Livesy's teenage half-sister Liv Flahery next week.

Young actress Isobel Steele has been cast in the role of Liv, who appears on screen when Aaron tries to gather evidence against his rapist father Gordon.

When Aaron returns to the village next week, he desperately starts trying to track down his stepmother Sandra - knowing that she could be a key witness against evil Gordon.

Continuing his recent show of support, it's Aaron's on-off lover Robert Sugden (Ryan Hawley) who manages to secure Sandra's address. He later insists on coming along for the visit to Sandra too.

Aaron gets nervous when they pull up outside Sandra's house, so he and Robert decide to linger in the local area while he plucks up the courage.

Robert chases after Liv
© ITV
They're soon interrupted by a teenage troublemaker who steals Aaron's wallet, but Aaron can't believe his eyes when they later see the same girl at Sandra's house - it's his sister.

Danny Miller, who plays Aaron, revealed: "Nicking his wallet obviously isn't a great start, but you instantly see a bond forming and Liv takes an instant liking to Aaron. She's cheeky and a bit naughty. It's literally a mirror image of what Aaron was like at that age - being cheeky to her mum and lying to her as well!

"Aaron also doesn't tell Sandra that Liv nicked his wallet. He instantly loves her - she's his sister and he just wants to protect her."

Aaron speaks to Sandra and Liv
© ITV
Once Liv is out of earshot, Aaron gets his chance to speak to Sandra about the real reason for his visit - but things go very badly when she insists that she can't stand up for him in court.

Aaron immediately starts to suspect that Sandra knew much more about the abuse than he thought, so he pins her up against the wall and demands answers.

Miller continued: "Aaron's feeling paranoid at the moment and he thinks that people are out to get him. He knows that Sandra has changed her surname and she's changed her address, plus she's very nervous and shocked to see him.

"Aaron realises that she knew and she's in denial, because she thinks that she is incriminated in this herself and she could go to prison for knowing the truth. So Aaron gets a bit aggressive. For a second he forgets where he is and he grabs hold of her. Liv sees it and it breaks her heart."

Aaron loses his temper with Sandra
© ITV
When Sandra later speaks to the police and denies any knowledge of the abuse, a tormented Aaron fears that all hope is lost. However, the police then return and drop the bombshell that a second victim has come forward to give evidence against Gordon.

"Aaron is both gutted and relieved when he hears the news," Miller said. "He's gutted that this has happened to someone else and he didn't say something sooner, because he could have stopped this from happening. But he's also relieved that it's proof of what Gordon is really like.

"Instantly Aaron thinks that the other victim is Liv, but the police can't give away that information. But in the end they can see just how frustrated Aaron is and how scared he is for his sister, so they confirm that it's a male victim."


Digital Spy