Cash is struck by inspiration in Home and Away

This week in Summer Bay…

MONDAY

In the immediate aftermath of the Stunning Organics explosion, Mali’s ears ring as he scurries to check on Roo and John. Both are alive, but neither is in a good way following the blast. As Bree tends to an injured Roo at the hospital, she’s troubled by Roo’s revelation – “I can’t feel my legs”.

Bree has bad news for Mali too – he has a perforated ear drum and he’ll have to stay out of the water for a few weeks. As Roo’s blood pressure drops dangerously low, Bree springs into action, while Marilyn’s guilt and worry for her friend bring her to tears. Cash and Rose are among the first on the scene, where Cash learns the device was homemade, and deliberately designed to cause as much trouble as possible.

At the hospital, they deduce that the bomb must be connected to the threats Marilyn’s been receiving. Cash interviews Kirby at the police station – he needs to know everything about her involvement in the Stunning Organics fight now. Someone has attempted murder. Kate continues to confide in Xander. She’s been allowed to spend time with her stepson Timothy but she dare not ask for a formal custody arrangement for fear of putting his mother off side. Kate tells Xander she’s had to accept her reality – Timothy’s mother holds all the cards. She’s just a stepmum and that means she has no rights. Xander doesn’t want to see Kate give up though. Jamie told him how much Timothy loves Kate and she needs to find a way to remain in his life.

TUESDAY

In the aftermath of her assault, Felicity dodges questions from a concerned Tane. When he presses, she tries to seduce him – anything to avoid talking about it. Sensitive to his wife’s vulnerability in the wake of her trauma, Tane pulls away from her advances. For Felicity, it feels like a rejection. She reels at Tane, feeling he doesn’t want her, and she snaps at a concerned Mac at work.

When she sees a drink unattended at Salt, her reaction is extreme, declaring that everyone is to buy their own drinks from now on. Tane can’t bear to see her struggle like this, but he can’t get through to her either. Irene and Marilyn remain at Roo’s bedside, where they learn she’s not yet breathing on her own – she’ll need to be moved to a specialist unit in the city. A guilt-ridden Kirby is also at the hospital, feeling terrible following her role in the fight against Stunning Organics. Marilyn reassures her – how were they to know a fight with a cosmetics company would come to this? But is she trying to convince Kirby or herself?

Later, Marilyn breaks down as Roo is wheeled into surgery, and she tearfully promises to get justice for her friend. When Mac and Rose fuss over Mali, he withdraws. He doesn’t want his family finding out about his injury, and he’s uncomfortable being labelled a hero. He’s more worried about his damaged eardrum affecting his balance and stopping him from teaching surf lessons – how will he survive financially? When he does finally let Rose look after him, their bond is stronger than ever. They’re solid.

A bomb is intended to give Marilyn an explosive experience.

WEDNESDAY

Eden bristles at Mercedes after being woken by her violin practice and tensions simmer between the two old rivals. Remi warns them to play nice, but soon finds himself asking of Mercedes, why is she still here? She was only there to help them win Battle of the Bands and that’s over now.

Mercedes wants to help though – they needed the money for an album, so what’s Plan B? Seems like Mercedes is intent on sticking around… Felicity is convinced that Tane no longer finds her desirable after her assault. She rails at him that she just wants to move on with her life, but he can’t seem to.

Tane confides in Cash – Felicity is shutting down and pushing him away. Bree has suggested counselling, but he can’t even get her to have breakfast. After Eden and Felicity chat, Eden reports back to Tane that Felicity is fearful of losing him, and Tane acts immediately. He pleads with Felicity not to self-destruct. Finally, she tells him she’s willing to try counselling. Tane assures her, they’ll get through this together. Leah fusses over Justin after his crossbow injury at the hands of Vita Nova. Justin’s thoughts however are only on Andrew – how is he going to testify against people he used to trust? As they wait on an update from Theo, Leah reassures Justin he isn’t to blame, and that she loves Andrew, he’s family. Which is why she wants to ask him to stay with them. Permanently.

When Cash sees Remi and Mercedes reviewing footage on social media from Battle of the Bands, he’s struck by inspiration. Whoever assaulted Felicity might have been caught on camera. Determined to lock up his sister’s assailant, Cash is determined to review all footage in his search for a lead on the case.

THURSDAY

Theo and Andrew pull over on their way back to the Bay. Andrew confides in Theo – it’s not just his mum’s death that is bothering him.

Vita Nova is still out there, and he could be in danger. Leah tries her best to allay his fears, assuring him no one’s going to hurt them, but Theo later finds Andrew up alone in the middle of the night clutching a kitchen knife for protection. When he and the knife later go missing, Theo tracks Andrew down to the beach and hears the truth – Andrew is leaving to protect Justin, Leah, and Theo. Theo calls Justin for reinforcements – can they convince Andrew to stay??

Remi pleads his case to Eden for Mercedes hanging around – they sound better with her than without, and even Eden doesn’t deny that. Eden gives an inch and the two form an uneasy truce, but with her feet under the table, Mercedes doesn’t waste time before she’s undermining Remi and Bree’s relationship – seizing on Bree’s aversion to motorbikes as a starting point. After a further conversation with uneasy ally Eden however, Mercedes surprises Lyrik by leaving the share house. Just because they’re finishing the album doesn’t mean they all need to live together. Are Mercedes’ intentions pure after all?

John suffers a dizzy spell after surgery and later clutches his chest in agony – is he having a heart attack?! Bree rushes to the rescue and with dutiful Irene by his side, John makes it through. Having escaped death, John allows himself to be vulnerable with Irene – he misses companionship. If he’d died today, he would have died a lonely man – isn’t there more to life than this?

FRIDAY

Marilyn and Kirby are still shaken in the wake of the Stunning Organics explosion, and neither have heard anything from the police. Kirby is anxious for an update from Rose and Marilyn feels terrible after what has happened to John and to Roo.

When they read in the paper that the CEO of Stunning Organics was asked to step down weeks before the “incident”, Kirby reckons she’s solved the case – he must be the one who planted the bomb! When she takes her theory to Rose, she rails that the police have done nothing so far. Rose snaps back – Kirby doesn’t get to tell her how to do her job. Xander is pleased to hear from Kate that she’s taken his advice – she’s going to speak to Timothy’s mum about a potential access arrangement. She thanks Xander for everything he’s done for her, and he’s genuinely pleased to hear she’s making progress.

Later, Kate is devastated that her meeting with Timothy’s mum was a disaster. Now, she’s threatening to remove Kate’s access all together. As he comforts her, Kate thanks him again for being her rock and caught in the moment, she kisses him! Justin defies doctors’ orders to go after Andrew, but he’s determined to leave the bay to protect Justin and his family. When Andrew bolts, Theo again chases after him and begs him to stay, for Justin as much as for himself. Andrew returns home with Justin and Theo, and they gently take him to task for keeping the knife on him – it’s an unnecessary and dangerous precaution.

When Rose drops by to put Andrew’s mind at ease, her visit has the opposite effect when she admits the other members of Vita Nova won’t be charged and can’t guarantee his safety. Desperate for a solution, Justin offers to set up security cameras to give Andrew peace of mind.

Home and Away airs 1:45pm on Channel 5 and 6pm on 5STAR. First-look screenings air at 6:30pm on 5STAR and the series also streams on My5.