Martha is guilt ridden when she discovers that she has slept with Jack’s best mate, as she says goodbye to Jack and their marriage. Amanda is devastated when Belle publicly shames her.
Extended Summary
Martha is reeling as she realizes she’s slept with one of Jack’s best mates. She covers her shock and introduces herself and Ash plays along pretending he’s never met her, as Jack remains oblivious. Martha makes an excuse to leave, unable to handle the tension and guilt and assures Jack she’ll come back later – he wants answers about their relationship. Lucas walks in and is stoked to see Ash – meanwhile Tony stands back with an uneasy air, clearly not happy to see Ash as he explains that he’s taking Jacks’ position at the Station while he’s out of action. He soon makes an excuse to leave to find Martha. He finds her working at the bar and Martha drags him aside – he’s apologetic, admitting that they made a mistake. Martha agrees and says Jack need never know – but Ash thinks they should tell him – it’s better to be honest or it’ll blow up in their faces further down the track. Martha feels ill at the thought… Meanwhile, Tony and Lucas watch on as Sam, the physio, explains to Jack the role she’ll have in his recovery following surgery. She’s warm and encouraging and there’s instant rapport between them. Their attempts are futile to buoy his spirits – having Sam talk about the physio has really made the reality of his situation hit home. An anxious Martha then arrives and Jack asks to be left alone with her for a while. Martha is about to tell Jack about her night with Ash, but before she has the chance, Jack confides how scared he is about the surgery and doesn’t know what he’d do without her around – has she thought about their discussion earlier? Martha can’t tell him about Ash now – she promises Jack she’ll do all she can to help him through this, not mentioning their marriage or anything about getting back together. But Jack only hears what he wants to and is pleased, thinking there is a chance for them. Martha feels terrible hiding the truth from him. She then heads to the Station to find Ash and is sickened to hear that he’s at the hospital visiting Jack!
Ash arrives at the hospital and immediately clocks that Jack is in low spirits and assumes that Martha must’ve told him what happened last night. He apologises to Jack, but Jack doesn’t understand what he means – then realizing he doesn’t know, Ash tries to back track, but it’s too late. Jack demands the truth and Ash has no choice but to explain. Martha rushes in soon after and Jack turns on her and tells her to get the hell out of his life! Sam soon returns to find Jack looking sullen and he explains the situation with Martha and Ash. Sam gently points out that they’re separated – she can do what she wants and it’s not as if she acted out of malice. Jack takes this in, thoughtful. Ash later returns with a heartfelt apology and assures him that it was a one off. Jack simply asks to speak with Martha. She’s shocked to hear it, but heads to the hospital. Jack asks Martha if their marriage is really over – he feels like an idiot holding onto the notion if she’s already moving on. Martha admits how she feels as the couple share a tender goodbye as partners, their marriage is really over.
The Bay’s newest couple, Belle and Lucas sit together nervously at the Diner as he thanks her for supporting him through everything lately with Jack, as Tony appears, curious about what’s going on between the pair. Lucas shrugs it off, it’s no big deal. Meanwhile, Irene hands Belle a pile of clothes that Amanda dropped off – her latest attempt to win Belle over. She’s had enough – when is Amanda going to get the message?! Belle storms to Amanda’s with the clothes and tells her she doesn’t want Amanda in her life anymore – she has Lucas now and that’s enough for her. Amanda sees this as an opportunity to connect with her daughter and tries to enlist Lucas’s help in getting Belle on side. Lucas tells her where to go – there’s no way he’s going to help Amanda with anything. Irene tells Amanda to give up – if she truly loved Belle, she wouldn’t have been with Drew in the first place. Amanda is left crushed.
Lucas tells Belle that Amanda tried to suck up to him to get closer to her – Belle is livid to hear this! Amanda soon enters the diner, forcing a brightness she does not feel when she greets Belle, but is met with an unexpected outburst from Belle. She rips into Amanda, publicly shaming her for sleeping with any man she can get her hands on, from her own daughters boyfriend to an elderly man to scam his fortune. Irene tries to silence Belle, but she won’t be stopped. Everyone is stopped in their tracks as Amanda rushes out, deeply distressed. She rushes out to the beach, deeply shaken and collapses to her knees on the sand, dissolving into sobs…