Episode 6701

Extended Summary

Justin drops anchor but also looks decidedly queasy, despite insisting he grew up on boats. He asks Scarlett about her hangover and she claims the sea air sorted it. Alf says that they’ll fish off the beach. The mysterious man continues to watch them from the shore: In addition to an injured hand, he also has a wound on the back of his head. Back in Summer Bay, Ash and Kat run into each other on the beach. Kat tells him she’s been recommended for detective by McCarthy, although she still has to formally apply. She says they are having drinks at Salt that evening to celebrate and invites Ash along. Ash says Irene is busy and Leah has Luc at the moment. Kat suggests he brings her along but Ash isn’t keen to bring her to a bar. However, he promises to sort something.

Ash collects Luc (in her pram) from Leah outside the Diner. He asks Leah about babysitting that evening but Leah says she has a shift at the Diner that she can’t change. Tori has come along to overhear the latter part of the conversation and chats to Ash about Kat’s new job. She offers to babysit Luc but Ash says no. Inside, Tori tells Leah that Ash obviously knows about her crush on him and she’s worried it will affect her friendships with both him and Kat. She jokingly ponders taking a job in the Antarctic but Leah suggests she just tell him the truth.

At the caravan park house, John and Marilyn are telling Roo about their plan to foster again: They were hoping to get a reference from Alf. John says they’re going to call their case worker. Roo warns him there’ll be police checks but John thinks that with the medical explanation and the references his conviction shouldn’t be a problem. Meanwhile, Alf, Justin and Scarlett are fishing on the beach but Justin seems rather bored and suggests they head back. They tell him to move the boat closer and he asks if they’ll split their catch with him. The stranger meanwhile swims out to their boat. He drinks a large quantity of water from a bottle he finds, then tries to hotwire the engine, but sees Justin coming. Justin boards and tries to start the engine without success: Unseen by him, the stranger is hiding in the water at the front of the boat.

Tori turns up at the Diner flat to see Ash, who claims his hasty exit earlier was because Luc needed a nap. Tori tells him she had a crush on him but claims that she’s over it and says she just wants to be his friend, suggesting it was a micro-rebound from Nate. She repeats the offer to babysit and this time Ash agrees. Later, Ash goes to Salt to join a group including Kat, McCarthy and Murray. Murray seems slightly disappointed that he didn’t bring Luc. Ash and Kat go to the bar and Ash tells her he got Tori to babysit, which Kat isn’t entirely happy about even when Ash tells her what Tori said. They rejoin the others as McCarthy proposes a toast to the trainee detective, saying she has some of the best instincts on the force.

Alf and Scarlett are walking out to where they left the boat. Scarlett notices a blood-soaked rag; Alf dismisses it as an old fishing rag but Scarlett suddenly feels uneasy. They meet Justin, who explains the boat won’t start. Alf decides to go and try and find phone coverage. Leah and Roo are working at the Diner when Roo gets a call from Alf; however, he only manages to say that they’re camping out before being cut off. He tells Justin and Scarlett his battery’s flat: Justin’s is as well, while Scarlett’s phone is back at her van. Justin has checked the boat: There’s fuel and the battery is new. Alf heads off to get firewood, telling them to get the towels from the boat. Scarlett still feels uneasy but Justin says he’s thinking of taking Ava camping there. Scarlett notes Max would have loved it.

Tori gets a phone call from Roo explaining Justin is staying out. Ash and Kat come home and she tells them Luc’s asleep. She congratulates Kat but the conversation is awkward and it’s clear Kat doesn’t want her there, so Tori leaves. Ash isn’t happy about Kat’s behaviour and Kat accuses him of having feelings for Tori. Ash denies it but Kat feels she’s in a similar situation to before and decides to leave. Downstairs, Tori fills in Leah, aware of what it must have looked like to Kat. Kat comes in and admits she was out of line, saying she was really angry with Ash for ignoring her request to stay away from Tori. Tori again tries to claim she’s over Ash, then, when it’s clear Kat doesn’t believe her, says she can handle it. Kat tells her to stay away.

Alf, Justin and Scarlett are eating fish around a campfire while the stranger sneaks around in the bushes nearby. Justin tells a story about running over a priest. Alf goes to get a cover from the boat. Scarlett thanks Justin for not pushing about Max, saying it’s been the longest year of her life. She says Max was always climbing things so they made him a treehouse for his birthday. She went inside to answer the phone and was only gone two minutes…but will never see him again. Next morning, Scarlett wakes up to find Justin has started the boat; he says two wires were loose but doesn’t know how. Alf has gone to get more firewood to make a cuppa and Justin calls out to him. Alf finds what seems to be some sort of basic inflatable life preserver. The stranger sneaks up behind him with a large branch and knocks him unconscious.

Original spoilers: Will John and Marilyn be successful in their attempt to foster a child? Is Alf going to be ok? Who is the stranger on the beach? Does Ash have feelings for Tori?