When Roman arrived in town in his panel van he made an immediate impact on the residents but his reluctance to talk about his past and where he'd come from set alarm bells ringing in some people and evoked curiousity in others. Roman had a few little secrets which emerged at various times but there was one big secret that he carried with him the whole time he was in Summer Bay and it was the one which resulted in his exit from the show.
'Surprise arrival'
Roman never let on to a soul that he had a 17 year old daughter but when Martha moved in with him she spotted Roman in a photograph with a blonde girl and couldn't take her eyes off it. Roman picked up on this and told her to go ahead and ask him who she was... so Martha did. He confessed that she was his daughter but wouldn't divulge any other information saying it was a "very long story". The next day Martha pressed him for more information but he still wasn't very forthcoming but he couldn't avoid the situation any longer and told her the thruth. Roman had got Nicole's mother, Natalie, pregnant when they were very young so Natalie's parents had taken her away so Roman couldn't see the baby. It was only when he left the Army that he tracked her down and saw her for the first time and he confessed to Martha that he would like to see more of Nicole. His wish was soon granted when she unexpectedly turned up on his doorstep. He couldn't avoid telling the rest of the town the whole story and, despite a few blips along the way, he and Nicole built a good father-daughter relationship.
Man of Mystery Rating: 4/5 - Roman tried to keep his daughter a secret but leaving photographs around the house was always going to make people curious. Even when he confessed to Martha he kept her hanging for ages, saying that he would tell her but not yet. He seemed to like keeping an air of mystery around him. Either that or he didn't want the town discussing his business!
'Unwelcome visitor'
Roman was always very cagey about his time in the SAS and was very reluctant to talk about it and his reasons for leaving. So Elliot turned up on Roman's doorstep wanting some answers about his brother Mark's death in Afghanistan it was obvious that Roman was concerned by his visit. It emerged that there had been an official enquiry into Mark's death that had cleared Roman of any wrongdoing but Elliot didn't believe the 'official' version of events. Roman told him that they had been ambushed and Mark had become separated from the unit and subsequently captured and killed. Elliott didn't believe Roman so decided to stick around and started dating Nicole to get under Roman's skin. As time went on people became suspicious of Elliot's attitude and he soon showed Nicole his true colours so they broke up. It was then he kidnapped Nicole and carried out his plan to get the truth out of Roman by forcing him into a game of 'cat and mouse' in the bush which resulted in Roman almost being killed. He made his escape just in time and, when Elliot was about to get away, Roman arrived and took him to the police station. There he tried to force Elliot to tell him where Nicole was but Elliot refused unless Roman told him the truth about Mark. Left with no option, Roman told him that Mark had wanted to surrender and shoot one of his own men so to prevent the whole unit from being captured, Roman shot Mark in the leg. This resulted in Mark being captured and killed while the rest of the unit escaped. Elliot then told Roman where Nicole was but there was something about the story that made us think that Roman still hadn't told the real truth.......
Man of Mystery Rating: 5/5 - Roman's face when Elliot turned up spoke a thousand words as it was obvious it meant trouble. This was trouble which Roman tried to control but he obviously didn't realise what Elliot was capable of. In the end things worked out so Roman deserves full marks for dealing with Elliot, finding Nicole and leaving us with that air of mystery about what really happened.
'Blast from the past'
Roman didn't say much about Natalie, other than that her parents thought he wasn't good enough for her and that's why they had taken her away when she was pregnant and wouldn't let him see her. However, when he met her again after 17 years he said he couldn't understand how he loved her and she felt the same. It was clear that they were very different people and had gone in completely different paths in their lives. When Natalie followed Nicole to the Bay, after an argument, everyone finally got to meet the mysterious Natalie and were shocked that she and Roman were ever together. She seemed selfish, materialistic and not he most genuine person in the world, not Roman's type at all. He let her stay while she patched up her differences with Nicole but he wasn't particularly happy about it. Natalie seemed jealous that Roman had managed to build such a good relationship with Nicole but Roman still did everything he could to help them work through their problems. Natalie's presence also caused tension between Roman and Charlie as Natalie took every opportunity to have digs at her. Natalie's 'advice' to Roman also accelarated his breakup with Charlie as, even though she hadn't seen Roman for years, she could see the connection he had with Martha.
Man of Mystery Rating: 3/5 - Roman handled Natalie's arrival quite well considering his history with her. He did the right thing in letting her stay to try and sort out her problems with Nicole but really should have been stronger when Natalie started interfering in his relationship with Charlie. Having said that, Natalie's understanding of Roman's relationships with both Charlie and Martha was quite surprising as she was remarkably perceptive considering she hasn't really seen him since their teens.
'The beginning of the end'
When Roman found himself blind following a car accident the doctors told him it was psychological but Roman refused to beleive this. However, his reaction to the news, his irritability and his subsequent nightmares led us to believe there was something he was hiding, something big. When he contacted his old friend Gardy to come to town and try and help overcome his problem, the truth about Afghanistan finally came out. Roman told Gardy what he had told Elliot to which Gardy replied "Thats not quite the full story now is it?" It seemed Mark had wanted to give himself up so Gardy shot him in the leg. Mark then managed to get into a vehicle and tried to run Gardy over. To prevent him from doing this Roman shot Mark in the head through the windscreen. It emerged that it was Gardy who had talked him into covering it up at the inquiry but Roman said now he had to pay for what he had done and he though it was the guilt that was preventing him from seeing. Gardy talked him out of this as he said it wouldn't solve anything but Gardy clearly had his own plans for Roman. He ended up blackmailling Roman into helping him carry out a series of armed robberies which resulted in Roman being arrested. It was then that he decided to come clean about what he had done in Afghanistan and after saying his goodbyes he was taken away to be charged by the military police.
Man of Mystery Rating: 4/5 - Well the secret that Roman had been carrying throughout his time in the Bay finally came out at the third time of asking and what a secret it was! Being forced to carry out those armed robberies and bringing Gardy to the Bay meant that Roman was marked down slightly but he gains marks for telling the truth.... in the end.
Was Roman a good man of mystery?
Indeed he was! He certainly kept us guessing and only let slip a few things here and there to capture our interest. He certainly made the residents of the Bay curious but he seemed to enjoy that a little bit! He tried to fend Elliot off the best he could but it was clear after that incident that there were many things still to find out about him. It seems all his secrets came out in the end but was that all there was to know about Roman? I guess we'll never know!