This week on Home and Away in Australia, Cash’s worst fears are realised, as Eden and Abigail find themselves held captive by Nerida.
Nerida (Ellie Gall), an ex-client of Tim’s (George Pullar), had originally been contacted by Cash as he dug for dirt on the counsellor, as part of a campaign to stop him seeing ex-fiancée Eden (Stephanie Panozzo).
Having noticed that Nerida had given Tim a glowing review, complete with three love hearts, Cash had suspected that Tim may have abused his position and entered into a relationship with her at some point in the past.
Given that Tim had begun seeing Eden whilst he was counselling her sister Abby (Hailey Pinto), which whilst unethical wasn’t technically against the rules, Cash had hoped that he could prove that Tim had history.
Cash therefore thought he’d hit the jackpot when Nerida claimed that she and Tim had been an item.
But as Cash and Abby dug deeper, it later became clear that Nerida was a fantasist, and this so-called relationship was all one-sided.
Cash began to fear for Eden’s safety when Nerida subsequently warned him that Eden should watch her back.
After seeing that Tim’s car had been vandalised, and the share house trashed, Cash travelled to the remote estate where Eden and Tim had joined the rest of Lyrik for a getaway, determined to protect Eden from harm.
On his arrival that evening, Cash and Tim were seen arguing by Remi, only for Cash to wake up in the grounds the next morning alongside an unconscious Tim.
Despite Cash having his own head injury, and with no evidence of anyone else having been on the island, Detective Mark Townsend (Craig Hall) charged Cash with the assault on Tim.
Although Cash later remembered being attacked by Nerida, there was only Cash’s word for it, with Townsend already having decided Cash was guilty.
After asking to meet with her, Abby soon came to realise that Nerida must have been responsible, and after consulting with Senior Constable Rose (Kirsty Marillier), agreed to wear a wire in the hope of drawing a confession.
They were left frustrated when Nerida clammed up however, and with Tim remaining in a coma, there was no other way they could prove that Cash didn’t do it.
Released on bail, Cash later approached Nerida with a bold offer—he wouldn’t fight the charges placed against him, if she promised to leave Eden and Tim alone. It didn’t take much persuasion for Nerida to agree.
Cash’s foster father Gary (Peter Phelps) was fuming when Cash told him what he’d done to protect Eden, but both he and Rose were clueless as to what they could do to change his mind.
Tim finally waking from his coma last week changed everything however, when he finally confirmed to Rose that Nerida had been the one to attack both him and Cash.
The charges were dropped against Cash, with an arrest warrant issued for Nerida, whose current whereabouts are unknown. Though off the hook, Cash was worried that Nerida would go after Eden before the police were able to find her.
This week, Cash is finally back in uniform, and is putting all his efforts into tracking down Nerida.
“His goal is to pursue Nerida until she is arrested and Eden is safe,” Nicholas Cartwright told TV Week. “He has to find her.”
In the meantime, Eden’s head is spinning after kissing Cash, hopeful that there could be some sort of future for them after all.
Her realisation that she was still in love with Cash had caused an argument between her and Tim on the night he was attacked, and she later admitted to Abby that the main concern in hoping Tim would wake up was so that he could clear Cash’s name.
“He may not even remember their last conversation so she’s deeply conflicted,” Stephanie says. “But she can’t deny it.”
The fact that Eden and Cash had kissed just as Tim was waking up only eats into Eden’s guilt further, and she finds herself confessing all to Tim.
Tim is angered by the revelation, and tells her to leave immediately. But little does Eden realise that as she flees the hospital in tears, Nerida is lying in wait for her.
Spotting Eden on her own, Nerida strikes and plunges a syringe into Eden, knocking her out.
Some time later, in what seems to be becoming a Summer Bay tradition, Eden comes to in an abandoned shed, finding herself tied up alongside Abby. Nearby, Nerida is dosing up a further syringe!
Cash is concerned as he struggles to get hold of Eden, and with Abby also missing he immediately begins to fear the worse.
As he organises a police search to track down the sisters, will they be found before it’s too late?
