Summer Bay has never been short on emotional wreckage, but the coming chapters of Home and Away promise heartbreak that cuts deeper than anyone is prepared for.

Families fracture, old wounds reopen, and just when reconciliation feels possible, one careless moment threatens to blow everything apart. At the center of the storm

is the Langham family, whose arrival in the Bay has already stirred suspicion, curiosity, and pain in equal measure. Sergeant David Langham may have transferred

to Yabbie Creek hoping for a fresh start, but the past has followed him with ruthless determination — and it has a name: Lacey.

A Reunion No One Was Ready For

David’s professional world collided violently with his personal one the day he saw “Lacey Miller” written on paperwork connected to the River Boy investigation. Confused and intrigued, he asked that she be brought in, unaware that the young woman who would walk through the station doors had been living only minutes away while actively avoiding him.

Lacey arrived defensive, irritated, expecting another round of questioning. Instead, she came face to face with the father she had abandoned six months earlier. The shock rippled through both of them. For David, it was unexpected hope. For Lacey, it was betrayal by fate itself.

Still grieving her mother, Lacey had shed the Langham name, choosing her mum’s maiden name as a shield and a tribute. In her mind, the family shattered the night of the fatal crash — the accident where her sister Jo was behind the wheel and their mother never came home. Lacey believes David used his authority to protect Jo from consequences. David and Jo insist it was simply tragedy, made murkier by Jo’s fractured memory of the night.

Whatever the truth, Lacey has built her identity around blame.

Sister Against Sister

Attempts at peace have already combusted. When Jo approached Lacey at the Surf Club, desperate to bridge the chasm, the conversation spiraled into fury. Words weren’t enough. Lacey’s anger turned physical, a punch landing with all the grief she has carried for half a year.

For Jo, it was confirmation that forgiveness might never come.

David’s Devastating Decision

Next week, David prepares to deliver news he knows could destroy whatever fragile possibility of healing remains. He seeks out Theo, asking him to stay close to Lacey afterward. It’s a quiet admission: David expects fallout.

But from a distance, Lacey misreads the moment. To her, it looks like collusion. Another man she trusts aligning with the father she’s determined to hate.

When she later confronts Theo, tempers flare — and then David arrives holding something that makes her stomach drop.

Her suitcase.

Inside Salt, with the whole world tilting, David tells her he has sold the family home. He gathered keepsakes he thought she might want. He is trying, in the most practical and devastating way, to close a chapter.

For Lacey, it feels like her mother has been erased.

Memories That Mend — Almost

That night, Lacey opens the case with Theo by her side. Photos of happier days crack her defenses. She admits how fiercely she misses her mum. Theo listens, learning surprising details about the girl he thought he knew — the teddy bear she once slept with, the netball triumphs, the ballet dreams shared with Jo.

Theo gently suggests her father kept these items because they mattered to him too.

By morning, Lacey does something unimaginable: she texts David to meet.

On the sand, apologies come haltingly. David explains the house was unbearable, every wall echoing with loss. Summer Bay was supposed to be a reset, not an abandonment of memory. Slowly, Lacey softens. She even smiles.

Then comes the mistake.

When she mentions finding ballet shoes, David fondly recalls taking her to buy them. But the memory belongs to Jo.

The confusion lands like a betrayal. To Lacey, it proves she has always been second, always mistaken for the sister she resents. The thaw freezes instantly. She walks away, leaving David alone with the sound of the surf and another failure.

Jo’s Romantic Rollercoaster

While her family implodes, Jo’s heart is creating chaos of its own. Her connection with Tane began badly — roadside car trouble, unwanted help, wounded pride. Yet irritation turned to intrigue, and soon she gathered the courage to ask him out.

Their promising date detonated when Harper arrived, furious and needing childcare, revealing Tane’s complicated reality as a father. Jo retreated, humiliated.

Now Harper, back from her trip, is trying to repair the damage. She acknowledges the pain of seeing her former fiancé move on but insists she doesn’t want to stand in his way.

Meanwhile, an emotional Jo confides in Dana over drinks, admitting the man she likes comes with a child and lingering history. Dana quickly realizes it must be Tane. Though Jo insists it’s doomed, liquid courage pushes her to message him anyway.

Permission Granted — But Is It Enough?

Encouraged by Dana, Harper gives Tane her blessing: be present for Archie, but live your life. She even approaches Jo herself, explaining their broken wedding and assuring her that Tane is single.

Freed from guilt, Tane finds Jo and asks for another chance.

And Jo says no.

Not because she doesn’t feel it — but because everything in her life is already too tangled. A grieving sister, a disappointed father, a town still new to her. Love feels like one complication too many.

Can Anyone Get What They Want?

David wants forgiveness.
Lacey wants justice.
Jo wants peace.
Tane wants possibility.

But in Summer Bay, timing is everything — and right now, everyone seems seconds too late.

With emotions detonating across families and romances alike, the question hangs heavy: can the Laghams survive the truth long enough to become a family again, or will one wrong memory keep them apart forever?

One thing is certain — the Bay is bracing for aftershocks.