After a few teething problems, it looked like roommates Martha and Matilda were going to sheathe their claws and make the best of a less-than-ideal situation – but all that looks set to change. Coffee-stained revision notes are just the start of Mattie’s problems when it comes to trying to prepare for her exams; Martha’s invited Rachel over so that the two can work on some charity ribbons for the hospital, and volume soon becomes an issue as they lament their misfortunes over a bottle or two of wine. So when she runs into Martha at the diner the next morning, the first thing on Mattie’s agenda is to secure herself somewhere quiet to study. But all promises fall to the wayside when Rachel nominates Martha as host of a girls’ night in to celebrate Sam’s new job – and no, not a lot of thought went into the guest list, given that Martha and Sam in the same room does not a happy party make. And nor does it make the best setting for a spot of quiet revision; poor Matilda’s expectations are shattered in seconds, and all an unsympathetic Martha can suggest is a trip to the library. “This is a really good chance for me to bury the hatchet with Sam,” she argues, before Matilda storms off and heads straight to Tony’s. Still, they say what goes around comes around, and Martha’s soon given reason to regret being quite so desperate to get together with Sam for a chat. As Sam confesses that life with the Holdens is getting a bit crowded, Rachel comes up with the perfect solution: why don't Sam, Jack and Rory move into her place? Sam likes the idea, and promises to give Rachel an answer once she's spoken to Jack, but we’d be surprised if Martha was particularly enamoured with the thought of her rival playing happy families with Jack and Rory in her old home.Shot in the darkBruce is quick to lose patience with the police as he insists that the poison used to kill the sheep is one kept under lock and key. “Not all of it. There’s that old stuff out in the shed,” Geoff offers, prompting Annie to convince everyone – not least herself – that Aden must have been responsible. Admittedly, it’s a theory of at least some merit, given the fact of a certain someone choosing to throw a brick through Bruce’s window that night. The getaway vehicle’s seen its fair share of action, what with it being the same one Aden used to tear up the fields only recently, so the police don’t have a hard time tracking down the culprit. Getting to him may prove something more of a challenge, though. “I have to say, I take exception to your sense of timing,” Don says discerningly, Jack and his co-constable having interrupted an exam in their efforts to speak to Aden. The investigation having been delayed on Don’s say-so, Jack later returns to persuade Aden it’s time to come clean – which, after a failed attempt at trying to convince everyone that someone must have stolen his van and tried to set him up, he does. But he’s adamant he didn’t kill the sheep, and despite the fact of Aden hardly being the most reliable source (if lying were an Olympic sport, he’d clearly be in the running for a gold), his alibi checks out. So while Annie may, for a while, get to revel in Luc’s giving Aden his just desserts after him branding the pair of them “lovebirds”, it’s not long before she’s forced to accept that Geoff’s not quite so angelic as once thought. Bruce, meanwhile, is plotting his revenge on just about anyone daring enough to trespass on his property (a revenge which does, of course, involve a firearm), and it’s that very night that he takes his first shot as he spots a shadow moving through the fields. As he rushes over to admire his handiwork, he spots the rabbit poison within reach of his injured victim and knows he’s got his man. “Pop, don’t shoot. It’s me,” Geoff groans, clutching his wounded shoulder.

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