“Are you out of your mind? She is eighteen years old!” Rachel shouts, as Cassie hastily gets dressed and prepares to face the music. Cassie and Rachel are soon arguing their way over to the caravan park, picking up speed as the latter reveals that she’s ready to break the news to Brad. Cassie takes this as her cue to race on ahead, determined to get her side of the story across first – and, in the process, not doing much to support her claims that she’s mature enough to handle a “grown-up” relationship. “Whatever Rachel tells you, it’s not the way she’s making it out to be, okay?” Cassie says, bursting in on Alf’s reassurances to a totally unconvinced Sally that the idea of superstitions and omens is nothing more than a load of codswallop. Rachel’s not far behind and ushers Brad away for a private chat, determined to tell him about Henk’s murky past. His temper barely under control, Brad gives no thought to charging over to the diner apartment, where Martha is giving Henk his marching orders – as well as questioning the truth behind his vow of celibacy (yes, that old chestnut again). Henk has no time to register what’s happening before Brad confronts him with his fists, leaving him woozy enough to have him fly down the stairs – much to the surprise of everyone in the diner, all of whom panic at the sight of the struggling-to-breathe shell of a man in front of them. “You’ll be at the hospital in a jiffy. Don’t you worry; they’ll take good care of you there. Just mention you’re a friend of Dr Armstrong’s,” Colleen says, as she watches over Henk being wheeled away by the paramedics. “Are you going to go with him, Martha?” she adds, just for good measure. Little does anyone suspect just how serious things are about to get…Facing arrestCassie, meanwhile, has banished herself to her room out of sheer frustration over the fact that nobody’s willing to accept her relationship with Henk. “It’s not wrong to have a relationship when you’re both attracted to each other,” she complains, ignoring Sally’s attempts at reason (which, incidentally, don’t include revealing the truth about Rachel) and making it perfectly clear that she’s not exactly a welcome presence in the sanctuary of her room. “I can’t believe that things are actually getting worse,” Sally tells Alf, Dan and Leah, as she returns from her run-in with Cass. Of course, that’s not the end to her problems. Brad’s soon bursting into the house with news of what’s just happened, with Cassie managing to walk in on the scene just as he’s explaining that Henk’s now in hospital. While Sally’s left to contemplate the very real possibility that her husband-to-be may be facing charges for assault, Cassie goes back on her word about paying her own special someone a visit and makes her escape – but, far from a romantic reunion, all she gets on her arrival at the hospital is some cold, hard truths. That’s right, Henk decides that it’s time to come clean, and Cassie finally understands Rachel’s reaction.

Just as the two of them are having a heart-to-heart outside Henk’s room, things take a dramatic turn. Henk goes into respiratory arrest, and Rachel’s called in to save him; cardiac arrest soon follows, and even though she eventually manages to save him, it’s too early to tell whether or not he’ll make a full recovery. Henk may have kept the details of his accident a secret but, with his injuries so severe, will Brad be able to live with the guilt of what he’s done?

Come what may

As the day draws on, speculation begins to grow over what’s transpired between Brad and Henk. With Leah looking on disapprovingly, Dan, Don, Irene and Colleen make their best guesses, wondering whether or not the wedding might have to be postponed in light of Henk’s condition.

It’s certainly something Sally’s looking to consider. “Look, are you sure that this is what you really want to do? You know, go ahead as if nothing has happened?” she asks Brad, who’s surprisingly carefree about the whole thing. Far from being greatly concerned that he’s managed to put his best man in hospital, he’s just relieved that he’s not likely to be implicated in the attack. As far as he’s concerned, there’s nothing that can get in the way of his big day – or is there?

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