In her latest attempt to break up her father Toadie’s marriage to Terese – by tracking down her dad’s ex-wife Melanie – Nell convinces Melanie’s friend Sharon to reveal her whereabouts in Neighbours.
Desperate to find Melanie (Lucinda Cowden), Nell (Ayisha Salem-Towner) skips school to secretly hunt her down. But, totally in over her head, she encounters a dangerous intruder at Melanie’s supposed address.
When a panicked Toadie (Ryan Moloney) discovers Nell has skipped school and isn’t answering his calls, he raises the alarm.
“When she doesn’t answer his calls, Toadie starts to get really worried,” Ryan, 43, tells TV WEEK.
After Nell’s friend JJ (Riley Bryant) finally divulges where she is, Toadie’s worst nightmare becomes reality.
“Sharon [Jessica Muschamp] helping Nell in this way was reckless and has put her in danger,” Ryan explains.
When Sergeant Andrew Rodwell (Lloyd Will) kicks in the front door at the address they were given, he, Toadie and Terese (Rebekah Elmaloglou) find no sign of Nell, only her backpack and a smashed phone. With no sign of his daughter, poor Toadie’s mind is in turmoil.
After Nell’s neighbours Haz (Shiv Palekar) and Holly (Lucinda Armstrong Hall) join the search party, they make a stunning discovery.
“Toadie’s neighbours are like family,” Ryan explains. “They continue to always show up for the good and the bad moments in his life – their support means everything.”
Will this bring Toadie face-to-face with Melanie for the first time since she walked out on their marriage? And, if it does, what will this mean for Toadie and Terese’s future?
“Toadie was shocked when Melanie left him,” Ryan reveals. “There were so many unanswered questions.”
Elsewhere in Erinsborough, Reece (Mischa Barton) and Byron’s (Xavier Molyneux) love is going strong, as Reece stands up to her father Conrad’s right-hand woman Tess (Anica Calida), who’s proved an unwelcome presence.
Refusing to return home to America and give up the search for her missing sister Krista, Reece is exhilarated by Byron’s outlook on life and declares to never return to who she used to be.
Will she give up being the heiress to Conrad’s fortune to remain in Erinsborough and take her relationship with Byron to the next level?