Bella (Courtney Miller) has been working with her former mentor Emmett for three months in New York, which has been difficult for Nikau (Kawakawa Fox-Reo) (JR Reyne). But as Tane (Ethan Browne) becomes involved with a group of motorcyclists who pose a threat to the safety of the entire family, his predicament is about to get worse.
Tane and the gym are the targets of Tex (Lucas Lineham) and Marty (Ben Woodbiker )’s gang’s money laundering scheme. They need to make sure Tane reimburses Ari (Rob Kipa-Williams) for the $150,000 he took during the armed robbery that placed him in an eight-year prison sentence years ago.
Although it pains him to do so, Nikau realises that the best way to keep Bella safe is to break up with her over the phone and tell her not to come home or try to contact him again. The Paratas soon decide to send Chloe (Sam Barrett) off to New Zealand for her own safety.
A few days later, a shocked Mackenzie (Emily Weir) approaches Dean (Patrick O’Connor) on the beach and inquires as to if he has heard the news from Bella. She is saddened when Nikau ended their relationship. As a result of his confusion and concern for Bella, Dean decides to confront Nikau about his strange behaviour.
Nikau, however, refuses to back down and orders Dean to stay out of his affairs.
He makes it plain that they won’t be coming back, and when Dean phones Bella to check in, he learns that she has made arrangements to remain in New York…
Will she ever return to the Bay, or has Nikau made sure she never leaves that side of the globe?