Virgin River season 5 recap guide: All 12 episodes explained

Season 5 episode 2 recap: Songbird

The second episode of Virgin River season 5 wastes no time showing us what goes down between Jack and Charmaine. Once he arrives at her place, they begin talking about the situation and Jack admits that Charmaine humiliated him and broke his heart. He says he would’ve done anything for the boys. In a surprise response, Charmaine tells Jack that now he knows how she felt. He broke her heart when he fell in love with Mel right in front of her eyes, and she felt so alone when she found out that she was pregnant, that she decided to lie.

Charmaine doesn’t reveal who the real father of the twins is, but she does say it was a one-off thing and he’s not fit to be a dad. She explains that she lied to give the boys a future with a good father because Jack would be a great one. Jack is able to sympathize with Charmaine but tells her that he doesn’t forgive her before leaving.

Brie tells Brady about the rock being thrown through her window, convinced it had to be Don. But Brady deflects, telling her it was probably a group of kids. He believes it was one of Melissa’s people, but he can’t tell Brie that.

Mel goes for a run and starts having flashbacks again, this time remembering a memory between her and her sister Joey. Her mother passed by this time and the two of them look at old photos while listening to Fleetwood Mac. Her memory is interrupted by Mel’s doctor, who calls her to tell her they’ve gotten Ava an appointment with a specialist.

Brie and Jack go on a hike together and talk about Charmaine and Mel before Brie tells Jack about Don. Jack apologizes for what happened to her and calls her a superhero, though he’s surprised she doesn’t want him to come to the courtroom when she testifies. She explains that if she doesn’t win, Jack will freak out, and that’s not what she wants. She wants his support, not his protection, assuring him that Brady will be there for her. Brie also asks Jack to give Brady a second chance, and he agrees to a double-date dinner with them and Mel.

Mel drives Ava to see the specialist, Dr. Kane, and they grab lunch on the way back to Virgin River to talk about what happened. The two ladies get to know each other a bit, and Ava tells Mel that she had surgery for endometriosis a few years back, but now it’s back. The tissue is spreading and her pain has returned, which explains the episode she had at Jack’s bar. The doctor told her she should consider a hysterectomy, but Ava doesn’t know how she feels.

At the clinic, Doc is starting to feel Mel’s absence. Cameron isn’t fully filling in, ignoring the non-medical tasks like filing their insurance claims. Cameron pushes back on the request and tells Doc he’s not a medical biller and essentially doesn’t want to have to do anything that’s not in his job description, which frustrates Doc.

Brady shows up at the lumber yard and yells at Melissa and the group for getting Brie involved. She doesn’t deny she’s the one who had the rock thrown through her window, and instead tells him he has to stay late to help with another shipment. The guy Bert tried to help on the side of the road is there working, and we find out his name is Gene.

Working alongside Jeb, Brady warns him about the bosses and says he should come to him if there’s ever trouble. They agree to watch each other’s backs, and Jeb offers to fill in for him that evening so Brady can go on the double date.

Hope prepares to give a speech to the town council to try and convince everyone she should stay on as the mayor, and Denny and Lizzie help her come up with something that’s both convincing and emotional. She explains to them why being mayor of Virgin River is so important to her, and they tell her she must include that in the speech.

Charmaine goes for a check-in with Doc, and everything looks great with her pregnancy. Doc supports Charmaine amid all the drama, telling her not to worry about the ongoing gossip. She confides in him and tells him she’s continued to make bad life choices, reminding herself of her mom. But Doc won’t stand for the negativity and comforts her by saying nice things about her and her mom. Meanwhile, Muriel tells Cameron he should stand his ground and offers to help file the insurance claims.

Cameron eventually talks to Doc and tells him he needs to start treating him like a professional doctor. Doc agrees but says they need to figure out a way to pick up Mel’s slack. It doesn’t take long for them to realize Muriel could be a great fit, as she’s already been around helping out, and they offer her a part-time job.

Jack and Mel talk more about Charmaine at the bar and Mel says he needs to forgive her so he can officially move on.

Mel then talks to Ava again, apologizing if she got too into her business after the doctor’s appointment. She tells her that she’s had infertility issues of her own and her mom died of cancer as well. Ava opens up and explains that she never wanted kids, but now that she knows she might not ever be able to have them, she’s conflicted.

Hope gives her speech at the community garden opening, which is dedicated to Lilly. She tells everyone she wants to stay on as the mayor of Virgin River, and the crowd seems receptive. She gets a round of applause and does a great job. But will she stay on? We’ll find out by the end of the episode.

Charmaine shows up at Jack and Mel’s house and apologizes to Mel, also congratulating them on their pregnancy. Mel is quick to forgive her and goes to get ready for dinner so Charmaine and Jack can talk alone. Jack takes responsibility for his actions while they were together, like leading her on when he didn’t want to be with her, and apologizes. Charmaine seems really satisfied and thanks him for saying sorry.

During their double-date dinner, Jack thanks Brady for being there for Brie. When Brie and Mel are in the kitchen preparing dessert and Jack and Brady are alone for a moment, Brady asks if they’ll ever be cool again. Jack has a simple answer: it’s up to Brady. He must show with his actions that they can be friends again. Brady then gets a text message from Jeb asking for his ETA.

Muriel calls up Hope and tells her that the council voted against her — everyone but Muriel, that is — and now she’s out as mayor. Doc gets home just in time to hear the bad news.

Back at home that night, Mel is still thinking about her mom and tells Jack all about her. They listen to the song “Songbird” by Fleetwood Mac, and they get up and dance to it in their living room. She also tells him about the sister she lost, Chloe.

In the closing moments of the second episode, Brady gets back to the lumber yard and finds Jeb on the floor. There’s an open bag of fentanyl next to him, suggesting he’s dead.

Written by Natalie Zamora