Joanna is struggling with life as a new mum, and the flight to Melbourne is a huge additional strain on her. Baby son Noah cries the whole way, to the very apparent dismay of their fellow travellers. Exhausted and emotional from the journey, the couple finally arrive in Australia, where unforeseen events - and the white light of public scrutiny - change their lives forever.

Joanna finds herself at the centre of a media circus as the world's press descends on Wilde Bay to report on the disappearance. She becomes obsessed with people forming theories about her child's fate on the internet, adopting a fake identity to join in the discussion. As the police investigation continues, she and Alistair are forced to adopt different strategies for coping with the constant intrusion, a pressure which threatens to break their relationship.

The police investigation begins to focus on Joanna and Alistair, as Peter gets a warrant to search their house and belongings. The couple look back over the day they first arrived in Australia in a desperate effort to work out what happened to their missing child, and agree to a television interview in the hope of sharing their side of the story with the world. However, as Joanna's behaviour grows increasingly unstable, a rattled Alistair goes to the police station, determined to find out what they know.

Joanna and Alistair try to rebuild their lives in the aftermath of the tragic events, but they cannot avoid drifting further and further apart. An unexpected delivery brings long-buried memories flooding back for Joanna, but the revelation calls everything they thought they knew into question as the truth about their child's disappearance finally emerges.