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In NCIS: Sydney season 2, episode 7, entitled Breathless, the team investigates the on-stage death of U.S. Navy choir singer Sally Poole during a performance with pop artist Nova Sykes. What at first seems to be a devastating allergic reaction turns out to be a well-planned murder.
The question on everyone's mind is: Did Nova's father, Jeff Sykes, murder Sally to keep his daughter under his control? The reply is a decisive yes. Jeff saw Sally as a threat — the individual facilitating Nova's flight from his controlling clutches. His desire to control led him to arrange for Sally's death, utilizing others to do the deed. However, in so doing, he miscalculated both Nova and the NCIS team, precipitating his final downfall.
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NCIS: Sydney season 2- The Death that sparked the investigation
NCIS: Sydney season 2 episode 7 starts by having Nova Sykes and Sally Poole stage a duet at a concert. However, Sally ends up collapsing in the middle. Nova rushes towards her with her EpiPen, and it's all too late. Sally dies right on stage amidst thousands of witnesses.
Both of the women were known to have serious nut allergies, and an autopsy verifies that Sally's death was due to peanut oil exposure from the concert's smoke machine. From that point, NCIS knew it wasn't an accident — it was murder.
The investigation first focuses on the theory that Nova was the target. She also had a nut allergy and had almost died on stage months prior. Nova had since begun exposure therapy, which could have kept her from reacting as violently as Sally.
This tidbit indicates that the person who had tampered with the smoke machine could have been attempting to kill Nova, and Sally was just an unfortunate byproduct. Things become more complicated when the team finds out that Sally and Nova had been dating and were going to leave it all behind — the Navy and Nova's tour, that is.
NCIS: Sydney season 2- A stalker or something worse?
Cassie Hayes, Nova's deranged stalker, was an initial suspect. She's got a restraining order against her and a history of unstable, threatening behavior. She's an obvious suspect at first glance. But upon investigation, the team discovers that Cassie didn't purchase tickets to the show — they were given to her.
For all her delusions, Cassie isn't the killer. However, she accidentally steers the team in the correct direction when she mentions she knew about Nova and Sally's clandestine affair — something that Nova's father, Jeff, claimed to have no knowledge of.
As the investigation comes back to Jeff, the pieces begin to fall into place. Jeff has control over every part of Nova's life, from her career and money to her personal decisions. When Nova attempted to escape with Sally, Jeff went to extreme measures.
He instructed his bodyguard to spike the smoke machine, knowing that Nova and Sally have the same allergy. Sally passed away, but Nova lived, a calculated gamble on Jeff's part. He hoped that the trauma would push Nova back under his control.
NCIS: Sydney season 2- Blue's part in Nova's escape
Agent Blue, who is herself so secretive about her history, becomes personally interested in keeping Nova safe. When Jeff tries to bully Blue into signing a forged suicide note after trapping her at Nova's hotel, Blue defends herself and stabs him with the very pen he holds out to her.
Meanwhile, Nova entices Jeff outside long enough for Blue's neighbors to summon the police. It's an empowering moment in which both women take back control from the man who sought to enclose them.
With Jeff behind bars on murder and coercion charges, Nova is finally free — not only from guardianship under the law, but from the emotional prison her father built. Sally was killed, but she became the catalyst for the change that allowed Nova to escape.
Blue, too, has her secret past that is suggested when Doc figures out her name probably originated with one of Nova's songs. He chooses to protect her secret, knowing an escapee like himself when he sees one.
NCIS: Sydney season 2 episode 7 ends on a more lighthearted note, as the team gathers in the office for a karaoke party, still haunted and strangely invigorated by Nova's words.
Catch the latest episodes of NCIS: Sydney season 2 streaming on Paramount.
