In 2004, Tom narrowly escaped death when the police station is bombed with Jo Parrish (Jane Allsop) and Clancy Freeman (Michael Isaacs) still inside. When he later found Grace raped and murdered, this pushed him over the edge, causing him to seek vengeance against Barry Baxter (Danny Adcock), the man he suspected of committing both crimes. As he continued his single-minded campaign against the Baxters, his colleagues began to worry about the change in his personality, especially when he apparently tried to drown Barry's daughter, Tarni (Melissa Andersen).