Despite the fact that we’ve watched five whole seasons of Virgin River drama, only a matter of months have passed in the world of the show. The weeks that elapse in Season 5 are perhaps the show’s most jam-packed yet — as well as its most devastating. Multiple disasters afflict our favorite Northern California residents: A massive wildfire put plenty of townspeople’s lives in peril, while Mel (Alexandra Breckenridge) and Jack (Martin Henderson) tragically suffer a miscarriage.

Thankfully, the small-town bond is one that can’t easily be broken. As star Tim Matheson (Doc) told Tudum on the Virgin River set in 2022, “One of the great things about Virgin River is that it is a place where people care for each other.”

What that means is that after the air clears, everyone will be there to help their friends pick up the pieces and rebuild. Read on to find out what happens in Season 5. If you’re looking for what happened in the two holiday-themed episodes on Nov. 30, scroll down (or click the link below!). 

What happens to Mel and Jack’s baby? 

Mel, a nurse practitioner and trained midwife, lost her first child in a stillbirth, so when she learned she was pregnant in Season 4, she knew her pregnancy would be high risk. Unfortunately, she suffers a miscarriage while helping save her neighbors as massive wildfires tear through town. 

“I felt like it was an important story to tell,” Breckenridge told Tudum on the Virgin River set in 2022. “Not everyone gets their miracle baby. And so, talking to a friend of mine who had dealt with fertility issues, it seemed as though we were going to be talking about it in an honest way that would be appreciated by women who have experienced that. It was very hard for me, though. There was a lot of crying. It’s a really sad storyline, but in the end, I think Mel comes out of it on the other side in a better way.”

Does Mel still want to have kids after her miscarriage? 

While Mel wants more than anything to become a parent, she tells Jack that she can’t cope with the extreme fear that would come with another pregnancy — so they’re going to have to figure out another way to expand their family.

“Obviously, it’s hit Mel a lot harder in some ways than it has hit Jack, but I think that they find their way through it together as a couple,” Breckenridge told Tudum. “So it just shows you how much stronger their bond is through this really tragic experience.”

And all of this happens shortly after Jack’s ex, Charmaine (Lauren Hammersley), reveals she lied about him being the father of her twins.

Said Henderson, “[Parenthood is] a new dream that’s just ripped away from [Jack] so suddenly, so he puts a lot of onus on the idea of then figuring out another way to have this family. In his heart, I think he’s married to this idea that they’re going to have children no matter how that comes.”

Who’s actually the father of Charmaine’s twins? 

Once you discover the true identity of Charmaine’s babies’ daddy, you’ll understand why she lied about Jack being their father: It’s actually drug kingpin Calvin (David Cubitt), who we thought was dead, but — surprise! — he’s not, and he’s ready to be in his children’s lives. 

“I screamed,” Hammersley told Tudum on the Virgin River set in 2022. “I was like, ‘What? Oh my God.’ Actually, I’m really excited about it. I love the idea of Charmaine going to the dark side of the river. I think it’s going to be a lot of fun, and I’m stoked to see what happens. Is Calvin going to try and turn a new leaf? [Cubitt] and I are both really excited about it.”

Remind me: Who is Calvin? 

Before Melissa (Barbara Pollard), there was Calvin — the head of the Virgin River-area drug operation who recruited Brady (Benjamin Hollingsworth) into his illegal cannabis ring (well, into the lumberyard front for his illegal cannabis ring, but still). We thought he was dead after his boat exploded in Season 4, but it turns out he’s going to be much harder to get rid of than that.

Writer and producer Erin Cardillo told Tudum on set in 2022 that one of the newest questions this season of Virgin River asks is, “Will Charmaine and Calvin actually raise the twins together?”

Joked writer and producer Richard Keith last year, “Look, now that pot is legal in California, could he just open a dispensary? And they live happily ever after?”

And who is Melissa?

Once Calvin was out of the picture, the big boss came to town to take care of business. And that big, scary boss is none other than Melissa Montgomery, a seemingly nice older lady whose brother, Virgin River local Nick (Keith MacKechnie), is Jack’s glamping business partner (and seemingly has no idea what his sister was involved in).

What happens in the aftermath of the massive wildfire that threatens Virgin River?

While fires do end up torching parts of town, everyone bands together — led by mayor Hope (Annette O’Toole) and her new chief of staff, Lizzie (Sarah Dugdale) — to rescue those in the fire’s path, to save victims of burns and smoke inhalation, and later to help re-house those who were displaced and re-equip those who lost everything. 

Lizzie’s transition from troubled teen to town leader is one of Dugdale’s favorite parts of playing her character. “Going from that bratty teen girl who thinks she’s the center of attention, and then getting thawed out by being in Virgin River and realizing that people care about her and she’s valued here, to having an important job in government and being mentored by someone like Hope, who I think is a badass woman who speaks her mind,” has been a dream to play, Dugdale told Tudum last year.

Is Lizzie pregnant?

Mel and Jack might not be the only ones growing their family in Virgin River. Toward the end of the finale, Lizzie tells her boyfriend, Denny (Kai Bradbury), that she thinks she might be pregnant — but we had to wait for the Christmas episodes to learn for sure that yes, she is expecting.

Where are Mel and Jack moving?

While standing in the ashes where Lilly’s farm once stood — the place where Mel and Jack had their first kiss — the couple decide to buy the land and build a home for themselves and their longed-for family. With Mel back at the clinic and Jack running his eponymous bar, they’re settling in Virgin River for good.

How is Doc’s health? 

While Doc (Matheson) initially hired Dr. Cameron Hayek (Mark Ghanimé) to potentially take over his small-town practice someday, he didn’t actually tell Cam that — nor did he tell the younger man that he’s been suffering from an eye disorder that makes his work an increasingly difficult challenge. But Doc loses his vision while treating patients during the fire, forcing him to confess the whole situation to Cameron. While Cameron thinks over his future, Doc secures a place in a clinical trial that might stave off his macular degeneration.

How is Hope after her traumatic brain injury? 

Hope is healing well after her TBI, although some overly concerned town residents decide to remove her from the office of mayor. Don’t worry, she’s sworn in again after she helps the city during the fire. And thank goodness, because as O’Toole told Tudum, Hope’s work is her life. 

“There’s a scene early on when they’ve taken away the mayorship and she says, ‘Being mayor is not what I do, it’s who I am.’ And it’s really true. For a lot of people that would be unhealthy, because we need family, we need [full lives]. But she has all that too, especially now that she and Doc are back together.”

Although Hope and Doc spent many years apart, their respective ailments have helped bring them back together. Said Matheson, “It’s the thing that happens as we get older: We get a little wiser because we start to realize how short a time we have and how fragile we are and how you want to make the most and the best of it all. I think [Hope and Doc] found a new connection of devotion to each other, him to her and she to him.”

Who is Kaia?

After a few flings throughout the seasons, town chef Preacher (Colin Lawrence) meets firefighter Kaia (Kandyse McClure) — and by the end of the season (and a bit of drama, like Preacher discovering she’s still in the process of getting a divorce), they officially start dating. She even takes a new job close to Virgin River — but that could turn out to be bad news for Preacher, because his new girlfriend might have stumbled upon the dead body he once hid.

“[Kaia] is focused, driven. She is a thrill-seeker, and that brings Preacher a whole new take on his life, something that I believe he has always had in his past, but since he came back from Iraq, he’s bottled that lifestyle,” Lawrence told Tudum on set. “Kaia gives him permission to enjoy life again. She keeps me on my toes. He’s always been the one to take care of other people, to put his interests on the back burner, but exploring this relationship with Kaia is exciting.”

What’s the deal with Paige? Who’s Vince, again?

Vince (Steve Bacic) is the twin brother of Wes (also played by Bacic), the abusive ex of Preacher’s former flame, Paige (Lexa Doig). We learn immediately when the season begins that Preacher and Paige didn’t kill Vince, and thanks to cop Mike (Marco Grazzini), Vince is under arrest. But now that Vince is in custody, he’s told the police that Paige killed Wes and Preacher hid his body — which is, uh, kinda true, and might come back to haunt the two of them.

“You never want to close something like that,” Lawrence told Tudum. “Originally I’d always thought that Paige may have been an endgame for Preacher, but maybe that relationship has just gone into becoming strong friends, a strong bond that will never be broken. Will it continue? Will they be seen again? Who knows? That’s the joy of TV. Anything’s possible.”

Speaking of couples, are Muriel and Cameron really together? 

They sure are! Sparks fly between former actor Muriel (Teryl Rothery) and Dr. Hayek, but they’re both scared Doc will disapprove of their May–December romance now that she works as an admin at the clinic. When they officially get Doc’s permission to date, they make their romance public by kissing at the Labor Day carnival. Star Henderson called the coupling “delightfully shocking,” something he hopes fans enjoy.

Is Brady still involved with drugs?

Jack and Preacher’s Marine buddy, Brady, spent Season 5 working with Mike to take down drug cartel leader Melissa, but he found it nearly impossible to get his friends to believe he’d gone legit. In the finale, Melissa kidnaps Brady, and Mike is shot in the rescue mission, leaving him temporarily incapacitated and unable to corroborate Brady’s story. Thankfully, Mike wakes up to confirm it all — but it might be too late for Brady and girlfriend Brie (Zibby Allen), who breaks up with him and begins dating Mike.

Why did Brie break up with Brady? 

Brie connects with Mike while at court in Sacramento testifying against the former co-worker who assaulted her. “Brie is a lady of her word and she has a strong penchant for justice. She’s a lawyer, after all,” Allen told Tudum — which is why she’s decided to escalate the assault charges. It’s also why Brie breaks up with Brady when she thinks he’s still involved in Virgin River’s drug game (and Mike can’t tell her that they’re working together). 

Grazzini told Tudum: “There’s always been a natural chemistry between Mike and Brie,” and when they connect in Sacramento “it maybe gets them into hot water. But maybe they like hot water.” Added Allen, “Mike’s this grounding, consistent presence, and Brie gets to discover that in a way that’s so beneficial. It’s something she’s needed and hasn’t been able to articulate or know until she’s experiencing it in real time. Mike has it together.”

Who is Ava?

Ava (Libby Osler) is another of Lilly’s daughters, who moves back to Virgin River to take care of her little sister (baby Chloe, born during Season 1) and help sell the family farm. Ava has endometriosis, and by the end of the season, she decides to get a hysterectomy and freeze her eggs.

What happens in the Christmas episodes?

Mel and Jack go on a scavenger hunt to find her father, but the man they find — Everett (John Allen Nelson), who worked in the post office around the time Mel was born — insists he’s not that man. At the end of the second episode, he confesses the truth to Mel and says he has something important to tell her.

Family drama strikes the Sheridans — Jack’s divorced parents are fighting, and his other sisters are snowed out of making it — and Lizzie, who struggles to tell her mother she’s pregnant. The two clash once she learns the truth, but with the help of Doc and Hope’s absolute faith in Lizzie, her mom comes around eventually. Cam’s ex comes back to town, now sober, offering the life he once hoped to have with her, but he turns her down to stay with Muriel, who organized a lovely Virgin River Christmas pageant.

Kaia gets a job as the new fire chief in Virgin River, so she’s here for good. But will she stay once Preacher tells her the truth about what he did for Paige? And now that the DA is bringing charges against Paige, will she be able to stay in hiding?  Brady’s new girlfriend, Lark (Elise Gatien), seems to be devoted to him — but little does he know that she’s actually working with Calvin’s right-hand man, Jimmy (Ian Tracey).

Finally, Charmaine gives birth to the twins, and Mel gets the pony she always wanted for Christmas as a child. Well, technically, it’s an adorable puppy named Pony, but still.

Who is Mel’s father? 

At the end of Episode 10, we flashed forward a few months from Labor Day to Christmastime. Mel’s sister, Joey (Jenny Cooper), tells her about a cache of love letters she’s found, written between their mother and a mysterious man in Virgin River — a man whom Joey suspects could be Mel’s father. While the man Mel thinks might be her birth father denies it at first, by the end of the Christmas episodes he confesses that he is, in fact, her biological dad. And he’s got something important to tell her! What exactly that is we won’t know until Season 6, because that is what’s called a cliff-hanger, folks. “As soon as we figure it out, we’re going to let you know,” Keith told Tudum on set in 2022.

Are Lizzie and Denny having a boy or a girl?

It’s a girl!

“I think that Lizzie’s probably happy about that because then she can dress her up and do all things girly,” Dugdale told Tudum. “And I’m sure that she’ll be hiking with Denny eventually — rock climbing and whatnot. She’ll be a very well-balanced child.”

How do Doc and Hope feel about becoming grandparents?

As they say in the beginning of the first Christmas episode, they’re excited — but cautiously so. Denny and Lizzie are still very young, and Doc and Hope know how much work they have ahead of them. “For a man who never really thought he had a family, all of a sudden discovered he had a grandson and now a great-grandchild,” it’s a shocking but welcome development, Matheson told Tudum on set. “But I also adore Lizzie, and she was very supportive to Doc when Hope was injured and she took care of him. I’m very hopeful and excited and I’ll do everything I can to support whatever they need.”

Said O’Toole, “I think Hope, at the beginning, was not happy. I think she felt like, ‘Wait a minute, you’re 19. You’re finding your way, and this is going to be very difficult. It’s going to change your life in ways you have no idea.’ But I think in the four months that have passed since Hope has found out, I think she’s come to realize that anything is possible. And just because she didn’t do it and it wasn’t right for her, doesn’t mean it’s not right for Lizzie.”

What happened with Preacher and Kaia?

Things seem to be going well between the chef and his firefighter amour — that is until the cops identify Wes’ body and he has to explain himself to Kaia. “I think, with Season 6, Preacher needs to be in a place of content, happiness, and he hopes that Kaia sticks around,” Lawrence said. “He’s had a revolving door of romance and heartbreak. So I think Preacher just really just needs to maybe start off happy and end happy. Who knows what that story is? But I’m hoping that it involves Kaia.”

Who is Brady’s new love?

Poor, poor Brady. Can the guy catch a break? “Brady lives between a rock and a hard place,” said Hollingsworth. “Of course he falls in love with the one woman out there trying to con him for his money. And it’s also Jimmy, the guy who shanked him in prison. Of course it is!”

Will Cam and Muriel’s relationship last?

Said Keith, “They’re in for an adventure, but they’re a couple we’re excited to see grow together, hopefully.”

Besides, joked Henderson, “I want to see what goes on with Muriel and Cameron. I really want to see a love scene between them. Is that weird?”

Now that Charmaine’s twins have finally arrived, could she and Calvin raise them together?

Quipped Keith, “Look, now that pot is legal in California, could he just open a dispensary and they live happily ever after?” It doesn’t seem likely, but you never know!

Will there be a Virgin River Season 6? 

There will! The series has already been renewed for Season 6 — and that’s a good thing, too, because there are plenty more burning questions left to answer when it returns for Season 6.

Producer and writer Richard Keith told Tudum on set that “yes, the characters do go through some pretty terrible things, but there’s always a happy ending. It may not be the happy ending they were expecting, but they find their way to a happy place that in some ways might be happier than if they’d ended up where they thought they would to begin with.”