Nicole begs Deimos not to hurt Andre
Theo entered the Brady Pub as Claire was in the process of taking a selfie. He jumped into the shot, and she posted the resulting image online.
Keeping a firm grip on her cell phone, Claire informed Theo that Valerie was in the bathroom but had asked for a quiet spot for two a few minutes earlier. Claire was prepared to capture Valerie's mystery date on camera so Theo could show the image to Abe, but Theo expressed reservations about the idea. "I mean, Ciara's right -- I need to move on," he conceded, explaining that he had recently talked to Ciara about the matter, and she had helped him realize that spying on Valerie was a waste of his time.
When Theo began to praise Ciara's insight, Claire snapped, "She's not your girlfriend; I am." Taken aback, Theo wondered if Claire was upset with Ciara for some reason. Claire insisted that she loved Ciara. "I just don't think that she always knows what's best for you," she continued. "And you do?" he guessed. She reasoned that he had nothing to feel guilty about because he had simply been trying to protect his father from someone who had given him bad vibes -- and, in fact, if anything, he'd actually had a responsibility, as a devoted son, to listen to his instincts and investigate the matter for his father's sake.
Meanwhile, Valerie emerged from the bathroom and took a seat at the bar. Claire waited eagerly for Valerie's date to arrive, but, to her disappointment, the person who joined Valerie at the bar a short time later was Kayla. The women soon noticed Theo and Claire and walked over to their table to say hello. Kayla explained that she was meeting with Valerie in an effort to persuade her to accept a permanent job at the hospital. Valerie stressed, mainly for Theo's sake, that nothing was set in stone yet.
Valerie and Kayla soon excused themselves, guessing that Theo and Claire were on a date and would like some privacy, but once the coast was clear, Claire turned her attention not to Theo but instead to her cell phone. Annoyed, he made it clear that he didn't appreciate being ignored in favor of social media. "Well, I'm sorry, but [our picture has] a hundred and twenty-seven likes already!" she explained, urging him to check out the comments they were getting from her followers.
Theo wondered if that was all Claire cared about. She tried to argue that it felt good to get positive feedback from strangers, hoping to sway him with hints about the praise he was getting for his good looks, but he didn't seem interested. When she asked if he thought she was shallow, he hesitantly admitted that he did indeed feel that way about her sometimes. "I'm just being honest," he added when she started to get defensive. "Sometimes your idea of honesty is just plain mean!" she countered.
Theo started to excuse himself, realizing that he had just ruined his date with Claire, but she insisted that she wanted him to stay. He argued that there was no point in staying if she was just going to be glued to her cell phone the whole time, prompting her to promise that she wouldn't look at it again. She started to turn it off to prove that she was being serious, but in the process of doing so, she noticed one last comment, which she read aloud to Theo: "It makes me sick when people date out of their race. This is everything wrong with our country these days."
Furious, Theo asked for Claire's cell phone so he could respond to the "hater." Valerie, who had stuck around after her meeting with Kayla had ended, overheard and advised him not to do that. She explained that she had once been in an interracial relationship herself and had experienced some of the same backlash for it. "Whatever it is they're saying, it's got nothing to do with the two of you; it's about them. And sometimes the best response to ignorance is no response at all," she continued.
Theo argued that if he didn't respond to the comment, the person who had posted it would be given the impression that it was okay to say such things. Valerie conceded that she could understand the urge to retaliate. She advised Theo and Claire to at least take some time to think about what they wanted to say before posting a response. She added that the teens seemed like a sweet couple to her. "And if I've learned anything, then what I know for sure is that nothing knocks down hate better than love," she added.
After Valerie returned to the bar to retrieve her purse, Claire asked Theo if he agreed with the idea that love could fight hatred. "Uh...love? I'm...not sure..." he began to respond, hesitant to put a label on his feelings. Meanwhile, Valerie returned to say goodbye. Claire apologized for the way she and Theo had been treating Valerie, acknowledging, "I guess we're kind of haters, too." Valerie told Claire not to worry about it. Theo asked Claire to give him a minute alone with Valerie. After Claire left, Theo made it clear that although his opinion didn't really matter, he wasn't against the idea of Valerie staying in Salem. She was pleased to hear that.
At the Kiriakis mansion, Sonny tried to calm Deimos down. Meanwhile, Nicole made her presence known, demanding to know what was going on. "Business," Deimos replied. "Your business is killing people?" Chloe asked incredulously. Surprised to see that Chloe was awake and out of the hospital, Deimos wondered what she was doing at the mansion. "She came here to see me," Nicole explained. Eyeing Chloe suspiciously, Deimos guessed that she and Nicole had a lot to talk about.
Chloe wondered if Deimos was really going to try to pretend that he hadn't just been caught threatening to murder someone. She pointed out that there were children in the mansion who could have heard the threats, but he dismissed the concern, insisting that she, of all people, had no right to lecture him about how to behave around children, given what she had done. Confused, Nicole demanded to know why Deimos was attacking Chloe. "Oh, she knows why," he tersely replied.
Nicole insisted on speaking to Deimos alone for a minute, so Chloe and Sonny went to the foyer and shut the living room door behind them. Once the coast was clear, Nicole reminded Deimos that Chloe had just emerged from a coma. "Well, then, maybe she should be in the hospital [instead of] here, attacking me!" he countered. Sighing, she decided to change the subject, demanding an explanation for his earlier threats. He told her about what Andre had done. "So now what? You destroy something of his? When does it end?" she asked. "When it's finished," he replied.
"Do you even hear what you sound like?" Nicole wondered. Forging ahead, she asked Deimos to clarify his earlier comments about Chloe's behavior. "Why don't you ask her?" he suggested. Shaking her head in disbelief, Nicole insisted that Deimos was spiraling out of control with his inexplicable attacks against her best friend and his shocking threats of violence. He unapologetically reminded her that she had known who he was before she had agreed to marry him. She conceded that she didn't expect him to be an angel, especially since she wasn't exactly an angel herself. She insisted, however, that breaking a few rules was different than committing murder.
Deimos assured Nicole that he had simply been venting earlier. She guessed that it would be difficult for him to convince Chloe that he wasn't capable of murder, but he dismissively insisted that he didn't care about Chloe's opinion. "Well, I do! She's my best friend, and if she decides to keep Parker and Holly away from me, Deimos --" Nicole began. He quickly interrupted, vowing that he wasn't going to let that happen. He added that he ultimately didn't care about anyone except Nicole, and he was going to do everything in his power to give her everything she had ever wanted.
"That's not gonna happen unless you promise not to hurt Andre. I have lost too many people that I love. I cannot have any more violence in my life!" Nicole insisted. Deimos hugged her and told her what she wanted to hear. Satisfied, she excused herself so she could check on Chloe, sighing as she admitted to him, "I just wish Chloe [hadn't witnessed your earlier outburst]. It's gonna be hard enough getting her to accept you [without that]." He suggested that Chloe might not be the kind of friend Nicole thought she was.
Brady was shocked when he entered the mansion and found Chloe standing in the foyer with Sonny. Sonny filled Brady in on what was happening in the living room then excused himself so he could get Arianna and remove her from the situation. After Sonny left, Brady wondered why Chloe was at the mansion. "I'm here to talk to Nicole," she explained. "About Holly?" he guessed. She confirmed the suspicion, claiming that she wanted to thank Nicole for helping her deliver and name Holly. "You woke up and snuck out of the hospital to say thanks?" he asked skeptically.
Chloe started to get defensive, and when Brady tried to calm her down, she collapsed in his arms. Brady carried Chloe into the living room and placed her on the couch then contacted Kayla to let her know what was going on. Meanwhile, Nicole asked Deimos to get a wet towel for Chloe. Kayla arrived a short time later and insisted on taking Chloe back to the hospital, making it clear that Chloe never should have left in the first place without a doctor's permission. Nicole wanted to ride to the hospital with Chloe in the ambulance that was already on its way to the mansion, but Kayla refused to allow that, having sensed that she had walked in on a tense situation.
Later, at the hospital, Nicole waited with Brady for news about Chloe's condition. Nicole fretted that she didn't want to be forced to choose between her best friend and her fiancé. Brady warned that it was going to be really hard to convince Chloe to let Parker and Holly anywhere near Deimos after what had happened earlier, but Nicole vowed to find a way to change Chloe's mind. Nicole started to ask Brady if he knew why Chloe had been determined to talk to her earlier, but as he was trying to dodge the question, Kayla interrupted to announce that Chloe needed plenty of rest but was going to be okay.
Nancy entered Chloe's room with Holly and demanded to know why Chloe had left the hospital without a doctor's permission. Chloe explained that she had been eager to tell Nicole the truth about Holly right away. "[But] I couldn't, and now I don't know if I ever can," she added with a sigh. Nicole soon poked her head in the room to check on Chloe, who asked Nancy for some privacy.
After Nancy left, Chloe agreed to let Nicole hold Holly. As Nicole cradled the child in her arms, she tried to get an explanation for Chloe's earlier visit to the Kiriakis mansion. Chloe seemed to be considering telling Nicole the truth, but before she could say anything, a text message from Deimos appeared on Nicole's cell phone, which Nicole had placed on Chloe's bed before picking up Holly. Chloe reported that Deimos was just apologizing for his earlier behavior. She then claimed that she had simply wanted to thank Nicole for helping her deliver and name Holly.
Nicole insisted that Chloe didn't owe her any thanks for that. Nicole then observed that Holly looked just like Parker. Sighing, Chloe started to tell Nicole that she was sorry. Unable to think of any other reason for the apology, Nicole assured Chloe that she understood why Nancy had kept Holly away from her while Chloe had been comatose. Chloe tried to say something about Deimos, but Nicole stopped her, not wanting to talk about him at that time. "Besides, I believe [that] eventually you will accept my marriage because you'll see how happy he makes me. And you want to know what else makes me happy? Talking to my best friend and holding the sweetest little girl in the whole wide world," Nicole continued, oblivious to Chloe's mounting guilt.
Sonny took Arianna to the Salem Inn to see Adrienne, who was with Justin. When Sonny revealed that things were tense at the Kiriakis mansion, Adrienne decided to take Arianna to the lobby for a cookie so Sonny and Justin could talk privately. After Adrienne left with Arianna, Sonny observed that it looked like Justin had been crying. Justin started to explain how he had gotten hot sauce in his eye while trying to help Adrienne make her food taste better, but he quickly gave up, admitting that the details weren't that important.
Before Sonny could explain what had happened at the Kiriakis mansion earlier, Justin received a phone call from Lucas. Sonny was surprised to hear the rivals having a civil conversation with each other. Justin explained that he and Lucas had realized that, at least for the time being, nothing was more important than Adrienne's health.
When Adrienne returned with Arianna a short time later, Sonny and Justin were in the process of talking about what had happened at the Kiriakis mansion earlier. Adrienne guessed that the matter had something to do with the Kiriakis ship that had sunk earlier that night, but Sonny and Justin insisted that they couldn't get into the details with her because she owned a newspaper and wasn't supposed to be dealing with unnecessary stress at that time. She argued that it was stressful to know that they were keeping secrets from her, but they maintained that she needed to drop the subject.
After Justin and Sonny left, Adrienne started to make some phone calls, hoping to find out exactly what was going on. She soon had to stop, though, because she was yawning too much to carry on a conversation with anyone. Justin returned a short time later and found her asleep on the couch, but she quickly woke up and claimed that she hadn't really been asleep. She was eager to get back to work, but he insisted that it was more important for her to get some rest. He agreed to stay with her for a while. After helping her get more comfortable on the couch, he took a seat on the bed and watched as she drifted off to sleep again.
Sonny returned to the Kiriakis mansion and told Deimos that Arianna was fortunately unaware of what had happened earlier. Deimos suggested that it might be best for Sonny to keep Arianna away from the mansion for a while, explaining, "I have a lot more to say that's not suited [for] young ears." Sonny tried to get Deimos to let the matter go, warning that vendettas could get ugly really quickly. Deimos dismissively countered that Sonny's generation was ambitious but weak. "I don't operate in half measures, Sonny. This isn't a negotiation; it's a war. And if this family is gonna survive, every one of us is gonna have to join the fight," he added.
At the Brady Pub, Kayla talked to Joey about his idea to help Jade. Kayla was not thrilled. When Jade showed up at the pub to meet them, she complained about the fact that she had been kicked out of the apartment at which she had been staying. Joey told Jade that he wanted to show her something, and he escorted Jade and Kayla to a loft apartment.
At the apartment, Kayla informed Jade that she would pay the rent for both Jade and Joey. As Jade squealed with delight, Kayla warned the teens that they would need to prove that they were serious about school. Joey swore that he had already looked into school tutors. Jade promised not to let Kayla down.
Ciara walked into the apartment living room from the bedroom, annoying Jade. When Jade asked why Ciara was in her apartment, Ciara said that Jade would be roommates with her, Claire, and Theo as well. Jade made a snide comment, and Ciara verbally lashed out. With a sigh, Jade apologized. When Jade asked about the bedrooms, Ciara explained that Jade would live in the loft while Ciara would share a room with Claire.
While Jade and Joey looked at his room, Kayla took Ciara aside and offered her house as a refuge if Ciara needed to get away from her roommates. With a nod, Ciara thanked Kayla for the offer then she left. Joey returned to the living room and told Kayla that Jade had a bad habit of talking without thinking first. Kayla countered that she understood that Jade had endured a difficult life, but Jade should be understanding of Ciara's situation. As Joey nodded in agreement, Kayla added that she was worried that Joey was sending Jade mixed messages by living with her. Joey stressed that he wanted to help Jade find her footing.
When Jade returned to the living room, she offered to go to the corner deli and get supplies to make lunch for Joey and Kayla. With a strained smile, Kayla thanked Jade for the offer. After Jade left, Kayla told Joey that she was worried that Joey was spending more time thinking about Jade's life than his own. Joey admitted that it was easier to focus on Jade because he did not believe he deserved to be happy. Joey said he still felt guilty about murdering Ava.
Ciara met up with Shawn at the Brady Pub. With no news about Hope, Ciara confessed that she wanted to drop out of school because she did not think she could concentrate on class with her mother still missing. Shawn suggested that the distraction would be good for Ciara. When Ciara disagreed, Shawn reminded Ciara that after Bo had disappeared, Hope had carried on with her life and focused on living. Reluctantly, Ciara agreed to make an effort with school.
In a Prague hotel lobby, an annoyed Steve complained that Austin and Carrie had let Anna escape. Marlena urged Steve to remain calm. Pacing, Steve said he was frustrated that Hope was still missing. Across the lobby, Rafe called Shawn on the phone to check for news on Hope. Shawn urged Rafe to stay in Prague and pursue Stefano. Shawn confided that he was concerned that Hope had not reached out to Ciara since the escape.
In a hotel room upstairs, Carrie frantically called her mother's cell phone, leaving a voicemail begging her to return to the hotel. Austin called the local police, but he did not appear to make any headway. Steve, Marlena, Rafe, and Paul joined Carrie and Austin in their room. Paul informed the group that the man in the café had not been Stefano. Steve hoped aloud that Stefano had not been tipped off to their surveillance yet, but Rafe worried that they were walking into a trap.
Steve and Paul left to follow up on a tip about a meeting. Rate stayed behind to assure Austin and Carrie that they would find Anna. Austin and Rafe butted heads until Marlena intervened and reminded the men that they were on the same side. Rafe left to meet up with Steve and Paul at a nearby location where they expected to see Stefano. When Rafe arrived at the alley where the surveillance operation was set up, Paul watched the monitors, looking for Stefano to arrive. Rafe sent Steve to the rooftop to check alternate escape routes.
A fancy limousine pulled up nearby. Paul spotted the limo on the monitor and alerted Rafe and Steve. As the men watched the feed, Steve radioed in that someone was approaching the car. Paul pointed out on the monitor that Anna was running up to the limo. As a gunshot rang out, Rafe and Paul rushed out of the alley to stop Anna.
Back in the hotel, a bleeding Steve stumbled into Carrie and Austin's room. Steve pointed at his arm and noted that Anna had shot him. Close behind, Rafe rushed into the room with Anna in tow. Rafe noted that Paul was downstairs, checking to make sure that the police had not followed them to the hotel. Growling, Rafe explained that they had not caught Stefano because Anna had once again gotten in the way. When Anna explained that her aim had been off because she had been juggling Tony's urn in her other arm, Rafe groaned in frustration.
Marlena took Steve into the bathroom to examine his gunshot wound, and she confirmed that the wound was very minor. Marlena called Kayla to tell her about the shooting. Steve was annoyed, but Marlena refused to back down and insisted that Steve should see a doctor. Steve unequivocally refused.
While Anna babbled in the bedroom, Carrie warned her to stop talking before someone strangled her. Fuming, Rafe left with Steve and Marlena. Anna swore to get revenge for Tony, but Carrie countered that revenge would not resurrect Tony from the dead. When Anna moaned that Stefano was getting away with murder, a furious Austin yelled that Stefano was getting away because Anna had screwed things up.
Downstairs in the lobby, Paul informed Steve, Marlena, and Rafe that the police were not in pursuit of them. Rafe returned to the site of the shooting to examine the scene, and he returned to the hotel lobby with a safe deposit key that he had found on the ground. "Stefano just made his first mistake," Rafe said with a grin.
In an unknown bedroom, a drowsy Hope woke up in a stranger's bed. Nearby, a man soaked a rag in a washbasin and told Hope that she was lucky he had found her. Hope smiled when she recognized the voice of the man as Eric Brady. When Eric asked what had happened, Hope said she had no memory of escaping from prison. Eric explained that he had found her lying in the road. A memory of the chloroforming rushed into Hope's mind. Hope then thought about her confrontation with the man by the Dumpster.
When Hope asked Eric why he had not taken her to the hospital, Eric explained that the hospital would have reported her intake to the police. Hope told Eric that she had not escaped. Hope asked Eric why he had not returned to Salem if he was out of prison. Eric evaded the question, and Hope passed out.
When Hope woke up, Eric informed her that she was bleeding again. Eric fed Hope some aspirin for the pain. While Eric retrieved medical supplies, Hope passed out again. Eric sewed up Hope's reopened stab wound while she was unconscious. When Hope woke up, Eric had finished with the stitches. Eric fetched some food for Hope, and he returned to feed her. As Eric polished an apple, the police knocked on the front door.
At a bank in Prague, Rafe and Paul used the key they had found to open a safe deposit box that, according to the manager, belonged to Stefano -- although the man knew him as Serge Anatol, one of his many known aliases. The box contained seemingly innocuous items, such as bank statements and jewelry, but it also contained the white queen from one of Stefano's chess sets. Rafe explained the significance of the item to Paul, who wondered if Stefano had led them to the box as part of one of his elaborate games. Rafe admitted that was a definite possibility.
The only other things of interest in the safe deposit box were a pair of deeds for properties in the area, one of which referenced another of Stefano's known aliases, Rudolpho Meradi. Rafe and Paul checked out the properties, but both appeared to be abandoned. With Shane's help, they were able to get a team of ISA operatives assigned to each property for surveillance purposes; unfortunately, the ISA was only willing to spare the operatives for twenty-four hours. Rafe fretted that if the police found Hope, who was considered armed and dangerous, before he and his friends found Stefano, she might not make it back to the prison in one piece.
A cop searched Eric's place for Hope and left once he was satisfied that she wasn't hiding there. After the cop drove off, Hope emerged from the dining room, where Eric had kept her hidden behind some loose boards. As he helped her get settled on the bed again, she asked for details about his parole, which the cop had mentioned while questioning him. He was reluctant to talk about the matter, but he agreed to do so in exchange for her promise that she wouldn't do anything to pull out her stitches again.
Before beginning his story, Eric went to get Hope a glass of water, and while he was gone, he also sent an untraceable email to Shawn on her behalf so her loved ones would know that she was safe. When he returned, he explained that a detective had visited him in prison approximately one month earlier to ask for his help with a young woman who had been temporarily committed to a psychiatric facility in a nearby town. The woman had climbed out a window on the thirty-ninth floor and had been threatening to jump. She knew Eric from his time as a priest and had insisted that she would only speak with him. He had gone to the facility, climbed out on the ledge with her, and convinced her to go back inside with him. Because her father just happened to be the governor, the good deed had resulted in a pardon.
Hope started to praise Eric for what he had done, but he stopped her, insisting that the whole thing had been a sham. He admitted that he didn't truly believe any of the positive things he had told the woman to get her off the ledge; he had simply said what she'd needed to hear. Hope urged him to reunite with his loved ones, but he vowed that he would never set foot in Salem again. He assured her, however, that his father knew where he was -- and his mother would have been informed, too, if not for the fact that she was out of the country for the time being. When Hope tried to change his mind, he irritably ordered her to drop the subject. He then excused himself so he could get some supplies from a nearby store. After he left, Hope passed out again while reaching for her treasured picture of Shawn and Ciara.
At the Brady Pub, J.J. admitted to Jennifer that he was surprised he had managed to pull her away from work long enough to have lunch with him. Sighing, she conceded that she had been really busy lately. She tried to apologize for missing his commendation ceremony, but he told her not to worry about it. They both wished Jack had lived long enough to see his son join the long line of detectives in their family.
Changing the subject, Jennifer optimistically suggested that J.J. might still be able to work things out with Gabi, especially since Chad had decided to try to work things out with Abigail. J.J. expressed doubts, knowing that other things were still standing in his way. Jennifer conceded, after learning that Lani was the woman J.J. had slept with in Florida, that she could understand why that made it even harder for Gabi to forgive him. He admitted that he understood, too. Sighing, he added, "I just wish I still didn't love Gabi so much." He hoped that focusing on work would help him get over her. Jennifer tried to probe for details about his first assignment, but he was only willing to reveal that it was big and involved the docks.
At Club TBD, Dario informed Eduardo that Deimos, not Kate, had stolen the microchips and external hard drive from them. Sighing, Eduardo expressed regret for the things he had said to Kate when she had tried to convince him that she was innocent. Dario warned Eduardo that their war with the DiMera and Kiriakis families was getting out of hand.
Eduardo started to respond but stopped himself when he noticed that J.J. was lurking outside the open office door. J.J. stepped into the office and flashed his badge, prompting Eduardo to question the appropriateness of doing such a thing while off-duty. J.J. clarified that he wasn't wearing a uniform because he had recently been promoted. He continued that his first assignment involved investigating allegations that Eduardo's company, GDR, had been bribing customs officials in order to smuggle certain shipments into the country without the hassle of an inspection.
Dario reluctantly left the room so Eduardo could talk to J.J. privately. Eduardo denied the allegations, but J.J. wasn't convinced that there was no truth to the rumors. "So you're calling me a liar to my face? I appreciate your candor, but I don't really need a lecture on honesty from a guy who has lied to and hurt not one but two of my daughters," Eduardo spat.
J.J. conceded that he had made mistakes in his personal life. "But this isn't personal; it's business. Now, if you don't want to answer my questions, fine. But you should know I'm going to be keeping a very close eye on GDR and its practices down by the docks from now on," he added before showing himself out. Sighing, Eduardo muttered, "No, that's where you're wrong, kid -- for some of us, it's always personal."
Chad met with Gabi in a secluded section of the town square to thank her for the heads-up about Andre and Deimos' earlier battle of egos. Sensing that the fight had been about more than just ego, Gabi admitted that she was worried about the possibility of Chad getting caught in the crossfire. He assured her that he was going to be just fine. He admitted, however, that things were probably going to get a bit ugly before all was said and done. He begged her to distance herself from the situation, insisting that even though Eduardo and Dario were involved, it wasn't her fight to worry about.
Later, Gabi ran into Dario and tried to convince him to bow out of his fight with the DiMera and Kiriakis families, admitting that she was worried about what might happen if he didn't. "You're playing with the big boys now," she warned. "Hey, GDR is just as big as they are. Maybe not in terms of money, [but] that'll come," he protested.
Dario argued that if Gabi really wanted to help her family, she would convince J.J. to drop his investigation into what GDR was up to at the docks. She pointed out that she and J.J. were no longer dating. She added that she would never try to tell him how to do his job, anyway. "If you, or Papi, or GDR are doing something that is wrong, you're the ones who need to stop, okay? Before someone gets hurt!" she insisted.
Elsewhere, Abigail ran into Sonny and seized the opportunity to catch up with him. While she was telling him about how things were going with Chad, she realized that he knew about what had happened between Chad and Gabi. She tried to get him to talk to her about it, but he insisted that he couldn't. He stressed, however, that if she ever wanted to confide in him, everything she told him would be kept just as confidential.
Changing the subject, Abigail wondered how things were going in Sonny's personal life. He tried to dodge the question at first, but when she persisted, he admitted with a smile that he had shared a kiss with Paul on New Year's Eve. "But it's -- I mean, people kiss on New Year's. It's really not that big of a deal," he quickly added. She disagreed, excitedly predicting that an old flame was about to be rekindled.
When Abigail returned to the DiMera mansion later that day, Chad told her about his earlier meeting with Gabi. He started to admit that he probably should have mentioned the meeting sooner, but she forced a smile and assured him that he didn't have to ask her for permission to see Gabi. The smile faded after he left the room to make a phone call.
Dario was still with Gabi in the town square when he received a phone call from Chad, who wanted to meet with him and Sonny to discuss what was going on between their respective families. Dario suggested that the meeting could take place at Club TBD. After ending the call, he started to walk away. Gabi tried to follow him, but he told her to stay out of the matter.
A short time later, Chad, Sonny, and Dario claimed a table at the otherwise unoccupied Club TBD and began to discuss how they were going to determine who had the rights to the technology that members of their respective families were each trying to claim. "I think there's a way that we can resolve this conflict that is fair to all parties involved," Sonny began. Chad started to agree, but Dario interrupted to question their idea of fairness, fearing that GDR might get lost in the shuffle just because it wasn't as big as DiMera Enterprises or Titan. Chad promised that wouldn't happen. "Can I get that in writing?" Dario asked skeptically.
Meanwhile, Abigail, who had overheard part of Chad's earlier phone conversation with Dario, sneaked into the back office of Club TBD in the hope of eavesdropping through an air vent on a wall the office shared with the main section of the club. When she heard footsteps outside the office, she shrank into a corner of the room, hoping to avoid detection. She was soon discovered, though, and she was shocked to see that the person who had joined her in the office was Gabi. Confused, each woman demanded to know what the other was doing at the club.
In a secluded section of the town square, Jennifer placed a phone call to someone and tasked the person with finding out what was going on at the docks. After ending the call, she turned and found J.J. standing behind her. He reminded her that he had asked her earlier to stay out of the matter. She insisted that she had a duty to investigate it because the public had a right to know if there was something illegal going on in Salem. He maintained, "Let me and the Salem Police Department deal with this. It's too dangerous. I don't want you anywhere near it."
After J.J. walked away, Jennifer placed a phone call to someone else and issued that person the same assignment.
At the Kiriakis mansion, Nicole contacted her wedding planner and apologetically requested a new date for their first appointment. Brady overheard and wondered if Nicole and Deimos' wedding was being put on hold. Nicole clarified that it wasn't; she simply couldn't meet with the wedding planner that day because she wanted to see Chloe and Holly again before Chloe was released from the hospital.
"You know, Chloe is -- she's lucky. She's very lucky to be alive because of you, and she needs to be appreciative of what you did," Brady mused. Nicole dismissed the praise, insisting that she had only done what anyone else would have done for someone in need of help. "I'm just glad I could be there for Chloe and Holly when they needed me. It's when there's nothing you can do -- when you can't save them -- that's when it's horrible," she added with a sigh.
Deimos approached the living room as Brady guessed that Nicole was talking about what had happened to Daniel. Lingering just out of sight in the foyer, Deimos eavesdropped as Nicole admitted that she still missed Daniel every day, and she probably always would. "[But] he's gone, and I'm still alive, and I have to find a way to live without him, so I'm embracing life again -- or trying my damnedest to," she added.
Brady wasn't surprised when Nicole revealed that the process of planning her wedding to Deimos had stirred up a lot of old memories of the last time she had planned a wedding. "[And] sometimes I get this awful feeling, you know, that if I pick a date, that... You know, Daniel and I were supposed to be married on Valentine's Day, and I lost him on -- on New Year's Eve, and just -- holidays are -- are not my friend. But maybe it's not just holidays. I mean, what if I'm cursed? What if I pick a date, and --" she fretted.
Brady interrupted, assuring Nicole that there was no reason to fear that something bad would happen once she picked a date for her wedding. Deimos waited a couple more seconds then made his presence known, stepping into the living room to greet Nicole with a kiss. "I just had this wonderful idea: how 'bout if we elope?" he suggested. He started to add that he could have the Titan jet ready to take her anywhere in the world in just a few short hours, but Brady interrupted to remind him that the Titan jet was in the process of receiving some engine upgrades. Undeterred, Deimos dismissively insisted that he would simply find another jet to use.
Brady left the room at Nicole's request. Once the coast was clear, she asked Deimos to explain why he suddenly wanted to elope. "[The idea] just came to me. Look, what can I say? I love you so much [that] I don't want to wait, okay? And we don't have to worry about a wedding party; I mean, we'll throw a bash when we get back. We could even have a second ceremony. A lot of people are doing that these days, right?" he reasoned.
Nicole found it touching that Deimos didn't want to wait any longer to marry her, but she insisted that they couldn't elope because she had already put a lot of effort into the planning of the wedding and was really looking forward to it. "The wedding, or becoming my wife?" he asked. "Both," she assured him. Smiling, he abandoned the idea of elopement, suggesting that they could instead go to dinner at one of Chicago's best restaurants later that night and spend the entire time talking about the wedding. She promised to give that idea some thought.
"[But first] I am off to go see Chloe and Holly at the hospital. And before you say anything, I know, I know -- don't get too attached," Nicole continued. Deimos clarified that he hadn't been planning to say anything like that to Nicole; in fact, he actually had no objections to the idea of her spending time with Chloe and Holly as often as she wished. After she left the mansion, he contacted someone and asked for assurance that what he was considering purchasing would enable the Orwell device to work properly. When the person he was speaking with told him what he wanted to hear, he agreed to pay the asking price and scheduled a meeting for later that day.
Later, Brady returned to the living room with Titan's latest financial report. The numbers were disturbing, but Deimos dismissed Brady's concern, assuring him, "I'm working on something [that] is gonna put Titan on top for decades." Deimos promised that he would tell Brady more within the next few days. Changing the subject, Deimos suggested that in the meantime, Brady could focus on getting Chloe to admit that Holly was Nicole and Daniel's child. "There are only so many ways I can do that, okay? It's not working," Brady insisted. "Then try again!" Deimos countered.
Conceding that Nicole deserved to know the truth, Brady promised, "I'll see what I can do." He couldn't help wondering, however, if Deimos had given any serious thought to what would happen once Nicole learned the truth. "[You'll have to] raise another man's baby -- a baby that will actually be a constant reminder of the man that she loved more than anything in the world," Brady pointed out. Deimos dismissed the concern, insisting that there was no reason for him to feel threatened because Daniel was gone for good.
At the hospital, Chloe promised that she would always protect Holly. "Protect her from what?" Nicole asked as she entered Chloe's room. Chloe claimed that she had just been making the same promises every other mother made shortly after childbirth. Satisfied, Nicole changed the subject, revealing that she had just heard that Chloe was going to be released later that day. "I'm here to drive you wherever you need to go. I bought a car seat, and it's all set up," Nicole added. Chloe expressed appreciation for the thoughtful gesture.
Nicole hoped that Chloe would return to Salem with Parker and Holly to attend the wedding. Sighing, Chloe wondered if Nicole was seriously planning to proceed with that after what they had recently overheard Deimos threatening to do to Andre. "He was upset," Nicole reasoned. "[And that's] an excuse for murder? He's evil! Come on, Nicole, you have to call this off, or you're gonna regret it for the rest of your life!" Chloe insisted.
Nicole understood Chloe's point of view, conceding that Deimos certainly wasn't anything like Daniel. "But I love [Deimos]," she added with a shrug, praising her fiancé for having managed to fill the emptiness in her life that she had been struggling to deal with since Daniel's death. "Well, what if I told you that a part of Daniel could still be with you?" Chloe asked.
Nicole was confused at first but quickly concluded that Chloe was talking about Daniel living on through Parker, literally being a part of Brady, and continuing to exist in memories. "I totally understand that. And I will never, ever stop loving Daniel. But he wouldn't want me to keep living in the past," Nicole stressed. "Would he want you to marry a killer?" Chloe countered. Nicole maintained that Deimos had simply said some things during a moment of anger that he had later regretted, just as everyone else in the world had at one time or another. "And please -- Andre is no saint. He'd drive anyone nuts -- you and I included," she added.
Groaning, Chloe predicted that Nicole, who was already making excuses for Deimos, would end up spending the rest of her life doing so if she went ahead with her plan to marry him. "Honest to God, if you'd just think for a second, it would just make everything so much easier," Chloe blurted out. Confused, Nicole wondered what Chloe was talking about. Chloe claimed that she simply thought Nicole could have a much happier life if Deimos weren't in the picture. "I think there's other people that you would love more; you just don't know it yet," Chloe continued. Still confused, Nicole admitted that she was having trouble understanding Chloe, who was speaking in riddles for some reason. She insisted, however, that she wasn't going to change her mind about marrying Deimos.
"Okay, then. Then that's that. I'm sorry, but we can't be friends anymore," Chloe replied, fighting back tears. Nicole tried to object, but Chloe insisted that she would never allow Parker and Holly to go anywhere near Deimos. Nicole promised to keep Deimos out of her visits with Parker and Holly, but Chloe protested, "Come on, we both know that that'll never happen. You're too weak, and he will control everything. So there's no visits."
Hurt, Nicole tearfully conceded that Chloe had a right to decide who could and couldn't see Parker and Holly because she was their mother. Chloe thanked Nicole for understanding then declined her earlier offer to play chauffeur, deciding to just rent a car instead. "[You're leaving] tonight? So, uh, this is -- this is goodbye?" Nicole sadly realized. She asked for one last chance to hold Holly then broke down as she cradled the child in her arms and vowed to never forget her. After handing Holly back to Chloe, Nicole stressed that she would always consider Chloe a friend. Chloe sobbed as she watched Nicole leave the room.
Later, as Chloe was preparing to leave the hospital, Brady arrived and insisted on talking to her right away. "I have a simple question for you, and you're gonna answer it right now: is Holly Nicole's baby?" he asked.
Eduardo ran into Kate in a secluded section of the town square and tried to apologize for the way he had treated her earlier. She insisted that he couldn't take back what he had done, and although she had enjoyed the time she had spent with him, she would never be able to get past the fact that he had refused to trust her when she had tried to tell him that she'd had nothing to do with the theft of the microchips and external hard drive. He tried to protest, but she sadly maintained, "The trust is gone, and without trust, we don't stand a chance."
At Club TBD, Abigail and Gabi eavesdropped from the back office as Chad, Sonny, and Dario continued their negotiation. Dario had lingering concerns about making a deal with Chad and Sonny, knowing that they were long-time friends and had even been business partners in the past. "I'm the outsider. Why should I trust you?" Dario wondered. Sonny pointed out that despite his friendship with Chad, their respective families were in competition with each other. Chad added that if he had wanted to partner up with only Sonny, Dario wouldn't have even been invited to the meeting in the first place.
"We're all equal here," Chad continued, but Dario objected, pointing out that Chad was the only one present who actually had the luxury of being the head of a company. "[But] Andre doesn't honor my leadership. He's rogue, and he's dangerous," Chad countered. He argued that he, Sonny, and Dario needed to reach an agreement together so they could put a leash on everyone else who was involved in the fight for the Orwell device. "It is in our power to broker peace, but in order to do that, we gotta start being honest with each other," he continued.
Dario revealed what he knew about how Eduardo had managed to acquire the microchips. Sonny then explained how Deimos had found out about them. Dario complained that Deimos had stolen the microchips from Eduardo, prompting Sonny to point out that Eduardo had stolen them from Andre. "Oh, like you care about Andre!" Dario countered. "I don't care about Andre, but you can't have it both ways!" Sonny argued.
"Enough! We're here to end a war, not escalate it," Chad reminded Sonny and Dario. He suggested that with a device in their possession that could potentially be worth hundreds of billions of dollars, the only thing that was really worth discussing was what they were each going to do with their share of the profits. Sonny warned Chad that the profits could actually incite betrayals at some point in the future.
Feeling like he was already being excluded, Dario insisted, "[GDR] may be the new kid on the block, but we are developing the system. [Andre's] version was junk." Sonny pointed out that the device wasn't working for the Hernandez family any better than it had for the DiMera family, but Dario promised that GDR would find a way to make it work because it meant more to the fledgling company than it did to DiMera Enterprises and Titan. "[It's] gonna put us on the map, so you know what? We're not gonna share the damn thing," he spontaneously decided.
"Well, then, we have a serious problem," Chad mused. Dario wondered what would happen to the profits from the device if he, Chad, and Sonny failed to reach an agreement. "Then it all goes to whoever owns the rights," Sonny replied. Chad pointed out that DiMera Enterprises had owned the device first, but Sonny argued that there was no proof of that. "For all we know, Andre stole it [from someone else]," Sonny suggested. Dario insisted that it didn't matter one way or the other because Andre had ultimately lost the device, anyway. "So did you!" Chad countered.
Chad added that GDR didn't have the resources to develop the device into something workable. "That's where you're wrong. We got a guy -- Myron Raditz. He's a genius. He's all we need. He's gonna get the bugs out of the system, and he'll have it up and running [in] a month, tops," Dario revealed. Sonny guessed that Myron would probably switch sides if offered a better price. He continued that Titan didn't really need Myron, in any case, because the company already had a great team of researchers and developers. "And remember, we have the program," he pointed out.
"[Stealing] something doesn't make it yours," Dario snapped. "Possession is nine-tenths of the law," Sonny countered. Dario warned that he was willing to do whatever he needed to do to get the device back. Sonny told Dario to chill out, insisting that threats weren't going to solve anything. Hoping to get things back on track, Chad interjected, "Look, gentlemen, we came here to work things out, so let's try to be reasonable."
"Like it was reasonable for Andre to destroy one of our ships?" Sonny countered. Chad dismissively reminded Sonny that no one had gotten hurt. Sonny argued that the loss of a ship worth one hundred million dollars would absolutely hurt Titan's bottom line. Chad thought Sonny needed to be upset with Andre, not him, but Sonny insisted that Chad couldn't claim to be the head of DiMera Enterprises then refuse to take responsibility for something that had happened on his watch. Chad pointed out that Andre had kindly asked for his property back from Deimos before planning a retaliation and had even warned Deimos that there would be consequences for refusing to cooperate.
Dario joined in, insisting, "Sonny, you're not the martyr here. [GDR] went into business with Titan because we trusted you, and you paid us back by stealing from us." Sonny argued that it had been imperative to get the device away from GDR because it could be used for nefarious purposes if it fell into the wrong hands -- like, for instance, those of an assassin. Dario rose from his chair and warned Sonny not to say anything else about Eduardo. Sonny stood to face Dario, prompting Chad to tell Sonny to take a breath.
"Chad, there you go again, giving me orders. This is all on you, you know that? We had trouble at the docks, [and] you [moved] in and [took] half of our business!" Sonny snapped, adding that Deimos was simply doing what was necessary to keep Titan afloat in the aftermath. Fed up, Chad stood as well, telling Sonny and Dario, "You know what? If you two want to sit around here and play gangsters, go ahead. I'm done -- with both of you. And Sonny, for the record, you just made this personal!"
With the meeting over, Abigail and Gabi rushed off before anyone could figure out that they had been listening the whole time. They went to a secluded section of the town square to talk about what they had just heard. They ultimately decided that it was up to them to do something to resolve the issue before the men ended up destroying each other over some "stupid" device. Gabi suggested destroying the device, and Abigail agreed, believing that if it no longer existed, the men would have nothing left to fight about.
At the DiMera mansion, Kate told Chad about what had happened with Eduardo. Chad tried to suggest that there might still be a chance for the couple to work things out, but she insisted it was too late for that. "He didn't trust me, Chad. I mean, how the hell do you get past that in a relationship? Anyway, it's probably for the best. We need to refocus and decide exactly what we're going to do to get our technology back. And it is ours. Anyone who thinks otherwise is in for a very unpleasant surprise," she added.
At the Kiriakis mansion, Sonny told Deimos about the meeting with Chad and Dario. "Who said it was all right for you to have a meeting like that?" Deimos demanded to know. "Our ship was sabotaged. What do you want me to do, take a nap?" Sonny incredulously countered. Deimos insisted that any agreement the three men had reached would not be honored. Sonny clarified that no agreement had been reached; in fact, things had actually gotten worse. "We wound up at each other's throats. Everyone wants 'their' device. Dario's out for blood, and Chad says now it's personal," he continued.
"Well, then, this is your first lesson, Sonny. Losers threaten and whine all the time, all right? But in the end, we have the Orwell," Deimos pointed out. Sonny tried to advise Deimos to hire Myron, but Deimos insisted that wouldn't be necessary. "We have the key. It's on its way," Deimos explained. Confused, Sonny wondered what Deimos was talking about. Deimos produced a document, and a wide grin stretched across Sonny's face as he read it.
At Club TBD, Dario asked Myron if it would be possible to create a replica of the Orwell device from scratch. Myron confirmed that in a world of ones and zeroes, anything was possible with the right resources. He promised to try his best in exchange for triple his original salary. Satisfied, Dario vowed, "In the meantime, I'm gonna take care of that son of a bitch who stole it from us."
Later, Dario ran into Nicole at the Brady Pub and asked if she wanted to catch a movie with him. She apologetically declined, explaining that she had already made plans for the evening. "With Deimos, right? Nicole, you -- you should stay away from that guy," he advised. Sighing, she revealed her engagement ring as she countered, "That 'guy' is my fiancé, and I wish people would stop saying that to me!"
"Yeah, well, Deimos is dangerous, and when you're that dangerous, bad things happen. Stay away from Deimos," Dario maintained. Sensing that something was wrong, Nicole demanded to know what was going on. He refused to elaborate, but before leaving the pub, he warned her again, "Make other plans tonight. Stay away from Deimos."
Concerned, Nicole rushed off to find Deimos and let him know that he might be in danger. Meanwhile, in the town square, Deimos smiled as he listened to a voicemail message Nicole had sent him before her conversation with Dario -- who, at that same time, was on the phone with someone, stressing, "Deimos Kiriakis -- I want him dead by tonight."
Due to the Inauguration of Donald J. Trump, Days of our Lives did not air. This was a planned preemption and there were no "lost" episodes as a result of the preemption.
Regular programming resumed on Monday, January 23, 2017, and picked up where the Thursday, January 19, 2017, episode concluded.
