Will's article was published. Kristen was released on bail. Sami asked EJ for help. Clyde began to blackmail Kate. Abigail felt more ashamed. Sonny blew up on Sami. Eve complained about Jennifer's offer. Paige was on to her mother about Theresa. Ben was there for Abigail. Hope found out Aiden lied to her.
Kate and Sami had breakfast at the mansion before they were interrupted by EJ. He hinted at his previous conversation with Kate, making Sami question her. Kate simply stated that Stefano was going to go after them for their takeover at DiMera Enterprises. Later, Sami informed Kate there would be an article released, detailing the sordid details of how they took over DiMera Enterprises. Kate tried to get lawyers involved, but simmered down when Sami told her Will wrote the article.
Sami tried to do damage control herself with the individual members of the board. Both women feared their reactions to the article. Plus, it would be enough to push Stefano over the edge as he would be publicly humiliated. Sami first spoke with Shin, who strongly hinted that Sami should reconcile with EJ. It would be best for the company.
EJ later arrived at the mansion from his jog to find Sami slowly thawing towards him. She asked if he would be okay with the kids going to sleep-away camp for awhile. He started to get suspicious of her as he went upstairs to shower.
Will and Sonny were at their apartment, anxiously awaiting his article's publication online. Will accused Sonny of not being supportive when he voiced his reservations about what the article could do to his family. The couple made up, and Kate dropped by to get answers from her grandson. Will coldly reminded her of the influences in his life thanks to her and his parents; they used deceptive methods to get what they wanted. Kate said she never used her methods on the people she cared about. As she was about to leave, Will apologized for dragging her into his mess. The two shared a hug before she left.
Abigail was out with Arianna when she ran into Ben. The two talked and shared some romantic moments in the park. EJ, who was out on a jog, watched the couple from afar before making his presence known.
Hope visited Jennifer at the Horton house where she casually asked her cousin about her date with Aiden from the previous night. JJ overheard and pressed his mother for details. Jennifer told her son that she and Aiden did have plans, but they fell through because of what happened with Kristen. She added her relationship with Aiden was strictly platonic - they were good friends connecting over Eve's lawsuit.
Aiden was next to arrive at the Horton house, and as soon as he saw Hope, the two acted very uncomfortable with each other. Jennifer reentered the living room where the two were waiting, and Aiden made an excuse to leave. Jennifer told Hope there was no date with Aiden, making Hope realize he was playing mind games with her. She later saw him at the Brady Pub and asked why he lied to her.
Eve continued to use her intel on Theresa to get her to have a talk with Paige. Theresa introduced herself to her unsuspecting niece and acted happy that she was dating JJ. She reinforced his wild and fun side, hinting at her own experience with him. However, Paige was on to the scheme and confronted Eve about it.
Earlier at the Horton Town Square, Eve bumped into JJ and Rory and voiced her disapproval of him, comparing him to his father even more. JJ just let roll off his back.
[new page]
Kristen awaited to hear of her fate in a common room at the police station. The grand jury proceedings were happening, and Nicole couldn't wait to confront Kristen herself. She told her nemesis she just testified, but couldn't wait to be alone in a room with her. Kristen fought back as she taunted Nicole about losing Eric and his love because of concealing evidence that could have cleared his name sooner. The two women rough each other up before Kristen is taken to the proceedings herself. We were told of one more witness who had to be heard, and Kristen came face-to-face with Eric.
Daniel saw Brady, who voiced his gratitude that he brought his ex-fiance back to face the charges against her. Brady declared he had no intention of ever seeing Kristen, which is why he wrote a statement that was to be read before the grand jury. Victor promised if the courts wouldn't handle Kristen, he would.
In a private conversation, Daniel asked his mother to help Jennifer with the lawsuit against Eve. Maggie thought of something that would get her to back off her niece. Meanwhile, Daniel saw Eric, who informed the doctor he was given an opportunity to return to the priesthood, but declined because of his feelings. Brady was tempted to drink because of the stress over Kristen's return.
Paige confronted her mother over her using "Auntie Theresa" to undermine her belief in JJ being a good guy. She voiced her commitment to her boyfriend and deferring from Stanford for a year. She even talked to the school herself again after Eve interfered.
Marybeth gave JJ a hard time at the town square about Paige deciding not to go to Stanford. She even questioned whether he truly changed or not. His own friend, Rory even had doubts. JJ told him to leave him alone at that point. Later, JJ and Paige met at the park to watch Parker for Daniel. While Paige was playing with him, JJ still felt horrible about his past.
Hope confronted Aiden about why he was trying to make her believe he was dating Jennifer. He finally admitted he was worried she had developed feelings for him because of their intimate dance at the gala. She immediately denied it and turned it around that he was the one who developed feelings for her. They went their separate ways, evidently still in denial about each other.
Jennifer met with Aiden to discuss the case when Maggie dropped by with a proposal to help her. She and Victor offered to sweeten the deal, forcing Eve to settle out of court and drop the lawsuit. Jennifer liked the offer, but made sure Aiden added a mysterious clause that was attached to the proposal. Eve was already worried about not getting anything to support her daughter as is. Jennifer presented the deal to her; if she wanted it, it had to be taken now.
Jennifer ran into Eric, who was next to find out he could have returned to the priesthood. He later had more disturbing fantasies about Nicole as he couldn't get her off his mind.
[new page]
Eric went to the courthouse to give his testimony before the grand jury. Kristen attempted to apologize to the former priest, against the advice of her lawyer. While on the stand, Eric vividly recounted everything he remembered from the night Kristen drugged him. An indictment is handed down, listing all of Kristen's crimes, past and present. DA Trask asked for bail to be denied, but the judge had other ideas. Kristen began to smile.
Brady fought the urge to take a drink and was successful. He encountered Theresa, who informed him she was in the know about Kristen's return. The conversation got uncomfortable for Theresa right away when Brady continued to remain positive that John would recover.
Nicole caught up with Brady, knowing Kristen's return had been torturing him. She continued to be there for him as a friend. Eric arrived, fresh from giving his testimony, and the three hoped Kristen would finally pay for her crimes.
Daniel once again laid into Nicole about the reason Eric refused to return to the priesthood. She revealed Eric would feel like a hypocrite because of the hatred he felt towards her. Daniel reinforced his own betrayal, stating every time he sees her, he's reminded that he lost a friend. He later picked up Parker from Paige and learned Eve dropped the lawsuit.
He also crossed paths with Theresa and put her on notice that he found her version of what happened to John a little suspicious and full of holes. Theresa was unsettled by the doctor as a result.
Jennifer brought a final offer to Eve to settle the lawsuit once and for all. To get the offer, Jenn added an ultimatum that Eve keep quiet in public about Jack, his book, and the movie rights. Eve realized she had been defeated and signed the deal. She complained about receiving her payment in installments, making Jenn realize how pathetic she was for having to steal to provide for her daughter.
Eve texted Theresa to get to her apartment, so she could scream and complain about Jennifer. She informed her sister she was more determined than ever to get JJ away from her daughter, as her talk didn't work.
Jennifer arrived home and told JJ about the settlement. The celebration stopped when Abigail got home, visibly upset from reading Will's article.
Speaking of Will's article, Sonny and Will continued to wait for it to be published online. Sonny felt guilty about the references to Abigail in it. Will attempted to get in touch with his cousin to give her a heads up before the story was released. She told him she couldn't wait to read it, hanging up before giving him a chance to tell her. When it was finally online, she began to read, curious as it was about EJ and Sami. Meanwhile, Will went home and was faced with an angry Sonny as he finally read the article.
[new page]
Sonny couldn't believe Will used Abigail's name in the article. Will insisted that he didn't put her name in there. He did the math and realized Sami opened her mouth to his editor, as she had comments. He was upset Sonny thought he would do such a thing to their own cousin, but the two made up. EJ dropped by to confront Will, while Sonny stormed to the mansion to take on Sami.
Abigail told Jennifer and JJ about Will's article using her name, and they are supportive of her. She voiced how she thought the madness was over, but that was short-lived when reporters began to swarm the Horton house. Ben arrived to whisk Abigail away from the intrusive reporters, while Jennifer asked them to leave her property. JJ went over to Will and Sonny's to confront Will about the article, and the very revealing references to his sister. Will didn't tell JJ it was his mom who leaked the information, but I'm pretty sure everyone will know soon enough.
EJ found out about the article's publication, and that Will had something to do with it. He took fit at her for her son destroying their family. She defended Will, saying she did everything she could to prevent the article from being published. She convinced the board their was nothing to worry about regarding the company. When EJ tried to sympathize with Abigail, Sami unloaded on him, even throwing a glass at him and continuing to threaten him with a restraining order.
Lucas returned from his business trip to Houston and encountered Jordan at the square. They spoke of his meeting with Sheryl, which didn't go well for him. Lucas learned from Jordan that she broke up with Rafe because she found out he slept with Kate. Lucas blasted his mother for ruining their relationship. He doubted Jordan and Rafe would be able to move past the betrayal. Kate focused her son's attention to Will writing an incriminating article for TruVista magazine.
Ben and Rafe bumped into each other where Ben apologized to Rafe for beating him up. Rafe asked Ben about Clyde, wondering why Jordan shuts down around him. Jordan told Ben about the article, and he rushed to be their for his girlfriend. Clyde tried to persuade Jordan they could get through their past issues, but Jordan was determined to make sure that never happened.
Clyde cornered Kate into making her get him in touch with some "discreet" people who would help finance his shady business. He began to blackmail her with the information that she was the reason he found his kids in Salem.
[new page]
The judge agreed to let Kristen go on $1 million bail, despite DA Trask's objections that she was a flight risk. Roman figured out the judge was in Stefano's pocket.
Brady went to the hospital where he overheard Anne and Theresa discussing the Abigail article. Theresa noticed his frustration and questioned if it had something to do with Kristen. Brady told her a medical expert said there was no hope for John. Theresa offered to comfort him, but he rejected her, reminding her he sent the annulment papers. He went for a jog to clear his thoughts. As he took his shirt off to cool down, he came face-to-face with Kristen.
At the Brady Pub, Roman updated Marlena on what happened in court with Kristen.
Daniel pointed out how gleeful Anne was regarding the Abigail scandal. He stopped by the Horton house to offer his support, while Abigail and Jennifer were in the middle of writing a press release to counter the article. Daniel helped Jennifer fend off reporters while maintaining emotional distance from his ex. Anne later arrived to gloat while dropping off Abigail's things from her office. Jennifer laid into her about how much of horrible person she was before slamming the door in her face.
Back at the hospital, Daniel and Theresa crossed paths again as he picked up on why she was so interested in John's condition. She covered her tracks and turned the tables on him about Jennifer's latest family scandal.
Will revealed to an angry EJ that it was his beloved Samantha who gave Abigail's name to his editor. EJ reminded him of everything he and his mother did to ensure he had a future with his daughter. He also said he could send Will to prison for shooting him. Will countered that by saying he could have revealed that Sami shot him in the head, leading to attempted murder charges. Will was disgusted to hear EJ defend her, claiming they really do deserve each other.
EJ later encountered Abigail and made sure everyone would know her as the victim. Abigail told him to back off as she was no victim, she continuously chased after him after they first slept together.
Sonny laid into Sami for the way she destroyed Will. She defended that Will was not the innocent party. Sonny tried to inform her that if Will didn't write the article, someone else would. Sami reminded him Kate and EJ wouldn't have spoken to reporters the way they spoke to Will. They gave him intimate details because he was deceptive in that he didn't tell them they were being recorded for his article. Sami told Sonny to be there for Will as things were only going to get worse.
Marlena dropped by the mansion, asking why Sami didn't didn't tell her about the affair. She also got an eyeful when she saw the new portrait of Sami and Kate in the living room. Her daughter explained she didn't and still doesn't want to hear her continuous objections regarding her volatile relationship with EJ.
She visited Will next, who lashed out about his mother's betrayal, and how tired he was of explaining himself. He brought up how she couldn't handle Sami growing up, but quickly apologized. Marlena acknowledged he felt attacked. He expressed how sad he was that the first article he wrote made the cover of a magazine, and no one had anything nice to say about it. Marlena asked if that's why he wrote it. Words are exchanged about John, and Marlena left her grandson alone with his thoughts.
EJ, fresh from hearing Sami's involvement in the article, returned home to his wife's begging to help her with the situation. He almost had a look of contempt on his face.
Will was on the phone to Sonny talking about how Zoey wanted to give the story national exposure. He hung up when he answered the door to reveal Abigail, clearly wanting answers.