01-05-2017 (Thursday)

Kate is angry with Andre for putting her in the position of having to steal the microchips from Eduardo.  She goes to the club to meet him for their lunch date; he has a table all prepared.  He tells her she looks exquisite today; then he receives a phone call.  Kate gets up and wanders off.  She finds the office where the man is moving information from the microchips to a computer; she introduces herself.  Eduardo walks in behind her, asking what she is doing; she says she is looking for him of course.  He tells the man to leave the room and asks what she is really doing; she tells him she was hoping to get him alone, coming on to him.  He gets up close and tells her he really needs to eat; he escorts her out of the room.  Sitting back at the table, Eduardo recalls the first time he saw Kate; he tells her he thought he wouldn’t have a chance.  She asks why.  He proceeds to compliment her and says she makes him want to be more successful than he ever thought possible and tells her he’s going to make her as proud to be seen with him as he is to be seen with her.  She gets a call and tells him it’s from Adrian; she needs to go.  He kisses her goodbye and leaves the table; Kate looks at her phone… it’s a text from Andre, asking if she got “it.”  She takes a deep breath.  Later, Eduardo goes into his office and finds the microchips missing.

Theo and Claire sit, listening to Valerie’s movements with the spy ware Claire purchased; she gets bored with it and suggests they go do something else.  Theo refuses; he says he is not quitting until he gets something on Valerie that proves she’s a liar.  Just then, they hear her tell someone on the phone that no one is more important to her than they are… and that ‘he’ is her “favorite guy.”  Theo says, that’s it – Claire adds, “the smoking gun.”  They smile at each other.  Valerie sits down with Jennifer at a table in the square; she compliments her husband’s writing, saying she’s sure Jennifer had something to do with that.  Jen smiles; she tells Valerie she is happy for her and Abe, saying he has been lonely since his wife died.  Valerie sort-of-smiles.  Jen mentions years ago when she dated her cousin; Valerie adds, yes, at a time when that was controversial to say the least.  Jen agrees, saying it’s hard to believe people were ever so ignorant and narrow-minded; she tells Jen she is not sure she’s ready to make this move permanent yet.  They decide to exchange information and Valerie finds the bug when she reaches in her purse; she tells Jennifer she’s pretty sure she knows who planted it.  She tells Theo, through the device, that she knows he’s listening; she says they need to talk and tells him to meet her at the pub.  Theo tells Claire to get out of there, saying he will take it from there.  Valerie shows up and Theo says, “let’s talk.”

Nicole doesn’t understand Nancy’s resistance to her helping take care of Holly; she decides to go to the hospital to visit Chloe – and hopefully get to see the baby.  Nancy walks into Chloe’s room, pushing the stroller; she begs Chloe to wake up, telling her she needs to know what to do.  As she tells her daughter that she thinks Nicole needs to know the truth, Nicole walks in; she doesn’t seem to hear anything, just sees the baby.  She asks if she can hold her; Nancy hesitates, but says of course.  Then she tells Nicole that she is going to take the baby back to Chicago, to stay with her brother and grandpa.  She says it’s for the best; Nicole is devastated.  She begs Nancy to let her take the baby home; Nancy tells her there is no way she’s getting her hands on this baby.  Nicole is surprised by Nancy’s hostility and tells her so; Nancy apologizes, but she says, Chloe didn’t want this baby anywhere near Deimos.  She’s not going against her wishes.  Nicole says she understands and asks to hold Holly one more time, just to say goodbye…adding that she will gladly drive to Chicago anytime they need her help.  As Nicole holds the baby again, she remembers her birth; she recalls cleaning her up and handing her to Chloe, Chloe looking at Nicole as she agreed Holly looked just like her mother.  She tells Chloe she needs to wake up because a baby needs to be with her mother.

Deimos asks Brady where Eve disappeared to; he tells Deimos that she left Salem, because of him.  She said he treated her like a servant; as much as she loved taking care of Tate, she couldn’t put up with Deimos.  Deimos apologizes; Brady tells him he needs to learn to play with others better.  Deimos says he’s trying.  Brady gets the results from his new test; the results are inconclusive – it says the sample was compromised.  Deimos gets angry and says he’s heading to the hospital; Nicole was hoping the baby would be there and he says they have to get the proof no matter what the hell it takes.  Nancy walks back into the hospital room to hear Nicole saying goodbye to the baby; it seems to get to her.  She pulls Nicole away from the stroller and says she has to tell her something.  Just as she is about to say more, Deimos steps into the room.  Nancy takes the stroller and leaves.  Nicole tells Deimos that she is taking Holly back to Chicago because she’s afraid she has become too attached to the baby; she adds, the thing is, it’s the truth.  Deimos promises her she will see that baby again very soon.

01-04-2017 (Wednesday) A NEW YEAR

Nicole talks to Nancy; Nancy says the baby is very fussy… sleeps one hour and cries for two.  Nicole offers to come help, but Nancy declines her offer.  Deimos goes to the other room and tells Brady that he is certain Nancy knows the truth and she is keeping Nicole away from the baby; Brady decides to go pay Nancy a visit.  He offers to watch the baby while she goes to shower; he pulls out a Qtip and swabs the baby’s mouth.  He puts it in a baggie and sticks it in his coat pocket.

Sonny tells Deimos what Paul found out about the microchip in the fake bag; he asks if Deimos wants Paul to find out what was on the microchip.  Deimos says yes; then he tells him that if Paul makes him happy, he shouldn’t let anyone stand in the way of that.  Shane announces that there has been another ‘Steffano’ sighting; he says it appears their old friend is most certainly alive and kicking.  He’s made an appearance at a meeting of black arms dealers overseas.  Marlena asks, if Steffano is alive, who was it that died that night?  Marlena tells Shane she wants to help catch Steffano; he tells her it is much too dangerous for someone who hasn’t had any training, but she talks him into letting her go.  Sonny meets with Paul at the pub; Paul tells him that he has to go to Prague with Rafe to look for Steffano.  They talk about the kiss at the party, both admitting they don’t regret it.  They decide to talk more about it when he gets back.

Hope is in the prison hospital; Rafe sits by her side.  He is angry; he says she’s only okay because some bitch with a shiv missed her vitals.  He says she got lucky this time; he has to get her out of there, he says.  He presses her to find out who beat her up; she says she is going to have to meet them head-on.  Hope asks who is going with Rafe to Prague; he says Steve, and Marlena and Paul.  She worries it might be a set up and tells him to be careful.  Steve and Kayla talk about the miscarriage; they say Joey has been sitting with Jade all night.  Joey comes out; they hug him.  Kayla offers to take him to eat; he doesn’t want to leave Jade that long.  He asks why it happened; Kayla does her best to explain that miscarriage in first pregnancies is very common – the body sees the baby as a “germ” she says (it's really more like a parasite).  Joey thinks it’s karma, for killing Ava; he decides he needs to confess like he should have done in the first place.  Steve gets the call; he tells Kayla he isn’t going to go.  He says he’s abandoned his family too many times before; they need him right now.  Joey tells his father, he will be fine; he says he should go.  Kayla agrees; she tells him to go.  He says okay and tells them to stay in touch.  

When Nancy comes out of the shower, she asks Brady if he could go get a hair dryer from the front desk; when he leaves the room, she checks his coat pocket and finds the swab in a baggie.  She replaces the Qtip with a different one and puts the baggie back. Brady comes back with the hair dryer and tells her he needs to get going; he checks his pocket when he steps out the door, making sure the baggie is still there.

01-03-2017 (Tuesday)

Rafe goes to see Hope; he tells her Steffano may still be alive.  She questions how.  Rafe says they don’t know how, but the evidence is strong; she wishes him a Happy New Year.  He sees the ‘death card’ she was given and asks about it; she tells him it’s nothing.  He fears she may truly be in trouble now.  The two bullies are pissed that she’s getting a late night visit; they gripe about how unfair it is, them being cops n all.  They vow to make Hope pay, tonight.  Kayla and Steve count receipts from their New Year’s party at the pub; they say they did pretty good tonight.  They make a toast, and include Joey and Jade (offering them sparkling cider).  Joey thanks them for making Jade feel like part of the family; they say, she is part of the family…she’s the mother of their grandchild.  Jade begins to get cramps; they take her to the hospital.  The cramps get worse and she begins bleeding; Kayla orders an ultrasound.  She loses the baby; Joey goes back in to comfort her as she lays, crying.  

Gabi is pissed to learn that Lani is the one JJ slept with in Miami; Lani accuses him of conveniently forgetting so he didn’t have to tell his girlfriend.  She describes their encounter and JJ apologizes, telling her he blacked out and does not remember.  Lani says this is for them to sort out and leaves, pissed; JJ tells Gabi that she is the best thing that ever happened to her.  She says it’s just too late; he already broke her heart…she tells him they are over, for good.  JJ pologizes to Lani; they decide to start over, as friends.

Thomas wakes up and interrupts Chad and Abigail’s kiss; she tells Chad, whatever happens between the two of them, she wants to be a family again. He says okay and tells her he’s going to bed; she goes to check on the baby.  She tells Thomas he didn’t say ‘goodnight’ – she wonders if that was an invitation.  She opens the door to the bedroom, dressed in her nightgown; she tells him she wants to go back to the way things were.  She takes his hand; he looks at her.  He asks what she’s doing; she says, the door was open.  He tells her he always leaves it open to hear Thomas better.  She apologizes.  He tells her about his father possibly still being alive; he says he is done with people who leave him to think they are dead and don’t care how much it hurts him.  She says he can’t compare what she did to what his father has done; she was trying to save them pain.  Chad points out that pain is exactly what she caused them.  

He says he wishes he could just get over; he wishes he could just take her in his arms and make love to her.  He grabs her and they start kissing again; they almost begin to make love.  He stops; he says he can’t do this.  She tells him it’s alright; she says they have plenty of time, telling him this is going to be a good year for them.  She gets out of bed and leaves the room.

12-30-2016 (Friday) HAPPY NEW YEAR'S SALEM!

Andre is about to pour himself some champagne in a booth, where he sits by himself; he invites Chad to join him for the New Year.  Chad sits down, but before they toast, Chad says he’s still trying to decide whether or not he is going to kill Andre for letting him think his wife was dead.  He reminds him, not only did he let him think his wife was dead, he took advantage of his weakness, lied about his business, lied about his family, and kept a secret microchip program from him… he asks why he should ever believe him again.  Andre replies to this by telling Chad their father may still be alive.  He swears he had nothing to do with this, however, having just found out today when the Brady’s dug up the grave; the poor soul in there, he says, was not their father.  

Andre questions how his reunion with Abigail is going; Chad says it isn’t his business.  He argues it is, tells him to get over his anger and move on with their lives; Chad tells him he doesn’t want advice from him on his marriage.  Andre says, if their father is alive, he and Thomas are going to need Abigail more than ever.   Gabi sits Abigail back down on the bench; Abby snaps out of it when Gabi says she is going to call Chad.  She says she isn’t going to have her husband feel like he has to walk on eggshells around her; she says she is strong and won’t just fall apart when things get tough.  Gabi asks what triggered this episode; Abigail says, thinking about Chad and what she did and how she pushed her husband right into Gabi’s arms.  She asks Gabi to tell her how it started with her and Chad; she complies, adding that, thinking she was dead, Chad was just going through the motions of living.  She tells her about the business dinner; Chad making her feel smart and capable… then what JJ did and Chad making her feel worth more than that.  Abigail realizes that Gabi really loves Chad and tells her so.  She asks if she is going to stand in the way of her getting her husband and family back.  Gabi says whatever was going on with her and Chad doesn’t compare to what she and Chad have.  Just then, Chad calls Gabi’s phone… Abby sneaks off.  

Kate is on the phone; she says she learned from her other source that Eduardo Hernandez is involved in the theft of the microchips from the DeMiras…she says she thought she knew him.  She says they better not be wrong and hangs up; she goes back to the table and gets her sweater – she tells Eduardo that she has business to attend to.  He can’t believe she’s blowing him off on New Year’s Eve; she kisses him gently and says they are good,… they are solid.  Kate joins Andre in his booth at the club; she tells him there are other ways to retrieve these microchips.  He insinuates that he might do something awful to Eduardo if she doesn’t agree to get the microchips for them.  Kate goes back to see Eduardo, who is just telling Gabi goodbye as she goes off to the club, as he agreed to watch Ariana.  She tells him that she wanted to be with him at midnight so she hurried; they dance for a moment to the music softly playing and then they kiss.  

Sonny tells JJ that he heard the good news, adding Chad must be real excited.  Sonny tells him he’d have to ask Chad that; his tone of voice says he doesn’t think so.  He mentions Chad having moved on; Sonny says, ah, they weren’t serious.  JJ is stunned to learn that Sonny knew about Chad and Gabi.  JJ says he can’t blame Chad because he was lonely, Gabi is awesome and was hurting…  he gets it.  He tells Sonny he is going to win Gabi’s heart back, filling him in on his infidelity in Miami.  Sonny tells him that Gabi is going to be at Club TBD by midnight; Sonny says, “let’s go.”  

Abigail goes back to the mansion, gets in a pretty dress and waits by the fireplace with a glass of champagne for Chad.  He comes in just before midnight.  She tells him she is looking forward to starting the new year off with him; they toast and drink their champagne.  She puts her glass down after he sits his down; she reaches up again to kiss him and this time he responds in like.  

JJ sees Lani at the club; she is surprisingly cold to him again.  He doesn’t understand why.  He tells Paul that’s like the third time she’s acted that way; Paul suggests he go ask her straight out what’s wrong.  So he does; Lani responds with astonishment, that he would even ask what he did, after “what happened in Miami.”  He still doesn’t catch on; she asks him if he seriously just conveniently forgot that they had sex in Miami.  JJ is apparently bewildered.  She pulls up a picture on her phone of them in bed together, taking a selfie; Gabi walks into the club and sees them looking at the picture.  She can’t believe this is who he slept with in Miami.  Paul’s date takes him by the hand and walks him over the counter where Sonny is sitting; he tells him that he is going to gracefully bow out – he says it is obvious that Paul still has feelings for Sonny and it appears that Sonny still has feelings for him to.  He says, he is done fighting this; maybe they should be too.  When the bells and whistles go off at midnight, Sonny stands up and pulls Paul to him; they kiss.