Days of our Lives Recaps: The week of January 28, 2008 on DAYS

Marlena injected Stefano with a 'drug cocktail' that left him in a vegetative state. Bo, Hope, John, Marlena, and their families jetted off to Ireland to search for Claire and Brady. Colleen Brady was found alive and living in Ireland. Lucas confessed to shooting E.J. to protect his family.

Monday, January 28, 2008

by Diane P.

Marlena taunted Stefano. With pleasure, she told him that that he had not taken aspirin while being questioned, but a muscle relaxant so that she could slowly and calmly explain to him that she was in control of his fate. She told Stefano that she had prepared a special neuromuscular drug cocktail that would place him in a catatonic state and give the appearance of a severe stroke. Marlena questioned Stefano, hoping that he would reveal a way to get back "my John," to no avail, as Stefano called her insane.

When Marlena could no longer reason with him, she slowly injected Stefano with the drug. One by one, Marlena named each of Stefano's victims as she emptied the syringe. With almost a glint of happiness in her eyes, she watched as a helpless Stefano slipped away into a vegetative state. As a final form of justice, Marlena told Stefano that he would be totally aware of his surroundings but unable to move or speak, and no one would know except her. She said the best part was that the drugs were untraceable.

Before the drugs took effect, Stefano told Marlena that she would never get John back until John completed his mission and that only Stefano could restore John's memory. Stefano then cursed the Bradys forever. Marlena informed the guard that it appeared Stefano had suffered a stroke, and she walked away.

John begged the staff not to give him any more drugs and then started to recall some of his brainwashing sessions and something about his mission.

Marlena went to John and told him of Stefano's fate at her hands and that it would be their secret. John told Marlena that he remembered the name of a priest who had lived in Ireland many years before. He said that he had to go there, as it was part of his mission. Marlena told John that she knew his mission was to kill someone, but regardless of the risk, she would help him, and somehow they would go to Ireland together to unravel the mystery.

Chelsea went to the Brady Pub, where Crawford Decker was questioning Stephanie, Kayla, and Steve. Chelsea, with great hesitation but with calm and relief, slowly detailed the events and circumstances leading to Ford's death. Crawford turned violent and threatened to get revenge and justice on everyone that was connected to his son's death and macabre burial. Max entered the pub and admitted that he had helped the girls get rid of Ford's body but would not reveal where he had buried Ford, so as not to implicate the girls further.

Steve and Kayla contacted an attorney after hearing the information from Chelsea, Stephanie, and Max and learning of their roles in the circumstances surrounding Ford's death and disappearance. Steve and Kayla were also saddened for Ford's family, but very worried about the long-term effects of Stephanie's ordeal and the secret she and the others had been keeping from everyone for months.

Roman and Abe informed Bo and Hope of Shawn's run-in with one of Crystal's men and said Shawn had to stop taking things into his own hands, or his career would be over. Abe and Roman welcomed Hope back to the force and then questioned Crystal's man about Crystal using another name, that of Desiree Wilson. Later, Bo and Hope visited Belle in the hospital with Philip, Shawn, and Chloe and told them that Crystal, a.k.a. Desiree Wilson, had been seen getting off a plane in Ireland with a little girl, and they were heading off to investigate. Philip rushed to get his jet ready to join them, even though Bo and Hope had told them all to let the police handle matters.

Tuesday, January 29, 2008

by SPALDING

At the Brady Pub, Anna and Tony held hands and reminisced about their romantic cruise vacation. Tony started to tell Anna about a surprise when Caroline interrupted to take their order. After she updated them on Claire's kidnapping, Caroline set off for the kitchen. Though Caroline had said that Stefano probably was not involved, Tony told Anna that he wanted to put out feelers and help anyway. Tony then got back to his surprise while an expectant Anna hung on his every word.

Unfortunately, Tony's surprise was that he wanted to settle down in Salem and that he had bought an ad agency. Clearly disappointed, Anna went off in a huff. Tony tried to get Anna to tell him why she was mad at him, but she would only tell him that he should know why. After the two had moved their argument outside, a young man named Ethan Blaine stopped Tony on the sidewalk before Tony could go back in the pub after Anna. Ethan introduced himself as the go-to guy at Tony's new ad firm and proved his willingness to help by offering up every bit of information about the agency that Tony could want.

Inside the pub, Caroline chatted up Anna about Tony. When Anna admitted that she thought Tony had been planning to propose, Caroline reminded Anna that Anna had never been a woman who was defined by the man she was with. Caroline then told Anna that some ad guys had been in the pub the day before and had mentioned that they needed a new ad executive. Smiling, Caroline advised her to get that job and give Tony some real competition. When Tony returned inside, a pouty Anna announced that they were through. Confused, Tony asked why she was breaking up with him. As clarification, Anna would only say, "I am not a woman to trifle with!"

Down at the Salem Police Station, Abe informed Bo and Hope that Interpol was tracking Crystal's movements. Abe also told them that if Interpol moved in too soon, they might endanger Brady. Bo and Hope agreed and were about to leave when Abe reminded Hope that she would need to get a physical before she could officially rejoin the force. Hope said she would do it immediately to get it out of the way. After a little pushing, Abe convinced Bo to get his yearly physical as well.

Kayla was working a shift at Salem Hospital when a rattled Steve shambled up to the counter, fretting about Stephanie's rape and how he had not been able to protect her. Steve admitted that he was frustrated that he could not kill Ford because he was already dead. "I'm not all right," he told her. Kayla pleaded with Steve not to do anything he would regret, but Steve continued to talk about how scarred their daughter was. Kayla tried to reassure him that Stephanie was getting counseling and that their daughter had their love and could not see his hate and anger. "I'm angry. But I know better than to let her see it," Steve said.

When Kayla left to answer a page, Steve wandered down the hallway and ran into Crawford Decker. Crawford tried to walk away, but Steve stopped him, saying that he would not forgive Crawford's son. Crawford replied, "There is nothing you can do. My son is dead. And I'll never forgive them for killing him." Seething with anger, Steve growled that it had been an accident.

When Steve asked if Crawford had looked the other way during the rapes, Crawford turned it around and asked if that was what Steve was doing with murder. Crawford tried to say that he did not believe the accusations, but Steve pushed harder, asking, "You didn't believe or you didn't want to believe?" Steve blamed Crawford for making Ford feel like he could get away with anything, but Crawford repeated that no matter what Ford had done, he had not deserved to die. "Oh, yes, he did. He did," said a crazy-eyed Steve.

Steve then told Crawford that if he had cared about his son, he would have been paying attention and realized what kind of person Ford was before he had hurt all those girls and gotten himself killed. Crawford promised that everyone involved would pay. "You have no idea who you are dealing with," threatened Steve. "Neither do you," Crawford countered.

Down the hallway, Kayla met up with Hope in order to give her a physical. When Bo mentioned he needed his as well, he made sure to let Kayla know he did not want his sister to perform the physical. As the two laughed about how neither wanted to do that, Lexie showed up and offered her services. Bo went to his treatment bay with Lexie, and Hope followed Kayla behind the next curtain.

Hope started to tell Kayla about her trip to Ireland, but she noticed that Kayla was obviously preoccupied. Kayla admitted she was worried about Steve. When Hope pressed further, Kayla said that the college rapist had raped Stephanie and that she feared what Steve would do.

Behind the next curtain, Lexie took Bo's blood pressure while he congratulated her for being reinstated as a doctor at the hospital. Lexie tried to suppress a smile as she told Bo that she had a secret. A happy Lexie informed Bo that her name had been submitted as a candidate for chief of staff. As Lexie prepared to draw blood for tests, Bo congratulated her again and told her that she was the perfect person for the job.

Later, Hope, Bo, Kayla, and Lexie met up again, and Kayla and Lexie agreed that their patients both looked pretty good. Steve ambled over and offered his assistance to Bo and Hope. Noting Kayla's worried face, Steve told her that he was okay. Not fooled, Kayla asked him about his obviously injured hand. Steve admitted that he had gone a round with a wall. Kayla took Steve aside and examined his hand. Kayla noted that the hand was not broken, but she also told him that she was worried about him. Steve told her not to worry because he would not let anything else hurt their family. "Neither will I," said Kayla.

Back out in the hallway, Abe arrived to inform Hope that she had just been officially reinstated, pending the outcome of the blood results of her physical. Abe then cautioned them that they had no jurisdiction in Ireland and that they had to work with local police. After Bo made an ill-advised joke to Hope, calling her "Detective Fancy Face," the two were off for Ireland.

Finished with Bo's physical, Lexie opened a letter and learned that she had just been named Salem Hospital's new chief of staff. Her happiness was short-lived, as a nurse entered the room to report that Lexie's father, Stefano, had been admitted to the hospital after suffering a massive stroke.

In Stefano's hospital room, Roman asked a police officer what had happened. The officer informed Roman that it looked like Stefano had suffered a stroke. When Roman asked who had found Stefano, the officer told him that Marlena had been with him when it happened. The doctor informed Roman that it appeared that Stefano had suffered a massive stroke.

Roman asked about Marlena, and when he learned that she was up in the psychiatric ward, he ordered an armed guard for Stefano's room before heading upstairs to find Marlena. While Roman was gone, the doctor ordered an MRI, CT scan, tox screen, and blood work to determine the cause of the stroke. Hearing the doctor's orders, Stefano thought to himself, "You must learn the truth so that you can help me!"

In John's room, Marlena told John that she knew his mission was to find a person and kill them. Marlena then told him that she did not believe a word he said but that she knew John needed to see his mission through in order to be free of Stefano's control. However, she added, "We do this my way, not yours." In his head, John listened to Stefano's voice saying, "And when you find your target, you will eliminate them."

Frustrated, John told Marlena that he was no killer. Unfazed, Marlena told him that maybe he wasn't, but he was definitely a liar. In order to gain her trust, John swore on their love that he would not hurt Marlena or anyone else as long as she helped him. When Marlena then asked what would happen if she stopped helping, John would only say that he did not think Marlena would stop helping him.

Just then, Roman entered and asked to talk to Marlena privately out in the hallway. After the two had left, John said, "I will take out my target and complete my mission. If you get in my way, I'll just have to take you out too." Then, continuing to talk to himself, John laughed and said that he planned to outsmart Marlena and play her for a lovesick fool.

Out in the hallway, Roman told Marlena about Stefano's condition and asked her if it was coincidence that she had been with Stefano when he had taken ill. Remaining stone-faced, Marlena told him that she considered it to be fate. Roman then questioned her about what she had given Stefano. Marlena reminded him that she had given Stefano truth serum and aspirin in front of Roman.

When Roman asked about Marlena's unsupervised visit with Stefano, Marlena asked Roman what he was implying. Marlena told Roman if he wanted to accuse her to just do it. Roman asked her what could have caused the stroke, but Marlena would only say that it had not been a guilty conscience. When Roman backed off, an overjoyed Marlena grabbed him in a bear hug and thanked him. Marlena advised Roman not to expect anything with Stefano.

Down the hallway, the doctor reviewed Stefano's lab results with the nurse. Marlena listened from the corner as the doctor said, "I hope something shows up in the blood tests." Trying to cover her tracks, Marlena jumped onto a computer to alter the blood test results. Talking to herself, Marlena said, "Oh, Sami. Every time you changed blood results, you got caught. You know why? Because you are not a doctor, and you didn't know how to get away with it." Once Marlena had finished altering the test results, she grabbed a canister and some medications, noting that she would use them on John if he tried anything.

As John struggled with his restraints back in his room, Marlena entered with a set of handcuff keys. While John unlocked his restraints, Marlena informed him that she had John's jet prepared to fly them out of the country. When John remarked that they would need a flight plan, an amused Marlena said, "It is funny the things you've forgotten and what you remember." Marlena informed him that she had filed a plan and that they would change it once they got in the air.

Throwing a set of scrubs at John to change into, Marlena went outside to head off Nurse Carla. Marlena told her John had gone downstairs for tests. When Carla said there were no notes on that, Marlena said Carla was incompetent and bullied Carla into running away. After Marlena made a quick call to Doctor Carrington, asking him to give Carla a week off in exchange for the nasty things she had said, Marlena headed off to the airport with John. Once at the airport, Marlena changed the flight plan, and the two set off for Ireland.

Later Roman stopped by Stefano's room and learned that Stefano had fallen into a coma. Lexie rushed into Stefano's room to check on his condition, and Roman told her that all the tests, including the blood work, had come back negative. "At least he isn't suffering," Lexie whispered over her father. In his head, Stefano screamed, "Help me, Alexandra! Help me!"

Wednesday, January 30, 2008

by SPALDING

At the Salem Police Station, the women from the sorority stood around, waiting for the police to question them about Ford Decker. Chelsea reminded them that she would be the one to be blamed for killing Ford. An upset Billie interjected that she really wished that the girls had confessed to everything sooner so that she could have protected them. A defensive Chelsea told Billie that they had been scared of how the situation would look, but Billie reminded her that burying the body had only made things look worse.

Billie told the women that without the body, the D.A. would not be able to prove that they had killed Ford. When faced with the idea of lying to the police about the death again, Chelsea told everyone that they would not lie anymore. Stephanie took a minute to call Max and let him know that they were all at the police station. Returning to the group, Stephanie let them know that Max refused to let anyone know where Ford's body was buried.

Unnerved, Cordy babbled a bit about first having to deal with the rape and then having to suffer through the legal system, but she managed to calm down when Billie told them that they did not have to answer questions without an attorney present. Roman entered the room and announced that the D.A. had signed an arrest warrant for Chelsea for the murder of Ford Decker. Billie tried to stick up for her daughter, but Crawford Decker let her know that the jury would decide Chelsea's fate.

Stephanie tried to get Crawford to understand that the accident had not been Chelsea's fault, but when he countered her argument by calling Chelsea a slut, an angry Roman stepped in. Roman quietly warned him to back off or else he would find some way to arrest Crawford. When Chelsea stepped forward and pleaded for Crawford to believe that it had been an accident, he yelled that he did not believe it was an accident and furthermore, he believed that Chelsea had intentionally pushed Ford down the stairs. Frustrated, Chelsea told Crawford that she had not pushed Ford, but she would have if it had meant keeping him from hurting her. Roman cautioned Chelsea to wait for counsel while an angry Crawford stewed nearby.

All the women from the sorority began telling Crawford how evil his son had been, and when Crawford seemed ready to blow, Billie stepped in to offer a deal. Billie suggested that since there was not enough proof to convict the girls that the D.A. should drop the charges. In exchange, Crawford would learn where Ford's body was buried. The D.A. agreed to the deal if Crawford would, but a stubborn Crawford said that someone had to pay for what had happened to Ford. When Crawford made statements about the judges he knew, an emotional Stephanie stepped forward and swore to Crawford that if it went to trial, she would take the stand and explain to everyone in court exactly what Ford had done to her, in excruciating detail.

When the other girls agreed that they would do the same, it became clear that Ford's memory would become synonymous with the word "rapist." As Crawford's face softened at the realization of what that would do to Ford's memory, he quietly told them he just wanted to know where his son's body was hidden. Crawford agreed to drop the charges in exchange for the information, but Stephanie reiterated that she still did not know where the body was hidden. "Then who does?" asked Crawford. Right on cue, Max entered the police station and announced, "I know. I'm the one that took him away."

On Philip's plane, Shawn and Philip bickered over the plane's maintenance delay. Belle reminded them that it was about Claire, so they needed to focus. As the cabin of the plane quieted down, Chloe turned to Shawn and wondered if Brady would be in Ireland. She thought briefly about when she had confessed to Philip about Brady's disappearance and the threat to back off from her search.

Shawn kept looking over at Belle until finally Belle asked him why he was staring. Shawn shrugged off the question and started to gripe at Philip again. Frustrated, Belle said, "I thought you had settled this." Shawn explained that traveling together to find Claire did not mean things were settled. Belle asked Chloe for a minute with Shawn and then asked him what she could do to fix things. When Belle said, "We've been friends forever, and I care about him," Shawn shot back at her, "I don't sleep with everybody I care about!"

Belle went on to explain that it had been weakness and not love that had led to her sleeping with Philip. Belle further explained that it had happened because of unresolved feelings, but then she passionately pleaded with Shawn to believe that she only wanted to be with Shawn and no one else. The two talked about trust and how it would take time to build. "Where do we go from here?" Belle asked. "I don't know," said Shawn.

Later on the plane, Chloe sat down with Belle and told her "You know you're jerking them both around?" Belle shot her a dirty look, and when Chloe asked Belle why she was so mad at her, Belle explained it was because of Brady. Chloe said that she loved Brady, but Belle did not seemed convinced because of Chloe's recent interaction with Shawn. Chloe informed Belle that Shawn would never be able to get over Belle because he belonged with her. A wistful Belle told Chloe that she only loved Shawn and that she did not want to be with anyone else. "Neither does he," said Chloe.

In the other corner of the cabin, Shawn told Philip that he did not hate him. The two agreed that old-fashioned anger was acceptable under the circumstances, and they agreed that they were a lot alike. Smiling, Philip joked that they certainly had the same taste in women. Shawn agreed.

Philip quickly became serious again and let Shawn know that he wanted his friend back. Philip told Shawn that Belle was Shawn's wife and that she belonged with him. When Shawn said that the decision was up to Belle, Philip was quick to say that there was no doubt in his mind that Belle would choose Shawn because she wanted to be with him. The two agreed they were "good" and agreed to find Claire together.

Bo and Hope were driving a car in Ireland, looking for the town of New Ross. Hope had some difficulty with the map, and Bo had some difficulty with the car. The two switched places. After Bo got them headed in the right direction, he stared lovingly at Hope and remembered moments from their past. He thought about when they had met, the southern plantation, their wedding, the balloon ride, and the time they had skinny-dipped in the island water hole.

"How close are we?" said Hope. Smiling, Bo told her, "Very close." After a brief stop to show Claire's photo to some locals, Bo returned to the car and told Hope that someone had spotted Claire with a woman at the bed and breakfast up the street.

At the Obbin Bed and Breakfast in New Ross, John and Marlena arrived and found an empty lobby. John told Marlena that he could sense the target was nearby. John knocked on the counter for service then started to head in the back to have a look. Marlena told him he was not going in the back out of her sight, but before she followed him, she took the time to think about the drugs she had picked up earlier to deal with John if he should get out of hand. As John and Marlena headed to the back, two men stopped them.

After Marlena inquired about a room for the night, the two men said that everyone was asleep and that there were no vacancies. When John talked about having a look around, the two men told John and Marlena to leave. John and Marlena agreed to leave, but once the two men returned to the back room, John and Marlena sneaked back in and headed upstairs. Once upstairs, John seemed to sense through the doors. After a couple of room checks, the third door they came to felt right to John.

Marlena asked John to look her in the eyes and tell her that he was not going to kill anybody and that he did not have a weapon. After eyeing a steak knife on a nearby food cart, John looked Marlena in the eye and told her no in answer to both questions. Marlena asked to go first, and John relented, hanging back to grab the knife from the cart. Once inside the room, John and Marlena circled around to the front of a woman in a rocking chair.

Downstairs, Bo and Hope arrived at the bed and breakfast. Bo looked around while Hope took a phone call from Shawn. Unaware that Shawn had just landed in Ireland, Hope filled him in on the search and let him know what town Claire had been spotted in. Just as Hope was hanging up on the call, the two men who had met John and Marlena entered the lobby and asked if they could help. Bo asked the men if they had seen Crystal. Right then, Crystal appeared downstairs and told Bo and Hope that they were too late.

Thursday, January 31, 2008

by Soap Central

Adrienne informed Steve that she, Justin, and the boys were moving to Dubai. The siblings shared a tearful farewell.

Anna scolded Tony for not consulting her before putting down stakes in Salem by buying his new business. She accused him of not taking her seriously. Later, Anna scheduled an interview with a competitor. Caroline offered support to Anna.

Lexie was perplexed by her father's condition, since the medical tests showed no indication of a stroke. She called Tony and E.J. to the hospital, where she informed them about Stefano. She told them they had a decision to make -- either run more tests to figure out what was wrong with their father or drop the matter and let Stefano remain in his comatose state. As Stefano silently begged for help, his children ultimately decided to do nothing, hoping to end his reign of terror for good.

Lexie got disturbing test results back for one of her patients. She asked Roman for help with her very sick patient. Roman then filled in Steve, who promised he and Kayla would take the next flight out to Ireland.

At the safe house, Sami expressed her anger and frustration to E.J. over Lucas' decision to shoot him. After E.J. left, Sami grew alarmed when she realized Allie was sick.

At the Irish bed and breakfast, Shawn, Belle, Philip, and Chloe ran into Crystal and demanded Claire back. Upstairs, Marlena, John, Bo, and Hope were blown away when they stumbled upon Colleen Brady. Colleen admitted she had been behind Claire's kidnapping. Secretly gripping the knife, John realized Colleen was his target.

Friday, February 1, 2008

by ChickenGrrl

At the bed and breakfast in Ireland, Bo, Hope, John, Marlena, Shawn, Belle, Philip, and Chloe were gathered in Colleen Brady's room. No one could believe she was really who she claimed to be, but Colleen was firm. She suggested they look into her eyes and compare them to the photographs they'd seen, because, she said, "the eyes don't change." She remarked how pleased she'd been to learn that Samantha resembled her younger self. Bo wanted to know what her game was.

Colleen admitted there had been deception, but it was no game. Marlena told her they'd read the letters between Colleen and Santo, and they knew how Colleen had supposedly died. Colleen declared that her and Santo's love had been deep and strong, but it had also torn her apart. She had been willing to give up everything for Santo, but he had lied to her; he had already been married. By sleeping with Santo, she had disgraced the convent, the church, and God, thus she had wanted everyone to think she had jumped to her death, even though suicide was a mortal sin.

Colleen explained that she had left her nun's habit on the cliff, but instead of jumping, she'd run and hidden, so that Santo could go back to his wife and son. Colleen said she'd heard that Santo had never smiled after that. She herself had never been able to love another man, nor had she ever married. Santo's son, Stefano, had become consumed with hatred for all the Bradys because he'd always blamed Colleen for destroying Santo's life. However, Colleen insisted that she'd actually given Santo back his life; she'd faked her death so Santo could honor his wedding vows.

Belle and Chloe said they believed the old woman's story, but Bo and Philip remained skeptical. Colleen was outraged at being thought a liar. Hope asked Colleen where she had gone after faking her death. Colleen said at first she had just moved to another part of Ireland, changed her name, and worked as a seamstress, but she had continued to fear being discovered, so she'd moved to South America. There, through years of working long hours, she'd become successful as a dressmaker and designer, and discovered that she also had a knack for business.

As she'd gained financial successs, she'd also gained the ability to track down her relatives, but she'd only recently learned of her family in Salem. When she had heard that Stefano still harbored such hatred for the Bradys and had inflicted so much pain on them because of it, she had decided to take responsibility. She said Stefano had become an evil man in part because she had broken Santo's heart. She said she had to keep him from hurting anyone else and asked the forgiveness of everyone present for what she had done. "I took something of yours," she confessed then called for Crystal, who instantly appeared in the doorway -- followed by Claire.

"Mommy, Daddy!" the little girl cried as she ran to Belle and Shawn. Belle scooped her daughter up in her arms, and Hope, Bo, and Marlena immediately surrounded the newly reunited family as everyone tried to hug Claire at once. They all exclaimed over the girl, told her how much they loved her and had missed her, and "fought" over who got to hold her next. A wistful-looking Philip kept his distance, and Chloe stroked his arm in comfort.

Meanwhile, John had backed into a corner and surreptitiously produced a knife, while staring intently at an unaware Colleen. Marlena noticed him studying the woman, so she edged over to him and excitedly reminded him that Claire was his granddaughter. "Oh, that's right -- a granddaughter," he said without emotion, as he slid the knife back into his coat sleeve.

Bo confronted Colleen and demanded an explanation. He needed to know why she would kidnap an innocent little girl and put the child's family through hell. Colleen said she'd done it out of love and because she'd seen how dangerous Stefano had become. She had just been trying to protect her family "and all who come from Salem," including Brady Black. A stunned Chloe demanded to know if Colleen had been behind Brady's disappearance.

Colleen admitted Crystal and Rob had been in Austria, but Brady had disappeared before they had been able to take him to Ireland. She said she didn't know where he was and wondered if Chloe did. Chloe hesitated for a moment before saying she did not, then retreated in tears. Marlena reminded John that the missing Brady was his son, but John was unmoved. Bo and Hope again pressed Colleen to tell them why she'd felt she had to kidnap Belle, Claire, and Brady. "For safekeeping." Colleen said with a sigh. "That's all I'm after sayin' for now."

Nick, Chelsea, Max, and Stephanie entered the Brady Pub together. Chelsea thanked Max for stepping forward about moving Ford's body. Max said he'd had to, otherwise Crawford Decker would have had Chelsea arrested for murder. Max said he'd rather have seen Ford go to prison. Stephanie agreed that no one had wanted him dead, but it was Ford's own fault he was dead, because he'd attacked Chelsea.

Stephanie and Chelsea were both worried they couldn't trust Crawford to keep his word and not press charges. Nick agreed that even though they'd kept their end of the bargain by telling Crawford where Ford's body was, Crawford still wanted to blame someone. Just then, Crawford entered. He told the group he'd just been at the morgue and had had a change of heart. They argued with Crawford that they'd made a deal.

Crawford said even if the D.A. decided not to prosecute Chelsea, Crawford would still make her life hell. He described Ford's body as "broken and defiled," which made Max lose it. He demanded Crawford consider all the women whom Ford had "broken and defiled," but Crawford said there was no evidence of anything but Ford's death.

Stephanie tried to make Crawford see they'd only wanted Ford to stop hurting people -- they had never wanted to kill him. Crawford said the girls had to have lured Ford to their sorority house because otherwise he never would have gone there. Chelsea snapped that Ford had gone over because he had thought he could do whatever he wanted without any consequences because he was arrogant, just like his father. Crawford said he was going to have the D.A. press full charges against Chelsea, regardless of the autopsy results.

"May you rot in hell for what you did," Crawford hissed at Chelsea before storming out. Nick tried to console Chelsea, and then Billie and Kate arrived. Kate said she knew exactly how to handle things, took Chelsea by the hand, and practically dragged her out the door. Billie followed, leaving the others to wonder what was going on.

Victor greeted Kate, Billie, and Chelsea at the Kiriakis mansion, and gave Chelsea a warm, grandfatherly hug. Kate got right down to business, and the three of them filled Victor in about how Ford had tried to rape Chelsea and had fallen down the stairs to his death -- and how Ford's father wanted to prosecute Chelsea. Victor assured them that they could consider the matter taken care of. He made one phone call, and Chelsea was impressed that that was all it took.

After Chelsea, Kate, and Billie thanked Victor, Chelsea asked her grandfather if he could help Max. Victor didn't think he had enough pull at the police department for that, but he thought Max wouldn't get more than a slap on the wrist. He said they should keep him informed. Later, after the women had left, Crawford Decker arrived. Victor informed him there had been a "misunderstanding" about Chelsea.

Stephanie thanked Max for sticking up for them. Nick seemed uncomfortable, so he bid the pair goodbye and quickly left. Stephanie worried that Max's helping them would land him in jail. He assured her it had been the right thing to do. Chelsea, Billie, and Kate returned and told the two that Victor had made one phone call -- and Crawford Decker wouldn't be a problem. Chelsea informed Max that he might still have to talk to the police.

An officer took Lucas to see Roman and Abe. Lucas told them he wanted to plead guilty to shooting E.J. They took his statement then asked him why he was pleading guilty without a deal in place. Lucas said Sami knew he was guilty, so there was no reason to fight the charges. Neither cop seemed convinced, nor did they seem as if they thought he was making the right decision. They said they didn't think Lucas knew what he was getting into with his potential prison sentence. Lucas shrugged it off and said he was hopeful the judge would be lenient -- or that he'd get a reduced sentence for good behavior.

At the safe house, Sami tried to calm a crying and feverish Allie. Lucas called her from a jail pay phone, and when he heard Allie, he wanted to know why she was crying. Sami lit into him for not being there for his daughter. E.J. quietly entered the house, unnoticed, as Sami settled Allie into her crib. In a hushed voice, she continued to read Lucas the riot act for not believing in her. She was upset that she had to care for their children alone, without the man she loved.

Lucas seemed surprised to hear that Sami still loved him and tried to tell her about his guilty plea, but just then, Sami noticed that E.J. had returned, so she quickly ended the call. E.J. told her that their situation had changed: Stefano was no longer a threat because he was in a coma. He filled her in about Stefano's catatonic, vegetative state and said the doctors hadn't been able to determine a cause for it.

He said he, Lexie, and Tony had discussed it, and they'd agreed not to have any more tests done on Stefano. They were just going to "let him rest," to hopefully end his reign of terror, and they would send him to a sanitarium for care. E.J. admitted how much he regretted having followed in his father's footsteps and said he wanted to be a better man for her and the children. She asked if the news about Stefano meant they could go home, and he told her it seemed that way. Lucas phoned again and asked a stunned Sami to take Allie to see him so he could say goodbye.