Steve Returns With Grim News About John — and Jack and Chad Make a Shocking Discovery

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Returning from Greece, Steve surprises Kayla in her office with a yellow rose. He relays that he couldn’t get a hold of John while there, but there were fresh flowers at Catharina’s grave. Attached was a note from John expressing the guilt he felt over her death. Steve doesn’t know where he is now. He produces the note with blood on it. He had the ISA check it, and it matches John’s. He suspects foul play but hasn’t told Marlena yet.

Paul meets Marlena at the Pub. She reports John is still in Greece. She hasn’t spoken to him in a little while, but Steve is there looking after him. She’s more worried about Brady because he’s not replying to her messages, and he didn’t come home last night. Trying to reassure her, Paul tells her Brady went to a meeting during Theresa’s wedding. She’s happy to hear it, but wishes he reached out to her. She asks if Paul’s noticed any questionable behavior. He flashes back to finding Brady about to drink at the townhouse. Paul says to the best of his knowledge, Brady hasn’t been drinking, but he leaves to make sure he’s okay.

At the Salem Inn, Brady stumbles out of the bathroom with a towel around his waist. The room is a mess, and Fiona sits with her hand on her head. “We really went to town, huh?” Brady quips. She chuckles. Brady pours them water as they rehash their bender. Despite Brady’s headache, he has no regrets. He needed to drown his sorrows, and she is a hell of a drinking partner. They agree to keep it a secret, though, since they’re both supposed to be sober. After mocking AA meetings, Fiona says she has to pretend to be completely sober to get back in Xander’s good books.

At their apartment, Xander tells Sarah that Theresa pled guilty to Victoria’s kidnapping. Andrew’s working on a deal for her, but Xander’s confident she’s going to prison. Sarah says they can focus on the future now, namely planning their wedding do-over. She hopes they can do it before his mother goes home. Xander balks. Sarah encourages him to go to the Salem Inn and work things out with Fiona, who is committed to being sober now.

After landing in Poplar Bluff, Jack and Chad find a billboard similar to the one in the video. They deduce none of the surrounding buildings match the one where the video was shot. Chad finds another billboard they can check out.

After Xander’s left, Maggie stops by to see Victoria, but she’s napping. Sarah makes them tea as they discuss Theresa. Maggie’s angry with her, but she believes she’s truly remorseful. Sarah relays that Xander wants her to fry, which she doesn’t blame him for. As they discuss Fiona, Maggie relates to her grief and battle with addiction. Sarah feels she’s done a lot of work on herself. It’d be a shame if Xander didn’t give her another chance.

Fiona invites Brady to stay in her hotel room, but he doesn’t think that’s a good idea. He again asks if anything happened between them. She laments that twice he slept in her bed and twice nothing untoward happened. Perhaps the third time’s the charm? Xander knocks on the door. Panicking, Fiona orders Brady to go out the bathroom window. He protests, but she insists he’s fit enough to descend three stories. He scurries away as Fiona opens the door to her son.

Upon entering, Xander expresses doubt over Fiona’s story about having a breakdown and being in a mental hospital. He calls it a convenient reason for abandoning him. Fiona isn’t trying to absolve herself of responsibility. She admits she handled things terribly when Titus died, but she’s cleaned up her act. She’s totally committed to her sobriety and even goes to meetings, “which are wonderful, by the way.” She insists she’s not after his money, she just wants a relationship with him again. Fiona begs him to forgive her. Appearing affected, Xander starts to respond, but his eye catches something. “What the hell is that?”

Outside the Salem Inn, a disheveled Brady, with a leaf in his hair, limps through the Square, fumbling with his watch. Paul calls out to him. He questions Brady’s appearance and then expresses his and Marlena’s concerns. “Do I need to worry about you?” Brady assures his brother he’s fine and limps away. Paul calls Marlena to report there’s nothing to worry about. After hanging up, Paul stares off, concerned.

After Kayla calls, Marlena comes to her office but only finds Steve waiting. If Steve’s back, she muses, that must mean John is too. Where is he? Steve suggests she sit down. “We need to talk.”

Inside a nondescript building, Jack notes it’s the perfect angle and height, and the windows match the video. Chad checks a door, but it’s locked, while all the other doors are open. Chad knocks and calls out. They hear a noise inside. Chad kicks in the door. “Oh my God,” Chad exclaims at what they see inside.