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Now, let's get into about today's episode. Theo asked a question that stopped me cold, Kristen talked in her sleep at exactly the wrong time, and Roman is finally seeing what we've all been seeing for months. Plus: the will reading is Friday, and Stefano is about to speak from the grave. Let's get into it.

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Roman Starts to Doubt Kate

The episode opens at the pub, where Kate has sent flowers to Johnny's hospital room with both their names on the card. Roman is heading to visit but tells Kate to stay behind. They're short-staffed, he says. Kate sees through it.

At the hospital, Marlena asks Roman if he believes Kate's claim that she didn't set Johnny up. He doesn't. “Just a gut feeling”, he says. When he gets to Johnny's room, the two keep it light. Johnny jokes that he'll try to steer clear of homicidal death traps from now on.

But the plagiarism lawsuit hangs in the background. Johnny tells his grandfather he doesn't want him choosing sides, and Roman doesn't push it. Before he leaves, he offers Johnny a room at the pub while his apartment is repaired.

Sophia Rises from the Dead?

Kristen is apparently scrolling through articles about the search for Sophia's remains when she looks up and sees a blood-soaked Sophia standing in the DiMera living room. Sophia tells her she survived the river. Her mother had her in swimming lessons since she was in diapers, she says, and the cold water shocked her awake after Kristen hit her with a rock. Now she wants what she was promised: Kristen's money and resources to help her disappear.

When Kristen refuses, Sophia plays her card. If she goes down, she's taking Kristen with her — she'll tell everyone the attack on Johnny was Kristen's idea. Kristen threatens to kill Sophia for good this time, in a much more painful way. Sophia begs, trying to appeal to whatever empathy Kristen has left.

Suddenly EJ enters the scen and shakes Kristen awake. The entire confrontation with Sophia was a nightmare, but Kristen was talking in her sleep, and EJ heard her say "Goodbye, Sofia."

He doesn't let it drop. Later, he puts it to her directly: was the nightmare about Sophia hurting Johnny, or about Sophia telling people Kristen was behind it all? Kristen calls the accusation insane, but EJ is unmoved. If another hair on Johnny's head is harmed, he says, the responsible person will be dealt with. The DiMera way.

Johnny Faces Two Fights at Once

Marlena visits Johnny in his hospital room, and he tells her what's been weighing on him: Chanel has a lump in her breast, and the doctors are fairly certain it's cancer. Being pregnant complicates treatment. Marlena urges Johnny to be optimistic. Chanel is young and strong, there are new advances in treatment, and Johnny agrees to be strong for both of them.

They also talk about Sophia. Marlena says she ran into Sophia in the Square after Trey's adoption hearing and tried to draw her out, but Sophia was a stone wall. Johnny admits something complicated: he's sad about what happened, he worries about what Trey will face when he's old enough to learn about his birth mother. But part of him is relieved that Sophia can never hurt his family again.

Theo Asks the Question Everyone Should be Asking

Theo and Cat are prepping for Stefano's will reading. Tony and Anna's flight is delayed but should arrive in time. There's a secret codicil and a sealed letter from Stefano to be read aloud, and Theo, as executor, can't reveal anything in advance. When Cat presses gently, Theo admits there's something that could affect everything. But his hands are tied.

A flashback fills in why the weight is so heavy. EJ's voice: "What you're about to see is going to change so many people's lives for the better, especially yours." Theo remembers the moment EJ brought him down to see Lexie in the pod.

In his session with Marlena, Theo says Lexie showed signs of purposeful movement, but Rolf has grown less optimistic about her prognosis. She might not wake up at all, and even if she does, she might not be the same person. Theo asks a question no one else has been willing to ask: what if his mother is supposed to be with God? What if bringing her back into a world where everyone she loved has moved on only causes more pain?

"Part of me wishes that this wasn't happening at all," he tells Marlena. "That EJ wasn't trying to bring my mother back."

He has to go to the will reading and lie to his family's faces. Marlena offers to come for support. Theo declines. His dad will be there. He'll stay strong for his mom. It's what she would want.

Chad, Cat, and EJ

Chad finds EJ at the hospital and apologizes for accusing him of involvement with Abigail's grave. Theo knocked some sense into him, he says. He no longer thinks EJ desecrated anything, and he'd want to know if EJ found a way to bring Abigail back. EJ accepts gracefully but stays evasive about the pod. It’s just a medical research project, he insists. Chad also worries that Uncle Tony, who never wanted him running DiMera, isn't thrilled about the company's lawsuit exposure. Tony might have someone else in mind for CEO.

Later, Chad and Cat cross paths. He asks about the will reading, and Cat says she organized it, that she feels she still owes the family after pretending to be Abigail years ago. Chad waves it off. On the DiMera scale of bad deeds, he says, hers barely registers. "I think you're pretty all right," she tells him. "I think you're pretty all right too."

When he asks if anything new happened while he was on a road trip with his kids, Cat flashes back to a moment with EJ — telling him he's more than just her employer, more than a friend, and then kissing him. EJ didn't mind at all.

But Cat tells Chad nothing happened. Her life, she says, just isn't that interesting.

My Take

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Roman Brady is an honest man. It's not a complicated thing. He spent decades in law enforcement, raised a family, and runs a pub. He says what he means and trusts the people he loves until they give him a reason not to.

Kate Roberts is one of Salem's great survivors. She clawed her way out of an abusive marriage to Curtis Reed, rebuilt her life more than once, ran businesses, and buried enough secrets to fill a crypt. She is sharp, loyal to her children, and incapable of leaving well enough alone.

They've been married twice. The first time ended at their wedding reception in 2003, when Roman was struck down during the Salem Stalker murders. Kate buried a husband. When Roman turned up alive on Melaswen Island in 2004, the relief didn't last long. He and Marlena had slept together while held captive, believing they were going to die. Kate found out. That marriage was over.

For years afterward, they drifted. Kate married Stefano DiMera. She went through relationships with other men. Roman stayed mostly on his own, running the pub, being a grandfather. They circled each other without closing the distance.

When they finally got back together around 2021, it felt like a second chance the show had decided to give them. They remarried. Kate survived a poisoning by Orpheus that took her, Marlena, and Kayla off the canvas entirely. Rolf brought her back. Roman was waiting. It seemed like the kind of ending a long-running soap occasionally allows.

But Kate can't stop being Kate.

The plagiarism scheme was textbook Kate. At Titan, she formed a quiet alliance with Xander, identified Bonnie's manuscript as a weapon, and engineered a lawsuit designed to embarrass DiMera and weaken Johnny's position as CEO. She probably told herself it was business. She probably told herself it was for the family. But the person it hurt most was Johnny DiMera, Roman's grandson, and Roman knows it.

On April 22, Roman sat across from Kate and pushed her on it. She denied everything. He didn't believe her then, and he told Marlena the same thing today. Just a gut feeling, he said. But it's more than that. It's thirty years of loving a woman who will always eventually make the move that puts the relationship at risk.

What makes this story work is that Roman isn't angry. He's tired. He offered Johnny a room at the pub without mentioning Kate at all. He left her behind at the pub without making a scene. He's not picking a fight. He's just stopped pretending he doesn't see what's in front of him.

That's different from every other time Roman has caught Kate in something. In the past, there was a blowup, a confrontation, a dramatic reveal. This time, Roman is quietly pulling away. And for a man who's spent his whole life believing in people, that might be the most devastating thing he's ever done.

The question now is whether Kate notices before it's too late. Her instinct has always been to deny and deflect. Roman's instinct has always been to forgive. What happens when he just... stops?

Roman was "killed" at his wedding reception to Kate in 2003 during the Salem Stalker murders. Who was eventually revealed as the Salem Stalker?

Roman Presses Kate for the Truth

The wedge between Roman and Kate deepens. Per Soap Opera News and SoapHub, Roman reportedly confronts Kate more directly about her role in the plagiarism scandal. Today's gut feeling becomes tomorrow's direct question. Does Kate finally come clean, or does she double down on denial?

Alex and Justin Bond Over Fatherhood

Wally Kurth returns as Justin Kiriakis, and his first scenes are with Alex. Per SoapHub, father and son talk about what it means to step up as a parent. Alex just learned he's Kelsey's father and asked Joy to stay in Salem. Having Justin in his corner should help him find his footing.

Stephanie Vents to Jada

Stephanie reportedly unloads on Jada about the Alex-Joy situation, per SheKnows. She's been holding it together since the paternity reveal, and Jada seems like the right person for this conversation. Does Stephanie have a plan, or is she still figuring out how she feels?

Gabi and Ari Clash

Gabi and Ari reportedly butt heads again, per Primetimer and Daytime Soap Stop. Philip advised Gabi not to interfere with Ari's love life, but taking advice has never been Gabi's strong suit. How long before her protectiveness pushes Ari further away?

Johnny Comforts Chanel

The cancer storyline continues as Johnny tries to be the rock Chanel needs, per SheKnows and SoapHub. Today Johnny told Marlena he'd be strong and optimistic. Tomorrow is where that promise gets tested.

Finally, Cat and Chad Try to Keep Things Casual

Per CDL, the awkwardness between Cat and Chad continues. After today's "I think you're pretty all right too" exchange and Cat's flashback to kissing EJ, keeping things casual seems like a losing battle.

A few things I'm chewing on after today:

Hit reply and tell me what you think. I read all of your responses, and at least once a week, I plan to share recurring themes in the newsletter!

Marlena was revealed as the Salem Stalker. Her “victims” included Abe, Jack, Maggie, Caroline, Cassie, Roman, Doug, and others. All were eventually found alive on Melaswen Island - as wes Marlena!

Thank you all for reading. Hit reply to let me know what you think, and if you like the direction I’m going in, I would be so appreciative if you would forward this email to the other Days fans in your life!