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Credit: Jill Johnson/JPI

What in the world has been happening on that island? 

Sarah is back on Days of Our Lives! For real this time. At least… we think so. She’s certainly not acting right, but we finally got to see her in Friday’s episode, trapped, it seemed, in the same shabby mansion as Abigail. That wasn’t much of a surprise, but her reaction to seeing Kristen on Monday’s episode certainly was!

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We’ve been assuming all this time that Kristen kidnapped Maggie’s daughter, but the truth seems far more complicated than that. Sarah was downright relieved to see Kristen, who, in turn, greeted her warmly. Heck, Sarah even hugged the woman we assumed was her captor! What the what?

Kidnapped or Rescued?

Kristen and Sarah struggle over a syringe on Days of Our Lives

Above: Something’s definitely up if this cute little memory isn’t keeping Sarah from putting all her faith in Kristen’s protection.

Credit: Jill Johnson/JPI

First off: Could Sarah have gone with Kristen willingly?

Well, no. We do know that Kristen injected Sarah with a syringe, knocked her out and shipped her off in a crate — which isn’t super consensual. Especially after their struggle. But if Sarah doesn’t know for some reason that it was Kristen who did that, her “pal” might have been able to convince her that she rescued Sarah and has been keeping her safe from whatever villain supposedly did. But who could she be blaming?

Sarah, we learned, is obsessed with getting back to her man, who we assumed, at first, was Xander. But the lack of a proper noun and referring to the guy just as “him” or “the man I love,” seems like a pretty big tip-off that there’s something more going on here.

Kristen told Sarah she needed to stay in that room for her own protection, but the captive insisted she could protect herself and “him.” That definitely doesn’t sound like Xander, of all people. Usually, he’s the one doing the menacing! And that could be where the problem lies.

Beware of Xander?

What if the Kiriakis black sheep isn’t who she was talking about? Who else would it be? Rex? Or maybe… Eric? They’re the other two men she’s loved and lost. Sarah doesn’t seem to remember that Kristen is not to be trusted.

What if Kristen’s drugs messed with Sarah’s mind enough that she forgot her apparent bestie was masquerading as Susan — and in the process lost so much of her memory that she forgot she’d forgiven Xander!

She could be back to hating him for switching her baby out with Kristen’s and Brady’s. The adopted DiMera would then seem to be a natural ally for Sarah, having also been duped and hurt by Xander’s baby swap.

Eric confronts Sarah and Xander over Mickey on Days of our Lives

Above: Could Sarah have forgotten to the point that she thinks Xander is after her and Eric?

Credit: Image: Jill Johnson/JPI

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With only Kristen to rely on, who knows what kind of tale she could have woven to make Sarah dependent on her and afraid of returning to Salem. And with Xander’s dangerous track record, it could be pretty easy to twist his actions into those of a man willing to do anything to hold onto Sarah.

He’d be a man so dangerously obsessed, he’d be willing to drug and kidnap her. A man so driven in his goal to keep her, that he’d tear through either Eric or Rex — or both! — to get to her should she ever show up in Salem again.

It’s utterly ludicrous, but Sarah doesn’t exactly seem to be thinking rationally right now. And no wonder, if she’s been trapped in that creepy room and groomed by Kristen for the better part of a year. Her mannerisms with her captor seemed heartbreakingly akin to someone in an abusive relationship, isolated from everyone she loves and kept paranoid and off-balance.

However Kristen’s been keeping her docile for so long, though, it looks like it may be wearing off. Sarah seemed pretty convinced that she’ll be reuniting with her “love” again soon, danger or not. That, though, is the last thing Kristen would want.

The schemer may be far past her Susan impersonation days, but she’s been busy on that island, between Abigail, Steve and Kayla. Having Sarah return to Salem and start telling tales wouldn’t be the smartest move out there.

What do you think? Are we on to something, or could there be another explanation for this mess? Let us know, then maybe stick around to check out a gallery of Sarah and Xander’s dramatic romance — which the brunette may have just forgotten!