As Lani Lashes Out at Paulina, Sami Manages to Call [Spoiler]

As we join the action, MarDevil walks in on Susan and John’s escape attempts, taunting both of them. “You thought the two of you could outwit me?” Susan, though, doesn’t try outwitting anyone. She just hisses and dashes out the door, much to MarDevil’s apparent amusement. “Why aren’t you going after her?” John asks. MarDevil responds with a sensible, “In these heels?” She then acknowledges that it’s just because she likes dangling some hope before crushing someone — which is exactly what happens. Susan makes her way to the DiMera mansion, calling for help, but Marlena re-catifies her before a confused Johnny makes it to the door.

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Back in the crypt, John wonders if MarDevil’s been successful in destroying lives, and she gloats that it worked marvelously at Abe’s wedding. She then makes clear that in the end, John’s soul will be hers, before “slipping into something a little more comfortable.” That something is Kristen — and she gets a little handsy in her seduction, reminiscing about the first time they made love in the Horton cabin. “It was so passionate,” she purrs, “and so magical.” “Kristen” then goes on about the morning after, lamenting that their perfect time together had to end. “But then after everything that happened, you still wanted me, you still loved me. Admit it,” she says with a little more steel in her voice, “you still do.”

Elsewhere, Marlena wakes up, chained, but devil-free for the moment. She struggles to reach her phone, dismayed, when she finally does to find that there’s no signal. Until it rings in her hand!

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At the Brady Pub, Roman is offering Abe a sympathetic ear — and a beer. Abe confirms to Roman that Paulina is Lani’s mother and he’s not actually her father. And that is, Roman acknowledges, quite the tale. “If only that’s all it was,” Abe laments. Roman, though, tries to get Abe to see how tough Paulina’s situation was, and how painful giving up Lani must have been. “Defending her?” Abe asks before acknowledging that yes, it had to have been difficult. But that didn’t excuse what she’d done since coming to Salem. Abe hates that he trusted her and blames himself for being stupid. “You weren’t stupid,” Roman tells him, “you were in love.” Roman keeps at it, suggesting that Paulina didn’t tell Abe the truth to protect him. Abe, though, isn’t having any of it. She didn’t get to be the hero of the story. But nothing, Roman insists, is changing Abe’s relationship with Lani and his grandchildren. Abe thanks him for listening, then asks to be alone.

Theo and Eli reflect over the wedding-that-wasn’t, then Theo wonders if Lani going to see Paulina was actually a good idea. “I sure hope so,” Eli responds before breaking out his own beers for the two of them. Theo offers to step down as Jules’ godfather since they’re no longer related. No need, Eli assures him, he’ll always be family. Theo talks to Eli about how much having Lani as a sister has meant to him before deciding that he’s talked enough and needs to go find his father and let him know he’s there for him.

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Over in the Horton Town Square, Lani slaps the daylights out of Paulina mid-sentence. Once Lani’s mom gets over her shock, though, the claws come out. “I vowed a long time ago that I was never ever going to let anyone put a hand on me. But,” she concedes, “after what I did to you, I suppose I deserved that.” Lani lights into Paulina as tears stream down her face, accusing her of taking away her entire family “in one fell swoop.” Paulina tries explaining how dangerous Lani’s real dad was and how desperate she was to keep her safe. She says that Tamara agreed, but only if she could raise Lani as her own. What choice did Paulina have but to promise her that? “And that’s one promise you actually kept,” Lani spits angrily. The two go back and forth, with Paulina trying to explain that she changed her mind when Lani was actually born, but her own mom convinced her that giving the baby up was the best for everything. She did, though, she tearfully explains, have the midwife cut a lock of Lani’s hair to keep with her forever. And, Paulina insists, she did the right thing. Lani’s life with Tamara was better than anything she could ever offer.

Lani asks if all her gifts, and the twins’ college education, were to atone for giving her up. That was the case partly, Paulina admits, but mostly they were because she loved Lani and wanted to be a part of her life and her grandchildren’s life. Nothing’s calming Lani, though. “How could you think it was OK to keep this big lie going?” she asks in disgust. She came close to telling Lani, Paulina responds, but didn’t want to destroy her relationship with Theo and Abe. “You destroyed it, anyway,” Lani spits. “You are not my mother, and you never will be.”

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At the DiMera mansion, Chanel shows up looking for Johnny, and though he tries sweet-talking her, she’s in no mood. She explains what happened to a shocked Johnny, who muses that Marlena’s shady actions didn’t sound like the grandmother he knew. Well, Chanel continues, she did it. Marlena put her in an impossible situation, swearing her to secrecy but forcing her to go to the wedding, anyway. Chanel provides the creepiest retelling of what happened, saying she felt “compelled” to speak up after locking eyes with Marlena. Johnny pulls her into his arms as she laments that she wrecked everyone’s life, his comforting getting more and more romantic. Chanel lights up when he calls her “brave” and “perfect,” leading the two to kiss… and then make their way upstairs.

In the final moments, Johnny and Chanel get hot and heavy in his bedroom, Theo offers his dad silent comfort, and Lani returns home to seek her own comfort in Eli’s arms. “Kristen” keeps up the pressure, toying with John as she removes his belt. And the missing Sami finally gets through to Marlena. “Mom,” she cries, “thank God you picked up!”

Even as several Salem relationships face turning points, the stars of all four soaps open up about their own romances. Check out what they had to say about how they keep things on track and maybe even walk away with a few tips you can use in your own life!

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