Days Transcript Friday, October 20, 2023

Days of Our Lives Transcript

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Transcript provided by Thane and Suzanne

THIS STILL NEEDS SOME EDITING!

Theresa, hey.

Hey yourself.

Did we have plans that slipped my mind, or…

[giggles] Oh, as if you would forget that you had plans with me.

Mm, that’s a very good point.

[clears throat]

What’s in the bag?

Gosh, I thought you’d never ask. For you. Something you are desperately in need of.

[playful jazz music]

God, this is such a nightmare, Justin.

Sarah, you need to stay calm.

Calm? How can I stay calm? I am a sleep-deprived new mom, and just when I thought things were starting to thaw between Xander and me, I find out he is suing for full custody of my child. I know. I know that she is also his child, but… we have to stop him, Justin. I mean, please tell me that we can stop him.

[tense music]

Why are you here? We don’t have an appointment.

So what?

So you can’t just show up to my apartment anytime you feel like it.

You took my case, and you took my money, and you told me you’d be available to me whenever I needed. So give it to me straight, Counselor. Do I have a chance of winning full custody of my daughter or not?

[dramatic music]

Nicole.

Oh. Hi.

Hey.

What are you doing here?

I’m here to visit a friend, a former parishioner. But the nurse is in the room with him right now. You?

Waiting for a prescription.

Yeah. Right.

Well, since we’re both waiting, do you want to do it together?

Yeah. Sure, why not? Please.

Ooh. [both chuckle]

[soft orchestration] announcer: Like sands through the hourglass, so are the “Days of Our Lives.”

It was very kind of you to give me a tour of Salem.

Oh, believe me, it was no trouble. Once you’ve seen the dock and the Brady Pub and the Horton Town Square, you’ve pretty much hit the high spots.

[chuckles]

Salem is a–it’s a typical American town.

Victor Kiriakis didn’t find it typical. He traveled the globe, and yet he settled here, where he found true love… with you, Maggie. And that alone makes this place very special indeed.

[dramatic music]

Don’t think I’ve ever seen Sarah so furious.

Well, what did you expect? I mean, you’re trying to take the woman’s baby from her.

Victoria is my baby t– hey, whose side are you on?

I’m on yours– as long as your checks don’t bounce. Look, they don’t call it a custody battle for no reason, OK? And if you’re gonna see this through, you’re just gonna have to ignore the fact that Sarah’s furious. Look, did she care about your feelings whenever she told you Rex Brady was Victoria’s father?

No. Thanks for the reminder.

Mm-hmm. I’m also gonna remind you of your goal, which is to have full custody of Victoria. And my goal is to make sure that happens.

[sighs]

Well, keep in mind that you have a lot going in your favor. You have an excellent reputation as a doctor. You grew up here in Salem and come from a good family. Xander is an outsider with a criminal record, and I’ll be sure to let the judge know all about his past.

Is that it, then? We’ll win?

Well, let me finish. We need to anticipate what Xander and Sloan may use against you.

Like what?

Well, for starters, this isn’t the first time that you’ve lied about a child’s paternity.

So Tate’s gonna be working here at the pub?

Yeah, yeah, he’s gonna be working back in the kitchen, washing dishes until he pays for the damages he caused at his– his old boarding school.

Wow. Kid sounds like a real piece of work.

Takes after his mother, unfortunately. Although I will say this: I think maybe he inherited some of her good qualities.

And what are those?

Oh, come on. Theresa is definitely smart as a whip, and she’s got a whole lot of drive and energy.

That’s true. You know, Kayla tells me she’ll be directing all that drive and energy here in Salem from now on. She’s staying here indefinitely.

Yeah, as a matter of fact, she wanted to move in here, but I had just rented out the last available room to Harris Michaels.

Well, that’s too bad. Kayla was hoping you could keep an eye on her.

I don’t think I’d worry about Theresa. Yeah, she’s got a knack for getting into trouble, but… she’s also got a gift for landing on her feet.

[sighs]

You bought me…dishes?

Mm-hmm.

[chuckles]

Well, you said at dinner the other night that you were using paper plates, and that is just– [tsks] That’s not civilized, is it? And now that you are CEO of Titan, you’re not gonna have time to shop for housewares, so I thought I’d assist.

[laughs] That’s very thoughtful of you, Theresa. Thank you.

Mm-hmm.

I suppose I have been using this place like a bro pad.

Mm, mm-hmm. And you are CEO. You have an image to maintain.

Hmm. I suppose I do. Why don’t we eat some leftovers, we can talk about my new image, and we can christen these new plates?

Oh. I’d love to christen your plates.

Huh.

[dramatic music]

So how are things going with the adoption process?

It’s going well, thanks to Melinda Trask.

What?

Yeah, she’s helping us out. Sloan and Melinda, well, have gotten kind of friendly over the last couple of months.

Yeah, well, they both have a lot in common. Because they’re both driven and tend to be ferocious. I guess those are good qualities in a lawyer, right?

Yeah. I suppose. Anyway, well, you know Melinda, she’s starting her own private practice, and she said that she has a lot of time to devote to our case.

That’s great. That’s great. Really, I’m happy for you… and for Sloan. And hopefully things work out and you’ll get to be the father that you always wanted to be.

So to win custody of your child, you’re gonna have to be as underhanded and unscrupulous as Sarah, who was prepared, before the truth was discovered by your ex-fiancée, to let another man be the father to your child.

Right. So…what’s our plan?

Oh, it’s simple, really. We just have to illustrate to the Salem family courts that Dr. Sarah Horton is a pathological liar and mentally unstable.

Right, but I mean, that last part wasn’t really her fault.

Oh, come on, Xander. Please, I’ve done my research. The woman was running around town for months thinking that she was a dead DiMera heiress. And before that, she was a little girl. I mean, if that’s not mentally unstable–

Yeah, I see how… it could look that way, but she only behaved like that because she was drugged, so…

You know what? I’m the lawyer here, OK? I need you to listen to me. You cannot go around making excuses for Sarah’s behavior now or in the past or ever, you understand? If you want full custody of your daughter, then we are going to have to demonstrate unequivocally and emphatically that Sarah Horton is an unfit mother to her.

How can the court hold it against me for lying about the paternity of my first child? Mackenzie was switched at birth with Rachel Black.

Yes, technically you weren’t lying to Eric when you told him that he wasn’t the father. But when you led him to believe that Xander was the father, you, in fact, were deceiving him.

But that’s because Eric was with Nicole, and he didn’t want to damage their relationship.

Well, whatever the motivation, the court could view that as depriving the child’s father of his paternal rights.

Look, I know that I made a mistake with Victoria– choosing to marry Rex and try to pass her off as his. But I thought that I was protecting her. And I’ve seen the error of my ways. I know that I was wrong. Rex and I are getting a divorce. Doesn’t that show contrition?

Yes, yes, it does. But I’m afraid Sloan may try and spin it as “too little, too late.”

Damn it. Of course she will.

And, Sarah, there’s something else– your…mental health issues.

I have no mental health issues. And I only ever did in the past because I was drugged.

I know that, but I wouldn’t put it past Sloan to try and use it against you.

Well, she’s not gonna succeed, because in spite of how angry Xander is and in spite of all the stupid, reckless things he has done in the past, he does have a conscience– as far as I’m concerned, anyway. He knows the hell that Kristen and Gwen put me through. He–he knows how much I suffered because of them, and it broke his heart. So that is why I know that he will not let Sloan Petersen use that against me. I’m sure of it.

So did Trask mention how long the adoption process would take?

Well, I guess there’s really no way to know, unfortunately. But, you know, we’re not going through an agency, so we’re gonna start interviewing birth parents.

Oh. Well, how do you do that?

Well, verbal networking. You know I just learned, in some states, you can actually advertise in newspapers?

That sounds iffy to me.

Well, once we find a prospective birth parent, it’s a lot more straightforward from there.

Oh. If I may butt in, but… you could use a surrogate, couldn’t you? And then that way, the baby would be your biological child.

You know, I will admit that when I thought about having a child of my own that it would have… my mother’s eyes. or even my Grandpa Shawn’s smile.

[laughs]

I just realized that having a child of mine and passing on their genes is not as important as passing on my love. [dramatic music]

I get it. I do. But still, I would have loved to have met that kid with your mother’s eyes and Grandpa Shawn’s smile. [laughs]

Yeah. Well, I will admit, when I thought about having a child of my own, a son or a daughter, they would resemble the Bradys in some sort of way. But then I accepted that having a child was not in my cards.

The only reason Sarah took leave of her senses was because she was drugged.

Mm-hmm. And you can be absolutely sure that those drugs aren’t still in her system?

Well, the hospital seems sure. I mean, they hired her back.

Well, she’s Dr. Tom Horton’s granddaughter, right? And the Hortons are still in charge of the hospital, are they not?

[sighs] Look, I don’t– I don’t like this. In fact, I hate it– slandering Sarah for something that was in no way her fault. Besides, Sarah would never do anything to hurt our daughter.

No, she wouldn’t intentionally. But think about it. I mean, Sarah is postpartum right now. I mean… if her hormones reactivate the drug, what if she starts thinking she’s Renee DuMonde again or Joan of Arc? What happens to that sweet little baby?

Nothing happens. Sarah’s totally rational. She has been for some time.

Are you sure about that? She married Rex Brady and divorced him two days later. Does that sound rational to you?

A psychiatrist and a neurologist both said that she was fine.

You are starting to sound more like Sarah’s defense attorney than a father that wants full custody of his child. Look, I am prepared to do whatever it takes to make sure that Victoria is in your care. But you have to decide if you have the stomach for it.

I understand why you want to believe there are lines that Xander would never cross, but custody battles tend to bring out the worst in people, even people who once loved each other very much.

This has all been set in motion because I didn’t tell Xander I was pregnant.

Sarah, he had just kidnapped two women, one of whom was my wife. And everybody thought Susan Banks died as a result. You did what you thought was right in order to protect your child. And it’s my job to convince the judge of that.

[sniffles] [sighs] God, I have to get home to check on Victoria.

OK. I’ll see you back there.

Oh, my goodness. Oh, my goodness. I’m gonna have to check with Henderson, or we’re not gonna have any dinner.

Tell Henderson to give the cook the night off. I will be making dinner tonight.

But you’re our guest.

Please. Victor used to come into my restaurant and say, make me dinner, Konstantin. You know what I like, huh? I would like to make the exact same dinner for you tonight. It would be my pleasure.

Are you sure?

Are you hungry? I hope so, because you will have a Mediterranean feast you will never forget.

Mmm. Mm-mm. This proves it.

Proves what?

That even as leftovers, Julie’s Place is a feast fit for a king– or queen–provided it’s on the proper plate.

Mm-hmm. Speaking of royalty, how are you adjusting, you know, to being son of the great late Victor Kiriakis?

[chuckles] It’s been surreal, actually, kind of hard to process. Mainly because my dad, Justin, is such a great guy. And it was really sad for the both of us that he isn’t really my father, even though he is in all the ways that matter.

Of course he is.

It’s just completely baffling to me and not to mention extremely frustrating that Victor isn’t around to do some explaining.

That is very frustrating…

You know? It is frustrating.

To say the least.

Anyway, enough about me. What’s going on in your world?

Well… I’m very happy to be here with you having dinner on these lovely plates.

Mm.

And I’m loving Salem. My son’s here now, so… I guess it’s home.

Hmm.

I just– I just wish I was just a bit calm about my living situation, you know? I don’t know where I’m gonna live. Got any ideas? [quirky music]

Hmm.

So are you not happy at the Salem Inn? I mean, I know it’s basically a hotel, but you got decent monthly rates, from what I’ve heard.

Yeah, they just get kind of annoyed if you can’t pay those rates, so…

Mm. I thought you were some big hotshot fashion designer.

Hotshot? Well, business isn’t exactly booming, you know, with the supply chain thing and all that. And the money that I had saved, I put into an investment bank, and that went under. So…[chuckles] I’m what you call strapped.

Oh, my God, Theresa, I’m sorry to hear that.

Yeah, well, you know, I wish I could live with John and Marlena and Tate, but I don’t think that Brady would like that too much. And then I did ask Uncle Roman if I could just stay in one of those cute little rooms above the pub, but then there’s this guy Harris that just took up the last vacancy, so–

Oh, that’s too bad.

And then I asked Kayla if maybe I could stay with her– but then, you know, Steve, he’s not really that fond of me, so…

Yeah. Forget them. Forget all of them. [dramatic music] Move in here with me.

Hey, Mom.

Oh, Sarah. Honey, is something wrong?

Yeah. Something is very wrong. I just found out that Xander is suing for full custody of Victoria.

He what? I can’t believe it.

What are you doing?

Oh, I’m gonna call and talk some sense into that young man.

No, Mom, please. Please don’t do that. He might try to use it in court.

How?

I don’t know, but Justin said that he could use anything and everything to try to prove that I am conniving and crazy and just basically an unfit mother. He’s determined to take Victoria away from me.

Oh, honey, I’m so sorry.

Well, you told me not to lie to him, and I didn’t listen. You were right. I made a very stupid choice, and… God, I’ve made such a mess of things.

Oh, don’t say that. Oh, Sarah, you did what you thought was right at the time. Now, Justin, he is a wonderful lawyer, and he cares very deeply about you. He’s gonna see to it that you don’t lose that baby.

I am sorry. I did not mean to interrupt.

Oh, no, it’s all right. Konstantin, this is my daughter Sarah Horton.

[chuckles]

I am Konstantin Meleounis.

It’s nice to meet you.

The pleasure is mine. You are just as beautiful as your mother.

Oh, wow. Oh, thank you. I’m flattered. [laughter]

And did she tell you I’m making dinner tonight?

No. No, she didn’t. I will get out of your hair.

Oh, don’t be ridiculous. You will eat with us. I made enough for the Greek army. [laughs] And Greeks like to eat. Please.

Actually, that sounds lovely. I’m just gonna–I’m gonna go check on my daughter, and I will be right down.

Excellent! The more, the merrier. [laughter]

I mean it, Xander. I want to know tonight, OK? You’re either all in, or you’re not. If you’re gonna tie my hands, I’m just gonna give you your retainer back.

[knock at door]

Oh, finally, we were starting to get worried.

We?

Oh. Not Xander, he’s a client. But Eric and I.

OK, well, my flight was delayed, so I came here straight from the airport.

I’m gonna need to speak with Melinda alone. Think about what I asked you, and get back to me. But don’t take too long.

Yeah. I’ll think about it.

What’s his problem?

Never mind him.

Wait. What are you doing?

I’m gonna call Eric, because we’re gonna want to hear the news together.

Don’t call him yet.

Why not?

I need to talk to you without him being present.

What’s going on?

Well, we’ve run into a little bit of a snag.

What kind of snag?

Well, put simply, securing a private adoption for you and Eric could prove problematic.

What? Why?

Well, remember that messy feud you were in with Paulina Price and her daughter?

That wasn’t messy.

Mm.

I thought that they should pay for their part in the wrongful death of my mother, and I sought legal channels to see that through.

You also covered up for your brother when he used illegal tactics against them. You defended them in court.

He had the right to a defense.

The adoption lawyers that I consulted with are worried by the fact that in your defense of him and in your own actions, you seem to be condoning them. And–

You know, this is just a full–

Let–let me finish, all right? They are concerned about what role a man like Colin will play in your child’s life.

Colin is in prison. Colin’s not gonna be in my child’s life. Melinda, listen to me, please. You have to help us get this baby. I mean, Eric is desperate to be a father. I have to be the one that makes that happen for him.

Here’s that prescription you were waiting for. Sorry for the delay.

That’s OK. Thank you so much. Oh, excuse me. Maybe you can help me with this. My fiancé and I had a genetic analysis done on the baby I’m carrying, and I managed to lose the hard copy. Is it possible to get another one?

Absolutely. You and your fiancé are entitled to anything in your records. Should I make a hard copy for you too, sir?

Me? Oh. No, no, no. We’re just friends. I’m not the father of this baby.

Huh. Yeah. Eric is all excited about him and Sloan adopting a baby, so… But–

You still have a bad feeling about it?

Well, yeah, but what the hell can I do? I mean, he seems to have convinced himself that she is the one.

Ah. I need a glass of wine. No, actually, make that a vodka on the rocks.

All right, coming right up.

Oh!

What’s going on, baby? Bad day at the hospital?

Well, it didn’t start out that way, until the day took a turn and I was handcuffed to a hospital bed.

[groans]

Here you go.

Ah, thank you! Sláinte.

Roman, Kayla just told me that son of a bitch Von Leuschner handcuffed her to a hospital bed.

Wait, wait. Where are you going?

Where do you think I’m going? I’m gonna give that man a beatdown!

No, no, no, I don’t– I don’t want you to do that.

Why not? Why not? First he keeps Kate prisoner on a damn boat. Then he handcuffs my sister to a hospital bed.

No, I’m fine, really. I’m fine. I think Dimitri didn’t want to hurt me. He just wanted to get away. And then Rafe and Jada showed up right as he and Leo Stark were getting away.

What, Leo? That little con man was involved in this too?

Yeah, just–just let the police handle this, please? I’m fine.

Are you sure?

Yeah, I’m getting better all the time.

[sighs]

Look, why don’t you just stay here and have a drink with me, OK? In fact, why don’t you get him anything he wants? It’s on me. In fact, get yourself something too, OK?

She’s handcuffed for a couple minutes, and now she sounds like Ma Barker.

No, I just–I just want to enjoy this drink. And then I want to have dinner, and then I just– I just want to forget about this day.

Well, maybe you can forget about it, Sweetness, but I’m gonna make Dimitri Von Leuschner regret ever laying a hand on you. [dramatic music]

No, no, no, no, no. Alex, I couldn’t possibly. I hope you didn’t think that I was… hinting at staying here.

No, no, I was not at all. And to be honest with you, I’m not too crazy about living alone. I think I’d like having you as a roomie.

Really?

Yeah.

Why is that?

Why is that? Well, first of all, you make pretty decent company. And you have great taste in plates.

That I do.

Hmm. Theresa, look, I know what happened between us in Greece, though impressive, was also very impulsive and probably a bad idea. But maybe we can just take a step back, slow it down a little bit, get to know each other a little better. What do you think?

I think that if you’re serious about this offer, I would be a fool…

Ah!

To say no.

Well, Theresa Donovan, you are a woman of many things, but foolish is not one of them.

No.

Mm-mm.

Say hello to your new roommate.

Oh. Hello, roomie.

[laughs] All right. Well, I’m gonna go to the inn before they charge me for another night.

Yeah, go for it.

You save some closet space, now, for me, mister.

Got an empty closet for you in the second bedroom.

Oh. All right.

Mm.

See you later, roomie.

Oh, I’ll see you. [groans]

What a lovely dinner, Konstantin. And this baklava is so delicious.

I’ll let you in on something. There was phyllo dough in the freezer.

Always. Victor made sure of it. He loved baklava. Which I haven’t had it since– Since he left for Greece. Thank you very much for this.

As I said, it was my pleasure. Now, if you ladies will excuse me, I think I will take a walk around this very interesting city, try to burn off some of these calories.

Would you like for me to go with you?

Oh, I’ll be fine. Finish your dessert and enjoy your charming daughter. I won’t be long.

Enjoy your walk. [sighs]

What a lovely man.

Yes, he is, isn’t he?

I’ll go print out that DNA report and be right back.

OK. [chuckles]

Well, that was kind of–

Awkward?

Yeah, something like that. [both chuckle]

Yeah. And what she didn’t know is that at one time, we actually thought you could be the father.

Yeah.

Well, anyway, that’s– that’s over now. And you and Sloan are gonna have a baby of your own, so…

Right. I mean, yeah, hopefully. You know what she forgot to tell me is that if my friend, if I could go visit him. You know, I’m gonna go check in on him, so… It was–it was good to see you, so take care of yourself.

You too. [sighs]

Will you please calm down?

You don’t get it. It’s bad enough that I lost Eric’s baby and that I have fixed it that he doesn’t know that Nicole’s baby is his. God, if I’m the reason that we can’t adopt–

Hey, listen to me, OK? What Eric doesn’t know won’t hurt him. And you doctored those DNA results so good that Nicole believes that she’s carrying EJ’s baby, right? There’s nothing to worry about there.

Yeah, what if my nutty brother just messes this up?

He won’t. And what I just told you is the opinion of one lawyer. Look, I will do whatever it takes. I will get you and Eric a baby.

You sure?

You can count on it.

You’re such a good friend, Melinda.

[chuckles] I’m not being a good friend. I’m–I’m–I’m– This case will be my first success in private practice, right?

Mm-hmm.

I have to go. I’m so exhausted.

Keep me posted.

I will. I will.

Mm. Oh.

Mm.

You were gone a long time.

I’m sorry about that.

Mm-hmm.

I didn’t get in to see my friend until, what, about an hour and a half ago. And did I miss Melinda?

Yeah, she just left.

What? Why didn’t you call me when she showed up?

She just got off the plane. She said she was tired. She couldn’t wait for you.

OK. Well, what’d she tell you? Any update with the adoption?

Yeah, she said that everything was looking good. It’s all smooth sailing. And before you know it, you’re gonna be a daddy.

Mm. Mm.

Oh! [dramatic music]

Oh. Wow, that took a while.

I wanted to make sure I had the entire report. And I do. Here you go.

Well, If it isn’t my favorite cousin, Justin.

Xander, keep on walking.

What, without thanking you for telling me that Sarah’s baby was mine and not Rex’s? Oh, wait, I can’t do that because you kept your bloody mouth shut, didn’t you?

Xander, Bonnie and I both thought it was Sarah’s place to tell you, and we actually tried to convince her to do that. So did Maggie.

Well, seems like Sarah doesn’t put a ton of stock in advice from any of you.

And she regrets that.

Oh, she does, does she?

Yeah. She’s actually pretty much a wreck about what she did to you.

She’s a wreck? I’m the one she dumped. I’m the one that she divorced and lied to about my baby for months. Do you have any idea how that feels?

Yeah. I do. Alex’s mother lied to me about being his father when she knew all along it was actually Victor. At least you found out the truth while Victoria is still a newborn. Alex is an adult. You have Victoria’s whole life to do right by her.

Yeah, well, we both know what you mean by “do right.” You want me to settle for every other weekend unless Sarah decides I’ve been a bad boy, and then I won’t even get that.

Xander, you and Sarah both need to stuff your anger and put Victoria’s interest first. Think about that.

[scoffs]

[phone beeps]

Hey, Sloan? Yeah. I thought about what you said to me. And I want you to do whatever you have to. I don’t care. Just as long as I bring my little girl home with me.

It does my heart good to see you enjoying yourself.

Mm. I kind of like having an old friend of Victor’s around. Makes me feel closer to him.

I can understand that.

Mm-hmm. It’s kind of a miracle, though, isn’t it, that Konstantin just showed up when he did?

Well, anybody that puts a smile back on your face is OK with me.

Oh, well, he certainly has done that. I’d be smiling a lot more often if you weren’t so stressed.

I’ll be fine. It’ll all work out.

Of course it will. But for now, how about you getting some rest while our little angel is sleeping?

Yeah, I think I will do that.

OK.

Night, Mama. Love you.

Love you. [sighs]