Days of our Lives Recap, July 20-24, 2026: Accusations, farewells, and circumstantial evidence

On Days of our Lives the week of July 20th through 24th, 2026, Eli returned, Belle and Chad planned a trip, Julie struggled to move on, Stephanie took advice, Shawn agreed to live with Jada, Gabi accused the Kiriakis brothers of counterfeiting, Leo kept his promise, Cat ran interference for EJ, Steve found new evidence, Lexie and Kristen planned a swap, Johnny was ashamed, and Kristen said her goodbyes.

What happened on Days of our Lives

Chad and Belle made travel plans | Image: Peacock

Belle guessed that Rolf was the person who had left the clues related to Stefano’s chess box for Marlena. Belle showed Chad another clue she had discovered in the program from the Verdi concert. After further examination of the lire, Chad and Belle decided to follow their hunch and go to Italy.

Julie struggled with her discomfort with dating. Foster agreed to wait until Julie was ready, and she agreed to keep trying. When Julie saw Lexie with a book about dying, she asked her if she had been to heaven. Lexie reminded Julie that she had not really died and that she had no memory of her time away. Lexie assured Julie that she would be reunited with Doug someday.

Belle advised Stephanie not to let her insecurities hurt her marriage, as they had in Belle’s marriage to Shawn. When Stephanie met up with Alex, she said that she was proud of Alex for being a good father. Alex said he was concerned about losing the business, and Stephanie promised to take care of Alex and Kelsey. Chad and Alex talked about how to stop the feud between their families, but neither one knew what to do.

Jada admitted that she was disappointed that the end of Shawn’s rehab would mean the end of them living together. Shawn told Jada that he was not eager to leave either. Shawn and Jada agreed that he would continue to live with her in her apartment.

Leo told Marlena that he had faked a dizzy spell to get attention from Javi. Leo said that he accepted that Javi loved Gus, and he would not do anything to hurt him or break up the relationship. Chad authorized Leo to go ahead with his investigation into the counterfeiting of Gabi Chic purses.

Gabi Takes a Stand

As Gabi reviewed the circumstantial evidence around the counterfeiting operation, she realized that Titan shipping was the only new element to her manufacturing and shipping process. Gabi confronted the Kiriakis brothers, but they both claimed to be ignorant of the operation. Gabi threatened to run Titan into the ground with a lawsuit. Xander ordered Philip to use Gabi’s feelings for him to get her to believe that they were not to blame for the counterfeiting scheme. Leo promised Gabi that he would find evidence to identify the thief.

Tate found the pills that EJ had planted in Holly’s bag, and he told Brady and Sarah. Brady did not find any more pills in Holly’s bedroom when he did a search. Holly kicked out Tate and Sarah and then ran away. Holly nearly passed out in Leo’s arms in the hallway of the Salem Inn, and he called 911. Gus insisted that Holly needed to go back, but Holly refused. Xander convinced Holly to go back when he caught up with her at the Salem Inn. When Holly returned to the hospital, she demanded to have a different doctor. Holly would only talk to Xander, so Sarah asked him to gently push Holly to admit to her pill addiction.

After Johnny visited Holly, he confronted EJ about the pills found in Holly’s bag. EJ admitted he had planted them to protect the business and the family. When Xander begged Johnny to tell the truth about the Coriseal because he knew Johnny had been lying, Johnny hesitated, but did not say anything. Xander remembered that he had seen EJ near the nurses’ station when he had left Holly’s bag there. At the hospital, Steve told Kayla, Brady, and Sarah that he had circumstantial proof that DiMera had produced a tainted batch of Coriseal two years ago and had covered it up.

EJ told Cat that if he lost the hospital, he would find work for Cat and Mark. Cat urged EJ to open up to her, but he was reluctant. When Kayla encouraged Cat to stay on at the hospital rather than follow EJ, Cat declined. Kayla and Cat talked about the hospital sale, and Kayla admitted that Gwen had missed her meeting and was not returning calls. When Leo could not reach Gwen either, Cat asked Andrew to trace Gwen’s phone. The ISA confirmed with both Cat and Steve that Gwen’s phone had not been used within 24 hours.

Salem Happenings

Kristen has a great ally in Lexie | Image: Peacock

On Leo’s way to talk to Gwen’s attorney, he ran into Cat, and he told her about the dead man’s switch. Leo asked Cat to use her connections at the ISA to help, but she denied that she was with the ISA. Leo went to Melinda to ask about Gwen’s letter, but Cat had already deleted the file from the server after Leo had told her about it.

Kristen asked Lexie to take her place on the family island. When Lexie asked how, Kristen explained that the staff on the island had only been told that EJ’s sister would be arriving soon. Kristen suggested that Lexie could spend her final days alone on the island in peace since she did not want her family to watch her die again. When Lexie suggested that Kristen could go on the run instead, Kristen argued that EJ would look for her if he knew she had escaped. Lexie agreed to take Kristen’s place so that Kristen had more time to plot against EJ.

When Kristen learned about the timing for the island, she asked Lexie if she was ready to leave. Lexie agreed to go. Kristen and Lexie wore tracking bracelets so that they could find one another whenever EJ made his move. Abe gave Lexie her wedding rings back, and they recited their wedding vows to one another. An emotional Lexie announced that she was leaving to see Celeste the next day. EJ told Rita to “get rid of” Kristen.

Eli returned to Salem, and he celebrated a belated sixth wedding anniversary with Lani. As Lani left the hotel with Eli, she ran into Kristen. Kristen was overly complimentary of their friendship, and Lani told Eli that she felt like Kristen had been saying goodbye to her.

Rachel's Coming Home

Marlena and Brady told Rachel that she was coming home | Image: Peacock

Brady and Marlena told Rachel that she was going to be released. Kristen told Brady that Rachel was safe from EJ. When Kristen thanked Brady for being a good man and father, she became emotional. Brady appeared suspicious of Kristen’s behavior, but he did not say anything.

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