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On the Friday, July 24, 2026, episode of Days of our Lives, Steve found evidence of Coriseal contamination, Xander pushed Johnny for answers, Leo kept a promise, Cat ran interference for EJ, and EJ acted against Kristen.
Untangling a Cover-Up
At the Kiriakis mansion, Xander and Sarah discussed Victoria. Maggie’s return to Salem was delayed because of Melissa’s continued medical issues. Xander reminded Sarah that he was there to support her if she needed someone to talk to while Maggie was away. Sarah admitted that she had not told Maggie about the troubles at Titan. Xander promised to handle the business woes so that Maggie could focus on Melissa. Sarah told Xander that she had promised Maggie that she would make Holly go to a AA meeting, but she did not know how to keep that promise.
Xander said he still believed that EJ had dumped the Coriseal on Smith Island. Sarah agreed, but she noted that the pills in Holly’s bag did not make sense if Holly had ingested the Coriseal from the well water. Xander vowed to find out the truth. Sarah warned Xander to be careful with EJ, because she could not stand it if EJ hurt him.
At the pub, Kayla told Steve that she was worried that Gwen had decided not to move forward with the purchase of the hospital. Steve and Kayla agreed that if Gwen had disappeared, it was likely that EJ was behind it. Steve promised to run a trace on Gwen’s phone. Brady walked in as Kayla left for the hospital.
Steve informed Brady that he had spoken to local pharmacies, and they had all confirmed that DiMera Pharmaceuticals had stopped shipping Coriseal for a short period two years ago at the time of the previous Coriseal deaths. Steve noted that the circumstantial evidence showed that DiMera had distributed a bad batch of the narcotic and had then covered up the mess.
At the hospital, Brady and Steve told Sarah and Kayla about their theory and the supporting evidence for the contaminated batch of Coriseal. Kayla noted that even if they assumed that Holly had taken the pills, it was unlikely that contaminated pills had been sold two years after they had hit the street. Brady stepped aside with Sarah and admitted that he had been quick to assume that Holly had been lying because of his own history as an addict.
Across the room, Steve told Kayla that Shane had confirmed that Gwen’s phone had been inactive for 24 hours. “It can’t be located,” Steve said. Steve called the police to check Gwen’s room.
The Dead Man’s Switch
Leo knocked on Gwen’s hotel room door as he left her a frantic message on her voicemail. Concerned that EJ had done something to Gwen, Leo decided to talk to her lawyer. When the maid came to clean Gwen’s room, Leo popped his head in and he spotted a business card for Gwen’s lawyer.
Andrew called Cat, and he told her that no one had used Gwen’s phone for 24 hours. While Cat was walking through the square, Leo called out to her. Leo told Cat about Gwen’s dead man's switch letter and her disappearance. Leo whispered that he knew Cat was ISA, and he asked her to look into Gwen’s disappearance so that he did not need to blow everything up by talking to the lawyer. Cat lied and said she was not ISA, but she promised not to tell EJ about Gwen’s lawyer.
EJ went to see Melinda Trask to talk to her about Amy Choi’s lawsuit. EJ ordered Melinda to drop the case or else he would file a countersuit about Sophia’s efforts to kill Johnny. When EJ argued that Amy had been negligent in not getting her mentally ill daughter help, he noted that Melinda could not win the case. Leo interrupted, and EJ walked out.
Cat spotted EJ walking through the square and asked him about the hospital sale. With a chuckle, EJ noted that Gwen had disappeared. Cat joked about the timing of the situation, so EJ asked her if she was accusing him of something. Cat was apologetic and backpedaled, but EJ apologized for having lashed out at her. “I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you. If you weren’t by my side,” EJ said. “You have me,” Cat whispered.
Leo told Melinda that he needed to speak to Gwen’s lawyer, CJ Richardson, about Gwen’s disappearance. Melinda noted that CJ was on vacation. When Leo asked for help, Melinda said no. When Leo mentioned that he needed help taking down EJ, she changed her mind. Melinda opened Gwen’s file and found the letter for Leo. When Melinda noted that it was dangerous for Leo, he stressed that he needed to keep his promise to Gwen. Melinda opened the letter on file in the computer, but it was blank. In Cat’s room at her apartment, she finished downloading and deleting Gwen’s letter for Leo from his attorney’s server.
At the DiMera mansion, EJ talked to Stefano’s portrait as he thought about how Xander, Sarah, and Kayla had confronted him about the Coriseal and the hospital sale. EJ called Rita about his concerns for his children’s safety from Kristen. “I want her gone,” EJ said.
What About Holly?
Earlier, Johnny stomped into the DiMera living room and asked EJ how he could be so cruel as to frame Holly. EJ admitted that he had planted pills in Holly’s bag as a misdirection in order to protect the business. “I thought you cared about Holly!” Johnny said. EJ justified his actions as necessary to protect the company and the family. Johnny argued that it was wrong to force Holly to go to rehab when she did not need to be there. EJ countered that the alternative was to confess the truth and hurt the business and Johnny’s family. Johnny said he understood why, but he was ashamed of how EJ had handled the situation.
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Johnny returned to his DiMera office and threw something as Xander walked in. Xander noted that he was there to help. Johnny reminded Xander that although he had accepted Xander’s apology, he did not trust him. Xander told Johnny that he knew that Johnny had lied to Steve about the missing Coriseal files. As Johnny got defensive, Xander reassured him that he was not there to hassle him.
Xander explained that they needed to determine the truth for Holly’s sake. When Johnny asked Xander to leave, Xander pleaded with Johnny to tell him the truth and he would make sure that it stayed between the two of them. “I’m trusting you Johnny. I’m just asking you to trust me,” Xander said. Johnny hesitated, but then he asked Xander to leave. Xander thought about how EJ had been in the area when he had left Holly’s bag at the nurses’ station and he gasped. Xander rushed out.
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