Is The Young and the Restless' Diane the latest kidnapping victim?

On Friday's previews for next week on The Young and the Restless, a concerned Kyle tells Jack that Diane hasn't been to the Jabot Cosmetics office in days. With all of the kidnappings that have occurred lately, could Diane be the latest victim?

Kyle is worried about his mother on The Young and the Restless

Kyle is worried about Diane on The Young and the Restless | Image: CBS

On Friday's sneak peeks for next week on Y&R, Kyle (Michael Mealor) is clearly worried that something happened to Diane (Susan Walters), as he tells Jack (Peter Bergman), "Mom hasn't been to the office in two days. Her bed hasn't been slept in. None of this is normal."

So many Y&R characters have been kidnapped in the past couple of years that we assume someone must have kidnapped Diane. And given the way the storyline has been going, we naturally assume that the kidnapper is Victor (Eric Braeden). He had Jack drugged and kidnapped from the parking lot of the Jabot Cosmetics office building. It wouldn't be a big stretch to imagine that Victor must have ordered one of his "people" to do the same thing to Diane.

It's bad enough that Daniel (Michael Graziadei) hasn't heard from his father, Danny Romalotti (Michael Damian). Now, we have Kyle wondering what's going on with his mother! This is getting ridiculous. Just a couple of years ago, Kyle's son, Harrison (Redding Munsell), was kidnapped. Will Kyle be the next Abbott who is kidnapped? Or perhaps "Billy Boy Abbott" (Jason Thompson), since we know how much Victor hates him? By the time this storyline is over, will all of the Abbotts be kidnapped? We wouldn't put it past Victor!

Patty must be the reason why Diane is missing

Patty enjoyed tormenting Diane on The Young and the Restless | Image: CBS

This mystery has Patty (Stacy Haiduk) written all over it. She is obsessed with Jack and would love to get Diane out of the way so she can have him all for herself. We wouldn't be surprised if she had something to do with Diane's disappearance.

After Diane moved into the GCAC, she ran into Patty there. Patty was thrilled to learn that Diane had moved out of the Abbott mansion and away from Jack. She even blamed Diane for the miscarriage she had years ago when she and Jack were married. Back then, Patty walked in on Jack and Diane in bed together. So it would make sense if Patty is getting revenge by teaming up with Victor and orchestrating a kidnapping to remove Diane from Jack's life.

Patty recently told Jack that Diane is a "cold fish." But she knows there's a chance that Diane may still want to repair her broken marriage. So, Patty may have had her kidnapped as an insurance policy, to keep her away from Genoa City and Jack.

Patty looks like she's about to make a deal with Victor

Patty called Victor on The Young and the Restless | Image: CBS

At the end of Friday's Y&R episode, Patty called Victor and said she knew he was looking for Matt Clark (Roger Howarth). Patty wants Jack, and Victor wants to bring down Matt for all the hell he's caused the Newmans. How much do we want to bet that Victor arranged for Diane to be kidnapped in exchange for Patty handing Matt over to him?

If that's what happened, then it's safe to assume that Patty hasn't been "redeemed," as she keeps telling everyone. Even Jack was nervous after he received flowers from her. He knows she's up to something. He called it "the calm before the storm." Diane's kidnapping could very well be that storm.

So, if Victor really did have Diane kidnapped, did he do the same thing he did when he kidnapped Jack? Does he have Diane isolated on the same yacht, in the middle of Lake Michigan? Did Victor contact one of Diane's ex-lovers or ex-husbands to keep her company on the yacht and seduce her? This is all crazy, but it would make sense. If and when Jack rescues Diane, will it lead to a reconciliation between them? Or, will he find her in bed with one of her exes, and then we will be right back to square one? Tune in next week to find out!

Catch all-new episodes of The Young and the Restless weekdays on CBS and Paramount Plus.