At St. Luke's church, Anna informed John that Stefano was awake. John told Anna that he and Stefano had unfinished business and asked Anna for more information about Stefano's medical condition. Anna told John that she did not feel safe and was apprehensive about her future with Tony now that Stefano, the Phoenix, was back and certain to cause more problems for everyone. John assured Anna that he would take care of Stefano and that she would be safe. Anna asked John if he knew where she could find Marlena. Anna told John that she went over to the penthouse and Marlena did not answer the door, and then she left several telephone messages, and Marlena never returned her calls.
John told Anna that he might know where Marlena was and they left the church. John and Anna arrived at the DiMera mansion, but neither Marlena nor Dr. Rolfe was there. Anna assumed that Rolfe left town in fear after learning that Stefano regained consciousness. John seemed concerned that Marlena was missing and decided to go over to the penthouse. As John and Anna were about to leave the mansion, John noticed that someone had slashed the tires on his car. John told Anna that he had a motorcycle, handed her a helmet and told her jump on the bike or stay behind. Anna reluctantly agreed and they left for Marlena's penthouse.
In Stefano's hospital room, Tony and E.J. listened with disbelief at Stefano's explanation of how Marlena caused his coma. Stefano told his sons that Marlena was a she-devil, that she almost destroyed his life, and that he would have his revenge against her.
Just then, Sami entered the room and was shocked to see that Stefano was awake and talking. She overheard Stefano's threats against Marlena and demanded to know what Stefano did to her mother. Stefano played the game and told Sami that she could see that he was incapacitated and that he could not have caused Marlena any harm. Sami could not contain her temper, started to yell and scream at Stefano, and called him a liar. E.J. stepped in and escorted Sami out of Stefano's hospital room. E.J. told Sami to calm down because her ranting and raving would only make things worse.
Sami told E.J. that Marlena was missing and that she tried to reach her mother several times to no avail. E.J. attempted to explain to Sami that Stefano could not be responsible or involved in Marlena's disappearance because he just awoke from a coma. He told her that Stefano would not react well to her threats, and that he would question his father. Sami told E.J. that Stefano probably had one of his goons take down Marlena, and felt certain that Stefano concocted some horrific plan to control her mother. Sami told E.J. that Stefano was obsessed with everything about Marlena. She warned E.J. to find out the truth, or else she would.
E.J. realized that Sami was near hysteria and decided that they should leave the hospital and try to find Marlena.
At the penthouse, Marlena lay motionless on the floor and, in a faint voice, cried out for help. Afterward, John and Anna arrived at the penthouse and found Marlena unconscious on the floor. Anna panicked, but John calmed her down and asked her to call 9-1-1. John noticed the syringe next to Marlena, realized that she was not breathing, and began CPR. Just then, E.J. and Sami arrived.
Sami, upset at the sight of her mother's condition, knelt beside Marlena and begged her to fight and breathe, but E.J. pulled her away as John continued CPR. Finally, John managed to revive Marlena.
At the hospital, Kayla and other medical personnel tended to Marlena and told everyone that John had probably saved her life.
John assured Sami that he would find out what happened to her mother and started to leave to have it out with Stefano. Sami stopped him and told him that he could not leave because Marlena needed him. John looked surprised at Sami's request.
A nurse told Kayla that the initial findings indicated some type of poison caused Marlena's condition. Kayla asked the nurse to have the contents of the syringe analyzed and report to her as soon as possible. John asked Kayla about Marlena's condition. She blasted John and called him a cold bastard. Kayla told John that she saw him in the back of the church and knew that he ruined Bo and Hope's wedding. Kayla said that the John she knew would never have done such a cruel thing to people that were once his friends and family. John told Kayla that she would never understand how he felt, and to stop analyzing him and get back to her patients. John reminded Kayla that he had help in becoming the man standing before her. Kayla begged John to look inside himself and try to find the good man that she knew was still there. She urged him to break free because he was everyone's hero and she knew that he could still feel that part of himself. She told John that Marlena would always be the great love of his life and that eventually he would remember his love for her. Kayla seemed to hit a nerve and John sensed the need to visit Marlena. He stood at her beside and stared at her nearly lifeless body.
A few minutes later, Sami entered the room and asked John if there was any change in Marlena's condition. Sami told John that it was hard to watch her mother in that state because she was always the one to help everyone else. Sami thanked John for saving her mother's life and told him that Marlena would love him throughout time. She told John that whether or not he realized it, he loved Marlena, too. Sami told John that maybe everyone needed to believe in the man he had become and stop trying to wait for the old John to return. John appeared happy and content at Sami's remarks.
Back in Stefano's room, Tony told his father that if he planned to take revenge on Marlena that the evidence would surely point to him. Stefano told Tony not to insult him. He reprimanded his son for questioning his motives and called him on the lack of loyalty to his father. Stefano, unconcerned over Tony's ramblings, told him that Marlena received her just punishment and that she deserved to suffer the way she had made him suffer. Stefano tried to make Tony realize that Marlena injected him with drugs to induce catatonia. He told Tony that the minutes seemed like hours, and that the days seemed like years, and that Marlena used drugs to send him to hell. Tony insisted that Marlena would not harm anyone, but Stefano said that she injected him with untraceable toxins. He explained to Tony that Marlena told him what she was going to do him and how the drugs would affect him. He said that she looked happy after she injected him with the toxins. Stefano swore that everything he said was true.
Emotional as he explained the ordeal to his son, Stefano detailed the agony of how the drugs affected him. He told Tony that he could see and hear everything but that he could not move. Stefano described it as a cruel torture and said that he felt completely alone. He told Tony that he heard him, E.J., and Lexie talking about his care and treatment and their decision to send him to the long-term care facility. As he lay in his hospital bed, Stefano said that that he was alive and felt like a young man, focused and driven as in the early days of his life. He stated that if the people of Salem thought that he was a difficult person to deal with in the past, then he would surely be a force to reckon with in the future.
Stefano told Tony that Marlena was a homicidal maniac and that he would not let her get away with such a hideous crime. Tony reminded Stefano that Roman authorized Marlena to administer sodium pentothal and perhaps Stefano had a reaction to the drug. Stefano was furious and told Tony that truth serum would not have paralyzed him. Stefano was upset with Tony and felt stressed and agitated because his son did not believe him. He told Tony that his will to live was so strong that he broke through the catatonia and returned to the living.
Tony reminded Stefano that though he had been through hell, it was time to think about his family, stop the vendetta, and take the high road to start a new life. Stefano refused to listen to Tony's philanthropic preaching.
Just then, Anna arrived at the hospital outside of Stefano's hospital room. Anna explained to Tony that she tried to find Marlena and when she could not locate her, she asked John for his help. She told Tony that she and John found Marlena unconscious at the penthouse and rushed her to the hospital. Anna suggested that Stefano was probably responsible for Marlena's condition.
Tony told Anna that he was proud `0 of her and loved her spirit. He thanked her for not giving up on finding Marlena and for helping to save her life. Tony and Anna felt close to each other and connected on a spiritual level. Tony then asked Anna to wait for him, because he wanted to have a serious talk with his father about Marlena's medical condition.
Tony stormed into Stefano's room and asked him why he harmed Marlena. Stefano calmly explained to Tony that Marlena started the war and he had no choice but to retaliate. Stefano smugly responded to Tony's rage and told him that he never laid a hand on Marlena. Tony shouted back at Stefano and told him that he knew that Stefano had probably hired someone to take care of Marlena. He told his father that Marlena attacked first because Stefano tried repeatedly to destroy her family. Stefano scolded Tony for taking Marlena's side when his own father lay helpless in bed because of Marlena's evil deeds. He asked Tony to leave the room, but Tony remained. Stefano vowed that if he recovered, he would have his revenge on Marlena and anyone else that interfered with his life.
Stefano continued to belittle Tony, and said that he had no backbone and that they were on different missions. Tony warned Stefano that he would not allow his father to terrorize his friends and family. Stefano called Tony a fool, and demanded that his first loyalty must be to his family-and forced him to pick sides. Tony asked Stefano what was next and Stefano told him that everyone would soon find out his plan.
Outside Marlena's room, Anna asked Kayla about Marlena's condition and then asked about Bo and Hope. Kayla told Anna that she was not optimistic about Bo's case, but hoped that things would work out.
Kayla thanked Anna for alerting John about Marlena and said that both Anna and John were responsible for saving Marlena's life.
Anna returned to the hallway outside Stefano's room and met E.J. They talked about what they thought might happen next and then Sami arrived and asked to talk to E.J. alone.
Anna asked herself what evil Stefano planned for everyone as a vent in an undisclosed location produced some type of smoke.
At Salem Hospital, Sami watched over Marlena while Kayla tended to her. Kayla asked John and Sami to step outside and, as they left, Steve entered and asked about Marlena. When Kayla explained that Marlena was injected with a paralyzing toxin, Marlena muttered Stefano's name. Noting the expression on Steve's face, Marlena informed him that Stefano was awake.
Out in the hallway, John headed off to see Stefano, while E.J. yelled a word of caution after him. Alone with Sami in the hall, E.J. listened quietly as Sami ranted about the return of Stefano and the hurtful things he had done. "That did not give your mother the right to play God and put him in some kind of paralytic state," E.J. countered softly. Clearly stunned, Sami said that she did not believe Marlena had done that, but that even if she had paralyzed Stefano, that she had good reason. Frustrated, E.J. reminded Sami that he had told everyone where to find John in order to end the feud and not to escalate it.
Worried, Sami went back in to Marlena's room and Kayla told her that Marlena was getting worse. Kayla suggested more tests, but Marlena interrupted to say that was a waste of time. Sami wondered if Rolf could help, and E.J. set out to track him down. Once E.J. had left the room, Marlena struggled to speak but was able to say that she knew what she had been injected with because it was "the same toxin I gave Stefano." As Sami's mouth hung open in shock, Marlena slowly listed the ingredients of the drug cocktail that she had used on Stefano.
In Stefano's room, Anna demanded that Stefano tell her what he had done to Marlena. Stefano obliged by explaining that he had done what he had to. When Anna wished aloud that Stefano had never come out of his coma, Stefano bitterly told her that she had become a meddlesome bitch. Tony immediately defended Anna and in doing so, told Stefano that she was his wife. As Stefano lectured Tony about the "stupidity" of marrying Anna again, John marched in and ordered Stefano to tell him what drugs were injected in Marlena. Stefano played dumb regarding Marlena's health.
After Tony and Anna reluctantly left the room, Stefano explained to John that he had been paralyzed and not in a coma. John confirmed that Stefano knew that they were brothers and that John had taken over all his possessions. Smiling, Stefano told John that although John might not remember him, he should know Stefano's plans never failed. Stefano then warned John that though Colleen was safe from him, the other people John loved were not. Chuckling, Stefano told John that he planned to repay everyone that had betrayed him. As John leaned in to threaten Stefano, E.J. rushed in to defend his father, reminding John that Stefano was paralyzed and helpless to defend himself. "If she dies, so do you," John warned darkly before leaving the room.
John went back to check on Marlena and urged her to fight. Marlena mustered a small smile for him, as she slowly became worse. Frustrated, John set off to talk to Stefano again. Once Marlena was alone, Tony stopped in to see her. When Tony asked her if she was responsible for Stefano's paralysis, Marlena admitted that she was. Looking disappointed, Tony lectured Marlena about the futility of fighting with Stefano. Citing her "innate morality," Tony advised Marlena that her mistake was that she could not kill Stefano outright. "He came back because he wants to kill us all," Tony said.
In the hospital lab down the hall, Kayla worked feverishly to find an antidote to the drugs in Marlena's system. After checking her notes, Kayla exclaimed that she might have the answer. Kayla rushed back to Marlena and advised her that a mix of antitoxins might be able to reverse the paralysis. However, Kayla then explained that the mix of antitoxins could also make the situation worse.
E.J. exited Stefano's room, leaving John and Stefano to talk privately. With a full head of steam built up, Sami rushed toward Stefano's door. E.J. jumped in front of Sami and calmed her down by explaining that John was already in with Stefano discussing Marlena's condition. Suddenly there was a loud banging noise. Uneasy about the foreboding sound, Sami walked down the hall to get some air.
In Stefano's room, John listened as a gruff Stefano announced, "It is done. The fate of my enemies is sealed." Stefano explained to John that since his plan had started, it could not be stopped. "Then there's nothing left for me to do but deny you the pleasure of watching it happen," John said, before lunging at Stefano and choking him. As Stefano struggled against John's hands, Steve rushed in and pulled John off of him. Steve reminded John that if Stefano died, that might also kill Marlena. When Stefano thanked Steve for his help, an angry Steve turned around and said, "When it's time for you to die, if he isn't around, I'll do it myself."
Outside Stefano's room, Sami returned to tell E.J. that the door to the rooftop was locked. Curious, E.J. attempted to use a nearby house phone and found that the line was dead. Worried, E.J. set off to check on the stairwells and Sami went to check on the elevators. After learning that the whole floor was locked up tight and that neither the land line phones nor the cell phones were working, Sami told E.J. that whatever was going on, they needed to talk to Stefano about it.
Back at the medical lab, Steve stopped by with baby Joe, looking for Kayla. While Steve cooed over his son, the sound of a click at the door could be heard. Steve rushed over to check the door and found that it was locked. Then, the hissing sound of gas could be heard from across the room. Terrified for his son, Steve put Joe's carrier on the floor and then attempted to close the vents where the gas was escaping. Unable to stop the gas from entering the room, Steve frantically tried to open the door to escape.
Back in Marlena's room, Kayla asked her whether she wanted to go ahead with the possible antidote. Still struggling to speak, Marlena whispered that she trusted Kayla, but that she also had no choice. With the go-ahead to inject the experimental cocktail of drugs, Kayla picked up the syringe. No sooner had she done that when she began to cough. With a slight hissing noise coming from the corner, Kayla put the syringe back on the table and went over to investigate the sound coming from the vent while Marlena looked longingly at the syringe just out of her reach.
Back at Stefano's room, John and Tony returned to find Anna alone in the room. When Anna explained that Stefano was missing when she came in to check on him, the group looked at one another. Angry, John theorized that Stefano was only faking paralysis. A frantic Sami and E.J. rushed in to tell them that the floor was locked up. Out of the corner of her eye, Sami noticed a breaking news bulletin on the television in the corner and turned the volume up. Just as a newscaster announced that the seventh floor of the hospital had been quarantined, Sami spotted a pink puff of smoke and a hissing noise coming from the air vent. "Look!" she gasped.
Purple Haze, or A Touch of the Vapors
At Salem University Hospital, Kayla coughed from the purple vapors flowing out of the vents in Marlena's room. She strapped an oxygen mask on Marlena, vowed to return right away, and then dashed out the door to try to find out what was happening.
Meanwhile, locked in the hospital lab, Steve frantically rummaged through a cabinet while baby Joe cried in his infant seat. Steve used a clipboard to try to knock the pin out of the door hinges, and when that didn't work he tried the doorknob again, to no avail. He banged on the door and shouted to try to get someone's attention, then gave up and tried to open one of the other cabinets or drawers, but everything was locked. At last Steve found some oxygen for both him and his son, and got them both breathing from the tank.
Nurse Susan informed Lucas and Chloe that their whole floor was on lockdown, then instructed them to stay in Lucas' room before she left to find out what was going on. Chloe and Lucas soon noticed purple smoke pouring out of the vent. When Chloe asked what it was, Lucas started yanking off his monitors and declared he wasn't going to stick around to find out. He got out of bed and got dressed, and brought towels for them to put over their noses and mouths. While Chloe tried to get a signal on her cell phone, Lucas tried to open the window, but noted that it was shatterproof and bolted shut. Urging Chloe to stay calm and to take shallow breaths, Lucas led the way out of the room.
In Stefano's room-from which he was conspicuously absent-Tony, Anna, E.J., and Sami were coughing from the noxious fumes and anxiously talking all at once until John quieted them. Seemingly unaffected by the vapor, John turned up the volume on the TV so they could hear a news report about how the police had arrived at University Hospital to investigate a lockdown situation. The report also stated that it appeared the phones were out as well, including cellular service. Sami ran out to check on her mother while Tony tried to calm an increasingly panicked Anna, who was convinced Stefano was trying to kill them all. John declared that they must find Stefano.
When Kayla learned from nurse Susan that their floor was on lockdown and none of the phones or intercoms was working, she hurried off to find Steve and Joe. Kayla used her security code to open the lab door and immediately rushed over to check on Joe. Steve shouted for her to get the door as he raced across the room, but the door swung closed and they were once again locked in.
While Stefano removed Marlena's oxygen mask, Sami was in the hallway assuring E.J. that John would keep Stefano away from Marlena. Sami was worried because she had promised to pick up the twins hours before. E.J. put his arm around her and told her that Maggie would take good care of the kids, and suddenly Sami recoiled from him with a gasp. Her eyes filled with terror as she backed away, pointing an accusing finger at E.J., and accusing him of causing the lockdown and hurting her mother. E.J. tried to calm her, but Sami grew more and more hysterical as she saw only Stefano's face swimming before her, laughing mockingly at her. "Get away from me!" she shrieked as she fled down the hallway.
Tony worried that they wouldn't know what sorts of toxins were in the vapors until the symptoms had started. Anna wondered how Stefano could have vanished. Tony knew that Stefano wouldn't have gone far because he'd want to see his plan in action. Tony blamed himself for not telling anyone when he'd learned his father was awake, because then he could have stopped whatever diabolical plot Stefano had put in motion. Anna lovingly reminded Tony that he was a good man and that no one could ever stop Stefano once his evil mind was made up.
John opened Marlena's door and saw the frightened look in her eyes. "It'll be okay, Blondie," he reassured her. He could tell she was trying to communicate something, but told her he didn't understand. Vowing to return soon, he placed the oxygen mask back on her face and left.
As Kayla tended to Joe, she suddenly slumped to the floor. Steve held her and begged her to wake up.
Sami tore down the hall, glancing fearfully over her shoulder. Stefano, clad in a black silk robe and matching pajamas, emerged from the shadows and greeted her. Startled, she began shouting and hurling accusations at him, but her hysterics and cries of, "You're a monster!" only amused him. While Sami frantically tried all the exit doors, Stefano calmly proclaimed that she was the future of the family, and "Giovanni" the first of many DiMera heirs. Sami, horrified, lit into Stefano again, swearing he would never live on through her son. Stefano declared that her passionate spirit was precisely why she and E.J. must continue to procreate. A disgusted Sami backed away from him and into the stairwell door, which opened this time, so she escaped through it.
Lucas and Chloe returned to his room in disbelief that none of the emergency exits or elevators worked. Chloe began to complain of a headache, but suggested that they split up to keep searching for a way out.
Tony declared that they were going to fight back. Anna insisted that he go look for John and leave her in Stefano's room, as she needed to rest. Tony reluctantly agreed.
E.J. bumped into John and told him about Sami's meltdown. John surmised that there was something hallucinogenic in the vapors, adding that he must be immune because Stefano had probably built up his resistance to various toxins as part of his conditioning. The two then went their separate ways again.
Chloe went into Marlena's room, but couldn't understand what Marlena was trying to convey with her eyes. Chloe promised to return with a doctor and turned to leave, but screamed when she caught sight of herself in a mirror. Hallucinating, she saw a huge, red blotch covering most of her forehead, nose, and cheek.
Steve finally managed to rouse Kayla and brought her a surgical mask to ease her coughing. Kayla was worried about Marlena, but Steve tried to reassure her that a nurse was taking care of Kayla's patients. He then began to search for something with which to cover the vents.
Chloe ran out of Marlena's room and into Stefano, who feigned a smirking interest in her opera career. Stunned to see him not only out of his coma but wandering the halls, she took off again as Stefano chuckled. He then went into Marlena's room and, standing menacingly over her, swore he would get revenge.
Steve, his mouth and nose covered by a bandanna, taped something over the vents and returned to where Kayla gently rocked Joe. Unsteadily, she told him she felt dizzy again and slumped in his arms, but then she rallied. Gasping for breath, she noted that the oxygen tank wouldn't last forever. Steve collapsed behind her, sending a metal tray clattering to the floor. Kayla crawled over to check on him, then she scrambled to the door to call weakly for help.
Chloe staggered back to Lucas' room, practically in tears. When Lucas returned, she cried hysterically for him to look at what had happened to her face. Lucas finally calmed her enough to convince her that there was nothing wrong with her and to touch her skin, and when she felt nothing she realized she'd been hallucinating. "But I saw it!" she exclaimed, and told him bacteria had been eating away at her face. Lucas declared that the vapors must contain a hallucinogen, and that Stefano was probably responsible. Chloe agreed because she said she'd seen him at the hospital. John and Tony walked in just then and wanted to know where Chloe had seen Stefano, and she replied that it had been right outside of Marlena's room.
After John and Tony left in pursuit of Stefano, Chloe wondered if Stefano were trying to kill them. Lucas pointed out that if that were true, they would be dead already, and besides, neither of them was likely to be included in Stefano's plot for revenge. Chloe reminded Lucas that he'd shot E.J. Lucas began to get woozy and said he needed to lie down, but as soon as he'd gotten horizontal he was out cold. Alarmed, Chloe shook him and shouted his name, but he didn't stir.
Tony and John emerged from Marlena's room without having found Stefano, but grateful that Marlena seemed stable. John wondered if Chloe had hallucinated having seen the old man. He then put his ear to the wall and began rapping on it. "There's a way to ventilate this building. Come with me," he commanded. Somewhat bemused, Tony followed.
Marlena was straining to look at a syringe on her bedside table when Stefano came back in. Sarcastically, he asked what was on her mind. He removed her mask and she eyed him warily, then looked again at the syringe.
In the stairwell, as Sami struggled to open an exit door, she remembered all the times Stefano had bargained with her for E.J.'s sake, or her son's sake, or her family's sake, and how he had reneged on his promises again and again. She heard Stefano's voice calling from the top of the stairs, and hid herself as E.J. descended down them. When she could reach him, she grabbed his ankle, sending him flying to the bottom of the stairs. She stood over E.J., and, still believing he was Stefano, shouted at his lifeless form, "That's right-die, you son of a bitch!"
Roman set up command inside the hospital to determine what was happening on the seventh floor. He told his officers not to alarm the patients and to tell people that they were just dealing with a security malfunction. Philip went to the hospital to find out what was going on, and Roman admitted that it was more than a security malfunction. Nicole went to the hospital to find out more also, and she asked Philip what he knew about the situation. Philip said he couldn't find out much.
Meanwhile, on the seventh floor, Stefano entered Marlena's room as the gas continued to spill out of the vents. Marlena had on a gas mask to protect her from the fumes, and Stefano took it off, guessing she was trying to say something. He thought Marlena was wondering whether he was there to kill her, and he assured Marlena that he had something more interesting in mind.
John, Tony, and Ana went to the maintenance room that controlled the power for the entire floor. Tony tried to determine which switch controlled the ventilation, and Ana wanted to guess, but Tony told her to stay out of the way. Tony told John it was ironic that Stefano's reappearance united Tony and John when Stefano used to be the source of their differences in the past. Tony said he held a grudge against John for taking the DiMera fortune for himself.
Stefano promised Marlena he would pay her back for putting him through hell when she put him in a coma. He said she would spend the rest of her life trapped in her body. Stefano spent time during his paralysis plotting his revenge, he told her. Marlena told Stefano she was sorry, but that wasn't good enough for him. What Marlena did was unforgivable, Stefano said, and she left him no choice. Marlena called out John's name, and Stefano told her she never really had John, because John belonged to Stefano and Stefano planned to reclaim his pawn once Stefano eliminated her from the picture.
John told Tony that John didn't take anything from Stefano because everything fell in John's lap. Ana tried to get John and Tony to focus on fixing the ventilation system, but to no avail. John asked Tony if he was jealous, assuming that Tony was upset because Stefano cut Tony out of the will. Tony said he was upset at the way John had handled his newfound power. Ana said a lot of people would be upset if they didn't fix the ventilation system. John said he didn't know Tony wanted to continue Stefano's legacy. Tony said he was only interested in the business. Ana told them to stop bickering.
Stefano called Marlena his queen of the night and said he was sorry it had come to that. He said he wanted to make all of her dreams come true, and he recounted the time he took Marlena to the opera and when he set up a romantic dinner on the docks. Stefano said they could have had a wonderful life together, and he would have treated her like royalty. Marlena said she didn't mean to hurt Stefano, and he laughed at her. He told her to close her eyes and go to sleep because it was her final curtain. Marlena started to weep, and Stefano asked if she wanted the needle that was on the tray beside her bed.
Ana asked John and Tony to get back to the business at hand. Tony agreed with Ana that it wasn't the time or place to have his conversation with John, and John said it would be his pleasure to set Tony straight. Tony said John would be the one set straight. Ana got fed up and walked off, and John asked Tony if she brought that kind of energy to the bedroom. Tony went after Ana to apologize. Ana said she was scared for them and wondered what the future held since Stefano was back. Tony reassured her that she was the most important person in his life and Stefano wouldn't change that. Tony came back into the maintenance room to help John, and John asked Tony why he thought Stefano sent Tony to a deserted island. Tony said he and Stefano had differences, and John guessed that Stefano thought Tony wasn't up to par.
Stefano assumed there was a painkiller in the needle and started to inject it into Marlena's I.V. when the power went out and he left the room to investigate. Marlena thought to herself, "Please, do it." And when Stefano put the needle down, she said, "No," under her breath.
Nicole asked Roman who was on the seventh floor, and Roman told her and Philip that they would have a list soon. Then Roman was called away by an officer. Nicole told Philip that E.J. said he was planning to visit Stefano. Nicole said she hadn't been able to reach E.J. on the phone, and Philip asked Nicole to try again. Philip said Lucas and Chloe could have been on the seventh floor, because Maggie mentioned something about Chloe visiting Lucas. Nicole said Chloe and Lucas had been getting close lately, and Philip said he wouldn't want anything to happen to either one of them. Philip asked a nurse if he could call his brother on the seventh floor, but the nurse said the phone systems were down and they were doing everything they could. Nicole got upset and said she felt like she was stuck in a slasher movie.
Ana went to Stefano's room to see what he was hiding, and she started to hallucinate that Stefano was asking her if she was looking for something. She searched his room, and Stefano's voice told her she was wasting her time and she wouldn't find anything. Ana told herself she was imagining things. Then, she turned around and saw the real Stefano standing before her.
John asked Tony how he and Stefano were getting along, and Tony said Stefano had been preoccupied with John for years. John said Stefano was probably too busy turning John into his pawn. Tony said Stefano spent more attention on John than any of his other children. John was going to be Stefano's greatest weapon, Tony said. Something happened along the way that Stefano didn't anticipate, Tony said, and that was Marlena. John had fallen for the only woman Stefano had truly loved.
When Stefano returned to Marlena's room, he asked Marlena if the syringe contained the antidote, and Stefano said that couldn't be because when Marlena injected Stefano, she said there was no antidote. Marlena threatened to scream, and Stefano told her not to worry. He put the syringe down and walked to the window to look out at the reporters and policemen that were on the scene. Stefano asked Marlena if she wanted to say goodbye to John, and Marlena said she wanted to, but Stefano changed his mind. Stefano wasn't sure if John would have wanted to see Marlena, since they were separated. Stefano pointed out that the new John had developed a taste for women with a little edge and had been courting Ava Vitali. The old John was on the disk and would never see the light of day again, Stefano said. Marlena said the disk was fixed, and Stefano held up the broken disk and asked if she was referring to it.
Nicole got emotional and admitted to Philip that she was falling for E.J. She said she hadn't felt like that since Eric. Lately, she said, Nicole had been attaching herself to older men. Philip noted that some people liked older men for being able to provide amenities that a younger man wouldn't have been able to provide. Nicole said she knew people thought she was a gold digger, and Philip told her not to be so hard on herself, because Victor knew exactly what he was getting into when he married Nicole. Nicole wished she could start over, and Philip said he'd wished he could start over sometimes, too. Nicole said she needed to move on and find someone who could accept her for what she was. Philip said if E.J. could accept Sami, Nicole would have no problem.
Tony told John that Stefano didn't believe that Stefano's pawn would have real feelings for anyone when Stefano created him. Stefano thought he could make Marlena fall in love with Stefano, Tony said, and Stefano was jealous of John because Marlena was in love with John. Tony remembered how heartbreaking it was when Marlena said goodbye to John at his funeral. When Marlena found out John was alive, it was like she was reborn, Tony said. Tony hoped John would realize that Marlena was a good woman and give her another chance, but John said the man Marlena was looking for was gone. Tony said John and Marlena always found a way to come back to each other. Tony warned that John should have been afraid of Stefano, because even though Stefano couldn't have Marlena, he got his revenge and finally divided her and John.
Philip asked if Nicole planned to tell E.J. how she felt, but Nicole was afraid too, saying it was too soon. Philip advised Nicole to go after what she wanted because people didn't always get a second chance. Nicole was afraid to tell E.J. how she felt, because she had a lot of baggage. E.J. had a lot of baggage, too, Philip said. Underneath it all, Nicole was a good person, Philip assured her. He asked Nicole if she was sure she wanted to get involved with E.J., because he wasn't that trustworthy. She and E.J. would make a good match, Nicole said.
Stefano told Marlena that it wasn't her business how he got the disk, because it never belonged to her. The disk was beyond repair, and John had moved on, Stefano said, advising her to do the same. It was selfish of Marlena to think John would want to take care of a paralyzed wife, Stefano said. Marlena called Stefano a bastard, and Stefano told her she needed to choose her words more carefully.
John said at last check, Marlena was still his wife. Tony asked him why John wasn't wearing his ring and pointed out that John and Marlena weren't living together. John didn't understand what Stefano was capable of, Tony said. John said he was happy with his life the way it was, and Tony asked where John's friends were and said that John cut out all of his family. John still had Tony, John said, and asked if Tony was siding with Stefano.
Stefano told Marlena she was lucky she was breathing, because Stefano could have ended her life. Stefano didn't want to hear another word, he said, then he said he had to check up on a friend and warned her not to do anything stupid.
Roman got a list of everyone on the seventh floor. Nicole asked if E.J. was on the seventh floor, and Philip asked if Chloe was there. Roman confirmed that both E.J. and Chloe were there. Roman went to check on the status of the closed-circuit camera. Nicole told Philip it seemed like he wasn't over Chloe. Philip said he didn't deserve Chloe or anyone. Nicole wondered why he said that, and Philip said she wouldn't believe some of the things he had done.
Stefano returned to his hospital to find an unconscious Ana lying on his bed. Stefano said he was sorry but Ana was getting too close and he never wanted it to come to that.
Nicole called herself the authority on bad behavior and asked Philip what he felt so guilty about. Nicole said Philip could talk to her, but Philip said it was the kind of thing that was better left buried. Then he walked away. Under her breath, Nicole said she knew what he meant.
Tony said he didn't want to get in the middle of things with John and Stefano, but John said Tony needed to choose between a man who banished Tony to an island or a man who could give Tony a piece of the future. Tony said there wouldn't be a future if they couldn't get the ventilation system working and they needed to work together. John took that as his answer and said he was glad Tony was with him. Tony imagined Stefano accused Tony of having no backbone. The imaginary Stefano told Tony he was never a real son to Stefano because a real son wouldn't betray his father. Tony got angry and grabbed a wrench and swung it at the air.
Stefano returned to Marlena's room to find her still awake. He fixed her pillows to make her comfortable and get her to go to sleep so she wouldn't wake up. Marlena realized she was hallucinating.
Nicole and Philip were with Roman at the police command center and both were worried. Abe and Roman didn't understand why the emergency overrides were not operating. Lexie showed up with news that Stefano had awakened. Roman called a technician to hook up the security cameras on the seventh floor to the monitor in the trauma center because it would be the only way they could see what was going on up there.
Tony almost knocked John out with a wrench after seeing a hallucination of Stefano. Once Tony's hallucination subsided, he realized what he was about to do. Tony rushed out and found Anna unconscious in Stefano's hospital room. Tony was horrified and ran to her. Anna came to and Tony was relieved. Tony told her how much he loved her and raced back to John. Meanwhile, John heard Stefano's voice over the intercom, telling his pawn it was time to reboot. John told Stefano that he was not his pawn; he was his brother. John picked up the wrench and smashed the intercom just as Tony reappeared. Tony apologized for almost hitting John and told him about his hallucination. They needed to connect some wires and get the ventilation system working. Tony and John vowed not to let Stefano win.
Marlena was partially paralyzed and stared at the nearby syringe. Anna entered Marlena's room and babbled on about her fears. Marlena tried to mutter something but could only muster a cough. Anna saw the oxygen mask and put it back on Marlena.
During her hallucination, Sami tripped EJ and he fell down the hospital stairwell. She thought he was Stefano. Sami rushed to EJ and pleaded with him to wake up. She apologized and told him she truly cared about him. She missed him. EJ woke up and asked what happened. EJ asked if she meant what she said, and finally Sami could no longer deny it. She admitted to EJ that she still had feelings for him, but she loved Lucas. Sami and EJ came together in a hot kiss and they began to make love in the stairwell. Suddenly, the monitor in the trauma center flickered. Nicole, who was standing nearby, saw what was going on in the stairwell: Sami and EJ making love. Nicole was devastated.
Kayla passed out from the vapors as Steve did his best to get them out of the locked room. Steve had no luck and eventually passed out as well. Stefano entered and saw the baby sleeping soundly nearby. The baby was wearing an oxygen mask. Later, when Steve and Kayla woke up, they discovered baby Joe was gone!
