DAYS OF OUR LIVES – BEAT OUTLINE
PROLOGUE – SCENE 1
Carrie Brady, Salem’s new DA, appears
on the TV in the Brady Pub. She’s making a solemn announcement
about EJ DiMera, Salem’s mayor. The Bradys gather around the bar to
listen in. Sami makes snarky remarks at EJs expense. Marlena and John
speculate seriously about EJ’s fate. Caroline turns the volume up
on the TV.
PROLOGUE – SCENE 2
Maggie stands distracted in her
kitchen, where she and Melanie are cooking. Maggie is cutting up some
ingredients facing the window, with Melanie flipping channels on the
kitchen TV. She stops on the report of Carrie’s press conference.
Maggie’s interest is piqued, and she turns around just in time to
hear Carrie announce that EJ DiMera is being charged with bribery,
and blackmail charges, related to his affair with Kate DiMera.
CROSS CUT TO PUB
Everyone at the pub reacts with some
disbelief at Carrie’s announcement.
HOURGLASS INSERT (32 seconds)
PROLOGUE – SCENE 3
Jennifer arrives at University Hospital
in a rage. She sees Dr. Lexie Carver, who asks if she’s okay.
Jennifer tries to be kind to Lexie, but it somewhat falls flat as
she’s so enraged. She asks where Daniel is. Lexie directs Jennifer
to his office. She charges in without knocking. Daniel looks up, on
the phone, surprised. Jennifer expresses she wants an explanation
from him.
COMMERCIAL BREAK
ACT 1 – SCENE 1
Maggie is stunned by the announcement,
but Melanie is more despondent, knowing EJ’s secrets are wrapped up
in her own father (Daniel)’s troubles. Maggie presses her to share
what’s happened, but Melanie is extremely reluctant to do so.
ACT 1 – SCENE 2
Lexie is at the hospital, and receives
a call from her father, Stefano. Stefano is at home and just saw
Carrie’s announcement on TV. He is surprised, and wants Lexie to
come home to help support her brother. Lexie isn’t sure she wants
to under the circumstances, knowing of EJ’s affair with Kate,
Stefano’s wife. She doesn’t know about what else EJ has done, and
while she is afraid of the potential (as EJ’s capable of pretty
much anything and Lexie knows it), Lexie almost doesn’t want to
know the full extent of what EJ did. Her hesitation to answer
Stefano's request makes Stefano suspicious, and he asks Lexie what
she's hiding.
ACT 1 – SCENE 3
Daniel, visibly uncomfortable, asks
Jennifer what she's referring to. Jennifer insists that Daniel
already knows what she's referring to, but intends to clarify
regardless. She informs Daniel that Carrie Brady is in the process of
making a statement to the press regarding EJ DiMera's mayorship.
Being a reporter, and being the campaign manager for EJ's mayoral
rival, Jennifer has taken great pains to uncover dirt on EJ during
and after the campaign.
Daniel is increasingly uncomfortable
with the tone of the conversation. He tells Jennifer that he'll
explain everything at home, but Jennifer will have none of it,
demanding Daniel watch and listen to the live broadcast immediately,
pulling her phone out of the pocket to show Daniel.
ACT 1 – SCENE 4
The broadcast continues inside the
Brady Pub, with the room gone silent. The tone changes slightly when
Carrie announces the circumstances surrounding EJ's charges. Carrie
outlines EJ's affair with his father's wife, his demands that Kate
abort their baby under duress and threat of exposure, his
blackmailing of an as-yet-unnamed doctor at University Hospital in
order to carry out the abortion, as well as an attempt to bribe
Jennifer Horton into keeping quiet upon discovery of evidence of
these actions.
CROSS CUT TO DANIEL'S OFFICE
Jennifer shoots a look at Daniel as if
to demand an explanation, knowing that he is in fact the doctor in
question.
COMMERCIAL BREAK
ACT 2 – SCENE 1
Lexie insists she's hiding nothing and
tells Stefano she has to get back to work. Hanging up, Lexie walks
over to Daniel's office to drop off a file, but stops just before
opening the door (the door's already slightly ajar), and listens in
on Daniel and Jenn's argument.
Inside, Jennifer continues to press
Daniel, who categorically denies having performed the abortion on
Kate. Jennifer calls him on it, having seen the proof with her own
eyes. She lays into Daniel not only for lying to her face, but also
for taking part in a scheme that took away a woman's choice, and that
went against her wishes (Kate's intent was to keep the baby and pass
it off as Stefano's, a point Jennifer makes clear to Daniel).
Lexie stands outside the door,
increasingly shocked and enraged by the lengths EJ has gone to keep
his affair with Kate a secret. She has an idea and storms away.
Inside the room, Daniel remains pretty
much silent through Jennifer's tirade, prompting Jennifer to stop and
ask Daniel pointedly what he has to say for himself.
ACT 2 – SCENE 2
Marlena walks over to her daughter,
Sami, at the Brady Pub, asking her what she's going to do now,
knowing that EJ probably committed all the crimes attributed to him
and worse. Sami isn't sure, but she knows for a fact that giving EJ
access to their children was the worst decision she ever made. Sami
regrets falling for EJ yet again, and for believing that he had
finally stepped up as a father and had learned from his mistakes.
Marlena comforts her, saying that it wasn't her fault for feeling
that way, and that she needs to fight for the good of her children.
Sami thanks Marlena for the support, and Rafe, Sami's husband, who is
sat beside her, pulls Sami close to him.
ACT 2 – SCENE 3
Melanie simply tells Maggie that her
dad is worried about Jennifer's involvement in the DiMera scandal.
Jennifer has been working on the case for months, and it's consumed
her life, at the expense of her relationship with Daniel. Maggie
comforts Melanie, saying that Daniel loves Jennifer more than
anything in the world, and he still supports Jennifer in this. She
implores Melanie not to worry about their relationship, and that they
will work it out. Melanie thanks Maggie, when Maggie realizes she'd
forgotten something important to put into the recipe.
Melanie tells Maggie she can watch over
things here while Maggie is out. Maggie thanks her and leaves for the
store. When Maggie's gone, Melanie races to her phone to call Daniel.
COMMERCIAL BREAK
ACT 3 – SCENE 1
Stefano is in his living room at the
DiMera mansion, listening to Carrie's announcement while sat in
intense thought before his chess board. EJ cautiously steps into the
room. Despite this and the fact Stefano's back is to EJ, he knows
EJ's arrived in the room and greets him. EJ responds shortly and
cautiously. Stefano stares intensely at the board before him,
choosing his words to EJ carefully.
He asks to speak to EJ. EJ dismisses
him, saying he's busy. Stefano's booming voice instructs EJ to sit
down. EJ sits opposite Stefano at the chess table. Stefano asks EJ
in the most serious tone whether what Carrie has accused him of is
true or not. EJ makes a quick attempt to deflect, but Stefano, at his
most intimidating, cuts him off, demanding a straight answer.
EJ, after a lot of contemplation,
confirms Carrie's accusations.
ACT 3 – SCENE 2
Kate DiMera exits the offices of her
business Countess Wilhelmina, to a swarm of reporters. She tries
desperately to flee the reporters, but they follow her mercilessly.
Maggie Horton rounds the corner at the town square where the office
is located to find this scene taking place. She hides around a
corner and grabs Kate as she rounds the same corner, instructing her
to follow her into her car quickly, before the photographers catch
them.
ACT 3 – SCENE 3
Jennifer repeats her demand to Daniel,
who continues to hesitate. When Daniel is about to talk, the phone
rings.
It's Melanie, calling to check up on
Daniel. Daniel tells her it's a bad time and that he'll call her
later. Melanie pleads with her father to tell her things are okay.
Daniel says he isn't sure, making sure to be as cryptic as possible
in his answers. Melanie asks if Jenn is there. Daniel confirms it.
Melanie tells Daniel to call her back on her cell phone as soon as
he's done.
Once off the phone, Jennifer asks who
was on the phone. Daniel tells Jenn it was Melanie. Jenn asks what
they were talking about. Daniel tries to dismiss it, but Jenn presses
him. Before a word is spoken by Daniel, Jenn realizes that Melanie
knows about Kate's abortion, and asks Daniel whether it's true that
Melanie knew all along about his role in Kate's abortion.
MID-SHOW BUMPER – HOURGLASS INSERT
(0:11)
COMMERCIAL BREAK
ACT 4 – SCENE 1
Stefano and EJ sit at the chess table
at a face-off. Stefano contemplates the chess board while he asks EJ
for an explanation.
EJ stands up and paces the room, trying
to explain himself in the least damaging way to Stefano. Explaining
his affair with Kate as a one-off while he was in hospital on what
everyone believed was his deathbed. Explaining Kate's abortion as a
bid to protect the family, and Stefano's health.
Stefano listens while looking only at
the chess board before knocking the pieces off the board in a rage.
Stefano stands up and calls EJ a liar.
ACT 4 – SCENE 2
The Brady Pub is abuzz now that the
press conference has ended. Roman Brady enters and sits down with
his daughter Sami and Rafe to discuss their situation with EJ and the
kids, while Marlena and John are discussing their complex, but
ultimately sympathetic feelings towards Kate and her plight with Bo
Brady and his wife Hope.
Maggie pulls Kate into the Brady Pub
and closes the door, prompting the entire room to look up at Kate in
shock. Kate reacts with a mix of relief and discomfort.
ACT 4 – SCENE 3
Melanie paces Maggie's kitchen,
petrified that her dad may be exposed and lose Jennifer. Abby,
Jennifer's daughter comes by, and Melanie pulls her inside. Melanie
is thrilled by the serendipity, as they have a major problem. Abby
then tells Melanie that her mom knows that someone tampered with the
documentation surrounding Kate's abortion, and she knows that Daniel
performed the operation. Melanie and Abby conspired to edit the files
to make it look like an outside doctor had been brought in to perform
the abortion, when it was really Daniel.
The reason being that Melanie and
particularly Abby want their parents to be happy together, and Abby
is still enraged by her father's repeated abandonment of their family
in the past, not to mention Jack (Abby's father)'s attempt to
blackmail Daniel into leaving Jennifer, and leaving Salem altogether.
Abby and Melanie know that they could
very easily be exposed very soon, and a lot is on the line for
everyone if they don't get a plan into action soon. They head out of
the house, heading for University Hospital, knowing that is where
Jenn and Daniel are.
ACT 4 – SCENE 4
Daniel admits that Melanie found out
about the operation, but she only kept quiet about it because she
wanted to protect Daniel. Jennifer doesn't understand why Melanie
would want to protect Daniel under the circumstances. Jennifer asks
Daniel if Melanie was involved in EJ's scheme. Daniel insists that
she isn't, and insists that he had no choice but to do the operation.
Jennifer asks Daniel what that could
possibly mean, then wonders if Daniel is being threatened by EJ.
COMMERCIAL BREAK
ACT 5 – SCENE 1
Kate holds her head up and walks into
the Brady Pub with as much of a strut as she can muster. She sits
down at a table and questions why the room is so focused on her.
Marlena sits across from her as Maggie sits down between the two of
them. Marlena asks how Kate is doing. Kate answers honestly but
simply, not giving too much away. Marlena tries to dig a little
deeper (being a psychiatrist and all), but Kate won't have any of it.
Kate gets up to buy herself a drink,
but Roman, a former love of Kate's, asks to buy it for her. Kate's
facade of strength is beginning to crack, and she thanks Roman for
the drink but insists that his sympathy is not what she needs right
now. Roman agrees, but asks Kate whether she's thought about how
Stefano's going to react to today's revelations.
ACT 5 – SCENE 2
Stefano reacts with hostility at EJ's
assertions that his actions in covering up his affair with Kate were
anything but selfish acts of self-preservation. He counters that EJ
was more afraid of losing his job as mayor, losing access to his
children, and afraid of what would happen to him if he crossed
Stefano, than concern for his health. Stefano circles EJ like a
vulture, outlining every part of Carrie's allegations through the
filter of someone who is too hurt to see beyond the immediate pain
they feel, too angry to feel anything but contempt for the
perpetrator, especially as that person is his son.
EJ makes one final appeal to Stefano
that his intentions were not self-serving, but Stefano rejects it,
declaring that EJ is no longer his son.
ACT 5 – SCENE 3
Jennifer repeats her demand of Daniel
to tell her if he's being threatened by EJ. She knows he's capable of
anything and that blackmail or death threats are not beyond him.
Daniel denies this though, as EJ told him that Jenn, Abby and
Melanie's lives were at risk the moment he tells a soul about their
arrangement.
Instead, Daniel tells Jenn that the
hospital records can prove that Daniel isn't the one who performed
the abortion on Kate. Jenn doesn't buy that for a second, and reveals
that she knows those documents had been tampered with. Daniel argues
that no matter what evidence is in front of her, Jenn is choosing to
buy into a hairbrained theory.
Jenn counters that everything lines up.
The tampered-with documents, the unusual time Daniel was at the
hospital for a non-emergency surgery, the amount of attention he
payed to Kate around the time of the abortion, it all lines up. Jenn
finishes by saying that as much as she doesn't want to believe that
Daniel would do something like this, it's the only conclusion she
could have come to, and being threatened by EJ seems like the only
reason why.
COMMERCIAL BREAK
ACT 6 – SCENE 1
Abby and Melanie rush into the hospital
to find Daniel and Jennifer.
Inside Daniel's office, Jennifer pleads
with Daniel to tell her that he didn't take part in EJ's plans
willingly or for money.
Abby and Melanie burst into Daniel's
office just as Daniel admits to being threatened by EJ. A look of
pure terror washes over Melanie's face as she realizes the danger
that could lie ahead if word of this gets out.
ACT 6 – SCENE 2
Kate admits to Roman that she's trying
not to think about Stefano's reaction at the moment. Roman is
concerned for her safety and offers police protection for her in case
Stefano strikes back with violence. Kate's a little more shaken by
Roman's offer of help, and refuses the help.
Sami and Rafe come over to greet Kate,
and ask her how she is, a gesture that finally takes Kate's patience
a step too far. Sami and Kate's intense rivalry over the years makes
Kate's feelings that the outpouring of goodwill being sent her way is
not only too much for her, but also completely phony actions by a
bunch of eternal do-gooders. She refuses to see herself as a victim,
but is simultaneously so scarred from the events of the last few
months (which she has yet to fully deal with), as well as petrified
by Stefano's wrath (especially as a former victim of an abusive
relationship), that she explodes at the people around her, as she
feels more than a little claustrophobic between the goings-on inside
her head and the outpouring around her.
Kate insists she is fine and that she
doesn't need the Bradys' phony concern for her well-being. She storms
off into the street to call a cab home. The Bradys' concern is now
amplified, and Roman takes off after Kate.
ACT 6 – SCENE 3
EJ demands that Stefano calm down for
the sake of his health. Stefano tells EJ that he has no say in how
Stefano does anything anymore, demanding that EJ leave the house at
once. The two men struggle, but in a way where neither want to hurt
each other physically.
As they struggle, Stefano is hit by a
strong pain in his chest. He collapses to the ground. EJ stands above
him, dumfounded.
COMMERCIAL BREAK
EPILOGUE
EJ stands over Stefano's writhing body
in shock, before snapping out of it and heading for his phone to call
an ambulance. As he does this, Lexie arrives in the house to find
Stefano on the floor. Quickly moving into action, Lexie asks EJ what
he did to Stefano.
UP ON HOUR GLASS – THEME CRAWL
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