Here is your Days of our Lives recap for Thursday, April 2, 2026, when Theo saw his long-dead mother peacefully asleep in a bed.
What happened on Days of our Lives
Theo sat down with Gabi in Horton Town Square with a business proposal. He handed her a folder to look through. Gabi Chic was going international and he thought DiMera Enterprises could help her with overseas distribution. Gabi was impressed with the details of Theo’s proposal.
Theo noted that he was sure Philip would also want the distribution rights. “But I never minded a little competition,” Theo said. Gabi agreed to consider Theo’s proposal. Theo wasn’t going to give up. “When I become CEO again, it’s going to be an amazing ride and I want you to be on it with me,” he said.
Just then, Philip appeared and pulled Gabi in for a kiss as Theo watched and decided it was time to leave. “What was that about?” Philip asked. Gabi brushed off the question, so Philip changed the subject and asked Gabi to move into the Kiriakis mansion with him.
Gabi was surprised by the question, but was touched by Philip’s gesture. “Will you do it? Will you take this leap of faith with me?” he asked.
In the DiMera living room, EJ texted Theo to ask if he was still coming by because he had something important to show him. Soon after he sent the text, Johnny appeared. He thanked EJ for his help at the adoption hearing. “I’m your father. It’s the least I can do,” EJ said.
EJ also knew that there was another reason that Johnny was there. Johnny admitted that there was. “It’s DiMera. I’m in trouble, Dad, and I think you’re the only one who can get me out of it,” he said. Johnny told EJ about the plagiarism lawsuit, which outraged EJ.
“I promise you that by the time this is over, Kate Brady is going to beg for mercy,” EJ declared. Johnny was still a wreck and wanted this solved by the time Theo officially returned to the CEO position. EJ started to come up with all sorts of legal strategies, including claiming that the book was a parody, which would make it protected by the First Amendment.
EJ asked Johnny how he came to publish the book. Johnny admitted he had never read Stephanie’s book. He just knew it was a huge success, so when he saw Bonnie’s book, he just wanted to have the same type of success for DiMera. Johnny wished he had brought legal in on this earlier and not rushed the publication of the book.
“I wanted to leave my mark on DiMera before I left. I wanted to step up for the family. I wanted to make you…Nono, proud. Now, all I did was leave the company in shambles. It was a disaster,” Johnny cried. EJ assured his son that things would work out okay. He didn’t blame Johnny for this situation at all.
EJ theorized that Xander purposely left the manuscript on the table for Johnny to find because he knew it was plagiarized and would cause trouble for DiMera. Johnny refused to believe his step-grandmother, Kate, would do that to him. He noted how Philip and Xander had both been good to him.
“At the end of the day, you’re a DiMera and a Kiriakis wouldn’t be above using you to save their company,” EJ accused. Johnny decided EJ had to be right and felt like more of an “idiot” than ever. EJ vowed that they would fight and win. Johnny thanked his dad for his support. The two men embraced before Johnny left.
Once alone, EJ received a return text from Theo that he was on his way. When Theo arrived, EJ presented him with a new leather briefcase. Theo asked if there was another reason that EJ wanted him to drop by. EJ said there was someone he needed to see.
EJ brought a nervous Theo into the tunnels and attempted to open a door until Theo stopped him. “I’m not sure I want to know what you are up to down here,” Theo said. EJ told Theo that he needed to see what he had to show him, as it would change his life. “But brace yourself, you may not believe your eyes,” EJ warned.
Ej was right. He opened the door and Theo looked at his sleeping mother and couldn’t believe his eyes. “Oh, my God. Mom?” Theo exclaimed. He immediately grabbed at EJ and asked what he had done. EJ calmed his nephew down and explained Rolf’s experiment. “This is the culmination of everything your grandfather worked toward. Victory over death itself,” EJ pronounced.
Theo realized that it really was his mother in the bed. EJ told Theo to talk to her, so a shaking Theo approached Lexie and touched her hand. “I’m sorry for keeping you in the dark for so long. I just had to wait to see if this experiment would be successful,” EJ said, adding that he was optimistic. He insisted to Theo that they keep this a secret for now, especially from Abe.
EJ claimed he only told Theo about Lexie so he could decide whether he wanted to be the DiMera CEO, something Lexie would hate.
Before meeting up with Gabi in the Square, Philip showed Maggie a copy of One Rainy Afternoon, with them both admitting they were a bit torn. Maggie was angry at Philip for all the trouble he had caused for Titan, but also disturbed by Bonnie’s book. “You are family, but so is Bonnie, which begs the question — what are we going to do about her damn book?”
Maggie was surprised that Kate would have taken the plagiarism matter to the legal department without consulting them. Philip hoped Kate’s gambit would work and that DiMera would pay damages to help bail Titan out of its jam. Maggie noted that a corporate lawsuit would take too long and they were desperate. Philip suggested suing Bonnie personally.
“Absolutely not. We’re not suing someone under my roof,” she said. “If you don’t, pretty soon you might not have a roof at all,” Philip noted. Maggie still refused to sue Bonnie personally and worried about how Bonnie and Justin would feel when they learned about the lawsuit against DiMera.
After leaving the DiMera mansion, Johnny stopped by Titan to see Maggie and Xander. Maggie told Johnny that they were excited to have him back on board soon, but Johnny didn’t buy it now that EJ had planted seeds in his head. “You and your family set me up,” Johnny accused.
Maggie said she had no idea what Johnny was talking about, so Johnny repeated EJ’s accusations. Maggie tried to defend herself. “I admit the timing seems a bit curious, but that’s not how I do business, and I will prove it to you once you’re back at Titan, where you belong,” Maggie said. Johnny didn’t believe her and walked out.
In the Kiriakis living room, Bonnie happily signed copies of her book while Justin read through it with a curious look on his face. “I am so excited for my book launch party tomorrow. Anastasia Sands, eat your heart out,” she said. Justin turned to Bonnie as she thanked him for waiting to read it until it was published. He had news to break. “I don’t know what to say, but…it sounded a lot like Stephanie’s book,” Justin said.
Bonnie insisted that Stephanie only inspired her, but her book was an original work. “I do see similarities in the plot and some of the passages…” Justin started. Bonnie didn’t see a big deal. “Writers have been writing stories in different ways since the beginning of time,” she pointed out.
Justin admitted that he wasn’t a writer, but as a lawyer, he advised his wife that she likely had a huge legal problem on her hands. Justin insisted on showing Bonnie almost identical passages from the two books. “I don’t mean to scare you but what’s in these pages opens DiMera Publishing up to litigation,” Justin pointed out, stunning Bonnie.
Justin wanted to return the advance, apologize for unintentional plagiarism, and stop the deal before the book hit the shelves. That stunned Bonnie even more. “Honey, you pull that book and it’ll be No-Nookie November, no matter which month it is,” Bonnie said.
Bonnie insisted she did not plagiarize on purpose. Justin told her that the only thing that mattered was the degree of similarity, which was high. Bonnie still refused to pull the book. “My book launch party is tomorrow and I am going to be there,” Bonnie proclaimed.
As Bonnie shouted at Justin in tears, Gabi and Philip walked in. Bonnie took one look at them and ran from the room, with Justin following behind. “Welcome to the Kiriakis abode, where we offer complimentary fireworks,” Philip said. Gabi still claimed she was ready to move in.
In Johnny and Chanel’s apartment, Paulina and Chanel put Trey down for a nap. Paulina noted how exhausted Chanel looked and lamented that Sophia disrupted the adoption hearing. “No one can ever take that baby from you now,” Paulina said. “Who would think the person we’d have to thank for saving the day would be EJ?” Chanel asked.
Paulina reminded Chanel that she shouldn’t let her guard down. “One kind gesture doesn’t erase all the things he’s done,” Paulina said. She was horrified to learn that Chanel was considering letting EJ back into her and Johnny’s lives. Eventually, Paulina conceded that it would be hard to keep EJ away from his grandkids, but warned Chanel that there might be trouble.
As Paulina went on and on about the evils of EJ, Chanel was taken aback. “Where is this all coming from?” she asked. Chanel wondered if it had anything to do with Paulina’s dilemma from a few weeks ago. Paulina said that it did, and then quickly made herself scarce. Once alone, Chanel began reading One Rainy Afternoon.
When Johnny walked in, she could see how upset her husband was. He told her that Titan had screwed her over and there was no way he could work there again. “Now we’re facing a lawsuit. Can you believe that?” Johnny asked. Chanel said that she could because she had been reading Bonnie’s book.
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Edited by Hope Campbell