Today’s episode of Days of Our Lives doesn’t just stir drama — it detonates it.
What begins as a seemingly quiet December Tuesday quickly unravels into a day of revelations, betrayals, and horrors so profound that by nightfall, Salem may never be the same again.

A DiMera collapses.
A mother witnesses a nightmare she’ll never forget.
And deep beneath the mansion, a discovery so chilling threatens to rewrite DiMera history forever.

By the time the credits roll, fans are left asking not who is in danger…
but whether anyone in Salem is safe at all.

This is your full, emotionally charged, in-depth breakdown of the episode that turns December 9th into a defining day for the DiMera dynasty.

EJ Awakens — Drugged, Disoriented, and Completely at Cat’s Mercy

The episode opens inside the imposing DiMera mansion — a place usually overflowing with power and legacy. But this morning it feels different. Heavy. Silent. Wrong.

On the living room couch, EJ DiMera begins to stir.
A twitch of his fingers.
A shallow, uneven breath.
And then, slowly, painfully, he returns to consciousness.

But something is off.

His head throbs violently. His vision blurs. The room twists as though floating. His body refuses to cooperate, weighed down as if drugged.

And then the fractured memory hits him:

Cat Green.
A deceptively sweet smile.
A hand on his shoulder.
A whisper against his ear.
Darkness slamming shut.

Now, as EJ fights to sit up, Cat plays her role flawlessly — the comforting companion caring for a man who can barely lift his head. But behind her soft voice and feather-light touches lies a razor-sharp agenda.

Every question she asks is a trap wrapped in silk:

“What were you hiding in the safe, EJ?”
“Do you remember what you said about the tunnels?”
“What did you see in those documents?”

Her tone is sweet. Her intentions are anything but.

EJ, helpless and half-conscious, can barely fend her off.

And that is exactly the moment Cat pushes too far.

She leans closer — too close — lips hovering inches above his, pretending intimacy while actually interrogating him.

And then—

Susan Walks In — and Everything Shatters

Susan Banks enters the room and freezes mid-step.

Her eyes widen.
Her breath catches.
And the horror in her gaze is unlike anything we’ve seen from her in years.

Her son — drugged, weak, vulnerable — lies beneath a woman she has never trusted. To Susan, it doesn’t matter what Cat says. It doesn’t matter what EJ tries to stammer out. The scene tells its own story:

Manipulation.
Violation.
Danger.

Susan’s maternal wrath begins to boil — but before she can unleash it, something far more terrifying begins to unfold.

The Mansion Trembles… and the Walls Move

A low rumble shakes the room.
A metallic scrape ripples through the floorboards.
Dust falls from the corners.

Susan spins toward the sound.
EJ tries to turn his head despite the dizziness.
Cat’s breath catches mid-inhale.

The hidden DiMera tunnel opens.

From the darkness emerges a figure who looks as though he has clawed his way out of the underworld:

Dr. Wilhelm Rolf.

Dirty. Disheveled. Eyes wild with purpose.
He clutches sinister equipment — wires, devices, machines that no sane man should possess.

Susan shrieks.
EJ struggles to make sense of it.
Cat tenses like she’s been caught.

Rolf, however, speaks with the calmness of someone grabbing a snack from the kitchen.

“Just an experiment,” he claims.
“Nothing you need to worry about.”

But every word is a lie.
Every word shakes Susan even deeper.

Because Rolf sneaking through tunnels means something massive is happening under the mansion…
something planned…
something dangerous.

And as we cut away, the episode plunges us beneath the surface — literally.

Trapped Beneath the Mansion: Kristen, Chad & Tony Discover a Nightmare Buried in the Crypt

In the cold stone DiMera crypt, Kristen, Tony, and Chad struggle to endure their captivity.

Their clothes are torn.
Their energy is drained.
Their hope is fading.

Kristen — refusing to sit still — begins digging into the crypt floor. At first it’s desperate. Then frantic. Then horrifying.

Her hands strike something solid.

Smooth.
Cold.
Unnatural.

The breath leaves her lungs.

She uncovers a human bone.

Chad recoils.
Tony chokes back horror.
Kristen stares at the pale fragments with shaking hands.

The air turns colder.
Heavier.
Cursed.

Whose bones are these?
Why are they buried here?
What dark DiMera secret has been hidden beneath their family tomb?

But the terror has only begun.

Theo Is Thrown Into the Crypt — and the Pattern Becomes Clear

The crypt doors slam open violently.

A new captive is shoved inside.

Theo Carver.

Disoriented.
Shaken.
Barely able to speak.

One moment he was on the phone with Abe.
The next: darkness.

Now he sees the bones.
He hears the fear in Kristen’s voice.
He sees the exhaustion on Chad’s face.

And realization crashes over him:

This is not random.
This is not revenge on one person.
Someone is systematically capturing DiMeras…
and burying them alive beneath their own legacy.

Theo is officially trapped in a nightmare designed for the DiMera bloodline.

And the mastermind is nowhere close to finished.

Above Ground: Chanel’s Panic and EJ’s Desperate Order

Back in Salem, Chanel receives the news of Theo’s disappearance — and her world nearly collapses.

Kristen.
Chad.
Tony.
Now Theo.

One by one, the DiMeras are being taken.

Her mind races to the people she loves:

Johnny.
Trey.

Are they next?

She storms into the mansion demanding answers. EJ, still weak but finally regaining control of his mind, accepts the truth:

The DiMeras are under attack.

And the enemy is closing in.

He orders full armed protection for Chanel, Johnny, and Trey. Chanel hates the idea. Johnny resists it. But EJ is adamant:

“This isn’t about comfort.
It’s about survival.”

Because in today’s Salem, the rule is simple and terrifying:

If your name is DiMera… you are a target.

Abe Collapses Under the Weight of Fear and Guilt

At the Carver home, Abe breaks.
The strong, composed mayor falls into Paulina’s arms, devastated by the last sound he heard before the phone went dead:

Theo’s panic.
A struggle.
Silence.

Abe blames himself, convinced he should have known something was wrong.

Paulina holds him, grounding him with fierce love.

“We will find him,” she whispers.
“We will get him back.”

But even she can’t hide the fear in her eyes.

Because this isn’t just a kidnapping spree.

This is a war.

A war aimed directly at the DiMera empire.

And the enemy is steps ahead.

Final Thoughts: The Darkness Has Only Begun

Today’s episode ends on a chilling note — with EJ rallying, Susan trembling, Chanel terrified, Abe broken, and multiple DiMeras trapped beneath their own crypt with bones that shouldn’t exist.

Someone is orchestrating a takedown of legendary proportions.

Someone who knows the tunnels.
Knows the secrets.
Knows the DiMeras better than they know themselves.

And if this episode proved anything…

The DiMeras are running out of time.
And Salem is running out of safe places.