If Salem ever needed a reminder that peace never lasts—especially at Christmas—next week delivers it in devastating fashion. What should have been a season of healing instead becomes a reckoning, as rescues come at a cost, secrets fester in silence, and families discover that survival doesn’t always mean salvation.

The Crypt Rescue: Freedom Comes With a Price

At long last, the nightmare in the DiMera crypt ends. The cavalry arrives just in time—Rafe, Chad, Kristen, Theo, and company pulled from the frozen mausoleum before Salem faces a truly unthinkable tragedy. The relief is immediate, overwhelming… and short-lived.

Because while the doors open, the damage lingers.

Being trapped for days in an unheated stone crypt, surrounded by the remains of DiMera ancestors during a brutal Midwest winter, is not something anyone simply walks away from. Hypothermia. Respiratory complications. Lingering injuries. Emotional trauma. The survivors are rushed straight to University Hospital, their rescue only the beginning of a far more complicated aftermath.

Salem breathes again—but the cost is written on every shaken face.

Chad Finds Warmth—But Not Everyone Is Welcome

In the wake of the rescue, the group fractures emotionally. Chad DiMera gravitates instinctively toward safety, warmth, and familiarity, returning to the Horton house and his children. And in true Days tradition, the Horton Christmas gathering becomes the emotional anchor of the week.

The house is full. Julie presides over the living room like a guardian of Salem’s soul, while Eli and Lani bring grounded warmth, Lucas adds emotional history, and the ritual of the ornaments once again reminds viewers why this show endures. Each ornament represents survival—lives lost, lives saved, and the resilience of family.

But not everyone is invited.

Xander Cook is conspicuously absent, his exclusion a pointed reminder that forgiveness has limits—even at Christmas. Julie’s decision feels harsh, but painfully consistent. And his absence raises uncomfortable questions about others on the fringe.

What about Gwen Rizczech?

Jack may consider extending an olive branch, but Gwen is unlikely to take it. Pride, pain, and long-standing resentment keep her locked outside the warmth she secretly craves. For Gwen, isolation feels safer than pretending she belongs somewhere she believes she never truly did. It’s tragic—and completely in character.

Kristen Trapped, Rachel Spiraling

Hospitalization creates an agonizing complication for Kristen DiMera. She may be alive, but she’s confined to a hospital bed while her daughter Rachel remains stuck at Bayview Psychiatric Facility. Holiday bureaucracy turns visitation into a nightmare, and the possibility that Rachel won’t see her mother threatens to send the already fragile child into emotional freefall.

Rachel’s separation anxiety is a ticking bomb—and no one knows it better than those watching her closely.

Rafe’s Discovery: The Dead Speak Again

Rafe Hernandez doesn’t just rescue the living—he pursues the truth buried beneath Salem’s past. The mysterious bones found in the catacombs are sent to the lab, and spoilers promise a shocking discovery.

Bones in a crypt shouldn’t be shocking—unless they don’t belong there.

If the remains are linked to a long-buried DiMera crime, possibly orchestrated by Stefano himself, it could reopen decades-old wounds just as EJ attempts to rehabilitate the family name. One lab result could detonate everything Salem thought it knew about its past.

Bayview’s Dark Influence: Rachel and Sophia

While adults scramble, Rachel spends Christmas locked inside Bayview—and she is not alone.

Sophia Choi inserts herself as comforter, but her presence feels anything but safe. Vulnerable children attract predators of influence, and Sophia’s chaotic energy threatens to amplify Rachel’s worst impulses. She doesn’t soothe—she provokes.

Brady and Tate bring news that Kristen survived, but that relief masks a far more dangerous secret—one Brady has buried deep.

The Secret That Will Break Brady and Tate

Tate still doesn’t know the truth.

He doesn’t know that Rachel shot EJ.

Brady’s decision to protect Rachel at all costs—lying by omission to his son—has created a fracture waiting to split wide open. When Tate learns the truth, and he will, the betrayal will cut deep. Brady’s hypocrisy will be impossible to ignore, and the fallout could permanently damage their relationship.

Rachel may be protected—but Brady is sacrificing his son in the process.

Johnny and Chanel: A Baby—and a Curse

Just as the chaos settles, Chanel delivers a revelation that changes everything.

She’s pregnant.

Johnny’s reaction is not joy—it’s fear.

Haunted by the DiMera legacy, Johnny freezes under the weight of his bloodline. Stefano. EJ. Kristen. He doesn’t see a future—he sees a curse. And beneath his love for Chanel is a terror he can’t voice: that something dark lives inside him, something he could pass on.

Johnny pulls back not because he doesn’t care—but because he cares too much. Believing he’s protecting Chanel and their child from himself, he begins to emotionally withdraw. It’s tragic irony—Johnny is one of Salem’s good men, but he’s convinced he’s doomed by his name.

Love, Threats, and Shadows Closing In

Elsewhere, Leo and Javi plan a winter wedding—a brief spark of joy Salem desperately needs. But danger lurks nearby. Someone is stalking Stephanie online, encouraging Unni’s obsession, and all signs point toward Jeremy pulling strings from the shadows.

Stephanie cannot catch a break—and Steve moving in suddenly makes terrifying sense.