In today’s episode of Days of Our Lives, EJ returns home with more than just physical scars—he carries the weight of betrayal, mystery, and a chilling video revelation that shakes him to his core. While Kayla frantically scrambles for a miracle to save Bo, relationships are crumbling, secrets are surfacing, and the drama is at an all-time high.

It all begins as EJ insists on leaving the hospital despite Kayla’s objections. He’s bruised, battered, and barely recovered from the attempt on his life, but nothing will stop him from getting home. There’s something gnawing at him—something he needs to see with his own eyes. Kayla warns him about pushing too hard too soon, but he brushes her off, signing discharge papers and leaving the hospital behind.

Elsewhere in Salem, Johnny wakes up alone and defeated on the DiMera couch, haunted by memories of Chanel kicking him out. “What have I done?” he mutters, his guilt consuming him. Paulina enters and wastes no time confronting him. She scolds Johnny for wallowing in self-pity and demands that he clean himself up and fight for his marriage. “You don’t have to carry the burden of your father’s sins,” she reminds him. “You are not EJ.”

Later, Susan drops by with her usual quirky warmth, urging Johnny to reconcile with both EJ and Chanel. But Johnny is laser-focused on making things right with Chanel, feeling that his father has already taken enough from him. His pain is real, but his silence might have cost him the one person who matters most.

Meanwhile, Chanel is still reeling. A surprise encounter with Felicity and Cat celebrating a gymnastics victory takes a somber turn when Felicity lets slip news of Chanel’s failed adoption attempt. Chanel bolts, overwhelmed, but later returns to apologize. She makes it clear—she won’t be a mother, not now. Paulina finds her and tries to comfort her daughter, insisting that what she and Johnny are going through is just a rough patch. But Chanel isn’t convinced. Johnny made a life-altering decision without her—he took away her chance at motherhood—and she can’t just forgive that. “It was controlling… and cruel. Just like EJ,” she confesses.

Back at the hospital, Kayla is desperately working behind the scenes. She meets with Dr. Russell, urging him to fast-track his experimental sepsis treatment to save Bo’s life. But Russell is reluctant—it hasn’t even cleared animal testing yet. Kayla, in a rare moment of desperation, suggests using it off the record. He refuses, warning that it could derail the drug’s future entirely. And to make matters worse, he informs her that he wants out of his contract to move his research elsewhere. Kayla is stunned. Just as she’s trying to save her brother, she’s losing the one resource that might help.

Back on the investigative front, Chad and Leo dig into the mystery surrounding EJ’s shooting. Though Ava seems like an obvious suspect, Leo isn’t convinced. He pushes Chad to keep digging. Meanwhile, Gabby and Leo clash when he shows up unexpectedly at her place to retrieve a book and dig for information. Gabby insists Ava is guilty, but Leo hints otherwise—and he’s got questions Gabby isn’t ready to answer. Their conversation heats up, and when Gabby storms out, Leo eyes her purse left behind with more than a little temptation.

But the heart of today’s bombshell comes when EJ finally makes it home. With Susan upstairs, EJ stumbles to his desk, his body wracked with pain. He fumbles through a drawer and retrieves a memory card—one he’d nearly forgotten about. He inserts it into his tablet… and what he sees makes his blood run cold.

On the screen is surveillance footage. There, in grainy clarity, is a young man with a gun—Johnny, his own son—standing over EJ, weapon drawn. “Giovanni… no…” EJ whispers in horror, his worst nightmare unfolding before his eyes.

Before EJ can process the betrayal, Susan reappears and cryptically mentions that Johnny is harboring something very dark. Her intuition, often laughed off as eccentric, suddenly feels eerily accurate. EJ now knows there’s more to Johnny’s distance than guilt—it’s something deeper. Something dangerous.

Meanwhile, in a nearby scene, Chanel and Johnny cross paths in the town square. Johnny, suitcase in hand, looks hopeful—but Chanel rushes into the bakery, avoiding him. The silence between them is deafening, and the divide has never felt wider.

The tension builds as Cat receives a silent auction notification. She curiously discovers that EJ won the bid on her, leaving Chad rolling his eyes and muttering, “That son of a…” The DiMera shadow looms large, as always.

The episode ends on a cliffhanger. Leo, after a brief pause of hesitation, begins rummaging through Gabby’s purse—only for her to walk in and catch him red-handed. “What the hell are you doing?” she snaps.

Salem is a town of secrets, and today, another explosive one has just been unearthed. With EJ now aware that Johnny might be more involved in his shooting than anyone imagined, and with the fallout of Chanel and Johnny’s broken trust still raw, things are only going to get more dangerous from here.