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Kyle wanders around the Abbott manse and pours himself a drink to ring in the new year alone. To his delight, Claire shows up and blows a noisemaker at the door. They chat about Harrison beating him at games.
Settling down, she reminds him the clock still hasn’t struck midnight everywhere. That means they still have the chance to welcome the next year together. Checking their watches, they see it’s almost midnight in Mexico. They get champagne and put on plastic hats as they count down. After some giggling, they kiss.
Kyle and Claire go up to his room and make out, undressing and climbing into bed. After sex, he tells her that was a good way to ring in the new year. He feels really close to her, like their connection has reached another level. He feels safer with her than with anyone else. It’s not normal for him to open up to someone so quickly, but he’s been OK with her since day one. Things with her feel the way they should have always been. Does that scare her? She trusts him, but he is her first everything. She doesn’t know if she deserves this happiness. When she asks if he believes in redemption, he says it just takes love. It may sound cheesy, but he can see how much love is making her shine. Claire tells him she’s feeling cared for and happy. They kiss. Realizing how late it is, she thinks she should go. He’s not ready to let her so they cuddle up and he asks her to wait until the sun comes up.
As Phyllis drives, she flashes back to her accident. Slamming on the brakes, she blurts out that she can’t do this anymore.
In the Neil Winters Jazz Lounge, Summer joins her brother at the bar, and they hope that this year will be better than the last. It’s gotta be. He explains he talked to his father and that was good. They recognize how hard it still is for their mom to see Danny with Christine. It’s probably good that she left when she did. Realizing they haven’t seen or heard from Phyllis in a while, they wonder if that’s a good thing. He hopes she’s not out making trouble for herself or someone else. They are eager to make her see that they can look out for her. They laugh about how much she hates to lose or admit she’s wrong. He ponders if this year will be different and she will let things go. He has doubts.
When Phyllis shows up, her kids are surprised to see her again. She says she went out for a drive and had to calm her nerves. She’s going to prove them wrong and let go. She will face 2025 with a clean slate. Daniel and Summer are sure she believes that, but… Phyllis knows she’s said this a million times, but she means it this time. After having her stomach turned by Danny and Cricket’s make-out session, she ended up driving back to where she had her accident. The memories flooded back, and she could see the person behind the wheel of the truck. It wasn’t Sharon. Originally, it made sense that it must have been her, but Phyllis has had flashes of the truth since then.
She can’t deny the truth any longer. It was an older woman with wavy hair and glasses. Summer says they need to tell Chance. Their mom says she won’t hold Sharon accountable for the crash, but she will for her framing Daniel. When they bring up Danny and Christine, Phyllis claims she will let that go, too. Remembering her accident reminded her that she almost died. It’s time to focus on the future and a new beginning. Her son admits he’s going to have to see it to believe it. Even if she has the best intentions, he knows how tough it is for her to change. Phyllis won’t apologize for going after Sharon. She was only trying to protect her family, but obsessing over nemesis will kill her. She has to step back and let the investigation go on… even if that means she was wrong. If she had to be wrong to help get justice for her family, then so be it. Her children are giving her the benefit of the doubt, and she insists she will emphasize what will make them proud. That makes them worry.
Outside of Society, Ian asks Nick about how his family is coping. “Shut your mouth!” Nick says. He warns that he will be hauled back to prison. Ian insists he’s free in body and spirit. The cop returns to say his story checks out. He’s a prison chaplain. Ward tells Nick that he will spend the rest of his life doing penance. Nick tells the cop that the “holy roller” is a “deranged psycho.” There’s nothing she can do so she walks off. Ian tells Nick that he is determined to prove that he has been redeemed. Getting in his face, Nick tells him that if he does anything to cause anyone distress, he will make him wish he was never born.
Nick heads inside to check on Mariah and Tessa. They aren’t happy to learn that Ian is free. Nick declares that Ian is clearly there to cause trouble, and he will do whatever it takes to stop him. Faith is concerned about seeing her dad so angry. He assures her he has a whole mob with him, and Mariah vents about all Ian put her through. She’s over what he did to her but worried about the people around her. Nick wonders if he’s the one who tainted Sharon’s meds. This has occurred to Mariah, too. Noticing Sharon never showed up, Faith and Nick decide to go to the house to check on her.
Tessa starts furiously cleaning and wonders why such an evil man would have stopped to save her life. Mariah tries calling her mom again but only gets voicemail. She paces and panics, and Tessa points out that Ian was in her sight most of the night. It’s unlikely he could have gone after Sharon. When she asks her wife if she’s worried he might get to her the way he did before, Mariah insists she’s too strong for that to happen again. She’s determined to keep her family safe.
When Nick and Faith get to the tack house, they see Sharon is not there. Faith searches as he calls his dad.
Nick and Faith show up at the ranch house. Victor can see that Faith is shivering and wonders what’s wrong. “It’s Ian Ward. He’s out of prison and back in Genoa City,” Nick announces. They tell him that Sharon never showed up tonight. Nick called the cops about Ian, but they only confirmed that his release was legitimate. According to the authorities, he’s paid his debt to society. “He hasn’t paid his debt to me or this family,” Victor says, announcing that he will have him found. He places a call.
Ian joins Jordan at the Red Door Motel. As he looks down at Sharon bound and gagged on the bed, he says it looks like this year will be a good year. Jordan has kept her out with chloroform. She asks what they will do with her. “Say goodbye,” he says. Ward suggests they might be able to tie this all up in a neat little bow. They laugh about knocking off Sharon and framing Phyllis for it.
As they have a drink, they talk about how poetic it would be to dump Sharon where she dumped Heather. They can frame Phyllis the same way that Sharon framed Daniel. Jordan appreciates all this but is eager to shift the focus to Claire, who has been traipsing around the Newman estate. She’s determined to put her back in her place. Ian points out that achieving his goals is bringing her closer to her own. He’s not explaining how so she starts accusing him of treating her like an idiot and trying to snow her. Ward assures her that he sees her as an equal and has nothing but respect for her. Explaining his plan, he says that Sharon’s death will leave Mariah inconsolable. The only thing that will help her is the love of a parent. He plans to slip back into his old role as a father figure. She thinks that’s a long way off. Ian says saving Tessa’s life was the first step and he’s confident he can lure Mariah back to him. After all, he managed to get Jordan to trust him. “I trust you but it’s on life support,” she says. He points out that winning over Mariah will give them an in to getting close to Claire.
