Salem is about to be shaken to its very core. One of the most chilling mysteries in Days of Our Lives history is unraveling—and at the center of it is EJ DiMera, a man battling trauma, truth, and the unbearable weight of memory. In an emotionally charged hypnosis session, EJ speaks seven quiet words that explode like a grenade: “Why won’t you just give it to me?” It’s a moment that doesn’t just reveal a suspect—it cracks open a past that may destroy lives.

EJ’s Breaking Point: The Need to Remember

For months, EJ has struggled to piece together the events of that fateful night—the night he was shot. He’s combed through the fog, battled frustration, and clung to fragments of memories that offered no clear answers. Everyone in Salem has a theory. Some pointed fingers at enemies. Others believed it might’ve been a crime of revenge. But none of it felt right to EJ. Deep down, he knew something didn’t add up. And as his relationship with his son Johnny crumbled under the weight of doubt and suspicion, EJ finally agreed to what he once refused: hypnosis.

It wasn’t a decision made lightly. Hypnosis would force EJ to relive a night his mind had desperately tried to bury. But in the end, it wasn’t about justice. It was about truth. And more than anything, it was about healing—no matter how painful that might be.

The Session That Changed Everything

Enter Marina Evans—a skilled psychiatrist with experience guiding the broken through the wreckage of their pasts. Marina approaches EJ with empathy and precision, knowing full well that this isn’t just about unlocking facts—it’s about unlocking pain. As she guides him deeper, his mind begins to stir. Images flicker. Emotions swell. A dim room. A trembling hand. A moment suspended in terror.

Then, silence.

And finally, the words.

“Why won’t you just give it to me?”

The room stills. Marina freezes. EJ’s voice isn’t panicked—it’s soft. Gentle. Almost protective. This isn’t the voice of a man begging for his life. It’s the voice of someone trying to prevent a tragedy, of someone comforting another person on the verge of breaking.

This one sentence—seven words—shifts the entire story.

A Father’s Tone, A Shocking Possibility

As Marina listens, her mind races. That voice, that emotion—it’s not fear. It’s heartbreak. She plays the sentence over and over in her mind. The pleading wasn’t for himself. It was for someone else.

Then, it hits her.

EJ wasn’t facing an assassin. He wasn’t confronting a cold-blooded attacker. He was trying to calm someone down—someone young, scared, confused.

A child.

And slowly, the pieces fall into place. A shocking truth begins to take form: EJ was shot… by someone he loved. Someone he was trying to protect. Someone so fragile that his brain couldn’t let him remember it. Until now.

That someone… is Rachel Black.

Rachel Black: A Name No One Expected

Rachel, the daughter of Brady and Kristen, has always been caught in the crossfire of Salem’s most chaotic storms. Her life has been full of trauma, betrayal, custody battles, and shifting homes. But no one—not even her own family—ever thought she could be the one behind the trigger.

But that’s what makes it so devastating.

What if she was there that night?

What if, in a moment of fear and confusion, she held the gun?

And what if EJ saw her… and chose to forget?

Marina realizes what EJ’s mind has done. In an effort to shield himself from a reality too painful to bear, he didn’t just forget Rachel—he protected her. Even after the fact. Even after the bullet. The human mind is powerful. And sometimes, love means burying the unbearable.

The Weight of a Suppressed Memory

As the session ends, EJ sits in silence, haunted by the fragment he recovered. He hasn’t said Rachel’s name yet. But something inside him knows. And with that knowledge comes unimaginable sorrow.

He wasn’t shot by an enemy. He was wounded by a child.

By family.

His grief is overwhelming. Not because of the pain, but because of the guilt. Because he wasn’t able to stop her. Because he tried to protect her and still ended up hurt. And now, as those memories resurface, EJ knows what must come next: truth.

But what happens when that truth is too painful to speak aloud?

Rachel’s Silence Speaks Volumes

Meanwhile, Rachel’s behavior has grown more erratic. Quiet, withdrawn, fearful. Every time someone mentions the shooting, her gaze drops. Her voice falters. She doesn’t know what happened that night—or maybe, like EJ, she knows but cannot remember.

She is a child carrying a secret so heavy it may crush her. Her mind, too, may be shielding her from it. But trauma has a way of finding its way back to the surface. And when it does, Salem won’t be ready.

Because this isn’t just a whodunit.

This is a tragedy.

The Fallout: What Comes After the Truth

If EJ remembers everything—and if Rachel’s memory returns—it won’t just destroy their lives. It will tear apart families. Brady and Kristen will be forced to choose between protecting their daughter and seeking justice. Johnny, who only wanted to clear his name, may end up facing a truth more devastating than any accusation.

And Marina, who guided them both into the storm, must now help them survive the aftermath.

This isn’t about blame. It’s about healing. But in Salem, healing never comes without heartbreak.

The DiMera Legacy Fractures

EJ, once proud and powerful, now finds himself vulnerable and lost. He was the victim of a shooting—but now he’s the guardian of a secret. A protector of a child who never meant to hurt him. He knows that revealing the truth could destroy Rachel’s future. But staying silent could destroy his soul.

And so, he stands at a crossroads.

One path leads to justice. The other, to mercy.

What will he choose?

The Next Session: The Final Truth

With one memory unlocked, the door is now open. And EJ’s journey isn’t over. The next hypnosis session could bring back the entire scene. The face. The fear. The moment the gun fired.

It could also bring Rachel’s name to his lips.

And when that happens, Days of Our Lives will enter a new chapter—one defined not by villains and heroes, but by love, trauma, and the limits of human memory.

Because the shooter is no longer a mystery.

But the consequences? They’re only just beginn