Kevin is surprised that Michael went to go see Sheila. Michael says that things are fine with him and Lauren now that he knows Lauren will be safe. Only one more thing they have to deal with now. Lauren wants to see Sheila for herself. Kevin doesn't think that's such a good idea, but Michael says that Lauren has insisted. Michael tells Kevin that he's been thinking of asking Lauren to move in with him. He wonders how Kevin would feel about getting his own place again. Kevin pretends to be hurt at first, and then laughs it off. Michael says he can use some of his lottery money to get a place. Kevin says he has something else in mind for that. Michael wonders what Kevin is up to.
Scott begs Brenda to come to Genoa City with him so they can continue working on the story together. Brenda doesn't think that's such a good idea. Scott persists, but Brenda refuses. She is upset to find out that Scott plans to leave right away. When she hears he may be gone for weeks, she can't believe he's going to be away for so long.
Victor tries to console Nikki and find out what's going on with her. She says she will be fine, but Victor knows there's obviously something very wrong. Sharon comes in and asks if they have seen Nick. She sees that Nikki has been crying but doesn't say anything. She tells Victor that the verdict is going to be announced and she can't find Nick anywhere.
Nick is digging up Cassie's clothes. He goes back inside and thinks about Cassie. He remembers how it felt adopting her and being her dad. Phyllis interrupts his thoughts. She wonders if Daniel is found not guilty is Nick will still continue to terrorize Daniel. Nick thinks Daniel has to pay for what he's done to Cassie. Phyllis says that revenge will never help Nick get over Cassie. She says that Daniel wasn't driving, and he's paid enough in guilt for something he didn't do. She begs him to let Daniel go. Sharon comes in and Phyllis leaves. Sharon is upset with Nick. She needed him-where was he?
Chris worries about the verdict. Phyllis seems assured that Daniel will be found not guilty. Phyllis gets upset that anyone would think any different. Kay goes to Neil and asks how he's dealing with Lily. She suggests that he be strict with her now, she still has a lot of growing up to do.
Drucilla, Lily and Devon have lunch at the Athletic Club. Lily doesn't feel up to eating. Devon tells Lily she needs to lighten up a little. Neil shows up and Lily begs for them to go see Daniel to hear the verdict. They refuse. Chris and Paul show up and Lily asks about the verdict. Chris says that the judge had a family emergency and it was postponed. Lily can tell that Chris is exhausted, and wonders if she's worried that Daniel will be found guilty. Drucilla asks Lily whose shirt she's wearing and Devon tells her it's Sierra's because girls always share clothes. This gives Chris an idea.
Nikki's doorbell is ringing incessantly. She opens the door....standing there is a man who says he has a delivery, compliments of Vinny and Luca. The man then shoots Nikki.
Nikki is screaming and sits up from the couch with a start.....it was all a dream! She becomes more awake, but all the while is more and more hysterical. Then.....the doorbell begins ringing again. Nikki really becomes terrified and hides behind a chair.....she truly begins to have a meltdown. The doorbell is still ringing, and Nikki continues to hunker down, crying "Go away!" It's Victor ringing the bell....he's outside, trying to get in, obviously forgotten his key. Nikki sees Victor outside and runs to let him in the door. She falls into his arms.....Victor comforts his wife. She then tells him about her horrible dream. Victor caresses Nikki and begins talking softly to her. Somehow in Nikki's emotionally shattered mind, Victor's voice becomes distorted and his touch foreign.....in her mind, she's convinced he's someone evil....NOT her Victor!
At the Poolside Café, Brad walks in, spots Jack at a table, and the two exchange some unpleasant words, mainly involving Ashley. Victoria is also at the café....she's there to meet with Brad. They get a table and begin discussing 'Seasons' and also Neil's warning about moving too fast. Brad negates all Neil's input, and Victoria is not too impressed. Victoria suspects that Brad has a hidden agenda for wanting to get this product on the shelves so quickly.....that being Jack Abbott! Brad is able to turn things around and convince Victoria how they can have 'Seasons' in the stores in time for Christmas.....she's now convinced he has a good idea after all.
Nicholas and Sharon are both home, but Sharon wants to know where Nick was when she needed him.....when she was on the witness stand testifying in Cassie's murder trial. Nick tells her he had some things to figure out. To this, Sharon tells him that she felt totally abandoned today while in court. Nick wants to know what questions were asked of Sharon while on the stand. He wants to hear Sharon confirm that she didn't incriminate either of them about holding back Cassie's clothes as evidence. Sharon confirms she did not. Nick then tells Sharon that he went to visit Alice and that the two of them discussed Cassie. He told Sharon about Alice relating to him how she gave up custody of Cassie because she wanted to do what was best for the child. Sharon then asked Nick if he thought, in turn, it is now time to forgive Daniel. Nick tells Sharon it's too late to hand the clothes over now, even if he wanted to.....the verdict will be coming in. They are then interrupted by an urgent call from Victor, telling them to come up to the main house right away....Nikki is having some sort of panic attack.
At the café, over at another table, Paul and Christine are discussing Daniel's defense, specifically the clothes and the need for the boots for proof that Daniel was not driving the car. Paul tells Chris that he will immediately go find Cassie's friends and ask them if, by any chance, Cassie switched clothes with any of them the night of the party.....specifically trading her sandals for someone's boots.
Kevin and Mac are together busily discussing plans for their purchase of the coffee house. Kevin has lots of ideas but also tells Mac that he may have a stumbling block in regards to getting his part of the funding together. Mac begins thinking....she offers to come up with all of the funding, but Kevin refuses to let her do this.
At yet another table, Phyllis and Jack are also discussing Daniel's trial. Phyllis seems very optimistic about the outcome of the trial. She's confident that Daniel will be found innocent but worries that Nick will seek revenge against Daniel. Phyllis emphatically informs Jack that she does not want him in court this afternoon when the verdict is read......he's far too negative, she says. All of a sudden, Chris rushes over to their table....."The verdict is in," she announces.
Jack is left sitting alone at the table. He begins thinking about his conversation with Phyllis.....but then becomes a bit bothered when his thoughts move to the earlier conversation he had with Brad.
Brad having left, Victoria joins Jack at his table. Jack gives her a warning to watch out for Brad. She pretty much ignores what he's saying until he tells her Brad is using information stolen from Jill in a conversation they had, along with telling her some other details he's picked up about Brad.....Victoria now seems very concerned. Just then, she gets an emergency call and has to leave quickly. Jack invites her to dinner, but she refuses, then leaves the café.
Back at the trial, all parties rush towards the courtroom. The judge enters. Christine asks permission to speak. She insistently informs the judge that something new has come to light, that right now her investigator is checking it out. Judge Jennings sternly admonishes Christine to sit down or she will be removed from the courtroom!
Nikki was just calming down from a panic attack when the sound of Victoria's arrival frightened her. As her children, Victor, and Sharon looked on, Nikki again broke down. She said that she didn't know what was wrong with her. Logically, she knew she was safe, but she felt like she couldn't breathe. Still, she didn't want to upset her family. Sharon told her that they wanted to be there for her because they cared about her. Victoria reminded her of all she'd been through, and Victor assured her that it was normal for her to be afraid. It was her mind's way of protecting her. Nikki said she couldn't bear thinking, not only of her own ordeal, but of Cassie. It was so unfair that Cassie had died, and she didn't know where the tragedy was going to end for their family. As Nick listened to her, he thought about Sharon's concern that they were playing God with Daniel's future. He jumped up, saying there was something he needed to do. Victor encouraged Sharon to leave and be with Nick.
At the Athletic Club Spa, Gloria approached Jack and Ashley, wondering why they looked so gloomy. Once she was told there was nothing she could do to help, Gloria walked away, saying she was busy preparing for Michael's and Lauren's wedding. Jack explained to Ashley that Phyllis didn't want him in the courtroom when the verdict was read. Phyllis was so sure that Daniel would be found not guilty that she didn't want Jack's negativity to impact things. Ashley reminded Jack that there was a difference between being realistic and being negative, and she urged Jack to go and be with Phyllis.
Before Gloria could leave, Tom called her name. Gloria stopped at the bar, trying to speak to him as inconspicuously as possible since Jack and Ashley were nearby. Tom reminded her of her promise to him, and Gloria handed him a check. But that wasn't all Tom wanted. He still needed her to book a room for him at the club on John's account. Gloria left without promising him anything. After she was gone and Jack had left, too, Tom approached Ashley, who was relaxing in the hot tub. Startled by his appearance, she said she was concentrating on a work problem by getting some distance from it. Tom said he'd leave her alone, but he told her that a friend was going to put him up at the club. When he asked Ashley if he could call her, Ashley hesitantly said sure, why not.
Lauren told Michael that she would move in with him after they got back from California. She was still determined to see Sheila for herself and know that she no longer had reason to fear her. Michael agreed that they could leave that night. When Lauren left to pack for the trip, Gloria showed up. She explained her dilemma to Michael, asking if he could put a room at the club on his account. Michael refused. He told Gloria that her best option was to go to John immediately and tell him that her divorce from Tom had never been finalized. That would undercut Tom's efforts to blackmail her and forestall the inevitable moment when John would find out anyway and once again lose his trust in her. Gloria balked at telling John the truth, insisting that she could do that after Michael's wedding, when she and her husband were on more solid ground. Michael stormed out, saying that he didn't have time to deal with all that. He went to the club and confronted Tom, telling him that his attempts to extort money from Gloria were coming to an end now.
Jill arrived home to find Brittany, J.T., and Mac all living at the Chancellor house. She lit into Mac, saying that she had no right to move everyone in there. Mac explained that it had been Katherine's idea, not hers, and it was only temporary. Jill didn't want to know the details of why Bobby was in protective custody. She was about to take a business trip to San Diego. When she got back, they needed to all be living somewhere else. Once Jill left, Mac and J.T. laughed off her threats, but Brittany said she wasn't sure staying there was the best idea. She wanted to move back to the loft with J.T., or even back to the apartment she'd shared with Bobby. J.T. put his foot down, saying that Brittany was far safer at the Chancellor house.
When J.T. left to pick up some clothes at the loft, Brittany pouted about how she didn't want a lot of pressure about picking up after herself. Hadn't Mac promised that there was a staff to do all that? Mac told Brittany that she was a grown-up now, even more so since she had a child, and it was time for her to start taking responsibility for herself. She was sure Bobby wasn't going to want to live in a house full of dirty diapers either. Brittany said she'd just hire a housekeeper and walked out to get dressed to go to the hospital and see Joshua.
In the courtroom, the judge was ready to issue his verdict, but Christine pleaded for a delay until she could hear from her investigator, who might have new evidence that would clear Daniel. The judge granted her a fifteen minute extension. Katherine once again asked Christine about a plea bargain, but Christine said Daniel was innocent. Phyllis assured Christine that she was doing a great job, and even if no new evidence showed up, she was sure the judge was going to find Daniel not guilty.
Just as the judge reconvened the trial, Paul came in with Cassie's friend, Ali. Ali was willing to testify that she and Cassie had traded shoes that night. Ali had worn Cassie's green sandals, and Cassie had worn Ali's boots--the same kind of boots that matched the heel that had been found wedged under Daniel's accelerator, which had already been introduced as evidence. Glenn Richards said that the state had already determined that there were more than 200 pairs of boots of that type sold in Genoa City alone. The judge asked Christine if she had Ali's boots to match them to the heel, and Christine said no. The judge then gave his verdict. As Phyllis sat in stunned disbelief, Jack slid next to her and took her hand when the judge found Daniel guilty of the charges against him. Christine sank to her chair with tears streaming down her cheeks.
Victor learns of Daniel's guilty verdict and goes over to the courthouse to represent the family. After he leaves, Victoria volunteers to sketch Nikki, but Nikki suggests sketching Cassie instead. Phyllis speaks on behalf of Daniel, who will never forget the consequence of his actions for the rest of his life. The judge won't budge and Phyllis sits back down, finally falling apart in Jack's arms. Christine pleads with the judge to offer community service and probation instead of incarceration. Victor speaks, saying only that the pain of Cassie being gone from their lives is incalculable. Christine wonders why Nick and Sharon aren't there. The judge carries on beginning sentencing Daniel, and Nick and Sharon burst in, asking to speak. He states that nothing will make him feel better about Cassie's death, and he hates Daniel for being drunk the night of the party, but admits he's been withholding evidence and hands over Cassie's clothes. Christine, Paul, and Glenn slide the rubber heel piece onto the boot heel and realize it's a perfect fit. Sharon states that, even though they hate to admit it, they have learned a lot about Cassie since the accident, and believe that she may have been driving the car. In light of the new evidence, the judge allows Daniel to be free. Phyllis, Christine, and Daniel are ecstatic; Victor and Sharon couldn't be more proud of Nick, even though they know how much doing this hurt him. Bobby sends Brittany a note and she reads it in front of J.T. J.T. wonders how she and Bobby can have such a great connection even when they aren't together, when he and Mac are under the same roof and are barely speaking. Brittany suggests that they might not be meant for each other. J.T. is offended, saying that he did a mean thing to her and that it's going to take time for her to forgive him. Brittany digs a little deeper, saying that Mac needs a man who will worship her—like Kevin Fisher. Mac offers to let Kevin live at the estate with Brittany and J.T. Kevin isn't happy about that at all and wonders if she wants him here to make J.T. jealous. Mac says she'd never do that, and Kevin agrees to stay. J.T. and Brittany enter, demanding to know what Kevin is doing here, and shocked when they learn he is also staying. Michael talks to Tom, calling his bluff, saying he won't give him one more dime.
J.T. wasn't happy when he and Brit arrived at the Chancellor house and found out that Mac had asked Kevin to move in. After hearing that it was Katherine's idea, and that Mac and Kevin were hoping to buy Crimson Lights and run it together, J.T. asked to speak to Kevin privately. When Mac and Brittany were left alone, Brit congratulated Mac for having two men fighting over her. Mac said it wasn't like that. Brittany wondered what Mac was waiting for if she was in love with J.T. Mac said she couldn't forget that J.T. had dumped her to protect Brittany. Brittany insisted that she and J.T. were only friends, and soon Brittany would be out of the picture. She was in love with her husband and only wanted to get her son and go to him.
When J.T. and Kevin returned, Kevin explained that instead of moving into the garage apartment, he would be living at the loft. Mac was surprised that J.T. had suggested that solution. After Kevin left and Brittany went upstairs, Mac asked J.T. if he was jealous. Didn't he trust her? J.T. said that he trusted Mac but not Kevin. He then pulled Mac into his arms and kissed her, trying to dispel any doubts she had about his feelings for her.
In the courtroom, Danny called Phyllis's cell phone and got the good news from Daniel that the charges against him had been dropped. Phyllis and Christine had very different views on what had happened in court. Christine admired Nick for coming forward with the evidence that cleared Daniel. Phyllis was angry and said Nick didn't deserve any praise. Had he not held on to Cassie's clothes, Daniel might have been free a lot sooner. Christine reminded Phyllis that there'd been times in her life when she needed someone to cut her a little slack. Daniel told his mother that no matter how things had turned out, Cassie was still dead. He agreed with Christine that the Newmans needed compassion. As happy as he was to be free, he didn't want to go out and celebrate. But there was someplace he wanted to go.
Drucilla got off the phone with Neil, who didn't realize that the judge had reversed his decision on Daniel. Dru was faced with the unpleasant task of telling Lily that Daniel had been found guilty. Lily was devastated and talked about all the negative ways this would impact Daniel's life. Dru reminded her that she needed to focus on her own life. She was a Barber woman and was strong enough to get past this. Lily just wanted to be alone and told her mother she might go by and see Sierra, who'd just returned from her family vacation. But instead, Lily went to the park and thought about Daniel. She was surprised and thrilled when Daniel appeared in front of her and held out his hand. Lily stood up and wrapped her arms around him.
In the warden's office, Lauren paced restlessly while waiting to see the patient who everyone thought was Sheila. Michael worried about Lauren's mood, but she insisted that once she knew for sure that Sheila was no threat, she could get on with her life. She warned the warden that Sheila was a master of making people let down their guard and then striking. When she finally stared at the patient through a one-way window, Lauren gasped at the sight of the nearly catatonic woman who was strapped down. She said that she'd never forget her face; it was definitely Sheila. Michael held Lauren as she said that her long nightmare was over. She could finally get back to living her life, certain that Sheila could no longer hurt her.
The real Sheila came to Scott's apartment before his flight to Genoa City. They talked more about the story they were working on together. Scott wanted to know what had happened to the wronged nurse. Sheila said she didn't know. She wanted to think that she was living happily somewhere. Scott agreed that letting her escape from the institution would make the story better. He promised Sheila to call her and left for his trip. Sheila received a call from an employee at the institution, who told her about Michael and Lauren's visit. Her ruse had worked; they thought the catatonic patient was Sheila. Sheila smiled after she hung up the phone, smug because Lauren still feared her. She decided it might be time to pay a visit to Genoa City after all.
Nikki's panic seemed to be under better control when Victor returned home from the courthouse and told her about the outcome of Daniel's trial. She was glad that Nick had come forward with Cassie's clothes and hoped their family could begin to heal. Victor, too, hoped that this would be a chance for Nick and Sharon to start over. He had seen the deep feelings they still shared when they were in court together. When Nikki was ready to end their evening under the stars and go inside, Victor told her that he had a surprise for her. The singing group Il Divo was in town, and he'd persuaded them to come by and sing for her.
Sharon and Nick arrived home emotionally wrung out from their experience at the courthouse. Sharon said they'd done the right thing, and Nick said that as much as it enraged him to help Daniel, he'd done it only for Cassie. When he again told Sharon Cassie's last words, Sharon said maybe this would enable all of them to move on. Nick didn't understand how Sharon could be so calm; his rage had been all that kept him going, and now he was empty. He felt like he'd lost everything. Sharon said that was the difference between them. She couldn't focus on what she'd lost but only on what she still had. The two of them still had each other. They had Noah, Nick's family, and Doris. All of those people needed for them to be okay. Nick put his arms around Sharon. Later, lured to the pool by the sound of Il Divo singing, they were touched to see Victor and Nikki in each other's arms. Again, Sharon and Nick embraced, trying to get past their grief and reconnect.
