"Brooke received a phone call from a friend informing her of the verdict in Edmund and Dimitri's custody battle. Brooke was floored by the news and felt somewhat responsible for the pain inflicted on Edmund. She recalled Edmund's biting criticism of her failure to save Maria from the plane wreckage and remembered that Edmund had blamed her for killing Maria. Luckily for Brooke, Jim arrived and helped her devise a way to deal with her pain. Brooke told Jim that it was unfair of the judge to award custody to Dimitri. Jim recommended that Brooke visit Wildwind to talk to Edmund, but Brooke felt that she couldn't return to Wildwind. Edmund hates her, she explained. And now was not the right time to drop by for a visit.
Erica finished off a letter to Bianca just as visiting hours ended. A guard informed Erica that she'd have to return to her cell. Erica begged for a few more minutes in the visiting room. She loved the peace and quiet in the room and besides she had received special permission to stick around a little while longer. The guard seemed somewhat amused and even a bit impressed that Erica was trying to write a letter to Bianca considering that all of her previous letters had been returned to her without being opened. The guard took it upon herself to tell Erica about Dimitri's victory in court. "That baby you stole," the guard announced, "was given to your ex." Hardly a professional newscast, but Erica got the point. She begged the guard to let her use the phone even thought she'd already went over her limit of personal phone calls.
Gloria tidied up her new home and anxiously awaited for Maddie's debut. Maddie would not call The Valley Inn her home. Sometime in the past few days, Dimitri and Gloria moved from their home at the hotel to their loft. Dimitri returned home and introduced Maddie to her "new mommy." Gloria, displayed signs of sorrow, told Dimitri that she wants to get pictures of the Santos family so that Maddie will never forget her family. Dimitri agreed to his wife's suggestion. Just as Gloria was taking Maddie of to bed, Gillian returned. Gillian complimented Gloria on her child rearing skills and later told Dimitri that Gloria seems to be really good with children. Dimitri concurred, saying that Gloria exudes maternal instincts. Gillian felt that Dimitri's sudden desire to "acquire" Maddie reeked of convenience. She told Dimitri that she and Gloria had discussed the loss of Anna Claire, Gloria's daughter that died shortly after birth. It seems Gloria has a void in her heart, Gillian stated, a void that Dimitri quickly filled by suing for custody of Maddie. Dimitri denied using Maddie as a tool to keep Gloria close to him.
Edmund apologized to Mateo for letting him down. Mateo insisted that Edmund had done no such thing; He will get back Maddie when the case is appealed. Edmund wondered why his dizzy spells had suddenly returned in the courtroom. He said that he was feeling fine for several days, but something brought back to dizziness. Isabella brought Sam back to Wildwind to be with his father. While Edmund was tucking his son into bed and explaining why Maddie was not at home, Isabella vented her frustrations. She blasted the judicial system for stealing a child from its father. Hayley tried to smooth things over. She said that she cannot speak for Dimitri's parenting skills, but she's sure that Gloria will take very good care of Maddie. Trevor returned home to work on the appeal. There was a knock at the door. Brooke and Jim asked if they could speak with Edmund. Skye felt that it wasn't appropriate for Brooke to speak to Edmund considering what had happened in court. From inside the main room, Edmund ordered Skye to let Brooke in the house. Mateo, Hayley, and Isabella all returned home. Edmund had denied Matt and Hayley's request to spend the night at Wildwind. Brooke offered Edmund a heartfelt apology for the "loss" of Maddie and told him that she'll do anything to help him. Edmund was quiet for several agonizing minutes. Finally, he accepted her apology. Brooke fell into Edmund's arms and sobbed uncontrollably. A heavy burden had been lifted from her shoulders. But while Brooke cried, Edmund showed no emotion. His action seemed more to appease Brooke than it did to echo Edmund's true feelings. Outside, Brooke told Jim that she still felt guilty for Maria's death. Had she been able to save Maria from the plane, Dimitri would never have gotten custody of Maddie. Jim was annoyed by Brooke's continued self-inflicted abuse and grabbed her by the arm. He told her that there was something he needed to do a long time ago and pulled her along as he walked down the driveway.
Back inside, Edmund received a visit from someone he hadn't seen in years: Gillian. Edmund looked at the young woman for several minutes before he realized who she was. Edmund was forced to cut the visit short because Sam woke from his sleep. While he was gone, Skye and Gillian exchanged frigid words. Skye fumed at Gillian and Edmund's closeness. And Gillian, well, she showed little interest in Skye and repeatedly forgot Skye's name! Gillian told Skye that she was Dimitri's cousin and not related to Edmund because Dimitri and Edmund do not share the same mother. Edmund, toting Sam, returned downstairs and introduced Sam to Princess Andrassy. Gillian and Edmund were all smiles as they played with Sam, but to Skye's chagrin.
Janet showed up at The Dillon House for her date with Trevor. Amanda offered Skye some of her fish sticks, but Janet told her daughter that she and Trevor were going out for dinner. Tim asked Amanda to leave the room. When she was safely out of hearing range, Tim hollered at his Aunt Janet. He told Janet that there was no possible way that his dad would have dinner with her. It's all in her crazy, deluded mind. Janet realized that Trevor had not told Tim about the date and quickly apologized for keeping Tim in the dark. Tim still didn't believe Janet's claims. Janet asked that Tim clear the slate and let their relationship have a second chance. Tim asked Janet if she had let his mother have a second chance when she tossed her down the Marick well. As Tim's acidic words flew off of his tongue, Trevor returned home. It was then that Tim learned that Trevor and Janet really did have a date. Tim was furious at his dad for being nice to Janet and stormed out of the house.
Opal arrived at the prison not quite knowing what to expect. She feared that Erica had called her there to give her a tongue lashing for testifying against her in court. Erica assured Opal that they were still friends and that the past was all water under the bridge. Opal was delighted that she and Erica were gal pals again and gave Erica a big hug. Suddenly, Bertha, the burly prison guard, shouted out that physical contact with Prisoner Kane was not permitted. Erica told Opal that they had a lot of work to do. In a bit of wacky black comedy, Erica told Opal that she had not kidnapped Madeline and then returned her only to have the child be given to her ex-husband. Opal told Erica that there was nothing she could do from prison to change Dimitri's mind about wanting to call Maddie his daughter. Erica agreed; There was no way to change Dimitri's mind. There is, however, someone who they can play mind games with: Gloria. Erica proposed a scheme that would convince Gloria that Maddie's best interest is served by living with Dimitri. Erica asked Opal to tell Gloria that she wants to meet with her. "Here?" Opal asked. "No, Rockefeller Center" Erica quipped. Opal promised to deliver Erica's message and said that she'd get Gloria to show up at the prison even if it means carrying her there on her back!
Jim took Brooke to the scene of the plane crash. Brooke ignorantly toyed with Jim, asking if he wanted to make sandcastles on the beach or perhaps dip his toes in the water. Jim told his friend that they had not traveled to New Jersey to play games. He grabbed Brooke's head and forced her to look at the spot where the plane fell from the sky and hit ground. Brooke mused that life was wonderful because they were in one piece. Jim ordered Brooke to bury her guilt and get on with her life. Brooke's plaster molding began to crack. As the pieces flaked away, her vulnerability shined through. Brooke admitted that she hears voices in her mind. She was sure that she was not hearing things and that the voices were not the winds blowing through the reeds. The voices were those of the passengers who lost their lives in the crash, voices praying for their loved ones still on earth, and voices begging to be as lucky as Brooke and return to living. Brooke said that she felt lucky to still have Jamie and Laura . Suddenly, she shouted "Dammit" at the top of her lungs. Everyone, she said, blames her for Maria's death and that they---Edmund, Dimitri, Hayley, Mateo, Isabella, and more---feel she killed Maria. "So what if you did," Jim snapped. "That's right you killed Maria." Brooke flailed her arms as she burst into tears. Jim's strength allowed him to keep Brooke at an arm's length. "I should have saved her," she sobbed. "That's right," Jim realized. "You're Brooke English." Jim forced himself to show disgust for Brooke. He grabbed her by the waist and told her that she should be killed for allowing Maria to die. He told her to march up to the cliff and jump off. "You blinked," he added "and tragedy struck." He told Brooke that she should have gotten out of her seat the moment she knew the plane was going to crash and raced to the ground so that she could have caught the plane before it crashed. Jim's plan worked. Brooke went from taking the blame for the crash to defending herself. "I didn't do anything wrong," Brooke screamed. "I just wanted to live. I didn't kill Maria." Brooke continued to sob as she told Jim that people put their faith in good luck charms and guardian angels. But the icons and potions turn their backs when tragedy strikes. Finally, Brooke revealed why she felt the way she did. She told Jim that she spent her life telling Laura Cudahy not to talk to strangers or to cross the street without a grown-up. But that didn't stop her daughter from being killed. She was innocent so was Maria... and now they're both gone. Brooke collapsed to the ground, her tears falling against the sand."
- Soap Central