Billy entered Lily's office at Chancellor-Winters. Lily was out, so Billy left her a message requesting they meet as soon as possible to discuss an important matter. A distressed Chelsea arrived and told Billy that she needed to talk. Billy asked about Connor. Breaking down in tears, Chelsea cried, "Things are so much worse for Connor than we thought."

Chelsea explained that because Connor's medications caused grogginess and affected his therapy sessions, his OCD was raging. Chelsea cried, "He's not getting better. He's getting worse. We can't even be in the same room with him. We can't hug him, tell him that we love him." Billy assured Chelsea that it would take time to work things out. Chelsea cried that she and Adam were partly responsible for Connor's illness.

Sobbing, Chelsea related that Connor had self-inflicted bruises all over his thighs. Chelsea tearfully told Billy that Connor might need inpatient treatment, which would require a lengthy isolation period and close observation. Chelsea cried that Connor had no sense of self-worth and felt like he was a burden. Billy replied, "It's the OCD talking. That's not Connor." Chelsea explained that Connor's fears were deep-seated beliefs.

At Society, Nate, Lily, and Devon met for morning coffee. Nate recalled that he had never seen Aunt Mamie so upset. Devon asked Lily and Nate if they should endure Aunt Mamie's frequent disruptions. Lily recalled that Mamie had seemed surprised at their unwillingness to push out Jill and Billy, adding that Mamie might cause even more trouble as a result. Nate replied that Mamie felt betrayed, though she had no intentions of relinquishing her investment. Devon replied, "Well, I thought we had to fend off Tucker, but it's the internal threats within Chancellor-Winters that we have to worry about."

Lily briefly became distracted when she read her urgent message from Billy requesting to meet with her. Nate declared that Mamie, whose goal was to unite her family, did not possess the power to cause corporate instability, adding that she was invested emotionally and financially. Lily stood by their decision to insist that Mamie back down because she had overstepped. Devon said he agreed with Mamie's desire to oust Billy.

Lily momentarily grew silent as she considered Devon's comment before insisting that ousting Billy was not the right move because Jill would take offense and start a war. Devon asked Lily if she thought Billy was more of a threat outside the company than inside. Lily defended Billy and noted that he had good ideas. Devon insisted that Billy was determined to amass more power. Lily told Nate and Devon that Billy wanted to meet with her privately. Devon scoffed, "Well, that sounds like divide and conquer to me."

After Lily left, Devon asked Nate if he thought Billy might attempt to use Mamie's arguments to his advantage. Nate recalled that Billy had never taken Mamie's side, even having agreed with Jill that Mamie was trouble. Nate suggested that Mamie had been right to suspect that there was a level of paranoia beginning to infiltrate their thinking, which might be more damaging that anything Billy might attempt. Nate, recalling Devon's suspicions of Lily and Billy exchanging glances and voting in accord, noted that he often spun conspiracy theories about internal threats. Nate suggested they focus on building bridges instead. Devon replied that the "bomb" Billy was about to drop would unlikely help them build bridges.

Lily arrived at her office and encountered a tearful Chelsea conferring with Billy. Lily said she had been thinking about Connor. Chelsea thanked Lily before she walked out the door. Lily asked Billy if he wanted to leave with Chelsea. Billy replied that what he was about to tell Lily could not wait.

Billy said, "Jill made a very major decision. She has decided to step away, and she is handing all of her decision-making power to me." Lily asked Billy if Jill's decision was the reason he had tried to convince her to join his efforts to grab power. Billy insisted that Jill's decision had been a surprise, though she had opted to retain her seat on the board. Billy explained that Jill's aim was to let him shine. Lily laughed and asked Billy why Jill had not announced the decision to Lily and Devon directly.

Lily compared Jill's decision to Mamie's secretive games. Lily was adamant that she did not like Mamie's tactics or Jill's and was shocked that Jill had not informed her about stepping back and putting Billy in charge. Billy insisted he had no qualms about stepping into his mother's role and noted that warmongering between Devon and Mamie was detrimental to the company. Devon and Nate arrived and learned that Jill had stepped back and appointed Billy to take her place. Lily attempted to defuse the situation by asking Devon to hold off and talk to Jill. Devon complained that Jill was unreachable while traveling around the world. Devon warned Billy that they would not let him get away with anything.

At Adam's apartment, Sally brought coffee and muffins to Adam and offered comfort, knowing he would be exhausted after his journey. Adam reported that Connor was struggling while his doctors attempted to determine the correct medications, which, he explained, involved trial and error to track side effects as well as results. Adam noted that family history of mental illness was also a factor in determining Connor's treatment. Sally acknowledged that it was a scary time for the family.

Adam told Sally that the regimen of drugs had disturbed Connor's sleep. Adam cried that due to the complications, he and Chelsea had not been allowed to visit Connor. Adam explained that Connor had begun punishing himself by punching his legs with his fists. Sally offered encouragement by assuring Adam that Connor would benefit from the care he received from leading experts in the field. Sally told Adam to refrain from worry about worst-case scenarios. Connor, Adam noted, felt guilty because he believed he was broken, forcing his parents to pay to fix him. Chelsea stopped by Adam's apartment and told him she could not face going to work. Sally told Chelsea she was sorry about Connor, and she praised Chelsea and Adam for navigating Connor's painful situation with courage.

After Sally left, Chelsea, sobbing, told Adam she was a mess and did not feel brave at all. Chelsea told Adam she felt like crawling in her bed and screaming. Adam admitted he regretted constantly dumping his woes on Sally, adding that she was powerless to help. Chelsea acknowledged that all she did was cry on Billy's shoulder. Adam told Chelsea that only they understood what they were going through, so they should talk to each other.

Chelsea replied, "We didn't talk to each other the entire way back from Maryland. I'm here because I want to ask. Do you blame me for all this?" Adam insisted that neither of them should waste energy on blaming themselves when their son was literally beating himself. Chelsea, sobbing, said, "His little hands, they used to wrap around my fingers when he was a baby. The hands that we would hold while we'd help him cross the street. How could he be using those hands to hurt himself? How is this not our fault?"

Adam told Chelsea that casting blame would not help them figure out how to heal their son. Adam told Chelsea that they would have to rely on the professionals and trust the process because their parental instincts had not been successful. Chelsea agreed, adding that she had lived through mental illness and could not stand knowing that their son was suffering like she had. Chelsea praised Adam for handling things with a cool head. Adam was adamant that disrupting Connor's treatment would not be fair. Adam declared, "The only real option is forward."

Sally joined Chloe at Crimson Lights. Chloe said she knew that Sally had been paying their business expenses from her personal account. Sally replied, "I had to. Do you want our company to flatline?" Sally told Chloe that she hoped to buy them some time to find a solution. Chloe insisted that Sally's personal investment would be a loan they would later repay. Sally asked Chloe where they should seek financing to save their firm. Chloe was hesitant to agree with Adam's suggestion that they join Newman Enterprises. Sally noted that Victor had shot down the plan and would not likely reconsider.

Undaunted, Chloe was confident that she and Sally could change Victor's mind by appealing to Adam. Sally was adamant about not adding to Adam's burdens. Chloe suggested approaching Nick. Sally declined. Chloe asked Sally if their partnership had been a mistake. Sally explained that they had made a mistake by stepping outside their comfort zone because fashion was their calling. Chloe asked about Nick's investment in their interior design firm. Sally noted that they should quickly pivot to fashion and forge ahead on their own, so Nick would not lose his investment. Chloe agreed.

Phyllis, wearing a body-skimming dress, sashayed into the Athletic Club and made her way directly to a table occupied by Christine, who was peacefully sipping her coffee. Phyllis, glaring at Christine, said, "Well, looky here. Shouldn't you be working on your super-important case?" Christine replied, "Shouldn't you be minding your own business?" Phyllis crinkled her nose and said, "I guess you're drowning yourself in coffee and muffins because Danny's about to hit the road."

Christine quipped that there was no need to express concern about indulging in muffins because she was getting in plenty of cardio nightly. Phyllis continued to badger Christine and suggested that her important case was not so important, after all. Phyllis accused Christine of carrying out ploys to ruin her chances with Danny. Christine replied, "Once again you're shooting off your mouth without knowing a damn thing."

Danny arrived and greeted Christine with a kiss on the lips. Phyllis told Danny she'd feared she might not get to tell him goodbye before he hit the road. Danny told Phyllis that he had already said his goodbyes to Daniel and Lucy. Phyllis, referring to Christine as a "stinky old flame," noted that Christine had chosen work over romance. Grinning, Christine replied, "I turned down the case. I'm going with Danny, after all." Phyllis claimed that Christine's clients had dumped her. Danny attempted to defuse the quarreling by informing Phyllis that he hoped to begin his tour on a good note, adding that he would rather remember Phyllis behaving according to the positive changes she had made.

Danny told Phyllis that he and Christine had engaged in talks about their shared dreams, hopes for the future, and passions. Christine suggestively added, "But our night was about so much more than just talking." Phyllis accused Christine of blocking her from supporting Danny's tour. Christine defended herself and explained that she and Danny had fallen back in love. Yearning to end the encounter, Danny told Phyllis to take care. Phyllis replied that she would take care of their son and try to stop Daniel from making a tremendous mistake like his father had.

Before Phyllis walked away, she said, "Break a leg." After Phyllis left, Danny apologized to Christine, joking that "break a leg" was not appropriate for a rock tour. Christine, giddy, proclaimed that nothing could spoil her excitement about their next adventure on the road. Danny replied, "To our next chapter together, my love." Danny kissed Christine passionately.

• Ashley's evil alter identity, alone with Tucker, sparks fear in Ashley's protective identity that he is in grave danger

• Cole confronts Victor about his suspicions

• Cole secretly watches as Victor emerges from a secret doorway, carrying a food tray covered with a domed lid

• Nikki returns home