Kay and Fox arrive at the church and learn of Ethan's miraculous recovery. Pilar reminds Theresa of her promise to stay away from Ethan. Eve wants to look Ethan over before sending him back to the hospital, and she wheels him away. Fox tells Ivy that Fox and Kay are working out their problems. Gwen thanks Sheridan and Chris for being there for her during this whole ordeal. Chad convinces Whitney to go home with him and Miles to celebrate Miles's first Christmas. Sam gets a call that the house alarm went off and he leaves, followed by Jessica, Fox, Kay and Ivy. Theresa wants to go apologize to Ethan about the poison guacamole, but Gwen won't let her anywhere near Ethan. Eve transports Ethan to the hospital while Gwen follows the ambulance in her car. Theresa watches them go and says she can't break her promise to God to stay away from Ethan, no matter how much it hurts.

Alistair's phone rings and he speaks to Judge Reilly, who tells him that Noah will remain in jail until Alistair says otherwise. Alistair's personal assistant shows him the ad that the lady with red nails placed in the paper, and Alistair is outraged. His assistant seduces him and calms him down. While they are busy on the couch, the lady in white walks in and places a rose and an envelope on the table before walking out. Alistair sits up as soon as she's gone, recognizing her scent. He finds the rose and the envelope, which has an "invitation to a murder" inside. His assistant is terrified. Alistair says the woman who wore that perfume is dead and buried.

The lady in white goes to visit Judge Reilly, who is terrified of her. He recognizes her as someone who is supposed to be dead. She forces him to give the order to release Noah before she leaves. He is very shaken and says he is glad he's not Alistair Crane. When Alistair gets the news that Noah is to be released, he gets a gun and says he will have to take care of the problem himself.

Noah and Fancy have Christmas dinner in the room that Fancy decorated spectacularly for him. Noah feels bad that Fancy did all this for him and he doesn't even have a gift for her. She goes to get her purse and Noah asks the guard for a favor. A while later, the guard brings by a present from the Bennetts' house and Noah gives it to Fancy. She opens it-it's a key. Noah explains that it's the key to his heart and only Fancy will ever have it. Soon Noah and Fancy get the news that Noah is free to go.

Sam goes to his house and sees that the alarm went off because Noah failed to inform the guard he sent to get Fancy's present about it. Spike sneaks into the house while Sam is out of the room. Jessica, Ivy, Fox, Kay and Maria soon get back to the Bennett house. They all open presents together while Spike lurks outside.

Chris, Sheridan and James celebrate Christmas together. Chris and Sheridan exchange presents. Sheridan, having noticed his ability as a photographer, bought Chris an expensive camera, while Chris got Sheridan a locket with pictures of both Marty and James inside. He tells her she can't give up hope that they will find Marty.

Chad opens presents for Miles while Whitney looks on. Chad asks Whitney to stay and help him raise their son. He tells her to go with her heart and live with him, and kisses her.

At the hospital, Gwen fawned over Ethan, getting him water. He asked why he had been in the coma. He said that when he woke up and everyone told him how long he'd been in the coma he was surprised. He wanted to know what had happened to him and Gwen told him that it was Theresa's fault. She explained that Theresa had put poison in guacamole for Alistair and Ethan had eaten it himself. He was upset that Theresa must have felt so tortured by Alistair that she'd go far enough to try to kill Alistair. Gwen was irate that he was siding with Theresa. She couldn't believe that he was defending Theresa. He tried to calm her down and reminded her that she was his wife. She told him that she was sure that she'd never feel his arms around her again. They embraced and he pictured Theresa's smiling face in his mind. He shuddered and Gwen wanted to know what was wrong. He told her that everything was fine. The nurse came in with a sedative for Ethan and asked Gwen if she wanted a cot. Ethan told her to go home and get some sleep, but she wanted to guard him against a visit from Theresa. After Ethan fell asleep Gwen slipped out and Theresa was waiting with doctor scrubs on. She crept in to see Ethan and told him about her promise to God and then said she didn't see how she could keep it. She asked, "How can I?"

At the Lopez-Fitzgerald house, Martin, Pilar and Theresa got home to find that Fox and Kay had let little Ethan open some of his gifts. Little Ethan asked if they were going to see Ethan soon and Theresa said yes. Pilar reminded her that she promised God that she'd leave Ethan alone and never see him. Theresa said she hadn't promised to never see him and Pilar was angry that Theresa was trying to quibble about her promise. Therese said she was going to see Jane at the mansion. Pilar made her promise not to go to the hospital. She also reminded her that Alistair was going to be angry that little Ethan was there instead of at his mansion. Pilar took little Ethan to get ready for bed. Fox told Kay how sweet she was with Maria and how nothing could come between them and their love. Kay remembered Ivy telling her how much alike she and Kay were with their first loves and Kay was sure that Miguel would never come back-at least not without Charity. Pilar came back into the room and they decided to get Maria home to bed. As they were leaving, the phone rang. It was Miguel and he didn't want her to tell anybody that it was him or that he'd called. Fox and Kay wanted to know who was on the line and she lied to them saying it was a cousin. Pilar asked him if he was coming home and if he'd found Charity. He said he was coming home, but not to tell anybody because it was a surprise. She told him it was the best Christmas present ever.

At Judge Reilly's office, he panicked about the mystery woman threatening him to let Noah out of jail. Alistair burst in and wanted to know what was up and Reilly told him that "she" was back and she was out to get Alistair. Reilly had to do what she told him. Alistair told him that she couldn't be back. Reilly swore that it was her because he could never forget those eyes. Alistair was angry that Reilly had been scared by a "ghost." From the look on Alistair's face, Reilly surmised that Alistair knew she was back and just hadn't told him. Alistair said that someone was just having fun at their expense and showed him the newspaper ad. Reilly said it was proof that she was back. Alistair said it was a hoax and angrily hollered that she is dead. He told Reilly to never go against him again and to just relax because this was just a stunt. The mystery woman lurked outside in the hall and after Alistair left, she said that the nightmare was just beginning.

At the Bed and Breakfast, Sheridan and Chris cleaned up the Christmas debris in her room while he told her how happy she made him and James. She said they made her happy too. Chris asked if she was truly happy because it was the only thing in the world he wanted. She agreed and said that he wanted to make love to her. He asked if she was ready to love him. He told her that he had waited to make sure he wasn't just rebounding after losing his wife and he wasn't trying to rush her, but he loved her so much and wanted to prove to her that he'd love her forever. Sheridan told him that she wanted to be in his arms and longed to love him. They embraced and kissed. When he started removing her clothes, she suddenly pulled away and said, "wait!" Chris wanted to know what was wrong. She told him she just wanted to make it special and went to get spruced up. He started a fire in the fireplace and she called out that there was champagne in the small refrigerator. He opened it and poured it as she came back in a beautiful peignoir. They toasted their love and sipped champagne before they began kissing. As they got more passionate in their kissing, Sheridan begged him to make love to her. They fell into bed and made love.

At Chad's studio, Whitney and Chad kissed passionately while he tried to convince her to stay and she tried to convince him that it was wrong. He told her that the three of them were a family. She pulled away, angry that Chad had almost drawn her into making love again. Chad said it didn't matter what anybody else thought about them; it was right to be together. She said it was a sin against God. She told him that she had to get back to the convent. He asked her if she was going to lock herself up in the convent and abandon her son. She told him to stop trying to guilt her. She said that as long as they were together she wanted to make love with him and she couldn't live with that sin on her soul. She said it broke her heart to leave him and her son, but she had to leave. Chad wanted to know what she wanted him to tell their son about his mother. She told him to tell Miles that she loved him, and that his family would always be there for him because they loved him, but that it made his life better without her. She said Theresa may have gotten her Christmas miracle, but they didn't so she had to go. He wanted to know if the Christmas miracle she had prayed for was that they weren't really brother and sister. She left crying.

At the Crane mansion, Theresa held Jane in the nursery. She told her about the promise she'd made to God and that from then on it would just be Theresa, Jane and little Ethan. As she backed out of the nursery, Alistair was waiting and grabbed her, pulling her close to him. She struggled as he told her that he needed her because he'd had a very bad day. She kicked him and told him to never touch her again. He asked her if she was going back to Ethan. He reminded her that she'd tried to kill him and Ethan would never have her back now because of that. She said he would when he found out that Gwen wanted to take him off life support, but she never gave up on him. He told her she had nowhere to go and nowhere to hide. She stormed out and he screamed at her that someone was playing a very bad trick on him and that if he found out that she had anything to do with it he'd destroy her. The mystery woman lurked outside of Alistair's office (saying she had another surprise for him) and he came in angrily. He decided to have a party on New Year's Eve. He told his assistant to invite the usual suspects-the Bennetts, the Lopez-Fitzgeralds, the Russells, his family members who were his enemies. He wanted to flush out whomever placed the newspaper ad. He said they had no idea what pain was coming their way. The mystery woman watched from outside the window and muttered that he had no idea what pain was coming to him. She told him to open his present because it would remove any doubt he had about her. Alistair's assistant remembered that there was a present for him under the tree. She gave it to him and when he opened it, found her scent, red rose petals and a sharp butcher knife. The mystery woman walked away.

Pilar berates Theresa for breaking her vow to God by attempting to see Ethan at the hospital.

Ivy instructs Valerie to cause trouble between Fox and Kay.

Taking credit for the mystery woman's accomplishments, Alistair asks Fancy to invite all of the Bennetts to the mansion for a New Year's Eve "murder" party. Unbeknownst to Fancy, Alistair is actually planning to reveal the secrets of Harmony and "out" the person who placed the murder ad. Alistair commands Spike to separate Jessica from her family.

At Harmony Hospital, Eve, Gwen and Pilar tried to convince Theresa to leave Ethan's room. She tearfully told Ethan that she was the only one who tried to save his life when Gwen decided to take him off life support. Gwen charged at Theresa and called for security to throw her out. Theresa brandished a scalpel and told her to back off. Theresa explained that Ethan was only in a coma, that he wasn't brain damaged. She talked about taking him to the cabin, giving him CPR, never giving up hope. Ethan thanked her and then Gwen and Pilar reminded her of her promise to God. She told Ethan that he couldn't choose Gwen over her because she saved his life. She started to get irrational and begged him to choose her. Ethan told her that she was out of control and that he wasn't leaving his wife. Theresa dropped the scalpel and asked him how he could hurt her after all she'd sacrificed. He thanked her and told her that she'd chosen the wrong way to get out of her desperate situation. She whined that Alistair would take little Ethan. Gwen told her that she'd made her bed so she had to lie in it. Theresa said she was going to the mansion to be with her children. They all told her not to go, but she swore she had to be with her children. Pilar said she'd go with her, but Theresa shrugged her off. Eve gave Ethan a clean bill of health and Gwen and Ethan were excited to spend New Year's together. Eve left to get ready for Sam's party. A book lady came by and offered him either "Coma" or "Rip Van Winkle." He asked for the newspaper and saw the ad for the murder. Gwen decided that she had to go rescue Jane from the party and take her to the hospital. She asked Pilar to stay with Ethan. Ethan showed her the newspaper. He decided that he had to get dressed and go rescue Gwen, Theresa and the children from Alistair and his schemes. She told him he wasn't ready to be out of bed and he swore that he couldn't just sit there if the people he loved were in danger. She tried to stop him and he begged her to help him because he needed to be with the woman that he loved. She asked him which woman that was—Gwen or Theresa? He looked anguished. As she helped him on with his coat, she asked the question again and Ethan ignored it saying that he was going up to the mansion to get them all out of there. Thunderclaps made Pilar think that he had to be careful. The instant he left, she called Sam. Eve arrived in her fancy dress and was upset that Ethan had left in his condition.

At the Bennett house, Spike confronted Jessica outside by the trash cans. He wanted her to go with him and she wanted to stay with her family. She called out for Sam and Spike covered her mouth. Inside the house, Sam planned a New Year party while Fancy kept trying to convince Sam, Ivy and Noah to go to Alistair's party instead. They all explained to her that Alistair's parties turned out to hurt people. Fancy reminded Noah that her grandfather had bailed him out and they needed to show their appreciation. Noah said he didn't believe it was Alistair who paid for bail. She decided that she needed to go home to change clothes. Noah told her she could borrow something from Kay instead. She decided to go to the Bennett party, but she insisted that she had to go home to change into something spectacular. A storm was brewing as Jessica broke free from Spike. He told her he was asking her to dress up and go on a date to a fancy party. He professed his love and told her it was a party at the Crane estate. She told him that her whole family had decided not to go. Spike dangled drugs in front of her and she gave in and went with him. Sam, Noah and Ivy all admired each other in their fancy party clothes and Sam asked if anybody had seen Jessica. Since nobody had seen her, Sam decided that he had to go look for her.

Spike dragged Jessica along the waterfront and when she wanted to go home to help with the party, he drugged her some more. Sam cried out for her and she replied, but Spike hauled her off before Sam and Ivy could get there. As they stood there complaining about her going back to Spike, a downpour of rain threatened to soak them in their finery.

At Tabitha's house, Chris and Sheridan looked at the newspaper ad and decided that they'd go to Sam and Ivy's party instead. Fox asked what they were talking about and they showed him the ad for a murder party. Tabby said that Alistair may not have put in the ad. Then she quickly covered her bubbling water bowl since James was getting very curious about it. Sheridan insisted that none of them go so that they don't get pulled into any of Alistair's sick plots. Tabitha looked in her bowl and muttered that "it couldn't be." Sheridan, Chris and James left to get ready for Sam's party. Tabitha told Endora that she'd seen them all at the Crane mansion and that somebody was going to die. Fox left to get ready for Sam's party and told Kay he'd pick her up soon. After he left, Tabitha told Kay that they'd all end up at the Crane's and she better wear something dark to cover the blood stains. Kay insisted that they weren't going. Tabitha showed her the bowl and Kay blew off the warning. Tabitha took Endora up for a bedtime story – The Silence of the Lambs. Fox arrived with a soaking wet umbrella to pick up Kay and found that Tabby was also dressed up (she told Kay that she'd get a babysitter.) Sam and Ivy arrived to see if Jessica was there or if any of them had seen her. Fox said he'd help them find her, but Pilar called to tell them that Ethan had just left the hospital to rescue Gwen, Theresa and the children from Alistair and his party. She told him that she was really worried. Sam said he'd go help Ethan get them out of there and Fox and Ivy chimed in that they'd go with him. Kay stayed behind and Tabitha told her they could leave for the mansion as soon as the sitter got there. Kay reiterated that she wasn't going anywhere near the mansion, but Tabs held firm. Tabitha reminded her that half the people who'd sworn they wouldn't go were en route. Kay asked if she was using magic to force everyone up there and Tabitha told her that it was much bigger than magic—it was fate. Kay scoffed at her for sounding like Theresa. Tabitha told her that everyone was going to the party tonight and she insisted that someone would be murdered.

At the Bed and Breakfast, Chris and Sheridan admired each other in their party clothes. As they were putting on their coats, Sheridan got a text message on her cell phone from Alistair. It said that if she wanted the evidence to prove Alistair was behind Antonio and Luis's deaths she should go to the party at the mansion. Chris thought it was a sick joke. Sheridan angrily decided that if she could catch her father, then she had to go.

At the Crane mansion, Alistair raged about the knife stuck in his desktop. He yelled that whoever did it would get caught. The mystery woman lurked and muttered about Alistair getting his due. He said that if someone thinks they can scare him, they are mistaken. It can't be her—it must be all of "them!" One of his workmen showed up and Alistair told him that since he was apparently hosting a party, they had to get ready. He told him that he wanted to make sure that everyone entered the house, but nobody left it. The mystery woman went to the attic to look at photo albums and then opened a wooden box with a knife and rose petals in it. She called it her "date for the party." Fancy arrived to get dressed and Alistair confronted her. She told him that Sam was having his own party so none of them were going to the mansion. He pretended to be happy to allow her to party with Noah. Theresa slammed through the door and Alistair grabbed her and told her that she had to get ready because they were hosting a party and thrust the newspaper into her face. He asked if she had anything to do with it and she told him that when she murdered him, she didn't want witnesses. He twisted her arm and told her to go get dressed. She ran off and Alistair swore that he had a way to get them all up to his mansion. The mystery woman admired an old photo of Alistair and ranted about how evil he was. Since he's put all her loved ones through hell he deserved to die a thousand deaths. Theresa was dressed up and walking little Ethan to the nursery. He told her that she looked really pretty. They went in to say good night to Jane and found that Gwen was getting her all bundled up in a snow suit and getting ready to leave. Theresa confronted her, wanting to know what she was doing with her little girl. Gwen told her that she was getting out of the mansion and recommended that Theresa take little Ethan away from the party too. Theresa said she had to host the party. Gwen said she wasn't sure what Alistair was planning, but they had to get the children out of there. Just then the nursery door slammed shut. Gwen told Theresa to just grab her car and go to her mother's house. Gwen started to walk out with Jane only to find that the door was locked. She asked Theresa if she'd locked the door and Theresa denied it. They started yelling and banging on the door just as Fancy walked by. They told her they'd been locked in and when she couldn't open it, she started to worry. The girls told her to go get some help and Fancy said she'd get a maid. Theresa said she thought that it was Alistair's doing—that he was keeping them prisoner. That scared Fancy, so she called Noah who was holding down the Bennett fort. He told her to get a handyman, but when she cried that she was scared and needed him, he got on his white charger to rescue the damsels. Alistair grinned once he'd set the trap for Sheridan and then when Spike banged on the outside door to the office, he let the two drowned rats in. He told Spike to take Jessica to the guest room at the end of the west wing. Spike was anxious that someone would see him and Alistair told him that he didn't need to worry. Alistair declared to himself angrily that by the end of the night there wouldn't be anybody in Harmony that he hadn't wounded. The mystery woman sat rocking in the attic and said "No more! Now is the time for strength and for justice! Alistair will pay for what he's done to the people I love! Happy New Year Alistair! It's your last" and then she threw her knife at Alistair's photo on the wall, hitting him between the eyes.

Alistair informs Sheridan that she killed her Aunt Rachel and because of this, he has vengefully destroyed any chance of her having love. Sheridan concludes that it is her fault that Antonio and Luis are dead and then lunges toward a gun-wielding Alistair.

With assistance, Noah releases Theresa and Gwen from the locked nursery.

Having seen video feed of Spike holding a knife to Jessica's throat, Sam realizes he must remain in the Crane mansion to rescue his daughter.

Eve, Julian, Liz and TC stumble upon a video message that Alistair left for them. In it, Alistair claims to have paid Rae to seduce Simone and turn her into a lesbian. Video images support his story. Infuriated, TC declares that he will kill Alistair.