The show opens at the Abbott estate, with Phyllis complaining about all of the special attention she seems to be getting from the detective. Jack tried to comfort her, reassuring her the detective is just doing his job. Phyllis suggested they take a trip to get away from it all, and Jack agreed to take her to Monaco for a long weekend.
Over at the Williams' apartment, the detective questioned Isabella, whose information is damning to Phyllis. She told him she saw Phyllis at the pool house right before the fire, that Phyllis was acting strangely at the wedding, and how much Phyllis despises Diane. When the detective asked if Isabella knew of any specific threats Phyllis may had made to Diane, she said no, but told him of their physical confrontations, and when Phyllis hit Diane in her car. She told him very firmly that she felt Phyllis was a dangerous woman.
After talking with Isabella, the detective returned to the Abbott's home. As Jack answered the door, Phyllis was visibly upset at his return. Jack said he was surprised to see him back so quickly to ask more questions. At that point, Phyllis took the opportunity to excuse herself and announced she was going to make the flight reservations. The detective looked at her and said to Phyllis that he wishes she wouldn't leave town right now.
Diane paid a visit to Baldwin Williams Law Firm, but not to see Michael-she went to see Chris.. Diane told her she believed Phyllis started the fire to try to kill her. Surprised, Chris told her she was making a very strong accusation, and if she truly believed that, she should contact the police. Diane said she felt she needed more proof that Phyllis was capable of such an act, and tried to get Chris engaged in a conversation about Phyllis' past bad behavior. Chris was not interested in giving her any information, and suggested Diane let the police finish their investigation. Undaunted, Diane asked Chris if she knew someone who could look into the situation further, and also to protect her, and Chris suggested she contact Paul.
Brittany, still upset about Raul, tried to confide in J.T. She told him she was not going to go off to college until she was certain Raul was O.K., because she was in love with him. He asked if Raul had guilted her into staying, and when she told him no, he discouraged her from staying home, and told her she was wasting her time. She got angry and told him she was staying, and they would get through this crisis.
Brittany went to the hospital to see Raul and ran into his doctor. When she asked him how Raul was doing, he gave her a rather stern lecture on how she needed to examine her own behavior and really think about why Raul was even at the hospital in the first place.
Frustrated that Brittany was determined to stay in Genoa City, Mr. and Mrs. Hodges also decided to pay a visit to Raul at the hospital. Raul, immediately on guard, exercised little restraint in his displeasure about their unannounced visit. Both encouraged him to stop pressuring Brittany into staying, that she had worked very hard to get into college, and he was being unfair to her. Raul told them they were talking to the wrong person, that he told her on no uncertain terms to leave. At that point, Brittany walked in and demanded to know what they were doing there, and told them to leave. As they left, Mr. Hodges asked Raul to talk with Brittany to try to make her change her mind.
John confronted Colleen about where she got her new GCU sweatshirt. After avoiding his questions as long as she could, Colleen told him the sweatshirt came from J.T. John told her he didn't approve of her and J.T. spending time together, and Colleen protested with a lot of disrespectful sarcasm. After checking her on her attitude, John told her again how he felt about the situation, and she stormed off. Soon after, Brad entered the boardroom and said he just passed Colleen downstairs and she looked upset. Only after a lot of pressing, and the threat to go directly to Colleen, did John relent and tell Brad what was going on. They discussed the situation, and Brad felt comfortable with John's approach.
Meanwhile at Crimson Lights, J.T. ran into Mackenzie, who warned him again about spending time with and encouraging Colleen. J.T. reassured her that they were just friends, and got a bit annoyed with her suggestion of anything more.
Later on that evening, J.T. and Colleen attend a college poetry reading. Afterward, J.T. commented it was getting late and he didn't want her to get into trouble, but Colleen was not listening. She coerced J.T. onto the dance floor, and led him outside where it was more private. She pulled him close to her, and when he protested, she ignored him and held him tighter.
Detective Weber paid yet another visit to the Abbott home. Phyllis asked him if she was under suspicion, and other than telling her that indeed, she is, he wasn't at liberty to discuss the evidence with her. He reiterated he could not force them to stay in town, but strongly encouraged them to while the investigation was going on. After Detective Weber left, Jack suggested they call John Silva. Practically in hysterics, Phyllis asked if he believed she needed an attorney, and Jack assured her he didn't believe she set the fire. Unable to reach Silva, he told Phyllis he needed to go talk with someone and leaves her behind.
Isabella paid a visit to Diane's hotel suite. She was angry that Diane was going through such an ordeal and hadn't contacted her for support. She told Diane she didn't know about the fire or the fact she had moved until she received a visit from Detective Weber. Diane, who was a wreck, burst into tears and apologized to Isabella and asked about the conversation with the detective. Isabella told her about seeing Phyllis coming back to the house at 10:15 p.m.--ten minutes before the fire started. Shocked at that bit of news, Diane admitted she thought Phyllis set the fire. She went on to ask what the detective said when he found out, and asked why he hadn't told her about Phyllis' arrival. Isabella assured her it was likely because the investigation was ongoing. Diane, thinking out loud and getting hysterical, begins surmising Phyllis really wants her dead and worries she may try to hurt her again.
Jack went over to Diane's suite and demanded she tell him what he told the police. She responded by asking what Phyllis had told him.
At Baldwin Williams, Chris told Michael about Diane's visit. Michael told her he did not believe Phyllis set the fire, and while Chris agreed with him, she wasn't quite as sure Phyllis had changed all that much. Phyllis stomped in at that moment and told Chris she wanted to talk with Michael alone. After listening to her for a while, he asked her if she needed to retain him and if there was anything she wanted to share with him about the fire.
A co-worker entered Detective Weber's office and started asking about the case. Weber asked if the search warrant was ready for Phyllis' car, and when he found out it was, he immediately got up to get it.
In the hospital, Brittany and Raul discussed the college issue again. Raul reiterated to her he wants her to go, but Brittany said she only believed he was saying that because her parents were pressuring him. Although she continually voiced regrets about what happened, and told him she loved him again, Raul was clearly not going to change his mind. He told her the timing of her profession of love was such that he did not really believe her. He explained that he would have never risked hurting her by putting her in a situation like she did him, and that he couldn't pretend it didn't happen. After finally getting the picture, she left the room, sat down outside and started crying.
Serena went to go visit Neil in rehab and found him packing his things. He was happy to see her and thanked her for all of the help she gave him to get him there. She told him she was proud of him, and went on to warn him about going out into the real world again. He told her not to worry about him, he had too much to do to backslide. He explained his main concern was to rebuild his relationship with Lily. Again, she warned him to be realistic about re-entering his teenager's life, but he wouldn't listen. Seeing how determined he was, she asked if part of the reason he wanted to set things straight with Lily was so he could reach out to Dru. Not understanding where she was coming from, he told her he hadn't been thinking of Dru, that his first priority was Lily.
Dru, Lily and Wes had dinner together at Olivia's apartment. When Lily begins her litany on why they need to return to Paris, Dru gets annoyed and leaves the table, and Lily follows suit. Wes took the opportunity to sit down and talk with Lily. He explained to her she needed to stop harping on the subject of leaving, because evidently her mother felt they needed to stay. He told her they both had issues to resolve with Neil and the faster she deals with those issues, the sooner they could return to Paris. Under those conditions, Lily agreed to make an effort with Neil. Dru stood in the background smiling at Wes' progress.
Wes told Dru he needed to find himself a hotel for the night, and Dru told him he could stay at Neil's since he wasn't expected until the next day. When they went downstairs, Wes poured his heart out to her, saying he took time off so he could stay and be there for her and Lily. She tried to protest, and slightly hesitates at his professions of love before going back upstairs to Lily. Once upstairs, Lily asked if she told Neil about Wes being there, and Dru told her she didn't feel he needed to know. Wise beyond her years, Lily told Dru he needed to know so he didn't get the wrong idea as to why they were there. Downstairs, Neil turned the lock in the key and found Wes in his apartment.
Frederick and Anita Hodges were having dinner at Gina's. Anita admitted she'd been wrong to judge the place prematurely, because her food was good. While they were talking, Brittany came in and sat down with them. They told her they'd been able to get her DUI hearing scheduled for the next day, which meant she'd be able to leave town sooner to go to college. They listened when she told them how hurt she was about Raul's insistence that she go to New York. She accused them of influencing him. Both of them insisted that in their meeting with Raul, he'd been adamant that Brittany should go. She was finally convinced that it was what Raul wanted and agreed that there was no reason not to. At that point, her parents began telling her how many wonderful experiences awaited her and that she'd get over her crush on Raul. Hurt, Brittany lashed out at them, telling them about all the guys she'd slept with, including Raul, but how only Raul had ever meant anything to her. She stood up to leave, but not without sending one last parting shot. She said that she should have learned long ago that loving anyone just meant she would end up hurt. Frederick seemed injured by her words, but after she was gone, Anita looked at him and commented on how no matter what they said, Brittany would take it the wrong way.
Neil questioned what Wesley was doing at his apartment. At first, he assumed Wes was merely Dru's boyfriend and she might be staying there with him. Wes insisted that he'd only been planning to stay a night; Dru and Lily were both staying at Olivia's. Neil questioned how well Wes knew Lily, and Wes admitted that he knew Neil and Lily had some things to work out. He was supportive of that and wanted to help in any way that he could. After finding out that Wes was not only a psychiatrist, but that he and Dru had been friends for a couple of years, Neil told Wesley there was no reason for him to spend his money on a hotel. He could stay in Neil's guest room. Wesley agreed to stay.
As Dru and Lily argued over when they would return to Paris, Olivia came in. Lily went to bed, and Olivia told Dru that she and Nate had seen Neil and he was doing much better. The sisters were happy about the progress he was making. Olivia found out that Wesley had come to Genoa City and questioned what that meant. Dru said she was glad that he'd be staying a while, for Lily's sake. Olivia tried to figure out what it meant to Dru, but Dru was evasive. Olivia then questioned whether Dru was trying to resume her relationship with Neil. Dru denied it, and Olivia reminded her that Neil was at an extremely vulnerable point in his recovery and didn't need the kind of turmoil his relationship with Dru had brought him in the past.
Jack went to Diane's hotel suite to find out what she'd been telling the police about Phyllis. Diane said she'd only recently found out that Phyllis was at the Abbott house just before the fire was started and denied that she'd influenced the police to see Jack's wife as a suspect. But she questioned how Jack couldn't see Phyllis as one, too, considering everything that had happened. Jack was furious and told her how upset Phyllis was to be considered guilty of doing something like that. Diane asked if she could imagine how upset she was to have been nearly killed in a fire. She reminded him that if Kyle had been home that night, he could have died. She also told him that it was in her best interest for the police to find the person who was actually guilty, because she felt unsafe. Therefore she would not deliberately try to divert them to Phyllis. Jack told her no one was even sure that she was the intended target, and he warned her not to implicate Phyllis. After Jack left, Diane began to cry, remembering the time Jack had proposed to her, and said that things had turned out in a way she never wanted them to. She loved him, but he hated her. She made it clear she blamed Phyllis for his coldness to her.
Michael took a dollar from Phyllis's purse so that she could consider him her attorney. He then asked if there was anything she wanted to tell him about the fire. Phyllis reacted angrily, saying that she would never have done something like that. When he realized how distraught she was, Michael asked if there was any evidence against her other than hearsay. Phyllis said there couldn't be; the police were simply reacting to whatever lies Diane was telling about her. She said if she'd intended to burn Diane up, she wouldn't have botched the job. She then asked him if the police could legally stop her from flying to Europe with Jack. Michael warned her that leaving town would be ill-advised, and Phyllis said she didn't care. She couldn't take any more of this situation and she had to get away. Michael tried to dissuade her, but she angrily left his office.
After a get-together behind her locked office doors, Jill insisted to Warton that he wasn't just a sex toy to her. When he found her invitation to the black and white ball, he challenged her to take him as her escort. Jill said he wouldn't be comfortable there, and he reminded her of the time he'd been able to pull off a formal dinner at the Chancellor house. Jill insisted this was different. Warton assured her that if the night of the ball came, and she still didn't see him as a suitable date, he wouldn't go. Jill grinned and agreed to meet his challenge and tutor him in how to hobnob with the snobs, as Larry called them. Their rendezvous was interrupted when Jack pounded on the door. Warton managed to make his escape without being seen. After Jill and Jack discussed business, Jill mentioned the fire in the pool house. When Jack confessed that the police seemed to regard Phyllis as a suspect, Jill got a worried look and told him about the time Phyllis had asked Larry Warton if he knew any hit men. Jack exploded, reminding her of all the times Jill had said she wished HE was dead. Jill admitted that there might be nothing to it but said it had really spooked Larry. After leaving, Jack stood outside Jill's office with an anxious expression on his face.
At the police station, Detective Webber received results from the ongoing arson investigation. Drops of the same accelerant that was used to torch the pool house were found in the trunk of Phyllis's car.
At Gina's, Diane saw Phyllis coming and about jumped out of her skin to get out of there. They told Gina what was up between the two of them and Phyllis went overboard taunting Diane about incriminating her and digging her own grave with Jack. She told Diane that one day she would regret sicking the police on her and they both vowed that Time Will Tell . . .
Jack arrived home after working all night and admitted to his dad that Phyllis had a big mouth, but would never do anything to actually hurt anyone. John told him about the search warrant that the police brought in order to search Jack's car. Soon, the detective was back and wanted to talk about what he may have found. Jack would have no part of it and lashed out at him. He asked about whether or not they made a practice of transporting cleaning supplies and Jack told him that he knew what he knew, so the detective left.
Dru and Olivia were talking about cleaning Neil's apartment before he arrived home and stocking his shelves with groceries. Underneath the calm conversation, they were still upset with each other about what was said the night before. Dru made it clear that she wasn't interested in "making moves" on Neil and Olivia said that she may have overreacted after the terrible months she had spent worrying about Neil and seeing his decline into alcoholism. They apologized to each other then Dru went downstairs to get Wes out of Neil's apartment before the two men ran into each other. She was shocked to see them both there. Wes asked Dru to come along to breakfast, but Neil wanted to talk to her so she stayed behind. They mentioned the fact that she didn't come to visit him in the hospital, and she was secretly glad that he missed her. Neil wanted to know when and where he could meet with Lily to start making amends.
Brittany and Mac ran into each other at the coffeehouse and sparred a little bit -- Mac acted like Brittany didn't really care about leaving Raul behind and going off to college now that he was doing better. Brittany made it clear that she did feel awful about the whole thing and was sure that no one understood her true feelings. Mac could tell that something else was wrong, but before she could get it out of Brittany, her cell phone rang and she was called away.
Brittany's parents were waiting for her at the court house. The judge had agreed to take a few minutes to hear their request to move up the date of her hearing so that she could leave for college. The problem was that the arresting officer was gone on furlough until October 21, the original date of the hearing. Postponing Brittany's college plans was not a big deal to the judge and she denied the request due to the seriousness of the offense. Afterwards, her mother agonized over the loss of all their hopes and dreams. Brittany told them that she was sorry to be such a disappointment to them "and everyone else", then ran off.
J.T. paid Raul of a visit at the hospital. Raul was so unpleasant that J.T. almost left right away, but Raul told him that he was so bored in there that he would talk to a hamster. J.T. made the mistake of saying that he should have brought flowers or candy -- Raul came back with the fact that he was diabetic and things went downhill from there. J.T. wanted to tell him that he didn't deserve Brittany. She was in love with him and that it was hard for her to admit that. Since Raul didn't seem to believe that Brittany had changed, J.T. told him that he was the one who changed into a self-centered creep. He had come to see if Raul would forgive her, but knew after their conversation that he would probably never get over himself, let alone what had happened with Brittany.
Phyllis came home and wanted to pack up quickly and take off for that trip. She ran up the stairs to change and before Jack could talk her out of it. She came back downstairs ready to go in no time. Jack wanted to wait 24 hours until things cooled off. She offered a compromise -- stay in the state, but just go a few hours away. She also made it clear that they had to do something so that Diane wouldn't win and make them change their plans. He couldn't say no to her, so they headed out the door. The detective stopped them in their tracks. Phyllis fussed and struggled to go anyway. He had an officer with him, and soon Phyllis was under arrest. . . .
Phyllis became hysterical as Det. Webber and a police officer placed her under arrest for arson. As they took her away, Phyllis gave Jack a desperate look and reminded him that she'd told him the detective had wanted to place her in handcuffs. John was as upset as Jack about the episode and they called John Silva to the house to hear the whole story. He said the police must think they had some evidence in addition to Phyllis's motive of hating Diane. Both Jack and John admitted to worrying about Phyllis's state of mind, and John said he'd even heard Phyllis threaten Diane. But neither of them believed she had set the fire.
At the police station, Phyllis wavered between calm and hysteria. She was obviously at the breaking point and repeatedly assured the booking officer of her innocence. She even tried to leave the station, saying it was all a mistake, but they physically restrained her while continuing the booking process. Just as they were about to take her to a holding cell, Jack rushed in and grabbed Phyllis. The police officers pulled them apart and dragged a distraught Phyllis away while Jack looked on.
Sharon and Nick agreed that he would continue to stay at the house. In order to keep the kids from finding out that he'd been sleeping on the couch, Sharon agreed to order a sofa bed for their bedroom. When Nikki called, Sharon tried to keep the strain out of her voice as they talked about how well the honeymoon was going and Nikki's excitement that Nick and Sharon were going to try to have another child. Nikki said she and Victor would be flying back to the States later that day, and asked to speak to Nick. Though Nick had wanted to evade his mother's call, Sharon gave him the phone. Nick pretended to be cheerful, even when his mother told him she'd bought a beautiful turquoise bracelet for him to give to Sharon. After he got off the phone, Nick told Sharon that he was only staying in the house for the kids, and he'd like to keep their problems from his parents as long as possible.
Wes told Dru that Neil had adjusted well to finding him at the apartment the night before. When Dru tried to find out what they'd talked about, Wes teased her, saying that he'd told Neil that he was Dru's fiancé. Once Dru understood that Wes was joking about what he'd shared with Neil, she calmed down. Wes had told Neil the two of them were seeing each other. Dru asked whether Wes thought Neil had a good chance of beating his alcoholism. Wes said that the next few weeks would be critical for Neil, but he did feel like her ex-husband had a good chance of becoming a success story. They then talked about how Neil's relationship with Lily might benefit from their being able to spend time together. When Wes tried to get romantic with Dru, asking her to get Lily and take the suite adjoining his, Dru said that she thought she and Lily needed to continue to stay with Olivia. She then said she needed to get back to her daughter.
Serena went to see Olivia and persuade her to tell Dru to back off of Neil. She said that Neil didn't need the additional pressure of someone from his past pushing all his buttons. Olivia reminded her that Dru was her sister, but Serena said she felt like Olivia could nonetheless be objective. Finally Olivia told Serena that Neil's decisions about his personal life, including how much contact he maintained with Serena, were his business. She had no intention of getting in the middle of that. Serena was sure that Olivia thought she wasn't good enough for Neil. She angrily left Olivia's office after Olivia told her that she was the one who needed to back off.
Lily's meeting with Neil started with a bit of strain. She felt resentful of the years of his neglect. Neil said that he had loved Lily and hadn't wanted Dru and her to move away, but he also had not wanted to interfere with Dru's happiness. He said that this was an opportunity for them to rebuild and repair their relationship. While Lily assured him that she believed he could overcome his alcohol addiction, she also told him that she no longer really cared about their relationship. He didn't feel like a father to her, and Genoa City didn't feel like home. She only wanted to go back to her life in Paris. The only reason she was even trying to get along with him was because Wes had told her that her cooperation would mean she could resume her life sooner. After she left, she stood outside Neil's apartment door, wiping away tears, while Neil sat inside and brooded about all the things she'd said.
