Lynda Hirsch on Soaps

ALL MY CHILDREN: Rafael is shot and killed by Robert, who claims to be an undercover FBI agent. Robert is clearly not what he seems to be. Tad remains wary of Robert, who is still secretly after Jesse. Erica is handcuffed to Carmen as they're led into the van to be driven to the facility. The van transporting Erica and Carmen to prison suddenly skids off the road while the two women are still handcuffed together in the back. Carmen takes advantage of the guards' injuries, stealing one of their guns and dragging a protesting Erica off into the night with her. Carmen is intent on tracking down her ex and making him pay with his life for what he did to her. Greenlee reveals to Annie that she kissed Ryan and also admits she encouraged him to fake getting his memory back. Adam and Krystal fight their true feelings as Krystal moves out of the mansion. Joe tells Angie and Jesse that Mrs. Remington didn't die of a heart attack but that she had been murdered. Robert, who is clearly up to no good, charms Opal.

SNEAK PEEK: JR is rushed to the hospital.

AS THE WORLD TURNS: Jack collapses from septic shock. Delirious Jack believes that Katie is his wife and the nurse encourages her to play along. Katie's embarrassed when Jack becomes lucid and asks for Carly. On the stand, Parker remembers the night of Sam's shooting clearly and realizes he only fired one shot — so he didn't kill Sam. Ruby finally agrees to testify for Carly and Jack. Just as the judge pronounces Parker guilty, Jack and Carly burst in with Ruby. Tom convinces the judge to hear the witness and he reverses his decision. Meg tells Paul that Craig has offered her a divorce. Meg and Paul grow closer. Sofie admits she can't provide for Hallie the way she should and asks that Gwen and Will take her back. Will, Gwen and Paul learn Barbara has oral cancer. Gray, disguised as an FBI agent, takes Matt out of the hospital in a wheelchair. Matt is forced to call Casey and convince him to meet at his parent's house. Gray instructs Casey to phone his mother and get her to come to the house. The bomb great Gray brought to the house does not detonate.

SNEAK PEEK: Jack wants Carly.

BOLD AND BEAUTIFUL: Shocked and disgusted by Rick and Taylor's kiss, Brooke slaps Taylor. Rick assures his mother that what he and Taylor have is something special. Taylor tells Ridge that she doesn't see herself ever falling in love with Rick and promises to not get physical with him. During a conversation with James, Taylor realizes that she doesn't want to let Rick go and decides to tell him of her feelings in a letter. Rick is stunned when Phoebe tells him that she is ready to finally consummate their relationship. Eric tells Pam that Donna is one of the most beautiful, smart and non-superficial woman that he has ever known. Donna is horrified at the color of her hair and even more so at the color of her teeth after removing her whitening trays. Knowing that all of this isn't a coincidence, Donna confronts Pam with accusations of sabotage. Bridget and Nick's romantic evening is interrupted. Nick admits to Katie that he is having inappropriate thoughts about her.

SNEAK PEEK: Bridget's heart is broken.

DAYS OF OUR LIVES: Steve tells Hope how he hooked up Ava when he was missing and she's trying to re-enter his life. Hope agrees that Steve should not tell Kayla about this. In the parking lot, Hope is approached from behind and chloroformed. Ava drags Hope into the backseat. One of Ava's guards carries an unconscious Hope into Ava's room. Hope comes to. Ava tells her she knows she's Kayla. Steve is at home when he gets a call from the kidnapped Hope, pretending to be Kayla. Steve figures out what's happened. He begins to tell Kayla but she's hit with severe cramps. Stephanie and Morgan's professor tells them they must each have a cameraman follow them on their internships. Philip talks to Tony about a new campaign for Kiriakis shipping. The local opera does not hire Chloe. Everyone thinks she had something to do with Brady's disappearance. At Chez Rouge, John sits at a romantic table for two, when Marlena enters. She's taken aback and confused. John wants to make up with her and gives her a gorgeous diamond necklace. Marlena's not impressed and she leaves.

SNEAK PEEK: John declares war.

GENERAL HOSPITAL: Ric and Marianna fear the worst when Randy's body is discovered.

Trevor blackmails Ric, claiming he has the murder weapon used against Randy with Marianna's fingerprints on it. Ric gives into Trevor's blackmail in order to protect Marianna and signs over the deed to the waterfront property. Jason has it out with Monica, who continues to drink. Monica tells Jason she loves him and that he will always be her son. Nikolas tells Ian he won't give him any money until he knows Ian can give him an unlimited supply of the drug that allows him to keep seeing Emily. Claudia reveals she knew exactly whom Sonny was when she slept with him. Ric confronts Marianna about being in cahoots with Trevor. Marianna admits her wrongdoings but claims her feelings for Ric are genuine. Ric wants to team up with Sonny to destroy Trevor. Spinelli turns to Jason for advice about how to seduce a woman. Kate balks at Jax taking an active role in their new publishing venture, but they're soon working as a team. Maxie throws her new job as Kate's assistant in Lulu's face.

SNEAK PEEK: Sonny wants out of the mob.

GUIDING LIGHT: Gus goes to the hospital with Olivia and sees Natalia, who pulls him in for a kiss. Olivia walks out of her appointment and is surprised that Gus isn't waiting for her. Olivia notices lipstick on Gus's mouth and grows suspicious. Cyrus and Harley are convincing themselves their relationship is about more than sex. Beth leaves Alan, outraged that he had Rick locked up. Rick learns that Philip Spaulding bailed him out of jail. Jeffrey tells Reva that the charges against Will were dropped. Reva waves goodbye to Jonathan as he drives out of town. A distraught Reva can't believe Jon is really gone. The family starts a baseball game. It looks as if Will is going to hit RJ with the bat, when Josh stops him.

SNEAK PEEK: Cassie threatens Reva.

ONE LIFE TO LIVE: Blair scrambles to prevent Todd from spotting Cole after Cole sneaks into the house to rendezvous with Starr. Langston discovers Starr with a home pregnancy test. Antonio gives Talia and John the cold shoulder at work after noticing their growing camaraderie. Charlie warns Dorian to keep quiet about his being Jared's father and not Rex's when she subtly threatens him. Roxy admits to Charlie she has no idea who Rex's father is. Charlie and Roxy realize they were both in Atlantic City when Rex was conceived and both were heavy drinkers at the time. Clint can't resist the temptation to use the information Lindsay gave him about Warren Cobb's shady past to get him to back off his attack on Buchanan Enterprises. Bo tells Lindsay but insists he wants to take things slow. Nash has another meeting with his mysterious business partner. Marcie and Michael feel a distance growing between them. Blair buys Capricorn from Antonio. Natalie and Jared end up stranded at the lodge as an ice storm hits and the power goes out. Jared can't fight his feelings any longer and kisses Natalie.

SNEAK PEEK: Natalie learns David is her uncle.

PASSIONS: Fancy lays down the law to Pretty and Sheridan — Luis is hers and she's prepared to fight for him, no matter who that may be with. Fancy and Luis dance the tango, trying to create their own memories. Fancy shocks Luis when she tells him she wants to have his baby — now! Pretty vows to destroy Fancy and take Luis as her own, even if it means killing her sister. Sheridan, however, refuses to be an accomplice to Pretty's murderous plan and hopes her history with Luis will be enough for her to reclaim his love. Ivy's heart breaks for Ethan as he tells her that he'll never love Gwen the way he loved Theresa. Ivy tries to convince her son to move on and create a life with Gwen. Ethan calls out Theresa's name while making love to Gwen, bringing their session to a definitive halt. Theresa talks to Father Lonigan in the church confessional, relating the story of her last few months. She knows for the safety of her family she must stay away from Ethan and remain "dead."

SNEAK PEEK: Pretty turns ugly.

YOUNG AND RESTLESS: Jack gets a call from Jeff to let him know that Gloria was terrified by "John's ghost." Alistair picks the lock to the mini-bar in the G.C.A.C. suite and gets drunk. Jack insults Alistair and he decides to quit. He tells Jack and Sharon he has fallen for Gloria. Gloria finds John's boots in the house and wonders if Jeff is trying to scare her. Daniel and Danny finally bond. Daniel runs into Amber, kisses her and thanks her for pushing him to mend things with his father. Adam tells Victoria the only reason Nick has anything is because his last name is Newman. Victoria reminds Adam that he's a Newman, too. Felicia warns Phyllis to be careful of Amber. Victoria confronts Brad, who, after some pushing, admits he was behind the security breach. Kay confesses to Jill that she had a minor stroke. Lily goes to a private area to catch her breath and just as she is about to collapse, Devon catches her. Neil and Devon becomes concerned for Lily's health, but she refuses to slow down.

SNEAK PEEK: Gloria seeks revenge.

To find out more about Lynda Hirsch, and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate web page at www.creators.com.

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