Previously…
– Molly and Brent prepared to sue Rosie and Travis for custody of Gabrielle. 
– Alex saw Katherine Fitch’s name on Finn’s phone and reported his suspicions to Trevor that Finn could be helping Gia’s efforts to oust Molly from Objection. Trevor reacted strongly in defense of Finn.
– Jason invited Sabrina to join the Fishers for Christmas, but after Sophie interrupted their afternoon together and again expressed her displeasure about the relationship, Sabrina opted to travel home to Iowa.
– Brent questioned Natalie about having seen Loretta at the scene of Rosie and Gabrielle’s kidnapping. Recalling Loretta’s warnings, Natalie lied that it was all a misunderstanding.

The cheerful sounds of the Ronettes’ holiday classic “Sleigh Ride” fill the Fisher home. Tantalizing smells are already emanating from the kitchen as Matt Gray prepares the day’s feast, and in the dining room, a folding table has been positioned off one end of the family’s regular table in order to provide seating for all the guests who will be joining for Christmas dinner. Sarah Fisher Gray and her son stand on opposite sides of the table, each using both hands to settle a deep green tablecloth into place.

“That looks straight, doesn’t it?” Sarah questions as she takes a step back to examine the scene.

“Mom, it’s fine,” Billy replies with a roll of his eyes.

Sarah squints her eyes and moves to her left to examine things from a different angle. Finally she nods. 

“Yeah, it’s good,” she says. “Would you go grab the flowers for the center of the table so we can see how they look?”

“I’m sure everyone is really gonna care about the flowers,” the preteen says, and before Sarah can warn him not to be such a smart-ass, he disappears from the room.

“Oh, this is lovely!” Paula Fisher exclaims as she enters from the kitchen.

Sarah turns toward her and smiles. “Mom, the table isn’t even set yet.”

“I know, I know. But it does my heart good to see so many seats ready to be filled. It’s going to be so nice to have almost all our family here today.”

Unsure how to respond, Sarah bites down on her lower lip and focuses on straightening one errant corner of the tablecloth.

“What’s the matter?” Paula asks, sensing her mood. “Don’t tell me that someone cancelled–“

“No, no one cancelled,” Sarah says, “at least not as far as I know. But Mom…”

Paula waits, narrowing her eyes. Sarah recognizes the expression well; when she was younger, Paula would look at her that way, almost as if daring her to come clean about something she’d done wrong that Paula already knew about. 

“Having everyone under one roof doesn’t mean it’ll automatically all be candy canes and twinkling lights,” Sarah tells her. “This situation with Travis and Molly and Gabrielle — it’s a mess.”

“That’s why it’s important we all get together — so that we all remember the spirit of Christmas and the value of family. And really, it’s the only way for everyone to get the time with Gabrielle that they need today.”

“Okay,” Sarah says, letting out a heavy sigh. “But don’t say I didn’t warn you when things get awkward.”

“Everything will be fine, dear.” Paula affixes a too-broad smile on her face. “Now, where are those new napkins I bought?”

—–

In the den of the same house, Jason Fisher takes a seat and sinks into the deep sofa. He holds a large glass of spiked eggnog in one hand and wears a red sweater with a snowman on it.

“That’s some sweater you’ve got on,” Alex Marshall comments as he joins his best friend on the sofa.

“Sophie gave it to me as a gift. I promised I’d wear it today in the interest of… I don’t know, keeping the peace?” Jason says.

Alex raises an eyebrow. “Does this have anything to do with why she isn’t here yet?”

“Helen and Don just wanted some time with her today,” Jason explains. “They’ll bring her over before dinner. Frankly, I don’t mind having a break.”

“Having a teenager is going that well, huh?”

Jason groans. “She walked in on Sabrina and I kissing the other day. I thought she was out Christmas shopping with friends.”

“Just kissing?” Alex asks with a grimace.

“Yes. Like, standing up in the living room kissing. And she knows we’ve still been spending time together. But she cannot bring herself to be nice to Sabrina — and I hate that Sabrina has to endure that, plus I hate that my daughter is so unhappy.”

“Ugh. I’m sorry.” Alex takes a sip of his own eggnog. “How is Sabrina dealing with all of this?”

“Well, she decided to go on that Christmas cruise with her parents that she was completely not interested in ten minutes before Sophie snapped at her. So that’s great.”

“Is she not speaking to you?”

“No, she is. We’ve been texting. She’s too nice to, like, freeze me out. But it’s getting to the point where I’d really like to spend a holiday with her, or have her at my house at the same time as my daughter, and — I don’t even know.”

Alex slaps a hand down on his friend’s knee. “I’m really sorry. I wish I had some magical fix for you.”

“We’re going to hope that therapy is that magical fix,” Jason says. “I’m taking Sophie after the holidays. I’ve put this off too long, and it’s like — the kid knows that her mother was murdered when she was a baby. Of course she has issues.”

“I think that’s a great idea, for both of you. I hope it helps her work out some of this stuff.”

“Yeah, me too.” Jason slowly sips his drink as he gazes at the soft flames dancing in the tile-fronted fireplace across the room. “How about you? You seemed awfully eager to come hang out early today.”

Now it is Alex’s turn to exhale loudly, making his frustration clear. “Is it that obvious?”

“What happened?” Jason asks.

After another slug of eggnog, Alex fills him in on how he noticed Katherine Fitch‘s name on Finn‘s phone and relayed the news to Trevor, thinking it might have something to do with the goings-on at Objection Designs — only for Trevor to leap to Finn’s defense, swearing that he wouldn’t be involved in anything untoward.

“We haven’t talked about it much since,” Alex says. “Let’s just say the weather hasn’t been the only chilly thing I’m feeling this Christmas.”

“Why is it so inconceivable that Finn might be helping this Gia lady?”

“It’s not inconceivable! And I’ve felt like I was overreacting to Trevor’s closeness with Finn before — but all this did was prove that I might’ve been right all along.”

“Don’t jump to any crazy conclusions.”

“It’s not like I think they’re secretly sleeping together,” Alex says. “But if Trevor is this unwilling to believe that Finn could be involved in something sneaky…”

“Do you think you should mention it to Molly?” Jason says. 

“She has a lot on her plate already, and I’m sure today is going to be loaded for her. But maybe. Trevor did say that he gave Molly a heads-up about Gia bringing Finn to Seattle for some mysterious business. She’s aware that there might be something going on. I just don’t get why he is so unwilling to believe that Finn could be more than Gia’s lackey in the whole thing.”

Unable to come up with a suitable response, Jason simply reaches for his glass again. “Some merry Christmas we’re having, huh?” 

“Seriously. Sounds like we could use a few Christmas miracles,” Alex replies. The flames continue to crackle in the fireplace as the two friends sit in troubled silence.

—–

“You think he likes it?” Tim Fisher asks.

Sonja Kahele looks over at the father of her son, who is seated at the small, circular table in the dining area of the apartment that has been home to her and TJ for the past several months. The nondescript decor has been spruced up somewhat by an artificial Christmas tree, glowing with multicolored lights strung all around it. 

“I think he loves it,” Sonja responds with a smile. It is soon replaced, however, by a more pensive expression. “Anything that gives him some excitement is a good thing in my book. His world is so small right now.”

“I know,” Tim says solemnly. He watches quietly as their young son, curled up on the generic brown sofa, plays with the Nintendo Switch that Tim brought over as one of his Christmas presents. “We’re getting close, Sonja. I can feel it.”

“Can you?” Her voice has more than a hint of an edge to it. “It’s been months, Tim. Months of being cooped up in this apartment and having to sneak out to the garage to take my son to the doctor’s or go to a park an hour away. This is crazy.”

Tim picks up his fork and pushes around what is left on his plate of the holiday lunch that he brought so that he could share a meal with TJ.

“I’m sorry,” he says. “This is dragging on and on. But as soon as we can tie Loretta to Rosie‘s kidnapping and that explosion–“

“If you can do that,” Sonja corrects him.

“I’m going with when. When we’re able to do that, she’ll no longer pose a threat to you and TJ. You won’t have to be on the run, and you won’t have to hide out in this apartment. But what’s important now is that we keep you both safe.”

She sighs and takes another bite of the scalloped potatoes from her plate.

“I know you mean well, Tim. I really do,” Sonja says. “But I refuse to raise my son like this for much longer. And if you don’t figure out a way to get Loretta out of the picture…”

She trails off, intensity in her eyes. 

Tim leans forward. “What?”

Sonja swallows hard. “Then I’ll find a way myself.”

—–

“You’re here, where you should be! Snow is falling as the carolers sing!”

The exuberant festivity of Kelly Clarkson’s “Underneath the Tree” rings out from the Sonos speaker in the living room of Molly Taylor‘s house. Molly, however, is currently stooped beside the tree, filling her arms with elegantly wrapped boxes, a frown upon her face.

“Could I please have an extra set of arms? Or two?” she calls out.

Two sets of footsteps — one urgent, one far less hasty — can be heard coming from the kitchen. Soon enough, her two college-aged sons are standing at the entrance to the room. Christian wears a white-and-pink striped sweater, while Caleb sports a navy blue button-up shirt, untucked and with the sleeves rolled up.

“Those are all coming to Grandma’s house?” Christian asks as he lifts some of the presents from Molly’s arms.

“Yes! I mean, there’s a present for your grandmother, and then…”

Caleb regards his mother with skepticism as he, too, takes some of the gifts from her.

“The rest of these are all for Gabrielle?” he asks.

“I’ve missed out on two Christmases of being able to spoil her,” Molly says as he stands up. “I’m not missing another one.”

“Are you sure Travis and Rosie are okay with you giving her this much stuff?” Christian asks.

Molly smooths out her stylish green wrap dress. “They’re toys and books and clothing, not drugs! That little girl deserves to feel special this Christmas.”

Caleb looks at his twin and shrugs.

“I’m gonna go put this stuff in the car,” he announces, and he quickly exits.

Christian lingers in the living room, his arms full of gifts. “Mom…”

Molly looks up at him. “Yeah?”

“Does Gabrielle know we’re her brothers? Or is that, like, way over her head?”

“I’m not sure she understands any of what’s going on. I hardly do. And I don’t want to upset anyone today — but I didn’t get to put my daughter to bed on Christmas Eve or wake up with her on Christmas morning. If I want to give her a bunch of gifts, then so be it.”

Christian offers a cheerful smile. “Maybe I can hold her?”

“If she’ll let you. I remember how you two were as toddlers.” Although she laughs, her expression soon darkens. “She did seem a little anxious when I went to see her the other day. I know it’s to be expected with a toddler, but still… it hurt.”

“I bet. Probably the best thing we can do is try and have a nice Christmas with everyone together.”

“That’s all I want,” she says. “More than anything. And in the new year, Gabrielle will finally be under this roof. I promise.”

—–

The cold Christmas Day air nips at Travis Fisher‘s face as he straps Gabrielle into her carseat in the back of his Honda.

“Am I supposed to be feeling something on Christmas other than complete dread?” Rosie Jimenez asks from behind him.

Travis turns to see his wife standing outside the green house in her leather jacket, arms folded. He offers a sympathetic look as she approaches. 

“Thank you for doing this today,” he tells her. “I know it’ll mean a lot to my grandmother, and my mom and dad…”

“And Molly,” Rosie finishes for him, unable to keep a note of derision out of her voice.

“It will.” Travis double-checks the straps on the carseat. “I really appreciate it, too.”

“I know you do.” Rosie comes nearer and places her hands over his shoulders. “Christmas wasn’t exactly a picnic back when I wasn’t talking to my mom, after my dad died… but at least then I could just sign up for shifts at work and pretend it wasn’t happening.”

“Where’s your mom? Is she almost ready?”

Rosie glances back at the house. “She was just packing sure her famous Christmas tamales were packed up tightly. If they spilled during the drive…”

“Now that would be a Christmas disaster,” Travis says, grateful for the levity. “I promise we’ll get through today and have a nice holiday, okay?”

“I hope so,” Rosie says, as she gazes past him toward their daughter, strapped into her carseat and oblivious to how weighted today’s gathering is going to be.

—–

“Merry Christmas,” Tim says as he sets TJ back down on the ground. The little boy’s arms are still wrapped around his neck. “I love you, okay?”

“I love you, too, Daddy,” TJ says, and the sound of his adorable voice causes Tim’s heart to leap — even as he feels guilty for leaving TJ and Sonja here while he goes to be with the rest of his family. 

He wishes Sonja a merry Christmas and steps out of the apartment, being careful to keep the door open for as brief a time as possible. He can only imagine how tiring it is for both his son and Sonja to live under such restricted conditions; yet the alternative — of leaving them out in the open, in danger of whatever strike Loretta might come up with — is too upsetting to ponder. But he also knows that the clock is ticking. There is really nothing stopping Sonja from taking TJ and walking right out of this place, and if that happens… then he fears he might never see his son again.

He takes the elevator down to the lobby and goes to the desk, where a uniformed doorman sits. Tim wishes him happy holidays as he signs out in the visitor log and then makes his way to the adjoining parking garage.

Moments later, a woman in a fedora and a black down coat that comes to her knees hurries into the lobby through the front doors.

“Hi,” she says, lifting the brim of the hat slightly. “Merry Christmas. Um, a friend who lives in the building said she was going to leave a package for me at the desk?”

“What’s your name?” the doorman asks.

“Um, Ann Marie.”

“I’ll go check. Just one moment.” He disappears into a small mail room behind the desk.

With urgency, the woman calling herself Ann Marie grabs the visitors’ log and scans it. She sees Tim’s name, the time he arrived and departed, and, most importantly, the number of the unit that he was visiting. She commits it to memory and dashes out of the building as swiftly as she can.

Seconds later, the doorman emerges from the back room, emptyhanded.

“Ma’am?” he asks in confusion, looking around.

—–

Outside the building, Natalie Bishop pulls the fedora down over her eyes and keeps her head down as she rushes back toward her car.

“Now I know where you are, Sonja,” she says to herself. “There has to be a way I can use this to get Loretta off my back.”

—–

Molly and the twins are unloading her vehicle when she hears a familiar voice call out:

“Funny running into all of you here!”

She turns her head, feeling the sting of the winter air, and sees Brent Taylor walking up the sidewalk toward them.

“Yeah, what are the odds?” Caleb replies as he lifts an armload of gifts from the trunk of the car. “Merry Christmas, Dad.”

“Merry Christmas, guys. And to you, too,” he says, turning a genuine stare upon Molly. After all these years, his look still sends a shudder of warmth through her body, and for the briefest of moments, she even forgets that they are not currently together — that they haven’t been, really, in years.

“This is all coming inside?” Brent says, shaking her from her stupor.

“Um, yeah. I told you I was buying some things for Gabrielle.”

“This isn’t some things, Mom,” Christian interjects with a laugh. “It’s all of the things.”

“Very funny,” she says as the two teens carry the presents toward Paula’s house and Molly uses the key fob to lock the car.

“How are you feeling about today?” Brent asks Molly as they climb the steps up to her mother’s front door, where an ample green wreath festooned with acorns and red berries hangs.

“Anxious. But excited to have Christmas with all three of our kids,” she says as Caleb, walking ahead of them, turns the knob and opens the door.

“Me, too,” Brent says.

“It’s best that we hold off on serving the custody suit papers until after Christmas,” Molly adds.

“Serving the what?” a female voice from inside the house asks, and as Molly and Brent step up to the door, they see Rosie and Travis standing right there, with Gabrielle on the floor, trying to remove her Velcro shoes.

END OF EPISODE 1164

Will the Fishers’ Christmas turn into a total disaster?
What will Natalie do with her newly acquired information?
How should Alex handle his marital troubles?
Talk about all this and more in the comments below!

Next Episode