Whew! So glad that glitch was taken care of! And wow, what a way to start the year on Days, huh? I really wanted Eric to be alive, stable, and healthy; and it looks like he'll only be alive. Ah, well.

Will was dreaming about a beach at sunset. He and Sonny lay on a double blanket drinking cocktails. Then, he heard vibrating. It grew louder and louder, and the dream faded. Will blinked open his eyes and groaned as he fumbled for his phone. The clock read 2:05 A.M. Lucas was calling.

"Someone better be dying." Will grumbled into the phone, then realized it was a text message.

"Will! I just heard from Grandma that there was a really bad car accident! Jennifer, Daniel, Uncle Eric, and Uncle Brady were all hurt. Brady and Eric need heart transplants and Daniel is dead. I need you to be my eyes and ears on this since I can't be there."

"Oh my god. Sonny, wake up!" Will shook his husband awake, then jumped out of bed to get dressed.

"Hmmm? What happened? Did we get attacked again?" Sonny asked, groggily, sitting up.

"No. Aunt Jennifer, Uncle Eric, Brady, and Dr. Jonas were all in a horrible car wreck. Dr. Jonas is dead, Brady and Eric are in critical condition." Will explained as he put his shirt on.

"What?!" Sonny exclaimed. He too, jumped out of bed to get dressed. "What happened? Are they okay?"

"I don't know." Will exhaled sharply. He grabbed his keys, phone, and wallet. Both he and Sonny ran out into the living room just as Gabi walked into the apartment. Will ran to her and hugged her. "Oh, thank God, you're home! Sonny and I need to get to the hospital."

"Oh, yeah. I heard about that huge car accident. How's Jennifer?" Gabi asked.

"We don't know yet." Sonny replied. "We'll call you later."

"Okay."

XXX

Will and Sonny arrived at the nurse's station on the fifth floor at 2:30. They spotted Abigail and Jennifer sitting on chairs and headed over.

"Aunt Jennifer?" Will asked.

Abigail jumped up and hugged her cousins. "Oh, I'm so glad you're here."

"What happened?" Sonny asked.

"It was a three-car pileup." Abigail explained. "Your Uncle Eric was driving in the wrong lane or something. My mom swerved out of the way and skid on black ice…but, Brady and Daniel were driving behind her, so Eric ended up slamming into their car. Mom's okay. She just has a few bruises and hurt her neck. Daniel died and both Eric and Brady need heart transplants."

Sonny exhaled slowly and looked around. "Where is everybody?"

Abigail shrugged. "I dunno. The waiting room?"

"Okay. Thank you." Will said. He was about to walk off, but Abigail grabbed his hand.

"Will, wait. There's something else you should know." Abigail sighed. "Earlier tonight, I had to rush Thomas to the hospital."

"Is he okay?" Will asked.

Abigail nodded. "He apparently has a blood disorder, but, he'll be fine. Um…we also found out that Ben is not his father. Chad is."

Will scoffed and chuckled softly. "Seriously? That's great! You must be so relieved."

"I am." Abigail laughed.

"Does he know?" Will asked.

"Yeah." Abigail nodded. "It took a while to convince him, but…you know, it's the strangest thing. When Chad held Thomas, he just snapped out of it."

"So, he's unbrainwashed?" Sonny asked.

"Yep!" Abigail chuckled. She glanced towards Jennifer, then turned to her cousins to give them a pointed look. Will and Sonny could tell what she's thinking: 'Now we can tell Chad about Sami and the stolen money. He'll be able to protect her and the kids.'

"We're glad you're okay, Aunt Jen." Sonny said to her. They hugged. "I'm sorry about Daniel. I know what he meant to you."

Jennifer nodded and swallowed. "Thanks."

"We'll be in the waiting room." Will said. They ran to the waiting room where Victor, Maggie, John, Belle, Theresa, and Philip were all either pacing or sitting. Will and Sonny hugged Maggie and Victor. Will then headed to John. "Any word on Brady and Uncle Eric?"

John exhaled slowly. "They're giving Brady Daniel's heart. He's in surgery right now. As for Eric…well, they say they have treatment for him, but, it doesn't look good."

"Why was Uncle Eric driving in the wrong lane?" Will asked.

"He was drunk, but, also he went into cardiac arrest while driving." John answered.

Will exhaled sharply. He couldn't believe that his uncle could be so irresponsible. "Where's Grandma?"

"With Eric." John gave him the room number.

Will nodded and turned to Sonny. "Hey, I'm going to update my mom, then I'm going to visit Uncle Eric."

"Okay."

Will stepped outside to text his mother. "Hey, so, apparently, Uncle Eric was drunk driving in the wrong lane, but his heart also went into cardiac arrest. He almost ran into Aunt Jennifer, but she swerved out of the way. Brady and Daniel were driving behind her, so Uncle Eric ended up hitting them. Daniel died, so they ended up giving Brady his heart. He's in surgery right now. They're going to give treatment to Uncle Eric, but, it doesn't look good."

"Why would you think your Uncle Eric of all people was drunk?"

"That's what they said."

"Well, you also said he went into cardiac arrest."

"Oh yeah. There's apparently an infection in his heart or something. So, maybe that's it."

"So, he couldn't have been drunk at all."

"I don't know." Will sighed.

"Okay, well, thank you."

"You're welcome." Will headed to his uncle's room. Marlena sat by his bed, holding his hand. Will walked in and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Hey."

Marlena turned to her grandson and stood up to hug him tight. She took a deep breath. "He's gonna be okay. He has to be."

Will gave Eric a once-over. He didn't look good. "John said they have treatment for him?"

Marlena pulled away. "Yes, they do. Hopefully it'll work."

Will could tell his grandmother was just being strong for his sake. He decided to return the favor rather than calling her out on it. "I'm sure it will. Uncle Eric can't die. Who else will Mom listen to when she schemes?"

Marlena laughed. "Exactly."

"So, I hear Brady's gonna be okay." Will said. "He has Daniel's heart now?"

Marlena nodded. "The doctors are optimistic."

"Good. That's good." Will replied. "I texted my mom to tell her about Eric and Brady."

"Good, I'm glad to hear it."

They stayed for about an hour, then Marlena headed to the chapel, and Will headed to the waiting room.

XXX

Meanwhile, in the waiting room, Kayla updated everyone on Brady's condition. Everyone sighed in relief. Belle and John, Victor and Maggie, and Paul and Theresa hugged each other. Philip and Sonny just smiled at each other. Once Paul pulled away from Theresa, John and Belle pulled him into a group hug and Sonny hugged Victor and Maggie. Then, Sonny and Paul faced each other, smiling.

"I'm glad Brady's okay." Sonny said. "That must be a huge relief to you."

Paul chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, I mean…I've only known that Brady is my brother for eight months. I'm just getting to know him. I…I can't believe we almost lost him."

"I know." Sonny replied. They hugged just as Will entered the room.

Will kept reminding himself that Sonny loves him and not Paul. They are both related to Brady, so, it's natural that they'd share their relief that he's gonna be okay. But, he couldn't help but to feel a little put out by that hug.

Sonny pulled away and saw Will. "Hey." He walked towards his husband. "How's Eric?"

"He's touch and go. There's treatment, but, we're not even sure it's gonna work." Will replied. "I hear Brady's going to be okay."

"He is." Sonny replied. He hugged Will, who glanced at Paul, who looked away, a little jealous.

Will took a deep breath. "Okay, there's really nothing we can do here. Why don't we go home, get some rest?"

Sonny nodded. "Good idea."

XXX

Will and Sonny collapsed onto their bed at 5:00 AM. They didn't wake up until almost noon. Will, Sonny, and Gabi all had lunch together. Will and Sonny smiled at each other and nodded.

"Gabi…we'd like to talk to you about a couple things." Sonny started.

"Okay." Gabi folded her arms on the table. "What's up?"

"Well, we were thinking of having another baby." Will said, smiling.

"Really? Are you sure? I mean, with everything that's been going on…" Gabi's voice trailed off, unsure.

"We need a little happiness with all the doom and gloom." Will replied. "I honestly think that's a good way to honor Bo's, Daniel's, and Paige's memory: by living our lives and creating new life."

Gabi smiled and nodded in agreement. "So, are you going to adopt, or…?"

"Nope. We're looking at surrogacy." Sonny replied.

"Oh! Any ideas on who you want as a surrogate?" Gabi asked. Will and Sonny smiled at her pointedly. Gabi gasped in surprise. "Oh. You want me to be your surrogate?"

Will and Sonny nodded. "We think it'd be nice for Ari to have at least one biological sibling."

"Oh my God, yes! Of course I'll be your surrogate." Gabi smiled and laughed. "This is so amazing."

"Thank you, Gabi." Will replied. They hugged.

"So, how does this work? Do we…?" Gabi asked, gesturing between her and Will.

"Will and I will mix our sperms, then we'll have a fertility doctor inject you with it." Sonny answered. "And we'll pay for everything- sonograms, doctor's visits, prenatals, maternity clothing…"

"Okay. Awesome." Gabi nodded, smiling.

"Great! I'll set up an appointment." Sonny got up and looked up a fertility doctor in the phone book.

Will turned to Gabi. "Also, Sonny and I are looking into buying a house."

"Oh." Gabi replied. "Wow, lots of changes for you guys."

"Yeah." Will laughed and nodded. "We were hoping to find a house with a mother-in-law apartment so you could live with us."

Gabi nodded. "Sounds great!"

Sonny sat back down. "All right, our appointment is scheduled for next Friday at 9:00. The fertility doctor, Dr. Ford, told me that we need to mix our sperms in a turkey baster, and Gabi has to come with us."

"That fast?" Will asked, surprised.

"Yeah. I told her we already have a surrogate and she agreed, so…all that's left for us to do is get Gabi pregnant." Sonny replied.

"Awesome!" Will exclaimed. "Wait…don't we need to get tested for STDs first?"

"I tested for STDs when I tested for the BRCA1 gene. I'm clean." Sonny replied.

"Guess I better head back to the hospital to get tested, then." Will replied. He stood up.

"Wait- now?" Sonny asked.

Will shrugged. "No time like the present. I want to see how Eric and Brady are doing, anyway." He kissed the top of Sonny's head. "Later." He headed to the door and opened it to Philip standing outside. "Uncle Phil! Hey. I was just on my way out."

"Can we talk first? It's important." Philip replied.

"Oh. Okay." Will stepped aside to let him in. "Is it Brady?"

"No." Philip shook his head and glanced towards Sonny and Gabi and turned back to his nephew. "Can I talk to you…alone?"

"No. No, whatever it is you have to say you can say to all of us." Will said firmly.

Philip hesitated. He wasn't sure how much Sonny and Gabi knew… "Fine. Your aunt Belle told me everything."

Will feigned confusion. "What do you mean?"

"She told me that your mom stole half a billion dollars from Stefano and gave you half." Philip replied.

Will laughed softly. "Wow, she has an active imagination."

"You're telling me she lied?" Philip asked, raising an eyebrow. "I've known Belle a long time. She would never lie about something like this."

Will exhaled sharply and shook his head. 'Dammit, Aunt Belle!' "Okay. Fine. What exactly did she tell you?"

"Just that Sami stole $500 million and gave half to you. The only reason she knew about it was because you went to her for legal advice. She also told me you were planning on giving your half back to Stefano." Philip replied.

Sonny walked up behind Will and folded his arms. "So, what's your take on this? Should we give it back?"

"Oh, hell no. That's the last thing you should do." Philip shook his head. "Look, if Stefano finds out you have half, he will stop at nothing to get back the other half. He will come after you and he will hurt your family and everyone you care about."

Will nodded. "Okay, well…keeping it was my original plan, anyway."

Philip nodded, trying to hide his disappointment. "You don't want to invest that money in something?"

"No. It's gonna be used to provide for my family. Any future kids we may have." Will replied. "College funds…trips to Europe…"

"Sounds noble." Philip replied, smiling. "I think the best way to handle this situation is to stay quiet."

"I just wish my Aunt Belle stayed quiet." Will replied bitterly. "Seriously- why doesn't she just get it over with and put an ad in the Spectator about my mom stealing DiMera money and giving me half?!"

Philip was confused. "What is your problem, Will? She only told me!"

"Actually…she also told Brady. Then, Theresa overheard Brady and Belle talking about it and let it slip to Paul, my grandma Marlena told my cousin Abigail, and Sonny and Gabi know." Will sighed. "My grandma, John, and Theresa don't know that I have the money, though."

'Wow, this situation is getting out of control.' Philip thought. "Almost a dozen people know about this, huh? Okay, we really need to be more careful about keeping this whole thing a secret."

"I agree." Sonny replied.

"So, you're not gonna tell my dad or Grandma?" Will asked.

Philip shook his head. "Your dad is going to put me in the ground for this, but, if it keeps everyone safe and it keeps Stefano and Andre from finding out, we need to take this to the grave."

"Okay. Cool." Will nodded. "Thank you, Uncle Phil."

"You're welcome." Philip replied. "Happy New Year." He left.

Sonny walked in front of Will. "You do know he wants the money for himself, right?"

"I did notice he looked a little disappointed when I told him the money is for us and our children." Will nodded. He sighed. "I'm just wondering why the hell Aunt Belle told him." He thought about it for a minute, then scoffed and smiled in dismay. "Oh my God." He laughed scornfully.

"What?"

"She's setting herself up in some twisted love story where she's put in danger and Philip rescues her!" Will exclaimed. He laughed and shook his head. "Oh, I can't."

Sonny was puzzled. "But she doesn't even have the money."

"You think that matters?" Will raised an eyebrow. "Though why she would choose Philip as her Prince Charming after what he put her through…"

"Maybe there will be a plot twist." Sonny grinned. "Shawn could be her Prince Charming."

"I hope so…"

XXX

"I'm glad I could talk you into leaving the hospital for an hour."

John and Paul were sitting at an outdoor table in the Town Square. John exhaled. "Well, just for an hour. I don't want to be away for too long."

Paul smiled. "I know you want to take care of Brady. But you also need to take care of yourself."

John smiled back. "I know. Actually, I'm glad you did. I have to tell you something."

"Okay."

"Sami stole half a billion dollars from Stefano DiMera." John announced.

"I know. Brady told me." Paul admitted. "He also told me she stole a flash drive?"

John nodded, looked around to make sure no one was watching, and pulled out the flash drive. "Since the DiMeras don't really know you, and you them, you'd be the perfect person to keep this safe."

"So, you want me to hide a stolen flash drive?" Paul asked, raising an eyebrow.

"This flashdrive contains Stefano's entire life. It has information on it that can ruin him for good." John explained. "I'm waiting for the right moment to use this, but the DiMeras know I have it."

"And you want me to keep it safe." Paul nodded, understanding where he was going with this.

"Exactly." John smiled and handed over the flash drive.

Paul held the drive to his chest. "Don't worry. I'll guard this with my life."

"That's my boy." John said proudly. "I was going to have Brady hide it, but…" He shook his head. "I don't want Belle to get involved because she's already going through a lot, and Sami would have my head if I gave it to Will."

Paul remembered Brady telling him that Sami gave half of the stolen money to Will and that he went to Belle for legal advice. He swallowed and nodded, hiding his guilt. "Okay. Well, it's safe with me."

Unbeknownst to them, Will was listening to their conversation. Will shook his head. Man, John and Sami have so much in common. He hoped this wouldn't backfire on all of them.