January 26 to 30, 2004

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Monday, January 26, 2004 - As Tony takes to the center ring to make his big announcement he warns John that the killer is present, Celeste fears that he will meet a gruesome end. Hope and John try to stop Tony from talking but he won't. Holding a remote control for the bucket of blood teetering over Tony, the masked killer riles up Horton the tiger using the drug-soaked dart and then frees the beast from the cage. As everyone runs upon hearing the tiger is loose, Brady finds he's taken refuge with Nicole who presses him to make love to her. When she forces a kiss, Victor finds them together. With Doug and Julie's help, Sami and Lucas go looking for Will who has run off because of Sami's threat to kill the murderer. The parents eventually find Will just as the tiger does too. While Will is safe, Sami and Lucas take refuge in a tiny clown car. He offers to go tell everyone where the tiger is but she pleads with him to say, confessing she loves him. Realizing what she has confessed, Sami tries to take it back but Lucas responds with a kiss. While John and Hope chase after the tiger, the animal confronts Marlena. John rushes to play hero and rescues his wife. Meanwhile, unable to see because she lost her contacts, Bonnie unknowingly grabs the killer's remote control device and pushes a button which tips over a bucket of blood from above the crowd where Tony is standing. The masked killer privately thanks Bonnie for her efforts as the tiger is drawn to the smell of the fresh blood. As the crowd watches in horror, Tony is attacked and grabbed by the tiger.

Tuesday, January 27, 2004 - As the tiger starts to drag Tony off, John tries to shoot a tranquilizer dart into the beast but the gun jams. The killer switches off the lights and when the emergency lights turn on, Tony and the tiger are gone. Hope orders everyone out of the tent as people begin searching for Tony. John tells Marlena to go into hiding until the tiger is found. He also orders Shawn, Rex and Philip to take Belle and Mimi someplace safe. The women take refuge in the tiger cage where Sami and Kate go at it again. Belle finally can't take it anymore and slips away from them to get help. The tiger returns, frightening the women. When the killer menaces the women in the cage, Sami eventually locks the door while Bonnie's smoking leads to a fire in the straw next to the cage. Doug and Philip go to work trying to get the electricity back on. Hope and John are joined by Shawn and Rex as they go looking for the tiger. They run into a shadowy figure who turns out to be Lucas. Hope, Philip and Rex manage to put out the fire next to the women in the cage. Shawn quickly notices that Belle is missing. A circus worker grabs a set of the keys for the cage but the killer knocks him out. As Doug searches frantically for the keys, the killer walks nearby. Shawn and John come to the rescue when the tiger confronts Belle. John ends up battling the tiger one-on- one. Shawn scares off the tiger with a tranquilizer dart. Marlena suddenly appears near the women from the cage, thankful Belle wasn't hurt. Meanwhile, Lexie and Celeste start searching the tent for Tony. John and Hope save them from the tiger and Tony is found, barely alive and rushes to the hospital. Marlena panics when John wishes aloud that he'll still be able to name the killer.

Wednesday, January 28, 2004 - In the aftermath of the tiger's rampage and circus fire, the tiger has gotten away and is still at large. Hope finds a discarded syringe and now knows the keys to the double locks on the tiger cage were stolen. Hope is convinced The Salem Stalker premeditated all these crimes. John and Hope ask Marlena to speculate from the list of circus attendees as to who could possibly be the killer. Unless it's Nicole, Marlena has no idea.Tony is rushed into the ER. Devastated that her brother could be dying, Lexie calls a code blue and works intently to save his life. Later, Tony is stabilized and Lexie is confident he will pull through and name the killer. John and Hope arrive to question DiMera. Tony opens his eyes and struggles to speak. He is just about to i.d. the killer when Lexie stops the interrogation - Tony's monitors are going crazy, he needs to rest and get his strength back before answering questions. In counterpoint, Celeste gets major vibes that Tony will not make it; evil is near and the killer is about to strike. We see the killer, disguised in a white doctor's coat and latex gloves break into the hospital drug storeroom and steal a syringe and a lethal drug. There is an officer outside Tony's cubicle but he allows the doctor to enter. The killer is about to administer the deadly drug, as Tony opens his eyes and recognizes his assailant. A huge moment as the identity of The Salem Stalker is revealed! Nicole and Brady return home to find Victor with a police officer. Nicole blurts: am I under arrest? Victor explains the police are keeping Nicole under surveillance in case they need to question her about murder cases in town. The cop mans his post outside. Brady tries to come to Nicole's defense but Victor says he can prove Nicole is a killer. As he goes for the evidence in the safe Nicole gets rid of Brady. Alone with Victor, Nicole swears she is innocent but Victor is confident Tony will give testimony that will send her to death row. Brady tells Nicole he believes she is innocent.Belle has convinced Shawn to get checked out for smoke inhalation at the hospital. Marlena agrees to watch over him. When she returns, Belle encourages Marlena to reunite with John. Marlena, trying to help her daughter, tries to enlist John in helping Belle through their separation but John still doesn't understand why they are apart. Rex feels guilty that he believed Tony was the killer. Bonnie "faints" to get Mickey's attention and he brings her to the hospital for tests. Julie is suspicious of Bonnie's intentions and Mickey tells Julie to stop reading into the situation. Bonnie asks Mickey to take her home with him and Julie fears Mickey is getting in over his head.

Thursday, January 29, 2004 - Though Celeste has another vision that the killer is with Tony, she can't leave Lexie's office, held there by a strange and unseen force. Marlena taunts Tony with her plans to paralyze him before killing him and boasts of how she killed Cassie. Thanks to Marlena injecting Tony's I.V. with a deadly drug, Tony goes into cardiac arrest after the disguised Salem killer slips out. Lexie rushes in and tries to help him but realizes that her unconscious patient is dying. John and Hope ask if there is anything the doctor can do to wake him up long enough to reveal the killer. Lexie gives him a shot of adrenaline though Marlena claims she should let Tony die in peace. Tony comes to after the shot and stares at Marlena. After Nicole convinces Brady that Victor is lying about Colin's murder and scheming with Tony to frame her for something he did, she slips out and hurries to the hospital to see Tony. She panics at finding him on death's door and runs out, leaving her barrette in the cubicle as she does so. Meanwhile, Brady confronts Victor about Nicole and claims he knows the whole story including the manufactured evidence he's hiding in the safe. Victor warns him about believing her lies and then, when they hear Nicole has slipped away unnoticed, Victor guesses she's going to "finish off" Tony. They head to the hospital, get an update on a dying Tony and then find a shaken Nicole who looks very guilty. Shawn takes Belle home where she wants to thank him for saving her and her father's lives. As she starts to massage him, they're both unaware that Jan is out on the fire escape in the rain, staring at them, fantasizing about being with Shawn.

Friday, January 30, 2004 - With Marlena sitting down next to Tony to offer her special support, Tony tries to mumble the name of the killer to Lexie and John but can't talk. Celeste urges him to somehow communicate in another way so he grabs Marlena's hand but she makes everyone think he just wants her support. Tony then goes into cardiac arrest and dies in spite of Lexie's efforts. While she gives family and friends the news outside his cubicle, Tony's ghost sits up in his bed and vows to make Marlena pay for what she did. Later, guessing that he didn't die from his wounds from the tiger attack, Lexie orders an autopsy. Tony appears to Celeste and announces that it is up to her to find the killer, advising her that she knows who it is. Marlena senses she's upset and asks if she wants to talk with her but Celeste doubts that she would believe what she has to say. Meanwhile, Brady and Victor ask a nervous Nicole if she had anything to do with Tony's death and she claims she never got in to see him. While Nicole tries to flirt with Brady, Victor snoops in Tony's cubicle and finds Nicole's barrette. He shows it to Brady who finally realizes that Nicole's been lying to him all along. Belle and Shawn consider making love for the first time when they hear a noisy Rex and Mimi having sex next door. But the moment is ruined when they receive word about Tony. Rex decides to go to the hospital to apologize to Tony for his harsh words but then Belle and Shawn give him and Mimi the bad news about Tony.