At Newman Media, Chelsea wants Adam to go with her to grab dinner. Adam holds up his finger and leaves a voicemail for his father that he needs to talk to him… it’s important. Chelsea asks, “Did something big happen?”
Adam needs to talk to Victor. He doesn’t know if he’s giving him the cold shoulder because he didn’t trash Billy, or if he’s just not getting his messages. Chelsea points out he’s in Nice, not on Mars. Adam says if he’s ignoring his messages, it’s to his own detriment. Chelsea warns that he’s scaring her. Adam says someone is making big moves in Genoa City. He’s afraid it’s Aristotle Dumas.
Phyllis Seizes the Moment
In the maze, Amanda asks Cane how his talk with Victor went. He snarks that he wasn’t exactly receptive. She sits and says she’s sorry it didn’t go as he hoped. He thanks her for arranging all of this. Amanda teases that she loves a party. It’s a relief not to have to keep his identity a secret anymore. Cane says the Dumas alias served its purpose. Amanda senses he’s keeping more secrets. Should she be worried about that?
Cane tells Amanda that he has a few other surprises in store for his guests. She asks if he cares to share. He’ll spare her. Cane asks her about his guests’ reaction to his reveal. Amanda says they were all shocked but Victor. They finally got the answer to “who is Dumas” and now they have more questions. They go over Lily not being happy. Amanda warns this is a lot… for anyone. Cane thinks she just needs more time to process. Amanda tells him women don’t like the truth being kept from them. Cane complains that Devon’s urging her to leave. Amanda’s not surprised. Looking up, he says there’s a storm coming. It may be his only way to keep Lily there. “I need her here.”
Amanda snickers about him praying to the Gods of thunder to keep Lily there. Swerving to Victor, she wonders if his refusal was a negotiating tactic. Cane is committed to acquiring Chancellor and still has a few cards up his sleeve. Amanda doesn’t want to be shut out. She’s there to protect him from going all in on a game he can’t possibly win. She warns him not to underestimate Victor. Cane says he won’t, but Victor’s underestimating him. Phyllis appears. “I would never do that to you.”
Amanda hopes she wasn’t eavesdropping. Phyllis was just walking around and heard voices. She’s all about respecting privacy. Cane snarks, “Since when?” Phyllis asks if they can talk. He’d rather wait until tomorrow. She pushes for 15 minutes, pointing out he wouldn’t have allowed her to come if he didn’t want to work with him in some capacity. She can relate to him feeling people underestimate him. Cane agrees to give her 10 minutes. “Make it very good.”
Phyllis decides to make them a drink first and chatters about how impressive this Aristotle Dumas thing was… she assumes he wants to come back to Genoa City now. She warns the power has shifted there. Cane asks what she’s offering. She’s offering her expertise to help him navigate the landmines. She’ll help him re-integrate into Genoa City. Cane says it would be temporary. Phyllis knows what he wants. “You want Chancellor.” Cane’s irked and wonders who told her. Phyllis won’t reveal her source. He asks what she’d do to help him get it. Phyllis tells him if she’d been running it, Jill never would have had to sell it. Cane realizes she’s fallen out with Billy. Phyllis says this is about what’s best for Chancellor, which is her.
Phyllis tells Cane that she has the killer instinct to run Chancellor. Victor’s handed it to Nikki to play CEO. The first thing she would do is hire Amanda. Cane finds it interesting that they’ve discussed this. Amanda thinks her friend is a little desperate after all she’s been through. Phyllis denies it. There’s no fear in her. She’s bold, fearless and intrepid. Amanda assures Cane she loves her job. He tells her she’d make an excellent executive. Phyllis tells Cane that he should make a bold move to acquire Chancellor and put them in charge. Cane’s sorry… but if he went after Chancellor, it would be with a very different end game in mind.
Phyllis asks what Cane’s end game is, but he’s not about to say. She vows his secret will die with her. She insists she has intel to take over the company he wants. Cane admires her directness and her ambition, as well as her fearlessness. Maybe there is a place for her in his organization, but he’s going to sleep on it. He’s going to turn in. Phyllis looks forward to their next talk. Once he’s gone, Amanda asks Phyllis what the hell is wrong with her. She jeopardized her job. “Do you ever think about anyone other than yourself?!”
Damian Distracts Lily
In her bed in the train car, Lily tosses and turns, unable to sleep. She flashes to meeting with Cane in California and telling him to stay away from their kids if he’s associating with Colin. Cane argues that he wants to see his grandchildren… the man is sick. Besides, Charlie and Mattie can make their own choices. Lily says they don’t trust him. If Cane is showing such bad judgment, he shouldn’t be around the kids either. Cane pounds the table and hollers. Calming, he asks her to give him the benefit of the doubt. “Don’t you at least owe me that?” Lily sighs, gets out of bed and puts on her robe.
Lily finds Damian in the lounge, and he thinks he knows what, or who, is keeping her awake. They discuss Dumas being Cane. He’s just another guy to Damian, but was a whole lot more to Lily. She admits she was blindsided by her ex-husband. He and Devon were right, and they should leave in the morning. Damian thought Cane might convince her to stay. Lily says the talk was a complete waste of time. He does want another chance with her, and she doesn’t want him to think it’s a possibility.
Damian’s glad Lily’s decided to head home. They joke about him not liking the maze. Lily tells him that she doesn’t know who Cane is anymore. Damian thinks he operates differently from Dumas. Lily was lying awake trying to reconcile her memories with where they are now. Cane is becoming more and more like his dad. She apologizes for putting all of this on him. Damian’s happy to listen. She doesn’t want to talk about Cane anymore. Damian asks what he can do to take her mind off her troubles.
Damian goes to get something from the cabinet and finds a knife collection. Holding one, he says they’re beauties. Putting it back, Lily asks what he has in mind. Damian finds the playing cards and they decide to play poker. Damian asks if she wants to play for money. She says, “Of course.” As they play, Lily keeps beating Damian. He tells her he played a lot of cards growing up. This leads to talk about his parents, who always kissed and made up. He asks if she played games growing up. She says she and Devon played Monopoly, as did she and Cane. Damian thinks that sounds like Cane, who owns a lot of properties. They play another hand, and she wins again. Damian suggests they play something more his speed.
Damian and Lily start playing Go Fish and he wins repeatedly. They banter as she tells him she’s the better strategist. She thanks him for taking her mind off of things. Despite the maze, Damian’s having a really good time. “Thank you, Lily.” She doesn’t want the night to end like this, so they decide to play one more hand. When he wins, they banter a little more. Lily says she’s heading back to bed and will pack first thing. He assures her he, Devon and Abby will be right there with her. Smiling, they tell each other goodnight
Adam Uncovers Concering Information
In Society, Adam keeps looking at his phone. Chelsea wants to know what’s going on. Adam’s worried about what Dumas might do to his father. Chelsea asks what has him so unsettled. Adam just got confirmation that someone has been buying up all the commercial properties within walking distance of Newman Enterprises, Jabot Cosmetics, and Chancellor Industries. The holding company is also buying up condos in the area. His investigator found out the holding company is owned by Dumas’ Arabesque. Chelsea asks why he’d do this. Adam thinks Victor might know what he’s up to.
If Adam can’t reach Victor, it’s up to him to figure out Dumas’ intentions. Chelsea says, “You mean it’s up to us.” Adam can’t reach Nick or Sharon either. Chelsea wonders if Dumas made them hand in their phones. Adam opines that he may not want them to know what he’s up to while they’re away. Chelsea hopes this can wait until morning. Adam says it will have to and they toast.
Chelsea tells Adam that Conner wants to have a Fourth of July party at the ranch. He plans to invite his whole soccer team and even some girls. Adam marvels that he’s come a long way. Chelsea notices him checking his phone again and reminds him everyone is asleep in France. Adam has to alert his father about this potential threat. Chelsea suggests they try to figure out what Dumas is up to. Victor will be pleased. Adam muses that maybe they could even stop Dumas.
Chelsea thinks he’s shown his cards by buying up the real estate. She says Victor seemed to know who Dumas was, but he wouldn’t tell her. Adam thinks it would help to know who they’re dealing with. Chelsea says this is starting to feel like an Agatha Christie novel. They puzzle over Dumas’ motives for buying the properties. Adam thinks it’s all about the location… you surround an enemy before you go in for the kill. They marvel that Victor never saw this coming. He’d never have allowed this. It’s a major move. Whatever Dumas’ endgame is, it’s clear he’s bringing it to Genoa City.
