On the Thursday, August 13, 2026, episode of “Beyond the Gates,” Smitty (Mike Manning) got shot down, Vanessa (Lauren Buglioli) continued to gal-pal with Heather (Ashley Jones) despite Joey’s warnings, and Andre (Sean Freeman) took beatings from the past and the present.
Hayley Was A Basket Case
Hayley (Marquita Goings) swept into Bill’s office at the firm and presented Caroline (Ellie Wang) with a fruit basket in thanks for performing CPR on Bill, which had saved his life. When Caroline placed Hayley’s meager basket next to Chelsea’s and Naomi’s supersized one, Hayley barely hid her annoyance.
Caroline asked about Bill, and Hayley stayed in beleaguered wife mode, sighing that Bill was trying to put on a brave face for everyone. Hayley told Caroline that she doubted Bill’s devotion, given that he had asked for Dani, not her, the moment he’d regained consciousness. Caroline advised Hayley to present her fruit basket to Bill with a loving note and not leave his side until he was released from the hospital. Hayley declared Caroline her best friend, which delighted Caroline – but Hayley rolled her eyes when Caroline hugged her.
From his bed at Garland, Bill (Timon Kyle Durrett) snarked that Andre must have gotten lost to end up in his room. Andre denied Bill’s claim that he was insecure about Dani dropping everything for him, remarking on how many times Bill’s “old ass” had needed to be hospitalized. “You shook, playa?” Bill taunted when Andre insisted that he would set boundaries regarding Dani once Bill recovered. Andre boiled when Bill said he had given Dani an incredible life, retorting that Bill had treated Dani like dirt; the beeping on Bill’s monitor increased so quickly that Ashley (Jen Jacob) rushed in to see what was wrong.
After Andre excused himself, Ashley followed him to the elevator and chastised him for agitating her patient. Andre was willing to apologize to Ashley but was still torqued that yet another person had taken Bill’s side. Ashley gently asked if everything was okay between him and Dani; Andre would only say that he wouldn’t be back to see Bill because he didn’t “need that bastard coding” because of him.
What’s Happening, Brother?
Randy (Maurice P. Kerry) reported to the casino and told Joey (Jon Lindstrom) what he had learned of Heather’s movements. When Joey wanted him to keep tailing his sister, Randy was curious whether he was still worried about Heather “working for that Impaler guy,” unaware that Heather was The Impaler. Across town, Heather joined Vanessa and Dani (Karla Mosley) at their table, where the trio got into a spirited conversation about how involved Dani should be in her ex-husband’s life.
Once Vanessa and Heather went their own ways, Dani thought back to her courtship with and wedding to Andre – then also flashed back to the chemistry she and Bill had retained after their divorce. Dani determinedly stood up and marched toward a destination known only to her.
Vanessa found Joey at the casino, where they discussed Bill’s condition. Joey said nothing when Vanessa compared him to Bill and decided that he would never lie to her face like Bill had with Dani. When Vanessa announced that she liked Heather, Joey was none too pleased. Yes, Heather could be disarming, Joey noted, but his sibling also had a heart of steel that could cut deep. Joey reminded Vanessa that Heather had first come to town intending to merge her business with his, and he didn’t think she had given up on that aim. In fact, Joey wondered just how far Heather was willing to go to achieve it.
Is It A Crime
As Samantha had taken Tyrell out following the family’s mock Banneker University party, Smitty suggested that he and Martin (Brandon Claybon) go upstairs for some romantic time together. Before the marrieds even reached their stairwell, Kat (Colby Nixon) came knocking with gifts to cheer up the heartbroken Tyrell. During the chat, Smitty received a message that he had been asked to appear on Deadly in the DMV, a new podcast, to speak about his articles relating to the Red Market.
Crime enthusiast Kat was thrilled, but when Martin’s campaign organizer, Shonda (Dawntavia Marrero), came over and heard the news, she actually forbade Smitty from going on the show. Everyone was taken aback, but Shonda explained that “Deadly in the DMV” was such a newcomer that no one knew enough about it. Plus, Shonda added, the invite could be a ploy to maneuver Smitty into uncomfortable questions about Martin’s re-election bid.
Martin looked concerned at first, but after the ladies left, he told his husband that he could do the podcast if he wanted to, despite Shonda’s apprehension. Smitty, Martin realized, had made enough sacrifices for the sake of his political ambitions. Appreciating Martin’s growth, Smitty told him that Shonda’s words made sense and that the guest spot wasn’t worth risking Martin’s campaign.
Meanwhile, at the country club, Heather lurked while Shonda reinforced her position that even the slightest media misstep could cause damage.
Monitoring Me
Dani arrived at the hospital, where Ashley told her that Andre had visited Bill. Before Ashley could even finish her sentence, Dani stomped into Bill’s room and demanded to know what he had said to her husband – particularly if he had blabbed about them having sex in the country club elevator the night of the tornado. Bill popped off that Andre was as “blissfully clueless” about their encounter as he was about everything else… and neither Bill nor Dani had noticed that the door to his room was ajar.
But Hayley didn’t seem to notice any incriminating conversation as she strode in with her fruit basket and made a show of kissing Bill. Hayley pretended she hadn’t seen Dani; then, after hearing from Ashley that Bill’s heart rate had spiked, Hayley accused Dani of upsetting her husband. Dani studied Hayley’s gift and droned that she’d give Hayley the name of the vendor they used, since the grapes in the basket had obviously been picked the week before.
After Dani left, Bill amusedly told Hayley about Andre’s visit. Hayley didn’t like that Andre had put a strain on Bill’s heart, but she did concede that Andre might have been right to be upset about the latest display of the connection between Bill and Dani.
A fuming Andre walked up to the bar at Uptown and ordered a double from Grayson (Jordi Vilasuso), having gotten a text reading “Soon” while in the hospital elevator. He drank more when he got the next message: “Behind you.” Andre looked around the bar but saw nothing or no one unusual, and Grayson could tell that Andre was irate, offering his ear as a bartender. Grayson understood why Andre would be unnerved by Bill rattling his cage and by the unknown texter Andre had referred to. As Andre continued to drown his sorrows, someone watched him from a hidden spot in the establishment.
Check out a clip from “Beyond the Gates” below.
