On the Wednesday, September 16, 2026, episode of “Beyond the Gates,” Vanessa (Lauren Buglioli) unburdened herself, Samantha (Najah Jackson) made the rounds, and Heather (Ashley Jones) ignored her big bro’s braggadocio.
What’s Up, Little Girl?
Samantha sat with Smitty (Mike Manning) as he combed through positive online comments about his Red Market articles – one had even been picked up by Slate. Samantha called her dad a hero, then went about taking over Tyrell’s closet, since he had gone away to college. Smitty asked her how she’d feel if her room was repurposed once she went to university, and she saw the point.
Making her way to Platinum Deb “duties” at the country club, Samantha stopped at Orphey Gene’s and ran into Eva (Ambyr Michelle), leading to the two discussing how Samantha, who had been given permission to make the trip to Tokyo with ChelseaKat for Fashion Week, now couldn’t go because of the sweatshop scandal with Takahashi. Samantha was bummed because she wanted an exciting life, but Eva smiled that her niece already had one – and that she should savor every moment of the day-to-day rather than just focus on the big ones.
Armed with that advice, Samantha went to the country club and visited Anita (Tamara Tunie), who was none too thrilled that her great-granddaughter wanted to spend the money she had received from family members on a conservation trip to Patagonia. Anita insisted that Samantha use the funds only for college-related purposes, but added that if Samantha excelled, she would pay for her to travel anywhere she wanted.
She’s Just A Crazy, Crazy, Crazy Little, Mixed-Up Dame
Leslie (Trisha Mann-Grant) sat with Eva at the mall, throwing shade when Eva told her that Izaiah had given Darlene the ChelseaKat purse he’d gotten from Kat. Eva scolded her mother for not being nicer to Izaiah’s mom, then was getting ready to leave when Leslie pouted that she didn’t want to be alone. Leslie said that having Marcel in her life was fine, but aside from Jan, who was busy with her own relationship, she didn’t have anyone to share girl talk with.
Eva predicted that Leslie would meet all kinds of people once she got to sit in on The Articulettes’ re-recording. Meanwhile, Anita got a call from producer Devon Winters in Genoa City, who let her know that Leslie, without consulting her, Tracy, or Sharon, had rescheduled the recording session. Furious, Anita summoned Leslie, reminding her that all she had been allowed to do was observe. Leslie snarked that she had contacted Devon because Anita might have purposely given her the wrong day to keep her from coming to the studio.
Leslie again chided Anita for allowing Barbara to be kicked out of the group, then smirked that she had invested much of the money Anita had set aside for Barbara’s family in the now-defunct account, so Anita couldn’t stop Leslie from moving up in the world. Anita accused Leslie of using The Articulettes for social status, but Leslie suddenly got real and said she had wanted in on the recording project so Eva could take pride in her natural grandmother being on the album — no one would snub Eva anymore after that, Leslie concluded. Anita refused to let Leslie run roughshod over the production…but agreed that she wouldn’t shut Leslie out of it, either. Leslie seemed touched.
It’s All About Being Free
Jacob (Jibre Hordges) was waiting on a San Francisco phone number connected to that city’s plasma ring organization, which he hoped would match his D.C. information and lead him to the Impaler. Elon (Malachi Malik) remarked that Izaiah would be stopping by later – he said he was looking forward to Izaiah’s arrival but didn’t stick around for when he actually showed up. When Izaiah (Lami) presented Darlene (Monique Mosee) with the ChelseaKat purse, she and Jacob were both initially suspicious about where he’d gotten such an expensive item, but he assured them that his friend Kat had gifted it to him, though it had originally been meant for Tomas.
Darlene referenced Dani before she turned the police station into a runway and worked it. Elon returned and was happy to see his wife and two of his sons getting along, though he barely said a word to Izaiah. After Izaiah abruptly decided to leave, Darlene told Elon that she missed having all three of their sons at home, and Elon agreed. Darlene implored Elon to be proud of each of the boys, and he didn’t seem opposed to the idea.
Izaiah later met with Eva, who was happy with his report that bantering with Jacob and Darlene had been “like old times.” He didn’t mention Elon, but Eva was glad that Izaiah was getting close to his family again and was certain Elon wouldn’t be far behind. Izaiah beamed when Eva added that she had no issues with him giving his mother a purse that had come from Kat.
Everybody’s Going Uptown
Vanessa and Randy (Maurice P. Kerry) sat awkwardly as Joey (Jon Lindstrom) gave Heather dirty looks over the intel Randy had just whispered into his ear. Heather cracked jokes, and when Vanessa excused herself, Joey had Randy walk her out so he could speak to his sister privately. Joey roared that he had explicitly instructed Heather not to infringe on his territory, but she retorted that she had bought a legitimate business: Uptown.
Heather assured Joey that her having acquired the establishment didn’t mean she was staying in D.C. Joey remained incensed and demanded that his sister not step out of line. “Don’t make me hurt you,” he warned.
Back at the mall, Vanessa tried to get Randy to share his insights about Joey and Heather, but he declined. Talk turned to Deanna and how she had nearly skipped a semester of college; Randy recalled how important education had been to Doug and noted that it was Doug’s own schooling that had gotten him out of their bad neighborhood. Still feeling guilty about not being there for Doug the night he died, Vanessa confided to Randy that she had actually been with Joey in Puerto Rico, which she had never told anyone. Randy recalled the McBrides’ unusual marriage and advised her to ease up on herself.
I Don’t Usually Talk To Strangers
Kat (Colby Nixon) visited with Anita; they exchanged stories about the trouble with Takahashi and Leslie horning in on The Articulettes’ re-release. After Kat sniffed that Leslie was taking from Anita the way Eva had taken from her – meaning the piece of her liver – Anita changed the subject to Kat’s new condo but became concerned when Kat blithely stated that she was alone most nights because Tomas was so busy. Anita praised the strength of Kat’s instincts and encouraged her to apply them to Tomas and their relationship, prompting Kat to deflect and take her leave.
Smitty was approached by Kat at Uptown; they discussed the notoriety he was gaining from his articles and how he wanted to maintain the status quo. “Bradley, don’t play!” Kat laughed, congratulating her brother-in-law. Moments later, Heather found Smitty and apologized for talking to his children, which had upset Nicole; Smitty was rattled when Heather introduced herself and revealed that she was Joey’s sister.
At the precinct, Elon informed Jacob that Smitty had been seen with Max, his former informant in the blood plasma ring who was supposed to be in the Witness Protection program, on security footage — one day before Lia had been found dead in her jail cell. Moreover, the video had captured Smitty accepting a “purple pouch” from Max, which had been in Lia’s possession the day of her death. Both Jacob and Elon were at a loss to explain why Smitty had needed anything from Max before visiting Lia.
Beyond The Gates: Clip Of The Day
Check out a clip from today’s episode below.
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