Salemites say goodbye to John Black in a loving and touching ceremony with a few twists. Kate and EJ get at the booze at the Brady Pub, and Tony and Anna berate Stefano.
Marlena is down by the docks, remembering the last time she and John met after she was presumed dead. She hears a noise and asks, "Is that you?" Roman comes out of the darkness and asks if she's ready for the funeral. Marlena starts to cry and says she can't say goodbye to him. Roman remembers when John told him about the night that Marlena appeared to him on the dock years ago. He tells her he had a feeling she'd come back to look for the same miracle. Marlena admits she's waiting for him to reach out for her the way he did when he was in the coma. Since her family needs her, Roman convinces her that she can do it and can rely on everyone's strength.
Bo and Hope arrive at the church and are shocked by how beautiful the casket is set up, with an American flag draped over it, photos of John alone and John with Marlena. Hope asks the father where everything came from, and he tells them they came from Vivian Alamain, who says that though she didn't feel she would be welcomed back to Salem, she wanted to ensure John had a proper burial. She paid for it all.
Stefano is in his hospital room reading the news about John Black's death when Tony walks in with a bottle of wine that he was saving for a dinner with John and Marlena. He thinks Stefano may want it to toast to his brother's death. Stefano asks him to go away. He doesn’t have time for his accusations but Tony tells him John's his problem. "You think you finished something last night, that you had the last word?" He goes on to tell him that once the tears have all dried, the Bradys will come after him with all they've got. Stefano says it warms his heart to know he cares but Tony chuckles and says as far as he's concerned, Stefano's already dead. That Tony keeps calling John his brother angers Stefano and he thinks Tony and Lexi will make good friends, considering they both have insulted the family. Anna comes to collect Tony and tells Stefano he deserves all he gets.
Later on, Stefano angrily calls for a limo.
Family gathers at the pub and Belle tells Sami that Brady and Chloe are snowed in and can't make it. Eric's not coming either, says Sami. Doug says the whole vendetta thing has gone out of control and Steve agrees, remembering he was the one who took John back to Salem. "I never figured that he'd end up being one of my best friends," he says sadly while Kayla hugs him.
Stephanie apologizes to Abe for his loss and Lexi thanks her. Celeste thinks John will be a very restless soul.
Jett asks Chelsea where Nick is and finds out that he's home with the kids. He didn't know John well.
Arriving late to the pub, Lucas runs into EJ and yells, "What are you doing here?" EJ says he came to repay his respects, and sets Lucas off. He belts EJ in the gut and EJ goes down, while Kate, Abe, Doug, Steve and Sami run outside to tell EJ to get lost and have some respect.
Belle and Shawn arrive at church where Belle says another tear filled goodbye to her father. Shawn hugs her while Hope enters the church to comfort Belle.
Lexi arrives, lights a candle and she and Abe take their seat with Celeste.
Philip, Billie and Chelsea arrive at the church and sit with Doug and Julie.
Roman arrives with Marlena and Maggie and Belle goes to her mother for a hug, while Sami, Lucas and Will take their seats next to them. The Father starts his prayers. Caroline and Shawn Sr. are seated across from them. An uninvited Victor makes an appearance and says though he's sure he wasn't welcomed, he admits he could have handled the whole thing with Claire differently and can't hope to match how John was a man of honor and conviction. Flashbacks ensue. Victor says John took his name from a sign at the midnight mission and even having no real name, he had courage. "I will miss him." He says and wishes he could make things right. Shawn Sr. stands up and thanks Victor.
Caroline gets up to talk and says they considered John their son and an honorary Brady. She kisses his casket, kisses it and through tears tells him, "We will miss you son."
Hope gets up and says John was everyone's hero and that he came to her rescue more times than she can remember. She wanted to be a pillar of strength but breaks down mid-sentence and apologizes to John that she can't be strong. "Not when I've lost my brother." She sobs and Bo comes to her to hold her.
Anna gets up to speak and tells the family that Carrie, who always thought of John as another father, could not be there. Anna says she wishes she could have shared some of Carrie's memories and that John raised a better daughter than she ever could and she'll always be grateful.
Abe tells the family he has seen John's courage, determination and love for his family. Abe is emotional as he speaks and we see another flashback to the past. Abe says he's proud to call John a friend and that though John wasn't officially a police officer, in recognition of his time as captain of the Salem PD, he is proud to say that he'll be buried with full policeman's honors. He salutes John's casket.
At the pub, Kate and EJ get into the alcohol and Kate says she's surprised EJ isn't at the church considering this is what he wanted. She reminds him of putting a bullet in John last year but EJ denies it and blames Andre. Kate is surprised that after all his brainwashing, he fell for a Brady. She tells him John didn’t' deserve to die and asks him not to be blinded with hatred.
Belle leaves a finger painting that Claire made for John, near his casket and promises she'll tell Claire all about John. "She'll be as proud of you as I am," she says, then sobs.
Sami goes to the podium and says she never would have thought she'd be giving a eulogy because in the past she and John didn't get along well. She calls John a caring, loving, forgiving man, a good friend, a heroic father…"I can only begin to tell you how lucky I am to have two wonderful fathers," she says through tears. She thanks him for always being there for her, hers sister and especially for her mom. "But now I'm going to be there for you. Your death will count for something, I promise," she whispers.
Roman gets up to the podium and says he's sure nobody had a stranger relationship with John than he, since they shared a name, family and a life. He makes the family smile as he takes them down memory lane with and remembers how when he came home angry to Salem to find there was a new Roman Brady who had taken his place, but that John came to him and said he'd step aside. Roman thinks John had class and says if anyone was ever going to have his name, "I am honored it was you!"
Marlena thanks everyone for coming, saying he touched so many lives. "Here I am my love. I'm having a hard time finding the words to say what you meant to me. You knew, you always knew you were my life, my everything, my friend, my confidant, my lover, my gem. You were my knight in shining armor," she says, but stops talking when Stefano arrives in a wheelchair!
Next on Days Of Our Lives:
Stefano says, "I've come to pay my respects." Marlena screams, "Get out!"
Phillip yells at Steve and Kayla, "My son has been poisoned and you're worried about your wife's hurt feelings?" Steve, hits him!
Lucas admits, "I'm saying you're right. I guess you have to marry EJ."
