The Young and the Restless Recap February 16: Mariah Begs Forgiveness — Abby Says Never

TL;DR: Mariah confesses the trauma and hallucinations that led to taking Dominic and begs for forgiveness, but Abby refuses and bans her from ever being near her son again. Meanwhile, Tessa reaches her breaking point and tells Mariah she’s done being pushed away, so she left — and went straight into Daniel’s arms.

The Young and the Restless Recap Feb 16 

At the Chancellor mansion, Tessa told Devon and Abby she hadn’t spoken to Mariah yet but hoped treatment — not prison — would be her future. She insisted Mariah was sick, not evil, and expressed hope that Mariah could recover for Aria’s sake.

Abby asked if Tessa really believed that Mariah could recover from this. Tessa said that there is illness and there’s evil, and Mariah wasn’t evil. She was hopeful for Aria’s sake that Mariah could get better.Devon and Abby believed Dominic didn’t appear traumatized, but Abby admitted that if buried trauma surfaced later, she might never be able to forgive Mariah.

A Table For Two Daniel Romalottis

At the GCAC, Daniel and Danny caught up about Mariah, Dominic, and Tessa. Danny was worried that Daniel was bottling his emotions, but he insisted the situation with Dominic took precedence. Although he didn’t know what would happen with Mariah, he was sure that Tessa reciprocated his feelings.

“Right now, Mariah needs help, so right now Mariah needs Tessa,” Daniel surmised. Danny said it seemed like a long haul.

Later, Danny was talking about his honeymoon when Christine came in and gave them an update. Daniel went to find Mariah, but told them how glad he was that they were back. Once alone, Christine and Danny talked about Mariah and Tessa. Danny told Christine that his son had fallen in love.

Outside, Danny had just walked out the front door of Society when he saw Tessa walking towards him. She went straight into his arms to cry as he held her. “I don’t know what to do,” she said. “We’ll figure it out together,” Daniel soothed.

Mariah’s Day in Court

At Crimson Lights, Sharon changed the sign on the door to ‘closed.’ She thanked Christine for representing Mariah at court, and Christine told Mariah that she was proud of how honest she was during the psych evaluation.

Christine noted Mariah’s ankle bracelet and said she really needed her to play by the rules now. She told them she would focus on defense as they focused on Mariah’s recovery.

Christine wanted the court to understand that treatment, not incarceration, was the solution. Since Mariah sought help prior to the incident and she didn’t harm Dominic, they pled not-guilty.

Mariah told Sharon and Christine there was no defense for what she had done. She wanted to return to court and enter a guilty plea.

Mariah Explains Herself

At Crimson Lights, Christine praised Mariah for her honesty during her psychiatric evaluation and emphasized that treatment — not incarceration — was the goal. Despite pleading not guilty, Mariah insisted she wanted to change her plea.

Mariah tearfully confessed she felt broken after Ian’s return and Heather’s death. During a business trip, she met a man who reminded her of Ian and drunkenly believed killing him would erase her trauma. Though she didn’t actually kill him, the realization shattered her sense of self.

She checked herself into treatment, but hallucinations of Ian continued, guiding her actions until he suddenly disappeared, leaving her worse than before. Sharon assured her she was describing PTSD and promised she would get the right help.

Reunited…briefly

Just then, Tessa walked in behind them from the patio. Christine left, and Tessa asked if Sharon could give them a moment. Mariah told Tessa she must hate her.

“I hate what you’ve been through. I hate that you’ve been in so much pain, and I couldn’t help you,” Tessa cried. Mariah told her that she didn’t let her help.

Mariah asked about Aria, and Tessa told her that Aria was healthy. She asked Tessa how she was and whether Daniel had done as she asked and watched out for her.

Tessa said that Daniel had been a wonderful friend, and Mariah was glad because she needed friends and fun — but not her. Mariah told Tessa to move on with her life. 

Tessa said that it wasn’t just up to her, but Sharon had told Mariah about the divorce. Tessa noted that she kept telling Tessa what she wanted, instead of asking.

Mariah said she wasn’t asking what she needed because they both already knew: Tessa had filed for divorce. Tessa wished Sharon hadn’t told her, and wanted to be there for her now, but Mariah kept telling her no.

Tessa said she was lying but was tired of fighting the same conversation. 

“You need me, and yet you keep pushing me away like it’s been over for a long time. I know you’re hurting, but everything you say hurts me, too. So you don’t need to keep pushing me away — because I’m leaving,” she sobbed.

Abby Worries About Dominic

Back at the Chancellor mansion, Abby spiraled over what could have happened to Dominic. Devon and Abby shared their anger and unforgiveness after Tessa left. 

Abby said that, regardless of whether Dominic was okay or Mariah was ill, she was okay with them never seeing Dom again, and she couldn’t get past it.

Abby worked herself up into a frenzy of worry about what-ifs, but Devon assured her that if Dom needed it, they would always get him the help that he needed. 

Unwanted Guests

Devon and Abby were interrupted by a knock at the door. Abby was jaw-dropped when Devon returned with Sharon and Mariah.

Abby was livid and told Sharon that, since Mariah had been released into her care without their knowledge, she should have told her that coming over wasn’t a good idea.

Devon agreed, noting that Dom was upstairs. Mariah interrupted, anxiously insisting that she had to tell them how sorry she was. “I made a horrible mistake,” she admitted.

“No. It wasn’t one mistake. It was mistake after mistake, and every second that you had my little boy, you could have called us and told us that you had him. You could have brought him home, and you didn’t,” Abby seethed.

Mariah said she wouldn’t excuse it; she just wanted them to know that Dominic was never in danger. She tried to praise them as parents and assure them that she knew that with every fibre of her being.

Mariah said that it was probably too much to ask, but hoped that one day they could forgive her. 

Abby asked whether Mariah really came over to ask for forgiveness. She sarcastically asked if she was promising that she’d never take her son away from her again and make him call Mariah “Mommy.” 

Abby told Mariah to get out of their house and said she would never let her around her son — ever again.

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