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Ava has a nightmare that Harris has found out the truth about her role in Clyde’s drug smuggling operation, and is taken aback when he shows up at her door in the flesh.
“Ava feels stuck; stuck between a rock and a hard place as the saying goes,” sets up Tamara Braun (Ava). “She’s been trying to change her life and walk the straight and narrow, and Clyde has dragged her back into a life she wanted to leave behind. She wants to tell Harris, but she is worried about Tripp. She can’t risk it, and therefore she’s in a horrible position.”
Harris gives Ava a gift that he claims he bought before their breakup. The couple resists their attraction for one another, but Harris vows to fight for her. “It’s terribly hard for Ava to deny her feelings and send Harris away,” contends Braun. “She’d rather fall in bed with him and continue their relationship. But that can’t happen if she wants Tripp to be safe.”
Later, Ava and Stefan are summoned to await a shipment from Clyde. Ava flips when Stefan says he asked EJ for help dealing with Clyde. “Ava doesn’t trust EJ,” says Braun, noting that EJ “hates Ava and would love to have any reason to lock her up. Now he has it. She feels that Stefan just put them in a dangerous position.”
When the drug delivery arrives just as Harris shows up, the duo is forced to cover. Stefan makes an excuse to take the delivery inside, leaving Ava to face Harris, who accuses her of lying. She thinks it’s about the drug shipment, but when she learns Harris thinks she lied about why they broke up, and that she and Stefan are an item, Ava claims he’s right. “Yeah, it’s a bullet dodged, but it pains her to have to lie to Harris about that,” sighs Braun. “It breaks her heart. But she has to do what she has to to protect her kid. It’s a great and convenient cover.”
Harris warns Ava to be careful as she leaves to meet Tripp and Wendy for Christmas dinner. However, the holiday cheer quickly fades: Ava and Stefan learn that two kids died from an overdose of drugs laced with fentanyl, and pray that it isn’t on them. “It just keeps getting worse,” sums up Braun. “But here is another saying, ‘What a tangled web we weave, when we practice to deceive.’ ”
Does Ava consider going to the cops and asking for help, now that innocent children have died? “She’s always thinking about telling Harris,” says Braun. “But she keeps getting in deeper and deeper.”
Ava ends up telling Stefan that she told Harris they’re having an affair. Although Stefan is upset at first, he quickly agrees it’s the perfect cover. “They do start to bond,” shares Braun. “Better to fight Clyde than each other.” Still, the actress proclaims, “Ava’s heart is with Harris.”
