General Hospital Dec. 9: Valentin’s High-Stakes Plea To [Spoiler] Changes Everything

Quiet day in Port Charles, which in soap math usually means the mess is brewing off-screen. The manhunt for Valentin is still on, Sonny and Laura are cornered by a guy named Sidwell, and ADA Turner finally tips her hand about what she’s really up to. Here’s how the Dec. 9 episode shakes out.

Britt wakes up to a reality she doesn’t want to discuss

Britt comes to, confused and nursing a hangover, and finds Jason quietly parked by her bedside. He walks her through the previous night, but when he gently brings up the meds he helped her with, she shuts the conversation down. He backs off, reassures her, and heads out. Minutes later, Marco shows up at her place with a not-so-subtle reminder: time to get back to work at the lab.

Drew’s memory is still Swiss cheese

Willow brings Drew to Alexis’s office. Drew wants the room cleared, but Willow says Suzanne can stay. Alexis presses him to revisit the night he was shot. Nothing useful comes back. They talk through next steps, and Drew agrees, but it’s very much against the grain for him.

Laura regrets a call, Sonny plays strategist

Laura’s beating herself up for asking Sonny to help with Dalton’s body, because now Sidwell has leverage over him. Sonny isn’t rattled. He tells her they’ll find a way out and, for now, she needs to play along with whatever Sidwell wants.

ADA Turner stops pretending (well, almost)

Turner tracks down Mac to ask the big question: could Sonny have killed Dalton? Mac doesn’t hedge. It’s entirely possible. Later, Turner tells Molly the quiet part out loud: she’s being nice to Sonny on purpose, hoping he slips and gives her something incriminating. Subtle? Not really. Effective? We’ll see.

Valentin keeps hiding, but he has a plan for Charlotte

Valentin is still a wanted man and, yes, he’s holed up at Carly’s. He asks her to reach Anna for him, but Carly can’t do it — Anna’s out of town. Plan B: he hands Carly a key wrapped in a blue ribbon and asks her to get it to Charlotte.

Meanwhile: Dalton’s gone, and the rumors point to Sonny

Lulu, Nathan, and Dante compare notes on Dalton’s sudden disappearance and float the obvious theory that Sonny might be involved. Carly swings by Lulu’s place but bounces early when Jack shows up. On her way out, she leaves that ribboned key right where Charlotte can find it without anyone having to spell it out.