Young & Restless Shocker: The Dark Twist That Would Wreak Havoc With Victor’s Plan — and Leave the Entire Family in Jeopardy

Young & Restless’ Newman family seem to have the threat of Jordan well in hand, thanks to help from both Seth and Claire, but an unforeseen turn of events may not only leave them devastated, but terrifyingly vulnerable!

Escaped fugitive Jordan Howard appears to be walking right into the trap so neatly set by Victor Newman, who, as he told his attorney and fixer Michael Baldwin, thinks like the chess player he is and always manages to be several steps ahead. But the dark twist we fear may not be one that even he will see coming.

As we mentioned previously, Claire could play a huge role in the Newmans’ scheme to lure Jordan into a position where they she can be recaptured and sent back to prison to pay for her crimes. Claire claims to be all in, and to hate her aunt and what she did to her. There’s no reason not to believe what she’s saying, and her almost child-like desire to find love and acceptance, the way she lights up at the idea of meeting her siblings or being publicly acknowledged by the Newmans, bolsters the belief that she’s loyal to the family.

But what if Claire’s wide-eyed demeanor is just well-acted subterfuge covering up a dark secret?

We didn’t see Claire’s meeting with Jordan in the prison, neither did Cole and Victoria, so it’s possible that they worked out a plan. Sure, we saw Claire tell Jordan over the phone that she wished she was dead, but that call could have been a signal to Claire that Jordan was preparing to make her escape, while Claire’s reaction was designed to throw off anyone monitoring the call.

There haven’t been a lot of other hints that Claire may be hiding her true loyalties, but everything she was doing in the hospital could be taken as suspect. Co-operating in therapy sessions and cultivating a sweet relationship with the kids in the children’s ward may have been clever ploys to ensure that Memorial and the authorities would agree to release her early.

One couldn’t help but notice how eagerly she agreed to Victor’s plan for an early release. He was barely out of her hospital room when she asked the nurse to get Michael Baldwin on the line. Additionally, when Victoria expressed opposition to her father’s plan to have Claire leave the hospital, she called her ‘Mom’, which felt manipulative. Claire would know that using that word would make Victoria cave and go along with the plan, and it did.

We hate to think of what fate might be awaiting the Newman family if Claire suddenly turns on them during a showdown with Jordan — it would make them all extremely vulnerable and put their very lives in jeopardy!

It’s hard to think of the heartwarming story of Cole and Victoria finding their believed-dead daughter taking this type of dark turn, but it’s also hard to believe that a lifetime of programming could be undone so easily.

Is Claire on the up and up? If she’s not, will Victor have anticipated her dark secret? Let us know where you think this storyline is headed in the comments.