The Young and the Restless spoilers: Nate and Amy fly to LA to meet Damian, and trip ends on a shocking note?

For the past couple of months, like many viewers of The Young and the Restless, we’ve been patiently waiting for Nate (Sean Dominic) to finally come face to face with his long-lost older brother Damian (who will be played by Nathan Owens beginning January 8).

From the moment it was teased that Amy Lewis (Valarie Pettiford) was returning to Genoa City after decades spent away, we had a suspicion that she was bringing news of an unknown sibling to Nate given Amy once dated his father. Then when Amy appeared and confirmed that Nate had a paternal older brother, we immediately started to speculate what Damian may be like. Based on the fact that Amy stated she often loses contact with her son and she first had to meet Nate to see if he was a good person before asking for his help to find Damian, she signaled to us that Damian is likely mysterious and a possible troublemaker.

Just to add, we considered how Damian might fit into Genoa City should he return. Devon (Bryton James) is likely to be leery of him, protective of his cousin Nate. However, Lily (Christel Khalil) may grow to find Damian charming and alluring, so it’s possible he may become her next great love (just a reminder, Nate and Lily are related on their maternal side and Damian is Nate’s paternal brother). Also, is there a chance that Damian already knows the leading lady in Nate’s life, Audra (Zuleyka Silver)?

But before we see what Damian is like and how he’ll fit on the soap’s canvas, he has to be found first. Well, in The Young and the Restless episode airing on December 19, Nate and Amy meet with private investigator Denise Tolliver (Telma Hopkins) at Crimson Lights, and Denise gives them a lead on Damian’s whereabouts. She gives them an address to Damian’s current residence in Los Angeles and advises them to go there quickly as Damian doesn’t stay in one place for too long.

With the news, Nate is ready to leave immediately, but Amy is a bit hesitant, thinking about how her son may react to the news that his biological father was really Nathan Hastings and that he has a brother. She also dreads telling him that she is dying. But Nate winds up convincing Amy to join him in LA, reminding her that now is the time to meet with Damian to make sure nothing is left unsaid.

Nate also wants someone else to join them on their trip to the West Coast. He sends a text to Audra inviting her. Although she hasn’t agreed to go yet, we suspect she’ll be along for the ride.

Having said all that, we think this trip to LA is going to be quite the adventure that ends on a chaotic note. For starters, we can imagine Damian being furious with his mother for lying to him his entire life. He may want to unload on her, but Nate may step in to discourage that, noting his mother is dying. Hearing about his mother’s prognosis could quickly change Damian's mindset.

We can also picture that when Nate and company find Damian, he’ll be caught up in some questionable circumstances. Is the reason that he’s in and out of contact with his mother because he’s been involved in some unsavory/criminal activity? It would be rather ironic if that’s the case because the father he never met was once involved in unsavory/criminal activity too.

So what’s the big shocker we are predicting to end this LA trip? We have three guesses. The first is that Amy actually dies before it’s all said and done. From our knowledge, the character wasn’t brought back to the soap for a long-term role, so it’s possible she succumbs to her illness any day now.

Our second guess is that Damian agrees to return to Genoa City, but not simply out of a need to connect with Nate. However, we believe there is a strong chance he heads to the Midwest to escape some dangerous people who are after him. Unfortunately, his escape plan doesn’t pan out the way he hopes, and he brings the danger with him back to town, placing his new family in harm’s way.

The last theory we have to offer is that Damian and Audra see each other and realize they aren’t strangers. Perhaps, they dated at some point in their past lives, but Damian went by a different name. Instead of either one of them coming clean to Nate, they hold onto the information, only for it to come out in the most explosive of ways later. Perhaps when Damian and Lily become involved.

There’s also the possibility that all three of our theories come true, and in that case, 2025 is going to start out with a bang for the Hastings/Winters clan.

New episodes of The Young and the Restless air on weekdays on CBS. If you miss an episode, you can catch up on Paramount Plus.