In March 2007, the Blackmailer terrorizes everyone in Harmony by threatening to expose their darkest secrets, originally collected by tabloid reporter J.T. Cornell. It is revealed that Pilar herself has a "horrible" secret of which her entire family is unaware; Gwen soon finds out, and uses it against her. Divorced from Ethan but wanting him back, Gwen pressures Pilar to convince Theresa to stay away from Ethan, and to keep the secret from Ethan that Theresa's son Little Ethan is actually Ethan's. Pilar hints that the exposure of her secret will guarantee her children's deaths. On November 12, 2007, Gwen tells her mother Rebecca Hotchkiss that she just wants to keep Ethan and Theresa apart, not reveal Pilar's secret; Rebecca, however - no fan of Pilar or Theresa - has already told the mysterious "white-haired woman" hunting Pilar that the Lopez-Fitzgerald family is in New England.