For more than 40 years, "Days of our Lives" has included a plethora of strange and twisted storylines -- but this time they may have outdone themselves, as the show's highest ratings in history prove. It turns out "Days'" serial killer's victims may have longer to live than you think.

NBC's "Days" wouldn't be the same if it weren't for Deidre Hall's portrayal of the compassionate Dr. Marlena Evans for the past two decades. But in a recent twist, fans were shocked to find out that Hall was Salem's serial killer, murdering everyone from Maggie Horton to Roman Brady.

"It was shocking because our first death was Jim Reynolds who plays Abe; he's been part of our group for years. And then we found out that I was the killer," Hall laughed. "Great, fine."

But if you thought the Salem stalker was a wild storyline, Deidre says "Days" fans are in for even bigger surprises before the Olympics. "We will spend the week of Friday the 13th giving you a full week of storyline cliffhangers, the sort of season-ending cliffhangers for all the storylines," Hall revealed. "So every family, every group, every couple will have a cliffhanger. Then you go watch Olympics for two weeks then you rejoin us on August 30th."

In true soap opera fashion, it seems that Deidre was never really cut out to be a killer, and her victims are actually alive and well. "This storyline, when you discover that everyone was not dead, was only the jumping off place of the whole story," Hall told us.

You can sort out all the details for yourself this week on "Days of our Lives." And for more on Deidre Hall and the latest killer plot twists, don't miss Monday's edition of "Extra."