♪ Dan: Previously on Relative Race.

A golden ticket allowed Angie to finally be reunited with her biological mother.

- I've been waiting for this for 39 years.

Angie: 39 years.

Dan: Jose was surprised with new cousins and a traditional family dinner.

Rachelle met her third sibling on her dad's side.

Rachelle: Hearing the words, "I'm your sister," I was blown away because I didn't even know I had another sibling.

Dan: Layton took aim with her uncle, Shawn.

Layton: It's nice to be able to meet him and then kind of share this passion.

Kyle: Ni-i-i-ice!

Shawn: Nice!

[boom] Dan: Rachelle and Karim moved one step closer to elimination.

You have picked up your second strike.

- Yeah.

I wasn't surprised.

- Not at all.

Dan: And Team Red won the prize of moving up one place in today's results.

- Guaranteed to Day 10.

Dan: DNA tells us who we are and where we came from.

Following their own DNA, four teams are racing... Karim: Woo!

- Here we go!

Dan: ...to win $50,000... - We're here!

We made it!

Dan: ...and to find their family.

[knocking on door] [theme music] ♪ Dan: It's Day 8 of Relative Race, and our remaining three teams have made it seven long days on the road, with thousands of miles behind them, and still racing towards the grand prize of $50,000.

Today, Team Blue begins their day in Social Circle, Georgia.

Rachelle and Karim currently have two strikes.

One more, and their journey will come to an end.

- We've got two strikes, but it's still anyone's game.

- We just need to keep doing our best, and, it'll take us to the end.

Dan: In Taos, New Mexico, Team Black, Kyle and Layton, wake up with one strike.

Layton: Our journey on Relative Race has always been about family, never the money.

- Yeah.

But as we get to the final day, I think we wanna win it.

Dan: And in Palm Desert, California, Team Red, Tiffani and Jose, have one strike as well but are now guaranteed to make it to Day 10, thanks to a first-place finish yesterday.

- Winning that first-place prize of moving up one position in today's results is big.

We're guaranteed to go to Day 10.

- But we're not gonna let our foot off the gas.

We're playing to win.

♪ Layton: So this morning, I had to say goodbye to my Uncle Shawn, and, like every day, it's sad to say goodbye, but knowing that I'm gonna meet somebody else at the end of the day is motivation enough.

- So happy for you, so happy to meet you, I'm, I'm so happy to have you a part of my life now, and I'm super excited, like, it's just, I'm so happy for you.

Layton: It's awesome.

Yesterday at the shooting range, my Uncle Shawn gave me his sniper graduation bullet from when he graduated from sniper school.

It was just a really nice gift, and it does mean a lot to me, and, it just means that I have to go shooting more and kind of live up to the family name.

- Sounds good.

- Will you take a polaroid of us before we go?

- Yeah, of course!

No problem.

Right, step up there.

Bend, just like that.

You guys look so happy together.

Shawn: [chuckles] ♪ - Meeting and hanging out with Uncle Shawn has been really, really good and heartwarming, but it makes me excited and hopeful that I'll be able to meet my biological father, Bryon, along these next couple days.

[latin-style guitar] Jose: Since we're not letting up today, we got up early to go over all possible routes out of town with my cousin, Cindy.

- I bring these burritos of machaca and beans.

It's a tradition for the family.

The, they, they send it with, for the, for the wait.

[laughs] Tiffani: Oh, thank you.

- We always send our family away with burritos.

You guys have a full stomach.

- Yeah.

Tiffani: We, we appreciate it 'cause it's, uh, it's so much like home, so, thank you.

- You're welcome.

Jose: We can use that on the road.

- Yes, definitely.

Cindy: [laughs] Jose: Yeah, this is something I'm very familiar with.

No matter who I'm visiting, whether it be an aunt, my mom, even my sisters, very typical of them to get up early, start making the breakfast, and get everybody ready for the day.

That's gonna be gone, like, half of that, before we hit the freeway.

- [laughs] Tiffani: Yeah.

This is probably mine.

I'd better claim them now, 'cause, 'cause he's gonna eat the rest.

♪ [tranquil guitar music] Dan: In Social Circle, Georgia, Rachelle spends her morning with her older sister, Teah.

- So I have a little gift for you before you leave.

Rachelle: Oh!

Teah: This morning, I'm just enjoying making breakfast with my sister, Rachelle.

I have a special gift I wanna give my sister, um, something from the heart, something that I think will connect, actually me, her, and Kenisha.

- Wow.

- It says sister here, then there's a charm that hangs off that says sis.

Rachelle: Oh!

This is beautiful.

- And Kenisha has one and I have one, so, that's one way we'll be connected.

Rachelle: Yes.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

I gotta, I wanna put it on.

- Okay, so let's.

- The bracelet my sister gave me was very meaningful because it said sister on it, and she also told me that her and Kenisha also had a bracelet, and, that just kind of solidified our sister bond.

Teah: That's a easy, little, tighten it up.

Do it as tight or as loose as you want.

- It's so beautiful.

Ah!

It's so nice, Teah, thank you.

- You're welcome, you're welcome.

- Thank you so much.

Teah: I gave her something that reminded her that she's a sister now.

She'll be able to look at that every day.

- I've never, you know, had a sibling, so, it was really nice having a sister that reallly cared enough to give me something to remember her and to also have and hold forever.

♪ [phone notification] Jose: "Good morning, teams..." Kyle: "...welcome to Day 8 of Relative Race."

Jose: "Team Red will be travelling to Lake Havasu City, Arizona."

- "Team Blue will be travelling to Atlanta, Georgia."

Okay.

- "Team Black will be travelling to Santa Fe, New Mexico."

- "Today's first-place prize... - "...is to penalize all other teams... - "...at tomorrow's challenge."

Jose: "Your time... - "...starts now."

Teah: Oh wow.

- Woo!

Oh, we know how to get here, there from here.

Awesome!

Thank you so much, thank you, thank you.

Cindy: You're welcome.

Tiffani: Coming off our win yesterday, we're feeling pretty confident.

We are guaranteed to go to Day 10.

Jose: We're gonna go for it, no matter what.

Karim: Come on, we gotta go!

Rachelle: I'm comin', I'm comin'!

Karim: Today, it's either first or go home.

We have to bring it.

I'll meet you at the car.

Rachelle: Okay.

Kyle: So, we've already been to Santa Fe once, so going back there again is gonna be super easy and is gonna be a big benefit for us.

- And with our trusty chicken... [chicken squeaks] ...we're ready for anything.

- Oh yeah.

Thank you, Shawn.

Shawn: All right, bye, you guys.

Drive safe!

Rachelle: [high-pitched sigh] Let's go!

- I was gonna leave you.

Rachelle: You was.

- Bye, thank you!

[engines rumble] ♪ Kyle: Blue skies for days.

It's just a beautiful day in New Mexico right now.

- It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood.

- In da neighborhood?

- In the neighborhood.

- Oh, it's a beautiful day in da neighborhood.

- In da neighborhood?

- Da neighborhood.

Dan: It's a beeee-autiful day for Team Black as they return to Santa Fe, New Mexico.

They'll have to take a city selfie, complete a common challenge, and find their relative, all in an allotted time of 1 hour and 30 minutes.

♪ - Hopefully today will not be a traffic day.

- Hope— - Well, not a heavy traffic day.

- Exac— - Well, actually, you know what?

Hopefully today will not be a, no accident.

Rachelle: Exactly.

No accidents today.

Karim: Today, we can't have anything slow us down or get in our way.

We've got two strikes, and we ain't lookin' for the third!

- Period!

Dan: Hoping to avoid a repeat of yesterday, Team Blue remains in Georgia as they depart Social Circle for Atlanta.

They have the shortest allotted time of the day at 44 minutes.

♪ Tiffani: Well, hopefully, it, it pans out for us.

I mean, either way, we're not gonna get a strike, but we need another team to get another strike, and we also need to get first place so we can penalize the other two teams.

- Man, that's gonna be awesome.

- Yeah.

- If we can pull that off.

- We wanna show up to Day 10 and only have to go up against one team.

Dan: It's no more Mr. Nice Guys for Team Red as they strategize on their way to Lake Havasu City, Arizona.

They have the longest allotted time at 3 hours and 8 minutes.

♪ [reflective music] [ringtone] Rachelle: Yeah, oh.

- Oh, shoot.

We got a phone call.

Hello?

- Hello?

Charles: [on phone] Hello, Rachelle.

- Hiii!

Hi Mom, hi Dad!

Good, how are you?

Today, um, I received a call from my adoptive parents, and I was so surprised.

Oh!

I'm so happy that y'all called!

Aw, I miss you guys, too.

It just made me really feel good, and I really wanted to go out and do well today because, I don't know, I wanted to make them proud.

Natalie: I'm so proud of both of you for goin' on this journey together, and I hope that will tighten the bond between you two cousins.

- Yes, yes it has, for real.

This has been a great journey for both of us.

Karim: Hearing 'Chelles' adoptive parents on the phone today, I think it just gave her extra boost to remember that their support is still real, from her adoptive family.

Charles: You guys stay safe out there.

- All right.

Y'all keep us in y'all prayers.

Charles: All right.

Natalie: Oh yes.

Every morning and every night, we do pray that all will be well, and the answers, uh, will be what you've been wishing and hoping for, and, um, just remember why you started this, and it's about knowing where you came from and be, are, and who else is out there in this world that love you also.

- Yes.

And you would be proud to know that everyone I've encountered has just showered me in love and has welcomed me so, so much, and even, you know, you guys, so.

Charlie: I'm excited for you, Rachelle.

- Yeah, it's been a beautiful journey.

I can't wait to share it with you guys.

You'll be so excited to hear all the family I've met.

It was very uplifting to speak to my parents, especially after yesterday, receiving our second strike, it really just kinda remotivated me.

Natalie: Love you.

Buh-bye.

- Mm-bye.

[beep] Oh, that was so nice!

- How surprised was you?

- I was so surprised!

- That was surprising.

- Woo!

Oh, that really gave me some motivation.

♪ It was really, really nice to hear their voices, and it made me ready to attack the day, honestly.

I'm ready, now.

[clapping] Let's go Team Blue.

[laughs] ♪ Kyle: Santa Fe, New Mexico, Purple Heart City.

- Lodge Santa Fe.

Lodge of Santa Fe, dang it.

That was the exit up there, wasn't it?

- It's okay.

We got one right down here.

- All right, Atlanta, how, let's see how much pride you got.

And keep your eyes peeled, too, 'cause you got them good eyes.

Jose: Baby, I'm looking, you look over there, babe.

Tiffani: But I can't see anything over there.

- Atlanta Motel.

- Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Rachelle: You wanna do that?

- Yeah, yeah, we can, we can.

Tiffani: Right there.

Jose: Lake Havasu City, right here.

Tiffani: Yeah.

Jose: Lake Havasu City, make a right and then come back this way.

- I am, I am, I am.

- Aw, the tree's gone in.

- That's all right.

We got it, we got it.

♪ Rachelle: There we go.

All right, take the picture.

Jose: Ready?

[shutter snaps] ♪ - All right.

Kyle: Beautiful!

[laughs] Layton: That's good for us.

Kyle: Got your door!

All right, hop in there.

Layton: Thank you.

♪ Karim: So we get the selfie quickly, and we're off to the challenge, and today couldn't be goin' any better.

So far.

Anderson Park.

Rachelle: All right, here we go.

- There's ASU flag, so it's gotta be over here.

- So it's gotta be over here.

Tiffani: ♪ Doo, doo-doo-doo, ♪ ♪ Doo, doo-doo-doooooo ♪ - ♪ Doo, doo-doo-doo, doo-doooo!

♪ Karim: There goes the flag right there.

Rachelle: Yep.

♪ - Today's challenge is Two Birds with One Drone.

Dan: To complete this challenge, teams must pilot a drone from their birdhouse to the nest, retrieve an egg, and return it safely to their birdhouse, but be careful, as they must navigate through several obstacles along the way.

Teammates must take turns until each has brought their own egg back home.

Lay two eggs to complete this challenge.

Karim: Now you fly it, I'll go, and I'll go down, I'll go down.

- Okay, ready?

- Yeah, yeah, yeah, go, go, go.

Karim: So we read the card, and it says fly a drone, and I'm thinkin', neither one of us have done that before.

Come on down, come on down, straight away, straight ahead, straight ahead.

Rachelle: As soon as I touched the controller for the drone, I'm realizing that it's very sensitive, so one move, and it's gone.

- Okay.

- No, never in my life.

- Neither of us have ever flown a drone.

Kyle: I've always wanted to fly a drone.

- I've never really cared to fly a drone before.

Jose: Pop it.

Come on.

Tiffani: We've never flown a drone before, so, luckily on the first part, we get to fly down to the end of the course without going through any of the obstacles.

This makes it so we can quickly get a hang of the controls.

Karim: Yeah, yeah, that's good, that's good, that's good.

Slow, slow, slow, slow, slow.

Rachelle: I need to back up?

Karim: Over, turn, turn, turn.

- I'm kind of getting used to the controls, but it's really a challenge trying to pick up this tiny egg.

Like, rotate, or...?

- Yeah, rotate.

To the-- to the left, to the left, to the left.

Kyle: Back, back, back.

Yeah, there you go.

Now hover!

- Drop down, drop down.

More.

More towards me, more towards me, this way!

Karim: Forward, forward.

So there's four eggs inside the nest, and I'm tryin' to direct 'Chelles to get close to the, the first one.

And so, it's the string swingin' back and forth with the wind blowin' and the speed of the drone.

Up, up, up, up!

All right, you good.

Kyle: Slow.

Slow, good!

Take it up!

Gotta take it back.

Remember, everything's backwards now.

Jose: Okay, just go that one, just go with that one, just go, take it back, take it back.

'Kay, slow down, slowly.

Turn around!

Tiffani: Finally, I get an egg.

But now comes a hard part: going through the obstacles.

[surf rock] Kyle: Go, go!

Beautiful, next one.

Layton: So I just grew up playing video games, so I'm used to controls and using my thumbs, and so, not very difficult to get the hang of.

The only thing was it didn't have the depth perception once the drone got away from me, so, that's where Kyle came in handy 'cause he was at the other end of the course.

Kyle: Yeah!

All right, that works.

- More, more!

More, more, right there, take it back to the-- 'kay, now forward!

Forward!

Forward!

Tiffani: For me, the most difficult part of this challenge was remembering that the controls were backwards on the way back.

I thought I was turning right when I was really turning left, and so navigating back was a little bit difficult for me.

Jose: No, other, other left.

Right there!

Come straight, straight, straight, straight, straight, straight, yes!

'Kay, come on.

Karim: Right there, right there, now go forward.

Aight, to the left, to the left, to the left, to the left, to the left.

So as I'm tryin' to talk 'Chelles through the square, I realize that my directions are flip-flopped, so when I'm telling her to go right, it's looking left on my end.

Aight, go, go through, go through.

- Go through?

- Straight, straight!

Straight, straight, straight, down, down, down, down.

Straight and down, straight and down, straight and down.

Kyle: All right, drop it.

Drop, drop, drop, drop, drop.

'Kay, now pull up.

Layton: So, landing the egg wasn't very difficult.

I was able to land it pretty quickly, and then I just handed it over to Kyle.

Jose: Back up.

Okay, go, go, go, go, go, go, go!

Yeah, yeah, keep going, keep doing that!

Keep doing that, keep doing that!

Go, go, okay.

This way.

Rachelle: Oh, wrong way, okay.

It's facing, oop.

Karim: She has picked up a lotta speed, and the egg flies off.

Rachelle: So even though the egg falls on the ground, I'm feeling a little confident 'cause I'm getting the hang of the controls, I can actually see the egg, and Karim is also giving really good directions.

Karim: All right.

Go forward, go forward.

Good job, good job, good job.

Jose: Right there, right there!

Drop it down slowly, drop it down slowly, drop it down slowly.

Karim: Just go down, go down.

Rachelle: Down.

Up?

Karim: Yeah.

Rachelle: All right.

Karim: All right.

Rachelle: There you go.

Jose: Right there.

'Kay, go, go, whoa, whoa!

Tiffani: Yeah, so I didn't realize I had already landed my egg on the nest, so I kept going forward and just smashed right into the birdhouse.

That poor baby owl.

I almost decapitated it.

♪ - Come backwards!

Stop.

Go up.

♪ Rachelle: Okay, come towards me, come towards me.

Layton: He hooked an egg, and we started through the course, and he did well until he went to the first obstacle.

Good, no!

Kyle: Oh.

Yeah, that was my bad.

I hit the very top of that obstacle with everything I had.

That's, that's exactly what happened.

Layton: He ended up crashing a couple more times trying to pick up the egg.

Kyle: No holding back.

If you're gonna w-- mess something up, might as well do it nice.

Jose: Hold on, I'm trying to compensate for the wind.

Tiffani: Forward!

Oh.

Jose: So, on the way back, I crashed the drone on the first obstacle, and, definitely it's gonna be a scrambled egg.

Rachelle: A little low, right there.

Go forward.

Very good.

Slow down, slow down.

I'm telling Karim to slow down, slow down, but he goes right through pretty quickly.

Go.

Very good.

Karim: Well, I'm flyin' fast for two reasons.

We have to obey the speed limit when driving, and I'm also trying to make up time for the egg drop.

Tiffani: Go through, go through, go through, down a little bit.

Yes!

♪ Over just a little bit here.

Slow, slow.

Down.

Move forward, move forward, move forward.

Yes!

♪ Rachelle: Down, down, down.

Keep going, keep going.

And... All right, let's go!

Karim: Well, as soon as the egg's dropped off, I go ahead and land the drone inside the house as well.

♪ - Your relative lives at-- Jose: 3441 North Kiowa Boulevard.

- 1630 Metropolitan Parkway, Atlanta, let's go.

Jose: After this challenge, we're definitely gonna get a drone.

[slow motion whirring] Dan: With the challenge now completed, the teams now navigate to find their relatives.

- Parkway, found it!

♪ Tiffani: Pheasant Lane.

But it's south.

I think we need to go back that way for north.

- No, we're going east right now.

[indistinct] is south.

- Okay.

Well, I'm just telling you, I think it's back that way.

Layton: I would assume go right.

We have no map, and we are legit in the middle of nowhere on a highway.

- We end up on a dirt road in the middle of New Mexico, but, means there's not a lotta streets to get lost on.

No left turn.

Well, we gotta go right.

Layton: We have to go right.

Kyle: Have to go right.

There's no left turn, so.

Layton: All right.

Well, here's a road right up here.

♪ Karim: It's right there, Harrison Mill.

That's what, that's what it said, right?

Did it say Harr--?

- Yep, yep.

To the left.

Jose: 3400, so make a right on Kiowa.

- A right?

- A right on Kiowa.

- Or left.

- Make a right on Kiowa.

Kyle: There's a trail.

Layton: Laney Station Trail.

Rachelle: And we're looking for 2575.

Jose: 3441.

That'll be our numbers.

Tiffani: Oh shoot, baby.

Good job.

So glad I listened to you, and you don't listen to me.

- Okay make a right-- [stuttering] 'Cause we're on 3400.

Layton: It's that house right there.

- There's a house?

- It's that little trailer.

- No way.

Karim: Right here, right here, right here.

- Perfect.

- Right here.

- Saint Cla...

There it is right there, right there, right there!

Just take a park in the-- just park!

Just park in there, just park in there!

Park in the driveway!

- I am!

♪ - Good job, baby.

We get to our relative's house and we see this beautiful woman come out with these striking blue eyes, and this big smile.

♪ Hi!

Jose: Hello.

Woman: Hi!

- I'm Tiffani.

- I'm Misty.

- Misty!

- Yes.

- I'm Jose.

- Jose, nice to meet you.

- Nice to meet you, ma'am.

- So, who are you related to?

- I'm related to you.

- How are we related?

- I'm your cousin.

- You're my cousin?

On which side?

- I'm your cousin on both sides of the family.

- On both sides of the family?

Okay, can I get a hug?

- Yes, absolutely!

- So nice to meet you!

- Same here!

My name is Misty Heller.

I'm related to Tiffani, I'm her cousin on her mother's side and her father's side.

- How is that possible?

- On your mother's side, she's my aunt so she-- her and my father are, you know, brothers and sisters.

- And how about my dad's?

- I've done some research.

- Sure.

- And I have answers for you, but I would love to go inside and give you more information.

- Okay, yeah, that would be awesome.

- Tiffani was shocked when I told her that I was related to her on both sides, um, and I just can't imagine just learning something like this.

Having one cousin on one side is amazing, but having a relative that's related to you on both sides, it's gotta be a shocker and exciting at the same time.

- So, how long have you known about me?

- All of a sudden I get this amazing phone call.

- Aw!

- About a [hiccups].

About a relative that I didn't even know existed, so I'm very honored to be here.

Tiffani: I'm so happy to be here.

- And you look just like your mom.

Your eyes, your smile.

I'm just, I'm just shocked, like, you know, I didn't get to see my aunt very often, but like seeing you walk up today, it's like, is this real?

This is crazy to me.

And it's beautiful and it's an amazing thing.

When I first met Tiffani, the first thing I saw was her eyes and her smile.

She looks just like her mom, so it was, it was great to see, you know, my aunt for a brief second, and it was great.

Would you mind if I give you another hug?

- Oh, please, please, I would love that.

Misty actually got very emotional when we first met.

I was actually shocked.

Um, I hadn't heard much about her, I didn't know if she was really close to my mother, but her reaction just kind of made me emotional.

Thank you so, so much for doing this.

Thank you, you have no idea how much it means to me.

- It means a lot to me as well.

Tiffany: Good.

I've been looking for my family for over 40 years, so I know exactly what she's feeling.

I know the anticipation, the anxiety, the nerves.

Everything that she's dealing with right now.

♪ Kyle: No way.

Layton: So we were driving down just a dirt road with nothing really on it, and then we stumbled upon the address which led us to a train car.

"All aboard, enter here then proceed to the caboose."

- We're like...

Both: Okay!

So we climbed right up on in there and we start walking through and it's got this old, vintage-slash-new-slash- I don't know.

Layton: Weird feel.

Kyle: Weird, it was weird but yet kind of comforting at the same time.

- Okay, the train did not look this long from the outside.

Kyle: As we get to the end of the caboose, and there's this little tiny door, we open it, and on the other side I get to find some wonderful, beautiful people waitin' for us.

♪ - Hey guys!

How are you guys doin'?

- Good, how are you?

Man: Good!

Glad you guys could make it!

Layton: No, this place is awesome!

- A trip, how are you doin'?

Man: Good!

- How are you?

Kyle: Doing great.

Intros real fast.

- I'm Layton.

- And I'm Kyle, nice to meet y'all.

- Nice to meet you, Layton and Kyle.

So, I'm Cody.

Layton & Kyle: Cody.

- This is my wife, Briana.

Uh, this is our son Channing.

- Nice to meet you, Channing.

- Nice to meet you all.

- Well, then, can we ask yet, who's relative are you guys?

- So, um, Kyle, you and I are actually related.

- No way!

- Yeah.

- Seriously?

Oh, well, come here!

- Yeah!

- Nice to meet you!

- Yeah, so, we're cousins on your mom's side.

- Really?

- Yeah, no we are cou-- yeah.

- I was gonna say, even I know a lot of the names.

- Okay.

Cody: Yeah.

It was super fun meeting Kyle.

I know I have many out there, but if I get a chance to sit down with someone, and to get to know them, and just to kind of realize we have some similarities in our personalities and just the way we think about things, it's cool.

Yeah, well first of all, like, I'm from Meridian, Idaho, up in Boise.

- Okay.

Cody: That's where my family, like, we grew up there and... - Sweet!

Cody: ...and whatnot.

So essentially our great-grandmothers are sisters.

- Okay.

Cody: Yeah, your mom's dad's mom is sisters with my great-grandmother.

- So you guys are on the Shipley side?

- Uh, Hawker, actually.

- Hawker, okay Hawker, yeah I know that name from looking at pedigrees!

That's awesome!

- Yeah, that's how we're related.

- The Hawker name is a very prominent name inside my family.

The Hawkers come from my grandfather's side.

I remember growing up with stories of hearing about the Hawkers.

I have quite a few pictures of them in my own home.

What's up with trains?

- We were in the area, we heard about your guys' journey, and uh, so we thought let's meet 'em up here in Santa Fe on the train track here.

- Right on.

- In a vintage train car here.

- This is gorgeous.

- Yeah, we're like, this looks like a pretty sweet spot.

Cody: Yeah.

Kyle: This is way cool!

Cody: Yeah, so we thought it'd be a great place just to meet up and get to know you guys, so.

Kyle: Right on.

Me and Cody's family are already hitting it off, and so I just can't wait to see how this connection works out, especially on the Hawker side of the family.

- Hey, do you guys wanna go on in and we'll take a look?

Layton: Please, you first!

Kyle: We'll follow you guys, you guys know better than we do.

Cody: Well, come on in.

Layton: Thank you!

♪ Karim: The question is, who's relative do we think it is?

What if it's somebody that you recognize?

Are you even gonna ask who's relative are you?

- I don't know, it depends because I might be in shock.

Over these last few days I have gone from not knowing anyone in my family to knowing names and faces.

Like, each day is just one step closer to finding my father, Barry.

Karim: You've been seeing a lot of pictures of grandma.

- Mm-hm.

Karim: And a lot of pictures of your dad.

- Yeah.

Karim: So those are like two people that you know, like if you see them come out the door you know for sure.

- Yeah.

- I think I do know who it is.

Rachelle: Oh?

- But um, I can't say it while she's in the car.

- Well, I don't know who it is.

Maybe it's grandma, I've been thinking it's grandma for three days, maybe it's Daddy.

I don't know.

Every time we pull up to a new relative's house, the nerves just get to you and your heart just starts to pound.

♪ [knocking] - Hi!

Karim: Hello, my name's Karim and this is my cousin, Rachelle.

- Hi, it's so nice to meet you, come on in.

Rachelle: Thank you.

- My name is Barry Simpson, and I am Rachelle's father.

- [sniffling] I've been waiting for this moment this whole journey.

- Me too.

Rachelle: Yeah.

♪ - It's been an honor going on this journey searching for Rachelle's family.

I'm standing here with Patsy, her dad's wife, and this is truly a once in a lifetime moment.

Rachelle: [chuckling] - You're so beautiful.

- Thank you, it's so nice to meet you.

- My pleasure.

- I've heard so much about you.

- I hope it's all true.

- [chuckles] Yes.

Seeing my father and seeing how happy he was to meet me made me feel very welcomed and loved, and that was more than what I could've ever imagined.

I wasn't really sure on this journey how it would be meeting a parent, but it felt so comfortable and natural, and it felt so right.

Thank you, thank you for, you know, welcoming me into your life.

- Trust me, I'm thrilled, and I thank you for accepting me as your father.

- Of course, of course.

- One of my biggest thrills of this year is knowing I had you.

And I'm so happy.

- Me too, me too.

- So now, my life is complete, I've met you.

- [sniffling] Thank you.

[crying] Barry: I've thought about yesterday for many, many days.

I didn't know how it was gonna turn out, never, I didn't know what to expect, but now, it's much better than I could have ever imagined it would be.

And this is not the end, it's the beginning.

- Yeah.

- Truly.

- It is.

- Yup.

♪ Rachelle: In the moment, I didn't think that we really needed to say anything.

Through holding him I felt his love and through holding him I was able to give him love, and that moment transcended words, definitely.

- You're not going nowhere.

- No.

- For the rest of my life I'm gonna be right here with you.

Anytime you need me, for whatever you need me, I'm here.

- Thank you.

- You don't thank me, it's my pleasure.

- [sniffling] ♪ ♪ ♪ I have finally met my father, Barry, and he takes me by the hand over to the couch and we get to spend some time getting to know him and his wife, Patsy.

- Definitely gonna be your home whenever you want it to be.

- It's beautiful, thank you.

- Thank you.

And I want to introduce you to my wife, this is Patsy.

- Hi, Patsy, it's nice to meet you.

- [kisses] Love you already.

- I love you too!

- We both have been ecstatic, I have been so excited to meet you!

Rachelle: Thank you!

Barry: She really has.

Patsy: I have been so-- - Rachelle: Thank you for being supportive in everything.

Patsy: Girl please!

Barry: She has been, she's been crying more than me.

- I, I was when he told me I was like this, we got a daughter!

We have another daughter!

I'm so excited.

I was so excited to meet you and I'm so happy for Barry.

- Thank you.

- 'Cause, I mean, you just complete his life now, and you know, the circle is complete now, so that's amazing and I'm just so grateful.

So grateful for you being here.

- Just to know that my father had her support and just to know that, you know, I felt her love and that extension of her love, it just made me really grateful to be a part of this family.

- To see the genuine love transported between the two, and that made me feel even more better that I'm not just walking this journey alone.

That whatever my daughter needs, we both will be there together.

My bro-- well first my brother called me, he said you may have a daughter.

I said what?

[chuckling] He said, somebody got in touch with me and said that one of the Simpsons have a child.

I didn't get excited really until the DNA test, in which he called me back and said it was positive.

I like, lost my mind.

That was the most exciting news I ever got.

And from that point on I was just, just looking forward to this day, and trust me, you didn't let me down one bit.

You have made my entire life.

- [sniffling] I was really scared going on this journey 'cause I didn't really know the answer that I'd find, the people that I'd find, and this entire journey the Simpsons have just welcomed me with like, loving and open arms, and, so I thank you for, you know, being a part of this and welcoming me as your daughter.

- I really don't think I deserve a thank you because I did it from my heart, I just wanted to be here, and it made me feel very good to at least know that I've made her journey complete.

You know, my life may not be long but it's, it's whatever left of it belongs to you.

♪ Always keep your heart open ♪ ♪ Don't let the... ♪ - Thank you for accepting me.

- My pleasure, I'm just glad you're here.

- Me too.

And I'm not going nowhere.

- I'm not going let you go.

I started to realize how big of a gap I was missing in the puzzle of my heart, and I wasn't really sure how it would be filled during this journey, or if it even could be filled, but the people that I've met on this journey, my new family members, the love that they've poured into me has begun to slowly fill that, and I feel more whole than I probably have felt since forever.

- I've got so much love to give you, trust me.

- Me too.

[softly] Thank you.

- You're welcome, babe.

♪ [Western music] [Western music] - After we left the back patio, Cody and his wife took us on a tour of the train and it was very compact and tight as the owners hadn't really redecorated and they wanted to keep it authentic from the 1920s.

♪ - Yeah, so we're gonna make our way through here.

Narrow.

Kyle: Such a narrow corridor.

- Yeah, for sure.

Got the whole kitchen setup right here, got everything you can do here, just kind of do all the cooking and prepping, and that's kind of like the butcher's pantry over there.

- Is that really?

- You just kinda reach through and just kinda hand things over.

So what's unique about what we're staying here besides it being a train car, it wasn't until I got in and shared with Kyle where I was able to see that a lot of the features remind me of my own grandma's house, who we're related through.

Just seeing like the tiling, the smells, how things are set up, even Kyle was kind of entertained just kind of going through everything to see how the setup was.

And just realizing like our grandmother's, how we're related through, had the same things.

Kyle: It is super cool wandering around this train car that's made from the early 20s, and just knowing that we're gonna stay here for the night is actually kind of the coolest thing I've ever experienced in my life.

♪ After touring the train with Cody we sat down, we got the opportunity to explore our connection with the Hawker family.

Cody: So, let's kind of rewind back, we're going to the late 1800s now, so... - Okay, here we go.

- This is a picture of our great-great-grandparents, so we got Robert and Lois Hawker, this is where it all began.

They had 11 kids.

Um, this is Lois, your great-grandmother, and then my great-grandmother Elba.

Kyle: They look so young.

Cody: I think what's unique is when I was just looking through everything and looking through all the pictures and studying what their faces look like, I can totally see my grandma.

[Kyle laughs] In this picture here.

Kyle: Yeah.

Cody: Yeah, like the longer ears.

And then kind of seeing this too, like a good, like your great-grandmother and just kind of seeing that jaw structure, I'm like, that's definitely like... - We're definitely rounder, yep, that's us.

Cody: Looking through the pictures, I can see a resemblance, right there on my grandmother's side.

And just seeing like all the features, seeing how we're related, you know, I just think that we can see how the genetics are playing through and how we're connected as cousins.

- Well Cody, thank you for showing me this, this is a side of the family that I didn't get to know very well.

- Yeah.

- So thank you for all, taking your time and coming out, and more than anything taking the time to do your research.

- Yeah, my pleasure, it was good just to look through everything and then put a face to all this, so.

I definitely hope Kyle and I can keep in touch, um, I think there's a lot of things we still need to share and talk about.

It sounds like they're soon to be married, and as soon as they have kids it'll be exciting to see that lineage continue.

♪ Tiffani: So you said that we're related on both sides of the family, how is that possible?

- Your mom and my dad are brothers and sisters.

- So we're first cousins on my mom's side?

- We are first cousins on your mom's side, that's correct.

Tiffany: Okay, and what about my dad's side?

The connection on my mother's side makes sense, but the connection on my father's side, Misty had to pull out this family tree so we can visually connect the dots.

- So, through our great-grandfather, Christopher Columbus Miller, we are second cousins.

- Okay, wow, mind blowing, yes, okay.

- It is!

- I connected it, oh my goodness.

- It is.

So, Lilly Fay is my grandmother, which is Leona May Miller's sister.

Tiffany: Yeah.

Oh, my goodness, wow.

So this connection is unbelievable.

My mom and Misty's dad are brother and sister.

On my father's side, my grandmother and Misty's grandmother are sisters.

What a small world.

Yeah, so it's just happenstance that we have a connection on both sides of the family.

Misty: Yes, that's correct.

Most importantly, I wanted to show you.

- [gasps] - That you have another brother.

- Whaa... - What?

I do?

- [sniffs] You do.

Tiffany: I have another brother out there, his name's Jonathan Stoner.

This is crazy, I had no clue I had another brother.

And is he alive?

- Yes.

- What?

[gasps] Wow.

Wow, that's crazy.

[whispering] Christopher, he never said a word to me.

I can't describe how happy I am to add another sibling to this.

It warms my heart to know that Chris didn't grow up without a sibling.

I know he's been searching for me most of his life, but to know that he grew up with another brother, that makes me feel so much better.

- And to let you both know how important it is for me to be a part of this, it's been a blessing in disguise.

I thank you.

- No, thank you.

- I feel like there has been a bond created already, and I look very much forward to continuing that and getting to know her better.

- Thank you so much, for all of this information, this is amazing and thank you so much for being the one to tell me I have another brother.

It's so... it's amazing.

- My pleasure.

♪ Barry: Oh, you know, anything you want to know, ask me, I'll answer the best I can.

- Well I did kinda wanna ask some questions that I haven't really gotten any answers to.

Specifically just like questions about my mother, like how was she?

Like who-- Like how was Rosalyn as a person, and who was she as a person?

- Your mother, she was like the life of the party as well, your mother was a beautiful spirit, young lady, and a wonderful personality.

We dated for, had to be 18, between 18 to 20 years.

Rachelle: Mm-hmm.

- I dated your mom.

Yeah, and it was amazing, but, you know, circumstances change and things happen, so.

Wow, I think the last time I saw your mom was in 1996 I think.

- Mm.

- And from this day to that day I have no idea how she's doing, where she's at, anything.

But the time I spent with her I enjoyed, and you are her.

Up one way, down the other.

- [sniffling] Barry: You're definitely, you guys look like looking in the mirror.

Rachelle: Talking with my dad today about my mother gave me another perspective on who she was and also their relationship, I hadn't gotten a firsthand account of how they were together and so it was really eye-opening to understand how much he loved her and how special of a bond they had, and like, the special place she has in the family and still does.

- I don't have no regrets of knowing her or meeting her, because best thing about knowing your mom was you.

And you came out of this.

[crying] And I'm so grateful.

Truly.

- Yes.

Barry: Sure.

Okay.

I don't have many, but I have a few.

That's your mom, that's me and your mom, and this is your mom, and there she is.

See that's you.

- [sniffling] Wow.

- Yes, she is as beautiful as you are.

Rachelle: She's so beautiful.

Barry: That's where you get it from.

You ain't get your looks from me.

[laughter] Karim: She's got your smile, though.

- Yeah, thank you.

- When I see these photos of my mother, I just, I just can't help but think of how beautiful she looks.

How happy she looks in the photos, and I don't know, she just, she's smiling, and it's really nice to see her face.

She's just so beautiful.

[sniffling] She looks so sweet.

- I'm telling you, she was the life of the party.

She was a very sweet person.

I definitely-- This is you.

This is yours.

You can keep this and you can see your mom anytime you want.

You can open it and look, and you know.

- Thank you.

- You're welcome, babe.

You're so welcome.

I can see clearly that part of her chapter was completed when we met.

And I also can see that there's a part of her chapter that still need to be completed on her mother's side, and I have hope that she'll get some answers.

I really regret and hate that I didn't get the chance to be in your life the years you grew up.

- [sniffs] - But I promise you I'm not going away.

- I've gained more family on this journey than I ever expected to, and my father and his family fill me with so much love that I feel more complete than I have been in a long time.

- And now that I got you, I'm not letting go.

- Me neither.

- This is for the rest of my life.

- Mine, too.

- Trust me.

- Love you, thank you.

♪ ♪ Dan: It's the end of Day 8, and only three teams remain in the race, but that could change with elimination on the line for Team Blue.

Rachelle: How you feel about today?

- Nervous, I'm normally not nervous.

I know we definitely put our best foot forward I believe, you know.

Definitely don't want to go home.

Tiffany: We did good today.

- I think we'll be okay.

We have that benefit, so, you know, I'm not too worried about it.

Dan: Welcome to all three teams, it's the end of Day 8, and I wanna set the stage clearly.

Team Red, you finished in first place yesterday, and with that win, you were guaranteed a spot in the final day, Day 10.

But, where will you finish today?

Because no matter where that is, you'll move up one spot.

Team Blue, you have two strikes, a strike today and you'll be out of the race for the money, but you do have your golden ticket and are guaranteed to meet one more family.

Team Black, you have one strike, one more and that means you're in danger of striking out before you get to Day 10.

So, how do you think you all did throughout the day?

Team Blue?

- Well today we put our best foot forward, and then right now it's God's will whether we go home or whether we stay on this journey.

- Team Black, your thoughts of Team Blue?

- They've always been amazing people, and honestly, if I get the opportunity to take one more strike so that Rachelle can go and visit at least one more person, I would be the happiest man in the world.

- Team Red, did the knowledge that you have earned a place in Day 10, did that change your strategy?

- No, just because we, um, are headed to Day 10, we still pushed it.

We thought about taking the day easy, and figured, you know what, why not rush things, but we had such an easy day today.

It-- everything just kind of fell together for us today.

Dan: All three of you did really well overall, and that leads me to three different doors.

Tiffany, who was waiting for you today?

- Today I got to meet my cousin, Misty.

Can you see the resemblance?

- Was your cousin able to add to your family story?

- She did!

I have another brother that I didn't know about, and so today Misty was able to tell me who he was.

Dan: Wow!

So you thought you had met everybody in your family, or had all the answers, and you found out that there was a big missing piece.

- Oh, yeah, yep.

Dan: I often think about your relatives and how brave they are to come on the show and be a part of something so important to you.

And that leads me to you, Layton.

Were you surprised at all when you found out that it was Kyle's relative at the door?

And Kyle, what was your reaction?

- We rollin' in family up here, baby.

Everybody, this is Cody.

- Hey everybody!

- 'Sup, Cody.

Kyle: He's the man, he's super cool, I'm super excited to get to know him and his family.

Honesty, I had no idea that I was gonna find even more family that was a lot closer than I could've ever imagined.

He actually lives in Meridian, Idaho, and I'm an Idaho boy, so it's super cool, we're next door neighbors.

Dan: Thanks so much guys, and thanks for sharing that!

And Kyle, I think it's just phenomenal that you are able to experience new family as well.

- It's a wonderful blessing.

Thank you so much.

- Speaking of blessings.

Rachelle, I can only imagine what this meeting meant to you tonight.

Tell us about who was waiting for you.

- So today, everyone, I got to meet my father, Barry.

Jose: What?

Barry: Hello, everybody.

Jose: Nice!

- [laughs] Yes.

- Congratulations!

- Thank you.

Dan: And now we know where you get your looks.

He is a handsome man.

- Yes.

- Appreciate it.

- And we got the same smile.

[laughs] Dan: Oh.

Karim, when you sat back and watched Rachelle meet her father, what's runnin' through your mind?

- It's nothing but joy, Dan.

Um, I'm just extremely happy for her 'cause this is somebody that, um, she has always wanted to meet, but, um, and so when this moment happened, it was just nothin' but joy.

Fireworks inside, goin' off.

- These are the moments that we all live for.

This is truly the most wonderful feeling that we can have, and I can only imagine what all of you are feeling.

It's just, uh, it's miraculous in many ways.

Thank you to all of you, thank you.

So, Team Blue.

You have two strikes.

If you receive a strike tonight, your race for the $50,000 is over.

But you do have a golden ticket to meet one more family member.

Team Black, if you earn the strike tonight, that's two strikes.

You're at risk at striking out tomorrow, one day short of Day 10.

Let's talk about that first-place prize tomorrow.

Tomorrow's first-place prize is penalizing the other teams at tomorrow's challenge.

Whether that be one or two teams remains to be seen.

The difference between first place and third was four minutes total.

The team that picks up that prize, finishing 10 minutes over their allotted time... once again it's Team Red.

[silence] - Good job, guys.

- Nicely done.

- Thanks, guys.

We came in first today, so, that reward really was a wash. We didn't get to use it 'cause, we were, came out on top.

- Because we were so good.

- We were great.

Dan: Two minutes.

120 seconds.

That's the difference between second and third.

Finishing 12 minutes over their allotted time and moving on to Day 9 is Team Blue.

Team Black, you have picked up your second strike.

You finished 14 minutes over your allotted time.

After eight days, Team Red's headed to Day 10, Team Blue and Black both have two strikes.

Who will pick up the final strike tomorrow?

The race is definitely tight, and you are one day closer to Day 10 and $50,000.

But who will actually get there?

We'll have those answers when we all see each other again tomorrow night.

Good luck.

Rachelle: Good night, y'all.

Karim: Good night, love all you guys.

Jose: Hey, good night, guys.

- Rachelle, I'm so happy for you!

- Thank you!

- Thank you, thank you.

Tiffani: That is so amazing.

Jose: Have a good night, guys, be safe, good travels.

- First place!

- Yeah, it's two days in a row.

- That's amazing.

So do you have any strikes at all?

Both: We have one.

- Um, Black getting their second strike, um, they got off the call pretty fast, but... - Mmm, yeah.

- I mean, we, we fought hard today.

- We did.

- I was hopin' that we-- - Would take first.

- Correct.

- Yeah.

- But, Red takin' first kept us in, so.

- Absolutely.

- Yep.

- I felt that comin'.

- Yeah.

Figured it was gonna be there.

- That's okay.

- Yeah.

Shrug it off and get tomorrow.

- Two strikes, I know it's close, but, you guys are gonna do it.

I know you guys.

Kyle: [laughs] We'll be okay.

- And if not, we still met everybody that was waiting for us.

- That was the first goal of the place.

- Yeah.

- We got this.

If were in Day 10 situation or Day 10 scenario tomorrow, and we were in Red's place, I'm pretty sure we would try to throw it; get all three teams there.

- But, I also, I mean, if Team Red didn't do that and they still try tomorrow, I mean, nobody can judge them for that.

- No, not at all.

- Tomorrow, that's a different story.

- Yeah.

- That's the last day, everybody's gonna be.

- I, we-- - No more Mr. Nice Guy?

Tiffani: Yeah, there's-- Jose: No, we told, we let everybody know.

- No mercy.

- We let everybody know, that's like our last good deed of the sh-- of the season, like, that's it.

I don't think it would be bad blood, it would just be more like, hey, bring it.

- Yep.

- If we get a strike, we're all three are going to Day 10.

- Yeah.

So we have to get second or first tomorrow.

- How nerve-wracking.

Jose: It is.

- Exciting.

Especially the last day?

Day 9?

- Tomorrow has to be a great day.

- Mmm.

Is that really the word you wanna use?

- Yes.

- Great.

♪