Well, this story has to be dedicated to luckdog, really, as she was the one who came up with the premise. It won't be a long one, just nine chapters, but I hope you enjoy a new scenario where Joey could have come back to the Bay. Love, IJKS xxx

The Funeral

Chapter One

Sergeant Charlie Buckton woke up feeling sick. She immediately closed her eyes again, sighing heavily and wishing she never had to get up. But she did have to, today, more than ever. Today was her father's funeral. She could hardly believe it was even true.

Ross Buckton had been ill for so long, fading away out of sight while his wife, Morag took care of him. Tears seeped out as she worried that her Dad would be hurt by or ashamed of her. She had been so caught up in her own troubles that she had forgotten her father wouldn't always be there.

By the time she had even begun thinking about paying him a visit, he had died. He'd had a heart attack and passed away in his wife's arms. Charlie and her daughter, Ruby, had missed the chance to say goodbye and now it was too late.

"Charlie?" said an adolescent voice through the bedroom door. "Are you up?"

Charlie sat propped against the pillows and allowed her daughter to come in. Ruby perched on the edge of the bed uncertainly. Things had begun to settle down between them until now. They had just about recovered from the revelations about Charlie being Ruby's mother and not her sister, as she had been brought up to believe.

But thirty seconds after they had moved in with Charlie's then boyfriend, Angelo Rosetta, things had gone wrong again. Their new home was just a place to argue and Ruby had been caught in the crossfire. They'd moved out again at Christmas and back into their friend, Leah Patterson-Baker's home, which she shared with her son, VJ.

Ruby seemed to despise Charlie now. She had been craving a stable, even conventional home for a long time now and she was upset to have had it ripped away so quickly. And Charlie's distraction had led to her neglect of her father, something Ruby was also furious about.

"How are you feeling?" the police officer asked hesitantly.

"Just great, Charlie," Ruby snapped. "I'm just about to bury my grandfather, the one I thought was my actual father once upon a time. It's going to be a great day!"

Charlie sighed and closed her eyes. She couldn't even be bothered to apologise. It seemed like 'sorry' was permanently on her lips and she wondered if she would ever be forgiven.

"Have you finished the eulogy thing?" Ruby asked.

"Yes," Charlie said. "Would you like to read it?"

"No," Ruby replied.

Charlie nodded, rubbing her face and trying not to cry. There would be enough tears as the day continued. Sometimes she wondered if she would ever stop crying.

"Have you got your outfit picked out?" Charlie asked.

She prepared for another word slap but it didn't come.

"Yes," she said. "Would you help me do my hair?"

Charlie looked up quickly and smiled, genuinely touched by the request.

"Of course I will," she promised.

Ruby nodded, still anxious, before standing up and leaving the room. Charlie sank back against the pillows and sighed heavily. She wanted this day to be over.

"Are you sure we're not making a mistake?" Joey Collins asked from the passenger seat of her best friend's car.

"I can't miss the funeral," Aden Jeffries told her. "Morag has done so much for me. I couldn't let her down."

He and heard through Morag herself that Ross had died.

"I know you should be going," Joey said. "But what about me?"

"I need you," Aden replied simply. "And someone else at the funeral is going to need you too."

Joey sighed, sinking back into her seat and picturing Charlie, the woman that, after nearly two whole years, was still the love of her life.

"I doubt she's going to be happy to see me," she pointed out. "You said she's been with that cop guy since about thirty seconds after I left the Bay."

She sounded bitter but more than anything, she was just sad.

"I didn't say that," Aden protested. "All I did was warn you about what you would have come back to."

He still wasn't sure he had done the right thing. Joey had phoned him towards the end of her long haul to see if she would be welcome home. Aden had told her that he thought Charlie would be thrilled by her return but felt it was only right to warn her that Charlie was dating Angelo. He hadn't wanted her to come back and be crushed. But thanks to him, she hadn't come back at all and had declined his invitation to his wedding to Belle Taylor, the love of his life.

"You know what I mean," Joey said a little sourly. "I really think I'm likely to be the last person she wants to see today, Aden. Her Dad just died."

"And you're coming to support her," Aden replied. "What could be wrong about that?"

"She was ashamed to even look at me in public," Joey insisted. "Why would she want my support now?"

"You'd be surprised," Aden told her.

He had nothing to really base his idea on but he was convinced that Joey would be just the person Charlie needed to pull her through the darkness her life had been engulfed by.

Charlie was up, showered and dressed. She'd fixed her hair and then gone into Ruby's room in order to help her get ready. Downstairs, people were beginning to gather. The hearse would soon be arriving and the procession to the funeral would begin. Leah had helpfully taken charge of the catering and Angelo had agreed to host the wake. Everything seemed so surreal.

"Thank you," Ruby said when Charlie finished with her hair.

She turned around and tried to smile. It came across as more of a wince.

"You look beautiful," Charlie told her.

She reached out and held her hands.

"Charlie, I don't know how to do this," the younger girl admitted.

"Nor do I," Charlie replied quietly. "But we can do it together. Okay?"

Ruby brushed her tears away and nodded. She took a deep breath.

"We can do this," she decided.

Charlie nodded, standing up. They headed out of Ruby's room and down the stairs where several people had gathered. Charlie pulled up short when she spotted Aden walking through the door in a black suit. Morag greeted him immediately, thanking him for coming. Charlie took a breath and also approached. She was grateful that he cared and had gone out of his way to be there.

"It was the least I could do," he told her. "Listen, Charlie, there's something I need to tell you."

Next time… Charlie and Joey come face to face while Angelo misses his girlfriend…