The rest of the meal passed calmly. Not even Glenda pulled any stunts that might lead to uncomfortable situations arising. Katy was surprised to find that she wasn't even as irritated by Dennis or his mother as she had been expecting. It had been nice, she decided as they gathered their things to leave, to spend time with their family. Even her mother and aunt's absences hadn't been as obvious as she'd been dreading.

"I'll take Amy and Ricky home if you take Matthew and the girls?" Katy asked her grandmother, earning a small nod. "I shouldn't be long."

"If your father is there."

Katy sighed. "If he's not I'll leave them with Rainie. It'll be fine. I've gotta tell him about Nina, too."

"Good luck with that." Glenda snorted. "He's not going to take too kindly to the fact that she's already in the flat."

Arching an eyebrow at her grandmother, Katy ushered her brother and sister across the Square ahead of her. She smiled as they squabbled over who would be the first to knock on the door, with Amy marginally beating their brother to it.

"Daddy!"

She leant against the pillar as Jack hugged Amy and Ricky, promising there were presents for them as soon as they were changed and ready for bed. Not needing any more incentive, the two children pushed past him and ran up the stairs to do as they were told.

"Cuppa?"

"Yeah, I wouldn't mind a quick one." Katy agreed, nodding. She followed Jack through to the kitchen, leaning against the doorframe as he set the kettle to boil. "I've got a favour to ask you."

"Is it money?"

She laughed softly. "No, not money. It's my mate Nina."

"Who?"

With a deep sigh, Katy turned and leant on her forearms on the counter. "My mate Nina from Broad Haven is moving here with her kid. I suggested she came down and offered her a job at the bar."

"Yeah?"

Hearing the lack of enthusiasm in his tone, Katy frowned at her father. "She's alright. We met in the Oncology Centre. Her ex is bad news and he's been giving her a bit of bother, so I thought a change of scene might do her good."

"Katy–"

"It'll be fine, dad."

"Where're they gonna stay? There's no space at your flat for anyone else."

"I was hoping you'd let them stay in one of yours until they find somewhere. 5D's still empty, right?"

"I dunno, Katy."

"Please, Dad. She's a mate. She just needs a bit of help to get on her feet around here."

"Alright, alright." Jack held up his hands in defeat. "They can stay there for a couple of months, right?"

"Thanks."

"When are they coming?"

"They're already here." Katy told him, pushing away from the counter and moving to switch the kettle on. "I got the forms from the school so Riley could start ASAP."

"They're already here?" Jack frowned at her, his mind making connections. "You've already said she can have the flat, ain't ya?"

"They might already be in the flat."

"What? How?"

"I got the keys while you were away."

"Bloody hell, Katy!" He exploded. "You cannot do stuff like that!"

"What? You said yes, didn't you?" She pointed out with a shrug.

"I don't have much bloody choice now, do I?"

"Calm down, Dad. She's OK. And if she can't pay the rent for any reason, I'll cover it."

"Katy–"

"She's a mate, Dad, and she needs help, OK?" Seeing that he was going to carry on arguing with her, she sighed and held up a hand. "Look, I've got a massive headache and I need to get home… can we do this another time, please?"

"I thought you were staying for a cuppa?"

"Like I said, my head is killing me."

"Since when?"

"Just came on now." She replied with a sigh, closing her eyes and rubbing her forehead. "I'll talk to you tomorrow, OK? You can yell at me some more then."

Glenda had taken Matthew and the twins over to the Slaters to play with Tommy and the others, leaving Katy the chance to have a bit of time to herself. Ruby hadn't wanted to go with them, but to her mother's relief she seemed perfectly content playing in her bedroom on her own. The peace and quiet in the flat was giving Katy time to think and she found herself staring at the letter her father had given her again.

Somewhere, deep inside, Katy had never really believed that Ronnie and Roxy were dead. It didn't matter what anyone had told her or what they'd tried to get her to believe.

She had grieved, yes, but there had always been something missing that made her think they weren't really gone. Even in the depths of her despair she had thought that if they were dead she would have felt it in her bones.

But she hadn't.

The letter reaffirmed her thoughts, allowing the tiny spark of hope inside her to ignite once more. She combed through the letter, looking for any clues as to how to get in touch with the sender. She'd even tried calling the number again, but it was still disconnected.

Examining the envelope made her consider calling Carlos in Ibiza. The more Katy looked at the writing, the more convinced she was that it was him who had sent it and she needed answers. Her mobile was in her hand and she was scrolling through her contacts before she knew what she was doing.

Just as her finger hovered over the 'call' button, Ruby ran into the room and threw herself onto the sofa beside her mother. Wiping a hand hastily over her eyes and pushing the letter down the side of the cushions, Katy turned and fixed her daughter with a soft smile.

"Hey, angel, are you OK?"

"Can we get a kitten now?"

Katy furrowed her eyebrows. "What? What's made you think of that?"

"You said that as soon as we owned our own house we could get a kitten. Dad said we couldn't have one before and you said that the landlord wouldn't let us have pets. You promised that when we moved we could get one."

"Uhhh… I mostly said that because your dad said no." Katy said with a small shrug.

"But you did promise." Ruby reminded her. "And you always keep your promises."

Exhaling sharply, cursing her daughter's memory, Katy nodded slowly. "Fine, but we're adopting one from a shelter, OK?"

"Can we go now?"

"Not right now, no." Katy shook her head, chuckling at the eager face in front of her. "We'll have to wait for Matthew and the twins."

"But you promise we can get one?"

"I promise."

Laughing softly, she watched as Ruby skipped away, no doubt already thinking of names for her future kitten. Once she was sure the seven-year-old was safely in her bedroom, Katy pulled the crumpled paper out from under the cushions and looked at it again.

With a deep sigh, she tucked the letter back into the envelope and moved across the room to replace it in the dresser drawer. Katy bit her lip, her hand still on the handle. Just as she had finally decided to call Carlos, the flat door opened and her younger brother and sister burst in.

"Dad gave us his keys." Amy explained as Ricky immediately dropped onto the recently vacated sofa and turned the television on. "He said that you'd make us some lunch and watch us until he came back."

"Did he now?" Katy asked, arching an eyebrow. "Where's he gone?"

The ten-year-old shrugged. "I don't know."

"Right, fine… cheese and pickle sandwiches?"

When they nodded in agreement, Katy went into the kitchen and started on the sandwiches. She briefly thought about where their father could have gone, wondering whether it had anything to do with Mel. It hadn't been more than a week since he'd come home from his trip to France and she secretly thought he was out of order leaving the children with her again.

"Katy?" Amy appeared suddenly in the kitchen, watching her older sister making lunch. Licking butter off her finger, the older Mitchell made a noise to signal she was listening. "What does 'our sort' mean?"

"Uhhh? In what context?"

"What?"

"What was the rest of the sentence?"

"Oh," she scrunched up her nose, thinking, "it was something like, 'I can't come to your sleepover because your sister might be there and my mum says she doesn't want me being around your sort.'"

"Who…?" Katy clenched her fists, turning and trying not to glare at Amy. "Someone said that to you? Who the hell was it?"

"Melissa Cooper."

"Right… you point her out to me next time I come and pick you up."

"But what does it mean?"

"It means her mum thinks she's better than us." Katy informed her irritably. "She thinks we're not good enough for her precious daughter to spend time with."

"Why?" Amy scrunched up her nose again. "Why would she think that?"

"Because people are fucking idiots."

"Katy!"

"What?"

"Dad said you're not supposed to swear in front of us."

"Do you see him anywhere?" Katy asked, arching an eyebrow and bad-temperedly moving the sandwiches onto plates. "Look, kid, you might as well hear it from me; people don't usually like us, just because we're Mitchells. Round here, they hear the name and immediately think we're all thugs and lowlifes. Admittedly, some of us are, but the rest of us get a rough ride because of it."

"But that's not fair."

"Life's not fair, sweetie. The sooner you get used to that, the better."

"What are you gonna do about what I told you?"

"I just wanna have a word with Melissa's mum about what her kid said."

Amy sighed deeply. "Please don't be embarrassing."

"I'm not having people saying stuff like that about you, Amy." Katy told her firmly. "We gotta stand up for ourselves or people are gonna take the piss."

"Your mate's gone." Jack announced, striding into the office and leaning against Katy's desk. When she looked up at him in confusion, he sighed. "Your mate Nina who was staying in 5D? She's done a runner."

"What d'you mean?"

"I mean she posted the keys through my letter box with a note saying thanks and the rent she owed and she's gone."

Frowning, Katy pulled out her mobile and tried dialling Nina's number. It rang until the answerphone kicked in, so she left a message asking her to call back. Confused, Katy dropped the mobile onto the surface in front of her and turned back to her father.

"Did the note say anything else?"

"Nah, just thanks for letting her stay there." He said with a shrug.

"She wouldn't have just gone."

"Well she has." Jack replied evenly. "Look, unless she rings you back there's nothing you can do, is there?" Sensing that she was still thinking about it, he tried to lighten the mood. "The new sign looks good."

"Yeah? It's not exactly what I wanted, but it's OK." She said with a sigh. "At least it's right this time!"

"You got everything under control?"

Katy pulled a face. "The opening is a week today. I'm convinced something is going to happen to ruin it."

"It's gonna be great." Jack assured her gently. "I'm so proud of you. Ronnie would be too."

"Thanks, Dad."

"Look, I've gotta get going, but if there's anything you need me to do just let me know, alright?"

"Yeah, I will. Thanks."

Watching her father leave the bar, Katy chewed on her lip thoughtfully as she considered what might have caused her friend to disappear without a word. She knew that there was something more to it than Nina changing her mind about staying in Walford. Every conversation they'd had since her friend had moved led Katy to believe that she was happy there.

Worried, she tried calling Nina's number several times; the same robotic message reaching her ears every time. Swearing, Katy decided to call several of their mutual acquaintances, hoping that someone had heard from the other woman. No one had.

"Katy?"

"Shirl, hi. You alright?" Glancing up with a smile, the blonde pushed her mobile into her back pocket. Not answering her question, the older woman merely looked at her with worry etched all over her features. When she continued to stare at her silently, Katy furrowed her eyebrows. "What's the matter?"

"I dunno if I should tell you this."

"Shirley? You're scaring me."

"Jean's got cancer."

Opening her mouth a couple of times, Katy realised she didn't quite know what to say. Instead she grabbed two glasses and filled them with healthy measures of vodka, before handing one to Shirley and moving to sit on one of the sofas. After a long moment Shirley followed her.

"What type?"

Shirley shrugged. "I dunno."

"So how…?"

"It don't matter how I know." She replied gruffly. "She ain't dealing with it very well."

"I'm sympathetic, of course I am, but… I don't understand why you've told me." Katy admitted softly. "I very much doubt Jean will appreciate me attempting to support her. She'll probably be furious that you've told me in the first place."

"Katy… maybe I just wanted to talk about it." Shirley pointed out with a shrug. "You ain't the only one around here who's had cancer."

She winced as the older woman headed for the door, calling out fruitlessly as Shirley disappeared. "I'm sorry… Shirl?"

No sooner had Jack walked out of the R&R than he found himself being commandeered by his mother-in-law. Things between Jack and Glenda had been much less strained since their return to the Square, but they were hardly on the terms where they strolled down the street arm-in-arm.

"Glenda?"

"I'm worried about Katy." She admitted quietly, nodding her head towards the café.

Following her inside and signalling that they wanted two teas, Jack settled himself at the table in the corner and waited for Glenda to elaborate. She took her time settling herself and waited for their drinks to be placed in front of them before sighing.

"What's wrong with her? Is she ill?"

Glenda shook her head. "No, nothing like that. It's this… unshakable belief… that Veronica and Roxanne…"

"She still thinks they might be alive?"

"Even Dot couldn't get through to her. She suggested that they went to the graves together but Katy refused to go. She wouldn't even go to Peggy's or Pat's. She won't ever take Veronica's locket off. Matthew accidentally broke the chain last year and she went absolutely mental at him. She refused to let me buy a new one… insisted that it was fixed instead."

"I told you that you should have got her to see someone about this." Jack snapped impatiently. "I knew she hadn't dealt with this. She never even said goodbye to them."

"Because in her head they're not gone! I've tried talking to her, I've tried to get her to see that it's not helping her… but she won't admit that there's no chance she'll see them again."

"And that's exactly the problem, Glenda." He pointed out, temper rising again. "She thinks they're coming back."

A/N: Happy birthday Roxy!

Also, thank you for reading, following, etc. Special thanks to Leah and Bonnie Sveen Fan for leaving reviews - even if I'm not completely convinced that Bonnie Sveen Fan isn't somehow secretly reading the upcoming chapters ;)

Becki :)