Exhaling sharply, Katy did her best to tune out her mother's constant talking. Since she'd found out about the visit from the police – after overhearing Katy and Graham arguing about the events surrounding the alleged robbery – Ronnie had hardly stopped to draw breath. She scolded her daughter's stupidity, almost taking pleasure in telling her that she had told her something would happen.
"It's fine, ain't it? They found the stuff and the investigation is over."
"Yeah, but he still brought the police to your door." Ronnie pointed out angrily. "You can't afford them sniffing around, can you?"
"What are you talking about?" Her daughter rolled her eyes.
"You've got too many skeletons in your closet to let the police get too close."
"When are you gonna let it drop and move on?" Katy demanded, arching an eyebrow. "Everyone has a past… it's done with."
"Done with until someone asks the right questions."
"They'd have to know that there are questions worth asking first." The younger woman reasoned defiantly, tilting her chin upwards.
"When do you need to go to the hospital?"
Slightly taken aback by the sudden change of topic, Katy shrugged. "Tomorrow. Why?"
"I'm coming with you."
"Why?"
"Because I don't trust you to do what's best for your health." Ronnie told her bluntly.
"I'm not a child… stop acting like I am." Her daughter snapped. "I am perfectly capable of going to the hospital for some results on my own."
"Are you, though? Or will you hear what you want to hear and ignore anything that doesn't fit in with your plans."
"Give it a rest, Ronnie." Katy muttered, shaking her head. "Stop lecturing me."
"I'm concerned, sweetie." Her mother pointed out, doing her best to stay calm. "I know what you're like. I know you'll put anything else that's going on ahead of your health, whether you'll admit it or not. You need to sort out your priorities and think about your family!"
"That's rich, isn't it?"
"Excuse me?"
"You lecturing me about sorting my priorities and thinking about my family." Her daughter replied. "Which of us faked their own death and disappeared for two and a half years?"
Ronnie scowled at her. "You know why we did that."
"I've been thinking about it a lot, recently… thinking about the day of your wedding. It all makes sense… I thought things were a bit strange at the time. I mean, you and Aunty Rox disappearing off for all those secret chats, the way neither of you put up any resistance to Dad's plan to adopt Amy and move to Ongar, leaving Roxy behind… the way you encouraged me to give Gran another chance. You told me that I'd need her and I thought you were mad… but you knew what you were about to do. You knew and you didn't tell me."
"Baby, you know we were always planning to tell you."
"But you didn't." Katy shouted, her temper boiling over at the expression on her mother's face that clearly said she wasn't quite sure why her daughter was so angry. "Your entire plan for telling me was based on whether I'd be able to face seeing your dead body! You had so many chances to tell me before you went but you didn't! You didn't trust me enough to tell me and you still expect me to listen to you banging on and on about how I deal with things?" Before Ronnie had a chance to speak, her daughter scoffed. "D'you know what I think the worst part of it was? I blamed Dad and I punished him because I thought it was his fault. But it wasn't, was it? You let me destroy my relationship with him because it suited you. I took Matthew and the girls away from him for two years. I almost took Amy and Ricky, too."
"Where is all this coming from? What's got into you?"
"Me?" The younger woman laughed mirthlessly. "What you did changed me, Mum. I was so… before you went I never wanted to listen to anything negative anyone had to say about you. Never. You were the most important thing in my entire world and you could do nothing wrong in my eyes. But I grew up. I realised that there's no one you can truly rely on. Everyone lets you down in the end."
"Is that the lesson you're gonna teach your girls, hm?" Ronnie demanded angrily. "That they shouldn't trust anyone and the only person they can truly rely on is themselves?"
"It's better I tell them, than I leave them to learn it for themselves like I had to."
"You've always been a selfish little cow, haven't you?"
"I've heard it's genetic."
"So… what?" Ronnie scowled at her. "You're going to make your daughters suffer, your entire family, because things haven't gone your way and you're a bit pissed off?"
"Why are you so convinced that I'm not going to go and get the test results and do whatever the doctors suggest?" Katy demanded, returning her scowl. "I've never said that I won't do what they say. You're the one who's so convinced that I'm going to be reckless… stop treating me like a child!"
Throwing up her hands, the blonde retreated towards the door. "Fine! Have it your way. You're on your own."
As the office door shut with a bang, Katy let out a scream of frustration and threw the closest thing she could lay her hand on at the far wall. The stapler smashed on impact, showering staples over the sofa and the carpet. Sinking into her desk chair, the blonde put her head in her hands and took several deep, steadying breaths. She was glad that the music from outside had drowned the sound, knowing that anyone who attempted to ask what was wrong wouldn't get a very pleasant welcome.
After a moment or two, she stood up. Rolling her neck to remove the kinks that had settled while she'd been doing her best to avoid looking at her mother, she made up her mind to go through with the idea she had been toying for a while. Her visit from the police the other day had set Katy slightly on edge and something about the whole situation seemed wrong.
Making her way downstairs, she pushed through the punters and made her way outside. The bouncer working that evening had a less than squeaky clean past, but Katy had given him a chance. His dealings with the Mitchells went back a fair way and she was sure that he was the best person to ask for help with her request.
"Nick… I've got a job for you." Katy murmured, leaning against the wall beside the young man. She looked at him meaningfully. "Office in fifteen."
He returned her look and then nodded sharply, turning his gaze back onto a group of rowdy punters in the middle of the street. Pausing for a moment, Katy followed his gaze before turning sharply, heading inside and making her way over to the bar. Slipping behind it, she helped herself to a double measure of vodka, knocking it back before refilling her glass.
Exactly fifteen minutes later there was a sharp tap on the office door and Nick's face appeared in the gap. She smiled and nodded, motioning for him to come in and take a seat, closing the door firmly behind him. Perching on the edge of her desk, she fixed him with a hard stare.
"I need you to look into a couple of people for me."
"Who?"
"A man called Damien Anderson-Millet." Katy replied, handing him a print out of the man in question. "Hedge fund manager, all round sleeze." She inhaled sharply. "Also a financial analyst called Graham North."
"What d'you wanna know, Ms Mitchell?"
"Anything that I could use against them if necessary. I don't take kindly to people attempting to use me." She replied bluntly. "Associates, any dodgy business deals, anything that even seems the tiniest bit off…"
Nick watched her for a moment. "How dirty are you willing to play this?"
Moving across the room, Katy pulled an envelope out of the safe and handed it to him. Nick took a look inside, running his finger over the bundle of notes, before tucking it into his jacket and nodding in understanding.
"This stays between you and me, right?" She clarified. "You work for me, Nick, not Phil and definitely not my mother."
"Understood, boss. Is there a time limit?"
"As soon as possible."
"I'll get onto it tomorrow."
"Thank you, Nick."
Watching him leave the office, Katy rounded her desk and settled herself in her chair once more.
A/N: Eastenders is back on TV!
However, teaching 30 7-9 year olds under the new (and ever-changing) guidelines means that updates might be few and far between for a while. I promise I'll do my best, but work (and the wellbeing of my kids) has to take priority, I'm afraid!
Hope you enjoyed this chapter :)
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