Houston, Texas

Hair done, makeup done, and dressed for the occasion, Katherine Wentworth was technically ready to make her way downstairs as she always did on her birthday morning, however, she didn't move from where she stood in front of her mirror.

She was hesitant about leaving her bedroom for good reason. She was prepared to be welcomed downstairs by a bunch of balloons, a bouquet of flowers, a stack of wrapped presents and a birthday breakfast, but what she wasn't prepared for was the potentially frosty atmosphere in the room.

It was her birthday, her 18th birthday, it was a very special occasion and she didn't doubt that her parents were both happy to celebrate it with her; the question was, were they happy to celebrate it with each other?

Since they'd returned home from their vacation and her father had asked for an explanation to the messages Cliff had left her, things had been different, and not in a good way.

Her relationship with her mother was about the same as it had been when she'd finally uncovered the full story in Switzerland; she understood what had led her to make the decision she had however that didn't mean she condoned it. It was more complicated than simply accepting and supporting what her mother had felt she had to do though, she couldn't pretend that she hadn't ultimately benefited from decisions that had been made in the past, but she also couldn't pretend that Cliff didn't have a very good reason to feel resentful.

Her relationship with her father was ultimately still strong however there was a distance between them now that hadn't existed before and she didn't like it at all. She knew her father didn't think of her as the villain in the story, she hadn't maliciously hidden information, but the fact was, she had known about something that had come as a great shock and disappointment to him and that wasn't easily forgotten. Her inquisitiveness had always been something he'd encouraged but she got the distinct feeling that in this case he'd rather she hadn't pried into the past.

She couldn't be sure of what went on when she was out of the room but what she did know from her observation over the last few days was that the truth hadn't set anyone free. Her parents had always appeared happy together however she couldn't be so sure what they were anymore. There wasn't any audible arguing going on but their silence spoke volumes.

Considering everything that had happened she didn't necessarily regret what she'd done however she did wish the order and manner in which things had occurred had been different. She wished she could have convinced her mother to tell her father before the news found its own way out; she wished she could have convinced her mother to contact Cliff herself before he'd decided she wasn't worth a moment of his time; and she wished she'd been a little more in control of her own investigation.

Cliff had explained to her what had been going on in his head at the time she'd initially contacted him and she couldn't say she really blamed him for not wanting to sit down and tell a stranger all about his life. She understood too why he'd seemed uncomfortable when they finally did sit down to talk. They were related but they were very different to each other. She couldn't tell whether it was nature or nurture, whether she might have been more like Pamela had she known her, but they didn't really have much in common, not their experiences nor their perspectives.

She'd satisfied her curiosity in meeting Cliff. She had nothing against him, and she'd see him again if he was interested, but she didn't think they'd ever have the close sibling bond that he had had with Pam.

She very much wished she could have met Pam but since she'd had no idea that Cliff or Pam existed before she'd found the newspaper clippings following Pam's premature passing she wasn't sure that meeting Pam would have ever happened.

There was one person connected to the entire situation that she did still wish to meet and was disappointed she hadn't. Bobby Ewing wasn't an easy man to contact, but he was one she thought worthwhile contacting. Both JR and Cliff had spoken about how hard Bobby had taken Pam's passing but they'd also indicated that things were beginning to turn around for him and he was rebuilding his life.

She wanted to hear about her sister from someone who knew her in a different way to those she'd already spoken to. In a strange way, she wanted to hear from someone close to Pam that she reminded them of her. If Bobby matched any of the positive descriptions she'd heard, and looked anything like the photographs she'd seen, it would be a huge compliment to her to be told she reminded him of Pam. Pam had been adored and she loved being adored too.

Adoration wasn't all she was looking for. She'd had two other siblings, another brother and another sister, unfortunately, they hadn't had the opportunity to grow old enough to develop distinct personalities. She'd been raised as an only child and now knew she wasn't; it would be nice to know how much of her was her and her alone and how much was shared.

"Katherine?" hearing her father knocking on her bedroom door, she finally moved, opening the door to him.

"Daddy."

"Happy birthday sweetheart."

Wrapping her in a hug, she felt safe in his arms.

"Are you ready to go downstairs?"

"Yes."

Walking alongside her father, it occurred to her how blessed she was as they rounded the corner and headed down the curved staircase. From what she'd heard from Cliff and her mother, the Barnes family hadn't had a life anywhere near as comfortable as hers was, and she had to imagine that meant birthdays too.

Perhaps she'd been overindulged her entire life, but she expected everything that was waiting for her at the foot of the stairs. Her mother stood surrounded by colourful gift boxes, balloons and flowers; the tradition was a tradition because she could rely on it happening, and this year, she appreciated everything she had just a little bit more.

To be continued…