Kat Moon (Jessie Wallace) and Alfie Moon's (Shane Richie) marriage is hanging by a thread in EastEnders, with their argument turning into an inferno that threatens to end them for good.
Kat had barely been reunited with estranged daughter Zoe Slater (Michelle Ryan) for a year before she died last month. After an unbelievably life-threatening return that saw her get shot, held hostage by a murderous P.I she'd previously bashed in the head, get trapped in a house fire and end up in a life-or-death showdown with her baby daddy, Zoe's demise was shockingly low-key.
Zoe's final days
Discovering that her beloved grandad Charlie's (Derek Martin) cab was up for sale, she intended to meet with the seller alongside Kat, though things got messy when they learned that Tommy Moon (Sonny Kendall) had stolen a load of booze from the Vic and gotten drunk. Heading to the meeting alone, the seller proved to be an absolute rotter, and after a fracas saw Zoe take a fall and bang her head, her fate was essentially sealed.
Kat and Zoe later went head to head over the cab drama, but eventually found an understanding and – for what would be the last time – reaffirmed their love for each other. Finding herself in agony in the night, Zoe went looking for paracetamol, instead finding Max Branning (Jake Wood) with Linda Carter (Kellie Bright) in the barrel store of the Vic – leading to another confrontation, this time with Max, who, believing she was drunk, left her alone.
Late in the night, Zoe cried out for help, but heartbreakingly no-one came, and when Kat found her in the morning, she'd died.
Kat's grief and search for answers
Kat has been – unsurprisingly – absolutely torn apart by the loss of her daughter: she's been desperate for answers as to how and why Zoe lost her life and while the rest of the Slaters gathered to plant a memorial tree in Zoe's honour, Kat was told by the police that Zoe had made a 999 call, with the only words the emergency services could make out: 'He left me'.
After accusing Zack Hudson (James Farrar), Kat headed out to question Max, having discovered that Zoe had called him on the day of her death. Max, desperate to keep the fact that he left Zoe to die under wraps, told Kat that the call had merely been about a delivery, leaving her no closer to the truth and – most importantly for Max – saving his own skin for the time being.
Marriage on the brink
Next week sees Kat continue to be consumed by grief, and when Jean Slater (Gillian Wright) presents her with flowers that remind her of Zoe, she struggles to contain her emotion. Keeping her loved ones at arms length, Kat attempts to find solace at the bottom of a bottle and starts knocking back alcohol to numb her feelings, and while Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden) attempts to help when she suffers an almighty breakdown, she's still on the warpath when she returns home to the Vic.
By the end of the week, it's clear that Kat and Alfie's marriage is hanging by a thread, and as things explode at the Vic, their argument quickly turns into an inferno and threatens to end them for good – is this really the end of the Moons?
