The family of a missing young woman say they are dreading Christmas and fear it will be full of emptiness.
Leah Croucher has turned 20 since she went missing in February and her older brother Haydon died earlier this week having taken his own life.
Now their parents, step-parents and sister Jade face the festive period desperate for Leah to come home.
Jade, 26, said: "Christmas this year will be full of heartache, sadness and despair.
"It is something we are dreading. Christmas is a time for family, a time for love, and time for togetherness.
"For us, it will be emptiness. Leah being missing has left an enormous hole in our lives. One that cannot be filled until she is home."
She added: "On February 15, 2019 the world stood still and emptiness came into our lives. My sister, Leah Croucher went missing.
"During her walk to work, Leah vanished without a trace, leaving behind no clues of her whereabouts. Since then, our family have been torn apart.
"We have prayed every second of the day that our beautiful Leah is safe, and that she will be home, in our arms where she belongs. Unfortunately, this hasn’t happened.
"Much like many of you are probably thinking right now, whenever we saw news of a missing person in the past we felt sadness for the families and friends suffering.
"Never in our lives did we think we would be living that nightmare. But we are."
Her words are part of an appeal lead by charity Missing People, which asks people to donate and spread the word about Leah.
Jade added: "People try to support you, try to understand, but the truth is that no one really knows how it feels; everyone other than the missing people charity.
"The staff and volunteers are a lifeline for families like mine.
"They have the experience that no one else does, they say the right things, they provide invaluable advice and information that can otherwise be very hard to find and assist with raising appeals.
"In an unimaginable nightmare they somehow manage to ease the pain."
Leah went missing from her home in Emerson Valley on February 15.
She had not told her parents where she had been for 75 minutes on Valentine's night.
They have since said in a tearful interview that they believe their daughter has been murdered.
She was last seen in Buzzacott Lane in Furzton, Milton Keynes just after 8.15am and was walking towards work in the direction of Loxbeare Drive and Chaffron Way.
Leah disappeared the next day on her way to work in Milton Keynes.
Her mobile phone and bank account have not been used since.
Three witnesses reported that a young woman, who could possibly have been Leah, was seen by Furzton Lake, another lake in the city on 15 February, between 9.30am and 11.15am.
She was reported as being "angry, upset and crying". A search of the lake was carried out but nothing was found.
Leah's brother Haydon had been involved in the hunt for his missing sister and was said to have been "consumed with pain and anguish".
The 24-year-old's lifeless body was found by his sister Jade and tried "in vain to breathe air into him".
His mum Tracey Furness said: "On Thursday November, 14, my son felt so alone, so lost, so broken that he felt he had no other choice other than to take his own life.
"Haydon was so consumed with pain and anguish and despite the love around him it wasn’t enough. His mother's love and that of his entire family was not enough."
Haydon's dad John added "Our world could not be more broken than it is now".
If you need to speak to someone, Samaritans are available 24/7 on 116 123 or by emailing [email protected]
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