Despite Madeleine McCann disappearing in Portugal in 2007 at just age 3, parents Kate and Gerry McCann understandably cling onto any inkling of hope that she may still be out there alive.
Their firstborn vanished from their holiday apartment in Pria Da Luz on May 3, 2007.
They were dining at a nearby restaurant with three other couples and at 10pm discovered that their daughter was no longer there, The Mirror reported.
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They have kept investigations and campaigns alive, hoping to find Maddie, who would now be 20 years old.
The latest developments have police search teams checking a remote reservoir that was labelled as a "little paradise" by German paedophile Christian Brueckner, 45 - the prime suspect.
In the years that followed, Kate and Gerry, who met in 1993 in Glasgow and wed five years later, have tried to continue on for the sake of their twins, Amelie and Sean, now 18.
They still live in Rothley, Leicestershire, and are very religious, however Kate admitted her faith has been put to the tried by the tragedy that befell them all those years ago.
She said: "There have been many times when I've felt God has deserted me or that He has let Madeleine down. I've occasionally doubted His existence altogether. And yes, I've been angry with Him..."
She stressed that"wherever Madeleine is, God is with her".
Kate and Gerry have stayed together for 25 years.
However, Kate said it wasn't easy, adding that intimacy "plummeted to zero" after her eldest's disappearence.
Speaking in her memoir, she said: "The first was my inability to permit myself any pleasure, whether it be reading a book or making love to my husband. The second stemmed from the revulsion stirred up by my fear that Madeleine had suffered the worst fate we could imagine: falling into the hands of a paedophile."
The mum-of-three said the thought of sex "repulsed her."
"I worried about Gerry and me. I worried that if I didn't get our sex life on track our whole relationship would break down," she added.
She complimented her husband on his strength in keeping them together.
Kate, who had a degree in medicine at the University of Dundee, left behind her job as a GP, but returned during the Covid pandemic on the frontline.
During this time she spent time as a doctor in hospitals in Leicester and was said to be glad to be "doing her little bit to help" as the during the worst of the crisis.
A pal told the Sun: "Kate's back working as a doctor. She's helping out at her local hospitals now and not doing any surgery work. She has thrown herself back into a full time job to assist others in need.
"There's such a demand for qualified medics during these unprecedented times."
Gerry, a cardiologist and a research professor at the University of Leicester, was working in the same hospital at times.
Only a few weeks ago, Madeleine's sister Amelie was snapped for the first time since a baby, showing a possible likeness to what Madeleine may look like now.
She joined her parents and crowds on the 16th anniversary of the disappearance.
"It's nice that everyone is here together but it's a sad occasion," she said.
Student Amelie lit a candle for Madeleine and other missing children at the memorial.
She called out "Never never give up", "leave no stone unturned", "don't forget about me" and "still missing, still missed" along with others.
She is working on going to university, however Kate spoke on the affect Madeleine's disappearance has had on her children Amelie and her brother Sean.
She said they have "grown up essentially without Madeleine but knowing their sister is missing and they want her back."
Kate previously told the Mirror ahead of her book launch that her twins gave her the strength to fight on, with Sean promising: 'When you're old, me and Amelie will look for Madeleine'.
She disclosed: "I was chatting to Amelie and she said, 'Mummy's sad because Madeleine is not here. But Amelie is here, and Amelie and Sean will always be here.'"
She added: "They have their own friends and they keep busy and they're really sporty but their only wish is for their big sister to come home. We miss our complete family of five.
"As a family 98 per cent of the time we're busy. I don't know if that's a conscious thing but it helps.
"The urge to look for Madeleine absolutely hasn't changed at all."
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