When Nick and Ashley return to Walford in November 2000, Nick gets into a feud with his old enemy Mark Fowler (Todd Carty). It leads to Nick cutting the brakes on Mark's motorbike in June 2001. Ashley steals the bike and dies after crashing into a shop window. Zoe is devastated when she returns for his funeral and attacks Nick, blaming him for Ashley's death. She knew that Nick would never be a good father to Ashley and Ashley should have never come with Nick to Walford. After the funeral, she leaves Walford and has not been seen or heard from since.