A 5-year-old boy, Ethan, is brought to Casey in the middle of the night after the sudden death of his young mother after a drug overdose.
Estranged from her parents, Ethan’s mum had been abused by her ex-partner, and began taking drugs to cope. Ethan is obviously lost and bewildered, and regularly wakes up screaming for his mum in the night. He begins to lash out at other kids at school and his behaviour becomes more volatile. When arrangements are made for Ethan to see his dad in prison, Casey recognises the name and face... It turns out she’s far more familiar with this case than first imagined.
Casey Watson, who writes under a pseudonym, is a specialist foster carer. She and her husband, Mike, look after children who are particularly troubled or damaged by their past.
Before becoming a foster carer, Casey was a behaviour manager for her local comprehensive school. It was through working with these ‘difficult’ children – removed from mainstream classes for various reasons – that the idea for her future career was born.
Casey is married with two children and three grandchildren.