‘if you tell… Santa Claus won’t come’

A sick threat used to hide even sicker actions. elizabeth, 35, learned the awful truth about her partner too late...

The washing machine was spinning, dirty plates were piled high in the sink and there were toys all over the floor. Business as usual, once the kids had gone to bed.

I took a deep breath, prepared to tackle the chaos.

Then some hands appeared on my shoulders, giving me a massage.

‘Go and put your feet up,’ my partner Tony, 23, said.

‘But look at the state of the place!’ I replied.

‘I know,’ he told me. ‘I’ll sort it.’

I collapsed in front of the telly, thinking how lucky I was.

I’d loved being a single mum but it had taken it out of me. Then Tony came along and everything changed.

We’d met at my local and instantly there was a spark.

Tony had a gorgeous smile and a wicked sense of humour.

I liked him a lot, but I needed to be wary because of the kids.

It took a good few months of dating before I felt ready. We

all went to a local restaurant – and within minutes, the children’s howls of laughter filled the air. Tony was a natural. Colouring with Ella, 6, playing games with Luke, 7.

Soon we were doing everything together. Trips to the park and zoo, movie nights at home.

We’d welcomed Ruby after a year together.

Tony doted on her. Me, too.

Her first summer, when the older two were off school, we were always out and about, having adventures.

And Tony was always on hand to help clear up the chaos afterwards.

On the first day back at school in September 2015, he helped, running around to find Luke’s school bag and making sure his hair was combed.

‘Ella, hurry up, we’ll be late,’ I shouted up the stairs.

All the while, I was bundling Ruby into her buggy.

I kissed Tony goodbye at the door as he waved and blew kisses to the kids, then we were off.

Luke raced ahead, eager to catch up with his friends.

But Ella hung back with me, strangely quiet. Until… ‘Tony’s weird,’ she blurted. ‘What do you mean?’ I laughed.

She went quiet again, shook her head, and I heard her whisper to herself.

‘If I tell, Santa won’t come,’ she said.

I felt a cold prickle. Her voice sounded robotic, like it was something she was reminding herself about.

‘Ella, you can tell me anything,’ I said stopping in my tracks.

‘But Santa won’t bring my roller boots,’ she almost wailed.

Crouching to her level, I asked her one more time to tell me what was wrong.

She took a deep breath and said, ‘Tony told me to… to touch his bits.’

My legs went to jelly. ‘Did he do anything else?’ I asked.

She nodded, gestured to her own private parts.

‘He put his hands there,’ she whispered.

In that moment, my whole world turned upside down.

That man I’d woken up next to, the one who’d fed the kids cereal before kissing me goodbye...

He was a monster.

I felt physically sick, wanted to confront Tony right then.

But as if she read my mind, Ella begged me to keep quiet.

‘Please, Mummy,