Cathy Glass - Mummy Told Me Not to Tell - The true story of a troubled boy with a dark secret

Certain details in this story, including names, places and dates, have been changed to protect the family’s privacy.

HarperElement

An imprint of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd. 1 London Bridge Street London SE1 9GF

www.harpercollins.co.uk

First published by HarperElement 2010

Copyright © Cathy Glass 2007

Cover layout design © HarperCollins Publishers Ltd 2015 Cover images © IndexStock/SuperStock (child, posed by model); Shutterstock.com (background)

A catalogue record of this book is available from the British Library

Cathy Glass asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work

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HarperCollins Publishers has made every reasonable effort to ensure that any picture content and written content in this ebook has been included or removed in accordance with the contractual and technological constraints in operation at the time of publication

Source ISBN: 9780007362967

Ebook Edition © September 2008 ISBN: 9780007362974

Version 2016-08-17

Damaged

Hidden

Cut

The Saddest Girl in the World

Happy Kids

The Girl in the Mirror

I Miss Mummy

Mummy Told Me Not to Tell

My Dad’s a Policeman (a Quick Reads novel)

Run, Mummy, Run

The Night the Angels Came

Happy Adults

A Baby’s Cry

Happy Mealtimes for Kids

Another Forgotten Child

Please Don’t Take My Baby

Will You Love Me?

About Writing and How to Publish

Daddy’s Little Princess

The Child Bride

Saving Danny

Girl Alone

The Silent Cry

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Also by Cathy Glass

Prologue

Chapter One: Respite

Chapter Two: A New Record

Chapter Three: Sharky

Chapter Four: Toilet Training

Chapter Five: Safer Caring

Chapter Six: Kids in Care

Chapter Seven: Chaos

Chapter Eight: ‘School’

Chapter Nine: Starting to Get Annoyed

Chapter Ten: Summoned to the Head

Chapter Eleven: An Uncertain Start

Chapter Twelve: The Wider Family Picture

Chapter Thirteen: A ‘Done Bad’ Day

Chapter Fourteen: Seaside Escape

Chapter Fifteen: Set Apart

Chapter Sixteen: Heated Debate

Chapter Seventeen: A Dark Cloud

Chapter Eighteen: Cycle of Abuse

Chapter Nineteen: Normal Family

Chapter Twenty: Forever Family

Chapter Twenty-One: It’s Sad to Say Goodbye

Epilogue

Suggested Topics for Reading-Group Discussion

Sample Chapter

Cathy Glass

Moving Memoirs eNewsletter

About the Publisher

‘ I s he staying with you now?’ she bellowed. ‘He better be! I ain’t ‘aving ‘im moved again. It’s a bleeding disgrace. Them wankers!’

‘No, he won’t be moved again,’ I reassured Tracey.

Reece was pulling on my arm and making a loud hissing noise. ‘Stand still, good boy,’ I said.

‘Do as you’re bleeding told!’ Tracey yelled, giving him another cuff over the head.

And that was my first meeting with Tracey, Reece’s mother.

Certain details, including names, places and dates, have been changed to protect the children in this story

M y family and I had said a very emotional farewell to Tayo (the boy whose story I described in my book Hidden ), our previous foster child, at the end of October, and because we had grown so close to Tayo it seemed a good idea to do some respite fostering, rather than take on another long-term placement.