Darren Galsworthy - The Evil Within - Murdered by her stepbrother – the crime that shocked a nation. The heartbreaking story of Becky Watts by her father

For the next three months, Anjie and I lived and breathed the fight to get my children out of care. It was the first thing I thought about as soon as I woke up in the morning, and the last thing that passed through my mind before I fell asleep – if I managed to get any sleep at all. The number of sleepless nights I had worrying about the fate of Danny and Becky was unreal.

We saw Dave, the social worker, a few times after that, and I grew to really like him. He talked us through the whole process and kept us up to date with what we had to do to apply for custody. A brilliant family solicitor called Greg Moss, one of the best in Bristol, agreed to take on the case on behalf of the children, and it was good to know he was on our side.

We got dressed up and went to several family court hearings, only to discover that they were going to be adjourned to another date. It was irritating, as I had to book a whole day off work every time. Eventually, I had used up all of my holiday allowance for the year just to be able to attend a string of meetings that lasted five minutes each.

The hearings were nerve-racking for Anjie and me. We both knew we were more than capable of taking care of Danny and Becky full-time, but we had to prove that to the family court. We were put under the spotlight as they queried everything about us. They wanted to know why Nathan lived with his nan during the week, and Anjie had to explain tearfully that it was a decision she had made in the past when she was involved in a troubled relationship and it had seemed best for him to have stability. After Anjie and I got together, we all decided it was best for him to stay at the same school, which meant staying with his nan. Then they asked Anjie to take a parenting class, and she did so well in it that she was later approached by Bristol City Council, who asked her if she wanted a job teaching the classes! We had a good laugh about that.

I was so lucky to have Anjie through that whole difficult period, as I told her on many occasions.

‘If it wasn’t for me and my family, you and Nathan could have a peaceful life,’ I said to her. ‘Are you sure you really want all of this? You didn’t sign up for it and I wouldn’t judge you if you wanted out.’

But Anjie simply smiled at me. ‘Your family is my family,’ she said, squeezing my hand. ‘I love you, and of course I’ll stick by you, no matter what happens.’

That was just another example of Anjie being Anjie – she was the kindest person in the world.

Someone must have told social services that I was a heavy drinker, because they made me do a breathalyser test on a few occasions when I went to pick up the kids. It was annoying. Like most lads I’d had drunken moments in my younger days, but I hardly ever drank in that period. Still, I did the tests willingly to keep the peace and to prove I was a responsible parent. They also quizzed me on my job, my relationship with Anjie and Tanya, and what my relationship was like with the kids. It was exhausting and upsetting, but, with the help of Greg Moss, I did my best to prove that I was a hard-working man who would do anything to support his family.

When the children stayed with us at the weekends, Anjie and I tried to make it as normal as possible for them, often taking them out for the day to take their minds off everything. I was desperate for them to know how wanted they were and how much they were a part of our family. They seemed in bright enough spirits, and the foster parents they were with seemed lovely, so I knew they were being well-treated when they weren’t with us. Their foster parents’ own children were in the sea cadets, and they took Becky and Danny along for some of the outdoor activities, which they enjoyed, but it wasn’t their home and Danny knew it.

‘Daddy, why can’t I live with you and Anjie?’ he asked as I dropped them back at their foster home one Sunday evening. He always looked confused whenever I had to leave without him, and he would hug me hard as I said goodbye. ‘I don’t want you to go, Daddy,’ he said, peering up at me.

It broke my heart, but I tried to reassure him. ‘Anjie and I are doing our best to get you and Becky home where you belong. Don’t you worry, son,’ I said. ‘In the meantime, you’re going to stay with this nice family and have lots of fun. I’ll see you soon, I promise.’

But Danny simply looked up at me with his sad eyes. Walking away from that front door while waving goodbye to my kids felt impossible sometimes, and I had to force myself to put one foot in front of the other. It just made me all the more determined to get them home with me, where they belonged.

Nathan was fourteen at this time, old enough to understand, so Anjie explained to him what we were doing and how important it was to get Danny and Becky out of care. He got on well with Danny and didn’t seem to mind the idea of seeing more of him, but when we spoke about Becky coming to live with us he wrinkled his nose in disgust.

‘I don’t want her to live here with you, Mum,’ he moaned. ‘She’s so loud and annoying.’

‘She’s only a baby, Nathan,’ Anjie explained. ‘She’ll grow out of all that in time.’

We didn’t pay much attention to Nathan’s attitude to Becky at the time. There were eleven years between them and he was bound to be irritated by her demanding ways. He was also prone to getting jealous over his mother’s affections. Now and again, he would get annoyed if Becky grabbed Anjie’s hand, but we always reminded him that she was only little and needed more attention. We guessed that he would probably feel jealous about Becky and Danny coming to stay with his mother full-time, while he only stayed with us on the weekends, but we decided to cross that bridge when we came to it.

It was a long process, but in January 2002 the family court granted us an interim care order for Danny and Becky to stay with us full-time until the final hearing, and in March 2002 we were granted a residence order, meaning we were awarded full custody of them. When we opened the letter I threw my arms around Anjie in celebration. It was over, and we had won. My kids were staying with me. I don’t think I’ve ever felt so relieved in all my life. I vowed to enjoy every future minute I spent with them.

That night, when I put them to bed in our house, knowing that I wouldn’t have to drive them back to that foster home ever again, I spent longer than usual tucking them in and reading them a story. Becky was still too young to understand, but I explained things to Danny. ‘You’ll be living with Anjie and me now,’ I said. ‘You’ll be sleeping here every night. No more living in foster care. That’s all over.’

The relief on his face was obvious. He had taken it upon himself to look after his younger sister while they were in care – he was even given an award from social services at South Gloucestershire Council for being such a brilliant older brother. But that was far too much responsibility for a five-year-old to shoulder, so I think he was happy that, from that minute on, he could go back to being a kid again.

One Friday evening, not long after we were awarded custody, we drove Becky and Danny to pick up Nathan from his nan’s house. As we waited outside for him, Becky looked out the car window and saw him coming towards us. She opened her mouth and, as clear as day, said the word ‘Nathan’.

I swivelled around in shock, as did Anjie. It was the first distinct word she had ever uttered.

Nathan jumped in the car and looked round at us, puzzled by our stunned faces.

‘What’s the matter?’ he asked.

‘Becky just said your name,’ I told him.

‘Yeah, right!’ he sneered. ‘Becky doesn’t even talk yet. As if she said my name!’

‘Seriously, Nath, Becky said your name,’ Anjie said. ‘You should be flattered. She’s never said anything before.’