'Everyone thought he was a pillar of the community... but they had no idea what he'd done to me'
When Kate first started working at her local convenience store at the age of 13, she believed her boss was a 'lovely' and 'normal' guy.Cash was scarce in the family home but the teenager enjoyed getting pocket money from a paper round. She thought a weekend job at the shop would be a good opportunity.For the first few weeks, she worked as an assistant at the shop in Cardiff in Wales without any problems.
"We went to the back of the van. Then he shut the door and pushed me onto the floor. I froze. I knew what was going to happen, I don't know why. He pulled down his trousers and mine, and put a condom on. He stunk of stale fag smoke." Although Ahmed usually behaved as if the abuse never took place, there were a few occasions when he addressed it, said Kate. "I pushed him off once and he told me, 'Nobody would ever believe you, you're nothing but a silly little girl, and if you did tell anyone, I'd tell them you sold yourself to me.'
In that moment, something in Kate's mind changed. She tried to call for help, and although her voice froze, she was able to bang the side of the van. Ahmed panicked and stopped immediately. "I thought, 'If this person who knows me and loves me doesn't want to listen to me, then strangers won't listen to me either.' I had no way to open up to anyone else and I never thought anyone would believe me."
"I was very strict with my older kids," she said. "I didn't want to let them out of my sight. I always had to be in control of everything. As much as I hug my little ones, for years I didn't hug the older ones because I was emotionally unattached. But she also felt a sense of empowerment, of finally being able to tell her story. "When I stared [at Ahmed] in the face, he couldn't look at me and he showed his guilt. He'd had control over me for so many years. I felt I was the one in control now.
"When the first lot of verdicts came in, my whole body was shaking with anger. Then all of a sudden three guilty pleas came in. I didn't understand. My head was in a complete and utter state. My daughter said, 'Mum, these are yours.'
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