Kidnapping is a cruel, hateful crime, with the innocent victim inevitably scarred for life. It can rip a family apart, widening those imperceptible cracks in a relationship almost beyond repair, or for some, irrevocably. Richard and I have weathered the storm but with scars to show for it, scars that run deep but which we generally attempt to ignore.

It was no surprise to me that my husband was having an affair. A disappointment, yes, mainly as the affair didn’t stop with the physical aspect, and Richard took money which was partly mine to give to his mistress. My husband was weak and gullible but he learned a lesson and is certainly repentant. For a while I was unsure if I could forgive his betrayal and for the first two or three months we remained together purely for Dan’s sake. But as I am not blameless and also have secrets, it would have been hypocritical to end our marriage for such a reason.

Our son needed stability – he was and still is our priority. I took an indefinite leave of absence from work to be with him full time and have only recently resumed my career. I now work only the hours when Dan is at school, which leaves me time to take him there and pick him up each day. The extra hours spent in our home have proved to be surprisingly enjoyable, and my focus in life is now centred wholly on my son.

In all honesty I don’t miss work. Yes, I still have my hand on the company’s pulse, but others have proved able to run the business just as capably as I could. The company is thriving, which can also be said of my relationship with Dan. It sometimes amazes me how work was so important and all-consuming when I have the most wonderful son to love and cherish. How could I not have seen that Dan, and yes, Richard too, are the most important things in my life? Was I really a work-obsessed woman, putting a company before my own family?

It took nine months for the case to come to court, with the kidnappers held on remand during those months. Joanne and Peter Turner, the brother and sister from Hell, didn’t confess until the day of the trial when they asked for five other kidnappings to be taken into consideration. Only three of those crimes were known to the police – the other two families had paid a ransom and been too afraid to report their experience.