AT the tender age of 12, Vicky Jaggers cradled her newborn daughter Kirsty for the very first time.
Becoming a mother at such a young age life was always going to be difficult - but Vicky was also burdened by a horrific secret.
Her 17-year-old brother David was Kirsty's father - having RAPED Vicky several times in a matter of months.
Vicky vowed to keep the devastating truth to herself to protect her family.
Pain ... Vicky at 14 with Kirsty
Eastnews Press
But after 18 harrowing years, she bravely decided in 2004 to reveal the sickening secret to the police after monster David Jaggers, now 39, was arrested for the rape and kidnap of his then girlfriend.
DNA tests proved that David was Kirsty's father and, with Vicky courageously testifying against her sadistic brother, he is now serving a life sentence for his crimes.
Determined to give other rape survivors a voice, Vicky has now written about her ordeal in an autobiography called Silenced.
The 34-year-old says: "The evil abuse David inflicted on me ruined my young life. I had to lie to my family for 18 years about Kirsty's father, as I thought telling my parents would destroy them.
"However, there is one good thing to come out of my horrific story - Kirsty."
HEAR VICKY TELL HER STORY TO GAUNTY ON SUNTALK FROM 10AM TODAY.
Vile David brutally snatched away Vicky's innocence when she was just 12.
As she slept in her room above the pub owned by their mum Avril, now 63, and dad Len, who passed away in 1994, David climbed into Vicky's bed and raped her.
Vicky says: "I had no idea what he was doing - it seemed so unreal.
"Obviously I was a virgin and knew hardly anything about sex - but I knew what David was doing was very wrong.
"I can remember being in agony, but also too terrified to scream out.
Terrible
"It seemed to go on for ever and when the attack was finally over David simply got out of bed and left - shutting my bedroom door like nothing had happened.
"I cried all night and pushed my cupboard in front of my door in case he came back. The next morning I was desperate to say something to Mum and Dad.
"But when I saw David, his expression told me that if I said a word, he would kill me. So my parents had no idea about the horror that had occurred."
Over the following months, David raped Vicky twice more - on both occasions sneaking into her bedroom while she slept.
Vicky, from Tilbury, Essex, says: "I felt dirty and useless. The next day, I would sit in the bath for hours and try to scrub myself clean. But nothing could wash away the memories of those terrible attacks."
Shortly after his last attack, David left the family home to move in with friends.
Vicky explains: "It was a relief to have him out of the house. I hoped to be rid of him for ever. At that point, I had no idea I was carrying his child."
In fact, Vicky did not know she was pregnant until three months before the birth. After she suffered stomach pains, a doctor found she was six months pregnant.
Vicky says: "I was big as a child and always wore baggy jumpers, so no one had noticed my growing stomach.
"Hearing I was six months pregnant was devastating and knowing it was David's baby made me feel physically sick."
Hope ... Vicky is looking to the future with new man Kelly
Eastnews Press
Even then, Vicky did not tell her parents who the real father was - claiming it was a boy she had met the previous summer at a caravan park.
She says: "It was heartbreaking to see their disappointment. I was desperate to tell them the truth but thought they might think badly of me.
"I was 12, terrified and about to be a mother to my brother's child."
In July 1987, Vicky gave birth to Kirsty and decided not to put her up for adoption.
She says: "I was lucky enough to have my parents' support and even though I knew the terrible secret of Kirsty's real father, my heart filled with love for her."
A year after the birth, Vicky saw David again, when he moved closer to the family home. She says: "It made my stomach turn. He looked sleazy and had a constant lazy grin on his face which twitched.
"He made my skin crawl. When he looked at Kirsty, he didn't show any interest. He must have known she was his, but thankfully he didn't want to go near her."
In 1989, David was arrested for strangling his girlfriend, 23-year-old Helen Mitchell, to death after an argument.
He propped up her body on the sofa and sat with her all night, before leaving in the morning without reporting the crime.
He denied murder but was convicted of manslaughter and jailed for six years.
Over the following years, Vicky had a number of destructive relationships with other men and gave birth to four more children - Alicia, now 17, Sam, 16, Jamie, ten, and eight-year-old Kirk.
But Vicky's life finally changed for the better seven years ago when she met the man she calls her "knight in shining armour" - Kelly, 39, currently unemployed.
She says: "For the first time, I was with a man who truly cared for me and wanted to be a father to my children."
The couple married in August 2002 but however close she got to Kelly, Vicky still felt she could not tell him about the abuse she endured at the hands of her brother. But in December 2004, another shocking twist made Vicky realise she had to open up to her loved ones - and the police.
A nationwide hunt had been launched for David after he kidnapped and raped another girlfriend. Holding her prisoner in his van for three days, he repeatedly raped and beat her.
Evil
Vicky recalls: "This was the breaking point. I knew David would be punished, but the court needed to know the true extent of his evil. I had to come forward."
Rapist ... David in 2004
Vicky decided she first had to tell Kelly, mum Avril and daughter Kirsty.
She says: "I was terrified about their reaction and sobbed hysterically while I spoke. Through the tears, I could only say the words 'rape, David' and 'Kirsty's dad'.
"It was awful to see the hurt on their faces but it was also such a relief - 18 years after David raped me I could finally speak the truth. Mum was devastated and apologised for not looking after me but there was nothing she could have done. Kirsty was in shock and was speechless that her killer uncle was also her father."
After telling the family, Vicky went to the police, who took DNA samples that proved David was Kirsty's dad.
Because of Vicky's brave decision, David admitted two charges of raping her when he appeared at Basildon Crown Court, Essex, in 2005.
Shockingly, he was given just a one-year jail sentence on each count.
He also admitted raping his girlfriend, making threats to kill, false imprisonment and kidnap and was given a life sentence but with a minimum term of just six years.
Vicky says: "When he does come out, I know I will always be protected by my amazing, loving family - something David will never have."
Kirsty, now 21, who has luckily not suffered any health problems despite having parents who are blood relatives, says: "I'm so proud of Mum. She has been through a horrific time, but has always done her best to be a great mum.
"Her brave decision hopefully means David will not be able to hurt any other women."
