Tanya Kach Discusses 'Memoir Of A Milk Carton Kid'

PITTSBURGH,None — Tanya Kach just released a new book, "Memoir of a Milk Carton Kid," and Channel 11's Darieth Chisolm spoke with her on Thursday.

Kach, 14 at the time, dropped out of sight on Feb. 10, 1996. She ran away from home to be with Mckeesport Cornell Middle School security guard Thomas Hose. Hose held her captive as a sex slave in his bedroom until 2006 when a deli owner helped rescue her.

"For four years, I didn't see the light of day. I didn't go outside. I didn't step foot outside for four years," said Kach.

A home along Soles Street in McKeesport is where the frightening and tragic string of events began. Kach said she was isolated in the upstairs bedroom. She made occasional trips to the basement and less frequent stops in the kitchen.

Kach said she used headphones to watch television and listen to the radio but mostly slept.

She said she suffered from a counting disorder, anorexia and painful pink eye with no medical or dental appointments.

"When my mind just completely went on me, I would sit there or I would imagine a childhood friend was there. I would put my ear to the vent to hear what his parents were talking about downstairs," said Kach.

Hose's parents claim they didn't know their son was holding Kach captive in his bedroom, the same tiny bedroom Hose and Kach shared with Hose's son, Justin.

Kach said she had to record their sexual details in a notebook that Hose reportedly shared with others at Cornell Middle School.

"When I first lost my virginity to him, I did what I was told. No matter what it was, I did what I was told," said Kach.

According to Kach, that included using a bucket as a toilet.

"The only way I survived was through God. I mean, God gave me the strength to get through it," said Kach.

Kach said when she turned 18, Hose introduced her to his parents and began allowing Kach to take planned trips to store.

Years later, Kach said she befriended the deli owner who helped her orchestrate her freedom.

Police arrived at the Soles Street home on March 21, 2006, to get her and arrest Hose.

"Tom at first was looking at me, and said, ‘Well, what's going on, kitty?' I just looked at him, and I said, ‘It's over,'" Kach said.

She said the new sadness that fills her life is the still shattered relationship with her father who still blames her. She recalls the first night she spent with her father after the rescue.

"That night, I asked my dad to tuck me in, and I was a 24-year-old women, and he did. That's all I wanted," Kach said.

Hose is serving time on his 5- to 15-year sentence. He's scheduled for parole in February. Kach plans to fight to keep him behind bars.

WPXI