Aftermath

Sequel to Blades 1 (Street Kid), Blades 2 (High Country) and Blades 3 (California Dreaming) - Julian returns home to face a storm of controversy over the dangers he had faced at the fire front whilst under eighteen, originating mainly with California's child welfare agencies, and also a plague of bad memories of what he had seen and felt during that time. These memories lead to nightmares and a need to self-medicate with alcohol. All the subtle warning signs of a growing problem are there, but get missed by the adults in his life. His slide into binge drinking and alcohol abuse, and the deterioration in his behaviour continues until he suffers a violent mental collapse, is diagnosed with a juvenile form of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and placed immediately in detox for three weeks followed by intense on-going counselling. With a lot of support from family and friends, Julian comes to terms with his demons, and gets his life back on track.