WALKING OUT OF HER OFFICE AT OCEAN HOUSE ON Arran Quay, Kate Pearson planned to grab some lunch at the Legal Eagle pub nearby, before picking up Charlie from school straight afterwards. It was still hard to think of him being in ‘big school’, but as her mother had said to her at his birth, four years earlier, time flies quicker than anyone can possibly imagine. Out in the fresh air, the last person she expected to see leaning against the Liffey wall opposite was DI O’Connor. He was lighting a cigarette, his hands cupped around to avoid the breeze. Tall and bulky, he was a man who’d have looked more at home in a traditional pub, with his short auburn hair and curls to the front that never knew which way they wanted to settle. As always, his beard stubble was only a hair’s-breadth from looking unruly. He had shared very little with her about his personal life during the Dunmore case, other than his confirmed bachelor status and what seemed like an avoidance to reveal his first name. Crossing over as soon as he saw her, his blue eyes smiled in that cheeky way of his.
‘Those things will kill you, O’Connor,’ she said lightly.
He grinned at her. ‘Sure, something has to, Kate, might as well be something enjoyable.’
‘Stalking me now, are you?’
‘Now, now, less of the ego, it doesn’t suit you.’
‘Is the pleasure mine or someone else’s?’
‘It’s your lucky day. Tried to get you on your mobile. I had to ring Probation and Welfare to find you.’
‘Consultations all morning, mobile off, you know the way it is.’
‘Lunch?’
‘You’re a mind-reader, O’Connor. I’m heading for the Legal Eagle.’
‘Mind if I join you?’
‘I assume there is more to this than lunch?’
‘You assume right.’
Lunchtime at the Legal Eagle was always hectic, but they got lucky – a corner table came free as they arrived. The pub smelled of roast beef and strong coffee. It was dark coming in from outside, the place packed with city workers amidst the clatter of trays and easy conversation. Once the preliminaries of ordering lunch were dispensed with, O’Connor set about his real task.
The contents of the envelope he handed to Kate were stark. All the images, except for one – a school photograph of the victim – had been taken at the mountain burial site where the young girl’s body had been found. Working her way through the photographs, Kate was immediately gripped by what she saw. As each of the images revealed itself, she got the sense that everything about her first introduction to this young girl would remain with her, like a recurring bad dream.
‘Not pretty,’ he remarked drily.
‘They never are, O’Connor.’
‘Well, what do you think?’
‘I’m guessing this is unofficial?’
‘It is for now.’
‘These things take time to assess, O’Connor, you know that.’
‘Yeah, well, sadly we don’t always have the luxury of time. Rohan is doing his best, but the press is going mad with this thing, even bloody Twitter has gone crazy with it, trending top of the Irish tweets, whatever the hell that means.’
‘As I say, there are never any quick answers, Detective Inspector.’
‘I know, I know, but gut reaction.’
‘Gut reactions can mean jumping to wrong conclusions. Leading you down the garden path isn’t going to help anyone.’
‘Kate, I’m asking you off the record. What do you think?’
Just as she was about to share her thoughts, O’Connor’s mobile rang.
‘Sorry, I have to take this. I’ve been waiting for this call.’
‘Sure, go right ahead.’
O’Connor stepped outside, giving her the opportunity to study the images alone. The light in the pub was dull, but the more she looked at the photographs, the more her eyes became accustomed to it. The shots were taken from different angles and at varying ranges: the girl’s body seemed tiny, black clay beneath her nails, her fingers long, wrists narrow, almost doll-like. The tech guys looked to have done their job well. Every square inch of what could have been the victim’s final resting place was covered with white chalk marks and numbered flags. All potential pieces of evidence were noted in the shots, ranging from close-ups to wide angles of the surrounding area – and it would seem O’Connor, as the Senior Investigating Officer, had pushed the boundaries out pretty far when cordoning off the area.