‘This isn’t your business tonight, Joe,’ Mallon said firmly. ‘But if you must know, the victim is one Ellen Byrne, twenty-two years old, plying her trade as a lady of the night under the name Nellie Sweet, battered in a kip in Monto. Gloucester Street, to be precise. There’s an inspector from Store Street at the scene, and Shanahan and Collins are gone over from the Castle.’

Swallow knew the dead woman’s name from the files. Like many of the girls working in the brothels around Montgomery Street she would have adopted a working name that disguised her true identity. Many of them were occasional informants for G-Division, passing on snippets of information picked up from clients. Someone had a gun. Somebody else seemed to have unexplained money. A known criminal had changed his habits. It all fed into the G-Division intelligence machine.

Ellen or Nellie Byrne was a country girl, Swallow recalled. From County Wicklow, as well as his memory served him. And unusually among working girls in Monto, she was connected with various subversive groups operating in the city. As well as he could recollect she had never been connected to any incident or outrage, but she had come to his notice on a number of occasions as keeping company with men known to be involved in political violence.

‘Any witnesses?’ Swallow asked as Mallon stepped into the cab.

‘There might be. A beat man says he was nearly knocked down by a fellow flying out of the house. We’ll know a bit more as soon as we get into Exchange Court.’

Whatever G-Division knew as he and Maria stepped into the train, the morning newspapers appeared to have a good amount of detail. Swallow took a Sunday Sketch and an Express from the newsboy at the station entrance.

The Sketch had the story across four columns of its main news page.

‘Another Dublin Murder’

‘Victim a Woman of the Unfortunate Class’

‘Constable’s Valiant Efforts in Vain’

There is consternation in the city with the death of yet another young woman in violent circumstances last night. The victim is Ellen Byrne, aged about 22 years and understood to be a native of County Wicklow.

The unfortunate woman had lodgings at Chapel Court, Gloucester Street. Her head had received severe lacerations. It was discovered by a neighbour shortly after eleven o’clock last night.

Police Constable C35 who was on duty in Gloucester Street saw a tall man who is suspected as the assailant leave Chapel Court. The constable sought to restrain him but was incapacitated by a blow to the body and the attacker made good his escape. There was fog in the streets at the hour.

Police from Store Street attended at the scene, as did officers from Exchange Court at Dublin Castle. The city Medical Examiner, Dr Henry Lafeyre, visited the scene, as did a police photographic expert.