Garda Ruth Joyce’s tenacious investigation had led to the solving of the string of arson attacks that had plagued Cork during 2012 and 2013. After I had dropped my complaint against Joey O’Connor, Ruth had re-examined the footage from previous burnings and found that Joey had an unfortunate and inconvenient habit of being in the neighbourhood of several of the attacks. When confronted with the evidence, he admitted finally that he had been responsible for torching not just my car but all the rest as well, his only selection criteria being that the car owners had visited his car showroom and not bought a car. And that he hadn’t liked them. He wasn’t prosecuted for my car, but he was done for the rest. He pleaded guilty and, unlike after his previous prosecution, got jail time. But, with a discount for his co-operation and plea, he could be out in as little as eighteen months.

We walked down the steps of the courthouse and on to Washington Street. The settlement discussions hadn’t taken long in the end. The Carneys had pressed me to seek an admission from Jeremy Gill of what he had done to Deirdre, rather than a larger damages payout without an admission. Soon after Gill’s arrest, I had obtained a Mareva injunction, preventing him from dissipating his assets pending the resolution of the Carneys’ claim. Understandably, as he didn’t qualify for legal aid, Gill and his legal team wanted the order lifted, and I was able to set up early settlement negotiations as a result. There was a gagging order on the Carney settlement until after the criminal trial, but it was enough for Sean and Ann that the concession had been made. For them, the case had never been about the money.

At the foot of the steps, Sean turned to me.