Tom studied the wooden table, mulling the possibilities. To stay in the job he was familiar and comfortable with, but have Kennedy or some other unknown quantity in charge, or to take on the responsibility of leadership? Ray was almost ready to move up to Detective Inspector and he’d be leading a great team. Laura, too, could be put in charge, young as she was. But Tom would miss being this close to investigations and he’d hate dealing with the media and the internal politics.

‘I think Natasha would have made a great choice,’ he said, not looking up. ‘And I’m up to my tonsils with this case. It’s hard to think beyond that right now.’

‘Hmm.’

The inspector didn’t want to see the disappointment in Sean’s eyes. And he didn’t want to say that what he really wanted was Sean back in his old job and everything to return to the way it was.

‘Right, so,’ Sean said. ‘The case. Fill me in and I’ll tell you where you’ve been going wrong. Then I’d better get back. June keeps forgetting we’re married and yet she hasn’t lost the ability to smell booze on my breath and give me a talking to. Some things never change, huh?’

CHAPTER 16

Treasa, 2009

Treasa wanted to die. Of that, she was certain.

She didn’t know how long she’d been in the cellar, but it had been a while.

She did know that her family would be looking for her.

There’d be some who’d have written her off. ‘Ah, that’s Treasa for you. She’s always on the rip. Probably gone off to Ibiza for two weeks.’

But her father would know something was wrong. Treasa rang him every day, no matter where she was or what she was doing. One time, she’d got on the wrong train out of Budapest and ended up travelling to Russia with nothing but her passport, a travellers cheque worth about €50 and a packet of ecstasy tablets stuffed in her bra. And she’d still managed to find a phone to ring him and tell him she was fine – though it had required giving some old lad in the last carriage a blowjob.

She had to ring her dad daily. He worried about her so much. Ever since … well, they didn’t talk about that.