‘They didn’t approach you, then?’

‘No.’

‘All the same, Your Honour, don’t you seriously suspect that the O’Flynns might have been behind it?’ asked Kyna. ‘Like, the O’Flynns and the Riordans have been feuding with each other since before Father Mathew gave up drinking. The last body count was thirteen – six O’Flynns and now seven Riordans, counting Michael.’

Justice O’Rafferty shrugged. ‘Of course it’s highly likely that they had a hand in it somewhere, even if they only supplied Hagerty with the murder weapon. But I can only make judgements on the evidence that’s presented to me. Hagerty said word for word the same thing in court that he told you when you questioned him after his arrest. He shot Michael Riordan because Michael Riordan had cheated him over a seventeen-thousand-euro consignment of cocaine and cannabis.’

‘What did Justice Quinn think about it?’

‘Garrett? So far as he was concerned, there was no question about it at all. He was totally convinced that the O’Flynns had hired Hagerty. But unless Hagerty ratted on them, there was no way that anybody could prove it. You couldn’t get him to admit it, could you – and in court the prosecution couldn’t get him to admit it, either, even though they tried, God knows. Garrett said that it would have been a death sentence for Hagerty if he had. He said he wouldn’t have lasted five minutes in prison before one of O’Flynn’s cronies got to him with a razor blade or a sharpened toothbrush.’

‘When exactly did Garrett say that?’

Justice O’Rafferty suddenly looked flustered, and blushed. ‘He said it – I don’t know. He said it over lunch, I think. I don’t see what that has to do with it.’

‘No, well. Fair play to you, Your Honour. I’m just interested. You and Justice Quinn must have discussed the trial, like, exhaustively between you. It would be helpful to know what he thought about it.’

‘Yes, we discussed it in very great detail. For hours, in fact. Especially the killing of Saoirse Riordan and the two young Riordan children.’

‘What did Garrett have to say about that? You don’t mind me calling him “Garrett”? It sounds like you became good friends, as well as fellow judges.’

‘Well, we did, yes,’ said Justice O’Rafferty. She paused for a moment, and then, softly, she repeated, ‘Yes.’

Kyna waited, saying nothing. Eventually Justice O’Rafferty looked up and said, ‘He said that at least Saoirse would never know what it was like to lose a husband and the children would never know what it was like to lose a father.’

‘What do you think he meant by that?’ asked Katie.

‘I don’t know. I don’t think he meant anything by it, to be honest with you. I think he was just – musing.’