BooksBarbecue
Back The Last Drop of Blood
Chapters (60)
  1. Cover
  2. INTRODUCINGKATIE MAGUIRE
  3. ALSO BY GRAHAM MASTERTON
  4. Title Page
  5. Copyright
  6. Epigraph
  7. Contents
  8. 1
  9. 2
  10. 3
  11. 4
  12. 5
  13. 6
  14. 7
  15. 8
  16. 9
  17. 10
  18. 11
  19. 12
  20. 13
  21. 14
  22. 15
  23. 16
  24. 17
  25. 18
  26. 19
  27. 20
  28. 21
  29. 22
  30. 23
  31. 24
  32. 25
  33. 26
  34. 27
  35. 28
  36. 29
  37. 30
  38. 31
  39. 32
  40. 33
  41. 34
  42. 35
  43. 36
  44. 37
  45. 38
  46. 39
  47. 40
  48. 41
  49. 42
  50. 43
  51. 44
  52. 45
  53. 46
  54. 47
  55. 48
  56. 49
  57. 50
  58. 51
  59. About the Author
  60. An Invitation from the Publisher

‘That’s pure thoughtful of you, Robert, thank you. I’m taking it day by day, do you know the kind of way? Or hour by hour, rather. Or even minute by minute. But concentrating on these cases, that’s helping to keep my mind off any of the things that I’d rather not be thinking about.’

‘I want you to know that if you need any support, ma’am – anybody to stand up for you and say that you’re doing a grand job in spite of your budget restrictions and a chief superintendent who seems determined to throw up as many obstructions in front of you as possible – then I’m here for you.’

‘That means a great deal to me, Robert. I appreciate it.’

Detective Inspector Fitzpatrick paused, and for a moment Katie thought he was about to go. But then he said, in the flattest, most expressionless voice, ‘I lost somebody dear to me once myself. I know how hard and painful it is, trying to understand why it happened. But you can never really understand, in the end, because nobody can tell you why people you love should die before their time. You just have to learn to live with it. Day by day, like you are. Hour by hour. Minute by minute.’

With that, he walked out of her office. As soon as he had gone, Moirin came in and said, ‘Sorry to bother you, ma’am. Have you thought about that talk yet? “The life of a female detective”? They’ve been on the phone again.’

‘I think you’ll have to make my excuses, Moirin. Tell them that I’m right up the walls at the moment, juggling with too many cases. The truth is, if I told them what the life of a female detective is really like, they’d all end up in floods of tears.’

*

Katie started to read the report that she had been sent by the Customs National Drugs Team. Apart from a single smuggler who had been caught off the coast at Ballycroneen in a rubber life raft packed with sixty bales of cocaine, there had been a forty per cent increase in the past six months in OxyContin and other opioids seized by customs at Rosslare and Ringaskiddy. Addiction to painkillers was already becoming a serious problem in Cork, since they were being openly sold in pubs and nightclubs. Seven people had already died this year in Cork city from opioid overdoses.

Her phone rang. It was Dr Kelley, ringing her from the morgue at CUH.