I am a teacher and a writer so it is rare for me to be without words. But I was on the day Jane Palfreyman from Allen & Unwin called to say I had won the inaugural Allen & Unwin Crime Fiction Prize. I will be forever grateful that Jane read my book and loved it, and that she invited acclaimed editor Ali Lavau to weave her magic to make my story as good as it could be.

The kernel of the idea for this book came from my Saturdays with the Skull—Brian ‘The Skull’ Murphy—who was known in his heyday as Australia’s toughest cop. He told me when he was a cop in the days of the old-time crooks, he never felt fear. Thanks to his wild stories, I began to toy with the idea of creating a fearless protagonist. My friend retired Assistant Commissioner Sandra Nicholson, who introduced me to Brian, somehow crept into my story too. I hope she doesn’t mind.

While a lot of the business of writing is just me sitting at my computer, every now and again I emerge from my desk and ask people for help. Thanks to Kathryn Ledson for being such a delightfully encouraging early reader. A million thanks to Cameron Hardiman for furnishing me with realistic police details that helped my characters move through their policing world with more authenticity, together with Nicole Joseph from our wonderful writers’ group. Thanks to Megan McInnes who offered suggestions to make the experience of my victims reflect the stark reality.

This novel is part of my PhD in Creative Writing, and thanks go to the fine academics at La Trobe University: Dr Alison Ravenscroft, Dr Claire Knowles and Dr Paddy O’Reilly, who guided my journey through both fiction and academic research. It was Claire’s enthusiastic response at my Confirmation meeting that made me first suspect that I had written something special. I am so grateful to have shared the PhD journey with Amra Pajalic and Kimberley Starr. From our selfies in the uni cafe to reading and discussing each other’s work, and our Covid lockdown Zooms, you made the journey fabulous.

Thanks to Marina Prassos and Angela Foletta for lending me your names for the story, and for realising that it is an occupational hazard of sharing an office with a writer. Thanks to Aimee Shackleton for reading a final draft and telling me it made you feel empowered. And to Claire Halliday for sharing coffee and cake and writer talk because the company of writers feeds the soul.