An audio book.
Prologue: 2016. DI Sarah Collins is going to a funeral of a colleague.
A 15 y.o. boy, Spense is stabbed dead on Gallowstree lane (a road of whores and drugs). His black mate Ryan was with him. He phones Shakel, his gangland boss for advice. 2 years before, Shakel had avenged the death of Ryan's dad. Ryan nicks phones. His fence is Steve, a double agent. He has a history of crime. His mother's single.
Lizzie was stabbed 2 years ago. She was having an affair with another detective - Kieran - who was married. She's a single parent now, with child Conor. For 2 years Kieran has been helping to run project Perseus, trying to get evidence on gangland bosses. He suggests to Lizzie that he and his wife adopt Conor (his wife miscarried and wants a son). He gets her tranferred to the project.
Lexie, a Gallowstree whore, is run over and killed by Jarul (in Shakel's gang?) because she was involved in Ryan's death. There's been a spate of tit-for-tat murders - warnings and book-balancing. The police are cautious about investigating the murders because Shakel is about to be involved in a gun deal which is vital for project Perseus.
King, another gangster, thinks that Ryan is a snitch and kidnaps his sister.
Shakel gives Ryan a gun - promotion - and tells him to be a look-out during the gun deal. But the police are ready, and arrest Shakel just after the arms are exchanged. Ryan sees that Steve is a policeman. The police realise Ryan is at risk, so Steve goes to his flat in case Ryan turns up, asking for help. Ryan does turn up, but with a gun, threatening Steve. Ryan wants to convince King that Steve, not him, was the snitch, so he can get her sister released. Kieren raids Steve and Ryan and is shot by Ryan. He's taken to the same hospital that Connor's in (he'd reacted to an insect bite).
It ends where it began, at the funeral. The dead policeman is Kieran. I like some of the comparisons -
- like a father locked out of the delivery room
- like a boy suddenly left alone with a girl way out of his league
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