Chapter 17
Sergeant O'Berne was walking the family dog before beginning his shift. The town was waking, the birds were singing and life was good. He turned into a street that would allow him to bypass the main square. He didn't want to be accosted by Shanahan the baker about some trivial matter so early in the morning. He'd head home, wash, dress and make breakfast for his wife. It was going to be a grand day.
He heard the shout. It was a man's voice: a man's voice calling on God. The emotion was raw with rage and disbelief. O'Berne jogged into the square, his dog alert to some new excitement. Shanahan was standing some metres from his bakery doorway, his hands on his head. He turned and saw the policeman.
'The animals, the b****y animals,' said the baker. He stepped to one side and poi
