An Interview with D.I. Sterling

Detective Inspector Paolo Sterling has found a few minutes to answer a few personal questions. Paolo is the hero of the D.I. Sterling Thrillers and is currently midway through solving more crimes in the fifth in the series, Petals of Pain (working title), which will be available early next year.

Describe yourself to me.

I’m just over six feet tall, have dark brown hair, hazel eyes and scar on my cheek in the shape of a crescent. I have my Italian mother’s olive complexion, but my Scottish father’s features.

How did you get the scar?

Many years ago, a criminal I was chasing threw a full can of beer at me as he ran. It hit me in the face and the rim cut into my cheek, leaving me with the scar. It bled so much, by the time I caught him I looked like I’d been through an abattoir.

What would you say was the defining event in your life?

My daughter was killed in a deliberate hit and run. I had my back to the car, but Sarah was facing it and saw the driver aiming for me. She pushed me out of the way and the car hit her instead. She saved me but died in my place. I haven’t yet found the driver of the car, but I will one day.

Did you turn out the way you expected? The way your parents predicted?

My mother died when I was quite young, so I don’t really know what she would have predicted for me. My father wanted me to go to university and become a doctor, so I definitely didn’t live up to his expectations.

What moves you, or touches your soul?

Seeing my other daughter, Katy, smile. She looks like my mother and when she smiles the entire world lights up.

What are your strengths?

I never give up. I cannot bear to let criminals get away with anything and want to hunt down every last person who has preyed on another human being in some way.

What are your weaknesses?

I never give up. I don’t know how to let go of lost causes.

If it were possible, what superpower would you have?

That’s a difficult one. I think I’d like to have super hearing, so that I could eavesdrop on lowlifes and stop them before they commit their crimes. But that would also mean I’d hear things I shouldn’t, so maybe that’s not such a good idea.

What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done?

I shut down and wouldn’t let anyone get close to me after Sarah died. As a result, my wife had to deal with her grief alone. She has never forgiven me and I don’t blame her. I’ve never forgiven myself for adding to her pain.

What are you most afraid of?

Losing my other daughter. It’s a bad world out there and she’s already been through so much. If I could wrap her in cotton wool, I would, but she wouldn’t thank me for it. She’s a very feisty young woman.

What, if anything, would you change about your life?

I’d go back in time and give Lydia, my ex-wife, the support she needed after Sarah died.

The D.I. Sterling thriller series is available in paperback, ebook and audio: https://amzn.to/2YmYA6S

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