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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