Dang... I was about to spew the plot here... I'm sorry for my past posts to EA forums...
I knew there was going to be a cost for the informant's information -- a child's life for liquidating a nest of dangerous predators. I'm pleased that the author didn't take the easy way out and describe Dermont's reward as a vagrant... as an orphan. This child could have indeed been snatched by the police... and now they'll have to concoct a story for the distraught parents.
A very, very disturbing thought came to me. In our province, there are Child Protection Agencies run by the Catholic, Jewish, and secular school boards. Holy f==k, could they be complicit in this story's larger universe? This would be horrifying -- an agency charged with child welfare willing to sacrifice children for the greater good. Actual question: are there stories that address such elements?
Alright, back to generalities: this story had me hooked (mind you, I just finished Clive Barker's most recent work, the Scarlet Gospels [I was softened up, as it were... hooks and all... yeah... :P ]). Mister Keeper Of The Big Red Button, I appreciate you having the courage... and taking on this challenging narrative. Your modulation of loud voice... pause... whisper caused me to stop and glare at the loudspeaker many times. Bravo.
What surprises (?) me is that I find stories like these LESS disturbing than a recent episode that contained animal cruelty (dogs, cats, bunnies [for sport... not food]). I'm getting used to the warnings (of extra nasty content) at the beginning of EA podcasts. I appreciate them when they have a wry tone to them.