During the course of writing NO STONE UNTURNED, I had the privilege of consulting with a small group of FBI specialists who have dedicated and continue to dedicate themselves to stopping worldwide terrorism. My thanks go out to them, first and foremost, for what they do for our country and second (and on a much smaller scale), for their willingness to help me with great patience and professionalism. Any errors or omissions I might have made, however small, throughout these pages are mine and mine alone.
FBI SSA Mark Lundgren (retired), Counterterrorism and Counterintelligence, who gave me enormous amounts of time he didn’t have and a history and in-depth understanding of the IRA that helped me create the most authentic backdrop to my story as possible. I affectionately refer to Mark as SSA “Mongoose”, because you all know what a mongoose does to a cobra…
FBI ASAC Richard W. Kelly (retired), Joint Terrorist Task Force (JTTF), who brought a wealth of professional experience to life for me, and whose great personality and even greater humility made learning a pleasure for me.
FBI SSA Thomas F. Dowd (retired), Counterterrorism, who was generous with his time and equally generous with his knowledge.
In addition to the above, my deep gratitude go out to the following people, each one of whom brought their unique talents to helping me write this book:
Angela D. Bell, FBI Office of Public Affairs, who (as always) knew exactly which contacts to connect me with, and made those connections possible. Quite simply, no one does it better.
FBI Special Agent Laura M. Robinson, Newark Evidence Response Team Senior Team Leader, who has been a constant source of contacts for me as well as an educator in all things FBI for over a decade.
Nancy Troske, goldsmith extraordinaire, who was my guru in all aspects of Fiona McKay’s jewelry-making skills, the talent behind Fiona’s spectacular designs, and a teammate I deeply valued throughout my researching and writing of this book. From church visits to ancient artifacts to Celtic symbols, I loved taking this journey with you, Nan! For those of my readers who want to check out Nancy’s unique and stunning jewelry, go to: nancytroskejewelry.com.
Jennifer Sarah Frank, New York based private investigator specializing in global criminal and civil investigations, whose areas of expertise are widespread and who kindly introduced me to the NYPD experts I needed.
Tefta Shaska, NYPD 2nd Grade Detective (retired), who shared a wealth of police procedural information with me.
Irma Rivera, Manhattan South Homicide Detective (retired), who educated me on homicide investigations as well as how they’re treated by the Medical Examiner.
Detective Al Sheppard, NYPD Major Case Squad, a one-of-a-kind human being who was generous with his time, his knowledge, and his humanity. You’ll be deeply missed, Al. Naming a character after you in NO STONE UNTURNED is my small way of honoring your memory.
FBI SSA (retired) Konrad Motyka, who came to my rescue yet again, and put me in touch with just the right NYPD detective.
Charles J. Longi, NYPD homicide detective (retired), who taught me the nitty-gritty facts about New York City homicide procedures, and who is the first person I’ve worked with who works even longer hours than I do.
FBI SA Robert Wittman (retired), former Senior Investigator and Founder of the FBI’s National Art Crime Team, who, once again, shared his bottomless knowledge base of art and antiquities with me.
FBI Supervisory Special Agent Stephen M. Egbert, International Operations Division (IOD), who was kind enough to put me in touch with his lovely wife, who hails from Ireland.
Helen Egbert, who brought Irish culture alive for me.
Susan Lancaster, who shared her childhood Irish stories with me.
Frank Alfieri, Director Rite of Christian Burial, Basilica of Saint Patrick’s Old Cathedral, who welcomed me into this spectacular church and provided me with all the resources I needed to capture its beauty and history in my story.
Tommy of Tommy’s New York, whose tour of the cathedral is something that cannot be missed.
Last, but never least, to my support system:
Adam Wilson, who goes above and beyond in his role as an editorial partner. I’ll skip all the accolades, since there are not nearly enough in my vocabulary, and just say, welcome back, not-so-MOE.
And to my family, who give me the love, the support, and the incentive to give all I can to all I do.