The Death of Jeffers

Patrick Jeffers is an Englishman on a job in Dublin. It's his first time in the city and his progress is seen from the point of view of the Dublin natives who encounter him, from the taxi driver who picks him up at the airport to the academic he's been sent to kill. He's keen to tell them of his Irish ancestry, pointing out that Jeffers is an Irish name - the locals aren't so sure, but then, is the man with the awkward smile really Patrick Jeffers anyway...? This short story first appeared in "Dublin Noir", edited by Ken Bruen (Akashic Books, 2006).