Page 41 of Twisted Lies
‘Okay, this is a complete and utter waste of time,’ Stacey said, throwing her pen across the table.
Penn removed his headphones as the pen hit his coffee cup.
‘Assault with a deadly weapon there, Stace,’ he offered with a smile, while retrieving his cup and heading for the coffee machine. He knew not to offer her one and instead passed her a fresh can of Diet Coke.
‘No luck yet then?’ he asked, dropping in a sweetener.
‘Nope, took a break and started fishing around social media for family background again, and it’s like I said – not one person in this family seems to have any presence online. Found one account that might belong to Leanne, but it’s locked up tighter than a duck’s arse, so I cor confirm it.’
The account was Facebook’s equivalent of sealing something in a lock box, placing it in a small safe and then locking the door in a dark corner of Fort Knox.
‘I’m gonna go back to it once I’ve made some headway on this damn registration number.’
‘Where you at with it?’
‘I’ve tried every variation of the letters with no joy. It’s what I said. The neighbour got it wrong.’
She pulled back the can ring and heard the satisfying hiss of the gas escaping.
Penn retook his seat.
‘Hold the paper up,’ he instructed. ‘My mum always used to say that my dad couldn’t see the wood for the trees, and right now, Stacey, I think you’re lost in the damn forest.’
She’d heard that saying too, and she didn’t disagree.
She held it up.
He looked at it for a full minute without speaking, then said the details aloud.
‘HL87 0RB.’
He turned to his computer and spoke without looking her way.
‘And you’ve tried all the letters?’
‘Yes, I’ve tried variations of H and L and R and B. I’ve exhausted it.’
There were times when she really did question the workings of his mind, but this time she’d covered every base.
‘Give me one sec,’ he said, tapping furiously. Something was sparking in his eyes. A slow smile formed on his lips.
‘Got it.’
‘Are you kidding me?’ she exploded.
‘Grey Transit van belongs to a company called Matrix Enterprises. The zero has been changed with one single piece of tape across the middle to resemble an eight, and the zero in the second part is the letter O not the number zero.’
Damn it, she hadn’t allowed for there being two potential errors in the number plate.
‘You know, Penn, some days I love you to bits and other days you just piss me right off,’ she said, tapping the details into her computer.
‘You’re welcome, Stace,’ he said, giving her a wink.
She ignored him as her attention turned to trying to track down the whereabouts of this family.
Thirty-One
‘So the number plate had been doctored?’ Kim asked as Stacey gave her the news.
