Page 108 of Twisted Lies

‘For what?’ Kim asked.

‘If the families heard a noise or they received a crank call, anything that caused them concern; Sarah was their only link to their old life.’

‘And had anything like that happened recently?’ Kim asked.

He shook his head. ‘Not for weeks now.’

‘Was there anything at all that Sarah mentioned that was out of the ordinary, anything that concerned her?’

He began to shake his head and then stopped. ‘No, it’s probably nothing.’

‘We’ll take it,’ Kim said.

‘She said something about a man calling out at her as she got off the train a couple of days ago. She ignored him and gave him the slip. It rattled her a bit.’

‘Why?’ Kim asked.

‘Dunno. Apparently, he thought her name was Karen.’

Ninety-Two

Kim returned Stacey’s call once they were back in the car.

‘Sarah tried to ring Leanne, boss, two days ago. Leanne didn’t take the call, and I don’t think Sarah left a message.’

Sarah had known Leanne as Karen back when they were training. The coincidence of someone calling out that particular name had led her to try and warn her old friend.

‘Okay, Stace, thanks,’ she said, ending the call.

‘You think this is about that Mona woman we just visited?’ Bryant asked.

Kim shook her head. ‘Mona knew Leanne by her new name. This person was asking after the name she had before.’

‘Why did she change it?’

‘She wouldn’t say. Any time we’ve asked her about previous witnesses, she’s closed up completely.’

Kim tapped her fingers on the dashboard as a few things began to clear in her mind.

‘You’d tell, wouldn’t you?’ she asked absently.

‘Tell what?’

‘Anything you knew given the torture our victims have suffered.’

‘I’d like to think I could hold out for a while, but yeah I’d probably cave.’

‘So obviously our victims didn’t have the information he was after but… oh shit,’ she said, taking out her phone.

Woody answered almost immediately.

‘Sir, I need to speak with Superintendent Wexford. It’s urgent.’

‘Stone, you’re going to have to give me something better than that.’

‘I think our guy is murdering people for one reason. It’s to find one person. I think he wants Leanne. He’s after someone called Karen, but none of our victims would have known her as that, except one. Sarah Lessiter knew her as both. Leanne needs to be warned as soon as possible, but I also need to speak with the superintendent.’

‘For what reason?’