“No way. As long as the animals aren’t destined for some exotic-animal trade, I’m happy for him.”
“Oliver’s a lot of things, but I know he wouldn’t do that. Think about it, though. Access to your very own safari park.”
“Actually, it’s animals I came to speak to Oliver about.”
“Oh?”
“Well, I wanted to pick his brains about the sanctuary I volunteer at.”
“Will I do? I’m on my fifth coffee of the day, so I guess now is as good a time as any.”
“Do you happen to know how I can trace the owner of a company in England?”
“Depends. What kind of company is it?”
“A limited company, I think.” Slipping on my glasses again, I flip over my phone and bring the touchscreen to life. “Atterir Limited is its name.”
“You can find the owner of a limited company easy enough.” Stretching out his long legs, he pulls out his own phone. A few tapson the screen, then he rounds the low table to sit next to me. “So, this government website makes the names of limited companies available. And this company, Atterir—do I have it spelled right?”
I glance down and nod. “Yes.”
“Well, its owner is listed as another company,” he says, tapping a little more. “And it looks likethatcompany is registered outside of the UK in an offshore jurisdiction.”
“Can you tell who owns that company?”
He gives a quick shake of his head. “The second company is registered in the Marshall Islands. Companies there aren’t required to disclose their shareholders. It’s basically an offshore haven for shell companies. Mind telling me what this is about?”
So I tell him about Nora and the new fencing and how distressed she is. “It seems kind of ridiculous that there’s an ancient law still in force that allows people to just claim land.”
“That’s not strictly how it works. The land must have been abandoned and due diligence undertaken to make sure there are no other claimants. And even then, it takes years.”
“Nora thinks the owners are all dead. What would that mean, do you think?”
“She needs to know, not just surmise. That’s what this company will be doing in the meantime—finding out. I guess Nora could also claim it’s not abandoned, given she’s maintained the land for those years.”
“She could do this herself? Get in before whoever this is? I mean, she fenced it first.”
“It’s possible. Why don’t you leave this with me, and I’ll do a little digging.”
“You wouldn’t mind?”
“Of course not.”
“My next idea was to engage a lawyer, so yeah.” I draw my shoulders up. I guess I wasn’t expecting his help. “I’d appreciate it.”
“Let me see if I can trace the company, then find out what Nora’s legal standing is.”
“Thank you so much, Fin.”
“Hey, what are friends for?”
“In my experience, big knickers and inappropriate text messages.” I bark out a laugh. “Sorry, I was just thinking of my friend, Yara.”
“Should I be buying Oliver underwear?”
“He’d justlovethat.”
“No, he wouldn’t. But I think I’d like to be introduced to Yara, Eve’s friend.”
