The Scribe Read Online Free PDF Page B

of it.
    Time to say hello.
    If she wanted him to cooperate and leave her be without reporting every flinch to her mother and Carl, she’d have to play nice. Tossing her coffee in a nearby trash can, she stood and walked over. He didn’t run. Didn’t look away. He stared at her from behind shaded lenses as she tucked her camera in her bag and held out her hand.
    “Hi, I’m Ava. I imagine you know that already.”
    The bodyguard just blinked at her, staring at her hand as if it might bite. Finally, she dropped it. She had surprised him. His silent voice whispered in circles so rapid she felt as if she was in the middle of a minor storm. But he didn’t speak to her, not out loud.
    “I know I heard you speak English the other day. It might not be your first language, but I’m sorry, I don’t speak any Turki—”
    “English is fine.”
    His spoken voice was deeper than his silent one, but it held the same odd resonance that had drawn her since she first heard it. Ava tried not to lean closer, even though the urge was there.
    “Okay.” She nodded. “I just wanted to introduce myself.”
    “Hello.”
    What about his one-word greeting did Ava find amusing? She didn’t know why she smiled, but she did. “That back there? With the guy… I get headaches—it’s a medical thing that’s not a big deal—so don’t panic if you see me looking like I might pass out. I’ve never passed out in my life. And I have no idea why Carl hired you, but since I can’t get him to fire you, we might as well be friendly.”
    He just shifted in his seat, clearly uncomfortable with the conversation.
    “I know you’re going to be following me, so please don’t feel like you have to hide. If you could just keep your distance and stay as unobtrusive as possible, that’d be great. I’ve had guards before, but I’m pretty independent. I’m honestly not sure why Carl felt like he had to do this, but since there never seems to be any reasoning with him, let’s just go with it, okay?”
    The big man was still blinking at her silently. Ava tried not to sigh. His eyes had seemed intelligent enough, but maybe they hadn’t hired the guy for his intellect.
    “What I’m trying to say is… The incident you saw in the alley doesn’t need to be reported to my stepfather. I took care of it, and we really don’t need more people at this little party, do we?”
    Complete and utter silence. It was almost inhuman. She caught him taking a breath when the collar of his shirt moved, revealing more of the tattoo work around his collar. They were letters, she thought, but nothing like she’d ever seen before. Other than that one breath, he could have been one of the statues on display.
    “Do you have a name?” she asked.
    He frowned. “You want my name?”
    “Well, it would feel rude to refer to you as ‘the big, silent guy’ in my internal monologue, so yeah, a name would be nice.” He was still silent. Ava frowned. “Is that not part of your job or—?”
    “Malachi.”
    She smiled. “Malachi?”
    “My name is Malachi.”
    “Nice name.”
    “I like yours.”
    She shrugged off the internal pleasure. “It’s… easy to spell. Anyway, I have an appointment this afternoon, so I’ll be heading back to my hotel now. I’ll be trying to take a nap for approximately forty-five minutes, but will realize it’s too hot, so I’ll then take a shower and read a book. Maybe dump my pictures on the computer. All of this will be happening in my hotel, which has very good security, but please feel free to lurk around the entrance so you can shadow me to my appointment later.”
    Malachi stared at her, still silent. Finally, he put down the book and crossed his arms over his chest, leaning back in his chair and looking at her as if he was trying to solve a puzzle.
    “Nothing to add? Any questions? I’m not sure how much Mom and Carl told you. I’m just here in the city for a while. Taking pictures… for my job. With a magazine.”
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