The Female Charm by Amelia Price Read Free Book Online

car journey, but her company
was never a problem. She lost herself in thought as deeply as he
did, and if it weren't for the slight noise of outside traffic, he
might think himself in his own study or in his private room at the
Diogenes Club.
    “One way or
another, this won't take long,” Mycroft said to Amelia as Daniels
stopped the car outside the newspaper's main office. He stepped
outside just as the first few spots of rain fell from the sky,
forcing him to take the short journey over to the building a little
quicker than he'd have liked.
    A woman in her
fifties sat at the wooden reception desk, tapping away at the
computer in front of her. She didn't look up until Mycroft was
right beside her. Neither of them smiled or said anything for
several seconds, giving him time to take in the grey roots that
showed she dyed her hair the chestnut brown and the moth-eaten
holes in the left sleeve of her red jumper that gave away the
slightly tight finances she was facing.
    “What are you here
for?” she asked when Mycroft allowed the silence to grow
awkward.
    “I need to see Mr
Kendel. It's urgent.”
    “It always is,
sweetheart, but he's not here at the moment.”
    “I don't think you
quite understand.” Mycroft pulled a small photo ID from his inside
jacket pocket. It wasn't something he carried often, but he had
been aware he might need it to get the newspaper to cooperate. The
receptionist read the information stating that he worked for MI5
and immediately grew flustered, dropping her pen. It bounced off
the edge of the desk and tumbled to the floor.
    “Let me call up
and see if we can find him,” she said once she'd gathered
herself.
    “Thank you,” he
replied and tucked the ID away. It had at least done its job.
    He listened to the
woman's end of a telephone conversation for several minutes as she
tried to track down his reporter. Then she dialled another number
and put her hand over the receiver.
    “He's definitely
not in the building, but I'm trying his mobile to see if I can get
him to come back.”
    Mycroft frowned.
He'd assumed the reporter was just avoiding him, not actually away
from the building. It was the most likely probability by far, but
even the smallest odds could result in a surprise.
    After several more
attempts at dialling, the receptionist left a message on the mobile
phone of the reporter asking him to urgently contact her and then
gave Mycroft an apologetic look.
    He pulled out a
business card from his trouser pocket and handed it to her.
    “Have him call me
as soon as he gets back in touch.” Without waiting for a response,
Mycroft left the building and hurried through the rain back to his
car.
    “Where are we
going next, sir?” Daniels asked, once he was back in the driver's
seat.
    “I think there's a
café in the town here. Take us there, please, Daniels.”
    “It's where I set
up the meeting for you at three,” he replied.
    “He wasn't there?”
Amelia asked a moment later.
    “No. We'll have to
wait, but I can still teach you a thing or two before you have to
go back to Bath.”
     
     

Chapter 6
    Amelia tried not
to show her surprise as she stepped into café 91 in Lockerbie's
small town centre. Myron was taking time out of his schedule to
directly teach her once more. She knew this was exactly what she'd
asked for, but it hadn't felt like her lessons were going well
enough to merit this much effort on his part.
    He ordered them
both tea, paying for it then and there, and then they found a small
table tucked at the back of the building, from where they could
both see the rest of the customers without much effort. As she sat
down she noticed the receipt he placed on the table. For some
bizarre reason, it said 'café 17' on it instead of the '91' on the
outside of the building.
    She blinked back
her shock as her mind finally caught up. For some reason Myron
wanted her to notice the number, but before she could mention it he
whisked up the receipt, tucked it into his pocket and