The Scribe Read Online Free

“You’ve already shown you have unique skills.”
    She took a shuddering breath, and the worry seemed to float right out of her. “I can jack, but not well, and I can’t keep people from jacking me worth a darn.” She ticked them off on her fingers. “I can read thoughts without people realizing I’m in their heads. I can link thoughts too.” She dropped her hand and gazed into Julian’s eyes. “And I can do it at long distances.”
    He was entranced. “How far?”
    “Miles,” she said. “Tens of miles? Once I reached all the way to Wisconsin, but that was from the northern suburbs of Chicago New Metro. I haven’t tried further than that.”
    “Tens of…” Julian let out a low whistle. “You’re a viewer.”
    “A what?”
    “You can view at long distances…” His gaze flew a hundred yards away. “I’ve heard of an ability like this, before the change, before mindreaders were common. There were a few people who claimed they could see things at huge distances… but I didn’t think it was real…” His gaze snapped back to her. “That’s an outstanding ability, Ava.”
    I could see the gleam in Julian’s eye. He had already decided to invite her to join. But something didn’t add up. She could spy on us long distance, but she only spied when she had to? She was all of a hundred pounds soaking wet, with this crazy ability, but she never jacked anyone? No one was this innocent, especially a jacker. I could picture Anna seething back in the racks, wondering why Julian was letting himself be duped again.
    Time for me to inject a little reality. “We don’t know anything about her, Julian.” I ignored the twinge that came when she frowned the tiniest bit. “She says she can do these things, but she could be making all this up. And I’m sure there’s more she’s not telling us.”
    “Quite true,” he said, but he sounded more like he was humoring me than doubting her. “Maybe a demonstration is in order.” He turned to Ava. “I have a friend named Myrtle. She’s a rather strong jacker. Her mind’s not impenetrable, like my sister lurking in the back, but I assure you that she’ll push you out of her head if she senses you. She’s a few blocks away. Can you find her?”
    Ava fluttered her eyelids closed, and I noticed that her eyelashes were almost invisible against her pale skin, like hand-spun threads of gold from a fairy-tale.
    “Yes,” she said in a whisper. “She’s older, a grandma. She’s fond of knitting and the Cubs. And…” Ava paused, then opened her eyes to focus on Julian. “She worries about you, Julian. You remind her of a grandson she had, then lost. He was a dreamer too.”
    Julian’s eyes widened and his lips parted as if he was going to say something, but the words got lost before he could form them. I didn’t care for that look at all—he was buying this hook, line, and sinker.
    “Julian,” I said in a low voice. “This is a parlor trick.”
    Julian snapped out of his trance, and I slid a sideways glance to Ava. Again she looked hurt, and it made my stomach clench. I didn’t like how she got into my head, how I noticed every little change on her face, how uncomfortable she made me. Maybe that was her real ability. I couldn’t tell, but I didn’t trust her five ways to Sunday.
    “She could say that about anyone,” I added. “Maybe she plucked it out of your head.”
    Julian’s eyes narrowed at that, finally. “Well, it’s certainly easy to check.” He pulled a slim, silver phone from his pocket. He must have jacked into the mindware to dial, because he simply held it to his ear and a moment later spoke into it. “Hello, Myrtle. How are you?” He paused. “Would you humor me for a moment and tell me what you’re doing?”
    Ava had a patient I-told-you-so look.
    Julian smiled. “You know I’m not a Cubs fan,” he said to the phone, “but I’m sure I could find a use for one of your hand-knit scarves.”
    “She’s afraid you’re going