Читать книгу Deadline Istanbul (The Elizabeth Darcy Series) - Peggy Hanson - Страница 13

CHAPTER 9

Tell me who your friend is, and I’ll tell you who you are.

Turkish proverb

Ahmet Aslan was eating mussels in the historic hangout of artists and poets, Ҫiçek Pasajı.

The name meant Flower Passage. The aromas of carnations and jasmine and gladioli blended with the fishier smells of bluefish and shellfish from the far side of the alley.

Tonight he was alone. It was too bad Peter Franklin could not join him. They had enjoyed many evenings together at Ҫiçek Pasajı.

Here, the drink of choice was rakı, the anise-flavored “lion’s milk” that turned white when water was added. It added to the masculine atmosphere of the Ҫiçek Pasaji, although here and there, at tables for four, a few avant garde women authors and artists enjoyed rebelling against the strict Muslim norms.

Peter Franklin, like Ahmet, had liked his rakı. They had come here together often. Ahmet missed Peter more than he had thought he would.

A black alley cat, beautiful as all Turkish cats are, waited politely near Ahmet Aslan’s table, tail curled around its body, hoping for a bite of his seafood.

Absently, he tossed a shrimp to the floor.