Page 6 of Reptile Dysfunction

I don’t care how many people tell me Mason is a good guy, I know there’s something hiding under that facade and I won’t stop until it’s brought into the light.

4

MASON

“Can you believe that, Deborah?” I ask my wonderful assistant. “Me? Heh, well, Curiosity’s newest fearless reporter is going to end up severely disappointed.”

“I can believe it, actually, because she was already here today,” Deborah replies, sounding exhausted.

I turn to look at her with one quirked eyebrow. “She was here? The woman from Chicago?”

Deborah rolls her eyes and nods. “Oh, yes. Ms. Big Windy City was here while you were out at the ribbon cutting. Thought she could intimidate me into giving her even a scrap of information about you.”

I furrow my brow. I don’t like anyone giving my staff a hard time. Not that Deborah can’t handle it. She’s as tough as they come. Hell, she’s not even afraid to kick old Mr. Murphy out if his usual crabbiness turns into credible threats! One nosy little reporter isn’t going to bother her more than a pesky mosquito on a hot summer day.

But it’s about the principle of the matter.

“What did you tell her?” I ask.

“To get lost,” Deborah says with a harsh laugh. “Then she tried buttering me up, asking how much I make. Tried to make me feel like I was being mistreated so I would turn on you.”

I cross my arms, frustration building at how this woman spoke to my staff in my own office.

“And? Do you feel mistreated?” I ask.

Deborah looks up at me with a cocky smile. “Of course not. Especially since you’re going to buy me lunch from Gabriella’s cafe today.”

I sigh, smiling at how slick Deborah is. “Yes, I suppose I owe you that much for the trouble. Is 1:30 alright?” I ask as I check my watch.

“It’s already blocked on your calendar.”

I thank Deborah for her loyalty and, after she reminds me her annual review is next month and this should go in her file, I excuse myself to my own office and close the door. I have this time set aside for any issues that may present themselves throughout the morning. Usually, that means resolving a dispute between Mr. Murphy and another resident or researching important policies that need updating. Normally it has something to do with laws involving trees. Somehow it always comes down to trees.

Well, at least the ents are a very passionate voting block.

But today’s time is to consider what to do about the new reporter snooping around a whole pile of nothing. Certainly, she’s learned of my time in politics outside of the town. She might try to push into that inconvenient blip in my career, and it’ll be exhausting to retread that territory once again. But in time, I’m sure she’ll understand the truth.

I serve my constituents with pride and a code of ethics most wouldn’t believe a politician capable of. I didn’t get into civil service for power or wealth. I certainly didn’t run for mayor with the intent to take bribes or backroom deals to line my pockets.

Ever since I was a young gorgon, I saw how much people relied on a proper and functioning government to maintain peace, order, and prosperity. And I wanted to be a part of that. I wanted to be a pillar in my community, someone people could rely on. A role model for young gorgons like me who needed something to aspire to.

The town of Curiosity has allowed me to have that in abundance. They put their trust in me, a young man from Sweetwater, and I’ve made it my mission to pay all of them back in kind. And I have a clean record and plenty of paperwork to back that up.

I’m sure this young woman is simply excited to break into the scene with a hard-hitting story and is simply misinformed about what people enjoy reading here. In time, she’ll see there’s nothing interesting beyond my work to improve the town’s aesthetics and inclusivity and she’ll move on.

But still, her insistence in the first place stings a bit. I suppose there’s nothing to do but wait until she gets bored and moves on to the next lead. I check my watch and find I still have an hour before my lunch meeting with Deborah. That’s a good opportunity to engage in my favorite pastime – speaking with the citizens of Curiosity.

I let Deborah know I’ll be back, adjust my jacket, and hit the well-paved streets. It’s a beautiful, cloudy afternoon, and the day-walking citizens are all out and about.

“Hey, Mr. Wendy!” Fred yells when he sees me. He’s bouncing around on one leg.

“Frederick. Need a hand?” I ask.

“Or a leg.”

I smile and pick up his missing leg from a flower bed and help reattach it through his pant leg. “You know you wouldn’t have this problem if you didn’t walk on uneven surfaces, like the flower beds. The sidewalks are perfectly smooth, Fred.”

Fred shrugs his shoulders, a precarious motion for him to make, and smirks. “What can I say? I just get tunnel vision and have to walk in a straight line.”