in Harper’s best impersonation of a super villain. You can’t protect the senator now. Bwahahaha!
Afraid she might scare him off, Harper stayed tucked down low behind the senator’s car, waiting for the right moment to approach him. She paused, legs bent, shoulders hunched. Oh God . She was so the parking garage creeper! Now she felt just a little skeevy. Not to mention dirty. As she dug through her bag for her notes and voice recorder, Harper made a mental note to take a nice hot shower when she got home. Parking garage stalker or not, she wasn’t leaving here without getting a quote from Ellis.
Their approaching footsteps quieted, and Harper peeked around the rear bumper to see what the holdup was. Senator Ellis patted his suit jacket pockets and checked inside. “Damn it. I left my phone back at the office.”
Crap! Thanks to the holdup, “forgetful” was going on the top of Harper’s list of the senator’s faults. How long would it take for him to backtrack for his damned phone? She was starting to lose feeling in her legs!
“Jason, run over and grab it for me.” Senator Ellis instructed rather than asked, but Harper wondered at the way his voice quavered, almost nervous. “And since you’re going, can you bring the file on Prop Fifteen while you’re at it? I, uh, I should probably review it before tomorrow’s meeting.”
Yeah, Jason. Go! Get out of here! With the possibility of getting the senator’s bulldog out of the way, Harper amended her list and made “forgetful” one of the senator’s attributes.
“Sure. Is there anything else you need while I’m over there?” Meader’s tone was polite, but Harper couldn’t ignore the edge of annoyance.
“No, that’s all. Thanks, Jason.”
Meader’s footsteps retreated, while Ellis’s came closer. Adrenaline spiked in Harper’s limbs, the fact that she was about to land a potential story filling her with a euphoric excitement. As soon as Meader was out of sight, Harper emerged from behind the car, her voice recorder held at the ready. Senator Ellis caught sight of her, and he started, looking behind him and to either side before swiping his palm across his brow.
Wow. Nervous, much? Harper’s journalist impulse took over; she was like a shark scenting blood in the water. He was hiding something. She knew it. “Senator Ellis,” she greeted him as she walked around the front of the car. “I’m Harper Allen, with The Oregonian . I was wondering if I could ask you a few questions.”
“All press inquiries are handled by my office,” Ellis said, his eyes darting from one end of the parking garage to the next. What was up with this guy? Nervous over being hijacked was one thing. He was as twitchy as an informant in a crack house.
“I’ve tried, several times I might add, to schedule an appointment through your office. I have to say, Senator, the fact that Mr. Meader has kept the press at bay makes me wonder what the most above-board politician in recent U.S. history might have to hide.”
Ellis loosened his tie, looked everywhere but straight at her. “Young lady—”
“Senator,” Harper interrupted. “This is the sixth time in two months you’ve met with someone from the state fire marshal’s office. Yet, there’s nothing on the books, no upcoming votes that pertain to fire code mitigation. Meanwhile, the Oregon League of Conservation Voters has been trying to get your attention since last year. What’s so important to warrant a meeting almost every week with the fire marshals and yet you continue to turn your back on OLCV? You claim to ignore the lobbyists, but from the looks of it, someone within the union or maybe even the state is courting you. Care to comment on why that might be?”
Ellis’s head snapped around and he fixed Harper with an appraising stare. “Who did you say you are?”
“Harper Allen. From The Oregonian .”
A horn honked as someone in the garage disengaged their car alarm, and Senator Ellis damned
Afraid she might scare him off, Harper stayed tucked down low behind the senator’s car, waiting for the right moment to approach him. She paused, legs bent, shoulders hunched. Oh God . She was so the parking garage creeper! Now she felt just a little skeevy. Not to mention dirty. As she dug through her bag for her notes and voice recorder, Harper made a mental note to take a nice hot shower when she got home. Parking garage stalker or not, she wasn’t leaving here without getting a quote from Ellis.
Their approaching footsteps quieted, and Harper peeked around the rear bumper to see what the holdup was. Senator Ellis patted his suit jacket pockets and checked inside. “Damn it. I left my phone back at the office.”
Crap! Thanks to the holdup, “forgetful” was going on the top of Harper’s list of the senator’s faults. How long would it take for him to backtrack for his damned phone? She was starting to lose feeling in her legs!
“Jason, run over and grab it for me.” Senator Ellis instructed rather than asked, but Harper wondered at the way his voice quavered, almost nervous. “And since you’re going, can you bring the file on Prop Fifteen while you’re at it? I, uh, I should probably review it before tomorrow’s meeting.”
Yeah, Jason. Go! Get out of here! With the possibility of getting the senator’s bulldog out of the way, Harper amended her list and made “forgetful” one of the senator’s attributes.
“Sure. Is there anything else you need while I’m over there?” Meader’s tone was polite, but Harper couldn’t ignore the edge of annoyance.
“No, that’s all. Thanks, Jason.”
Meader’s footsteps retreated, while Ellis’s came closer. Adrenaline spiked in Harper’s limbs, the fact that she was about to land a potential story filling her with a euphoric excitement. As soon as Meader was out of sight, Harper emerged from behind the car, her voice recorder held at the ready. Senator Ellis caught sight of her, and he started, looking behind him and to either side before swiping his palm across his brow.
Wow. Nervous, much? Harper’s journalist impulse took over; she was like a shark scenting blood in the water. He was hiding something. She knew it. “Senator Ellis,” she greeted him as she walked around the front of the car. “I’m Harper Allen, with The Oregonian . I was wondering if I could ask you a few questions.”
“All press inquiries are handled by my office,” Ellis said, his eyes darting from one end of the parking garage to the next. What was up with this guy? Nervous over being hijacked was one thing. He was as twitchy as an informant in a crack house.
“I’ve tried, several times I might add, to schedule an appointment through your office. I have to say, Senator, the fact that Mr. Meader has kept the press at bay makes me wonder what the most above-board politician in recent U.S. history might have to hide.”
Ellis loosened his tie, looked everywhere but straight at her. “Young lady—”
“Senator,” Harper interrupted. “This is the sixth time in two months you’ve met with someone from the state fire marshal’s office. Yet, there’s nothing on the books, no upcoming votes that pertain to fire code mitigation. Meanwhile, the Oregon League of Conservation Voters has been trying to get your attention since last year. What’s so important to warrant a meeting almost every week with the fire marshals and yet you continue to turn your back on OLCV? You claim to ignore the lobbyists, but from the looks of it, someone within the union or maybe even the state is courting you. Care to comment on why that might be?”
Ellis’s head snapped around and he fixed Harper with an appraising stare. “Who did you say you are?”
“Harper Allen. From The Oregonian .”
A horn honked as someone in the garage disengaged their car alarm, and Senator Ellis damned
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