Tales from Mythos - Monica's Missed Interview
If there was one thing Jessica Lee couldn’t stand, it was being denied. Perhaps it was a childish sort of mindset, yet it wasn’t borne of any sort of life-long pampering. From a very early age, she’d been a bit “different”. It lead to relentless taunting from other children as she was growing up, and a rather solitary existence through high school. She picked a university far from home, feeling as if even her parents didn’t care to have her around too much. Based on their lukewarm reception whenever she’d visit for holidays, her assumption was correct.
When Jessica was told she couldn’t have something, she fought twice as hard just to prove everyone wrong. She elbowed her way to class valedictorian. She relentlessly pursued her degree. And when she finally struck out on her own as a journalist, she proved to be absolutely tenacious in finding the best stories to report on. Eventually, she got herself a job with network affiliate WETT in Baltimore – it was hardly an offer to replace Wolf Blitzer, but she was still young enough to use the stations as stepping stone to greater things.
Thus, when she got word that someone had canceled their interview, she felt the urge to pursue. It wasn’t any sort of attempt to get Monica Schwartz to appear on TV; this was a matter of personal vindication. Her determination had her ferreting out the information she needed the entire week. It wasn’t easy – Monica was practically a ghost – but she finally had a solid lead on where she could find the mysterious fifth interviewee. On what would have been the interview night, after she’d finished talking to members of a local all-girl rock band, she made her way to a little corner bar in a town called Arbutus.
Being as it was roughly 1 am on Wednesday morning, the bar was practically deserted. The bartender looked bored as she scrolled through something on her phone, and there was a lone patron hunched over a glass of whiskey with a motorcycle helmet occupying the stool to her right. Jessica approached the single customer from behind, unable to smirk as she delivered her quip – “I thought a woman who didn’t want to be found would know better than to sit with her back to the door.”
Monica didn’t turn her head to look back at Jessica; she just knocked back the rest of her whiskey and put the empty glass on the bar. Then, without a word, she pointed to the mirror that took up the entire opposite wall of the joint… where she was looking directly at Jessica with her own smirk. “I’m only found when I want ta be,” she replied, in a Cockney-accented voice, “and I figured this was the only way to get ye to stop lookin'.”
Jessica took that as an invitation to sit beside Monica, her pride wounded a bit. “If you wanted me to come find you, why did you cancel the interview, then?”
Shaking her head, Monica tapped on her empty glass. The bartender didn’t even look up from her phone – she just grabbed the bottle of Bushmill’s from nearby and dumped some more out into the vessel as Monica spoke. “I don’t feel like me appearing on your little show would be doing meself any favours. It’s not like I can say much, so you’d just 'ave a shitty interview.” Monica took up her refilled glass, giving a sidelong look to Jessica. “Maybe not as shitty as Tara’s, but an 'ell of a lot more boring.”
“Boring!” Jessica rolled her eyes, “how could it be boring? Nobody knows anything about you. I’ve seen people theorizing all kinds of shit about you. Your bio just says ‘redacted,’ so people are coming up with whatever on their own. You’re an FBI agent, you’re an Alien, you’re an assassin… anything you said in that interview would have been news to them.”
“That’s just fuckin’ it!” Monica said, loudly enough that the barkeep actually looked up from her phone before moving into the back room for something she must have only then remembered. “I can’t tell ye anything else. They can’t know who I am or why I’m there!”
Glowering at Monica, Jessica let a long moment pass between them. She could tell Monica was irritated, but there was something else there. Something wanted to come out. Jessica shifted on the stool, which drew raised eyebrows from Monica. The reporter just smiled at the other woman’s expression, leaning one elbow on the bar. “You can’t tell the public, but you can tell me. Off the record.”
Monica continued to stare at Jessica, turning over the offer in her mind, before she looked down into her glass. “Off the record,” she repeated with a sigh. “Are you sure you wanna 'ear this? It’s… a lot.”
Jessica grinned widely, leaning closer and speaking in a low, conspiratorial tone. “Try me.”
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As the bar closed, Jessica stepped out to look up at the little clock tower that dominated the center of Arbutus’ main intersection. Monica was right – her story was a lot. Jessica had listened intently to every syllable. The more Monica spoke, the more thankful Jessica became that the interview was canceled. She’d given her reassurance to Monica that everything was off the record, and that wouldn’t be a difficult agreement to uphold.
The clock ticked to 2:01, and Jessica let out a shaky sigh, wiping a tear from her eye. Perhaps her interview with Lisa next week would be a happier occasion.
Heading toward the gravel back lot to get to her car, she whispered quietly to herself – “Keep the legends alive…”