The next day, I went straight to the local television station and, though it was only ten in the morning, Mornings with Mariska had already wrapped for the day. I waited by a side entrance, watching the audience funnel out of the main doors, their faces full of excitement as they chatted about the show. A producer eventually came to meet me and then guided me into the studio where people who were working far too hard, far too early in the morning, cleaned up Mariska's set. He then directed me to the seat I'd be sitting in the following week for the real, live interview. Upon handing me a cup of coffee, he assured me that Mariska was on her way and not long after that, she did indeed sweep in with a train of men and women waving around cell phones, tablets, and compliments.

"So are you excited?"

She wore a pleasant smile upon her well made up face as she took her seat. However, that was all I got in regards to any legitimate sort of greeting.

"Uh, yes?"

"Good," she said, with a wave of her hand, shooing away her doting entourage. "So let's get started then."

The first half hour was dedicated to getting to know who I was, how I got to where I was, why I chose my career, etc.

"So you went into Public Relations to provide transparency to consumers?"

"Yes." It was a short, succinct answer, but it was also a leading question. I'd already established why I did what I did and I wasn't sure why she lingered.

"Well, that's certainly an admirable desire, but you've been at this for seven years, surely you've noticed that you've picked a rather poor choice of careers for following that ambition."

"Excuse me?"

"I mean, for all I know, you are lying to me even now. How do I know that you care about my well-being as a customer when you are speaking for the company that pays your salary?"

"I, wait, what..." This hadn't been in any of my prep questions.

"Honestly," she said, in a loud, concise tone that cut me off cold, "the mere fact you work for Quinto Technologies speaks volumes for your character. I do like having all kinds of characters up here with me in the hot seat, but I won't let you push your lies on my viewers."

Her crimson red smile twisted slightly, morphing into something mischievous. Her designer suit pulled against her squared shoulders as she leaned in towards me, somehow making her feel taller and larger than she was. Her gaze, unbroken by even a single strand of hair as it had all been expertly pulled back into a slick, tight bun, pressed into me, pushing me further into my seat. Her whole presence carried a weight and authority that closed in around her prey without her doing so much as blinking.

"What lies?" I finally answered.

Her eyes glittered and her smile widened. I knew in an instant, she let me get my question in so I'd take her bait.

"Profits climb, yet your quarterly reports indicate no boom in hiring, salary increases, or investments. The money seems to be funneled away into ambiguous projects and faceless execs."

I hated to admit it, but I actually admired Mariska's tenacity despite being a host for what was often a fluffy morning show.

"Perhaps you can provide transparency on those projects," she continued. "Where is the money going?"

"Mariska," said the producer with a whine to his voice, "I think we are going off course..."

"No," I interjected, "I have an answer."

I kept my eyes trained on the host. She was good, I gave her that, but I had been at my job for seven years. I'd dealt with disgruntled customers on a daily basis and I'd waded through my fair share of corporate bull shit. If she wanted a sparring partner. She had one.

"The increases in our profits only manifested in the past three quarters. It is still a pleasant surprise for us and unfortunately, it does take awhile for the cogs to turn in a corporation as large as ours. Mr. Quinto, however, has recognized the need to do something with our recent boon and that's why he decided to celebrate our hard work, boost a wonderful charity, and humble ourselves with a gala. That's where the money is going."

The producer darted his eyes between the back of Mariska's head and my own set face. I, however, paid no heed to his concerned looks. I just stared right back into the host's blank, emotionless glare. Finally, one of us broke.

"You are quite a spin artist," said Mariska with a beaming smile. "I like you, you can be on the show."

"Wasn't I already set to be on the show?" I mumbled to myself as she started to rise up from her desk.

"Oh honey, I've got a line of people who want to be on here. I only allowed you in on such short notice because your boss is so cute."

That unexpected observation sent a blush straight to my cheeks and my wicked mind immediately recalled the night before. In fact, it went a step further and even imagined the feel of his body as it had pressed against my back and the brush of his breath against my ear.

"I kind of wish he was doing the interview and not you." Based on her soured expression, there was no "kind of" about it. However, I thought that was at least something we could both agree on.

With her up and away from her desk, I decided to rise up from my seat as well and wait for the producer to show me out. He started taking me to the door while Mariska joined her posse, however, she stopped midway and gave a quick turn, a devious smirk back on her face.

"You know," she said, sauntering over to where the producer and I stood, "there is one last question I have for you."

"Okay," I said, readying my arsenal once again to combat the sassy host.

"We wanted to do a little piece on the charity itself." Based on the producer's uneasy shift in weight, I doubted that had originally been in the schedule. "You know just a short clip to inform our viewers about this great cause you are dedicating yourself to."

"Okay." I gave her license to continue, but I found the word hesitating on my tongue. I didn't know where she was going with this and she was upping her ante with the intimidation. She stepped forward with a light sway in her shoulders, though her head didn't move and her eyes never left mine. It felt a bit like a deer being stalked by a tiger.

"Problem is we can't find anything on the charity. The only thing we were able to dredge up is the little blurbs you've already posted yourself on your site. Perhaps you can enlighten us on who the coordinators are for this charity and where their headquarters might be."

She stopped her hypnotic slinking and she stood only a foot away. Her perfume was thick and intoxicating, the scent muddling with my head as I tried to keep her from regaining the ground I fought so hard for. But, I couldn't deny her this fact. I didn't know anything about the charity either. It was a rather dumbfounding epiphany. One that I really didn't need to have in front of her.

"I will admit, I don't know this for a fact, but I imagine the lack of information is due to the fact that Coding a Future is still an infant charity. I do know that we are holding their hand during their first steps and whatever we have on our site is probably all that is currently available."

"Sounds like an excuse to me," she said with a confident smirk.

"That's probably because it was."

"Apparently you do know how to bite back," she said with a sardonic laugh.

"In case I haven't made this clear. I work in Public Relations. This is my job."

"Well, I do appreciate worthy opponents," she said with a glittering, devious smile. "You know, I think I'm glad your boss chose you to do the interview. You'll make my week of vapid celebrities and sugary sweet lifestyle segments worth the while if you keep this up."

I couldn't help, but return her grin and in response, a little laugh broke past her ruby lips.

"I do hope you'll come prepared though. This charity thing will not go away with so flimsy an excuse next week."

"Fair enough."

"See you then Ms. Jeffries."

She turned towards backstage and glided past the set with her blissfully ignorant entourage following upon her heels. The producer mumbled some sort of apology as he led me back to the lobby. I, however, saw no reason for it. Mariska was doing her job and she was doing it well. She also revealed a crack in my preparation for the interview. I'd been so busy focusing on the gala that I completely neglected the charity. I knew exactly what to attack next and I'd come back with guns fully loaded to take on the spunky morning show host the following week.

***

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