The secretary came in with a tray with three glasses and a carafe of water. Madison murmured her thanks. Pouring water gave her something to do.
The mayor nodded, thanking her secretary as she left. “I gave you permission to look around, Simon. We share the blame.”
“I’m the one who put up that net.” Madison didn’t want Simon or the mayor to feel guiltier than they did. “And my department is responsible for confining you to your homes for weeks every year.”
“We choose to keep a low profile,” the mayor told her.
“And that’s unfair.” Madison opened her bag, finding her notebook with the notes she’d put together that morning. “I know this area. It’s got to be big enough for us to share while my team does field research.”
“That will depend on how much space you need.”
Madison nodded, flipping through the notebook until she found her map of the area where she’d marked locations for the nets. “Do you know how much space your shifters need?”
“That depends on the individual shifter,” the mayor replied. “But I have a pretty good idea how much space we need overall.”
“Great!” That would save them a lot of time. She slid her notebook closer to the mayor. “Here’s where we’ll be putting up our tents, and the other crosses are where I want to put up our nets.”
The mayor took the notebook, studying the map. “The south-west, as usual.” She looked up at Madison. “It’s good to finally talk to someone like you. I’ve been trying to get this information for years.”
“Ah.” Madison was all too familiar with that bitter tone. “Let me guess, Professor Brown ignored your emails, brushed off your phone calls and wouldn’t speak to you while he was here?” He was a lot of things, but not a people person. Not when he had research to do.
“I’ve tried to get a meeting with him for years,” she explained. “About five years ago, I visited him and his team, and he still wouldn’t speak to me. Kept telling me to talk to his students. Who, I should say, were very polite when assuring me they weren’t harming any birds. There clearly wasn’t any point in discussing things with him.”
Madison winced. “That sounds like him.” It was such a shame. Years of frustration, and all because one professor was obsessed with his research.
“I never knew that.” Simon cocked his head. “You didn’t mention it when I offered to scout ahead.”
The mayor gestured dismissively. “What was the point? It wouldn’t have changed much. I wanted to know when exactly he’d come down here and how long exactly they planned on staying.” She tapped Madison’s map. “I wanted to know where they’d be. I wanted to know if they’d ever found anything inexplicable that might lead to them finding out about shifters.”
“Not from what I can tell.” Madison exchanged a look with Simon. “But I guess it’s too late now.”
“Yes.” The mayor took a deep breath. “But what’s done is done. I suppose it was bound to happen sooner or later.”
“I won’t tell anyone else,” she immediately assured her. “I know you’re all worried I want to put you in a lab and study you, but I’m here for the bird-birds.”
“I trust her.” Simon reached out to take Madison’s hand.
The mayor looked at their joined hands, but didn’t comment as she smiled and pushed the notebook back to Madison. “The question isn’t whether you trust her, but whether I and everyone else will. This meeting is an excellent start.” She turned to Madison. “Can you make sure your team stays in the areas you’ve indicated? They won’t go on hikes and run into a shifter?”
Madison looked at her map again. “I’ll discuss it with my students when they come here tomorrow. Our area is big enough for a few short hikes, but I can tell them they can’t stray too far from the camp-site for safety reasons. Or I’ll keep them so busy that they won’t want to go on long hikes.”
“Or have them visit the town,” Simon suggested. “If you’re worried they’ll wander off because they’re bored, they can come here. Are they driving from Pinevale?”
“Yes, that’s a good idea.” She should’ve thought of something besides ‘more research’ to keep her students occupied herself. “It’ll let people here get used to having scientists around.” She smiled at the mayor. “Maybe they’ll realize we’re not that scary.”
“Your predecessor only sent students here for a quick trip to the general store,” the mayor replied, nodding along. “Only a few visits during those weeks. It certainly wouldn’t hurt if your team visited more often for lunch or dinner.”
“I think they’ll enjoy that.” She was glad the mayor was thinking along with her. “I’ll make sure the students stick to the areas we discuss with you beforehand. That way, it should be possible for bird shifters and other shifters to shift if they want to.” She gestured at her map. “Do you think it’s okay if we declare that area off-limits to shifters for the next four weeks?”
“I think several people will disagree with me no matter what I do,” the mayor told her, smiling wryly. “Some will think I should chase you out of the woods and back to your university. Some will think I shouldn’t have this meeting at all.” She eyed Simon. “And some will want Simon’s head for bringing you here.”
“It’s not his fault!” Madison said, just as Simon opened his mouth. “He didn’t fly into that net on purpose. It was a coincidence I was still nearby. If I hadn’t come over immediately, he’d have escaped by shifting and destroying the net before flying off again. They can’t blame him when it’s my fault we met.”
“He still told you about our community.” The mayor’s smile was soft. “He stayed with you and explained things.”
“It was the right thing to do,” Simon replied.
“I know not everyone feels that way.” Madison’s memory of the diner was still fresh.
