And the photographers go wild.
They can sense a fucking story is coming.
Not for nothing, those motherfuckers from the Daily fucking Journal look like they're about to throw up they've gone so fucking green.
Good.
"Until recently, I was a reporter who worked on the Page Eight desk, also known as Gossip Central," Penny says. "They employed a few of us, about five or six and our job was to troll through things happening in the city that were scandalous and salacious and blow them up in the pages of the Daily Journal."
People are nodding along.
"What can I say?" she asks the crowd. "It was a fun job."
Penny makes a face and I can tell the crowd's warming up to her. They laugh at her line and all of a sudden I'm thinking that I'm not really going to be needed to step in and protect her.
I mean, this girl has got this shit covered.
"So it wasn't much of a surprise when my Editor-In-Chief asked me to cover Magnus Davion as part of my Gossip Central duties. I mean, the guy is God's gift to tabloid journalism at times," Penny says to more laughter and I even join in.
What? I can take a joke. And she's right.
I used to be a walking advertisement for whatever tabloid was running my story with my fucking antics.
But then along came Penny.
And changed my life.
"Although this time when they asked me to cover Magnus, there was a very specific goal in mind," Penny says and leans in. You can see the crowd lean forward with her. They're eating this shit up.
"I was supposed to destroy him. Trash his reputation beyond anything he could do himself and make the city hate him," I hear her say.
Even though I know this, it still makes me wince that at one point this was what she was planning to do.
"If you haven't figured it out, this man is my stepfather. He married my mother when I was 18. The marriage didn't last, but he never noticed me. There was maybe some jealousy. Maybe some longing. And a whole lot of brainwashing done by my mother," Penny says calmly and coolly. This part is crucial. She can't look to be lashing out. The press is eating this up.
"Only this time, it wasn't just my mother who was pushing me to take a more unbalanced, and unbiased approach toward Magnus."
I swear to you, everyone is leaning in.
Hell, even I'm listening. It's like nothing else matters in the world.
"You see there's a lot of money in real estate development," Penny says. "Especially when the city is holding bids on a multi-billion dollar contract for Equinox Towers. And especially so when the Mayor herself has a vested interest in ensuring that the contract goes to someone other than Davion Development," she finishes.
This is when the first murmurs go through the crowd.
What exactly is she saying?
What does she mean? Is she suggesting scandal?
Because, Jesus Fuck, this city can't take much more.
"What do you get when you have a Mayor who's financially vested in ensuring that the Equinox Tower contracts go to someone else that's not Magnus Davion?" Penny asks. "And what do you get when a Mayor and an Editor-In-Chief are lovers?"
Fucking silence.
Even me. It's like someone punched me.
Penny looks at me.