My Short Short for the Day

“As your Mayor I vow to…”  No, no, that doesn’t sound right.  How about “I am honored…” No, no.  Maybe “I vow to earn…”  No, no, no!  John slammed his notepad on his desk.

“How’s the book coming along?”  Alice asked with a smile walking over to her husband and giving him a quick peck on the cheek. 

“I can’t seem to find the right tone.”  John fidgeted with his pencil.

“Well, maybe you should take a little break and come back to it.”  Alice sat casually on the soft, leather sofa.  “Your brother’s still in town for another day.  Go spend some time with him.”

“Maybe your right.  Tommy’s always good for a laugh.”  John had barely finished his sentence when his office door flung open.

“Sorry Mayor, but I thought…oh, Mrs. Carte, I didn’t know you were here.”  Bill stopped short and nervously looked from Mrs. Carte back to the mayor. 

“Oh, don’t worry dear.  I was just leaving.”  Alice stood gracefully, glided over to her husband giving him a kiss on the cheek before flashing Bill one of her dazzling smiles.

Bill blushed but quickly regained his composure.  “Sir, you should see this.”  He held out a large manilla envelope.

John opened the envelope and pulled out the papers inside.  He quickly skimmed the pages, then looked at Bill.  “Are you sure?”

“Yes, I’ve checked and rechecked the records as well as doing some research online.”  Bill stated.

“But it’s impossible.  How can it be?”  John started to pace.

“I don’t know, but there’s no other explanation.”  Bill fidgeted where he stood.

“That would make him over 100 years old!”  John stopped and stared at Bill.

“Actually sir, according to these records, he would be over 350 years old.”  Bill held out another sheet of paper.

John took the page and turned as white as the paper.  “350…but how?”