"If you haven't received it by now, it's probably been denied." She sets the form down and picks up her bottle of pop and takes a drink.
I sigh, annoyed with her lack of concern over this. "Could you check to see if it's been denied? I need to know."
She sets her pop down. "Sir, I have other people ahead of you wanting me to check on their permits. I'll get back to you next week." She turns toward her computer screen and starts typing.
"Next week? How could it possibly take that long to check on a permit? I'm sure you could look it up on your computer right now and tell me whether it's been approved."
She ignores me and continues to type on her computer.
"Are you done?" I hear someone behind me ask.
I turn and see a man waiting in line. "Yeah. Good luck getting any help."
On my way out of the building, I get stuck behind two men in suits who are walking at a snail's pace as they talk.
"I'll see you at the meeting," the one man says.
"Yes. Have a good evening, Jonathan." The other man turns and goes into one of the offices.
The man who remains in the hall notices me behind him. "Pardon me." He steps aside, and when I see his face I know who he is. His daughter looks just like him. Forget waiting a week for an answer about my permit. I'm going to ask the man who I'm sure is the one who denied it.
"Jonathan Kryer?" I ask, stepping in front of him.
"Yes. That's right. Do I know you?"
"No, but I know your daughter. I have an issue I need to speak with you about."
"I see." He clears his throat and straightens his posture. I assume he's going to tell me how great and wonderful she is, but instead he says, "What did she do now?"
"Excuse me?" I'm so surprised by his response that I didn't know how to answer.
He motions me to follow him and we go into a vacant office with just a desk and two chairs and nothing on the walls. He closes the door, then turns to me. "What is this concerning?"
"A permit for some electrical work I'm doing. I'm renovating a house on the other side of town and applied for a permit weeks ago but haven't received it. I applied for it right after your daughter came to my house and threatened to have my permit request denied if I didn't do what she said."
He crosses his arms over his chest. "And what exactly did she want from you?"
Shit. This is the last thing a father wants to hear. I try to be vague. "I'd rather not say."
He lets out a heavy sigh. He knows what she was asking for and seems disgusted by it. "Katie doesn't have the authority to deny your request. She doesn't work here."
"She said that she would have you deny the request, given your position on city council. I know you don't deal with residential permits but—"
"I didn't deny your request. And even if my daughter told me to do so, I would never use my position to do something like that. I don't even know who you are." He goes around the desk and sits down on the chair and turns the computer on. "What's your name?"
"Nash Wheeler."
He types his password into the computer, then turns to me as he waits for the various programs to load. "I have to apologize for my daughter. She tends to stir up trouble wherever she goes. She gets that from her mother. My ex-wife."
"So she never asked you about the permit?"
He shakes his head. "No. I rarely even see her other than when she's at the country club. And when she's there, I'm usually so busy I don't have time to talk." He looks back at the computer and types something in, then scrolls through the screen. "It looks like you forgot to sign the paperwork. That's why your permit request didn't get processed. If you fill out a new form and send it directly to me, I'll get it processed right away. You'll have the permit in a day or two."
"That's great. Thank you. I really appreciate your help on this."
He shuts the computer off and comes back around the desk. "I've told Katie to stop using my position on the council to her advantage, but unfortunately, she doesn't listen to me. And it doesn't help matters that her mother encourages Katie to be this way. If Katie threatens you again, let me know."
His comment reminds me of Lou and how he goes out of his way to accommodate Katie's unreasonable demands.
"I'm not sure if you're aware of this," I say, "but some of the local businesses are afraid you'll shut them down if they anger your daughter."
He sighs. "That would never happen. She has no influence on me whatsoever when it comes to that. Is there a particular business she's targeted?"
"The one I'm referring to is a bakery owned by a friend of mine." I'm not sure if I should speak for Lou but this man needs to know what his daughter is doing. "Katie made him stay past closing to fill an order and also had him redo a large order at his own expense because she changed her mind at the last minute."
"Are you referring to Lou's?"
I nod. "Yeah."