Image of Bentley and Mason: AP

This afternoon, Rebekah Caldwell Mason—senior advisor to, and alleged mistress of, Alabama Governor Robert Bentley—resigned from her position less than a week after leaked audio recordings revealed what appeared to be a physically and emotionally intimate relationship between her and the governor. It is just the biggest blow in a week in which the foundation of Bentley’s administration has continued to crack.

Per the AP, Mason said in a statement that her “only plans are to focus my full attention on my precious children and my husband who I love dearly.”

Aside from the alleged affair between Mason and Bentley, there were questions regarding the method in which Mason was compensated for her work on Bentley’s staff. As a “senior political advisor,” Mason hasn’t been paid by the state. Instead she and her company RCM Communications have received hundreds of thousands of dollars from Bentley’s campaign, as well as a non-profit tied to Bentley called the Alabama Council for Excellent Government. Whether the source of Mason’s salary corrupted the governor’s decision making may be one component of an ethics investigation championed by Republican politicians in the state, along with whether Bentley used state property (namely a private plane) to conceal his rumored affair.

Aside from an investigation that could further endanger his status as governor, there is also still a bunch of gossip shaking loose from the capitol now that the alleged affair has been all but confirmed. For instance: This weekend, the local blog Yellowhammer News, which has been all over the Bentley story for months, posted even more leaked audio of Bentley and Mason secretly discussing their affection for each other. The video is 24 minutes long if that’s your thing!

Aside from the clips from this conversation published by AL.com and then Gawker, the audio further obtained by Yellowhammer captures Bentley making a reference to Mason having seen him in his underwear, which would be yet another statement that runs contradictory to the governor’s claim that their relationship was never physical. Via Yellowhammer:

Mason: (Inaudible)

Bentley: I did. I did. It’s good. They came this morning, fact. See, I thought I was gon’ stay here this afternoon and wait on them. But they came this morning. Bless his heart, this little boy from (Elrod?)

Mason: (Inaudible)

Bentley: Yea, I know. He came this morning before I had my clothes on.

Mason: (Inaudible)

Bentley: He just got to see my boxer shorts. No. Hey, you’ve seen those. Listen, he didn’t see my boxer shorts. I did actually put my pants on before I went to the door.

:-/

Also per Yellowhammer, Bentley and Mason share a safe deposit box in Montgomery that was opened in January of this year:

The names on the box are Robert J. Bentley and Rebekah A. Mason, who alone share access to the box’s contents. The addresses on the box are the Governor’s Mansion in Montgomery, and Mrs. Mason’s private residence in Tuscaloosa. The box was initially opened on Tuesday, January 5th of this year, and remains open as of this week.

Proof of the box’s existence, which has not been known to the public until now, was provided to Yellowhammer by a confidential source, who shared the indisputable evidence on condition of anonymity.

Yesterday, Christian Today reported that Bentley has split from his longtime Baptist church in Tuscaloosa. The senior pastor there would neither confirm nor deny that Bentley was booted due to alleged infidelity but his his quote sure does burn:

“While church discipline is a church family matter, both Governor Robert Bentley and Mrs. Rebekah Mason are no longer members of First Baptist Church Tuscaloosa. I continue to pray for each of them,” Senior Pastor Gil McKee told Christian News Network on Friday.

Eventually this will all be over?