A few days have passed since our crazy girls lunch in Los Hellas where we discovered a way to get Chibuzo out of his city drama on his office and tickets from Amy Huang as a shakedown. We also learned Nicolas, who hooked up with me in Italy was happily married, to a man, named Sven Douglas, also of a real estate family.
I get dressed for a morning run when my phone rings
Chibuzo: Good morning your highness. Did you get my bounds to thee?
Look outside your door there should be something
I go to the door and find outside a large basket with plastic wrapping and a card
Chibuzo: Well child get it if you haven’t already
I open the door and bring this monstrous gift basket into the apartment, setting the card aside
Chibuzo: Technology is crazy these days. I showed the little video to that lady, Mary Poros and next thing I knew all those tickets were magically gone. Kazaa !
Me: Super happy to hear - and what good timing too!
Chibuzo: a little too well timed by the goddess above. I’m grateful nonetheless.
Look I have to go now stepping into a meeting. Enjoy darling. You saved me about $50,000 in fines so I would say you have earned your rent for a while. Thank you and thank you to whoever this Nicolas guy is!
Chibuzo hangs up clearly back in business mode. I feel relief and also fear at the same time as the connection between the two of us is known but not yet known known.
I look around at the goodies in the gift basket and go for my routine morning run on the water. I feel somewhat grateful, or something, for Nicolas so I send him a text… hangs there… green. Not received. Nicolas was still gone on his “retreat” which was starting to feel eerily too long.
With only one to two weeks left before the candidacy window closed for city council, I was getting into the flow of things. Both ready and not ready at all.
Deals on the Table
Nicolas away at some forest retreat for meditation he without reach of anything happening in Los Hellas, his husband Sven Douglass however is busy making moves and decides to take an in-meeting with Mary Poros to hear her out, they do not know each other well.
Poros: Good to finally meet in person Mr. Douglas
Sven: Mary, pleasure
They both sit down cordially although neither want to waste much time.
Poros: I’ll get to it then and skip the formalities. Your husband, Nicolas, is a pain in my ass. You are also hooking up with everything that walks. Nicolas is also not so faithful, he’s even hooking up with girls
Sven: … girls?
Mary Poros slides a photo of Nicolas and Ella together in Italy kissing.
Poros: Does the girl look familiar?
Sven: no…but.. geesh wow
Poros: you are not so perfect yourself so here’s my offer- you off, or find someone to off your husband, I will 100% reimburse and then some in favors
Sven: hold on…
Poros: Do not make me repeat it. I know that you heard me. You can expect full city support for any developments you work on, sell, or are connected to your family. Its the uncle right?
Sven: Uncle
Poros: Right. I don’t want to waste the air with more words than are necessary. That’s my offer you have a bit to think about it, like a month. It helps Mr. Nicolas is currently hiding somewhere in the trees on the north coast. You’d be rich and a single Widower, great combo.
Sven leaves Mary Poros office with actual contemplation, should he consider “getting rid of” Nicolas? What’s the urgency? Sven doesn’t consider divorce as the marriage provides too many business benefits to ever consider walking away willingly.
What if Nicolas just somehow… went away?
Sven leaves from Mary Poros office to his sidepiece hookup’s apartment. It’s one of those hookups thats been going on a decade but you rarely talk? Time to blow off steam, it's not every day an old billionaire lady asks you to off your husband.
Sven’s hookup is none other than recalled and ousted politician Bogdan Brown. Bogdan’s apartment is a mess with trash and containers everywhere as he has been in a depressed state for several months, Sven finds the patheticness a turn on. They know each other from law school days and dorm hookups:
Bogdan: you know, we should like try to be together
<Sven looks around at the messy apartment>
Sven: uh, yah. okay babie
Bogdan: no I’m serious. If you are worried about your husband, you know it would be so easy to make something happen. All my friends are still in the crime lab, there would be zero evidence.
Sven: whoa omg what? I have had quite the day
Bogdan: I know I’m not at my best right now. If you ever want to give this, give us a go, don’t worry about a silly little husband. That I can fix.
Sven: any other day I would say that is such a weird comment, but given today and its elevated weirdness I’m going to say— hop your ass in the shower! I can’t right now
Sven and Bogdan hook up for the evening, Sven spends the night. Showers in the morning with Bogdan then goes back to work carefree of wherever Nicolas is. Another day.
Bogdan does not know that Sven is in talks with Mary Poros about Nicolas and would never guess.
Always Have a (Backup) Getaway Car
Back at Ella’s she feeling normal before things get very, un-normal for the local city council campaign. Kelly messages Ella that she is doing a “drive by” meaning driving by with items for Ella without leaving the car (and kids in it). Like a bat out of hell, Kelly’s minivan comes screeching around the corner pulling up to Ella’s apartment.
Kids are screaming, playing and crying in the van. There is every emotion at once, Kelly rolls down her window
Kelly: apologies for rolling up in a work car, with work inside (points to kids)
Here’s a bag of things, let me know what you like. My brother owns a print shop, he said whatever you need “he’s gots” so let us know, color, type whatever. Also Chelsea and I have a surprise for you, we will message later when its done
Me: Wow, this is a lot thanks a lot
<child wails screaming>
Me: thank you Kelly, I really appreciate it
Kelly: Gotchu girl. now I gotta run, someone has some kind of sports practice. I know the address!
Kelly drives away like she was just leaving a bank robbery, leaving me holding a bag of I guess campaign samples? Looks like shirt tests, some buttons, other items.
I open my phone to text Nicolas, as I am curious. I fake type to see if the message button turns blue. So far still green. Come back to society Nicolas.
After getting inside I scatter all the items of the printers bag onto a table. These tests are love. This is what love looks like. I start to feel supported and not scared of this city council campaign. How hard could it be? Also, how many T-shirts do we need to get, probably… thousands? Oomph. This won’t be cheap even with things donated, plus I can’t put Kelly’s family out like that. I also see the basket from Chibuzo I had not yet fully opened.
Walking from printers items to large plastic—I unwrap the plastic all around it to start rummaging through the various things inside. Snacks. Jams. Cheeses. Tiny gifts. Very Cute.
I open the card I forgot to read earlier and when I open it a paper check falls out for $25,000 inside the card says “consider this my first official campaign donation. Godspeed, Chibuzo”
Woo hoo! Now to figure out how many T-shirts that is…
Chelsea texts Nicolas and manages to get a blue bubble messages me “I think I know where he’s at. i’m going to work from some cafes in that area and hope to connect with him before he gets into Los Hellas”
Everything seems to be falling into place
POLITIKING IS HARD
Campaign materials are ordered. People’s tasks are getting lined up. My couch is covered in campaign materials as this is definitely a grass roots adventure. If my first political campaign was a startup, this was our building in a garage moment.
Kelly and Chelsea are hard at work ramping up Ella’s website. Looks cool with a good slogan. Chelsea sends a test link to an old friend who texts the link to a friend who texts Bogdan Brown. Seeing the girl that took him out of office now running for a position at city hall enrages Bogdan, he sends the link to Mary Poros “You dumb c*nt. I hope Ella wins just to spite you and you lackluster handlers like Amy”
Upon seeing Ella’s campaign website Mary Poros is not having it. She calls Sven who she met with days earlier
Poros: I can sweeten the deal. Get rid of your hubby, same terms as before AND I will appoint. you, have you run for city council. What do you think?
Sven: which district?
Poros: doesn’t matter there’s only one I am worried about and you have a rental property there. Thing is theres only two weeks to put your hat in the name. The only thing that would stop you from winning would be, you know, your husband who is a walking campaign time bomb. otherwise it’s pretty much yours.
Mary hangs up leaving Sven some food from thought. With Nicolas still gone it would also be great if he never, returned? What about Bogdan? Bogdan already offered to help “take care of the situation”…
The concept of Sven wanting to run for city politics quite low, for Mary Poros Sven is exactly what she needs to maintain control. If Ella wins it will be a disaster for many families in control of the real estate world. On the other hand, Amy Huang has no chance of winning if a real candidate were to run against her. Adding Sven to the mix would certainly confuse the vote enough to ensure that Ella could NOT win.
More than ever Poros was losing her grip of control and for as long as Ella and or Nicolas were running around, at any moment the public could be turned on Poros. Which would be bad.
Finally around 10pm Kelly and Chelsea message Ella with her campaign website reveal:
Girls: What do you think? Classy, patriotic and a tiny bit hipster?