Disclaimer: I do not own Scandal
Chapter Two
"This is a terrible idea." Cyrus followed Olivia and Brenda down the hallway of the campaign headquarters, dodging volunteers and paid workers, his face flushed with nerves, "They're going to kill you. And fire you. And me."
"No one's getting fired or killed." Olivia murmured with an eye roll. And he'd called her melodramatic earlier? He was the biggest drama queen she'd ever met in her life. And that was saying something.
"You're doing this based on the advice of Brenda?" Cyrus shook his head and looked condescendingly at the young woman. Olivia almost reminded him that the day before he'd thought the world of her and the rest of his team, "I brought you here to"
"I agree with her." Olivia defended the young woman who was now staring at her feet as they walked. Cyrus could be such an ass sometimes, "In fact, it's what I've been thinking since I started researching the campaign. It's their biggest flaw, their Achilles heel. And Brenda figured it out on her own. She's the best you've got. I don't want to work with the guy who wants to be surfing and the guy who wants to be a slimy politician. I want Brenda. Deal with it." She pushed the door open to the office the governor and his wife were in, "Governor and Mrs. Grant, we need to talk." She shut the door behind her.
The Governor and his wife both looked up. He was sitting on the sofa, his legs crossed, flipping through what appeared to be projected poll numbers. She was seated in a chair by the window, her ankles primly crossed, a book in her hand. He was the first to speak, "Mrs. Davis, we're so glad you decided to join the campaign." He stood, crossing to the door where she, Brenda and Cyrus still stood. He held out his hand, "It's nice to see you again." He nodded, "Brenda, nice to see you as well." Brenda smiled faintly before stepping into the shadows behind Olivia and Cyrus. That was something Olivia would work on: Brenda"s confidence.
His wife also stood, marking the page in her book, "Yes, thank you for coming all this way."
Olivia nodded, "Please, call me Olivia." She instructed, "And have a seat. I have a problem I need to address with the both of you."
Fitz's eyes darted to Cyrus. The man looked like he was just about ready to keel over from a heart attack. His face was flushed, the pulse in his neck visibly throbbing and the vein on his forehead was showing prominently. "What's wrong?" Fitz asked, sitting back down, while he wife settled in at the opposite end of the sofa.
"That is what's wrong." Olivia motioned to the two of them.
"I'm afraid I don't understand." Mellie Grant's head fell to the side becomingly. Olivia noted that every gesture she made, even ones that appeared nervous, like her hand rising to fiddle with her pearl necklace, was planned. She thought it out. What would make her look the best? What would people respond to? How could she look perfect even in a moment of devastation? Olivia realized she would make the perfect politician. Where Fitz was clearly the right choice for the people because he wasn't the typical politician, his wife fit the mold of the DC elite perfectly. Unfortunately, that made her easier to sell.
"We have a problem from a public relations standpoint." Olivia stated flatly, "The two of you are killing your own campaign."
"What?" Mellie asked.
"Your marriage. It's a problem." Olivia replied smoothly.
Mellie grant let out a perfectly timed scoff, "Our marriage is none of your concern, Mrs. Davis."
"Actually, it is." Olivia answered her, "I gave up a job. A paying job. I left my husband across the country. I'm working for the party that rivals his. If you two can't get your act together enough to work with me when I identify a problem, then I'm going home. I did this as a favor to Cyrus because I am the best. I would eat, breath, and live this campaign, but if you two aren't actually interested in winning, I will go pack my bag and be on the next flight home to my life."
Mellie patted her chignon primly, "Well, what exactly are you suggesting? That we put more events on the schedule where we're together?"
"We've canceled your schedule all together for the next two weeks, Mrs. Grant." Olivia informed her.
"I'm sorry, but what? I have literacy events and"
"We think it's more important that you be at the events with Governor Grant." Brenda stepped forward, "To show the country that you support him. Your campaigns will still be there when these next two weeks are over."
Governor Grant opened his mouth, but Mellie interrupted, "Maybe I'm dense, but I don't see how that would help."
"If you think this is best," Governor Grant nodded, "just get us an updated schedule and change our flight information around as needed." He picked up the papers he'd be reading over, "Anything else?"
"'Anything else?' That's all you can say?" Mellie shrieked.
Olivia put her hands on Cyrus and Brenda, "We'll let the two of you discuss this." When Cyrus and Brenda didn't move she nearly snarled, "Out."
The three of them huddled around a desk in the hallway outside of the room the Grants were in, "Do you think Governor Grant can take care of this for us?" Olivia asked. She still hadn't spent any considerable time with the couple, she had no idea what the true dynamic between them was.
Cyrus shrugged, "I don't know, maybe."
"Mrs. Grant will come around." Brenda stated confidently, "She wants this more than he does. I think she'll handle it."
The three jerked when they heard Mellie's shriek, "So this is all my fault, I'm the iron maiden."
Olivia cringed, it had been a while since she and Edison had an argument like that. The last one that was this loud was when they were trying to plan their wedding and she didn't exactly see eye to eye with his mother. As four volunteers came down the hallway, Olivia, Cyrus and Brenda had to shoo them away before they could hear too much of the fight.
"This is why they don't talk." Cyrus muttered.
SCANDAL
Mellie advanced towards Fitz, "I gave up my career for you. I have children for you. All so you can run for office."
Fitz rolled his eyes, "Please, you want 1600 Penn more than I do, you're already redecorating." Mellie's eyes narrowed, but Fitz continued before she could interrupt, "So you need to think about how much you want this. If you really want it, then we need to do what they say, because they're the best." He picked up the file he'd been reading from and opened the door, slamming it shut behind him and leaving Mellie alone in the room.
Olivia, Cyrus and Brenda stopped talking and spun to face him as the door banged shut. "Governor" Brenda stuttered out.
"Get me a new schedule within an hour." He demanded before pushing past them.
Cyrus's eyes narrowed on Olivia, "Now they're going to be even more difficult to handle." He grunted.
Olivia tapped her fingers against the table next to them, "I'll handle that." She pushed herself off of it, "Brenda, make sure Kyle and Will have that information for me. And have someone make copies of it, we'll go through it after lunch. I'm starving." She murmured, "Actually, we'll go through it over lunch. Get that from them and the poll numbers from Jeanine. We'll go out to eat, maybe Thai. Do you like Thai?" She asked as she left Brenda behind her.
Cyrus stared at the young woman, "Well, Brenda, looks like you're Olivia's right hand man. No fuck it up." He left her alone in the hallway.
Brenda straightened and grinned as she made her way to the office she shared with Kyle and Will. They were going to hate her, but she was surprisingly okay with that. It was hard to get actual respect as a woman in this field. And with Kyle's family background, people fell over themselves to help him and please him even if he didn't really want to be here. And Will was willing to run over anyone with a tank to get his time with the Governor. Olivia Pope-Davis didn't seem to care if someone was male or female. She only cared about results. Brenda was more than willing to work her ass off to get those, and she would do it without taking any shortcuts.
"Hey guys." She pushed the door open to their office and both Will and Kyle looked up at her. "When you get those reports done for Olivia, can you give them to me?"
"I'll take them to her. I have some ideas I want to run by her. I was thinking I'd take her to lunch." Will straightened.
Brenda bit back a smile, "Actually, Olivia asked me to take your reports and Jeanine's numbers and make another copy because she and I are going to lunch."
Will threw his pen on the desk and Kyle rolled his eyes as he continued typing, "Seriously?" He glared at Brenda, "That bitch is fucking sexist." He growled.
"If you do what she asks and do it well then she'll listen to you, Will. She's not sexist. She's demanding and damn good at her job." Brenda turned, "I'm going to find Jeanine. Just get me what she wants." When she close the door behind her, she was surprised by her own confidence and the way she stood up to Will. She could do this job. And she could do it better than Will.
SCANDAL
Olivia glanced through the poll numbers that Brenda brought to lunch, "Iowa will be the real test." She murmured, adjusting her glasses slightly. "We'll have to see how they do once they're together and in public."
"When you said that you were 'handling it,' what exactly did you mean?" Brenda asked, pushing her own glasses back up her nose.
Olivia smiled brightly, "I have a friend who is very good at public relations. He's an attorney by trade, but he knows just how to train witnesses to perform the way he wants them to on the stand. I already called him, he's going to come out and help us out with this."
Brenda nodded, "What's his name?"
"Stephen." Olivia replied, "And he's meeting us in Iowa."
SCANDAL
XOXO
MAS