Amelia Bennett was not well known in most circles of Llanview, but she was important in the social circles that mattered to her. The Llanview Gay and Lesbian Alliance had already been in discussions to support Victoria Lord Banks in the mayoral election when incumbent mayor Stanley Lowell was found out to be a criminal and was convinced to resign by his campaign manager.
Dorian Cramer Lord, who had not hesitated to announce that she would be running for mayor against Viki Banks instead of the incumbent, intrigued Amelia. Amelia was aware that no one else had been able to convince Mayor Lowell to resign, even after he was arrested, so how had Dorian Lord managed to do it? There were several interesting – perhaps even unsavory – possibilities.
Still, this did not change the LGLA's plans to back Victoria Banks, provided she was willing to take a firm and public stance on gay rights. Nick Chavez planned a meeting with her to find out if she was willing to do just that, or if she was like most politicians who would tell a new story when they were faced with the media.
That's when things took a turn.
Amelia was on her way to the Buenos Dias to meet with Nick and a few others about their plans during the election and what their responses might be to the candidates' stances. Nick planned to make Amelia the LGLA's public relations liaison to the candidates – namely Viki – and Amelia's job would be to push the LGLA into the spotlight and make it an active issue during the election. She was early for the meeting, so she sat down on a bench in Angel Square and pulled out her phone to check the news.
The Sun was reporting that Viki had a strong lead in the polls. Amelia had to wonder how accurate those polls were, but knew that it boded well for the LGLA if Viki took their side. The picture of Dorian Lord that accompanied the article was rather unflattering, which further piqued Amelia's curiosity about the woman. She pulled up her web browser and searched for Dorian's name.
"You should go to her."
Amelia looked up from her phone and saw her sister standing in front of her. "What are you talking about?"
Her sister nodded at the phone. "I think you could help her."
Amelia furrowed her brows in confusion and blinked at her sibling. "I could help her?"
Her sister offered a small smile and nodded. "I think it would be the right thing to do." She shrugged and wandered off, leaving Amelia to consider her vague words.
Amelia was still a bit bewildered when she wandered into the café and found her place at the table where her LGLA comrades had already taken their places to discuss their plans. Amelia dropped her phone onto the table while she hooked her bag on the back of her chair and sat down.
Nick, who was seated next to her, couldn't help but notice the open webpage on her phone's display. "Everything alright?" he asked as he gestured at the open article.
Amelia hesitated as the rest of the table fell silent, then directed, "I have a new idea, and I hope you are still open to different suggestions."
Nick was intrigued as he looked around at their friends.
Amelia shifted her gaze to him as he looked at her with expectation. "After you meet with Viki Banks today, I want to go to Dorian Lord and offer to help with her campaign. It's pretty clear that these two candidates are very competitive with each other, and each has a strong reaction to what the other does. If I get a foot in the door with Dorian Lord, even if Viki Banks agrees to support us, I'll still have the opposing candidate's ear. It would be a win-win situation for us. People wouldn't have a choice but to vote for an open-minded person. We can't lose if we are a part of both campaigns."
Nick's eyes widened and he thought a moment before speaking. "I think that's pretty brilliant … but … I don't know if I like the idea of us pitting ourselves against each other like that … and what if Dorian Lord loses? That could reflect on you, Amelia."
"Hey," Amelia shrugged. "We came here to talk about throwing our hat in the ring. If we want to play politics, we can't be shy about it. It is a dirty game, but I'm willing to stick my hands in the mud if it gets us one step closer to having the right to marry."
"I think that's what they call taking one for the team," someone joked.
"No," Nick nodded at Amelia's confidence, "this could work. From what I've heard, Dorian Lord doesn't like to lose, and she's down right now." He couldn't help but smile at the prospect of playing one candidate against the other. "To be realistic, I'm not sure we can expect Mrs. Banks, or any candidate for that matter, to throw their full political support behind our gay marriage initiative. But if I can at least get her to say she supports gay rights, and go public with that…." He turned to Amelia. "By that time, you'll be in a position to reveal to Dorian Lord that you are a lesbian and push her to compete with that in her arsenal."
"And what if Dorian Lord doesn't hire Amelia," someone asked, "or Viki Banks doesn't support the LGLA?"
Amelia smirked at Nick as he replied. "Viki Banks will support us. She is everything Mayor Lowell wasn't."
"And as far as Dorian Lord goes," Amelia nodded, "leave that to me. I'm nothing if not persistent."