A Fresh Start
Chapter Two Hundred Twenty Six
When Cassie reaches the farm, she goes inside. Laying her purse on the counter, she walks into the living room. Sitting down, she reaches for a photo album. Pulling it out, she opens it. Inside are pictures of the first few years she was in Springfield. She's flipping through them when she finds a picture of her, Blake and Hart, just before RJ was born. In fact, it was the day before Hart had been shot. Settling back into the chair, she looks at Blake. She looked so happy. She, Ross and the boys were together. Blake was happy for Hart and the fact that they were getting married and that Hart was going to be a father. They were concerned about Dinah, but that day they had been together for Christmas party. None of them had any idea that the next day Hart would be fighting for his life and she would be delivering RJ without him.
She flips the page, looking at the rest of the pictures, some with Blake, and some without. She always stopped to look at her. She remembers the haunted look in Blake's eyes after Ross was killed. The happiness seemed to drain out of her. Maybe that's why she hadn't come out of the coma. She didn't want to face life without Ross. Cassie could understand that. She didn't want to face life without Richard, that's why she had done all the things she had done. Closing the album, she puts it away before she sits back down in the chair. Sam didn't think she had anything to do with Richard coming back, but what if she did. What if part of the reason Richard came back was because Sam gave him the courage to face his life. Getting up, she walks into the kitchen and picks up the phone. Dialing Holly's number, she waits a couple minutes before Holly answers. "Hello, Reid residence."
"Holly, its Cassie."
"Cassie, hello, how are you doing?"
"I'm great, how are you?"
"I'm holding on."
"Have you gone to see Blake?"
"Yes, I was there this morning. She just seems lay there. I don't know if I'm even reaching her." Holly says, sounding very tired.
"What does Dr. Jasper say?"
"Nothing, he hasn't already said. She's in a coma. There's nothing he can do unless she decides to come back."
"I was with the girls today. Reva and Harley threw me, Sam and Ava a baby showers and Ava a wedding shower."
"That must have been fun."
"It was, but it would have been more fun if Blake had been there. I know it's going to hurt a little bit to see me and Richard together again, especially since Ross is gone, but I think she would be happy for me."
"She would definitely be happy for you. She would want you to be happy. She always wanted that, even after Hart died."
"I know. We were talking about her and the royal wedding. This is something I probably shouldn't even be asking about, but have you thought about having a second opinion. Maybe another doctor could do something for her."
"She's in a coma, Cassie. It's up to her if she comes back or not."
"Sam was wonderful with Richard. I think that she's part of the reason he came back." Cassie says, walking into the living room.
"You think I should have another doctor look at her case." Holly asks.
"I can't see what it would hurt. She's been in that coma for over a year now."
"I'll think about it." Holly says. "How are Richard and the boys?"
"They are all fine. Richard is settling in as is Will. RJ is playing football. He's captain of his team. Will was in soccer but the season is over until spring. I think next year he'll probably want to play football like RJ. How are Blake's kids doing?"
"They are coping, I suppose."
"Have they been to see her?"
"Marissa goes, but the boys only go when I make them."
"I'm sorry. I know it's hard on them. Loosing Ross and then Blake goes into a coma. I want her to wake up." Cassie says, looking out the front window.
"We all want that. I'll think about asking another doctor to look at Blake's case. Maybe getting a second opinion is a good thing."
"I think it might help. At least talk to Sam."
"I'll think about it. How is the baby doing?"
"She is wonderful. We're starting on the nursery. We gave her Tammy's old room."
"Are you okay with that?"
"Yes, Tammy would want me to move on. And I still have her here with me. Her things are still here and I still have my memories of her and I'll make sure my new baby girl knows all about her older sister."
"How do you know it's a girl? You might be having another boy."
"No, it's a girl. I know it is." Cassie says, laying her hand on her stomach. The front door bangs back and Cassie turns towards the kitchen.
"Mom!" RJ yells.
"Holly, I've got to go. The boys are home from school."
"Alright, I'll think about the second opinion and we should get together some time. Let the kids play together."
"Sure, we'll set up a time." Cassie says, as RJ and Will come into the living room. "It was good talking to you Holly?"
"You too, take care of your boys."
"I will." Cassie says with a smile, hanging up the phone a couple seconds later.
"Was that Aunt Holly?" RJ asks.
"Yes, we were talking about your Aunt Blake and cousins."
"Is Aunt Blake okay?" RJ asks.
"She's still the same. Are you guy's hungry?" She asks, as they nod. "Of course you are. Go put you backpacks up and I'll fix you a snack." She says, walking into the kitchen while they go put their school stuff away.
Jeremiah walks into Sam's office. Walking up to the window as the receptionist says. "May I help you?"
"I would like to see Dr. Whit, O'Neill." Jeremiah says, looking around Sam's office.
"Do you have an appointment?" The receptionist asks.
"No, I do not. Ms?"
"It's Austin. I'm sorry but Dr. O'Neill isn't in the office for the rest of the afternoon. Do you need to see a doctor?"
"No, I'm perfectly healthy." Jeremiah says, turning away.
"May I take a message?" Austin asks, as he walks away.
"All that I'm saying is that maybe we should consider the possibility that we're having a girl." Sam says, slipping her hand into Jeffrey's.
"You were the one that wanted everything in blue and can't blue be a universal color. Why does it have to be one or the other?"
"Baby blue is the color for a boy. Regular blue is universal. Wouldn't you like to have a little rock princess instead of a rock prince."
"I would rather have the next scientist that cures cancer." Jeffrey says, releasing her hand and putting his arm across her shoulders. "Why are you thinking about a little girl?" He asks, as the walk along Main Street.
"We were talking about baby names this afternoon and we've all decided on names for a specific sex."
"What do you mean you've all decided on names for a specific sex?"
"Well, Cassie is convinced that she and Richard are having a little girl, so they only have girl names picked out. Ava and William believe they are having a little boy, so they only have little boy names picked out. And we have a name picked out if we have a boy, but we haven't really settled on a name for a little girl." Sam says, looking at him.
"I thought we decided to name her after our mother's, well my mother's first name and your mother's second name."
"We can do that, but if we're using my mother's middle name why not use your mother's middle name. "
"Jean Rosalind."
"Yes, and we can call her JR."
"JR, are we really going to do that to our daughter?"
"What's wrong with JR?"
"It's usually the initials given to a boy and it sounds a bit hokey."
"Hokey! I think it sounds cute and it's different. There won't be another person with the same name. She'll stand out."
"But JR?"
"Alright, we'll name our son Harland Billy?"
"No, we're not. I can handle JR for my daughter's name."
"Good, I'm hungry."
"We ate an hour ago." Jeffrey says, smiling as he looks down.
"I'm still hungry."
"Do you want to try that new diner?"
"No, we're close to Company."
"You just want the orange smoothie."
"Well, it would be nice, but I am hungry too."
"Come on, we'll go get something to eat. And then we can go home. I think it's getting colder out here by the minute."
"I think there's a system coming in." Sam says, as they walk towards Company.
"I think so too. It won't be long and we'll have our first snow." He says, slipping his arm around her. They walk into Company as Buzz is walking behind the front counter.
"Welcome to Company." Buzz says.
"Hi Buzz." They both reply.
"It's slow tonight, so take any table." Buzz says, reaching for their menus. He follows them over to their table. Putting the menus before them, he asks. "What can I get you to drink?"
"I'll have a cup of coffee." Jeffrey says.
"And I'll have a cup of hot chocolate." Sam says, looking up.
"Coffee and hot chocolate coming up." Buzz says, as he turns away. They begin looking over the menus.
Richard pulls up in front of the farmhouse. Getting out, he looks towards the barn as Rj and Will walk out of the barn. "Daddy." Will calls, running to meet him.
"Hi." He says, bending down to catch him. He hugs him and then turns to Rj. They hug before he stands up. "Did you finish your chores?"
"Yes sir, Blue and Lady Tammy are fed and watered." Rj says, as Will nods.
"Good, then let's go inside." He says, following the boys towards the house.
"Mommy's been really busy since we got home." Will says.
"She has, what has she been doing?"
"She's been carrying a lot of stuff upstairs into Tammy's old room." Rj says, looking at Richard as he opens the door.
They walk in as Cassie walks into the kitchen with the last box from the baby shower. "You guys go upstairs and change while I find…." Richard looks up and sees Cassie.
"Hi." She says, sitting the box on the counter.
"Hi." He says, putting his stuff on the counter before he takes his coat off and hangs it up by the door.
"Boys go change and start your homework." Cassie says, as she walks over to Richard.
"Yes ma'am." They reply, leaving the kitchen.
"The boys said you've been busy." Richard says, putting his arms around her.
"I have. I've been taking stuff up to the nursery." Cassie says, kissing him.
"What kind of stuff?"
"Boxes that I got from the baby shower Reva and Harley threw me today. Do you want to see?"
"Sure." He says, looking at the box on the counter.
"You can carry it." She says, smiling as she releases him. Picking up the box, he follows her out of the kitchen and upstairs. "Reva and Harley surprised me, Ava and Sam with a baby shower and Ava with a wedding shower this afternoon at the Beacon." Cassie says, walking upstairs.
"I thought you said that was for Sam and Ava?"
"That's what Reva told me, she included me after everyone arrived at my office this morning." Cassie says, walking down the hall towards the nursery.
"You thought she had forgotten you." Richard says, following her. When they reach the nursery, Richard stops at the door. "You carried all of this stuff up here. What happened to the furniture that was here? You didn't carry…."
"No, I didn't carry the furniture down to the basement." She says, looking at him and rolling her eyes. "The guys from the Beacon carried it down after they delivered this stuff." Cassie says, walking into the bedroom.
"You carried all of this stuff up here by yourself, this afternoon."
"Yes. It took a few trips."
"A few, try fifteen or twenty. Why would you do that?"
"It was taking up too much room downstairs. So I brought it up here. It was going to be brought up here anyway. I let them bring the heavier stuff."
"This was way too much for you to bring up here by yourself. You should've waited for me to come home. I could've helped you."
"It wasn't that hard."
"It took several trips Cassie." He says, walking over her. "You are supposes to be taking it easy through out this pregnancy. And you're going to do that." He says, as he slips his arms around her. "If I have to work from home everyday until she's born, I will."
"I do take it easy. This really wasn't that much and I did take a couple breaks."
"How long were they?" He asks, as she looks away. "Umm hmm, that's what I thought." He says, taking her hand and turning for the door.
"Where are we going? There's still stuff to do." She says, as he looks at her.
"You are finished for the day." He says, leading her out of the nursery. He walks across the hall to their room. "You're going into our bathroom and you're going to run yourself a bath and you're going to relax."
"What about the boys and dinner?"
"I'll handle both." He says, leading her into their bathroom. "No arguments." He says, releasing her hand. "Run a bath and relax. I have everything else under control." He says, as she looks at him and smiles. "What?"
"I like the fact that you want to take care of me. It's really nice, but I'm not helpless or weak."
"No, you're a high risk pregnancy. So I will take care of you and her." He says, leaning in to kiss her.
When he steps back, she looks up and smiles. "I'll take the bath and relax."
"Good."
"But that doesn't mean that I'm going to sit around all day and do nothing."
"Bath, I've got the boys and dinner." He says, kissing her quickly before he walks out and leaves her alone.
Jeffrey hands the check back to Buzz with his credit card. "Did you talk to Megan today?"
"No, I haven't talked to her." Sam says, sipping her hot chocolate.
"She's going to come around." Jeffrey says, reaching for her hand.
"I can't see how she can compare you to Mr. Rollings."
"I understand how she can see it that way. I took advantage of Olivia and then I left her to deal with consequences."
"You didn't know she was pregnant."
"Thank you for defending me, but it's still the truth." Jeffrey says, as Buzz walks up with their check. Jeffrey signs it and then hands it back to Buzz. "Are you ready to go?" He asks, reaching for her hand.
"Yes." She says, releasing his hand and standing up. Slipping her coat on, she reaches for her hot chocolate as he stands up. He slips his arms around her as they walk out of the restaurant. When they reach the parking lot outside Cedars, she asks. "I'll see you at home?"
"Yes." He leans over to kiss her. Holding her door for her as she gets in He steps back as she starts the car and backs out.
Jeffrey walks over to his car. Getting in, he starts it and backs out, falling in behind Sam as she leaves the parking lot. Ten minutes later, they pull up outside their house. Getting out, he walks over to her car. Opening the door, he helps her out and then they walk towards the house. He unlocks the door and then holds it open as she walks in. Following her, he looks around. "What's all of this?"
"Oh, I forgot to tell you. I had this delivered from the Beacon this afternoon. It's the stuff I got from the baby shower."
"How did it get into our house?"
"I had the Beacon deliver it and then on the way to Dr. Sedgwick's I called Leah and told her to have the men put the stuff in here."
"You got all this from one baby shower?"
"Yes, Ava got more. She had the baby shower and the wedding shower."
"What are we going to do with all this?"
"Umm, put it in the nursery." Sam says, looking at him with a smile.
"The guys are coming over tomorrow night."
"We can take it upstairs now. It won't take that long and then we can sit back and relax for the rest of the evening." She says, walking over to him.
"If I had known I had manual labor to look forward to when I got home, I would've kept you out longer." Jeffrey says, as she leans up, kissing him.
"It's for our son." She says, looking at him.
"Alright, come on." He says, releasing her and closing the door behind him. He locks it before he picks up a box and follows Sam upstairs. Several trips later, he brings the last box into the nursery. "I'm curious do we have anything else we need to buy for the baby?"
"Of course there's more. This really isn't all that much. And we still have to get the furniture, the clothes, diapers, a play pen, a swing and bottles. Not to mention wipes and pacifiers. This only scratches the surface of what we're gonna need." She says, walking over to him.
"Alright, how about a movie or would your rather take a long bath?"
"I'll take a shower in the morning so let go watch a movie."
"You don't want a bath."
"No, not tonight." She says, walking out of nursery with Jeffrey following her.
They walk downstairs and as they walk into the living room, Sam says. "I thought the guys were coming over to rehearse."
"Beau couldn't get a baby sitter."
"Tell him to bring Max here and I'll watch him while you rehearse. It'll be practice." She says, sitting down on the couch.
"He supposes to call tomorrow if he finds a sitter." Jeffrey says, sitting down beside her.
"Call him in the morning and tell him to bring Max and I'll watch him."
"Alright." He says, settling back as she reaches for the remote.
The next morning, Megan walks into Company. She's just dropped the boys off at school. Frank is at the counter when she walks in. "Good…." He looks up and sees her. "…morning."
"Do you mean that?" Megan asks, looking at him.
"Of course I do." Frank says, reaching for a menu. "The bar's open or you can have any table you want."
She looks at him and then turns away. Walking over to one of the empty booths, she sits down as he puts her menu down. "What can I get you to drink?"
"Coffee will be fine.
"Coffee, coming right up." He says, turning away. He returns a few moments later. "Here's your coffee. Do you need a moment to look at the menu?"
"No, I know what I want." She says, reaching for the sugar. "I'll have two eggs, over-easy, toast and bacon with a side of fruit." She says, as Frank writes it down.
"That's two eggs over-easy, toast and bacon with a side of fruit."
"Yes." She says, before taking a sip of coffee.
"I'll put this in. How is Sam and Jeffrey by the way?" He asks.
"I suppose she's fine. I haven't seen them since early this week."
"Oh." Frank turns away. Turning in Megan's order, he goes back to cleaning up the bar. When her orders ready, he takes it to her then goes back to the bar.
Thirty minutes later, she walks up to the bar and hands him the check. He rings it up and then says. "Is there a problem between you and Sam, maybe I can…?"
"Are you always this eager to help someone, or is it just me?" Megan asks.
"No, but I know Sam and I know Jeffrey. I thought maybe I could help out."
"We don't need any help." Megan says, reaching for her change.
"Thank you and have a nice day." Frank says, as Megan walks away.
Jeffrey walks into his office. Stace's at her desk. "I'm going to be on a call." He says, as she nods. He walks into his office. Hanging up his coat, he walks over to his desk. Turning on his computer as he reaches for the phone and sits down. He dials Beau's number as the computer is coming up. "Hello." Beau says, answering on the third ring as he settles Max in his highchair.
"Beau, it's Jeffrey."
"What's up man? I was going to call you. Still no sitter." Beau says, as he feeds Max.
"It's okay. Sam said to bring Max with you and she'll watch him while we rehearse." Jeffrey says, sitting back.
"She wants to watch him." Jeffrey says, as Stace brings him his messages.
"Yes, said it'll be practice."
"Alright, I'll call Carson and we'll be over by six."
"Make it seven." Jeffrey says, sitting up.
"That's fine. We'll be there."
"Good."
"See ya then." They hang up.
Jeffrey reaches for the messages that Stace brought him. He's flipping through them when Stace buzzes him. "Yes." Jeffrey says.
"Sir, there's a man here to see you. He doesn't have an appointment, but he's demanding to speak with you."
"Who is it?"
"He says his name is Mr. Whitmere."
"Whitmere."
"Yes sir."
"Okay, send him in." Jeffrey says, hanging up. He stands up and walks around his desk. He standing in front of his desk when the door opens and Jeremiah walks into his office. "Mr. Whitmere."
"Jeffrey." He says, closing the door. He turns and walks over to where Jeffrey's standing, holding out his hand.
Jeffrey gives it a quick shake and then drops it. "What can I do for you Mr. Whitmere?"
"I wanted to talk to you about Sam."
"I don't see how we have anything to talk about that pertains to Sam."
"Jeffrey, she…."
"It's Mr. Mayor or Mr. O'Neill." Jeffrey says, turning to walk around his desk. "Have a seat." He says, sitting down. Jeremiah sits down across from him.
"I realize that we did not get off on the right foot when we met."
"You tried to force her to leave before the wedding and then you called her whore in front of our guests after you found out that she's pregnant. No, I don't think we got off on the right foot." Jeffrey says, looking him directly in the eye.
"I'm here to apologize and maybe we can work together to bring our family together."
"I seriously doubt that you want to reconcile with Sam."
"I traveled from Georgia…."
"Actually no you didn't."
"Of course I did."
"No, you didn't. You've relocated to Laurel Falls. And some how I think this has something to do with the patient that was brought to Sam's clinic by one of the parents in your organization."
Jeremiah looks at him and then drops all pretenses about why he came to see Jeffrey. "She's not one of our members. She was but sadly she has decided to turn her back on us and her savior."
"Save the pious religious behavior, I'm not interested and I don't believe it, so what exactly do you want Mr. Whitmere?"
"My sister has decided to interfere with church business."
"Sam did her job. The shoulder of the patient that was brought into her clinic was severely injured. As a doctor, she has a sworn duty to help anyone that is injured and brought to her for care."
"The child was punished for…."
"She was abused and we both know that. Now I'm not sure what you hope to gain by coming to see me, but I will support my wife. She wants to testify on behalf of Arianna's mother and I'm not going to stop her."
"Sam knows the consequences of outsiders interfering in church business."
Jeffrey looks at him and then he stands up slowly. "Mr. Whitmere, maybe I didn't make myself clear when you were here for our wedding, but I will protect her and you do not want to cross me or harm her."
Jeremiah stands up. "Mr. Mayor, Sam knows the rules. And I will report any attempts to harm me or the members of my church."
Jeffrey takes a step closer. "If you do nothing to Sam. Nothing will be done to you. However, I will not prevent my wife from following what she believes to be the right thing to do. Now I do have appointments that I must take care of." For a moment, Jeremiah stands there, watching Jeffrey. He tries to intimidate him and Jeffrey never wavers. Turning away, Jeffrey walks over to the door. Opening it, he turns to Jeremiah. "You have a good day." Jeffrey says, holding the door open.
"You will tell my sister that I said hello." Jeremiah says, walking over to the door.
"Good day, Mr. Whitmere." Jeffrey says, watching him walk out of the office. When the door closes, he turns to Stace. "I'll be on a call."
"Yes sir." Stace says, as Jeffrey walks back into his office, closing the door.
He walks over to his desk. Picking up the phone, he dials Sam's phone. After a couple rings, she picks up. "Hi, darlin." She says as she walks towards her office.
"Hi." Jeffrey says, sitting down at his desk.
"What's wrong?" Sam asks, stopping in the middle of the hallway. "Is Ava…?"
"Ava is fine. I just had a visit from someone we both know." He says, settling back in chair.
"You had a visit from someone we both know, okay." Sam says, walking again.
"It was Jeremiah."
She stops again. "Jeremiah came to see you. Why?"
"I believe he wanted to see if I would stop you from talking to Mrs. Owens attorney next week."
"I should've guessed that he would come to you. What else did he say?"
"That was all, except to say that you know the rules. I made it clear that if he did anything to you, he would answer to me."
"He is serious Jeffrey. If I testify for Mrs. Owens, he will come after me." She says. Her tone slightly afraid.
"You believe this is the right thing to do." Jeffrey asks, sitting up.
"Yes."
"Then I will be with you when you do it and I will protect you from your brother or anyone he sends after you."
"For someone that was terrified of me being involved with this, you've changed your tune." Sam says, smiling.
"I know what your childhood has cost you. Arianna deserves something different."
"It's not just about my childhood, J."
"I know that. It's also about making sure that Mrs. Owens isn't convicted of kidnapping her child when she was only trying to protect her."
"He didn't say anything else."
"Only that he would report any attempt to harm his followers to the police. I made it clear that nothing would be done to them, if he doesn't harm you. But when you go to your meeting with Mrs. Owens attorney, I'm going to be with you."
"You're going to protect me at all costs." Sam says, smiling."
"Of course I am. That's my job."
"Alright, I have patients I need to see. I'll see you tonight."
"Yes, I love both of you."
"We love you, see you tonight. J, did you call Beau?"
"Yes, he's bringing Max. They'll be there by seven."
"Okay, I'll see you at home."
"I love you."
"I love you too." They hang up, as Stace buzzes him.
"Mr. Sparks, once you've spoken with your board of directors we'll precede with the project." Richard says, opening his office door.
"I'll be in touch as soon as I speak with them." He replies, holding out his hand. They shake hands and then Mr. Sparks leaves the office.
"Sir, you have a call waiting on line one." Amelia says.
"Thank you." Richard says, going back into his office and closing the door. He walk over to his desk and picks up the phone as he sits down. Hitting the button for line one, he settles back in his chair. "Hello, this is Richard Winslow."
"Mr. Winslow, this is Kevin Harrison."
"Hello."
"I wanted to touch base with you about doing a fund raiser next Friday."
"That's fine."
"We're going to target the upper two percent of Springfield's election base."
"This is to receive the maximum amount of funds for the campaign, is that correct?"
"Yes, we need to build a strong base of support for you and that requires money. Targeting the upper two percent is the best way to secure the funds we need to begin building the campaign."
"Alright, we'll do the fund raiser at the Beacon next Friday night."
"Sir, I think this first fund raiser should be on neutral territory, like Towers or the Country club."
"I'm going to run a family orientated campaign as much as possible Mr. Harrison. That includes using my wife's hotel if needed. The Beacon has an outstanding reputation in this town. You will need to speak directly with Cassie about this. She can coordinate all of this with the Beacon staff."
"Yes sir. Have you spoken with Ms Reid yet?"
"No, I haven't. But I will get to it today." Richard says.
"Yes sir. I've spoken with a man that I feel will be excellent as our campaign finance manager."
"I want to meet him before we hire him."
"Of course, I have the rest of my staff on recruiting volunteers for campaign. Have you decided which party you're running under?"
"I filed as an independent." Richard says, sitting up. "Is that everything Mr. Harrison?"
"Yes, I believe it is. I will contact the staff at the Beacon to begin arrangements for the fund raiser. I already have my staff sending out invitation to the donors."
"One more thing, Mr. Harrison we will have fund raisers for the other end of the donor base."
"Of course, Mr. Winslow."
"Thank you." They hang up and then Richard dials the number for Holly.
After a couple rings, she picks up. "Hello, Holly Reid.
"Holly, this is Richard."
"Oh, hello. How are you doing?"
"I'm fine. Listen I wanted to talk to you about something would you be free to meet me in about ten minutes?"
"Umm sure." She says. "May I ask what this is about?"
"I have proposition for you." He says, sitting up. "Would Company be okay?"
"Sure, I'll be there."
"Thank you." Richard says, standing up. He reaches for his coat as he says. "I'll see you then." He hangs up and then slips his coat on. Walking out of his office, he says. "I'm going to be out of the office Amelia."
"Yes sir." She says, nodding as he leaves.
Five minutes later, he pulls up to Company. Getting out, he walks inside. Buzz is at the counter. "Hi, Richard." He says, smiling as he looks up.
"Hello, Buzz. Can I sit anywhere?"
"That's fine." Buzz says, following him over to a table. "Do you need a menu?"
"No, just coffee." Richard says, as he looks up and sees Holly walk in. Buzz turns to get Richard's coffee as Holly walks up.
"Good morning." Holly says, as she sits down across from Richard.
"Hello." Richard says.
"Hi, do you need a menu?" Buzz asks, turning to her.
"No, I'll have some coffee too." She says, as Buzz nods, leaving to get the coffee as Holly turns to Richard. "So, you have a proposition for me?" She asks.
"Yes." Richard says, as Buzz brings them their coffee. When he walks away, Richard says, "I filed to run for mayor in the upcoming election."
"Really, that's great. Springfield would benefit from your leadership, I believe." Holly says, taking a sip of coffee.
"Thank you. I want you directly involved with the campaign message."
"Richard, I'm not a political analyst."
"No, but you're a great reporter and you know the people of Springfield and the politics of Springfield, I want you to be my communications director. Now I can't offer you a lot of money, but I'm…."
"You don't have to pay me anything. I'll do it, just to see you back in office where you belong." Holly says, putting her coffee cup down. "Does Cassie know about this?"
"She knows about me running, I didn't tell I was going to ask you to be my communications director."
"When we do we get started?"
"I've already hired a campaign manager."
"Who did you hire?"
"Kevin Harrison, Jeffrey recommended him."
"He's a good man. Very knowledgeable about Springfield politics. Have you hired anyone else for your staff?"
"No, he says, that he's found a campaign finance manager but I haven't met him. The rest of the staff will have to be volunteers. I can't afford to pay a full staff."
"Have you started raising money?"
"We're planning our first fund raiser for next Friday night at the Beacon."
"So you haven't made your announcement, yet?"
"No."
"We need to do that before the fund raiser." Holly asks, as Buzz comes up to top off their coffee cups. "How quickly could you work up and announcement speech?"
"Umm, I suppose it'll take couple days." Richard says, taking a sip of coffee.
"Then we need to start working on it. Do you have a speech writer?"
"No, but I know someone that we can use. He was on my team when I was in San Cristobel." Richard says, putting his cup down.
"When would he be able to get here?"
"I would need to speak to him. I can call him when I get back to my office."
"Alright, once we have a staff I'll look at the volunteers to help fill out the writing team. You'll need more than one speech writer."
"Miles is the best and he's worked with me before." Richard says.
"That's good, but he'll need someone to help him. You're going to be making at least five major speeches through out the campaign and several smaller speeches during events around the city. Will Jeffrey have a problem with you focusing your time on this, because you will have to focus a lot of your time on this?"
"I'll speak to him about it, but I doubt that he will. He is the one that came to me to about running."
"Really, I knew that he had decided not to run for reelection again, but I didn't realize he wasn't running because he felt that you should run."
"I don't think that's why he decided not to run. He wants to spend time with Sam and their baby and I understand that."
"As a friend, are you prepared to face the public's questions about your past and Cassie's past?"
"Cassie and I have discussed it. We're prepared handle any questions."
"And what about her pregnancy. Running a campaign will be tiring and stressful."
"I'm prepared to keep this away from her and the baby as much as possible, although I realize she will have to be involved."
"Then I'm happy to work with you." Holly says, holding out her hand.
"Thank you." Richard says, shaking her hand.
"I think you'll make a great mayor for Springfield." Holly says, as Buzz walks up.
"You're running for mayor?" He asks, looking at Richard.
"Yes, it's not official but we'll be making the announcement in a couple days."
"Congratulations and I'll do what I can to help." Buzz says, holding his hand out.
"Thank you." Richard says, shaking his hand.
"Great and the coffee is on the house."
"Buzz you don't have to do that."
"For the next Mayor of Springfield, yes I do." Buzz says, picking up the check. "But its a one time thing." He says, smiling.
"That's fine." Richard says, smiling at him. "I need to get back to my office. Holly I'll contact Miles and we'll get started on the announcement speech. Now that I think about it, I think we should make the announcement at the Beacon next Friday night."
"That would work." Holly says.
"Then I'll tell Miles that's our date and we'll get started on the speech." Richard says, standing up.
"Do I need to contact Mr. Harrison?"
"I will call him and let him know to expect your call." Richard says, taking a last sip of his coffee.
"Then we'll talk again soon." Holly says, as Richard nods.
"Thank you." He says, shaking her hand before he turns to leave.