The months that followed Diya’s big donation to Freddy’s campaign changed the dynamic of the race permanently. For the next six months afterwards, the upward trending in the polls for Freddy saw an equally strong downward trend for the mayor. In spite of all of the assistance that the local and national press gave to try to save his at risk candidacy, the mayor could not overcome Freddy’s renewed stamina, his fundraising apparatus and his army of volunteers.
Diya’s large donation gave Freddy the ability to hire ten full time staffers, who diligently helped him counter the largely negative press coverage he was still receiving. It allowed him rent out an office space in town, despite the mayor’s team of goons threatening potential landlords with fines and criminal prosecution for doing so. It allowed him to support an army of young volunteers, who came in from all over the country to go knock on doors in the neighborhood and talk to potential voters face to face. The donation was giving Freddy a real chance of victory and the mayor was not happy about this turn of events.
Three weeks before election time, the latest polling showed Freddy just four points behind the mayor. After starting the race polling at just 5%, his rise to 48% to the mayor’s 52% was a remarkable achievement. He was now within the margin of error for an upset victory next month. In the final weeks of the campaign, Freddy pushed hard; spending long days attending community meetings, talking to voters and making digital content to spread nationally. All of this was creating new pressures on Freddy’s family life.
Completely defying Michael’s wishes to be more present at home, Freddy’s long days and nights out on the campaign trail hurt his husband deeply. Despite still sleeping together in the same bed every night, there was no time for intimacy anymore. Freddy was just too tired for love making. No matter how hard Michael tried to initiate it, Freddy would always reject him. It was causing a strain in their marriage that was evident in their waking moments together, as they got testier with each other and also less talkative.
As for his son Evan, his grades began to drop in school. Focusing on his duties as a parent, Michael did his best to help raise his son's performance as best as he could. He kept Freddy and his staff away from the house so that Evan had a quiet home to study in. He hired a tutor to assist with the more difficult subject areas, but the results were not promising. He even considered his mother’s offer of having her keep Evan in her home for a while, but Michael was still resisting this pressure. It was becoming a big problem, especially as Evan would be entering high school the following autumn.
Throughout this time, birthdays, anniversaries and other special occasions came and went without proper recognition. Both Freddy and Michael celebrated their birthdays largely apart, without much of an affair or to do. Evan turned 12 that year, the same age Josh was when Freddy had turned into Fido all those years ago. Despite Michael’s best efforts to throw a good house party with his son's friends from school, the prying eyes of reporters and cameras ruined his son's special day. What hurt Evan more than anything, though, was his papa’s lack of appearance at his party. It was hurting him emotionally, making it hard for him find a motivation to keep living. As bad as these strains were on the family unit, they were not even close to the worst that was yet to come.
After reading the latest polls showing Freddy within the margin of error of victory, the mayor threw various papers and books all across his office.
“Fuck!!!!” the mayor yelled. “Son of a bitch!!!! That communist fucker!!!!! Fuck, fuck, fuck!!!!!!”
“Sir, calm down” an advisor in the room spoke up. “Melting down like this won’t help you turn this race around.”
“We made so many God damn mistakes when dealing with this fucker! I should have listened to my instinct and ignored this stupid man from the start! If I had, then we never would have been in this situation in the first place!!!!”
“I don’t agree with your analysis” another advisor spoke up. “I think our attacks on him early on are what is keeping him from leading you in the polls right now. If we hadn’t gone on the offensive early on and painted him as the fucking socialist marxist that he is, then he may very well be the frontrunner today.
"Our successful efforts to shape him early on in voters minds have kept his approval ratings relatively negative. The attacks have made it so that there’s a ceiling he cannot overcome with a key group of voters. If we hadn’t done what we did when we did it, then that marxist could be 5, 10 or even 15 points ahead of you right now. If we can hold him off until election day, then those early attacks are what saved your job.”
“Well even if I manage to win, presuming that he doesn’t find someway to pull another Diya like surprise on me at the last minute, my entire political career is over! All of California’s lawmakers smell blood here. If I even attempt to run for a higher office, everything that has come out about me these last six months will be used against me. I’ve been permanently ruined by this man and he has to pay for this!”
“Sir, victory will serve as your ultimate vindicator. You should try to calm down and think about this rationally. Getting angry and lashing out won’t help you with your situation. We’re in crunch time right now. Let’s try to relax and think of a clear strategy moving forward.”
“I have no future going forward! Don’t you see that, you fucking moron?! Even if we pull the nuclear option and rig the polls to give me a squeaker of a victory on election night, any chance of my becoming senator, governor or president from here on out have been permanently dashed. Finished! Gone! Freddy has ruined me forever and losing to me next month in a squeaker is not good enough punishment for him! He got what he wanted out of this race and I got fucked!!!!!
"I had everything to lose here and he had nothing to lose. He gained so much from this race, that even if he loses, some big, socialist activist group will give him a cushy job from this. His name will be a permanent national presence and he can go on to bigger and better things from here on out. Meanwhile, I have to worry about the FBI constantly hounding my ass from now on, as they parse over every meeting I’ve ever had, every piece of legislation I ever pushed for and every decision this office has ever made. It’s over for me, now! I’m ruined forever! Freddy must pay for this!”
“Uh uh uh” an advisor stuttered out. “I, I don’t see how you expect to do that beyond defeating him in a couple of weeks from now.”
“I want him gone! Dead! You hear me?! Dead!!!!! Someone hire an assassin and get rid of him once and for all!”
“Sir” another advisor replied nervously “I think you’re letting your anger get the best of you. Please try to be reasonable here.”
“I can’t afford to be reasonable here right now, you fucking dipshit! This fucker has to go right now! He’s ruined me and must pay for this with his life! Get rid of him! Get rid of him now!”
“Sir” a third advisor spoke up “maybe you should take a couple of days to think this over. Doing something like this is rash and has the potential to blow up in your face.”
“How can it blow up in my face more than Freddy permanently destroying my career?!”
“If Freddy survives an attempt on his life” an advisor replied “then he’s going to put the blame squarely on you. The public will likely believe him and you could face a stiff jail sentence if it's tied back to you.”
“And if he dies” another advisor added “it’ll be bound to raise suspicion and leave a permanently scarring mark on your legacy.”
“I don’t care!!!!!!” the mayor yelled at the top of his lungs in response. “I have no more legacy left to salvage because of him!!!!! Kill him now!!!!!!!!!!”
The mayor’s cadre of advisors collectively sighed, as one of them begrudgingly pulled out their communication device and made an ominous call.
“Fernando” an advisor said to a man on the other end of the line “we’re going to need another favor from you.”
At Freddy and Michael’s house that night….