Read Online Ghostbusters The Return by Sholly Fisch - Free Book Online

gesturing wildly. "He - he's not even on the ballot yet! I'm still working on his message points!"

    Milken sat back in the chair behind his desk, watching an all-news channel. He took in the live feed of the press conference with satisfaction. "Relax, Ted," he said. "This is a minor hiccup at most. There's no real harm done."

    "Relax? No harm done? Five minutes into this campaign, and he's already a loose cannon!"

    "That unpredictability is part of the idea, remember? He's not a politician. Besides..." Milken pointed at the television screen, which showed a close-up of Mayor Lapinski. Milken could almost see the veins bulging in his forehead. "Isn't it worth it to see all of this happen during Lapinski's own press conference?"

    Golden stopped pacing for a moment and looked at the screen. A smile almost crossed his lips. But then he threw his arms up with a growl that was a mixture of frustration and resignation. "I'd better go finish those message points before he gets into even bigger trouble." He stalked out of the office, shaking his head.

    Milken studied the image of Venkman and Lapinski on the television screen. This could work - they might actually win this thing. Venkman and Zeddemore's celebrity could carry the day more effectively than talent or experience ever could. Voters liked the image of someone strong enough to protect them.

    But the election wasn't over yet. In fact, it had hardly begun. While the candidates might be the public face of the campaign, there was an awful lot that still had to be done behind the scenes.

    Milken switched off the television, rose from his desk, and walked down the hall to a large open area where a handful of aides sat at desks making phone calls. Campaign manager John Fielding was crouched over one of the desks, giving instructions to the aide who was sitting there.

    "How are we doing?" Milken asked the room in general.

    "Great," Fielding replied. "I sent an aide over to file the initial paperwork on Venkman and Zeddemore. Fortunately, we already had the campaign finance report done, so we just had to fill in their names. I take it you heard that Venkman announced?"

    "I heard something to that effect, yes."

    Fielding grinned. "Did you see Lapinski's reaction?"

    "I enjoyed every minute of it. How are we doing on the petitions?" In order to get their candidates on the ballot, they were going to have to get more than seven thousand people to sign the necessary petition.

    One of the aides covered the mouthpiece of his phone so that she could answer. "Amazing. It's only been a few minutes, but the volunteers from the field have been calling in to say they've got three hundred signatures already."

    "Impressive. How are they doing it so fast?"

    "Strategic placement," said Fielding. "We got a few dozen just by sending them over to that school with the alligators during pick-up time. Another hundred from the crowd at the Mayor's press conference."

    Milken smiled at the irony of that.

    "The rest I'd already sent out to places where I figured people would want to see a couple of Ghostbusters in City Hall. Movie theaters showing action films. Science fiction book stores. Places like that. And we haven't even started on the boroughs yet."

    "Excellent. At this rate, it's conceivable that we might even be able to file the petitions by next week."

    "Meanwhile, Stu's working the unions, trying to drum up support there. Ted's working on message points."

    "So I've heard."

    "I'm drafting a first pass on their platform. And we've got Venkman and Zeddemore coming in tomorrow for photos and the start of their training."

    Milken clapped him on the shoulder. "Great work. We're on our way."

    *     *     *

    It had been a rough rehearsal that afternoon. The piece itself wasn't particularly difficult. It wasn't the sort of thing that a roomful of beginners could handle, but the New York Philharmonic had performed music that was far more complex. No, what made it rough for Dana