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ONCE SPENCE HARDIMAN INAUGURATED the election season with his unexpected announcement, it was as if a huge industrial machine was activated. As soon as the main gear started functioning, the smaller gears surrounding it began turning in sync, as they were designed to do.

The Herald’s headline the next morning read, “HARDIMAN DROPS BOMB.” A week later John Sacco made separate appearances in Providence, Newport and Lincoln to inform the electorate that he was a candidate for the United States Senate. Two days after that, on a Friday, Richie Cardella met with the media in the Bounty Room of the Marriott Hotel and declared himself in the running for the governor’s office. Surrounded by a noisy group of supporters, he delivered a twenty-minute speech in which he conveyed his view of the issues facing Rhode Island in the immediate future. “I’m confident that I’ll be endorsed by the Republican State Committee,” he said.

On that same Friday night, Doug Fiore received a call from Russell Walsh at home. It was the first time he spoke to Walsh, who would be travelling with him throughout the campaign. Walsh informed him that the friends he still had on the Republican State Committee confirmed Cardella’s boast that he would receive its official endorsement for governor. “But don’t let that discourage you,” he added quickly. “By primary day, most republicans won’t even remember who the Committee came out for. They’ll vote for whichever candidate has the message that turns them on.”

Walsh said that Cyril Berman had faxed him a copy of the schedule Fiore was to follow the coming week. On Tuesday he would begin courting the fifty-five “pillars” of his campaign. They arranged to meet at Fiore’s office at ten o’clock the next morning for Walsh to give him an up-to-date briefing about the people they would be seeing. He also said he would bring along a tape of Cardella’s news conference since Doug didn’t watch it.

By late Sunday night, Fiore had memorized all the information he was given by Berman and Walsh. He knew everything there was to know about the twenty-four Fiore supporters on that week’s schedule. If their pictures were on a deck of cards, he could have turned over any one, identified the particular VIP instantly and recited everything he was told to learn about that individual. He felt confident of what lay ahead.

On Monday morning, Fiore called a meeting of the firm’s Executive Committee in his conference room. He kept them waiting almost half an hour before informing them that he would be out of the office for the remainder of that week and all of the next. “I can’t discuss the reason for my absence. All I can tell you is that I’ll be close enough to call in and discuss the operation of the firm if any problems come up while I’m gone.” He was amused by the looks of concern that showed on their faces. He flirted with the idea of keeping them completely in suspense, but decided against it.

“Let me assure you that there’s nothing wrong with my health, and I’m not trying to avoid being served with a subpoena,” he told them, smiling at the end. Doug informed the Committee that he was appointing Ed Jackson, its senior member, acting managing partner while he was away, and adjourned the meeting before any questions were raised.

Fiore tried to reach George Ryder on the phone. Ryder’s secretary said that he was working outside the office on the Ocean State Wire case. She explained that he wanted to avoid the normal interruptions he faced at his desk. Fiore assumed she meant he was at home, in West Warwick. He instructed her to call and inform Ryder that the managing partner wanted him to come in and discuss the status of the negotiations early that afternoon. “Let me know when he gets here,” he said.