Clive punches the button for the elevator and waits until I’m inside the car before slapping his hand on the door to hold it open. “Remember what he said. No leaving today. I’ll take him to our office, then I’ve got to check on my mom. I’ll be back here by noon. You need anything, you call him.”
“I promise. I’ll be careful, Clive. And…thanks.”
Unlike the unbridled chaos of yesterday, this morning, there’s an air of celebration infusing every conversation, every movement. As I drop my briefcase behind my desk, Noah knocks on my door. “We’ve been waiting for you.”
My cheeks heat, and I fight not to stare down at my shoes. “I wanted to be in by seven, but—”
“Relax, Evianna. That wasn’t a criticism. Come out to the bullpen.” He extends his arm, like he’s planning on escorting me personally, and my shoulders stiffen.
“I’ll be right there. Just need to send one email.” I don’t, but at least it’s an excuse Noah will believe. “Two minutes. Max.”
“Any longer and I’m coming back for you,” he teases.
Prick. After I lock my tablet in my file cabinet—I transferred bits and pieces of the old code from the USB drive onto the device early this morning—I smooth my hands down my skirt and steel myself for whatever public display of sexism Noah has planned.
With a quick glance at my phone and a flash of disappointment that Dax hasn’t messaged me yet, I head out to the bullpen.
“There she is!” Noah says. Barry stands at his side, with Priya behind them both. “Evianna, you’ve been the heart and soul of this project since I hired you three years ago. You’ve given up nights and weekends, motivated the team, and helped us negotiate with some of our most influential partners. So, when Barry came to me half an hour ago with a bit of news, I told him we had to wait until you were in.”
Great. Another subtle little dig? He couldn’t just leave that part out?
“Barry?” Noah says with a flourish of his hand.
Our lead developer steps forward and hands me his tablet. “Take a look, boss.”
Bugs: 0
Service Status: Up
Performance: Green
My heart crashes against my ribcage. I knew we were close. Hell, I knew we’d see this before the day was up. But it’s only 9:15 a.m. Glancing around at the team, I see the exhaustion on their faces. The dark circles. The bloodshot eyes. But I see something else, too.
Pride. Relief. A sense of accomplishment no one can ever take away from them.
Scrolling through our bug list, I note the times each fix was checked in: 3:00 a.m., 4:23 a.m., 6:55 a.m. Priya fixed the last bug only half an hour ago. Five bugs wait for my sign-off, and I quickly scan each one before entering my personal digital signature code.
Months ago, when we announced our launch date, Kyle found an old stoplight and repurposed it as our status board. It’s been yellow for the past seven weeks. But as I sign off on the last code change, it flips to green, and the room explodes in cheers.
My smile is only tempered slightly by my fears. Whatever is going on with Alfie…whoever is trying to kill me…we did this. We built something wonderful. Something with the potential to help so many people.
Holding up my hand to try to quiet the team, I take a deep breath, hoping my voice won’t crack. Above all, right now, I need to show strength. Not emotion. Well, not too much emotion.
“I officially declare Alfie…code complete,” I say, straightening my shoulders and standing up a little taller. “She’s ready to meet her public on Monday. Congratulations, everyone. I have never met a more talented, passionate, and dedicated group of people anywhere, and it’s an honor to work with each and every one of you.”
A tear burns the corner of my eye, and I blink hard to keep it at bay. “Alfie is going to change the world. Now let’s get her packaged up with a pretty little compiler bow and get ready to celebrate tonight!”
Raising Barry’s tablet in the air to a chorus of applause, “woo-hoos,” and “fuck, yeahs,” I pray whatever Wren’s trojan lets me see doesn’t ruin everything.
29
Evianna
Back in my office, I pull up my email.
Hi Mom, I’m sorry I haven’t been by this week. But we signed off on Alfie this morning! It’s been a hard few days. Long hours, and some stuff I’ll tell you about this weekend, in person. Would it be okay if I brought someone with me when I come on Saturday? He’s…well, he’s special. Love you!
It’s early enough, she’s probably still caught up in her morning news shows, so I tamp down my nerves over the inevitable questions she’ll have about Dax. How do I explain how quickly the relationship has progressed without going into the whole “someone’s out to kill me” bit?
