Page 53 of The Hard Launch

CHAPTER NINETEEN

LACEY

I’m badgering QA about something they’ve decided is a release-blocking priority that literally no one is going to care about when I hear the Lettercat gong ring. It’s not a victorious smack; it’s the mournful one managers do to announce when someone’s given notice or we need to roll back our release.

This is supposed to be a day about grit and tenacity; if not a celebration of the thing we’re launching, at least the ridiculous effort and spirit of the team that built it. There’s no room for sad gonging today. I’m amped up on all my experiments with Jude’s fancy espresso machine this morning and ready to shame whatever Eeyore is at the gong, but then I look over.

And I see Jude there.

He’s pale and his eyes look red, and his hand might be shaking a little.

“I’m not happy to give this update. And I truly thank you all for your efforts, but it looks like we’re not going to be releasing today. Or any time in the near future.”

I feel like I must have heard him wrong, but the way everyone else is reacting means I didn’t.

“The fuck?” Kate says, loudly.

“I’m- I’m sure you have a lot of questions and they’ll all be answered, just not today. And I know we had an event planned for this afternoon and I want you to all still go. Sorry there won’t be anything to celebrate but you can at least, I don’t know. Go.”

He shrugs and starts to walk back to his office.

The part of me that cares about Jude is devastated for him and whatever is happening.

The part of me that spent the last month rallying a team and busting my ass on something I was told was the future of our company is having trouble seeing through all of the rage.

“So what are we telling the customers and ad partners who are expecting this today?” I ask, loudly, across the office. Some might say aggressively.

“That it’s on hold,” he says.

“And what are we supposed to work on now?”

“I will get back to you on that, Lacey. It’s a developing situation.”

“Great,” I reply.

And I wouldn’t say I throw it, but I toss my laptop on the desk next to me. Some might say angrily.

Jude walks back to his office and everyone explodes into gripes.

“Oh look, things are back to normal,” Kate announces.

Back at my desk, I take a few deep breaths.

“I miss Glenn,” Trevor tells me.

“Same,” I say, keeping it short because I don’t cry at work.

Ella comes skittering down the hall and into our pod. “He won’t talk to me,” she tells us.

“I’ll go,” Trevor offers. “There must be some serious shit going on.”

“I’m coming too,” I say.

We march down to his office.

“Jude asked that he not be-” Jonnie tries.

“No,” I say, following Trevor inside, where Jude’s sitting on the couch with his head in his hands, clearly regretting the whole Open Doors thing.