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Jude and Graham flipped through the pages knowingly. It was all a series of charts, graphs, spreadsheets, and qualitative reports.
“Of note,” Sarah’s voice was quiet and mouselike. “Our engagement through sales apps has gone up fifteen percent this month, we think due in large part to increased spending during the summer.”
Graham and Jude nodded.
“We have numerous reports of loading glitches on mobile, especially when people load in from a new tab. For that, we may need to work on the backend code… see if what we’re deploying is compatible with newer mobile models.”
“I’m working on that this week with the team,” Jude assured her. “Get Kristi in PR and social media to address reviews and complaints, if she hasn’t already.”
“Understood,” Sarah said, before adding, “right now, we’ve diversified quite a bit. We offer mobile devices, online purchase apps, mobile games, and even hardware. We’re spread very thin as a result, especially with Kim and Aldor retiring.”
“So, we need to ring it in,” Graham said. “Maybe we move a few people in hardware and games over to mobile and apps?”
“With it being the summer season, I can’t recommend moving people off of games,” Sarah disagreed. “We’ve got August launches for Caramel Crunch and the new Seekers of Evenlore, and the teams are still working hard on last-minute bug fixing.”
“How is our marketing for those new games?” Jude asked.
“We’ve got a high click-through rate. We’re over budget, but it should pay off in microtransactions and cosmetics later.”
Graham and Jude nodded.
“Profits are up,” Sarah announced. “It’s normal that we see a profit spike through quarter two, but our revenue is up fourteen percent from last year.”
Sarah, Graham, and Jude continued to discuss business, moving from tech to property values and direct sales. The tea shop was losing money, but they were eating the cost well. The thrift shop was turning a small profit, and restaurants in the Fang District were also thriving due in part to new menu offerings.
She showed them engagement and retention rates for their apps, games, and sites before moving on to product design pitches. Jude was confident enough in Evenlore that he encouraged development of a sequel to start soon after bug fixing was over, even proposing development on PC and console.
Graham’s mind wandered. He loved going over numbers and was proud of what they had built together. The Fang District and Fang Tech were an energizing part of the city’s economy, and they were more than self-sufficient.
But he wondered if the girl was safe. He wondered what kind of life she led, and how she spent her time. Something about bumping into her like that felt predestined, like he was meant to find and protect her. He shook his head, and Jude and Sarah both looked at him, stopping midsentence.
“You okay?” Jude asked. “You haven’t said much about these pitches. Sarah worked really hard to organize them for us.”
“I’m sorry,” Graham pinched the bridge of his nose. “My mind’s in another place.” He looked at Sarah. “I mean no disrespect.”
“I understand,” Sarah said. “I’ve said most of what I needed to, and it’s all in your packet anyway.” Sarah left the table, taking her briefcase and portfolio with her.
“What’s on your mind?” Jude asked, as soon as Sarah was well out of earshot.
“I’m just really worried about the girl,” Graham admitted. “And I don’t even know why.”
“Don’t worry, man,” Jude said. “We’ll find her. I know we will.”
Chapter 8
Delilah
Aweekhadpassedand Delilah wasn’t quite so scared anymore.
Yesterday, she had her interview at the Bean Me Up Cafe. It had gone well, except that she had been asked about the holes in her application. She had to explain her current living situation and lack of a suitable address.
She’d given a lot of awkward answers in that interview, but Delilah still thought she had saved the interview with her charm, experience, and confidence.
Today, she had planned to search for backup jobs in case this job didn’t work out. She was at the newspaper stand buying today’s papers and having a friendly conversation with the clerk, when she received a call.
“Delilah Belfin?”
She had trouble placing the voice. It was a male voice, a bit harmonic and not too deep. It was difficult to hear with all the noise from the streets, so she pressed her ear closer to the phone.
