I’m lying on my childhood twin bed with my head buried in the pillow to muffle my sobs.
The bed dips as my mom sits down next to me. I immediately feel better. It’s always been us against the world.
She rubs my back. “Are you sure this is what you want? This is a mess, but I know you. I know you can shape this company into what you want it to be. They seem genuinely sorry.”
“Oh, don’t worry, they are. Or they will be, once they realize I won’t just forget everything they’ve done to me. Satellites in the sky are worthless without my software. My software, however, doesn’t need them.”
She sighs loudly. “It may not need you, either. It’s theirs whether you stay or go, according to the contract you signed. You’ve always been like this. So stubborn. You’d cut your nose off to spite your face.”
I hate it when she says that. It’s not true. “Honestly, when did I ever not stand my ground and come out ahead? I said no to Berkeley because I wanted Stanford, and I got it. I told Michael Foster that since he kissed Mona Linsky, he could go to prom with her instead of me. Now they’re married with a dozen kids, and I didn’t go to college pining for a guy who wanted someone else. You tell me when I’ve stood my ground and come out behind.”
She cocks her head to the side. “When you kicked Landon and Claire out of our house.”
“I didn’t kick them out. They left.”
“Stomping up the stairs like you were three again and telling them you were leaving isn’t exactly kicking them out, but it pretty much signifies you’re done with the conversation.”
I hate disagreeing with my mother. Her lawyer’s mind is always four steps ahead of me and always without emotion. “I was. I don’t need them, their money, or their help. Turns out it’s not much help at all.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“Yes, absolutely.”
“Okay. But as your attorney, I’d tell you you’re in breach of the purchase agreement, and anything you create with Translations belongs to them.”
“You told me that wasn’t the case.”
“I did, presuming they were closing their doors. Now they’re pushing to remain open, and they’ve extended a genuine olive branch, so it will belong to them.”
I turn away from her. I don’t want to give up my company.
“I’d suggest you meet with them and determine how you’d like to move forward.”
My mother is rarely wrong. If I wasn’t so angry, I’d probably tell her that, but right now, I want to wallow in self-pity.
The bed shifts as she stands. “Fixing this could be a great thing for Translations. But you know I’ll love you regardless, Tin. Just remember that.”
She leaves, and I continue to lie in bed, eventually getting up to plug my cell phone in to see if I have any messages. I haven’t charged it since it ran out of battery on the way here. I haven’t wanted to face what was on it. But now my week-long technology break is over. I have to figure this out.
It must take twenty minutes for my phone to muster enough battery to turn on, but once it does, it dings nonstop.
Claire: I haven’t heard from you? Are you both buried in code? I miss you.
Claire: I’m sure Landon blocked me. Did you block me, too? I’m sorry for being a bitch. Truly. Please talk to me. I’ll grovel.
Vanessa: Hey, what’s going on? Claire’s acting weird. We miss you. Drinks after work at Whitley’s?
Chrissy: Hey, chica. Missing you!
Ginger: We wish you were here.
Ginger also sent me a picture of the three ladies on my team. Seeing them makes me smile. They’re amazing. As I study the picture, I realize Tomas Vigil is in the background, looking in the direction of the camera. He’s talking to someone. Why the fuck is he hanging out at Whitley’s?
There are a dozen more messages, mostly from Claire and Landon.
Landon: I’m sorry we surprised you today. We deserve what you said. Please be assured, we’re sorry. Most importantly, I’m sorry. For everything. We can do better, and we will do better, if you’ll give us a chance.
I glance at the clock, and it’s after eleven. I must have dozed off for a bit at some point. If I want my software to see the light of day, I have to work with Claire and Landon. That’s the choice I made when I sold my company to them. So, I can forgive them and we move on, or I can walk away, have no software, and owe them a lot of money.
As I stare at this picture, another reality comes into focus: Disruptive didn’t have issues until Translations joined them. And whomever is trying to steal my software isn’t interested in Disruptive’s technology. They’re going after mine. I don’t have the resources or the knowledge to fight them on my own. So, there’s yet another reason I need to find my way forward, rather than trying to undo what’s done.
I refuse to be like Landon and hide from the world and all my problems because things are difficult.
I copy the photo of my team, take a deep breath, and forward it to Landon and Claire.
Me: Look in the background. Why is Tomas at Whitley’s, the bar my team frequents?
Landon immediately responds.
Landon: Holy crap! I’m sending it to Jim to investigate.
Claire: Can you tell who he’s talking to?
Me: Not sure. Can’t tell from behind.
Landon: Does Whitley’s have security cameras?
Me: ???
Landon: Jim and team will look into it. I’ve told him we want details on who he’s with. Jim says
