Forever Yours
30
Full Timers
THE EFFECT of the investment on the four partners was felt almost at once. Chastity started looking for office space. While she cut her ‘social obligations’ back to almost nothing, she still had several prior appointments she needed to keep. She was getting out of the business, but she didn’t want her name trashed by jilted customers. Still, she was going to the office nearly every day and had placed ads in several places for AI engineers and some office help.
She began receiving resumes the next week.
Luke and Isobel began driving back to Pittsburgh from Philadelphia every weekend, just to work in the office on Saturdays and drive back on Sunday. Henry’s last two patents issued and the company paid Henry 75,000 shares each at $1 per share for them.
“I’m beginning to see the writing on the wall,” Luke said as the partners gathered together for brunch on Sunday before he and Isobel took off for five-hour trip back to Philadelphia.
“What’s that mean?” Isobel demanded.
“I need to transfer to Pittsburgh,” Luke said. “We’re in the process of releasing another software application. We’re going to have employees here. Even if I’m not coming into the office daily like Henry plans to, I need to do more than show up on Saturdays.”
“That’s a big step, Luke,” Henry said cautiously.
“What?” Isobel screeched. “You’d leave me at Villanova while the rest of you are all here? You’d be fucking Chastity every night!”
“Whoa! Leave me out of it, Isobel. I’m not the company bike. The only one here who gets to ride is Henry, and even he hasn’t in a long time,” Chastity growled.
“If not you, someone,” Isobel lamented. “I’d be left behind!”
“Do you think you could transfer, too?” Henry asked.
“My parents would be pretty displeased. Unless…” Isobel looked meaningfully at Luke.
“Let’s talk about it on the way back to Philly,” Luke said. “It’s a conversation for the two of us, not the four of us.”
Isobel nodded her head with a satisfied smile.
“Hey! We should have our next earnings statement from EMEE tomorrow,” Luke said, changing the thought process at the table radically.
“Any idea what we should expect?” Henry asked.
“I think it’s going to be good. Ever since your interview with Gene Grey, sales have been picking up steadily. And there have been a couple of spikes. I don’t have the final numbers, but they should be positive. It will be a good launch for Open Cloak Search. The idea that ordinary people can have a private search engine that doesn’t give false listings based on SEO manipulation or corporate algorithms is revolutionary. EMEE testers were blown away and they plan to do a massive push from their site, not to mention what Gallitzin has planned for our release. Having money in the bank is allowing us to do a real release next week.”
“How is your Ask Dad app coming along?” Isobel asked.
“The time it takes to collect a person’s life information is inhibiting,” Henry said. “Pythia Speaks, however, has given us a great testbed for the AI training. And I’m going to start testing it on my dad’s data soon.”
“Speaking of which, why is Pythia running so slowly?” Isobel asked.
“Slow?”
“Yes. It takes, like, thirty seconds to get an answer from her these days.”
“Gosh! I don’t know. She… It should be getting faster with more experience. I’ll run a test on the server this afternoon.”
“Do it tomorrow, Henry. You’re taking Lisa to that Chinese dance and acrobatics show tonight,” Chastity said.
“Yeah. Of course!” Henry said. “I meant tomorrow.”
They wrapped up their business brunch and all headed home.
Henry and Lisa had managed their relationship as a couple that dated and not one that lived together. It had been a little tricky, but they had a good start on the ground rules before they became lovers. The common area and office area of the house were off-limits to displays of affection. The difference was that when they went out, Henry walked Lisa to her door inside the house rather than the outside door. And often, Lisa invited him in.
On her visits to his suite, she was impressed with the care he took of his rooms. He’d also hired a maid service to come in and clean once a week, including the office and her suite in the contract. She loved having someone wash her sheets and make her bed every week.
Their intimate time was growing, as well. They moved from one date a week to two or three dates and were getting along well.
Monday morning, Luke put the four partners on a conference call and announced the results of their first quarter sales.
“We had sales of 1,731 units in the first quarter!” he announced. “In dollars, that amounted to a deposit of $4,742.94.”
“Cool!” Henry said.
“Well, we’re going to need to quadruple that in order to meet basic expenses in June,” Luke said. “But with Open Cloak Search releasing this week, we stand a chance. You know OCO sells for just four and a half bucks. The search engine is going to go for $29.99. Instead of $2.74 a copy, our share of the search engine will be almost $21 a copy. If we sell a thousand copies, that’s $21,000, which will meet our projected July expenses.”
“The thing is, we need to be using our revenue account for operational expenses when possible,” Isobel said. “I’ve moved the investment capital mostly into longer term CDs. We still keep transferring any shortfall in our expenses from the capital account, including the initial lease on office space. Daily expenses, like the server hosting and website and office supplies, should be met by revenue.”
“Can we have a basic savings account for operating funds, too?” Chastity asked. “I can check balances each day and make sure enough has been moved to our operating checking to cover expenses.”
“Good thinking, Chas,” Izzy said excitedly. “We should do the same for employee and lease expenses, only transfer the money from our capital account. We’ll set it up Friday when Luke and I get there.”
“Don’t you have class today?” Chastity asked Henry as she perched on the corner of his desk.
“Yeah, but I need to finish the diagnostic on Pythia to see why she’s… it’s running slowly,” he answered, automatically resting his hand on the inside of her thigh. He turned his head slightly and kissed her bare flesh. “I’ll make the afternoon classes.”
“Not if you keep playing up there,” she sighed as his fingers reached her bare pussy.
“Oh! Um… Sorry. I mean. I think it’s okay for us to touch in the office, but I haven’t really talked to Lisa about getting together with you. You know, it’s the first time I actually feel like I have a real girlfriend,” he sighed, removing his fingers. She sighed.
“She’s a sweetheart,” Chas said. “Talk to her. Okay?”
“Yeah. We’re overdue for that conversation.”
Chastity left for the day and Henry turned his attention to the diagnostics for Pythia Speaks. It was soon obvious why it was running slowly. It was getting close to 1,500 hits a day! That was ten times the number he expected.
He didn’t make it to class in the afternoon. He was occupied looking for a hosting site that could handle more traffic than their self-hosted site.
Henry could have just used the web enrollment form at Page Services to book space on a server there, but he was looking for something unique. So, he searched for half an hour and finally found a phone number for the company.
“Page Services,” a voice answered. No other information was offered.
“This is Henry Pascal of Open Cloak Design,” he started. Perhaps they would have heard of him.
“Yes?”
“I’m looking for a server for a new app that is proving to be a little too robust for our corporate server,” Henry said.
“We have several plans that might suit your needs,” the voice said, almost disinterested.
“I’ve been to your site and have read about your plans. I determined that I should speak to you because hosting an artificial narrow intelligence might be beyond what you are capable of,” Henry said, getting a little irritated with the guy. “I’d like to speak to the boss about capabilities and bandwidth.”
“Speaking,” the guy said. “I’m Scott Perkins, president, founder, and janitor for Page Services. We’re a small company, so you might be right about our ability to host an AI service. Tell me more.”
“Okay. Perhaps you’d like to take a look at what we’ve got going. It’s Pythia Speaks.”
Henry could hear a keyboard tapping.
“This looks pretty simple,” Scott said. “Let me ask a question.”
Henry heard the keys tapping again.
“How long does it take for this to return an answer?” Scott asked.
“That’s the problem we’re having. Currently it’s taking about thirty seconds. I want to put enough power behind the site to get a response in under five seconds.”
“How much power does this use?”
Henry described the server to Scott and then waited.
“Ah. Here we are. It looks like Pythia approves,” Scott said.
“What?” Henry asked.
“I just asked your Pythia Speaks if I should move forward with working with you.”
“And?”
“It answered, ‘One cannot have superior science with inferior ethics.’ I think it’s telling me you’re on the up and up. Let’s see what we can work out,” Scott said.
Two hours later, Henry began migrating the site to a new host with more processing power and more bandwidth.
When Luke and Izzy arrived on Friday, she was in a hyper mood. One look at her hand was all the explanation anyone needed. The diamond sparkling there must have cost Luke at least $15,000.
“June 24th! Mark it on your calendar. No excuses! That’s our wedding date,” Isobel said excitedly.
“You’re getting married this summer?” Chastity asked. “Um… Congratulations. Are you pregnant?”
“As if,” Isobel snapped back. “We’re moving back to Pittsburgh and transferring our courses. We’ll be able to work in the office and continue our degrees.”
“Isobel wouldn’t leave Villanova unless we were married,” Luke said. “She did not want to move back to her parents’ home. And frankly, I was in favor. It’s time I tied her down permanently.”
“Well, congratulations,” Henry said, patting Luke on the shoulder.
“You will be the best man,” Luke continued. “Don’t think you’ll get out of that, no matter how big this shindig gets. And according to Isobel, it will get big.”
“It will be good to have you here,” Henry said. “I’ve registered for a limited course load in the fall. I have to take ten hours in order to keep my scholarship, but since I’m so close to graduation anyway, they are being accommodating. Most days, I’ll be in the office full time.”
“I’ll be here when you aren’t,” Luke said. “Though I have to maintain a heavy class load in order to get the degree in time. It’s a new world.”
“Isn’t it just, though.”
“Okay, guys,” Chastity said. “We need to head to the bank and open a new account or two and then I want to show you the office space I’ve located.”
“Lead on,” Henry said. “Lisa? Can you manage the guys when they come in?”
“Will do, boss,” she smiled.
The work at the bank was surprisingly quick and easy. They had $20 million in CDs in the bank, and the vice president was very accommodating. Then they went to an office building south of the river that was still under construction. It looked pretty complete and businesses were actually open on the first and second floors.
They met the developer and Henry was pleased to see it was his own landlord.
“Ray, it’s good to see you,” Henry said as they shook hands.
“I didn’t know the business I was contemplating renting to was yours,” Ray said. “Does this mean I’ll lose you as a tenant in the row house?”
“Oh, no. I have no plan to move in the next year at least. I love the place.”
They took the elevator up to the third and top floor. Things looked pretty finished all the way through the building, until Ray led them into the office space. It was bare walls, no carpet, and a little plaster dust.
“I’ll build this space out to spec,” Ray said. “I have an idea of what you’ll need, having talked to Chastity and knowing the type of business you do from the house. It’s good to see you outgrowing that space. What we have here is 5,000 square feet. I’ll work with you to get a good efficient floor plan and all the power and connections you want. Walls where you want them, or as open a floorplan as you want. The only thing that won’t be included in the office is a restroom, but there are restrooms just past the elevators.”
“How much will the build-out cost?” Isobel asked.
“Standard build-out is included. If you want two-inch sound-dampening carpet and wallpapered walls, that would be extra.” They all laughed at the notion. “I’ll help with the interior design as I have a consultant I work with who will draw up the plans. If you are like other computer people I’ve worked with, you’ll want a heavy-duty air conditioner with zones you can control.”
“Can we afford this space, Chas?” Luke asked.
“It rents at $18 per square foot,” Chastity said. “Ray has offered six months rent-free as a move-in bonus with a five-year lease. It’s 5,000 square feet. With average office density planning, we’re talking about comfortably having twenty employees. I think we’re all agreed that is plenty of room to grow the first few years.”
“Wait! $90,000 a month? Are you kidding me?” Isobel screeched.
“Isobel, office space is priced per square foot per year. It comes out to $7,500 a month. Of course, we’ll have our share of utilities as well. And no rent for six months after move-in.”
“I’m… Oh…” Isobel said, panting. For a moment she’d seen their investment flying out the window. She’d already done sample spreadsheets regarding average employee expenses and benefits. She was planning for health insurance as soon as they hired full-time employees. She was already getting a headache from the extent of her pro formas.
“When could we move in?” Henry asked.
“If we get working right away, you could be in by July 1,” Ray said.
“Ray, thank you for showing us the space and the finishing samples,” Chastity said. “I need to sit down with my partners and discuss the options. I’ll be in touch Monday.”
“Of course, Chastity. If I can provide more information, give me a call. You have my number and I’ll answer yours even on the weekend.”
They left and returned to the office.
There really wasn’t much to discuss. Chastity hadn’t even prepared other options. This one had topped her list. ‘Rent-free for the remainder of the year,’ was a key selling point, but so was dealing with a developer they were familiar with.
Isobel had to prepare a current financial statement and as soon as Ray checked with their bank and approved the contract, they started planning the space.
The biggest issue that faced them next was making a couple of hires. Henry had two more weeks until final exams, and then he planned to make the company his full-time responsibility. Lisa and Josh were on-board for the summer, but would cut back to part-time when school started up again in August. The row house was going to be busy for six weeks from mid-May until the first of July. And Luke and Isobel would be married the week before they moved into the new office.
“Interview time,” Chastity said to Henry the next Friday.
Henry knew the candidate and already liked him.
“Conrad, welcome to Open Cloak Design,” Chastity said when she answered the door. “Come in and relax. We don’t have a conference room in the office, so we’ll just use the dining table. Would you like coffee or pop?”
“I kind of run on coffee, so if you’ve got some, that would be great,” Conrad said. “Henry. Even knowing you were the CTO of Open Cloak didn’t prepare me for what I’ve been finding out about the company. I’ve got to say, the new search engine is seriously dope.”
“Thanks, Conrad. I’m glad you’re interested in working with us. We’ve got three new apps that need immediate attention and a few things that are looming on the horizon,” Henry said, sitting at the table with his friend from college. Conrad was two years ahead of Henry and would graduate within weeks.
“How immediate does the attention need to be?” he asked. “We’re still three weeks from commencement.”
“We can negotiate a start date,” Henry laughed. “You might want a little time between graduation and full-time work. Our new office won’t be ready until July first, but we’d like to be fully operational by then. I’ll have two contractors starting full time a week after finals. They’ve been working with me part time for a few months now. They’ll be returning to school in the fall and will cut hours back then, so by that time, we’ll probably need at least one more developer, or maybe two.”
Chastity took over the interview to get it on track so the two guys didn’t just sit around shooting the bull. They were there to hire a lead developer and she wanted to know what kinds of projects Conrad had worked on while he was in school. She was impressed that he’d designed the AI for the winning entry in the annual robot races during Spring Carnival this year. Henry asked about the power consumption of that AI.
“It was fairly economical,” Conrad said. “There was a clear set of signage approved for the course, so mostly I had to train its vision to recognize and differentiate among the signs. From there it was mostly algorithm-driven, so it didn’t require a lot of power.”
“One of the apps we’re working on is power conservation,” Henry said. “There are some pieces that seem to have our part-timers stumped.”
“That sounds like fun. I could really get into that.”
The interview went for a full hour before Chastity took her signal from Henry to wrap it up.
“Do you have any questions you’d like to ask us?” she said.
“Yes. One. What’s with the sign on the door that says ‘Property of the United States Army. Official business only.’ Are you really working for the military?” Conrad asked.
“No,” Henry said. “You might remember back in March that there was an attack on computers from China that was repelled.”
“So, it was you. The rumor is true.”
“App number two that needs attention is the network defense app. We need to commercialize it,” Henry said. “The director of the Pentagon Office for Cyber Resilience showed up on the doorstep a couple of days after the attack. We made a deal to license the software to him and keep him apprised of any updates. For that, he slapped a sign on our door that kept the rest of the agencies away from us. You probably know the CIA, FBI, and God-knows who else were on campus at that time and it saved us from being questioned by them.”
“I’m cool with that. I just don’t want to put on a uniform,” Conrad said. “That brings me to an item of full disclosure as well. Rebecca had to disclose to her boss and told me that if I had dealings with Open Cloak, I needed to disclose to you.”
“Rebecca?” Henry asked.
“My girlfriend. We started dating a couple of months ago. She’s in the army and said she’d had dealings with you before.”
“Captain Bernard?” Henry said. “I hope you don’t mind if I check in with her boss, then.”
“She said you would. She wants you to know she’s not spying on you.”
“Okay. Pending a conversation with Colonel Schwartz, I’m okay with that. She’s a really bright person,” Henry said.
“No kidding. She did advise me on a couple of things with the Spring Carnival robot. Then refused to take credit for them.”
“Any other questions?” Chastity asked.
“When can I start?”
“Well, we haven’t talked wages and benefits yet,” Henry laughed. “Believe me, I am aware that you are graduating from the top AI program in the country. It’s why I enrolled there. We probably won’t match the dollar figure you could get from one of the giants. But we’re a new company and we’ll give you a significant stock option. Our most recent investment came in at a dollar a share and that’s the option price for 210,000 shares vesting over seven years. Couple that with a starting salary of $125,000 and I think it’s a good deal. We won’t have a health insurance package until we have at least five full-time employees. With Chas and me, you’ll be the third. I expect we’ll hire at least two more soon after we get into the new office. Until we do get group health insurance, we’ll be paying you an extra $500 a month for health coverage.”
“Yeah. It will be hard losing the university health plan,” Conrad sighed. “But it sounds fair to me. What other agreements are there?”
“There is a standard non-disclosure,” Henry said. “That is mostly to prevent you from taking our company secrets with you if you decide to go elsewhere. We’re not suggesting a non-compete. At our level—I mean yours and mine—we only have one thing we’re trained in. Without working in AI, you’d be unemployable.”
“I can live with that.” Conrad consulted the calendar on his phone. “Can I start June first?”
“Let me call Colonel Schwartz and then we can sign the papers. Chastity has them all drawn up.”
Please feel free to send comments to the author at devon@devonlayne.com.
