The Circle

rekindled.
    That gave Mae an idea. Under the pretense that she was going to her room to change,
     she excused herself and hurried upstairs. But instead, sitting on her old bed, in
     three minutes she’d posted herphoto of the chandelier in two dozen design and home design feeds, linking to Mercer’s
     website—which featured just his phone number and a few pictures; he hadn’t updated
     it in years—and his email address. If he wasn’t smart enough to get business for himself,
     she would be happy to do it for him.
    When she was finished, Mercer was sitting with her parents at the kitchen table, which
     was crowded with salad and stir-fried chicken and vegetables. Their eyes followed
     her down the stairs. “I called up there,” her father said.
    “We like to eat when it’s hot,” her mother added.
    Mae hadn’t heard them. “Sorry. I was just—Wow, this looks good. Dad, don’t you think
     Mercer’s chandelier is awesome?”
    “I do. And I told you, and him, as much. We’ve been asking for one of his creations
     for a year now.”
    “I just needed the right antlers,” Mercer said. “I hadn’t gotten any really great
     ones in a while.” He went on to explain his sourcing, how he bought antlers only from
     trusted collaborators, people he knew hadn’t hunted the deer, or if they had, had
     been instructed to do so by Fish and Game to curb overcrowding.
    “That is fascinating,” her mother said. “Before I forget, I want to raise a toast … What’s
     that?”
    Mae’s phone had beeped. “Nothing,” she said. “But in a second I think I’ll have some
     good news to announce. Go on, Mom.”
    “I was just saying that I wanted to toast having us—”
    Now it was Mercer’s phone ringing.
    “Sorry,” he said, and maneuverered his hand outside his pants, finding the off button.
    “Everyone done?” her mother asked.
    “Sorry Mrs. Holland,” Mercer said. “Go on.”
    But at that moment, Mae’s phone buzzed loudly again, and when Mae looked to its screen,
     she saw that there were thirty-seven new zings and messages.
    “Something you have to attend to?” her father said.
    “No, not yet,” Mae said, though she was almost too excited to wait. She was proud
     of Mercer, and soon she’d be able to show him something about the audience he might
     have outside Longfield. If there were thirty-seven messages in the first few minutes,
     in twenty minutes there would be a hundred.
    Her mother continued. “I was going to thank you, Mae, for all you’ve done to improve
     your father’s health, and my own sanity. And I wanted to toast Mercer, too, as part
     of our family, and to thank him for his beautiful work.” She paused, as if expecting
     a buzz to sound any moment. “Well, I’m just glad I got through that. Let’s eat. The
     food’s getting cold.”
    And they began to eat, but after a few minutes, Mae had heard so many dings, and she’d
     seen her phone screen update so many times, that she couldn’t wait.
    “Okay, I can’t stand it anymore. I posted that photo I took of your chandelier, Mercer,
     and people love it!” She beamed, and raised her glass. “That’s what we should toast.”
    Mercer didn’t look amused. “Wait. You posted them where?”
    “That’s great, Mercer,” her father said, and raised his own glass.
    Mercer’s glass was not raised. “Where’d you post them, Mae?”
    “Everywhere relevant,” she said, “and the comments are amazing.” She searched her
     screen. “Just let me read the first one. And I quote:
Wow, that is gorgeous
. That’s from a pretty well-known industrial designer in Stockholm. Here’s another
     one:
Very cool. Reminds me of something I saw in Barcelona last year
. That was from a designer in Santa Fe who has her own shop. She gave your thing three
     out of four stars, and had some suggestions about how you might improve it. I bet
     you could sell them there if you wanted to. So here’s another—”
    Mercer had his palms on the table. “Stop. Please.”
    “Why? You haven’t even heard the best part. On DesignMind, you already have 122 smiles.
     That’s an incredible amount to get so quickly. And they have a ranking there, and
     you’re in the top fifty for today. Actually, I know how you could raise that—” At
     the same time, it occurred to Mae that this kind of activity would surely get her
     PartiRank into the 1,800s. And if she could get enough of these people to buy the
     work, it would mean solid