Chapter 5 - The Digital War
Twenty-four hours later, I was seated in an ergonomic leather chair in the central command room of Vantage Shield Headquarters, located twenty stories above the city in a secure glass tower.
Though Dr. Aris had insisted on bed rest, he had agreed to allow my temporary relocation under the strict condition that a full medical team stand by in the adjoining room, monitoring my heart rate and fetal vitals through wireless telemetry patches attached to my skin.
Adrian stood behind my chair, his arms crossed over his chest, his presence an impenetrable wall of protection. Around us, thirty elite cyber-security specialists sat before glowing arrays of monitors, tracking data traffic across the Atlantic.
Victoria Chen sat at a side terminal, flanked by two federal prosecutors who were holding secure satellite links to the Swiss Federal Banking Authority.
"Time to transfer execution: forty-seven minutes," a technician called out. "Von Sachs’s automated servers in Zurich are initiating the primary handshake."
On my main screen, lines of green code scrolled rapidly—the encrypted architecture of the Von Sachs private vault.
"He’s using a 4096-bit rotating encryption matrix," I said, my fingers flying across the custom mechanical keyboard before me. "He’s trying to rush the transfer before the US markets open."
"Can you breach the outer firewall?" Victoria asked nervously, leaning forward.
"I don't need to breach the firewall," I said calmly. "I’m already inside. When Marcus forced me to sign those fraudulent non-disclosure agreements three weeks ago, I used an encrypted smart-pen that logged onto the Ashcroft local network. Every time Lucinda sent a document to Von Sachs, my script embedded a micro-fragment of my audit key into his backup ledgers."
On the central display, a visual map of the Von Sachs server network began to turn from red to brilliant blue as my code reassembled itself inside their mainframe.
"Incredible," Victoria whispered. "It’s like a digital Trojan horse."
"Status update!" a technician shouted suddenly. "Incoming high-volume ping from an unknown IP address! Someone is trying to sever our satellite connection!"
Red warning lights flashed across the perimeter monitors.
"Von Sachs’s security team realized they’re being audited," Adrian said, his voice instantly turning to steel. He stepped up to the main tactical console, tapping his headset. "Luca, trace that IP. Where is the counter-attack coming from?"
"Signal is bouncing through servers in Frankfurt, London, and... wait," Luca’s voice crackled through the comms. "Boss, the origin point isn't overseas. The counter-attack is coming from inside the city! Less than two miles from your location!"
I froze, my fingers pausing over the keys. "Inside the city? But all the Ashcroft properties were seized yesterday!"
"Not all of them," Victoria realized, her face turning pale. "The Ashcroft Annex in the financial district! It’s registered under a secondary shell corporation owned by... Marcus’s personal attorney!"
"Marcus is in federal custody," Adrian snapped. "Who is using that terminal?"
"Lucinda’s primary defense lawyer," Victoria said bitterly. "He’s using attorney-client privilege to access their private servers! He’s manually authorizing Von Sachs’s transfer from a domestic terminal!"
"They’re trying to burn my access key before the forty-seven minutes are up," I said, watching my blue progress bar stall at sixty-eight percent as the counter-attack hit my server bank. "If he severs my signal for more than two minutes, the Swiss vault will default to automatic liquidation, and the forty-eight million will transfer instantly."
Adrian didn't hesitate for a single second. He pulled a secure radio from his belt.
"Tactical Team Alpha, this is Don Vieri," Adrian commanded coldly. "Breach the Ashcroft Annex in the financial district. Cut the power, seize the servers, and detain anyone touching a keyboard. You have five minutes."
"Understood, Don Vieri," a voice responded over the comms. "En route."
"Maya," Adrian said, turning to me, his hands resting gently on my shoulders. "Can you hold the line for five minutes?"
May you like
I looked at the glowing red warnings flashing across my screen, felt the baby give a reassuring, energetic kick against my ribs, and looked up into my husband’s eyes with absolute resolve.
"I can hold it for ten," I said.
