Chapter 1 - The Impossible Balance
The employee stared at the computer screen with wide, terrified eyes.
He blinked rapidly, hoping the glowing numbers would somehow change or disappear.
But the digital display remained exactly the same.
The balance on the account was fifteen billion dollars.
Mark, the young bank teller, felt a cold drop of sweat slide down his neck.
He slowly looked back down at the dirty five-year-old boy standing on the other side of the bulletproof glass.
The little boy just stared back with large, hollow blue eyes.
"Where did you get this card, kid?" Mark whispered, his voice trembling violently.
The boy did not answer, keeping his small, dirt-stained hands resting on the marble counter.
Suddenly, a heavy hand slammed down onto Mark's shoulder.
It was Mr. Sterling, the arrogant and greedy branch manager of the bank.
"What is the holdup here, Mark, and why is this filthy street rat inside my lobby?" Sterling demanded loudly.
Mark could barely form a coherent sentence as he pointed a shaking finger at his computer monitor.
Sterling aggressively shoved Mark out of the way and looked at the screen himself.
All the color instantly drained from the manager's fat, flushed face.
"Good God," Sterling gasped, his greedy eyes lighting up with dark realization.
Sterling quickly reached over the counter, trying to snatch the solid black metal card away from the boy.
Before his fingers could even graze the metal, the entire bank's lighting system suddenly flashed a violent crimson red.
A loud, automated siren began screaming through the building, deafening everyone inside.
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The digital computer screen flashed a bold warning that locked the entire system.
"Unauthorized access detected, initiating immediate level one physical lockdown," a robotic voice echoed from the ceiling.
