Chapter 6 - The Digital Vault
The 90th-floor study was bathed in the neon glow of the city below. Victoria slipped into the room, locking the door behind her. She moved with practiced, lethal grace. She opened Oliver’s laptop.
Because of Sebastian's instructions, Oliver had left it uncharacteristically unlocked, displaying the 'Master Mainframe' portal.
Victoria plugged in the silver flash drive. A progress bar popped up on the screen.
Downloading Assets... 10%... 30%...
She pulled out her phone and dialed Elias Vance. "It’s done," she whispered, her eyes glowing with triumph. "I have the deeds. I have the offshore routing numbers. The Obsidian empire is yours."
"Brilliant work, Victoria," Elias purred through the speaker. "Leave the baker a polite note, will you? Now, initiate the transfer to the Vanguard servers."
Victoria hit 'Execute'.
Suddenly, the screen glitched. The progress bar turned blood-red. A skull made of binary code flashed across the laptop, followed by a terrifying sound: the hum of heavy steel doors locking throughout the floor.
WARNING: INTRUSION DETECTED. HONEYPOT ENGAGED. VANGUARD SERVERS BREACHED.
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Victoria dropped her phone. "What is this? Elias? Elias!"
Only static answered her. On the screen, a new window popped up, showing Vanguard Holdings' bank accounts rapidly depleting to zero, the funds bouncing through a dozen untraceable crypto-wallets. She hadn't stolen Obsidian's wealth; she had just infected her own boss's mainframe with a digital parasite.
