Herod stared at hisputer screen, forehead creased with confusion. The data from Walsh''stest information
drop sat before him, schematics of the Phoenix Grid''s western junction, maintenance logs, security protocols, power flow diagrams. Everything they would need to exploit the supposed vulnerability during the It looked perfect. Too perfect.
He zoomed in on a section of the ess codes, his suspicion growing with each passing second. He had spent decades in the technology sector before turning his attention to Victoria Kane. He knew systems "What''s the matter?" Rose asked, entering his home office with a cup of coffee. Her movements were jagged, tense, like a loaded spring ready to snap. Her obsession with Camille''s engagement had only worse "I''m not sure yet," Herod murmured, not looking up from the screen. He pulled up another file,paring the two side by side. "Something about Walsh''s information doesn''t add up."
Rose set the coffee down harder than necessary, liquid sloshing over the rim. "What do you mean, doesn''t add up? We paid him enough, it better be urate."
"That''s just it," Herod said, pointing to
a sequence of code. "It''s too perfect. Look here, the vulnerability is exactly where we would want it to be. The ess points are clearly marked. The security protocols have an obvious bypass method."
“And that''s..... bad?” Rose''s voice held a dangerous edge. Her patience had worn thin since learning of Camille''s engagement.
Herod leaned back in his chair, rubbing his eyes. "In my experience, real system vulnerabilities are
never this convenient. They''re buried inplex code, hidden behindyers of security, difficult to identify without specialized knowledge."
He clicked through several more files, his unease growing stronger. "This looks like someone gift- wrapped a way into the Grid and handed it to us. That never happens by ident."
Rose''s hand clenched
around the coffee mug. "Are you saying we''ve been yed?"
"I''m saying it''s possible." Herod opened an encrypted folder on his hard drive, pulling up older files, the original Grid schematics they had obtained months ago, before Walsh''s employment. He beganparing Minutes passed in tense silence. Rose paced behind
him, her reflection visible in the window across from his desk. With each circuit of the room, her movements grew more agitated.
"There," Herod finally said, pointing
to the screen. "The power ry configuration in the original schematics doesn''t match what Walsh provided. ording to his information, there''s a bypass circuit that could be overloaded during peak usage, cre He pulled up the original diagram. "But in the actual design, that bypass doesn''t exist. It''s been added to the files Walsh gave us."
The coffee mug shattered against the wall, making Herod flinch. Rose
stood with her arm still extended from the throw, her face contorted with rage.
"They know," she hissed. "They''ve been feeding us false information."
Herod nodded grimly. “Not just false information. Targeted misinformation. They identified Walsh as our inside man and used him to feed us exactly what they wanted us to see." He continued searching
through the files, looking for further evidence. "The question is when they figured it
out. How long have they been ying us?"
"Does it matter?" Rose snapped. "Our n is ruined. If
we try to exploit this fake vulnerability during theunch ceremony, we''ll walk straight into a trap."
Herod didn''t answer immediately. His fingers moved rapidly across the keyboard, running a specialized scanning program over Walsh''s
files. The program was designed to detect hidden code, embedded tracking software, digital fingerprin anything that might reveal the true nature of the data.
The scanpleted. Results appeared on screen. Herod''s blood ran cold.
"They''ve embedded trackers in these files," he s activated."
Sessfully unlocked!es. The moment we opened them, they
"Meaning what, exactly?" Rose''s voice had dropped to a dangerous whisper.
"Meaning they know we have this information. They know we''ve looked at it. And they''re tracking our location right now."
He began shutting down systems, disconnecting from
Rose didn''t move, her body rigid with fury. "That bitch," she breathed. "She''s been two steps ahead of us this whole time."
"Not the whole time," Herod corrected, still working to secure his systems. "Just since they identified Walsh. The question is what else they know."
He opened a secure line to Walsh''s phone. The call went straight to voicemail. He tried again with the same result.
"Walsh isn''t answering," he reported. "Either they''ve already gotten to him, or he''s realized something''s wrong and is running."
Rose mmed her palms on his desk, leaning over to stare directly into
his eyes. x this, Herod. You promised me Camille s destruction. You promised me she would pay for everything she took from me."
The desperation in her voice was matched only by the dangerous glearn in her eyes. Herod recognized the look, the same one she''d worn when she''d learned of Camille''s engagement. Rose was reaching her "We need to be smart about this," he said carefully. "They''re expecting us to target the western junction. We need a new approach, something they won''t anticipate."
"Like what?" Rose demanded.
Herod remained silent for a moment, weighing options. Finally, he stood, moving to a wall safe concealed behind a painting. He entered thebination and retrieved a small thumb drive.
"This contains ns for the main power ry station that controls the entire Grid," he exined. "Not just the junction points, but the central hub itself. We
obtained this months ago, before Walsh, through different channels."
He plugged the drive into hisputer, careful to use a non-
?
"The
He
pulled up a detailed blueprint of the Kane building. "It wouldn''t give us control of the Grid itself, but it would allow us to disrupt theunch ceremony
spectacrly. ckouts, system failures, possibly even minor explosions from power surges." "Not enough," Rose said tly. "I don''t want to just embarrass Camille. I want to destroy her. Completely." Herod studied her face, measuring his next
words carefully. "Then webine approaches. The
ceremony disruption provides a distraction. In the chaos, we implement... more direct measures."
The meaning hung between them, unspoken but clear. Rose''s eyes lit with dark anticipation.
"Yes," she whispered. "That''s exactly what we need."
Herod felt a chill at
her enthusiasm for what he was suggesting. He had always meant to stop short of actual violence, to draw the line at financial and professional ruin. But Rose had moved beyond such boundaries.
"It will require precise timing," he cautioned. "And significant risk."
"I don''t care about risk," Rose replied. "I only care about results."
Herod''sputer emitted a soft beep. A warning appeared on screen, unexpectedwork activity detected. Someone was attempting to breach his security remotely.
"They''re trying to ess our systems," he said, quickly initiating countermeasures. "The trackers must have opened a back door."
His fingers moved rapidly, shutting down
connections, erecting firewalls, wiping temporary files. "We need to go. Now. Bring only what''s essential."
Rose didn''t argue, moving immediately to gather her things. Her single-
minded focus
had shifted from rage to action, a cold determination recing the hot fury of moments before.
Herod finished securing his system, then removed a small device from his desk drawer. He activated it with a stmands.
"What is that?" Rose asked, returning with a small bag.
of
"Signal jammer,” he exined. "It will disrupt any tracking devices within fifty feet. Should give us enough time to get clear." They moved quickly through the penthouse, taking only what couldn''t be reced. He with his phone, within hours, his financial assets would move through a series of offshore ounts, bing virtually untraceable.
At the private
elevator, Herod paused. "Once we leave, we can''te back. They''ll have this ce under surveince."
Rose didn''t hesitate. "I don''t care
about things. I only care about making Camille pay."
The elevator doors closed behind them. As they descended, Herod studied Rose''s profile. Her face
had taken on a strange calm, the eye of a hurricane. He recognized the expression, someone who had moved beyond desperate to dangerous. "We have two days until theunch ceremony," he said. "We''ll ne Rose nodded, her gaze fixed on the descending floor numbers. "Two days. After eighteen months of waiting, it seems fitting. Full circle."
The elevator reached the basement garage. Herod led the way to a car he kept registered under a different name, one not connected to any of his known identities.
As they drove away from the building, through a service exit to avoid the main entrance, Herod nced in the rearview mirror. No signs of pursuit yet, but they wouldn''t be far behind. Camille and Victoria would their best people hunting them now.
"Where are we going?" Rose asked, breaking the silence.
"Somewhere they won''t think to look," Herod replied. "A property not connected to either of
us."
Rose nodded, epting his vague answer without further questions. Her mind seemed elsewhere, likely already at theunch ceremony, imagining the chaos they would create.
Herod navigated through the city streets, taking a circuitous route to ensure they weren''t followed. His mind raced through contingencies, assessing risks, calcting odds. The rational part of him recognized th Victoria Kane had destroyed his family. Camille had risen from that destruction to be Victoria''s heir, her chosen sessor. They deserved whatever came next.
Even if it meant crossing lines he had never intended to cross.
"We''ll need supplies," he said, breaking the
silence. "Equipment for the new n."
Rose turned to him, something almost like a smile ying at her lips. "I already have everything we need." The cold determination in her voice sent another chill through
him.
He wondered, not for the first time, exactly what he had unleashed by partnering with Rose Lewis. And whether either of them would survive what came next.