?Chapter 152:


    The mystery of how Victor was linked to Cole still gnawed at Elliana’s thoughts. That lingering question was exactly why she decided tonight would be the night to breach the Evans Group’s database. Her goal? To ess Cole’s confidential records and trace the truth.


    Confidence was something she nevercked. And why would she? She wasn’t just talented—she was Quinn, ranked among the top three hackers on the. Not a single firewall had managed to stop her yet.


    Across the global hacking scene, there was only one name ever spoken in the same breath as hers—Jody, the one hacker capable of matching her stride for stride. But the idea of encountering Jody during this particr mission felt far-fetched. Besides, there had never been any whispers about Jody being tied to the Evans Group.


    Five years ago, the tech world had trembled under the chaos unleashed by a digital menace named John. A failure in the traditional academic system, John had flunked out of school and couldn’tnd a job no matter how hard he tried. When rock bottom finally broke him, his bitterness had mutated into full-blown vengeance.


    Socially inept he might have been, but when it came to hacking, he was a genius. He’d built a virus named Bad Boy—a monster of code that swept across the globe like wildfire. In just eight weeks, billions of devices had been infected.


    What made Bad Boy so terrifying wasn’t just its speed. It was the damage it left behind. Entire systems had copsed, programs corrupted beyond repair, and global losses spiraled into the billions. Panic had spread. Governments had scrambled. Reports hadbeled it the worst virus outbreak in digital history.


    Despite the virus’s rampant spread, no one had seeded in tracking down its creator, John. He remained elusive—too slippery, too skilled. Cybersecurity experts from every continent had tried to catch him, and each one had failed miserably.


    As the weeks dragged on, John’s arrogance had exploded. Since then, he had attacked a new country almost daily, leaving behind digital graffiti that mocked every failed attempt to stop him.


    Just as the world appeared defenseless against the chaos this madman unleashed, two fresh figures had stepped onto the global hacking stage—one known only as Q, the other as J.


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    As John unleashed yet another strike on a foreignwork, Quinn and Jody had moved in at the same moment, cutting him off mid-attack. Working with lightning precision, they dismantled his breach and unmasked his real identity for the world to see.


    In the end, John had been arrested by Interpol and thrown into prison. But Quinn and Jody? They’d vanished the moment the dust settled, slipping out of the spotlight like shadows at dawn. No photos. No names. No trace of their origins. The world was left to wonder who they were and where they went.


    Now, yearster, Elliana—as the legendary hacker Quinn—sat at her desk with her fingers flying across the keyboard, breaking through the Evans Group’s security nonchntly. But only two seconds passed before something made her freeze.


    She hade face-to-face with Jody, their paths crossing in a way she hadn’t seening. The same ghost who had vanished five years ago was suddenly alive and blocking her path. Talk about a twist of fate. A ping appeared on her screen. Jody had reached out. “Didn’t expect to bump into you here.”


    Elliana froze for a second before replying, “Yeah, I wasn’t counting on this either.”


    From there, the chat flowed easily, almost like catching up with an old friend. Despite their brief history, there had always been a mutual admiration. In a world where most were beneath them, crossing paths with someone on equal footing was rare.


    Jody didn’t waste time. “So, what brings you snooping around the Evans Group?”


    Elliana didn’t lie. “Just grabbing a file I need.” She tossed in a winking emoji. “Thought it’d be a smooth job until you showed up.”


    With his signature dry humor, Jody replied, “Terribly sorry.” He added a matching emoji.


    That made her grin. Her fingers hovered over the keyboard as she clicked her tongue.


    Actually, five years ago, she had wanted to spar with Jody properly, to see who would actually emerge as the top. But he’d vanished too quickly after the John incident, leaving nothing but polite farewells and an empty chat box behind. Now that Jody had resurfaced, the itch returned. That restless curiosity. That pull she couldn’t quite ignore. She needed to see just how much Jody had improved over the past five years. But excitement wrestled with caution. This wasn’t about fear—not of losing anyway. The issue was the setting. If she and Jody went full throttle inside thiswork, there was no way Cole wouldn’t find out. And if Cole did…


    Things would get ugly. Fast. He would know she was Quinn. He’d know she’d broken into the Evans Group systems just to snoop through his personal files. That wasn’t a conversation she wanted to have.


    Before she could decide, Jody messaged again. “You’re being awfully quiet. Debating your next move?”


    Clearly, Jody wasn’t making a move either. Neither of them had so much as poked around each other’s digital trail. They were holding back—both of them. They knew what would happen if one of them made a move. It wouldn’t just be a casual skirmish. It would be a legendary sh—one that might overshadow the John takedown five years ago. Neither of them liked that kind of attention. Not anymore.


    After a long pause, Elliana’s fingers finally danced across the keyboard as she began to type her next message.


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