Chapter 14 - THE MASTER SERVERThe monitors showed years of my life.
Sixteen.
Seventeen.
Eighteen.
Nineteen.
Twenty.
Every birthday.
Every job.
Every apartment.
Every move.
Every relationship.
Every mistake.
Someone had catalogued my entire existence.
Mom stood beside me.
“I built this.”
I looked at her.
“You monitored me.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because you were the only person who couldn't be controlled.”
I laughed bitterly.
“So you controlled me.”
“I watched.”
“That is not better.”
“No.”
She looked at the screens.
“I know.”
Daniel found the master terminal.
“There's an access prompt.”
“What does it need?”
“Biometric authentication.”
He looked at me.
“Of course.”
I placed my hand on the scanner.
The screen flashed.
IDENTITY VERIFIED.
Then:
WELCOME BACK, TAYLOR.
My heart pounded.
The system opened.
Files appeared.
Northbridge's financial network.
Shell companies.
Hidden accounts.
Political payments.
Bribes.
Everything.
It was enough to destroy an empire.
Daniel stared.
“This is the evidence.”
“Can we copy it?”
“Yes.”
“Then do it.”
He began transferring everything.
Thirty percent.
Forty.
Fifty.
Then the system locked.
A red warning appeared.
REMOTE OVERRIDE DETECTED.
Someone was entering.
Daniel swore.
“Northbridge.”
The basement door slammed.
Footsteps.
Dozens.
Grandmother looked at me.
“Now.”
“What?”
“Your choice.”
“What choice?”
“Destroy the archive.”
“But that's our only evidence.”
“And if you keep it?”
“They get access.”
“Yes.”
I looked at the terminal.
Everything my family had done.
Everything they had hidden.
Everything that had destroyed me.
I finally understood.
The money wasn't the prize.
The truth was.
I selected the archive.
DELETE MASTER SYSTEM?
Yes.
The moment I clicked it, alarms screamed.
The doors burst open.
Men flooded the room.
Daniel grabbed me.
We ran.
Glass shattered.
People shouted.
Dad pulled Mom behind a pillar.
Jake tackled one attacker.
I kept running.
Up the stairs.
Out the back door.
Across the yard.
Sirens approached in the distance.
Police.
Federal agents.
Grandmother stood in the doorway.
She didn't run.
She simply watched.
I stopped.
“You're coming with us.”
She smiled.
“I know.”
“Why aren't you afraid?”
“Because I've already lost everything.”
Then she looked at me.
“Except you.”
I froze.
Behind her, the house filled with flashing lights.
Agents entered.
Northbridge executives were arrested.
The server room was seized.
The financial records were recovered.
For the first time in years, I felt safe.
Then an agent approached me.
“Ms. Hayes?”
“Yes?”
“We need you to come with us.”
I frowned.
“Why?”
He handed me a document.
My name appeared at the top.
SUBJECT OF FEDERAL INVESTIGATION
My heart stopped.
“But I helped you.”
“I know.”
“Then why?”
He looked at the paperwork.
“Because according to the evidence, you are listed as the legal owner of every account Northbridge controlled.”
I stared.
The trap had worked.
The money was gone.
The empire was collapsing.
But every piece of evidence pointed to me.
The agent lowered his voice.
“Taylor…”
May you like
He looked almost apologetic.
“You're the prime suspect.”
