The basement fell silent.
Every pair of eyes fixed on Ethan’s laptop bag.
It vibrated again.
Bzzz… Bzzz…
Ethan slowly raised both hands.
“I didn’t touch it.”
Marcus didn’t lower his weapon.
“Then don’t.”
Ryan carefully stepped forward.
He nudged the bag with the barrel of his flashlight.
The vibration stopped.
For three long seconds…
Nothing happened.
Then a soft electronic beep echoed from inside.
Ethan’s face changed.
“Oh, no…”
Marcus looked at him.
“What?”
“That’s not my computer.”
Everyone froze.
“What do you mean?” Zach asked.
“My laptop doesn’t make that startup sound.”
⸻
Opening the Bag
Ryan carefully unzipped the bag.
Inside was a sleek black laptop.
It looked almost identical to Ethan’s.
But not quite.
The serial-number sticker had been peeled off.
The
