The First Crack
921 Words
LOLA’S POV
The conference room remained silent as Orion connected the recovered flash drive to an isolated forensic computer.
Every eye was fixed on the screen.
Orion stood beside me, his expression unreadable.
Marcus clicked PLAY.
Static filled the monitor before security footage appeared.
The timestamp read:
Three nights earlier.
The footage showed the entrance to the restricted PROJECT HELIOS laboratory.
A hooded figure approached the biometric scanner.
Instead of forcing entry, the laboratory door opened immediately.
‘They used an authorized clearance,’ Marcus murmured.
The figure disappeared inside.
Forty seconds later, the same person walked out carrying nothing.
The video froze.
Then a distorted computerized voice played.
‘The traitor is already inside your computer.’
The screen went blank.
Marcus replayed the footage repeatedly.
The intruder’s face never appeared.
The security cameras had somehow been manipulated to blur every identifying feature.
Adrien folded his arms.
‘They knew where every camera was positioned.’
‘They knew our security schedule,' Victor added quietly.
Marcus nodded.
‘This wasn’t an outside hacker.’
I looked around the room.
No one spoke.
Everyone was beginning to suspect everyone else.
While the others focused on the hooded figure, I rewound the footage itself.
‘Stop.’
Marcus paused the video.
I pointed toward the corner of the screen.
‘What time does the executive elevator usually stop operating?, i ask
‘Eight o’clock.’, Marcus answered.
‘But this footage was recorded at 11:17 p.m.’
Everyone looked again.
The executive elevator indicator was illuminated.
Someone with executive clearance had been moving through the building that night.
Marcus frowned.
‘Only seven people can access that elevator after hours,' he added.
Adrien quietly listed them;
Orion King
Stacy Summers
Victor Hale
Himself
Marcus Reed
Two board directors.
I wrote every name in my notebook.
As everyone left the conference room, Orion remained behind.
I approached him.
‘You’re thinking about the list.’ I said.
‘I know every person on it.’, he answered.
‘Can you trust them?’
‘I thought I could.’, he answered without hesitation.
I watched the strain in his expression.
For the first time since meeting him, he looked genuinely exhausted.
‘It’s different,' he admitted quietly.
‘When strangers attack you, you prepare for battle.’
‘And when it’s someone you know?’
‘You start questioning every conversation you’ve ever had.’
I asked if she could see the laboratory.
After a moment’s hesitation, Orion agreed.
The Helios Lab was unlike anything I had imagined.
Transparent touchscreens floated above sleek workstations.
Rows of servers hummed behind reinforced glass.
Engineers worked in silence, each focused on their specialized systems.
At the center of the room stood the Helios Core.
A towering cylindrical processor surrounded by blue lights.
‘It’s beautiful,' I whispered.
Orion smiled faintly.
‘It took twelve years to build.’
I walked around it carefully.
‘This is what everyone wants.’
‘No.’
He looked directly at the machine.
‘This is what everyone fears.’
ORION’S POV
She stood beside me.
‘Can I ask you something?’, she asked.
‘You usually do.’, I replied.
‘Why didn’t you tell the public what Helios really is?’
I sighed.
‘Because people fear what they don’t understand.’
‘And silence made them fear you instead.’
I didn’t argue.
‘You think I handled it badly.’
‘I think…’
She hesitated.
‘...you’ve spent so long protecting your work that you forgot to protect your reputation.’
I considered her words.
No one had spoken to me this honestly in years.
‘You might be right.’
Our eyes met.
Neither of us noticed how close we had moved.
The moment lingered…
Until Adrien interrupted.
‘Sorry.’
Neither of us stepped away quickly enough.
Adrien hid a smile.
‘I’ll pretend I didn't see that.’
She cleared her throat.
"We were talking.’, I say.
‘I’m sure you were.’, he replied, trying his best to hide a laugh.
STACY’S POV
ELSEWHERE IN THE BUILDING
I enter the women’s restroom and locked the door.
I remove a second phone hidden inside my handbag.
The screen displayed an encrypted messaging app.
I typed quickly.
‘The journalist noticed the elevator.’
A reply appeared almost immediately.
‘Then accelerate the plan.’
I frowned.
‘Not yet. Orion still trusts me.’
Another message appeared.
‘Make sure he never trusts anyone again.’
My hands trembled slightly.
For the first time, I was afraid.
LOLA’S POV
Before leaving for the day, I returned to the lobby.
Something caught my attention.
The employee attendance board.
I studied the names carefully.
Most staff had clocked out before 8:00 p.m. on the night of the breach.
One name stood out.
Daniel Cross.
Clock-out time:
11:26 p.m.
Exactly nine minutes after the breach.
I photographed the record with my phone.
ORION’S POV
NEW DAY
The following morning, I was with Lola when Marcus burst into my office.
‘Sir!’
‘What is it?’
‘We can’t find Daniel Cross.’
I stood.
‘What do you mean you can’t find him?’
‘He didn’t come to work.’
‘Call him.’
‘We did. No answer.’
‘Go to his apartment.’
Marcus hesitated.
‘We already have.’
‘And?’, I asked, clearly irritated.
‘The apartment is empty. Completely empty.’
Lola’s phone buzzed.
An anonymous text appeared.
‘You’re looking at the wrong man.’
She stared at the message then slowly showed me.
Someone knew where exactly the investigation was heading.
Someone was watching every move we made.
And someone wanted to control the direction of our investigation.
- Writer
