Chapter 7 - THE LAKE HOUSE BREAK-IN
The rain had stopped by 2:00 AM, leaving a thick, ghost-like fog rolling off the dark waters of Lake Geneva.
Declan parked his green truck half a mile down a quiet dirt road, hidden under the hanging branches of weeping willows. We walked the rest of the way on foot, wearing dark jackets, keeping low to the ground.
Richard's lake house was a massive glass-and-stone mansion sitting on a cliff overlooking the lake. Floodlights illuminated the wide stone driveway, but Declan guided me through a dark drainage ravine near the eastern property line, entirely avoiding the motion sensors.
"There," Declan whispered, pointing up at a small utility door hidden behind a stack of decorative firewood. "The main fiber-optic line feeds through that junction box. I'm going to bridge the signal. It will loop a thirty-second recording to the security monitoring team."
He pulled a small digital device from his pocket, clipped two wires into the box, and tapped his watch. "You have six minutes once you're inside. The private server is in his basement study behind the wine cellar rack."
I pulled a small USB drive from my pocket—a specialized decryption tool Declan had built over the last two years. "Six minutes."
"Victoria," Declan said, grabbing my wrist gently before I could step away. His touch sent a warm current through my chest. "If you hear anyone inside... you leave instantly. The files aren't worth your life."
"I'll be quick," I promised.
I ran low across the wet grass, reached the side entrance, and pressed my thumb against the biometric scanner. The light blinked green with a soft beep.
The door unlocked. I slipped inside into the silent, dark house.
The smell of Richard's expensive cologne hung heavy in the air. I hurried down the carpeted stairs into the basement, my flashlight cutting through the darkness. I pushed past the wine racks, finding the hidden steel door concealed behind a wooden panel.
I typed in the master passcode—the date of our wedding anniversary, a date Richard was too lazy to ever change.
The steel door clicked open.
Inside, a bank of computer servers hummed quietly, their green lights blinking in the dark. I located the primary terminal, plugged Declan's USB drive into the port, and watched the progress bar flicker onto the screen:
EXTRACTING AEGIS_HOLDINGS_MASTER_LEDGER... 10%... 40%... 80%...
Suddenly, heavy footsteps echoed on the floorboards directly above my head.
My heart stopped.
May you like
A door slammed upstairs. A man's angry voice echoed down the hallway.
Richard was home.
