Chapter 7 - The Arrest
A suffocating, heavy silence fell over the five hundred soldiers in the gym.
Captain Sterling stared up at the screen, his face turning pale, then flushed with intense rage. He slowly turned his eyes toward the mat, where two medics were currently helping a groaning, bloody Ryan Briggs back onto his feet.
Briggs looked up at the giant screen, seeing his voice transcript scrolling in bright green letters, seeing his bank routing numbers displayed for the entire base to inspect.
All his arrogance, all his tough-guy bluster, vanished into thin air. He looked like a cornered animal, his chest heaving, his eyes darting frantically toward the exits.
“Security!” Captain Sterling bellowed into his lapel radio, his voice booming over the speakers. “Detain Sergeant Briggs immediately!”
Four armed Master-at-Arms officers vaulted over the bleacher railings, drawing their sidearms and zip-ties as they rushed onto the mat.
Briggs tried to back away, stumbling over his own feet, but his legs were still rubbery from Avery’s tornado kick. “Wait! Sir! That’s fake! She fabricated that data! She’s trying to frame me!”
“Shut your mouth, Briggs!” Captain Sterling roared, walking onto the mat and stepping into his face. “Those are certified Navy Cyber Command digital signatures! You stole from this base, you lied to your commander, and you attempted to frame a superior intelligence analyst!”
The MAs grabbed Briggs, yanking his arms behind his back and slapping heavy steel handcuffs around his wrists.
Briggs thrashed violently in their grip, glaring at Avery with pure, unadulterated venom. “You quiet little snake!” he screamed, blood flying from his lip. “You planned this! You set me up!”
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Avery walked up to him, stopping just out of his reach. She looked at him with calm, unbothered eyes.
“I didn't set you up, Ryan,” she said quietly. “You wrote the logs. You stole the gear. You made the recordings. I just collected the trash.”
