Chapter 5 - PLAYING FOR TIME
The sight of the black barrel pointed at the three-year-old froze the air in the room. Lily, sensing the absolute terror radiating from her mother, began to wail loudly. Rosa turned her back to the gun, curving her body into a human shell over her daughter.
Marcus felt a cold, murderous rage settle into his bones. His business rivals called him ruthless, but they had no idea what he was truly capable of when backed into a corner. He looked at Cole, analyzing the slight tremor in the man’s hand. Cole was desperate. Desperate men made mistakes, but they also pulled triggers.
"Alright," Marcus said, raising his hands slowly. "Alright. Put the gun down. I'll sign the transfer."
"Marcus, no!" Rosa cried out, tears streaming down her face.
"It's okay, Rosa," Marcus said softly, not taking his eyes off Cole. "It's just money. It's not worth Lily's life."
He walked slowly behind his desk. He needed to buy time. Three minutes. Every second was a victory. Every keystroke was a delay.
"Boot up the executive terminal," Cole ordered, stepping closer, keeping the gun trained on Rosa's back. "Do it fast."
Marcus opened his laptop. "It requires a dual-factor biometric login. Retinal scan and a rolling encryption key." He tapped a few keys, purposefully slowing his typing speed. "Victoria, you should know this. You’ve been watching me log in for months, haven't you?"
Victoria glared at him, pacing nervously near the door. "Just shut up and type, Marcus. The clock is ticking."
"It's a complex system," Marcus continued, his voice perfectly even. "Built by the Department of Defense. You can't just 'type' it. If I get the sequence wrong, it locks down the entire network for forty-eight hours."
"Then don't get it wrong," Cole snapped, glancing at his watch. "Two minutes."
Marcus leaned forward, aligning his eye with the scanner. The machine beeped, a green light washing over his face. He typed in a long string of passwords. He was hyper-aware of the seconds ticking by. He could hear the fountain running outside. He could hear Lily’s muffled sobs. He could hear his own heartbeat.
"Okay," Marcus said. "I'm in the portal. Which contracts?"
"All the Class A logistics routes," the man with the knife said, bringing the folder to the desk. "Select all. Transfer ownership to the shell company listed on page three."
Marcus clicked the mouse. He scrolled down the screen. "You know, Cole, there's something you and Victoria failed to research about these specific contracts."
"I said shut up and transfer them!" Cole yelled, the gun shaking.
"These contracts are federally subsidized," Marcus said, looking up, a cold, predatory smile touching his lips. "To transfer them, the system requires a secondary authorization from a remote server."
Victoria froze. "What are you talking about? You have unilateral control!"
"I did," Marcus lied smoothly, typing another command. "Until last month. I noticed some... irregularities in my personal accounts. Someone trying to access my safe. Someone taking encrypted phone calls on my terrace. So, I added a dead-man's switch to the company's core assets."
Cole’s face twisted in rage. "You're lying to stall!"
"Am I?" Marcus hit the enter key. A loud, blaring error sound erupted from the laptop speakers. A flashing red screen filled the monitor: UNAUTHORIZED TRANSFER. INITIATING PROTOCOL OMEGA.
"What did you just do?" Victoria shrieked.
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"I just locked the entire system," Marcus said, stepping back from the desk. "And I just broadcasted a distress signal to the FBI cyber-crimes division. You aren't just looking at breaking and entering anymore, Cole. You're looking at federal corporate terrorism."
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