2026-02-01 19:53:30
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ZERO Returns
Lucas sat alone in his room, door locked, the world reduced to the glowing screen in front of him.His fingers moved across the keyboard with practiced ease. Muscle memory from years ago, coming back like he'd never stopped. Lines of code scrolled by, algorithms executing, digital pathways opening.This was who he really was. Not the useless son-in-law. Not the invisible ghost haunting the Wright mansion.Zero.The name felt strange in his mind after three years of burying it. Three years of pretending it didn't exist. Three years of being nobody.But tonight, he had no choice.Lucas pulled up the malware structure on his main screen. Victor's work stared back at him, layers of encryption wrapped around Wright Industries' data like a digital fortress.Beautiful, in a way. Victor had always been an artist with code. Where other hackers brute-forced their way through systems, Victor built elegant solutions. Sophisticated. Complex. Almost poetic in their construction.But Lucas knew Vict
Exposed
A loud knock on the door interrupted them. "Lucas!" Robert's voice, urgent. "Get out here. Now." Lucas opened the door. "What?"Robert's face was pale. "The hacker. He sent another message. You need to see this.".They rushed downstairs. The whole family was in the living room, gathered around William's laptop.William looked up when Lucas entered. "He sent an email twenty minutes ago. To the company's main address.""What does it say?" Lucas asked, though his stomach was already sinking.William turned the laptop so everyone could see.The email was short:**TO THE WRIGHT FAMILY:****I SEE YOU FOUND SOME MONEY. IMPRESSIVE. BUT DID YOU REALLY THINK I'D TAKE IT AND LEAVE?****THIS WAS NEVER ABOUT THE RANSOM.****YOU HAVE SOMETHING I WANT. AND I'M NOT LEAVING UNTIL I GET IT.****12 HOURS REMAINING.****-V**"What does he mean?" Clara asked, her voice shaking. "What does he want?"Lucas felt cold. He knew exactly what Victor wanted.Him.Victor had never intended to take the money and lea
Ghost in the Machine
Lucas locked his bedroom door and sat down at his desk.The encrypted laptop screen glowed in the dark room. His counter-hack was still running, still probing Victor's defenses, still mapping every vulnerability in the encryption.He had the backdoor. He had the kill switch. One command and all of Wright Industries' data would be restored.But he couldn't use it. Not directly.If Lucas just magically recovered the data, William would ask questions. Robert would ask questions. They'd want to know how. And Lucas had no answers that wouldn't reveal everything.He needed a different approach. Something that looked accidental. Like luck. Like CyberShield stumbling onto something they'd missed.Lucas pulled up the malware structure on his screen. Victor's work was brilliant, he had to admit. Layers upon layers of encryption, false trails, dead ends designed to frustrate anyone trying to break through.But Victor had one weakness. Pride.He'd left his signature all over this attack. Little f
THE Delivery
At 5:30 PM, Lucas stood in the living room.The whole family had gathered again, drawn by the approaching deadline like spectators at an execution.Robert kept checking his watch. "Thirty minutes, Lucas. Where's this miracle money?""It's coming," Lucas said calmly."Right," Robert smirked. "Sure it is."Clara sat on the sofa, arms crossed. "I can't believe we're wasting time on this nonsense."William said nothing, just watched Lucas with that same unreadable expression.Naomi stood by the window, not looking at anyone.The minutes ticked by.5:40 PM.5:45 PM.Robert pulled out his phone. "I'm calling Marcus. This was a waste—"The doorbell rang.Everyone froze.Robert lowered his phone slowly.Lucas walked to the door and opened it.A man stood there in an expensive suit, carrying a metal briefcase. "Delivery for Lucas Grant.""That's me.""I need you to sign here, please." The man held out a tablet.Lucas signed. The man handed him the briefcase and left without another word.Lucas
The Bet
Morning came with the sound of shouting. Lucas woke to voices drifting up through the floorboards. Angry voices. Desperate voices. The family was already awake, already fighting about what to do next.He checked his phone. 9:47 AM. He'd only slept three hours after staying up until dawn working on Victor's encryption.But it had been worth it. He had what he needed now.Lucas got dressed and went downstairs. The voices got louder as he approached the living room."—absolutely insane if you think I'm going to just sit here and wait!" Clara's voice, shrill and panicked."What other choice do we have?" William sounded exhausted. "We gave Naomi until tonight to decide.""Tonight? We have twenty-four hours left! Twenty-four hours!"Lucas stepped into the doorway. The whole family was there. William looked worse than yesterday. Clara's eyes were red and puffy. Uncle Thomas stood in the corner. Robert sat scrolling through his phone.Naomi sat on the sofa, arms crossed, jaw set. She looked l
The Question
Clara collapsed back onto the sofa, sobbing into her hands. "She's going to destroy us. Her own stubbornness is going to destroy this family."William sat in silence for a long moment, staring at the door Naomi had slammed. Then he spoke quietly. "Robert. Call Marcus. Tell him we're seriously considering his father's investment. But give Naomi some time to process this.""Time?" Clara looked up, mascara running down her face. "We don't have time!""We have thirty-six hours," William said. "If Naomi doesn't come around by tomorrow evening, then we make the decision for her."Robert pulled out his phone and walked toward the study, already dialing.Lucas slipped out of the room. Nobody noticed. They never did.He found Naomi in the hallway, leaning against the wall with her eyes closed. She looked completely drained, like someone had pulled all the energy out of her body and left just a shell."Naomi," he said softly.She opened her eyes. "What?""Thank you. For not giving up on me."Na
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