Rise of the Zillionaire Star

Chapter 39: The Shell Game Begins

The late-night studio air was thick with bass vibrations, but Jaylen wasn’t here to lay down tracks. He sat in front of a triple-monitor setup with his eyes locked on the glowing grid of data Zee had pulled from the corners of the internet.

“New Main Quest Unlocked: Track Vale’s Ghost Accounts

Reward: Reputation Surge, +20K Z-Credits, 1 Random Influence Upgrade

Failure: Influence Bleed – Permanent Loss of 2 Fame Levels.”

Jaylen exhaled slowly. “Ghost accounts. So this is where Roman Vale keeps his skeletons.” He expressed with an itch of surprise.

Zee’s holographic avatar flickered to life above the center screen. Its voice was low, and urgent.

Zee chimed in, “Activating Data Reaper Mode. Twenty-four hours until system lockdown.”

The monitors dimmed being replaced by cascading strings of encrypted numbers moving from one number to another as if alive. A faint digital hiss underlined Zee’s tone.

 Zee pinged in, “You have one day to scrape, trace, and lock the data before the firewall resets. After that, even I, can’t get in without setting off alarms in half the entertainment industry.”

Jaylen cracked his knuckles. “Then let's make our move now.”

The first data lead came from a seemingly harmless Global Artist Relief Foundation page. It was a charity with glossy images of smiling kids holding guitars. The deeper Zee dug, the uglier it got.

Jaylen  traced the donations and it didn't end  in community projects, but in shell corporations with random and meaningless names like Blue Strand Holdings, Aurora Skies Ltd and Timberwolf Financial. Each one was registered in countries where banking secrecy was a sport.

Jaylen scrolled through the transaction logs. “These transfers are too clean. He’s got a professional helping  block all the tracks.”

Zee replied sharply, “That's correct. The accountant running this used to be a rising star in corporate audit until she vanished eighteen months ago. Her name is Tessa Marrin.”

Jaylen leaned forward. “She vanished?”

Zee replied, “Rumor says she went underground after threatening to expose the Vale Machine’s financials. She hasn’t been on-grid since.”

A red countdown clock appeared in the corner,  23:11:47.

“Alright, Tessa,” Jaylen muttered. “Let’s find you.”

…………..

Every path to Tessa’s digital footprint was blocked by proxy servers and false IPs. Zee’s Data Reaper sliced through three layers, but the fourth struck back, nearly frying Jaylen’s connection.

The lights in the studio flickered and a warning window flashed through its face, “Hostile Countertrace Detected. Source: Vale Corporate Security AI.”

Jaylen’s pulse kicked into overdrive. “They know someone’s digging.”

Zee spoke up, “You have eight seconds to mask your signal or they’ll pinpoint your location.

His fingers were fast over the keyboard as he dropped three decoy data packets into the trace. A surge of code rerouted his connection through a public virtual reality arcade in Singapore. The hostile AI slammed into the decoys instead, tearing them apart.

 Zee replied, “The Cloak was successful. Countertrace neutralized.”

Jaylen blew out a breath. “Roman’s not playing small ball anymore.”

Hours passed very fast.  There were collapsing firewalls, and high-speed data pulls. The shell corporations formed a spiderweb with every strand leading back to a single offshore bank in Cordova Isle. It was a nation very famous for never extraditing financial criminals.

Zee sounded sharply, “I can breach the Cordova bank’s soft ledger for ninety seconds before alarms trigger. You’ll get one d******d attempt. Fail, and they’ll wipe the data permanently.”

Jaylen’s jaw set. “Give me the shot.”

On Zee’s mark, the bank’s pristine interface appeared on the middle monitor. The numbers were cold, precise and marched down the screen transactions of $1.3M, $800K, $4.5M, each labeled as “foundation transfers.”

In the corner, a progress bar started moving  forward starting from 68%… to 74%… and 81%…

Then the system pushed back, attempting to sever the link. Jaylen rerouted through an old encrypted chat server, just long enough for the d******d to hit 100%.

“Ghost Account Data Secured

Progress: 40% – Locate the Accountant for Full Decrypt.”

Zee overlaid the final clue. It was an old photo of Tessa Marrin in her mid-30s with an auburn hair, sharp eyes, and a cautious smile although cute . The metadata traced her last confirmed location to a small coastal town two states away, under the alias Dana Clove.

Zee chimed in, “Her last verified safehouse was compromised a month ago. My guess is that She’s moving every few weeks.”

Jaylen grabbed his jacket and keys. “Then we will go the old school way. We must meet her face to face.”

……

When it was morning, Jaylen’s black SUV hit up the highway. Zee’s voice cut through the hum of the road.

Zee chimed, “You’re in hostile territory now. The Vale Machine will have eyes on any sudden appearance of yours in this area.”

Jaylen smirked. “Let them look. They’ll only see me when I want them to.”

The coastal town was sleepy. Its streets are lined with shuttered shops and salt-stained buildings. Jaylen parked near a boarded café and walked toward the pier.

Tessa Marrin sat at the far end. Her back was turned to him as he stared at the waves. A hood covered her hair, but he recognized the posture alert but pretending to be relaxed.

When he approached her, she didn’t turn. “You are either very brave or very stupid to find me.” She said.

“Maybe both,” Jaylen said. “I’m here because I have the Vale Machine’s offshore data. I need you to confirm and decrypt it.”

She finally faced him. Her eyes scanned Jaylen’s for lies. “Do you have any idea what happens to people who get involved in this?” She asked. 

“I do,” he said evenly. “And I’ve already pissed off Roman Vale more than most survive.”

Tessa studied him for a long moment, then shook her head with a dry laugh. “You’re insane. But… you might be the first person who actually has a shot at hurting him.”

Footsteps echoed down the house. Jaylen’s instincts screamed. Three men in dark windbreakers moved in fast. Their hands were hidden in their pockets.

Zee chimed in, “They are Vale's men. There is no police response coming. Will you handle it or retreat?”

Jaylen stepped forward, putting himself between Tessa and the incoming men. “Its time to see if Roman’s boys learned anything from the last time.”

The first among them swung a short baton. Jaylen slipped under it, drove an elbow into the man’s ribs, and sent him tumbling over the pier railing into the cold water. The second went for a knife, but Jaylen caught his wrist, twisted it until the blade clattered to the ground, then dropped him with a sharp knee strike.

The third hesitated and that's a bad choice. Jaylen closed the gap, yanked his hood down, and pressed him against the railing. “Go back and tell Roman that I am not just surviving. I’m hunting him down.”

The man scrambled away, stumbling down the pier.

Tessa exhaled. “Well. That settles it. You’re reckless enough to go through with this.”

Jaylen handed her a flash drive. “The data’s are there. You decrypt it, we burn the Vale Machine’s money trail for good.”

She pocketed it. “Give me a week. I’ll contact you when it’s safe.”

Zee chimed in, “Warning: Contact likelihood drops 40% if she’s compromised. Suggest providing a secure line.”

Jaylen handed her a burner phone. “If things go south, hit one on speed dial. I’ll come running.”

She gave him one last look. “You’d better be ready when I call.”

The system pinged, “Quest Progress Updated: Track Vale’s Ghost Accounts – 60%

Sub-Quest Added: Protect the Accountant.”

Jaylen turned back toward the street. The ocean wind was biting at his neck. He barely made it ten steps before Zee’s hologram popped beside him with a grim face.

“Jaylen… you need to see this.”

The middle of the pier brightened as Zee projected a live news feed. 

Roman Vale was standing at a podium, announcing a new Artist Protection Initiative. The banner scrolling underneath read,

BREAKING: ROMAN VALE ACCUSES JAYLEN OF LEADING CRIMINAL HACKING RING

Jaylen’s fists clenched. “So this is how he wants to play it.”

Zee’s voice dropped to a cold whisper. “We need to be prepared for a real battle.”