Chapter 6 - The Decryption
They did not stop running until they reached an abandoned subway station deep beneath the financial district.
The station was a ghost town, untouched by the public for decades.
Arthur collapsed onto a dusty bench, gasping for air as his heart hammered wildly.
He ripped the seam of the stuffed bear and pulled out the small, silver flash drive.
It looked completely ordinary, but it held the power to destroy a criminal empire.
Max pulled a battered laptop from his backpack and booted it up.
He explained that his underground network had a hacker who could break any encryption.
Arthur handed the drive to Max, praying that the information was still intact.
Max plugged it in and began typing furiously, lines of green code reflecting in his dark eyes.
Lily sat next to Arthur, wrapping her arms around his waist.
She looked at the computer screen, her eyes wide with fascination.
She confessed that she had learned to read by secretly looking at books while pretending to sleep.
Arthur smiled proudly, amazed by her resilience and intelligence.
Suddenly, Max let out a sharp gasp, his fingers freezing over the keyboard.
The encryption had been broken, and the files were open.
Max said the contents were worse than they could have ever imagined.
The syndicate was not just running money; they were trafficking illegal weapons globally.
And Evelyn was not just a low-level operative.
She was the head of the North American division, the mastermind behind thousands of crimes.
Arthur felt sick to his stomach as he read the names of corrupt politicians on the payroll.
They had enough evidence to bring down half the city's government.
But having the evidence also made them the most hunted people on the continent.
Max warned them that if Evelyn didn't get the drive back by sunrise, her bosses would execute her.
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Evelyn was fighting for her own life now, which made her infinitely more dangerous.
They needed a plan to get this information to the federal authorities without getting killed in the process.
