Chapter 16 - The Digital Trap
Within twenty-four hours, ECHO had traced the IP address of Jonathan Sterling’s off-site quantum server to a heavily encrypted data center located in Reykjavik, Iceland.
“The server is completely autonomous,” ECHO’s synthesized voice reported through the secure terminal in my office while Julian and Agent Vance watched closely. “It operates on a dead-man’s switch timer, releasing the encrypted dossier piece by piece every six months unless Jonathan’s biometric signature or cryptographic key is verified locally in Zurich.”
“Can we hack it and wipe the server clean?” Julian asked.
“Negative,” ECHO replied. “The firewall utilizes quantum-entangled encryption. Any unauthorized brute-force intrusion will instantly trigger an emergency data dump.”
I studied the cascading lines of code on the screen, tapping my pen rhythmically against the wooden desk.
“We don’t need to hack it,” I said softly.
Agent Vance looked at me, confused. “What do you mean?”
“Jonathan wants a deal,” I explained, leaning forward. “He wants me to use my influence to secure his compassionate release. That means he expects me to visit him in person at the federal supermax facility in Colorado.”
“Absolutely not,” Agent Vance interrupted immediately. “That is far too dangerous. You cannot walk into a maximum-security prison alone to negotiate with a cornered criminal.”
“I won’t be alone,” I smiled, tapping the platinum ring on my finger. “And I’m not going there to negotiate his release. I’m going there to collect his cryptographic key.”
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“How?” Julian asked.
“By playing his game better than he does,” I replied, standing up and grabbing my blazer. “Jonathan thinks I’m just a terrified mother protecting her family. Let’s remind him that I’m the head of Thorne Global Logistics.”
