Falling for the devil.(+18)

« Catch me if you can. »

Warning: This chapter contains mature therm and language, as well as intense emotional situations. Reader discretion is advised.

As she typed furiously, another alert popped up: **Access Denied. Re-routing to secondary systems.**
Delia's fingers danced over the keyboard as she initiated the lockdown.
"Come on... hold it together"she muttered to herself, sweat forming at her brow. She could feel the seconds ticking away as the system rerouted. Whoever was trying to get in knew what they were doing.They were fast. Too fast.
Then, another alert flashed: **Data breach detected. Source: encrypted device.**

"Shit" Delia cursed under her breath. "They're in the system."

Xander stepped closer, peering over her shoulder. "How bad?"

"They're trying to access our communication logs." Delia typed furiously, her mind racing. She could feel the walls closing in as the hacker breached more layers of their security. "I'm shutting it down. We can't let them know what we've found."

For a moment, everything went still. Delia's hands hovered over the keyboard as the breach halted. Then, a new line of code appeared-an incoming trace. An encrypted number.

Her eyes widened as she stared at it. "It's the same number!" she gasped. "The one from the breach matches the call log we've been tracking. It's connected!"

Xander's face twisted into a frown. "That's no coincidence."

Delia nodded, her heart pounding. She quickly cross-referenced the number with the incoming breach data.
"They're trying to cover their tracks—whoever's behind this knows we're close."

Without waiting for an answer, Delia slammed her hand on the desk, grabbing her phone. She needed to warn Hunter immediately. "Get to Hunter" she told Xander, her voice tight. "We have to shut this down now."
As Xander moved to join Hunter in the ballroom, Delia rushed back to the office, her mind racing. She pulled up the data again, her fingers dancing across the keyboard as the chaos of the ballroom faded into the background. With every keystroke, she felt the weight of the situation settle on her shoulders. Whoever was behind this, she would find them. Fews min laters,ballroom.
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The ballroom carried on, the guests oblivious to the chaos brewing behind the scenes. Hunter's phone vibrated in his pocket, pulling his focus away. He glanced at the message from Delia, his expression hardening. **"I've got something."** It wasn't much, but it was enough to put his instincts on high alert.Hunter slid his phone back into his jacket and turned his gaze back to the crowd, scanning with new intent.
That's when his eyes settled on **him**-the man in the red suit. Tall, broad-shouldered, but it wasn't just his size that caught Hunter's attention.
There was something off about the way he moved-nervous, fidgety, like he was waiting for something to go wrong. His slicked-back hair glistened under the chandeliers, and the red suit, though sharp, seemed out of place among the more subtle tones in the room. His fingers drummed against the glass in his hand, his eyes darting toward the exits far too often.Hunter's gaze narrowed. The man was sweating, his collar tight around his throat despite the cool air. Everything about him screamed paranoia. It was subtle, but Hunter had seen it too many times to miss it now. The man was hiding something. Fews min later.
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Hunter was deep in his thoughts....Xander,Delia,Bryan,Seyra,Marcus,Isaiah,Kasan,Destiny,Aida,Alec......Alec?Where the hell was Alec?
It hit him. It had been a week since he'd seen Alec Collins, and now, amid all this chaos, Alec had conveniently disappeared. Hunter's mind raced as he stalked through the grand ballroom, his every step brimming with purpose.
Xander appeared at his side, sensing the shift in Hunter's mood.
Xander: "What's the plan, boss?"
Hunter's jaw clenched.
"Alec. He's been off. Find him, now. Anyone acting suspicious, throw them in the back room."
As Xander nodded and moved to rally the crew, Hunter's phone buzzed again. This time, he stopped dead in his tracks, the new message making his blood run cold.