Broken Enagement

by Gage Grayson

  “Of course, baby, I’ll be right there.” I oblige because I’m worried.

  I’ve never heard Katy lose her cool before or even admit to needing help. This alarms me.

  I drive like hell through the city until I arrive at her apartment. Once I get there, Katie seems very scared.

  A sense of protectiveness overcomes me. I need to make sure she’s okay no matter what and at all costs.

  “What’s wrong? Tell me what happened.”

  25

  Katy

  I'm online, and everyone is here.

  It’s in my hacker community that I really feel as though I'm part of something—that I’m not as removed from society as I thought I was.

  Everyone's applauding each other about the recent job we did.

  None of them know that the charity we donated the money to is one that I'm personally involved with.

  Thinking about the program reminds me of Marcus and how good he was with the people who needed help. He wasn’t in his typical environment, but I could tell that he had become absorbed in helping the people.

  Being around people like that, who have nothing but each other, reminds me of what life is really about and I think Marcus felt that, too.

  He seems to genuinely care about the people whose lives we are helping.

  But then, I remember that Marcus is part of an organization that does outreach. Maybe he doesn't get into the trenches often like I do. Maybe that's the reason he felt so uncomfortable at first.

  I don't know what level Marcus is at in the organization he represents—and this reminds me that I don't know him very well. I need to keep him at a safe distance.

  I'm online and we're doing the usual back-and-forth banter when things start to turn strange.

  Dragon168 talks about bombing a local bank.

  He types, "They won't know what hit them, literally. We're gonna show these assholes what it really means to take someone down."

  Mia_intrigue writes, "Our real work is about to begin. The bomb is in place and ready to go off."

  "I'm so excited! The day has finally come to bomb these bastards. This is gonna feel so good," Enigma16n4 chimes in.

  My chest tightens as I read the words. What am I reading? Is this a sick joke? What are they talking about?

  "Haha," I type, although dread is already forming in the pit of my stomach. "You guys are really funny. I'm glad we don't actually do the bombing. I’m fine with just taking out corporate power by stealing from them."

  Spider5d3r says, "Rogue144, we're being serious. We have a bomb in place and we're going to get this thing done."

  I start to panic. This can't be real. They wouldn't do that, would they?

  These people—this online community that I thought I was a part of—might actually belong to a violent criminal organization? How could I have missed this?

  My hands are shaking, but I force myself to continue the conversation. I type, "You guys, that's not part of we're fighting for. That can seriously hurt other people. Or kill them."

  Spider5d3r writes, "Exactly! That's kind of the point. So, you're finally on board Rogue144. We didn't know whether you'd want to join in."

  "I don't!" I type, furious now, despite the fear racing across my chest. "I don't want to be any part of this. This is not part of the mission we pledged to from the beginning. No one agreed to hurting anybody."

  That’s when they start cursing me and calling me a traitor. I suddenly wonder what kind of people I've been surrounding myself with. Can they really have a bomb in place?

  I need to find out more information. Just as I’m about to retract my defense, they kick me out of the chat room.

  Panic seizes my body. I never wanted something like this to happen. I would never want someone to get hurt.

  I try to log back into the system but they’ve denied me access.

  I take a deep breath and remind myself that I'm dealing with other hackers—people just like me. I know I can't beat them at their own game.

  Thoughts race through my head as I consider the situation. Somehow, I've fallen in with a group of shady people without realizing it. Who can I call for help?

  And then I think of Marcus and the organization he's with. They seem like a pretty big operation with lots of connections. Maybe they can help?

  I hesitate to even call him because I've denied his request to work for his group so many times.

  But I can't think of any other option. I make the call.

  I play with a strand of my hair while I tell him that I need him over here right now. He doesn’t ask a lot of questions and says he'll be right over.

  The waiting is torture. I think about whether or not to call the police. I try to hack into the chatroom over and over again to no avail.

  I don't know what kind of bomb they have, where it's at, or when they plan on setting it off.

  I'm nearly hysterical when Marcus arrives. He holds my shaking body and I decide it's time to divulge the truth...about everything.

  He tries to calm me down and repeatedly asks me what's the matter.

  I sink down to my bed. I need to be honest with him. I know this could turn him away from me forever, but it could also help save lives.

  I have to do it.

  "Marcus, I think there's something you need to know about me,” I begin. “I'm not an activist. I'm a hacker. I'm a real-life computer genius and I spend my time stealing from banks and giving the money to the poor. I would've told you earlier but I didn't know if I could trust you.”

  I lower my eyes, afraid to see the disgust in his eyes. “I thought maybe you'd reject me if he knew the truth."

  When he doesn’t say anything, I raise my head to see him looking into my eyes, a look of compassion on his face.

  His silence makes it easier for me to go on. "Remember I said I was part of this online community? Well, they’re fellow hackers. We've been working together for several months to steal money from large corporations. I thought I could trust them. They were quickly becoming like family to me. But today, I learned the truth and it's not good."

  "What is it?” Marcus finally says. “Tell me what's going on, Katy."

  I can't even meet his eyes as I say the words. "They...they have a bomb. I just learned about it tonight. They have a bomb and they're going to use it and I don't know when and I don't know where. I didn't know who else to ask for help. I just thought that, since you're with an organization that's pretty big, maybe you had some ideas how to handle this. I'm really worried."

  He considers what I said for a moment, the gravity of the situation setting in. There's a bomb out there somewhere and we have no idea when it will go off.

  "We can help you, Katy. I promise. We'll take care of everything," he says.

  His words are like music to my ears and I hug him. I wrap my arms tightly around his neck because I'm so thankful and grateful to him for helping me.

  I honestly don't know what else I would've done. Marcus is a godsend and once again, I realize that he's everything and more that I could want in my life.

  26

  Marcus

  I’m ruthless when it comes to business.

  I’ve been told I’m arrogant and have expensive tastes.

  I’m a womanizer, and I’ve spent one too many nights on the town.

  But when it comes to saving lives…I’ll spare no expense.

  I’m shocked that Katy has trusted me with the truth. I’m pleased that there are no more secrets between us...at least from her side.

  But now I have to jump into action. Lives are at stake, and I suddenly feel as though the weight of the world is on my shoulders.

  “Katy,” I say, holding her arms. “You have to tell me more information. I need to know more information about the bomb. When is it gonna go off?”

  She looks at me with a worried expression and says, “I don’t know. I’ve been trying to log back into the chatroom but they have me axed. I can’t get back in. I just know that it’s gonna happen in the
next 24 hours. I remember them saying that.”

  “Okay, that’s something. We still need more to go off, but I’ll start making calls now. Don’t worry, everything’s gonna be okay.”

  I say the words, but in my heart, I’m not sure that it’s true. How can it be okay? There’s a bomb in the city, and we don’t know when and where it’s gonna go off.

  Luckily, I have every resource at my disposal.

  I make various calls, first to my personal security team who are the best in town.

  “Hey, Alfred,” I say to the main operative. “There’s a bomb in the city, and we don’t know when it’s gonna go off. My…friend thinks she might know what building it’s at, but she’s not sure. She’s gonna try to hack into the system and find out more information. But in the meantime, I need you guys combing the city for all potential suspects. Got it?”

  “No problem, boss.” He seems unfazed. “We’ll find it before it goes off. Trust me.”

  That’s why I like my team so much. Having protected celebrities and presidents alike, they are used to this sort of threat. I know they’ll get the job done.

  I also call the police, the FBI, and the government. There’s no hiding this from anybody. Everyone needs to find out.

  Somehow I’m gonna have to work around the fact that Katy is a hacker. I don’t want her getting in that middle of all this. She came clean with me after all. She deserves to be trusted.

  While we’re waiting for everyone to do their jobs, I ask Katy, “Anything else? Is there anything you can remember from the chat room?”

  She thinks for a few seconds and says, “They said they want to make a statement. And that this is their statement. I told them I didn’t agree with them and then they locked me out.”

  Part of me is proud of her for not being a part of this. I know she’s in a clandestine world that burglarizes corporations, but the fact that Katy can at least draw a line in the sand against her oppressors is a good sign. She has a sense of morality about her.

  Tears are forming in her eyes, and I realize how upsetting the situation must be for her. She’s never dealt with anything like this before. I can’t imagine how traumatizing it must be.

  And so much of my pride comes in the fact that she chose to call me over all others.

  I wrap her up in my arms and say, “It’s gonna be okay, Katy. We have the best people on it. The government knows, for God’s sake. They’ll shut it down, and everything will be fine. I promise.”

  “I hope so,” she says tearfully into my shoulder. “I just can’t help but feel responsible for all of this. Had I not been a part of their world, maybe none of this what happened.”

  I squeeze her tighter and say, “Yes, but Katy, if you hadn’t been part of their world, we never would have known about their plan, and the bomb probably would’ve gone off no matter what. So, it’s a good thing you were there. You’ll be what stopped it. Besides your motives are pure...kind of.”

  She laughs a little at my statement, and I’m glad to at least get a small smile from her.

  “I’m gonna try to hack into their system again. It doesn’t hurt to try,” Katy says as she opens the chat room once again.

  I facilitate many calls between the police and FBI. They’re questioning me about what else we know.

  “Is your source reliable?” an FBI agent says.

  “Extremely reliable. In fact, we’re trying to get as much information as we can right now.”

  The man says, “This could be a hoax. To be frank with you, Marcus, we don’t have the funds or the people to follow up on an unreliable tip. You know how many calls we get every day about bomb threats―and many aren’t real. It’s hard to sift the real ones apart from the fake ones. So for me to put manpower behind this, I need to know that it’s real for sure.”

  The fact that these guys are even talking to me about money makes me cringe.

  Shouldn’t the government have every resource at their disposal? How do they sift through the various bomb threats anyway? Who’s to say what’s right and what’s wrong in terms of this kind of violence?

  I decide to do the only thing that I can think of. I decide to do what I know is right.

  “Let me tell you this,” I say. “How about I pay for all of it instead? You can use my money for your resources and therefore you can use the best of the best and make sure to shut this thing down. I want you to do it.”

  The guy is surprised, and he says, “Are you sure about that, Marcus? Because I just might take you up on that offer. If what you say is true, we’re gonna need lots of people behind this.”

  “I’m absolutely sure. Do it.”

  It’s a drop in the bucket to me. I have so much damn money that it’s hard to spend it all sometimes.

  Just then I feel her slim arms come around my waist from behind.

  She says, “You’re really gonna do that? That’s amazing, Marcus. Spending your own money to stop this is really an amazing thing. Thank you.”

  I turn around and take her face in my hands before placing a deep kiss on her lips. I can smell the perfume in her hair or on her neck or wherever she puts them. She smells and looks gorgeous, as always.

  And I’m starting to get used to her little hacker apartment that doesn’t have one scrap of furniture.

  I take a seat on the bed next to her computer, and she goes to try to log back into the chat room. The girl is ruthless. She’s trying to navigate around all of their restrictions.

  I watch her fingers fly over the keyboard, and I’m just astonished at her talent for this kind of work.

  “Do you think you can break it? If you can do that, Katy, then we’ll have the upper hand,” I say.

  “I don’t know,” she says. “But I think I might’ve found a weakness in their chat room. I think I can get in and out pretty quickly without them realizing I was there. But the method that I need to use to do it is kind of shady.”

  “Shady?” I ask.

  “As in…breaking the law,” she says.

  “I think you should do whatever you need to do. This is more important than the law.”

  “Okay,” she breathes. “Here I go,” she says as she engineers her plan.

  I’m looking over her shoulder, waiting for any information to pop up on the screen.

  Finally, we see others in the chat room. The conversation is right before us. She and I are able to read every message exchanged about the bomb. We get every detail that we need.

  “You got it?” she asks. “Because they’re gonna know we’re here in a second. If they learn that we saw all the details they might change the location and the day of the bomb. I have to get out.”

  I’m writing down every last detail on my phone.

  Then I say to her, “Shut it down.”

  She does so, and we’re out of the chat room. But we got all the information we needed. Hopefully, the hackers will never have realized that we were there. Katy must really be good at her job to hack into a chat room with that many blocks.

  I’m on the phone immediately with my contacts relating to them all the new information.

  The FBI is absolutely pleased with it. I tell them not to ask where it came from. They don’t.

  27

  Marcus

  Katy is a nervous wreck.

  She’s pacing around the apartment, and I can tell that the waiting game is doing more to make her uneasy than if she had a job to do, like hacking into a system.

  Suddenly our hands are tied. All the authorities have been informed of the location of the bomb and any of the other details that we know. All we can do is sit back and wait. It’s torturous for me, but I think it’s worse for her because she feels responsible or involved in this somehow.

  “Katy, you know this isn’t your fault. You had nothing to do with planting the bomb. In fact, as soon as you found out about it, you did the right thing by contacting me and the authorities. Please don’t blame yourself,” I say, but it falls upon deaf ears.

  She’s
obviously not gonna believe me. She’s too much into her self-loathing.

  After finding out she’s been a part of something so sinister, I can only imagine the torment she must feel. I wish I could take it all away from her. I wish I could take her pain because I would.

  “What can I do?” I ask.

  “Nothing. There’s nothing you can do. I already blame myself. I just want this to all be over. I hope it turns out right, or I’ll be devastated for the rest of my life.”

  Now it’s more important to me than ever that they stop this bomb from going off. The thought of Katy being haunted by this situation is too much for me to bear.

  I want them to find the bomb so that those people will be safe and Katy will be off the hook. She doesn’t need to feel guilt over this. That’s my hope.

  I get up and try to hold her, but she’s wrestling out of my arms.

  “I can’t. I just can’t be held right now. I’m too upset,” she says.

  I try again to hold her. Maybe the feeling of my arms around her will do something to relax her strained body, but she pushes me off again and again. Finally, I give up.

  All we can do now is wait for news. All I can do is watch Katy freak out.

  Minutes tick by, but they feel like hours. I know I have my guys on the situation. I’m receiving text message after text message with updates. But nothing concrete yet.

  That is, until the FBI agent calls me back.

  He says, “We did it, Marcus. Everything is under control. The bomb squad caught two guys in action while trying to plant a bomb in the building that your source provided. We were able to dismantle the bomb and put the two guys in custody. We’ll make sure they give up the other people involved.”

  “That’s great.” I breathe a sigh of relief. “I couldn’t have received better news. Thank you so much. Thank you to your team and to everybody who was on the project.”

  Katy’s looking at me hopefully, and I don’t wait to tell her the good news.