I stopped to help a woman who was dy//ing on the side of the road and lost my job because I arrived late

“And the access came from this building.”

Every person in the room turned toward Gavin.

But Gavin wasn’t looking at Eleanor.

He was looking at me.

And in that instant, I saw something far worse than fear in his eyes.

Recognition.

Then he whispered four words.

Christopher, check your laptop.”

My laptop was still sitting exactly where I had left it that morning.

Closed.

Connected to its charger.

A framed photograph of my daughters stood beside it, both girls grinning from the beach last summer while holding melting ice cream cones.

For a moment, seeing their faces made the whole situation feel painfully real.

I had been worried about losing my salary.

Now attorneys were talking about stolen corporate files.

Daniel stood beside me while a Halston cybersecurity specialist joined remotely.

“Don’t touch the keyboard yet,” he said.

“I haven’t.”

“Has anyone else used this device?”