Chapter 381 The Final Countdown

Tilda’s hands flew over the keyboard. Streams of code flashed against her eyes like streaks of lightning. She devoured the flood of data with a speed that left no space for hesitation. Her gaze sharpened when she caught it. The clue burned bright on the screen. Only 30 minutes remained before Endralsia’s deadline hit.

“Listen up, all of you.”

She clapped once, and the sharp sound drew the squad straight to her. “There’s a signal reflector here.” Her finger pressed against the glowing point on the display.

Astrid leaned forward. “Are you telling me that came from inside the hotel?”

“Most likely,” Tilda answered. She already knew the truth: Dominic. That reckless idiot still carried tricks from the dark web. He had left behind a hidden escape rope and prayed someone sharp enough would pull on it. This was her plan B. Dominic’s secret transmitter was the doorway she needed into Hotel Morloss.

“I’ll break this reflector open. Once I do, we’ll have a way to hijack the system. Finished.”

“The clock is ticking, so I need every one of you ready. The second I send the signal, you’ll follow in with the master key.”

“Yes, Captain.”

Jarrett and the rest scattered back to their stations. They trusted her without question. She had never let them down. Her chest tightened as she dug into the device.

You’re a cruel jokester, fate. Cruel, indeed. Dominic had learned every move from her. This transmitter was one of his proudest builds. Now she was tearing it apart like it was her own creation. She slipped through its walls as if walking roads she had paved herself. In moments, it broke.

Her brow creased. The power was too low. Dominic must have realized who he was up against. A strong signal would have screamed for attention and ended with blood on the floor. He had chosen survival. But the weak output couldn’t seize the hotel’s network.

“I’m in. I’ll crank the signal higher. Spread out across ten routes and look for cracks.”

“Yes!” Her voice rang clear. Keys clattered like rain on steel. She didn’t pause. This was Plan B. If Dominic had planted one transmitter, then someone else could have planted another. Two working together might be enough to break the wall.

“No go, Queen. It’s stuck at the final step.”

“This signal doesn’t cut it. We need a second entry.” Jarrett’s tone carried defeat, and the others echoed him. Every path slammed shut. The clock raced on. Fifteen minutes left. Nobody dared say it aloud. They feared shaking her focus. Tilda sat still, her mind like a blade. Finished.

She sifted through every trace in the data. The heavier the weight grew, the calmer she became. Not a single beat of attention slipped away. Not a single detail missed her. She would not allow panic to take over, or she might overlook crucial clues. Finished.

Her quiet strength filled the room: the strength of dark web’s top hacker, Queen, the strength of someone who’d gone through many battles. Even Jarrett and the others steadied under it. Their hearts were steadying. They sank into their chairs and poured themselves into the hunt. The counter slipped below ten minutes when her eyes caught another spark.

Finally.

At long last, their hunt proved fruitful.

“Lowell.” Her pupils narrowed as she stared at the name tied to the second transmitter. “Hmm… Lowell.” She remembered how Kyla had betrayed the Jensons. She sold their secrets to Tobias. They were business strategies. Tobias had left for Endralsia, and his name had landed on the hostage list at Hotel Morloss. It was the chance she needed.

“I found it. Five minutes. That’s all I need.” Her fingers tore into the keys like a storm. The others let out quiet breaths and pressed their hopes into her hands. Everything depended on her now. Breaking into a transmitter buried so deep that even the enemy’s finest had missed it was madness, and in five minutes too. That was double the madness. Yet she was Queen. She was the one who could make madness bow. All they had to do was trust her.

Five minutes struck, and the device split open.

“Move now! Search the routes. Push hard until it breaks!”

“Yes!”

“A is blocked.”

“B failed.”

“C shut down.”

“E is open!” Zach’s shout cracked through the tension. Heads whipped toward him.

“Zach, hand me your control right now,” Tilda ordered. Finished.