Badass in Disguise (Shadow) novel Chapter 30

Chapter 30

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Ethan Haxton paced across his Manhattan penthouse, morning sunlight streaming through floor–to- ceiling windows that framed the city skyline. His fingers absently traced the black spider tattoo on his knuckle as he processed the previous night’s digital confrontation.

“It has to be X,” Connor insisted, his expression a mix of frustration and reluctant admiration. “No

one else could have countered my attack that efficiently.”

Ethan shook his head. “X is a ghost story hackers tell to feel better about their failures. A convenient

myth.”

“With all due respect, sir, X is very real. They’ve breached systems everyone claimed were

impenetrable. The FBI, DARPA, even-”

“I know the legends,” Ethan interrupted, stopping to gaze out at the city. “But this is different. Our opponent isn’t just a hacker. They solved that quantum alignment paradox–something the brightest

minds at Princeton couldn’t crack.”

Connor’s eyes widened. “You think it’s the same person? A hacker and a physics genius?”

“Exactly. Someone extraordinary.” Ethan’s phone buzzed with a text from Philip Thornton. The

Princeton dean was asking if they should increase their scholarship offer.

Ethan typed a quick response: Don’t bother. Someone with that level of talent won’t be swayed by

conventional incentives. This isn’t about money for them.

The next morning, the Haxton Group’s downtown headquarters hummed with anticipation. The quarterly board meeting was about to begin, with senior executives filling the glass–walled conference room overlooking the financial district.

Connor Haxton straightened his tie nervously. As Ethan’s cousin and head of cybersecurity, he was responsible for presenting the quarter’s digital infrastructure improvements. He opened his laptop and connected it to the room’s projection system.

“Good morning, everyone,” Connor began, forcing confidence into his voice. “I’m pleased to report significant progress on our-”

His words died as the screen behind him flashed to life. Instead of his meticulously prepared

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Chapter 30

presentation, explicit pornographic images filled the massive display. A series of videos began

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playing automatically, complete with unmistakable sound effects that echoed through the conference room’s premium speakers.

“What the fuck?” Connor frantically jabbed at keys, his face flushing crimson as elderly board members gasped in shock. “This isn’t–I didn’t–this isn’t my presentation!”

Nothing worked. The remote control did nothing. Connor desperately slammed it against the table, then threw it at the screen, where it bounced off harmlessly as the images continued to cycle.

Ethan’s face had turned to stone. “Meeting adjourned,” he announced, his voice cutting through the chaos. “We’ll reconvene when our systems are… functional.”

As the room cleared, Ethan remained seated, staring at Connor with icy fury. “Check your files. All of

them. Now.”

An hour later, Connor reported back, his face ashen. “Everything’s gone. All my presentations, reports, projections–replaced with… that content. The backup servers too. It’s like someone reached

into our system and just… changed everything.”

“Not someone,” Ethan said quietly. “X. I’d be furious if I wasn’t so damn impressed.”

At Cloud City High School, the hallways buzzed with speculation.

“Did you hear? They fired Dr. Thompson and Mr. Peterson!”

“I heard Peterson got his teaching license revoked!”

Ashley Williams leaned against her locker, phone in hand. “My dad works for the school district. There was an emergency meeting last night. The mayor showed up personally.”

“Why would the mayor care about some random cheating accusation?” someone asked,

“It wasn’t random,” Ashley replied. “My dad said Peterson accused the wrong student. Someone with

connections.”

“You mean Jade Morgan?” a sophomore girl whispered. “I saw her talking to this super hot guy in an expensive suit last week. Custom tailored, Armani or something.”

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Chapter 30

“No way! Fat Jade?”

:

“She’s not fat anymore,” Ashley corrected. “Haven’t you seen her? She lost like fifty pounds over weeks.”

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Orion Miller listened quietly, remembering the suited man he’d seen talking to Felix Huxley outside the principal’s office. He frowned, tuning out his classmates‘ gossip as they abandoned their SAT prep to speculate about Jade Morgan’s mysterious connections.

Monday morning’s assembly brought another surprise. Principal Thompson was gone, replaced by a middle–aged woman with a friendly smile.

“Good morning, students. I’m Dr. Rebecca Winters, formerly vice principal at Jefferson High. I’ll be serving as your principal for the remainder of the year.”

The whispers started immediately. No explanation for Thompson’s sudden departure was offered, but everyone connected it to the Jade Morgan incident. By lunchtime, there wasn’t a student at Cloud

City High who hadn’t heard some version of the story.

Max Morgan couldn’t eat his lunch in peace. Every few minutes, another student would approach with questions about his sister.

“Is it true Jade has some political connection?”

“Did your sister really get Peterson fired?”

“Hey Max, nice new iPhone. Did Jade get you that too?”

Max shifted uncomfortably, the attention making him self–conscious about his left foot. “She just

studied hard and proved she didn’t cheat. That’s all.”

“But she used to be… you know,” a girl whispered, making a gesture to indicate obesity. “Now she’s like, hot. How did that happen so fast?”

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