Side Chick Era Over (Sharon and Carter) novel Chapter 1137

Chapter 1137

When Thomas arrived, he found Sharon still bent over her studies, quietly teaching herself the language of

business.

Sunlight spilled through the window and washed her in gold, setting her like a small beacon in the dim room. Calm and luminous, she seemed both gentle and resolute-the kind of presence that draws anyone lost in darkness forward without them quite knowing why.

Thomas paused at the doorway, unaccountably disarmed by the sight. Sharon looked up and met his gaze; his momentary distraction registered in the depths of his eyes.

“Thomas, is something wrong?” she asked. There was an ease to her that made people relax-an effect Thomas felt immediately as his own pulse steadied.

He crossed the room and stood beside her. Despite the crisis around them, she showed no trace of panic. Her composure steadied him further.

“You don’t look worried at all,” he observed.

“I expected this outcome,” she replied. “If everything were calm right now, I’d be the one feeling uneasy.”

“Have you found the mole?” he asked.

She shook her head. “Not yet. I suspect the leak isn’t just the result of bribing an executive. There are other avenues. Right now, the most likely scenario is a hacker attack.”

She tapped the screen with a fingertip. “Somebody’s breached our systems.”

Thomas’s expression shifted. “Wasn’t Xavier the one who introduced you to that top-tier hacker to lock down your network? He promised no one could break through those defenses for five years. We spent eight million on that. And in just a few months-?” His smile was faint, bitter. “Seems Xavier’s expert was all talk.”

Sharon gave a small cough and answered gently, “The hacker Xavier recommended was reputedly ranked number one. I had people look into it. He’d held the top spot for five straight years.”

Thomas let out a short laugh. “So not only was he ineffective, he was full of hot air.”

“Maybe there’s always someone better,” Sharon admitted. “There are always higher mountains.”

“What’s the hacker’s name?” he pressed.

“I don’t know his real name,” she said. “He used the handle ‘T.””

Thomas’s voice took on a cool edge. “T dropped to second place six months ago.”

Sharon blinked. “How do you know that?”

“This scene has its own underground fame,” Thomas replied. “I know the players.”

She hesitated, then asked, “Who’s number one now?”

“Someone called Q, I think.” He allowed himself a rueful smile. “All aliases-letters and nonsense. You’d think

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