Page 42 of Slap Shot
"Using the same hacker handle, the same signature techniques." Oliver pulled up network logs, cross-referencing attack patterns with Kai's old methods. "But he's evolved. These attacks are more sophisticated than anything he could do back then."
"Which means he's had time to improve his skills," Heather said. "And find new resources."
Oliver's secure system chimed with another message from HexAngel:
Remember the warehouse, old friend? Remember how it felt to be helpless? Your pretty girlfriend's about to learn the same lesson. Some betrayals echo through the years.
The words hit Oliver like a physical blow. His vision narrowed, and suddenly he was back in that chair, zip-tied and bleeding, while voices discussed how much the FBI knew about their operation.
"Oliver." Heather's voice cut through the flashback. "Stay with me. You're not there anymore."
But the panic was rising, filling his chest with ice water. "He's going to do to you what he did to me. He's going to hand you over to people who will hurt you to get information."
"No, he's not." Heather's voice was firm. "Because we're not going to let that happen."
"You don't understand." Oliver pushed away from his computer, pacing to the window. Charlie immediately followed, maintaining contact. "Kai doesn't just betray people. He studies them first. Learns their weaknesses, their fears. He knew exactly how to deliver me to those criminals because he'd spent months learning how I thought, how I worked."
"What's he learned about me?"
The question stopped Oliver mid-pace. He turned back to face her, fear clawing at his throat. "Everything. Your divorce, your ex-husband's betrayal, how hard you've worked to rebuild your career." His voice cracked. "He knows that losing your professional reputation would destroy you."
"And?"
"And he'll use that knowledge to put you in a position where you're vulnerable. Where you have to choose between your safety and your career." Oliver's hands were shaking now. "Just like he used my commitment to the investigation to put me in that warehouse."
Heather moved closer, studying his face. "Tell me exactly what happened three years ago."
Oliver closed his eyes, forcing himself back into that nightmare. "We'd been tracking this group for months. Military contractors selling weapons specifications to foreign buyers. The investigation was close to breaking the case wide open."
"But?"
"But they were getting suspicious. Starting to ask questions about leaks in their organization." Oliver's voice grew quieter. "Kai suggested we meet to coordinate our next move. Said he had new intelligence that could crack the case."
"It was a trap."
"He'd already made a deal with them. Information about the federal investigation in exchange for his freedom." Oliver opened his eyes, meeting Heather's gaze. "When I showed upto our meeting, they were waiting. Kai stood there and watched them grab me."
"What did they want?"
"Names of federal agents, details about other ongoing investigations, information that would let them clean house before anyone else could be arrested." Oliver's jaw tightened. "They were very thorough in their questioning methods."
Heather's face went pale. "How long?"
"Three days. Three days of them asking questions and me refusing to answer." Oliver gestured toward Charlie. "The PTSD, the panic attacks, all of it traces back to those seventy-two hours."
"But you didn't break."
"I didn't give them what they wanted, if that's what you're asking. But they broke something in me anyway." Oliver sank into a chair, suddenly exhausted. "When the police finally found me, when I was recovering in the hospital, you know what the worst part was?"
"What?"
"Kai visited me. Sat beside my hospital bed and apologized. Said he'd had no choice, that they would have killed him if he hadn't cooperated." Oliver's voice turned bitter. "Then he asked if I understood why he'd had to do it. Like his cowardice was something I should forgive."
"What did you tell him?"
“I didn’t say a damned thing. I gave him up and he got sent to prison.”
"But now he's back."
