Chapter 12 - A Desperate Trap
For the next two weeks, the dynamic at Oakridge High transformed completely. Leo Vance remained humble, continuing his studies, but he was no longer treated as an outcast. Teachers spoke to him with deep respect, and students gave him a wide, awed berth.
Meanwhile, Brad Sterling was descending into madness.
Living in a small rented motel room with his mother while his father awaited trial in federal prison, Brad could not accept his new reality. His pride had been shattered, his future stolen, and his social standing erased.
In the back of a dingy diner late one afternoon, Brad sat with two of his former football teammates, Kevin and Greg, who were equally bitter about losing their social status.
“We can’t just let him win,” Brad whispered aggressively, leaning across the table. His eyes were bloodshot and wild.
“Dude, he’s a billionaire now,” Kevin warned, shaking his head. “He has team of lawyers. We should just stay away from him.”
“No!” Brad slammed his fist on the table. “He’s still just a kid! He’s eighteen! If he gets caught in a massive federal felony, his corporate board will vote him out! The whole takeover will collapse!”
“What are you talking about?” Greg asked nervously.
Brad pulled a small black USB flash drive from his pocket. “My dad’s former IT director gave me this before the asset freeze. It contains classified military server access codes that my dad’s company was developing. If we plant this drive in Leo’s school locker and upload a virus into the school network using his personal server IP... we can frame him for cyber-terrorism.”
Kevin stared at Brad like he was insane. “Brad, that’s federal prison stuff! Are you crazy?!”
“He ruined my life!” Brad spat, his voice trembling with unhinged malice. “I’m going to make sure he spends the next twenty years in a cell next to my father! Are you in, or are you cowards?”
Reluctantly, out of old loyalty and fear of Brad’s erratic state, Kevin and Greg agreed.
That night, under the cover of dark rain, three figures slipped through a unlocked basement window of Oakridge High.
Brad led the way down the silent, dark hallways using a flashlight. They reached Leo’s locker. Brad pulled out a lock-picking kit he had bought online and successfully popped the latch.
He threw the black USB drive into the back of Leo’s locker behind his textbooks.
“Now,” Brad smirked wickedly, pulling out a laptop and plugging it into the school’s main network hub nearby. “Let’s execute the breach program. By morning, the FBI will trace a major server breach right back to Leo Vance’s locker.”
Brad pressed 'ENTER'.
Suddenly, the bright red emergency lights of the school ceiling flashed on.
A loud siren began to blare throughout the hallway.
[SECURITY BREACH DETECTED]
[LOCALIZING THREAT LOCATION]
Brad panicked. “Wait, what? No! The program wasn't supposed to set off alarms!”
“Brad, let’s go!” Kevin screamed, running toward the emergency exits.
Before they could reach the doors, heavy steel security shutters slammed down, locking them inside the main hallway.
Over the school PA system, a smooth, calm voice echoed through the dark corridor.
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“Did you really think I wouldn't monitor my own school’s network, Brad?”
Brad froze. It was Leo’s voice.
