The ghost at the table – Draft 03 – Chapter 14

Logan

I hunched over my laptop, the screen’s glow the only light in the room. Fingers danced across keys with military precision—a skill that stuck from RAAF days. Information streamed down the monitor: farms, assets, security protocols. A Chinese conglomerate, vast as the outback and twice as ruthless.

Their cyber defence was a fortress. Advanced algorithms. Firewalls within firewalls. I felt the weight of the challenge press against my chest, an invisible enemy pushing me back into that dark hole where depression lurked.

“Damn,” I muttered under my breath.

I knew when I was outgunned. My fingers paused, hovering above the keyboard. They needed someone else on the keys. Someone who could dance through code like a shadow.

D@@Mladen.

I pulled up the secure chat, the one I reserved for emergencies. The cursor blinked like a beacon, waiting for my SOS.

“Need advice on a tough target,” I typed, blunt and to the point.

Seconds ticked by. Then a reply, terse as mine.

“Risks?”

“High.”

“Plan?”

“Working on it.”

“Call me.”

Her voice crackled through the line, a whisper in a world of screams. “Logan, you’re playing with fire here.”

“Got no choice,” I said, my own voice steady but low.

“Remember, careful planning. Execution is key. One slip and it’s game over.”

“Understood.” I clenched my jaw—no room for error. No room for the rigid chains of command that once strangled my spirit in the service.

“Watch your back,” D@@Mladen added before the line went dead.

I leaned back in my chair, the silence of the room creeping in like fog. Friendship. Survival. Out here, they’re one and the same. And right now, I needed both.

—

Days bleed into nights. I’m holed up with screens that cast a sickly blue pallor over everything. The conglomerate’s network sprawls before me like a digital fortress. Schematics and security protocols become my new scripture. Every line of code, every firewall, it’s a puzzle piece. They have their secrets; I have my will.

I find the cracks. Small ones, hairline fractures in their armour. Vulnerabilities. My fingers fly across the keyboard, documenting each one. A map takes shape on the screen, a guide through their defences. Each route plotted with precision—a way in, a way out.

“Focus,” I whisper to myself, the word a mantra.

Tools are next. Software, scripts, code—weapons for my arsenal. I trawl through the dark corners of the net, places where only shadows dare to tread. Downloads tick away, data flowing like contraband.

Testing time. Smaller fish first. They’re proxies, unwilling participants in my rehearsal. I slip in and out, ghost-like. The tools work. Relief is short-lived—it has to be perfect.

“Precision,” I remind myself. No room for the sloppiness that comes with complacency.

Each successful entry is a notch on my belt, a whisper of confidence. But overconfidence is a killer. I stay sharp, lean on the lessons learned when the military was my life. Discipline without the chains.

The plan is ready. Tools are sharp. It’s almost time.

“Let’s see what you’ve got,” I murmur to the absent enemy. My reflection stares back at me from the dark window—blonde hair, the hard lines of determination etched into my face.

“Survival,” I add. That’s what this is about. Not just mine, but honouring her memory too. It’s doing right by Lily.

Friendship and survival. Out here, they’re all I got. And I’ll be damned if I let either one slip through my fingers.

—

The clock hits midnight. It’s ‘go’ time. My fingers dance across the keyboard, a silent concerto in the dead of night. Screens glow—the only light in my dimly lit room. A shroud of darkness outside, but I’m not looking at the stars tonight.

“Firewalls first,” I mutter.

My code slices through their digital barriers. Precision. The kind they drilled into me back in the service. Encryption falls next. Complex algorithms unravel before me, an intricate lock picking under my deft touch.

“Easy does it.” Sweat beads on my forehead. Can’t afford mistakes.

I’m in. But this is just the surface. The real test lies ahead. Layers upon layers of security. I knew they’d be there. Prepared for them. Each hurdle, anticipated.

“Alright, what’s next?” I challenge the silence around me.

They’ve got tripwires, honey pots, silent alarms masked as regular code. Traps for the unwary. Not for me. I weave through them like a ghost, my presence nothing but a whisper in the net.

“Keep moving,” I urge myself.

Every second counts. Every move has to be clean. One slip and it’s game over. Not just for the hack, but for me. For the justice Lily deserves.

“Can’t let her down. Won’t.”

Their AI sniffs around, hunting for intruders. Smart. Adaptive. But I’m smarter. Years of typing up Top Secret messages made sure of that. A battle of wits in the digital realm. I reroute my connection, a misdirection. Let it chase shadows.

“Close one,” I breathe out.

It’s a game of cat and mouse. I’m both predator and prey, dancing on the edge of discovery. My heart hammers in my chest. Rigid military discipline keeps my hands steady. Can’t let the past cripple me now. Gotta keep moving forward.

“Almost there,” I tell the darkness.

Friendship. Survival. They hang in the balance. They’re worth every risk. For Stephanie. For Lily. For the small-town life that’s more than it seems. I’m playing for high stakes; higher than the command-and-control games I left behind.

“Focus. Execute.”

I press on, deeper into the conglomerate’s secrets. Their defences are relentless, but so am I. They don’t know who they’re dealing with—a ghost in the machine, a spectre of vengeance.

“Logan Robinson,” I whisper my own name like a battle cry.

The night wears on. I wear down their defences. Step by step, line by line. I’m not just fighting for myself anymore. This is for every underdog who never had a chance against the big players.

“Let’s turn the tables.”

Dawn creeps up. My room starts to brighten. But I’m not done yet. The hardest part still awaits. I can feel the weight of the world on my shoulders, but I won’t buckle. I can’t.

“Stay sharp.”

I push through the fatigue, the mental fog. There’s no room for error. Not here. Not now. The screen blurs, but I blink it back into focus. I’ve come too far to fail.

“Finish it, Logan.”

A new day begins as I burrow further into the heart of their empire. The sun rises, and with it, hope. Hope that I’ll find what I need. Hope that I’ll make it through. Hope that in the end, friendship and guts will win out over corruption and greed.

“Survival,” I remind myself again. It’s the mantra that keeps me going.

“Survival and justice.”

—

The digital vault looms before me. Numbers, accounts, assets—all ripe for the taking. Heart hammers in my chest. Fingers dance across the keyboard with military precision. I’m in.

“Nothing personal,” I mutter. Just survival. Justice.

I start stripping them down. Financial records bleed out under my command. Figures plummet. Dollars turn to digits turn to dust. I reroute funds through a maze of transactions. Ghost money. Now you see it, now you don’t.

“Sorry, mates.” But not sorry. They won’t starve. Not like some.

Eyes on the prize, Logan.

A file catches my eye. Hidden. Forbidden. I click. Eyes scan. Heart stops. Money laundering. Organized crime ties. Real bad stuff.

“Gotcha.”

Fingers fly faster. Copying. Saving. Evidence that could nail these mongrels. The proof is power. Power to cripple more than their bank accounts. Power to expose. To topple empires built on lies.

“Stephanie would love this,” I whisper. Her fight’s now my fight. Together in spirit. Friends beyond the end.

“Keep it together.” Focus sharp as a blade. Can’t slip up. Not when I’m holding dynamite. This information—it’s explosive.

“Time to blow the lid off.”

I store the data. Safe and sound. A wildcard up my sleeve. I’ll play it when the time’s right. For Lily. For truth.

“Job’s done.” I lean back. Screen glows. Dawn’s early light filters in. Warm. Reassuring.

“Survival,” I repeat. The mantra that drove me through the night. Friendship and justice wrapped in two simple words.

“Time to vanish.” One last look at the chaos I sowed.

“Logan Robinson,” I say, parting shot to the silence. “Remember that name.”

Because they will. When their world crumbles, they’ll know who did it. Who stood up for the little guy.

“Disappear into the shadows,” I tell myself. That’s where I thrive. That’s where I win.

“Sunrise,” I note, almost surprised. Another day. More battles ahead.

“For now, rest.” The screen goes dark. So do I. Into the shadows. Into the quiet. But not for long. Never for long.

—

A flicker. That’s all it takes. The cursor blinks erratically, and I sense it before the alarms scream through my headphones. They’re onto me.

“Damn,” I grunt, fingers a blur on the keyboard. Security hounds picking up the scent. They unleash their code to hunt me down.

“Can’t let them.” A mantra. My heartbeat syncs with rapid keystrokes.

My screen splashes warnings. Red text, like blood in water. They’ve got a trace. Not good.

“Change tack,” I mutter. I dive into my bag of tricks. IP shuffle. Now you see me, now you don’t.

“Good luck catching smoke.” I smirk, but it’s all show. Gotta stay frosty.

I pull up the proxies. A digital masquerade. Today, I’m from everywhere. Nowhere. Ghost in the wires.

“Predict this,” I challenge, as if they could hear me. I scatter my presence like autumn leaves in the wind.

“Nice try, mongrels,” I whisper. Pride swells. They’re throwing punches at shadows.

Another alert. Closer. These guys are relentless.

“Focus, Logan.” I can’t afford mistakes. Lily’s counting on me. Stephanie, too. Friends in the darkness.

“Keep moving.” Juke left. Now right. Cyber dance. They’re stumbling. Tripping over their own feet.

“Logan Robinson doesn’t quit.” I don’t. Won’t. Can’t.

“Almost there.” The endgame. Just need to cover my tracks. Leave them chasing their tails.

“Time’s ticking.” It always is. Out here, in the quiet country, even the kangaroos know that.

“Stay ahead.” One last flurry. Code cascades down the screen. My digital footprint? Gone.

“Survive.” Always do. Keyboard goes silent. Screen’s a blank stare.

“Job’s done.” For now. But the war? Far from over.

“Disappear into the shadows.” I rise, stretching out the kinks. They’ll be searching. Let them.

“Sunrise,” I note again. A new day. Same battle.

“Rest later.” Eyes on the horizon. There’s work to be done. Friends to fight for. Shadows to embrace.

“Logan Robinson,” I whisper. A promise. A threat. Into the shadows I melt. Ready for what comes next.

—

I survey the aftermath. Numbers flicker—accounts drain like a dam breach. Not just numbers. Their lifeline.

“Clean up,” I mutter. The conglomerate’s digital empire, now a house of cards in a gale. My doing. Can’t leave fingerprints. Not one.

“Scorch the earth.” I type commands with surgical precision. Every trace of my intrusion, every footstep through their network, I burn away. Invisible. Like I was never there.

“Perfect crime?” No such thing. But as close as it gets.

“Leave them a gift.” A smirk pulls at my lips. The logs twist, tell a different tale. Their tale. One where they crumble from within. Evidence planted like seeds. Let them grow into towering oaks of blame.

“Time to cash out.” I lean back, the click-clack of my keyboard subsides. Eyes on the screen. The farms, worthless husks now. Time to sell.

“New identities.” I shuffle through aliases like a deck of cards. Pick a new face. A new name. Paper trails lead nowhere. Shell companies like Russian dolls.

“Buyers line up.” They don’t know. Can’t know. The land speaks to them, sings a siren song. I play conductor.

“Disperse.” Farms scatter to the winds. North. South. Everywhere. A jigsaw puzzle with no picture. Impossible to piece together.

“Harder for them.” The conglomerate will scramble, claw at the dirt. But the earth has shifted beneath their feet. I’ve seen to that.

“Dawn breaks.” I glance outside. The first light creeps over Meningie. Quiet town. Unassuming. My fortress.

“Friendship.” It’s everything. Lily’s memory. Stephanie’s trust. Fuel for the fire burning inside me.

“Survival.” Not just mine. Ours. Together in the shadows.

“Logan Robinson.” I whisper the name. Identity is fluid. But some things are constant.

“Sun’s up.” I shut down the screens. Stand. Stretch muscles tight from the night’s labour.

“Rest?” A laugh escapes me. Brief. Bitter. “Later.”

“Disappear.” Into the day. Into the fight. Logan Robinson steps into the light. Ready for what comes next. Shadows cling. They always do.

—

Fingers pause. One last key press. “Enter.” The screen blinks. Connection severed. I sit back, heart thumping—a storm in my chest.

“Done.” The word tastes of ash and victory. The conglomerate’s veins ripped open. Digital blood spilled by my hand. Lily’s face flashes before me. Sweet revenge for her silence. A corrupt titan wounded deep.

“Weight.” It sinks into my bones. The scope of it. Not just a hack. An earthquake. Their empire, their sins laid bare by my keystrokes. A shudder runs through me. This is more than payback. It’s justice—Lily’s justice.

“Consequences.” The thought looms. They’ll come hunting. A conglomerate scorned is a beast unleashed. My actions, the stone that stirred the hornet’s nest.

“Preparations.” No time for rest. Can’t let my guard down. I scan the room. My safe haven in Meningie. Won’t be safe for long. They’ve got resources. They’ve got reach.

“Stephanie.” Ally or adversary? She’s close to the truth. Too close. But she has honour. Fights the same shadows. Maybe together…

“Resolve.” A deep breath. Let it out slow. The conglomerate isn’t just my enemy now. They’re hers too. They’re everyone’s. And I’ve got the dirt. The power to hit them where it hurts.

“Skills.” They taught me well. RAAF made me fast. Military precision turned civilian vendetta. Hacking tools not just weapons—they’re keys. Keys to unlock the truth. To protect. To fight.

“Trust.” That’s the gamble. Stephanie could turn me in. But she won’t. Can’t. She’s seen the darkness too. Knows what hides behind their smiles. Their handshakes. Their lies.

“Time.” It’s running thin. Dawn’s light strengthens. Day comes on fast. I need to move. Make decisions. Choose the path of the righteous—or the damned.

“Logan Robinson.” The name carries weight. History. A soldier once. Now something else. A ghost in the machine. A guardian. An avenger.

“Forward.” Stand up. Chair scrapes back. Stiff from the long night. The screen goes dark. Just like me. Into the unknown.

“Ready.” For whatever comes. The conglomerate’s wrath. The law’s long arm. Doesn’t matter. I’ve got purpose now. Lily’s voice whispers with the wind. Stephanie’s resolve hardens mine.

“Step into the light.” Logan Robinson makes his stand. Teeth clenched. Eyes open. Shoulder square.

“Fight.” Not just for me—for all of us. The first battle’s won. War’s just begun.

“Survive.” Together, in the light, in the shadow. Always.

I slip into the night, a shadow among shadows. The air’s cold on my skin—sharp, like the edge of a knife. My heart’s still racing, but my hands are steady. They’ve done their work. The screens behind me flicker with the remnants of chaos I’ve sown; codes and numbers dance in the dying light of my monitors.

The houses sleep. Out here, in Meningie, darkness is an old friend. It cloaks me from prying eyes, hides my sins, and keeps company with the ghosts of my past. The weight of what I’ve done presses down on me, heavy as the silence that blankets the countryside.

Screens go black. I cut the connection. It’s done. The conglomerate won’t know what hit ‘em—not until it’s too late. Money trails vanish. Assets bleed out. Their empire, a house of cards in a digital storm, now waits for the inevitable collapse.

Evidence. Secrets. They’re tucked away safe in my digital vault. Ammunition for the battles to come. Stephanie will get her share. We’ll expose them—every dirty deal, every laundered dollar.

But the fight’s far from over. Security teams’ll be scrambling, tracing, hunting for the ghost in their machine. They won’t find me. Can’t find me. Not in this endless labyrinth of ones and zeroes. I’m a whisper on the wind, a rumour at dawn.

“Logan Robinson.” Once just a name. Now a threat. A promise. I skirt around the edges of light cast by the streetlamps, my figure nothing more than a fleeting disturbance in the tranquillity of the rural dark.

Steps quicken. Gravel crunches underfoot. I glance back at the faint glow of town. Friends there. Bonds stronger than blood. We look out for each other. In the bush, that’s the only way. Survival’s a team sport.

“Stephanie.” Her name’s a beacon. A guiding star. She’s fighting her own war. This—my midnight crusade—it’s for her, too. For Lily. For all who suffer under the yoke of those corporate vultures.

“Disappear.” That’s what I gotta do. Blend with the shadows until they forget. Until they think they’re safe again. But we never forget. And they’re never safe.

“Tomorrow.” It’s a question mark. A blank page in the story of Logan Robinson. But one thing’s certain: the dawn will find the conglomerate reeling, their empire shaken to the core.

“Survive.” That’s the word of the day. Every day. Out here, you learn it fast, or you don’t last long. You hold tight to your friends, because when the dust settles, they’re your lifeline.

“Fight.” It’s etched into my soul. Lily whispers it with every breeze that rustles through the eucalyptus trees. Stephanie’s eyes speak it without words. We fight together—even when we’re apart.

“Vanish.” I step off the road, leave no trace. They’ll search. They’ll wonder. But in the end, they’ll doubt. Doubt their eyes, their ears, their fancy systems. Was he ever even here?

“Chaos.” My parting gift. A digital wake roiling behind me. The full impact? Time will tell. Crops will grow again, but not for them. Not anymore.

The sky begins to lighten in the east. New day. New fight. Logan Robinson’s ready. Always.