Chapter 8: The Quantum Secret

I never thought I'd be crawling through air ducts on my wedding night, but here I am, Dr. Olivia Chen-Drake, newlywed and corporate spy extraordinaire. The cool metal presses against my palms as I inch forward, my designer dress snagging on every seam and rivet. So much for Ethan's 'simple infiltration' plan.

My heart pounds in my ears, drowning out the distant hum of Drake Technologies' massive servers. I'm close now, I can feel it. The quantum computer lab has to be just ahead.

A flash of the future hits me – stock prices spiraling, markets in freefall. I gasp, nearly losing my grip on the duct. These visions are getting stronger, more frequent. What the hell is happening to me?

Focus, Olivia. I shake off the lingering dizziness and press on. The secrets hidden in this building could change everything. My economic theories, Ethan's company, the entire global financial system – it's all connected, I'm sure of it.

I reach a grate and peer through. Bingo. The lab sprawls below me, a techno-wonderland of pulsing lights and humming machinery. And there, in the center, stands a monolith of gleaming metal and glass. The quantum computer. My breath catches in my throat. It's real.

I start to work the grate loose, my fingers trembling with excitement and fear. Just as I'm about to push it free, a voice echoes through the lab.

"I know you're up there, Dr. Chen. Or should I say, Mrs. Drake?"

Ice floods my veins. Victoria. The new board member, the one who's been eyeing both me and Ethan like a shark circling its prey. How did she know?

"Why don't you come down and join me?" Her voice is silky smooth, dangerous. "We have so much to discuss."

I'm trapped. If I retreat, I lose my only chance at the quantum data. If I descend, I'm at Victoria's mercy. Neither option is good.

Gritting my teeth, I push the grate open and drop into the lab. My dress billows around me as I land in a crouch, facing Victoria. She stands by the quantum computer, a sleek tablet in her hand and a predatory smile on her face.

"Quite the entrance," she purrs. "I do hope you're finding married life... exciting."

I straighten, forcing my face into a mask of cool professionalism. "Victoria. Burning the midnight oil?"

She laughs, the sound sharp and mirthless. "Oh, I think we're both here for more than overtime, don't you?" She taps her tablet, and suddenly the lab's screens come to life, displaying... me. Security camera footage of my journey through the building, culminating in my less-than-graceful exit from the air duct.

"Tsk, tsk," Victoria chides. "Corporate espionage is such an ugly business. I wonder what the board would think? What your new husband would say?"

My mind races. I need a way out, an angle, anything. "What do you want, Victoria?"

Her smile widens, reminding me of a documentaryI once saw about great white sharks. "It's not about what I want, Olivia. It's about what you're going to do for me."

She turns to the quantum computer, running a hand along its smooth surface. "This machine is the key to everything. The economic theories you've been working on? Child's play compared to what this can do. It doesn't just predict markets; it shapes them. Creates them."

The implications hit me like a freight train. If she's telling the truth, this technology could rewrite the rules of global finance. "That's... that's impossible."

Victoria's laugh is cold. "Oh, my dear. You have no idea what's possible." She turns back to me, her eyes glittering. "But you're going to help me find out."

"And why would I do that?" I ask, my voice steadier than I feel.

She taps her tablet again. The screens change, showing a live feed of Ethan in his office. He's pacing, agitated, speaking urgently into his phone.

"Because if you don't," Victoria says softly, "I'll make sure your darling husband takes the fall for your little breaking and entering adventure. I wonder how long Drake Technologies would survive with its CEO behind bars?"

My blood runs cold. This wasn't part of the plan. Ethan and I, we had it all figured out. A marriage of convenience, access to data, the chance to change the world. We never accounted for Victoria.

"What's it going to be, Olivia?" Victoria's voice cuts through my panic. "Are you in, or shall I make a call to security?"

I open my mouth to respond, but before I can, alarms begin blaring throughout the lab. Red emergency lights bathe everything in a hellish glow.

Victoria's eyes widen in genuine surprise. "What the—"

The building shakes, a deep rumble that I feel in my bones. Cracks spiderweb across the floor beneath our feet.

"Self-destruct sequence initiated," a calm AI voice announces over the sirens. "All personnel evacuate immediately."

Victoria whirls on me. "What did you do?"

"This isn't me!" I shout over the noise. But even as I say it, I'm not sure. Could this be Ethan's failsafe? Or something else entirely?

Another violent tremor rocks the lab. Equipment crashes to the floor. The quantum computer sparks ominously.

"We need to get out of here!" I yell, already running for the exit. I expect Victoria to follow, but when I glance back, she's at the computer, frantically typing.

"Victoria, come on!"

She looks up, and for a split second, I see something impossible in her eyes. They flicker, like a digital display glitching. "I can't leave," she says, her voice suddenly monotone. "Primary directive must be completed."

Before I can process what I've just seen, a section of ceiling collapses between us. I barely dodge the falling debris.

"Warning: Sixty seconds to detonation," the AI intones.

There's no time. I sprint for the exit, my lungs burning, my mind reeling. What was happening to Victoria? What the hell is really going on in this company?

I burst out of the lab and into the corridor beyond. Emergency lights pulse, guiding the way to the stairs. I can hear distant shouts, the panic of other late-night workers trying to escape.

Fifty seconds.

I hit the stairwell, taking the steps two at a time. My dress tangles around my legs, and I tear at the fabric, freeing myself to run faster.

Forty seconds.

Halfway down. My legs scream in protest, but I push harder. I have to make it. I have to find Ethan.

Thirty seconds.

I emerge into the lobby, a scene of chaos. Security guards usher the last stragglers out the main doors. I join the flow, gasping for breath.

Twenty seconds.

The cool night air hits me as I stumble onto the street. People are still streaming out of the building, a panicked mass illuminated by emergency vehicles' flashing lights.

Ten seconds.

"Ethan!" I scream, searching the crowd desperately. Where is he?

Five seconds.

I spot him across the street, his face a mask of worry as he scans the crowd. Our eyes meet.

Three.

Two.

One.

The world explodes.

A shockwave slams into me, lifting me off my feet. I'm airborne for a terrifying moment before crashing back to the pavement. My ears ring, my vision blurs. Through the haze, I see the Drake Technologies building collapse in on itself, a tower of flame and smoke reaching for the sky.

As consciousness fades, one thought burns in my mind: The quantum computer. Victoria. The secrets.

They're all gone.

Aren't they?

The last thing I see before the darkness takes me is a figure emerging from the inferno. A silhouette that should be impossible. A shape that looks unmistakably like Victoria, striding calmly through flames that don't even seem to touch her.

Then everything goes black.