Jade moved into the penthouse the next day, setting up a command center in what had been a spare bedroom. Within hours, she'd transformed it into something between a hacker's lair and a military ops room—multiple screens, secure servers, walls covered in network diagrams mapping The Society's connections.
"This is insane," Marcus said, bringing her coffee. "You've been here four hours and it looks like a CIA black site."
"If the CIA was this organized, they'd actually catch terrorists," Jade muttered, not looking up from her code.
Aiden watched her work, impressed despite the circumstances. She attacked problems with focused intensity, her fingers flying across keyboards, multiple programs running simultaneously. Every few minutes she'd crack into another database, another private server, another secure communication channel.
"How'd you learn all this?" he asked.
"Mostly self-taught. Some from hacker collectives. Some from my brother before—" She stopped. "Doesn't matter. What matters is I'm better than whoever they've got working for them."
"Confident."
"Accurate." She pulled up a new screen. "See? Just accessed Malcolm Zhang's personal email. The man uses his birthday as his password. These old-money types think money equals intelligence."
Maya entered carrying equipment cases. "Security upgrades for everyone. Isabella gets a panic button and tracking device disguised as a medical alert bracelet. Sophia gets a similar setup integrated into her smartwatch. Victoria too, if she'll accept it."
"She will," Aiden confirmed. Victoria had been surprisingly calm when he'd explained the situation, her legal mind immediately understanding the implications.
His phone rang. Speak of the devil.
"Aiden," Victoria's voice was tight. "I just got a call from the tenure committee. Someone submitted a complaint about inappropriate conduct with students. My hearing has been moved up to next week."
"I'm sorry—"
"Don't apologize. Get angry." Her voice turned fierce. "These people think they can intimidate me? I've faced down corporate boards and hostile investors. They have no idea who they're dealing with."
Despite everything, Aiden smiled. "That's the Victoria I know."
"I'm coming over. If we're going to war, I want to help plan the strategy."
An hour later, Victoria sat with Jade, their minds working in surprising synchronization. The elegant business professor and the purple-haired hacker made an unlikely team, but they both understood power dynamics.
"The Society's weakness is their secrecy," Victoria explained. "They've operated in shadows for so long, exposure is their nightmare."
"Agreed," Jade said. "Which is why my leak strategy will work. But we need to be strategic. Hit the right targets in the right order."
"Start with someone mid-level," Victoria suggested. "Malcolm is too obvious. The Chairman is too protected. But someone visible enough to make news, weak enough to fall quickly."
Jade pulled up profiles. "What about Gregory Ashford? Society member, hedge fund manager, big political donor. I've got evidence of insider trading going back three years."
"Perfect. We leak it to the SEC and three major financial journalists simultaneously. Broad enough he can't contain it."
Watching them work, Aiden felt something unexpected—hope. The Society had spent decades attacking isolated individuals. But he had a team. People with different skills, different perspectives, all working together.
Isabella arrived with takeout, still in her hospital scrubs. "I have good news. The visa complaint was withdrawn."
"What? How?"
She smiled mysteriously. "I may have mentioned to the immigration officer that I'm dating someone with excellent lawyers and media connections. And that any attempt to politicize my visa would be met with a very public fight about religious freedom and ethnic discrimination." Her smile turned sharp. "Turns out they don't want that attention."
Jade laughed. "Oh, I like her."
"Don't celebrate yet," Maya warned, entering with her laptop. "I've been monitoring surveillance. We've had a car outside for six hours. Different one than yesterday."
"Society?"
"Or law enforcement. Can't tell which is worse."
Aiden looked around the room—at Jade hunched over her computers, Victoria reviewing legal strategies, Maya checking security feeds, Isabella distributing food, Marcus coordinating logistics.
This was his family now. Not traditional, not simple, but his.
The system interface flickered:
TEAM COHESION: HIGHCombined Skills Assessment: FORMIDABLERecommendation: Trust Your AllianceWarning: The Society Will Target Your ConnectionsProtect Each Other
"Alright," Aiden said, pulling everyone's attention. "Here's what we do. Jade, prepare the Ashford leak but hold it until my signal. Victoria, document everything about your tenure attack. We might need it for our own PR campaign. Maya, I want security protocols established—safe houses, communication redundancies, emergency extraction plans."
"And you?" Isabella asked.
"I'm going to respond to The Chairman. Set up a meeting. Face to face."
"That's dangerous," Maya objected.
"Everything's dangerous now. But I want them to see I'm not afraid. That I have support. That attacking me means attacking all of us."
Jade looked up from her screen, something like respect in her eyes. "You know what? Maybe you're different. Maybe you're the one who finally beats them."
"We beat them," Aiden corrected. "Together."
Outside, the surveillance car remained parked. Waiting. Watching.
The Society thought they were hunting one man. They were about to discover they'd picked a fight with something much more dangerous: a group of brilliant, motivated people with nothing left to lose.
Let them come, Aiden thought. We're ready.