PART 9:

“What?” “Your phone. Let me see it.” Claire pulled out her iPhone, confused. Nate took it from her, turned it over in his hands, then handed it back. “When did you last update your security settings?” “I don’t know. My IT department handles that. Why?” Instead of answering, Nate stood up and walked to a laptop balanced on top of a toolbox.

He typed something, then turned the screen toward her. It was a map of Seattle. A blue dot pulsed on the screen, marking a location Claire recognized immediately, her office building. “That’s your car,” Nate said quietly. “Or rather, that’s where your car’s GPS system thinks it is because that’s what the diagnostic computer is telling me.” “I don’t understand.

” “Someone hacked your car’s computer system, Ms. Montgomery. Not just the electrical system, the whole thing. GPS, diagnostics, entertainment system, everything. They had complete access to your vehicle’s location, speed, driving patterns. He pulled up another screen showing data that meant nothing to Claire, but clearly meant everything to Nate.

They knew exactly when you drove the car, where you parked it, how long it sat idle, and they used that information to time the sabotage perfectly.” Claire felt cold. “How is that possible?” “Modern cars are computers on wheels. Everything’s connected to the internet, to your phone, to cloud services. It makes them convenient.

It also makes them vulnerable.” Nate rubbed his eyes. “The question is how they got access in the first place. These systems are supposed to be secure. Breaking in requires either serious hacking skills or physical access to the vehicle.” “The maintenance people,” Claire said immediately. “The ones who checked the tire pressure.

” “Maybe, but there’s something else.” Nate pulled up a different screen. “I found spyware in your car’s system, not just a hack to cause the fire, actual surveillance software. Someone’s been tracking you, Ms. Montgomery, for weeks, maybe months.” The cold feeling spread. “Tracking me how?” “Everywhere you drive, everyone you meet, at least everyone you drive to meet.

Your patterns, your routines, your habits.” His voice was gentle but firm. “This isn’t just someone who wanted your car to catch fire. This is someone who’s been studying you, learning you, planning something bigger.” Claire sat down on a rolling stool before her legs could give out. “Can you tell who installed it?” “No.

Whoever did this knew what they were doing. They covered their tracks well. But, Ms. Montgomery, Nate crouched down so he was at eye level with her. You need to take this to the police. This is way beyond a car repair. This is stalking, hacking, attempted murder. This is serious.” “They won’t be able to do anything,” Claire heard herself say.

“I have enemies, Mr. Rhodes, powerful enemies, people with resources and motivation. The police will write a report and tell me to be careful and maybe assign a patrol car to drive past my building a few extra times, but they won’t stop whoever did this.” “Then hire private security.” “I have private security.

Better private security.” Claire laughed, and it came out brittle. “You know what the funny thing is? I’ve spent 15 years building walls, security systems, background checks, NDAs, attack lawyers. I’ve made myself untouchable, and someone still got close enough to wire my car to burn.” Nate was quiet for a moment, then he said, “Can I show you something?” “What?” He walked to the corner of the bay and picked up a small object, then brought it back to her.

It was a teddy bear, old, worn, missing one eye. Its fur matted from years of being loved. “This is Mr. Patches,” Nate said, and his voice had changed, gone soft with memory. My daughter Stella’s teddy bear. She’s had him since she was born, sleeps with him every night, takes him to doctor’s appointments, won’t go anywhere without him.

” Claire looked at the bear, confused about where this was going. “Last year,” Nate continued, “we were at the hospital. Stella has a heart condition, we’re there a lot. And we got home and realized we’d left Mr. Patches behind. It was 10:00 at night. Stella was already in bed, but she woke up crying because Mr.

Patches wasn’t there.” He turned the bear over in his hands. “I drove back to the hospital. It’s 40 minutes each way. And the whole time I was driving, I was thinking about how ridiculous it was. It’s just a stuffed animal, just fabric and stuffing and plastic eyes. It has no value. It doesn’t do anything. But to Stella, it’s everything.

” “I don’t see what this has to do with “My point is that security isn’t just about walls and systems and keeping people out,” Nate interrupted gently. “It’s about knowing what’s worth protecting and why. And sometimes the things we think are valuable aren’t, and sometimes the things we think are worthless are everything.

” He handed her the teddy bear. Claire took it automatically, feeling the worn fabric, the places where Stella’s small hands had held it so many times the fur had rubbed away completely. “You think I’m protecting the wrong things,” Claire said quietly. “I think you’re protecting yourself from the wrong threats.” Nate sat down on the floor, his back against her disassembled car.

“Someone wants to hurt you, Ms. Montgomery, and they’re smart enough and patient enough to plan it carefully. That’s scary. But you know what’s scarier? Realizing that all your walls and security systems and careful distance didn’t stop them because they were never trying to break through your defenses. They were just waiting for you to drive away from them.

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