Chapter 117
Chapter 117:
“Just delay the project,” the man had said. “Nothing dangerous. Just enough problems to give our company time to catch up.”
But as the modifications grew more extensive, Walsh had begun to suspect that wasn’t true. Still, he couldn’t back out. Not after the man’s subtle threats about his children. Not after accepting the first payment.
He closed the access panel and packed up his tools. One more component installed according to the modified blueprints. One step closer to being done with this nightmare.
His phone buzzed in his pocket. Walsh jumped, nearly dropping his toolbox. His heart hammered as he checked the caller ID: UNKNOWN.
With trembling fingers, he answered, “Hello?”
“Progress report.” The man’s voice was smooth, cultured, betraying no hint of emotion.
Walsh swallowed hard. “Installed the J-14 connector tonight, just like the blueprints showed. That’s the last one in the east section.”
“And has anyone questioned your work?”
“No,” Walsh said, the lie coming easily now after weeks of practice. “The engineering team is focused on the main grid. No one’s double-checking the secondary systems.”
“Excellent.” The man paused. “Any unusual activity at the site? Security changes? Late-night work?”
Walsh hesitated. He had noticed some of the day crew grumbling about equipment being moved overnight, but he’d assumed it was just another team working different hours.
“No,” he said finally. “Everything’s normal.”
“Good. Continue as planned. Remember, Mr. Walsh, your children’s future depends on your discretion.”
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The line went dead. Walsh stared at the phone, bile rising in his throat. What had he gotten himself into?
Back at the Kane Industries lab, Hannah’s team worked in focused silence. On the main screen, a digital countdown displayed the days until the Phoenix Grid was scheduled to go fully operational: 5 days, 7 hours, 42 minutes.
Hannah moved between workstations, checking progress and making adjustments. Despite her exhaustion, her mind remained sharp. This was the most challenging engineering problem she’d ever faced—not just correcting the technical sabotage, but doing it in secret, maintaining the illusion that everything was proceeding normally.
“Ms. Zhao?” One of the younger engineers called her over, pointing to a circuit diagram. “I think I found another one. It’s subtle, but the power regulator has been modified to allow a ten percent tolerance instead of the standard five percent.”
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