Chapter 11
Brie
“You two make a cute couple,” Claire commented as we took the hallway right, following a sign to The Bridge. “And I hope you don’t mind me saying, but your husband is a hottie.”
I adjusted my glasses. How would a real wife respond to that? Should I sound offended? Proud? Nonchalant? Jealous?
“He keeps getting more handsome every year.” Where did that come from, Brie?
Hadn’t allowed myself to think about it for a decade.
Although it was true.
Claire laughed. “That’s the dream, isn’t it? Finding someone who ages like fine wine. How long have you been married?”
“Just a couple of weeks, actually. We decided to take the plunge after the HR person mentioned Mnemis prioritizes shared accommodations for married and common-law couples, and we haven’t been living together long enough for the latter.”
“Ah, a practical decision,” Claire said with a knowing smile. “Though I’m guessing you two have been together much longer?”
My mind flashed to memories I usually kept locked away—that night in Will’s workshop ten years ago, my teeth knocking into his, my glasses getting in the way… the way his hands had fumbled, but then the way they felt against my skin once we figured it out.
Our friendship had changed so much that it had nearly disappeared after that stupid night.
I couldn’t let it happen again.
You need to stop thinking about him in that way.
I needed Will in my life, even if it meant keeping certain doors firmly closed. “We’ve known each other since we were kids. Started with building Legos, then gadgets, and eventually computers and networks.”
Claire smiled. “Childhood sweethearts turned tech power couple? That’s adorable.”
I forced a smile.
If I made up too many things, I’d have to remember them all and risk getting caught in a lie later. Stick with the kernel of truth. That’s what Scarlett told me to do.
“Even though you’re not single, it’s nice to have another woman joining the team,” Claire said, smoothly changing subjects. “Our staff is really multicultural, but definitely mostly male.”
We approached a set of double frosted doors with “Network Operations Center” etched in the glass. Claire swiped her card and the doors slid open.
“We call it ‘The Bridge,’” she said with obvious pride.
My heart all but stopped. Workstations arranged in neat rows filled the room, each equipped with dual ultrawide monitors, mounted on adjustable arms. The ergonomic chairs looked far more comfortable than anything I had at Reynolds.
On the far wall, a massive display showed system status indicators and a real-time map of global network traffic.
Most stations were occupied by staff wearing headsets; some were engaged in phone conversations, while others worked on their systems. The room hummed with the staccato rhythm of people who typed at a hundred words a minute.
“This is gorgeous,” I whispered, my fingers practically itching to explore the systems. The setup reminded me of Mission Control at NASA—if they’d had an unlimited budget and hired interior designers with a fetish for carbon fiber and blue LED lighting.
Will would have geeked out over this setup. I wish he were here.
Claire beamed. “Best equipment money can buy. Tremaine doesn’t skimp on technology.”
“Or anything, from the looks of it.” I followed her through the room, mapping faces, workstation positions, and sight lines.
Before Claire could begin introductions, a man at one of the nearby workstations looked up. The dark circles under his eyes suggested too many long shifts, but he smiled at me.
“You must be the new software analyst!” He stood, crossing to us with surprising energy for someone who looked so exhausted. “I’m Ken. Welcome to The Bridge.”
Had Claire mentioned me to the team already? How did he know I was the new hire rather than just someone on a tour?
“Ken,” Claire said, her tone slightly cool. “Our shift doesn’t start until tomorrow. What are you doing in here so early?”
“One of the other guys was sick, and I had nothing better to do.” Ken extended his hand to me, and I shook it automatically. “We don’t see many new faces around here. Low turnover.”
“Thanks,” I managed. “I’m Brie.”
“I noticed you and your husband on the boat this morning.” Ken’s smile widened. “Where’s he working?”
“He’s a hardware tech.” I forced myself to smile in return. “He’s excited to be here.”
“I bet. The server rooms here are incredible.” Ken spread his arms wide, gesturing around The Bridge. “Though we’ve got the better views, in my opinion. Wait until you see the network visualization tools—they’re phenomenal.”
Claire cleared her throat. “Ken, I appreciate your enthusiasm, but I need to continue the tour. We can introduce Brie to everyone properly during tomorrow’s shift.”
“Of course, of course.” Ken stepped back, still smiling. “Just wanted to make sure she felt welcome. It’s a great team here, Brie. You’re going to love it.”
As we moved away, I caught Claire glancing back at Ken, her lips tight. Her pleasant demeanor had cooled. Did they have history?
“Sorry about that,” Claire said quietly. “Ken’s… a lot. He gets worked up about expanding the team.”
“It’s fine,” I said.
Claire introduced me to several other staff members who smiled and nodded in greeting, none of them as keen as Ken had been.
The open floor plan was perfect for collaboration, but acoustic dividers and noise-cancellation panels also ensured that call center staff didn’t interfere with each other’s conversations.
But it was still open.
That would be a challenge for covert operations. If I needed to exploit any vulnerabilities, I’d be exposed to anyone standing at the correct angle to view my screen. And now Ken had already singled me out. So much for flying under everyone’s radar.
“Other than Ken, everyone here is finishing their rotation tonight,” Claire said. “I’ll be your shift lead for this rotation. We have a one-hour overlap at the end of each shift for handover and a quick standup meeting to discuss any issues.”
“When do shifts change?”
“Three shifts daily—noon, eight p.m., and four a.m. The schedule allows everyone to get up to Little Haven during daylight hours.”
Reasonable.
“Let’s get you logged in, and I’ll show you the basics so you can hit the ground running tomorrow.
” She led me to an empty workstation and gestured for me to sit.
“You need to select a PIN in addition to your card’s access.
You need to leave your card in the slot beneath the monitor. Take it out, and the computer locks.”
“What if I forget it?”
“You won’t get far around here without your ID badge. All the doors past security need it to open. During your probationary period, all access is reactive. You take a client’s call, and the system grants you access to their files. After you upgrade to yellow, you can start doing more active work.”
I removed my lanyard and inserted my ID card into the slot Claire had indicated, then entered my PIN when prompted. The console flashed a single line: Connecting to secure key vault…
Secure key vault?
My heart did a little flip.
That message confirmed exactly what I’d been hoping for—they were using Hardware Security Modules as their authentication backbone. It was as good as finding the architectural blueprints to a building my team was about to break into.
HSMs were essentially ultra-secure vaults where all the security credentials lived.
I’d encountered similar setups on prior jobs—and always found their weak spots within days.
The HSM guarded the master keys for everything from user sessions to server access controls, and they usually included multiple layers that sounded impressive on paper.
But all HSM implementations had critical weaknesses.
The security credentials might be locked in Fort Knox, but the messengers carrying them between systems? Those could be intercepted, manipulated, or cloned if you knew where to look.
And I always knew where to look.
It would take time, but cracking the HSM might be the key. I’d be able to give myself yellow permissions or higher. Then I could search the system and access whatever I wanted, long before the three-month probation period ended.
The monitors had privacy filters that darkened the screen when viewed from angles—good for casual glances, useless if someone walked directly behind me. The Bridge suddenly seemed less like NASA Mission Control and more like working in a fishbowl.
I’d need to time any security probing perfectly, probably during shift changes when everyone was distracted by handovers.
Unless they had an AI monitoring it as well?
Slow and steady wins the race, Brie.
“Our first shift starts tomorrow at noon,” Claire said, pulling me back to the present. “I’ll walk you through the phone system now. Tomorrow, we’ll start with the training videos.”
I smiled, pushing aside my mission planning and letting my authentic curiosity shine through. “Sounds great.”
As Claire leaned over to point at something on my screen, I couldn’t help but watch her ID card swinging away from her body. If I were Scarlett, I could have swapped our cards without her noticing.
But if I were Scarlett, I’d also realize that would be a poor choice. Claire would simply go to security, tell them she’d lost her card, and they’d use the embedded GPS tracker to find the card. And find me holding it.
I needed to talk to Will. Compare notes. And make a plan.