Five years ago, during the war against the Vampires, Walter had led the pack alongside his son, Yardley. Though they succeeded in driving the Vampires back, Yardley was gravely injured and had been recovering in the hospital ever since.
While Walter’s presence still bolstered the Sinclair family, his advanced age and Cedric’s lack of comparable strength had emboldened other ambitious families in the Frostmoon Pack to challenge their leadership. Winona’s marriage to the alpha of a more powerful pack was their best hope to secure their position.
Ignoring the conversation downstairs, Tessa returned to her room, retrieved her laptop, and settled onto her bed. Placing the device on her lap, her fingers danced across the keyboard, inputting a series of commands.
“It’s him.”
In less than a minute of engaging with the Yalvaria hacker, Tessa knew exactly who she was dealing with.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Her eyes narrowed. Trying to mess with Montedra? Time to teach you a lesson.
Her fingers flew across the keyboard as lines of code filled the screen.
“Do you have it?” The group was targeting Montedra’s military defense systems.
“Damn it!” The hacker cursed as his progress was abruptly halted. Not only had his attempt been blocked, but an impenetrable firewall now protected the system.
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s over.” By the time the hacker realized what was happening, Yalvaria’s own firewalls had been breached. When he tried to encrypt their files, his computer froze for ten seconds – a devastating delay. In that brief window, Yalvaria’s classified documents had been stolen.
“What the hell just happened?”
“Our classified files have been hacked.”
“Who’s responsible? Weren’t you supposed to be the best?”
“It must be Phantom from the Lightwing Order. No one else could match me.”
“Those files are critically sensitive. You’d better figure out how to explain this to the president.”
The hacker clenched his fists. Phantom, just you wait.
Tessa forwarded the stolen files to Lina, then typed a few lines of code to erase any trace of her actions before shutting down her laptop.
No sooner had she finished than her phone rang.
“I knew if you got involved, there wouldn’t be any problems,” Lina said excitedly. “But I didn’t expect you to also grab their classified files in such a short time. You really are a legend. No one can compare to you.”
“Is that all? I’m hanging up.” Tessa was unfazed by the praise.
“Got it. I’ll transfer the payment to your usual account?”
“Mm.”
Without waiting for Lina to respond, Tessa ended the call.
Meanwhile, at Thorne Corp, Cameron stared at his now-black screen, dumbfounded.
“Damn it, my computer just got hacked!” he exclaimed. He’d been trying to trace Phantom, only to have his system compromised instead.
“Cameron, are you even good at this?” Nathaniel teased, unable to suppress his laughter.
“It was Phantom. No one else could do this,” Cameron muttered. “To hack my system so quickly and leave no trace – it could only be her.”
“Any leads?” Landon finally broke his silence.
“I managed to track one thing – Phantom is in Navoris.”
“What?” Nathaniel was stunned. “Phantom is here in Navoris?”
“Contact the Lightwing Order,” Landon ordered.
The Lightwing Order was a mysterious werewolf hacker collective. No one knew where they were based, but its members were legendary, each more skilled than the last. And the most formidable of them all was Phantom.
Landon had been determined to recruit her for a long time.
After finishing her assignment, Tessa sat on her bed and began playing a game.
A knock at the door interrupted her. She got up and opened it.
“Tessa, it’s me,” came her grandfather’s voice.
Hearing him, Tessa stepped aside to let Walter in. “Grandpa, what’s wrong?”
Walter leaned on her for support as he entered the room.
“Tessa, tell me what really happened five years ago. You’re my granddaughter, and I won’t let those who wronged you go unpunished.”
“Grandpa, you don’t need to worry about it. I can handle it myself.” Walter was already old; there was no need for him to stress over her troubles.
“I know you’ve been hurt,” Walter said with a heavy heart. “Five years ago, I wasn’t here to protect you. But now that I’m back, no one will dare bully you. Focus on your studies and leave everything else to me.” He handed her a card. “Take this. If you need anything, buy it. If the money runs out, I’ll give you more. Don’t let yourself suffer, understand? A girl your age should enjoy dressing up and being happy.”
Tessa’s throat tightened at the warmth she hadn’t felt in so long. Even someone as strong as her couldn’t help but feel touched.
“Thank you, Grandpa.”
Although she was already far wealthier than the entire Sinclair family combined, she couldn’t bring herself to refuse his kindness.
That afternoon, as soon as Tessa arrived at school, Lina called her yet again.
Finding a quiet corner, Tessa answered.
“Phantom, did you offend someone recently?” Lina asked.
“I offend people every day,” Tessa replied dryly. Even if she didn’t provoke anyone, trouble always found her.
“Do you know Thorne Corp? They’re looking into you. It’s all over the Lightwing Order.”
“Thorne Corp?” Tessa’s tone remained nonchalant. “Got it.”
“Be careful. Thorne Corp isn’t someone you want to mess with. In Montedra, no corporation is more powerful than them. And their CEO, Landon, is the alpha of the Nightshade Pack – the strongest werewolf on the continent.”
“I know.” Tessa still didn’t seem fazed. “Don’t contact me for a while.”
Before Lina could respond, Tessa hung up.
For her grandfather’s sake, she wanted a few peaceful, ordinary days.
Returning to class, Tessa noticed the odd looks from her classmates but paid them no mind.
Queenie sneered when she saw Tessa. Whether it was five years ago or now, Tessa always managed to irritate her.
After the first class ended, Tessa got up to head to the restroom. A girl from the row ahead followed her.
“Tessa, hi! I’m Ysabel Thorne,” the girl said cheerfully. She was petite, with a cute demeanor and large, sparkling eyes.
Tessa acknowledged her with a brief nod but didn’t stop walking.
“Wait, Tessa!” Ysabel called, struggling to keep up with Tessa’s longer stride.
“What is it?” Tessa asked, sensing no malice from the girl.
“They posted photos of you fighting on the school forum. You looked so cool!” Ysabel’s face lit up with admiration.
“Photos?” Tessa asked, narrowing her eyes.
Ysabel handed her phone over.
“Can I follow you? Please?” Ysabel asked with a grin.
“No.”
Tessa scanned the photos, seeing the forum filled with discussions about her past – accusations of her being unruly and shameless.
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