“It’s too risky,” she said. “I can’t see how they won’t trace this back to me. My boss would look at his team first.”

“But what if we upload a virus on Harry Owen’s laptop from a USB that can’t be traced back to you?”

She stared at him. “How? The only way to access his laptop is through his office.”

“You said you discovered that he logged on to his parents’ Wi-Fi. That he breached every security protocol in his department. What if we use his parents’ computer as a host? We upload the virus onto that computer with a USB stick, and then when Harry logs his laptop onto the Wi-Fi system, his parents’ computer sends the virus to his laptop through the family Wi-Fi network.”

Her gaze narrowed. “How are you proposing that we put the virus on to his parents’ computer? It’s not like we can just walk in to his parents’ house.”

This was the delicate part. And it was the most crucial part. He knew Leah well enough that she would reject any kind of illegal activity that didn’t suit her higher purpose.

“We’ll break in one night—”

“Break in? Have you lost your mind?”

“Leah!” He caught her gaze with his own. “His parents are away. It’s no big deal. We just get in the house, upload the virus, and leave. It will take ten minutes, max.”

He held his breath. If she didn’t agree to his plan, he would never be able to convince her to do what he and Tr0lz really wanted her to do. This break-in was simply a means to a very different end than what Leah had in mind. Once they completed the break-in, he could threaten to expose her actions unless she wrote the computer code that they needed. It was a perfect trap. She just needed to step into it.

Her pulse fluttered in the vein in her neck. Behind him, her computer monitor filled with posts from the Forum.

“There’s no going back, Leah. You’ve got to do this. If you do it, you’ll be a friggin’ hero.”

“I don’t want to be a hero.” Her eyes searched his for understanding. “I just want to do what’s right. And breaking into a house doesn’t fit into that category.”

He swallowed his impatience. Play it cool, Aiden. “Sometimes you have to sacrifice a small principle for a bigger one. And I promise you, no one will get hurt. Harry Owen only comes home on weekends. And his parents are away right now.” He was pretty sure that Harry Owen’s mother was in the hospital. Whatever.