Malik perked up at this. "You know what my dad does?" Mrs. Thompson smiled mysteriously. "I've lived next door to you for 6 years, child.
I noticed things." Before Malik could ask more questions, they had arrived at school, and the moment was lost. Miles away, Jonathan Carter sat in a classified meeting room deep within the Pentagon. Unlike the modest attire he wore at home, here he was dressed in a sharply tailored suit with his security badge prominently displayed. Around the table sat six other people, three military officers, and three civilians in suits as expensive as his own.
The cyber attack was sophisticated, a woman with short gray hair was saying. They targeted multiple systems simultaneously, but we believe their primary goal was access to the SCADA networks. Any idea who's behind it? Asked a marine colonel. To Jonathan's right, not definitively, the woman replied.
But the code signatures match previous attacks attributed to she was interrupted by an aid hurrying into the room. The young man leaned down to whisper something to Jonathan, whose expression immediately darkened. "When did this happen?" Jonathan asked sharply. "Just now, sir.
The system flagged it because of your personal security protocols." Jonathan stood abruptly. "I need to step out. There's been an unauthorized attempt to access Jefferson Academyy's database." The others at the table exchanged confused glances.
Jefferson Academy, the Marine Colonel repeated. The private school, my son attends there, Jonathan said tursly. And someone just tried to breach their security system using the same methodology as the attacks we've been tracking. Back at Jefferson Academy, Malik was trying to make himself invisible in Ms. Anderson's class.
After yesterday's humiliation, the last thing he wanted was to draw attention to himself. Ms. Anderson was reviewing their presentations, lavishing praise on certain students while offering only cursory acknowledgements to others. "Tyler, your father's work in real estate development is truly shaping our city's future," she gushed. "And Sophia, how fascinating that your mother is involved in crafting healthc care policy at such a high level."
When she reached Malik's presentation, her lips curved into a patronizing smile. Malik, while imagination is certainly a valuable quality, remember that these presentations were meant to be factual. Several students snickered and Malik sank lower in his seat. From across the room, Ethan shot him a sympathetic look. After class, as they headed to lunch, Ethan tried to cheer him up.
"Don't listen to her, Malik. She's always picking favorites." "Easy for you to say," Malik muttered. "She doesn't call you a liar in front of everyone." Ethan fell silent for a moment.
"My dad lost his job yesterday," he finally said, his voice small. "The factory is closing down. Mom says we might have to move if he can't find something else soon." Malik immediately felt ashamed of his self-pity. "I'm sorry, Ethan.
That's terrible." Ethan shrugged, trying to look braver than he felt. "It's fine. We'll figure it out." As they entered the cafeteria, Malik happened to glance out the window.