No Way Back

Chapter 7 Queen’s Back

Jane wanted a cheap hotel for two reasons: the first was to save money, and the second was to conceal her location from others. She didn’t want to stay in a hotel that required ID registration because if she did, it wouldn’t make a difference if she wore a mask and hat because her photo and other personal information would already be out in the open. She didn’t want to take that risk.

The driver, a seasoned cabbie, was very familiar with the surrounding area. As he considered how to get to the hotel, a look of bewilderment quickly spread across his face.

“Excuse me, miss, did you just come down from the top of the mountain? Isn’t that the Fowler family’s villa? You look a bit familiar like I’ve seen you somewhere before…” The driver said, trying to piece it together.

As he spoke, the radio returned to its discussion of the Fowler family and the identity of the true heiress, Jane.

“I’m not the Fowler family’s heiress. I have no ties to them,” Jane stated coolly.

The driver scratched his head, embarrassed. “I’m sorry, miss, but today there’s just too much gossip about the Fowler family…”

“It’s fine,” Jane said, waving her hand.

Soon, Jane arrived at a nearby hotel, paid the fare, and checked into a room.

Jane tossed her bags to the side and pulled out her cell phone, dialing a number. “The vast sky is my love, the flowers are blooming on the mountainside” started playing as the ringtone,

Someone’s excited voice came through: “Queen! Yes, I did just get your call. Oh my God! You said you were leaving the Darknet, and I didn’t think you’d be back.”

Jane took the phone away because she seemed to know that the person on the other end of the line would be so excited and loud.

Then, after some consideration, she said, “Andy, I’m sorry, but I really need some cash, and I’m looking for a job.”

Andy exclaimed on the other end of the phone, “Are you coming back? Oh my God! The Darknet will shake from the news of that! Queen, with your status and reputation, finding work shouldn’t be hard for you. Wait for me!”

that, Andy hung up the

out of her bag and entered her username and password into an unknown website. An old bronze door with a blood–red

chance to open this website again. The Darknet, as its name implied, was an underground website connecting the entire world. It was a place where people often posted illegal tasks such as black market auctions, assassinations, and

Darknet, there were tasks that most people would never think of, and people could find everything they

become a sponsor, one had to be qualified and have enough

get their login and password, they had to pass a skills test by the Darknet’s administrators. Therefore, the people who could enter

of them. She was known simply as “Queen,” and she was a legendary hacker who once ruled

Jane finally logged on this time. When she

how everything was going

changed her signature from “AFK forever” to “Back on board.” Because of this

and jumped for joy

person to find a way through Meridonia’s impossible–to–break firewall and hack into it. This caused the firewall’s program

became known as “Queen,” with the implication that she was the best hacker in the world and that nothing had escaped her prying

Darknet and closed her account a month ago, it caused quite a stir. Everyone

that didn’t matter to them now because Queen was

joy at this news because Queen was a goddess

again, and Andy said, “Queen, there’s a mission here. They need you to hack the firewall of a terrorist organization. 750

it,” Jane

needed to adhere to specific standards. Before anything else, it wouldn’t pose a threat to the country’s security. And second, it couldn’t violate human ethics. Thirdly, she

was famous on the Darknet, there were many jobs she

involved in some sort of shady business. That was why the work that Andy had just introduced was exactly the kind of mission that Jane had been

across the keyboard like butterflies. Like falling snowflakes, code and programming appeared on the screen, disorienting to the layperson but second nature to

Andy, she quickly broke through the

I’ve got it here,”