Free Athena Lee Chronicles 0: The Lost Pilot by T S Paul Page A

trucks and several propane trucks were in the area at the time of the fire. They had delivery orders to fictitious addresses. The resulting explosions were seen for miles. Most of the city center and all of the government buildings were destroyed.
     
    Neville made one mistake. He told one person about what he had done. Everyone needs at least one friend, that one person you can confide in, give your secrets to. Neville's was a fellow 'hacker' named Toby. Toby just happened to be an undercover government law enforcement officer. A law enforcer who saw an opportunity to take down a hacker and get a promotion out of it. Tracing the address a veritable horde of SWAT teams and special police operations teams descended on a nondescript two story house in the suburbs. Flash bang grenades were followed with black clad armed men shouting orders. The lone occupant of the house, coughing and dazed from the explosions, was beaten to the ground. He was hauled out by his feet, his head bouncing off walls and then stairs, and thrown bodily into a police van. A hood was placed over his head and despite his cries in protest he was hogtied. The officers kicked him a few times as they left him there. Forensic teams rushed into the house to search for evidence. A personal office was found and the search began. It was only when one of the officers glanced at the wall did someone realized that they, possibly, had made a mistake. Pictures, awards and plaques covered the walls. The name plate sitting on the desk read Judge Jonathan Pepper. They had arrested and beaten a Circuit Court Judge for the state of Georgia!
     
    Sitting in the house next door Neville had laughed himself silly. The Judge had been the last person on his list. He knew that he really should have left the house and escaped when he realized that his location had been compromised but he just had to stay and watch. He called a cab and grabbed his computer. The local driver was rubbernecking watching the police drama next door, when a kid got into his cab. "Kid, you have to get out."
     
    "I'm the one that called, I need to go to this address please." Neville gave the man a small card.
     
    "Kid, I'm not telling you again. You need a parent or guardian to ride with me. I don't take children anywhere."
     
    "Sir, I have permission. Please, I really need go."
     
    The sight of a cab driver trying to haul a young looking boy from his vehicle, with the boy screaming at him attracted a lot of attention. Police attention. Subsequent investigation while trying to locate his parents, drew attention to the inconsistencies in his story. A search of the house discovered his computer equipment. Neville was found out.
     
    It was the trial of the century. Or at least the trial of the year. Neville's lawyers tried to play up the harm that had been done to him by the government agencies and down play the whole revenge bit. The media was having a field day. Calling him a Cyber Terrorist the media plastered pictures of his life across the screens. The whole world got to see his parents mangled bodies, interviews with the foster care families, and every detail of his short life. Among the disenfranchised youth Neville became a Robin Hood styled figure. Neville had become a legend among the 'black hat' hackers of the world.
     
     
    With two broken ribs, a dislocated shoulder, a broken wrist, and a slight concussion Judge Pepper insisted that he try the case. The fallout from the arrest and accidental beating of a court Judge was severe for many of the arresting officers. Only 'dirty' cops would harm prisoners. Many lost their jobs or were demoted back to traffic duty. "Toby" the computer informer did get a promotion out of the arrest. As a tenured Government employee his bosses could not legally terminate him. So they did the next best thing. He was made Technology Education Agent for the state's call center. His new office was a small windowless cube down in the basement of the building. For some