Chapter 10 - The Phoenix ProtocolThree days after the fire, we set up a temporary command center inside a rented co-working space in downtown Phoenix.
Thomas sat in the corner, his arm bandaged from minor burns, working on a laptop. Beside us sat two new allies: Maya Lin, an aggressive investigative reporter for The Arizona Republic, and Marcus Thorne, a brilliant, disgraced former lead structural engineer who had been fired by Harrington Construction six months prior.
"They used low-grade slag concrete," Marcus said, throwing a stack of stolen internal documents onto the glass desk. "The blueprints called for 5,000 PSI reinforced concrete for the primary load-bearing pillars of the Scottsdale Waterfront tower. Melissa Harrington authorized a supplier swap to 3,000 PSI non-reinforced mix to save $12 million."
"If that tower reaches thirty stories," Maya added, her camera ready, "it will suffer structural shear within five years. It’s a death trap."
"We need the live sensor data to prove it," I said, opening my laptop. "When the shop burned, Callan thought he destroyed our directional receiver. He didn't know I built a mobile version inside my truck's roof rack."
Marcus stared at me in awe. "You built a long-range telemetry scanner into your truck?"
"I grew up in a hardware shop, Marcus," I replied coldly. "Tonight, we drive past the Waterfront site. If the transceivers are still live inside those concrete pillars, we scrape the data right out of the air."
"What about their security?" David Vance asked from the doorway, holding a fresh legal filing. "Richard Harrington hired a private security firm—ex-military personnel. They're patrolling the perimeter with armed guards."
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I stood up, pulling a black leather jacket over my shoulders.
"Then let them try and stop a moving vehicle on a public road."
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