That is indeed an awesome Burn Notice story. I've always wondered why there isn't more fanfic for this show.

You live in a college town, right? I'd wait until the kids come back and see who is selling their old laptop. If you were going for a Windoze platform $1000 would get you something uber-fast, but a Mac will be harder. I'd also check locally on Craigslist and the local shops.