"What is this?" I asked.
Derek stepped closer, trying to read over my shoulder. Vanessa spoke first.
"I didn't know it was connected to you when I found it. I was reviewing old investor structures. For leverage."
"When?" Derek asked.
Her silence answered before she did.
"Last month," she finally said.
"You found out Claire was connected to the original research last month," Derek said, voice going brittle, "and said nothing?"
"I didn't fully understand what it meant."
Another name sat near the bottom of the page.
Lena Ashford Kingsley.
My mother.
"Claire," Walter said gently, "there's something your mother arranged before she died. I meant to tell you when you were ready."
"Ready for what?"
"For the truth about why Kingsley Holdings was watching Nexora long before Derek ever approached us." He met my eyes. "Your mother's final investment wasn't in Kingsley Holdings. It was in the original research that became this company." He paused. "And the person with deciding rights over that investment isn't me."
