Patricia folded her hands on the table.
“We should separate this into three investigations. First, the historical transfer of Lantern. Second, the technical relationship between Lantern, ClearCurrent, and Northstar's proposal. Third, the removal of the ClearCurrent files and the use of Marcus's account.”
“Agreed,” Richard said. “No assumptions about who did what.”
Maya nodded. “There's one more thing.”
She took the external drive from the box.
“I recovered this from an old work archive. I haven't opened it since I left Caldwell. It contains copies of some of the commercial records, but I can't guarantee that every file is intact.”
Andrea raised a hand.
“Don't connect it to any of our computers. We'll have an independent specialist create a verified copy and examine it in a controlled environment.”
Maya placed the drive on the table.
“That's fine.”
Marcus looked at it.
“Do you think it has the missing report?”
“I think it may contain the emails about the report,” Maya answered. “And possibly the original distribution list for the Lantern appendix.”
“That would tell us who received it.”
“Potentially. It would tell us which accounts were sent the document. It wouldn't prove who opened it, understood it, or acted on it.”
Marcus nodded. He was beginning to understand that an investigation was often less about finding one dramatic piece of evidence and more about refusing to let one piece of evidence answer a question it could not answer.
Richard turned toward Maya.
“Why are you bringing this forward now? You could have sent the documents to Andrea privately.”
Maya took a breath.
“Because I've spent years wondering whether I made the right decision when I left Caldwell. I told myself that the Lantern project was an ordinary commercial failure. It was underdeveloped, it had technical limitations, and the company moved on.”
She glanced at Elliot.
“But I knew the records weren't complete. I knew the commercial summary left out an important qualification. At the time, I believed it was an administrative mistake. Then I saw the Northstar proposal and learned about ClearCurrent. I realized that a decision made years ago might still be affecting people who had nothing to do with the original project.”
“You couldn't have known that,” Elliot said.
“No. But I could have insisted that the missing documentation be resolved before I left.”
“That isn't the same as causing what happened.”
“I know,” Maya replied. “I'm trying to make sure the same mistake isn't repeated.”
Her voice remained calm, but Marcus noticed that she had been gripping the edge of the folder throughout the conversation. Now she released it.
For the first time since she arrived, she seemed less like someone presenting a carefully prepared case and more like someone who had carried an unresolved question for too long.
The meeting ended with a list of actions. Andrea would request the complete Lantern transfer agreement and confirm whether the supplementary report had been included. Patricia would oversee an independent examination of Maya's drive. Evelyn would expand the technical comparison using the original data rather than the commercial summaries. The IT specialist would continue reconstructing the ClearCurrent access logs.
Richard also ordered a temporary pause on all external presentations of ClearCurrent's technical details.
Olivia objected immediately.
“We've worked on this for months. We were supposed to present our results at the regional engineering showcase.”
“And you still can,” Richard said. “But until we understand what happened, we won't distribute the underlying files.”
“So someone else might get to decide when we can show our own work?”
“No,” Marcus interrupted. “We're not giving away your right to present it. We're protecting the material while we find out who accessed it. You should have a say in what gets shared and when.”
Olivia considered that.
“I want the decision in writing.”
“You'll have it,” Andrea promised.
After the others began leaving, Marcus remained in the conference room with Maya. Elliot was talking quietly with Richard near the door.
“Can I ask you something?” Marcus said.
“Of course.”
“Did you know about the missing ClearCurrent files before Martin contacted you?”
“No.”
“Did anyone from Northstar contact you about our project?”
“No.”
“Has anyone asked you to keep the Lantern report secret?”
Maya paused.
“No one has asked me to keep it secret recently.”
Marcus caught the distinction.
“Recently?”
Maya looked toward the door to make sure the others were out of earshot.
“After I left Caldwell, I received a call from someone who had worked in commercial operations. He asked whether I still had any Lantern records. I told him I had retained ordinary project documents, nothing confidential beyond what my employment agreement required me to protect.”
“Who called?”
“I thought it was Daniel Mercer. The voice sounded like his, but I didn't see the number, and it was several years ago.”
“What did he want?”
“He asked whether I had kept a copy of the supplementary review. I said I wasn't sure.”
“Were you?”
Maya looked at the box.
“I was.”
“Why didn't you tell the others?”
“Because I don't know whether the caller was Daniel. And I don't know why he asked. If I had introduced that detail during the meeting, it might have sounded like an accusation.”
“Did you tell him where the document was?”
“No. I said I would have to check my records. He told me not to worry about it and ended the call.”
Marcus thought about the anonymous note.
Stop looking for the missing files. The project was never yours to begin with.
He didn't know whether the two events were connected. He didn't even know whether the note came from someone who understood the technical history or someone trying to frighten him into backing away.
But the wording bothered him.
The project was never yours to begin with.
It could refer to ClearCurrent. It could refer to Lantern. Or it could be a deliberate attempt to make those two projects seem connected.
“Would you be willing to put that call in a statement?” he asked.
“Yes,” Maya said. “As long as the statement makes clear that I can't identify the caller with certainty.”
“That seems fair.”
Maya began gathering her papers, but the sealed envelope remained on the table.
Marcus pointed to it.
“You said you hadn't seen the contents of the drive. But what about the envelope? Is that everything?”
“No. The envelope contains the paper copy of the supplementary review. The drive may contain the correspondence that led to it being left out of the official archive.”
“Then the email matters more than the report.”
“In some ways,” Maya replied. “The report tells us what the company knew. The email may tell us what people decided to do with that knowledge.”
She lifted the box.
“There's one other reason I wanted Elliot here. If the archive shows that Lantern's limitations were disclosed to the people responsible for the transfer, I don't want anyone suggesting that the engineers concealed them. Elliot and his team documented the problems they found. They recommended more testing. The commercial decision came later.”
Marcus looked at Elliot across the room.
“Then the record should show that.”
“Exactly.”
Maya left the building shortly afterward.