Inside was my personal laptop.

It was the same computer I had used to build the secondary ledger for Apex Development.

It held the encrypted keys to the holding companies in Delaware and the Cayman Islands.

“What are you doing?” Liam asked.

He kept his back pressed against the door as another heavy thud shook the frame.

“Dr. Vance, this is your final warning,” the voice outside shouted. “Step away from the door.”

“I am looking for the keys,” Liam lied, raising his voice to drown out the sound of my laptop booting up. “The lock is jammed.”

I placed the laptop on a metal sorting table.

The screen glowed, casting a blue light over the piles of white hospital linens.

“I am going to take his company,” I said.

“He has the majority shares, Claire,” Liam said. “You told me that yourself.”

“Not if I trigger the default clauses,” I replied.

I logged into the secure portal of the offshore custodian bank.

My hands were cold, but my muscle memory took over.

During my years as a forensic investigator, I had seen dozens of corporate structures collapse from a single keystroke.