The study looked the same as it always did when the family wanted control to be noticed. Evelyn sat behind the wide desk, facing the tall windows that looked out over the east lawn. Yosef stood near the glass, hands behind his back, positioned so he could see both the grounds and Arianne without turning his head. The lawyer sat across from Arianne, a table between them.
He placed a folder on it.
Thicker than the one she had declined to open earlier. The tab labeled with a year: twenty-two years ago.
She kept her hands resting lightly on her knees. Waited.
"Emergency governance review," the lawyer said. His voice did not rise. "Summers Corporation. Triggered by an anonymous submission to two board members and a concurrent regulatory inquiry."
He spoke while looking down at the cover, not at her.
Evelyn did look at her.
"You were thirteen," Evelyn said.
Not a question.
Arianne held her gaze. "Yes."
Yosef shifted near the window. Small movement. Audible in the quiet room.
