"Third, I think it makes sense to bring this to the attention of the VCs - it won't hurt (the way publicly outing them might) and they could possibly work at mi

"Third, I think it makes sense to bring this to the attention of the VCs - it won't hurt (the way publicly outing them might) and they could possibly work at mitigating/mediating this." This seems like the best option. The VCs will want to minimize risk. If they think they can pay you a reasonable sum to make the past dispute go away, this may be your best option. It will most likely not involve expensive lawyers for too many billable hours.