Part 2: The Paper Trail
I pulled my laptop from my duffel and connected to the Wi-Fi. Same password. Nothing in this house changed unless it benefited Chloe. I logged into my military banking portal, and before the dashboard even finished loading, something felt wrong.
Then the balance appeared.
Wrong. Not slightly off. Completely wrong. Hazardous-duty pay gone. Deployment bonuses gone.
I opened the transaction history. Multiple structured transfers. I traced the destination accounts until one connected directly to Evelyn. Then I found a document uploaded three months earlier: a power of attorney listing Evelyn as an authorized agent, featuring a copied signature, a witness signature, and a notary stamp.
$45,000 missing.
I followed the financial trail beyond Evelyn’s account and found the name attached to the debts: Vance.
Lieutenant Vance. Always talking about integrity and career progression, while buried in gambling debt severe enough to require $45,000
