Chapter 5 - The Trap Springs
The Cumberland County Sheriff's Department sat in a sterile, gray-brick building in downtown Fayetteville. Detective Raymond Miller, a grizzled investigator with twenty years on the force, sat across from Mark Vance and me in a small interview room.
On the desk between us lay a high-resolution binder of evidence: bank statements showing the monthly transfers to Derrick Bennett’s account, high-definition doorbell footage of Derrick entering my home at 11:45 PM and leaving at 6:15 AM, and clear close-ups of the fraudulent loan documents bearing my forged signature.
Detective Miller flipped through the pages slowly, his eyebrows rising higher with every turn.
"This isn't just a messy divorce, Captain Turner," Miller said, looking up at me over his reading glasses. "This is a textbook financial scheme. Derrick Bennett has been under our radar for six months after a senior citizen in Hope Mills lost fifty grand to his fake renovation company. We just couldn't prove the forgery intent until now."
"The loan application was processed through First Carolina Credit Union," Mark Vance added, leaning forward. "Derrick used a corrupt notary named Brenda Vance—no relation to me—who works out of his office. She signed off on the power of attorney without Captain Turner ever being in the state."
Detective Miller clicked his pen. "That’s state-level felony fraud, identity theft, and conspiracy. What about your wife?"
My heart heavy, I looked Detective Miller straight in the eye. "I loved my wife, Detective. But she betrayed my children, stole our money, and tried to ruin my reputation to cover her tracks. Do whatever the law requires."
Miller nodded with a look of quiet respect. "Fair enough. Here’s how we play this. The loan application Derrick submitted? It hasn't officially been rejected yet. The bank flagged it yesterday when your attorney filed the fraud alert, but we asked them to leave the status as 'pending approval'."
I frowned. "Why?"
"Because Derrick thinks he's about to get paid," Miller explained with a dark grin. "He scheduled a meeting at the bank branch on Skibo Road for 2:00 PM today to finalize the disbursement check. He thinks Kendra is coming with him to sign the final draw slip."
"And Kendra?" I asked.
"Kendra is currently staying at a hotel down the street, feeling confident because of her little social media stunt," Miller said, standing up. "We're going to let her walk into that bank with Derrick. And when they step up to the teller window to collect that $85,000 check... we're going to shut the door behind them."
My stomach flipped. This was it. The point of no return.
"Can I be there?" I asked.
Detective Miller looked at me thoughtfully. "You can watch from the unmarked car across the street, Captain. But you stay inside. Let my deputies handle the heavy lifting."
"Understood," I said.
As we walked out of the police station, Carlos met me in the parking lot. He handed me a cup of hot black coffee and slapped me on the shoulder.
"You ready for this, Mike?" he asked softly.
May you like
I looked at the blue sky above North Carolina, thinking about Haley's scared text message, Cody's innocent smile, and the eight years I had dedicated to a woman who saw me as nothing more than a bank account to be raided.
"I've been ready since the moment I stepped off that plane," I said.
