Chapter 5
“Find out exactly what they took.”
I stood in my office, staring at the security footage.
Felicia walked through the hallway in a long black coat.
Derrick followed her.
He carried a laptop bag.
They entered my office at 9:42 p.m.
At 10:19 p.m., they emerged.
Derrick held a folder beneath his arm.
I watched the footage three times.
Each time, the betrayal felt worse.
Daniel stood beside me.
“We need the original trust documents.”
I nodded.
“They're with the estate attorney.”
“Good.”
He paused the footage.
“Marcus, did you ever give Felicia permission to review the trust?”
“No.”
“Did she have access to the cabinet?”
“She knew where I kept the key.”
Daniel sighed.
“Then she may have copied the documents.”
I looked at him.
“What could she do with them?”
“Possibly nothing by herself. But if someone intended to forge your signature or impersonate you, knowing the structure of your assets would be useful.”
My stomach tightened.
I thought about the false medical statement.
The forged power of attorney.
The attempts to access Jasmine's college fund.
This wasn't random.
It was coordinated.
And I wanted to know who was directing it.
That afternoon, I called Felicia.
She answered on the third ring.
“Marcus?”
“Where are you staying?”
She hesitated.
“At a hotel.”
“Is Derrick with you?”
“No.”
I didn't believe her.
“I've seen the office footage.”
Silence.
“Felicia?”
“What footage?”
“You and Derrick entering my office.”
She exhaled sharply.
“Marcus, I can explain.”
“Then explain.”
“We were looking for tax documents.”
I stared at the wall.
“Why?”
“Derrick needed information for an investment.”
I almost laughed.
“You took confidential documents from my office for Derrick's investment?”
“I didn't take anything.”
“The camera shows him leaving with a folder.”
She went quiet.
I lowered my voice.
“What were you planning?”
“Nothing.”
“Felicia, stop lying.”
She began crying.
“You're treating me like a criminal.”
I thought about Jasmine.
About her packed bag.
About the years she had been afraid to tell me what happened at home.
Then I remembered my daughter's missing necklace.
“Where is Danielle's necklace?”
Felicia stopped crying.
“What?”
“The gold heart pendant Jasmine received on her sixteenth birthday.”
She hesitated.
“I put it somewhere safe.”
“Where?”
“At home.”
“It isn't in her room.”
“I don't remember exactly.”
I closed my eyes.
“Felicia, I'm asking you one last time.”
Her voice hardened.
“Why does that necklace matter so much? Danielle has been dead for twelve years.”
Something inside me went completely still.
“Because it belongs to Jasmine.”
Felicia laughed bitterly.
“Everything belongs to Jasmine.”
I didn't respond.
I couldn't.
Because I finally understood that no explanation would make Felicia care.
She didn't see Jasmine as a person.
Only as an obstacle.
“Have your attorney contact Daniel,” I said.
Then I ended the call.
That evening, I took Jasmine out to dinner.
Not somewhere fancy.
Just a quiet little restaurant we used to visit when she was younger.
She ordered chicken pasta.
I ordered steak.
For the first few minutes, we ate quietly.
Then she looked up.
“Daddy?”
“Yes?”
“Do you regret marrying Felicia?”
I put down my fork.
The question hurt.
But she deserved an honest answer.
“I regret not seeing how she treated you.”
Jasmine looked down.
I continued.
“I thought I was building a family for us.”
She nodded.
“I know.”
“But I should have listened more carefully when things changed.”
She hesitated.
“Felicia was nice at first.”
I smiled sadly.
“She was.”
Jasmine stirred her pasta.
“I think she liked me when I was little.”
“Maybe.”
“Then I got older.”
I nodded.
“And she started acting like I was taking you away.”
My chest tightened.
I reached across the table.
“You never had to compete for my love.”
She smiled faintly.
“I know that now.”
I squeezed her hand.
“And I want you to tell me whenever something feels wrong. Even if you think I won't like hearing it.”
She nodded.
“Okay.”
For the first time in days, she laughed when I made a terrible joke.
It was a small sound.
But it meant everything.
Later that night, Daniel called.
“Marcus, we located a pawn transaction.”
My heart jumped.
“What transaction?”
“Danielle's necklace.”
I stood.
“Where?”
“A jewelry reseller in Providence.”
I closed my eyes.
“Felicia sold it?”
“The paperwork lists her.”
My chest burned.
“How much?”
“Eight hundred dollars.”
I stared at the wall.
Eight hundred dollars.
The necklace wasn't worth much commercially.
But to Jasmine, it was priceless.
It was one of the few things she had left from her mother.
“Can we get it back?”
“I'm working with the dealer and investigators.”
I sank into a chair.
Then Daniel added, “There's another detail.”
I braced myself.
“The proceeds were transferred into an account connected to Coleman Strategic Holdings.”
Derrick.
Again.
I rubbed my forehead.
“What is happening here?”
Daniel took a breath.
“Marcus, I think we need a forensic accountant to review every transaction connected to Felicia and Derrick.”
I looked at the clock.
It was nearly ten.
“Do it.”
The following morning, I met with a specialist named Olivia Grant.
She was calm, direct, and extremely thorough.
She studied the records Angela had collected.
Then she asked a question that surprised me.
“Mr. Bennett, did your wife recently increase your life insurance coverage?”
I frowned.
“What?”
“Do you have a current policy?”
“Yes.”
“Who is the beneficiary?”
“My daughter, through her trust.”
Olivia nodded.
“Have you reviewed it recently?”
I shook my head.
“Not in several months.”
She made a note.
“We should verify that no unauthorized changes were submitted.”
A cold feeling moved through me.
“Why?”
“Because the attempted medical authorization and asset transfers suggest someone was exploring ways to gain financial control.”
I stared at her.
She continued.
“I'm not saying anyone intended physical harm. But we need to know whether the same pattern extended to insurance.”
I nodded slowly.
“Check everything.”
Two days later, the results arrived.
There had been an application to change the primary beneficiary.
The requested beneficiary was Felicia Bennett.
The application had not been approved.
The signature on the form looked like mine.
But it wasn't.
I stared at the document.
The attempted transfer of my daughter's car suddenly felt like one small piece of something much larger.
I called Daniel.
“Someone tried to change my life insurance.”
“I've seen the report.”
“Daniel, what kind of person does this?”
He was quiet.
Then he said, “Someone who believes they can take control without consequences.”
I sat alone in my office.
For years, I had trusted Felicia.
I had loved her.
I had defended her when relatives questioned her behavior.
And now I was staring at documents suggesting she had tried to gain control of nearly everything I owned.
Then my phone vibrated.
A message from an unknown number.
It contained a photograph.
I opened it.
My stomach dropped.
The picture showed Jasmine standing outside her school.
Below it were seven words.
Tell your daughter to stay out of this.
I stood so quickly my chair crashed backward.
For a moment, I couldn't breathe.
Then another message arrived.
May you like
You should have accepted the missing car.
And I realized the people threatening my daughter weren't finished.
