JAG
Chapter 05 - JAG
The JAG attorney's name was Captain Alicia Reyes, no relation to anyone in Emily's family, a coincidence that made Emily smile despite everything the moment she introduced herself.
"Financial exploitation of a deployed servicemember's protected pay," Captain Reyes said, reviewing the printed statements Emily had brought, "is exactly the kind of case federal protections were built for. The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act covers a lot of ground, but this specific pattern, power of attorney abuse during active deployment, has additional statutory weight."
"What does that mean in practice," Emily asked.
"It means you have more leverage than a typical civil theft case would give you," Reyes said. "It means the Department of Justice takes cases involving deployed servicemembers seriously, both for the deterrent value and because Congress specifically strengthened these protections after seeing exactly this kind of exploitation happen to soldiers overseas who couldn't watch their own accounts."
"I don't necessarily want federal charges," Emily said. "I want the truth acknowledged. I want the money accounted for. I'm not sure yet if I want my parents facing prison."
Reyes nodded, unsurprised by the hesitation.
"That's common," she said. "A lot of servicemembers in your position want restitution and accountability more than punishment. We can pursue this civilly first, with the statute as leverage, without immediately escalating to a criminal referral. That gives you room to decide later if this needs to go further."
"What do we need to start," Emily asked.
"Full documentation," Reyes said. "Every transfer, every date, cross-referenced against your deployment orders and your parents' account activity. I'll draft a formal demand letter citing the specific statute, which tends to get attention fast once people realize federal protections for deployed troops aren't the same as ordinary family financial disputes."
Emily spent the next three days compiling exactly that, matching military pay records against bank statements with the same methodical patience she'd once used for after-action reports, every discrepancy documented, every date cross-checked twice.
Nia helped where she could, mostly by making sure Emily ate something and slept occasionally between spreadsheet sessions that stretched past midnight more nights than not.
"You don't have to do this alone," Nia said, the third night in a row she'd found Emily still at the kitchen table well past midnight.
"I know," Emily said. "I just want it airtight before Captain Reyes sends anything. I don't want my father finding a single loophole to hide behind."
"He won't find one," Nia said, looking over the meticulously organized documentation spread across the table. "You've made sure of that already."
The demand letter went out on a Thursday, citing the specific federal statute, the total misappropriated amount, now confirmed at thirty one thousand four hundred and twelve dollars, and a formal request for full restitution within thirty days or the matter would proceed to federal civil litigation with the option to refer for criminal investigation remaining open.
May you like
Emily read the final draft one more time before Reyes sent it, feeling something settle in her chest that hadn't settled since the dock.
*Not revenge,* she thought. *Just the truth, finally, with enough weight behind it that they can't kneel their way out of it this time.*
