Beth Bentley -- now gone 148 weeks

Beth Bentley, Woodstock mother, wife, legal-office manager, friend to many, ATM to some, vanished May 23, 2010.

What did she use for money in her final days, weeks and months? CHASE Bank would say that she used their credit card.

The last payment posted to her account on May 23, 2010. Whoa! Wait a minute! Beth made a payment to CHASE Bank on the day she vanished?

But she left CHASE Bank with a balance, and apparently not a small one. CHASE wrote off the account on December 31, 2010, and a debt collection firm acquired it. That firm is now the Plaintiff in Case No. 12AR000749 in McHenry County Circuit Court, right here in Woodstock. The balance now is $14,257.21.And, of course, they'll add on attorney's fees and costs.

Court records indicate they are trying to serve Beth to appear in court. Good luck. Will they have better luck in finding her than five police agencies have had?

Why would Beth make a payment while on a girls' week-end away? Or was it some type of automatic payment? If it was, why didn't it continue in June 2010?

What charges were made with that credit card in May 2010? April? March? Were there any large cash advances, say in an amount that might fund a getaway?

Did Beth have a reason to disappear? Were "things" starting to catch up with her? Was anyone unhappy with her? Could there have been someone who thought it might be "convenient" for her not to come back from that trip to Mount Vernon? Did she ever go on that trip?

Certainly, a $14,000 credit card bill is not enough to disappear over. Well, at least not voluntarily. Would CHASE Bank records indicate a history of on-time payments? If not, had an interest rate taken a huge hike, say to the 28-30% range?

Any chance that she might walk into court on July 18 with a big "Hi, Everybody. Miss Me?" and a cashier's check for $14, 257.21?