Trying to recover unused vacation

I recently quit my job to work for another company. I gave my former employer a formal two-weeks notice and they sent me home for the remainder of the two weeks. They have paid me for wages earned but, they have not paid me for my unused vacation. The first time I question them about my vacation pay, they said, that now that I am working for a competitor there are other considerations. The second time I questioned them about my vacation, their
reply was that my Supervisor was checking on the vacation the number of days that were paid to me for not working those two weeks. And, that there is a relatioship between the two. I'm not sure what that means.
My question is, if I was sent home can they automatically use my vacation pay without permission for the two weeks that I was sent home by them?