I Ruined my Ex-husband and my Best Friend after a Divorce

Wendy lent me some money, and I boarded the old-fashioned train back to my hometown early the next morning. After a bumpy ride of over ten hours, I returned to the small town that felt both familiar and unfamiliar. The local clinic still smelled of disinfectant, just like before. The doctor, Ben Wheeler, who had usually treated me, was about to retire. He peered at me through his reading glasses and paused in surprise. "Aren't you... the girl from the Wright family who got into college, Kristy?" "Yes, it's me." I handed over a photocopy of the medical record that had been used as "evidence" in court. "Dr. Wheeler, could you take a look? Was this record issued by your clinic?" Ben adjusted his glasses and scrutinized it for a long while before shaking his head. "No. I didn't issue that." My heart skipped a beat. "Is there anything wrong with it?" "The signature here is a good imitation, but it's not my handwriting. And this seal." He pointed to the red stamp and continued, "We replaced this with a new one last year. This is the old stamp. But the date is from this year. It doesn't match. He took out a yellowed manila folder from the filing cabinet and said, "The most crucial part is your file. All your health check records since childhood are here. You're in excellent health, hardly ever catching a cold, let alone having any hereditary disease." So the evidence was solid. I was trembling with excitement. "Dr. Wheeler, could you help me issue a statement? And I want to make a copy of my real records. This is very important for me." Seeing my eyes redden, Ben sighed. "Kristy, have you suffered injustice in the city?" I told him the entire story. He was furious after learning what had happened to me. "What a disgrace. Has all that education gone to waste? How could he be so malicious? Don't worry, I'll write that statement for you. Justice will prevail. We can't let the villainous go." With Ben's handwritten statement and the real health records stamped with the new seal, I seemed to hold my weapon to fight back. Back in the city, I handed the evidence to Wendy. She immediately took me to meet an old lawyer she knew, Charles Blakely. His hair was gray, but his eyes were sharp. He carefully reviewed all the materials and then pondered for a moment. "The evidence is solid. Emeline forged medical documents and presented false evidence. Her lawyer's license is as good as gone. We can file a formal complaint against her with the Bar Association. It will surely work. "As for your ex-husband," Charles looked at me and continued, "we can charge him with defamation and infringement of reputation. We will request the court review to annul your marriage and reevaluate the division of assets." I shook my head. "Mr. Blakely, I don't care about the money. I just want to ruin him." Mr. Blakely nodded approvingly. "I respect your dignity. But it won't suffice to ruin him. We need greater leverage." He gazed at me and asked, "You supported him through seven years of his Ph.D. studies, so you must know him well. Think carefully. Is there anything else we can use against him?" Anything else I could use against him? I thought hard. Rhett was extremely cautious and took great care of his reputation. Suddenly, an idea struck me. I remembered his doctoral dissertation. During those years, he often complained about the pressure and lack of inspiration. I stayed up with him for countless nights, organizing materials, copying his drafts, and even rewriting convoluted sections when he was stuck. I practically completed the key experimental methods and data analysis parts of his dissertation after several all-nighters. As a memento, I kept those notebooks filled with my handwriting. I told Charles about that. His eyes lit up instantly. "Plagiarism and fraud! This is fatal for him, who just earned his Ph.D. and is about to make a name in academia. Do you still have those materials?" "I do," I said through clenched teeth. "When I was kicked out, I brought nothing else but instinctively packed those notebooks." Perhaps even God was on my side. Charles became excited. "Great! Then we'll attack on both fronts! Let's see how he handles the fall from grace."