My wife severed our marriage through an email while I was serving overseas…

I didn’t feel sad anymore. I didn’t even feel angry. I felt focused, like I was planning a mission.

This wasn’t about emotion now. This was about strategy. At 0500, before my shift started, I sent an email to James with the subject line, need legal help, discreet and urgent.

His reply came an hour later. Call me, secure line only. When I hung up from that call, I knew exactly what I needed to do.

I didn’t need to yell. I didn’t need to threaten. I didn’t even need to confront her.

I just needed to wait and watch and let her own actions become the trap. Two months later, I was back on American soil. I didn’t tell Becky I was coming home, didn’t call, didn’t text, just checked into a motel in downtown Spokane under a different name and contacted James.

We met at a diner ten miles outside of town. You look like hell, he said, sliding into the booth. Feel like it too, I replied.

James handed me a folder. Got everything we discussed, the house deed, loan documents, bank statements, and this. He pulled out a separate paper.

Found something interesting when I was digging into your finances. It was a refinance application with my signature on it, except it wasn’t my signature, not quite. Someone had tried to copy it but missed details.

The middle initial was wrong and the stroke pattern wasn’t mine. Becky did this, I asked, though I already knew the answer. James nodded.

Three months ago. Use the equity to pull out $30,000. Your signature is required for that since the VA loan is in your name only.

Forge my signature, take out a loan against our house, then clear out our accounts and divorce me, I said. Busy woman. It gets better, James said.

She listed her boyfriend as a co-applicant. He’s got a record. Two DUIs and a fraud charge from 2019.

I took a deep breath. What are my options? Several, James said. But first, you need to decide what you want.

I thought about it. I want what’s legally mine and I want her to understand consequences. James smiled.

Then here’s what we do. The next day, I drove past our house. Her boyfriend’s truck was gone but Becky’s car was in the driveway.

I parked down the street and watched for a while, thought about knocking on the door, confronting her, but that wasn’t the plan. Instead, I drove to the bank, met with the loan officer who had processed the refinance, showed him my military ID, showed him the real signature on my driver’s license, showed him the forged documents. His face went pale.

I’ll need to report this immediately. I understand, I said. I’ve already filed a police report.

That night, I got a text from Becky. Who have you been talking to at the bank? Jeremy said someone was asking questions. I didn’t respond.

The next day, I went to the county clerk’s office, filed paperwork contesting the refinance due to fraud, registered formal notice that no changes to the property could be made without my presence. Two days later, Becky called. I let it go to voicemail.

Nathan, we need to talk. The bank called about the house. What are you doing? If this is about the divorce, we can discuss it like adults.

Like adults. The same words from her email. I still didn’t respond…