My Husband Tried To Pull The Plug On My Life For $2m. He Didn’t Realize I Could Hear Him Whispering His Plan. Now I’m Awake, And I’m Coming For Everything.

The Counterattack

The door to my room opened. Dr. Evans walked in carrying a tray with oatmeal and a glass of water. He looked refreshed today, but his smile vanished when he saw the look on my face and the tablet lying askew on the bed.

“You watched it,” he said flatly.

“It wasn’t a question.”

“How can I rest, Michael?” My voice rose, tears of frustration spilling over. “Look at what they’re saying. They’re saying I’m having an affair with you. That Rick is innocent. Brenda is twisting everything. My career, my reputation, it’s ruined.”

Michael set the tray down and pulled a chair close. He didn’t try to soothe me with empty platitudes. He looked at me with sharp determination.

“Listen to me, Eleanor. This is a classic strategy,” he said calmly. “Rick’s lawyer must have put Brenda up to this. It’s called trial by press. They know our legal evidence—the recordings, the video, the medical reports—is solid. So they can’t win in court. Their only move is to destroy you mentally with public opinion. They want you to get depressed and drop the charges or appear mentally unstable to the judge.”

“But it hurts, Michael. They’re insulting us.”

“Let them bark. We have a fatal bite.” Michael took out his own phone. “The forensic team just finished recovering data from Rick’s laptop they seized from your house. You know what they found? A chat history between Rick and a woman named Cindy. She’s Rick’s actual mistress. And guess what? Cindy is four months pregnant.”

My world stopped spinning for a moment. Pregnant?

“My voice was choked. So besides the gambling, he was also…”

“Yes. The money you thought was lost to gambling… a large portion of it was funneled to Cindy’s apartment in the West Loop,” Michael continued. “The police also found proof of transfers from Rick’s account to an online bookie right on the day you fell. The motive is clear. He needed your life insurance money to cover his debts and support his pregnant mistress.”

The news hit me like a sledgehammer. But strangely, this time it didn’t hurt. It was vindicating. This was ammunition. This was proof I wasn’t crazy.

“We’ll save this ace for the trial,” Michael said. “Let Brenda run her mouth for now. The higher she flies on her lies, the harder she’ll fall when we expose everything.”

Reunited

Suddenly, the door opened again. This time a small figure ran in with cheerful steps, instantly transforming the gloomy room.

“Mommy!”

Lily, my little girl. She leaped into my arms without hesitation, burying her face in my neck. The smell of her hair, the familiar scent of baby powder, instantly washed away the stench of medicine and online slander. I held her tight. So tight, as if afraid she would disappear if I let go.

“I missed you, Mommy,” she whined playfully. “Uncle Michael said you had a headache from working too much. Are you all better now?”

I looked into Lily’s innocent round eyes. She didn’t know anything about her father. She didn’t know he had tried to kill her mother. And I would do anything to protect that innocence for as long as possible.

“Mommy’s all better now, sweetie. Because you’re here,” I replied, kissing her forehead.

Michael stood behind Lily, smiling warmly. The presence of both of them gave me a strength no medicine could provide. Brenda could have her thousands of netizens and paid trolls, Rick could have his slick lawyer, but I had the truth. I had Michael, and most importantly, I had a reason to live.

“Michael,” I called, my voice now much firmer. I wiped the tears from my cheeks. There was no point crying over the comments of strangers.

“Yes, El?”

“Call the best lawyer you know. I’m not backing down. I’m going to drag them all through the hell they created for me. And as for that slander video…” I glanced at the still-glowing tablet. “We won’t respond now. We’ll collect every single one of those vicious comments. I’m suing them all for libel after Rick is convicted.”

Michael broke into a wide, proud grin. “Now that’s the Dr. Eleanor Henderson I know. The predator is awake.”

The storm of slander outside might still be raging, lightning striking my good name, but inside this room with my daughter and the man who was sincerely protecting me, I felt calm. I was ready for court. I was ready to face those hypocrites. Rick thought he could destroy me. He was dead wrong. He had just created his worst enemy.