My Best Friend Wore My Bathrobe While Stealing My Wife

Three days later, Mr. Davies called me.

"Ethan, the investigation results are in."

"But the situation is... complicated. I think you should come in."

I put down my work and went straight to the detective agency.

Mr. Davies handed me a tablet.

"Ethan, are you mentally prepared?"

I nodded and unlocked the tablet.

On the screen was an encrypted cloud drive named "Future," containing a trove of photos and documents.

The first photo alone was a gut punch.

It was a picture of Chloe and Leo at a hotel entrance, dated a year and a half ago.

That meant their relationship started even earlier than Leo had admitted.

I continued to scroll down.

Photos from various angles, in various places, at various times.

Hotels, restaurants, movie theaters, beaches.

They were dating like a normal couple, eating, watching movies.

And I was at home, waiting for her to finish her "promotional event," preparing her late-night snacks.

"Ethan, according to our investigation, your wife and Mr. Leo's relationship has indeed been going on for about a year and a half," Mr. Davies said, pointing at the photos.

"And judging by the frequency, they met more than three times a week on average."

"Sometimes during weekday lunch breaks, sometimes at night."

"Your wife often used meetings with brands as an excuse to go on dates with him."

More than three times a week.

That meant she spent more time with him than she did with me.

I kept scrolling through the photos.

Suddenly, I saw a photo that filled me with absolute rage.

It was taken the day after I left for a business trip to our San Francisco headquarters.

I remembered that before I left, Chloe had gently reminded me to be safe.

But in the photo, she was wearing the Cartier bracelet I gave her and driving the Tesla I bought while kissing Leo at the seaside restaurant *we* used to frequent.

Using my money to date another man.

"And that's not even the worst of it."

Mr. Davies flipped to another page.

"Look at this."

It was a receipt from a tattoo parlor. It was a compass. A design meant to symbolize *our* love. A design *she'd* urged him to get.

In other words, she had etched a symbol of our love onto another man's body.

My hands started to tremble, but not with rage. A terrifying calm was settling over me.

"Is there anything worse?"

My voice was flat.

Mr. Davies hesitated for a moment.

"There is one more thing. It might be a bigger blow to you."

"Tell me."

"According to our surveillance, your wife and Mr. Leo have already been looking at seaside apartments."

"To be precise, they were looking for a home together."

I was stunned.

"What do you mean?"

"They're planning to get married and are preparing a new home."

Mr. Davies handed me another set of documents.

"These are the records of their apartment viewings, as well as their chat history with the real estate agent."

"Your wife told the agent that she would be getting a divorce soon and needed a marital home."

I looked at the chat logs.

In them, Chloe said her husband was a boring ATM who was only good for making money.

She had stopped loving him long ago and was just waiting for the right time to divorce.

Now that she had finally found her soulmate, she was ready to start a new life.

The agent even wished her happiness.

"And this."

Mr. Davies handed me another printout.

It was Chloe's chat history with her best friend.

"I'm so sick of Ethan. All he knows is work and making money, he has no romantic bone in his body."

"Leo is different. He knows how to enjoy life, how to dote on a woman."

"I look forward to seeing him every day. Being with Ethan is like being in jail."

"As soon as I get the house and the savings, I'll finally leave Ethan."

"He's so honest and naive, he'll definitely give me half the assets."

Reading this, I finally understood everything.

This wasn't just cheating. It was a long con.

She wanted to take our shared assets and start over with Leo.

And I was just a tool in her plan.

A money-making tool. A stepping stone.

Once she had squeezed all the value out of me, she would kick me to the curb.

"Ethan, are you alright?" Mr. Davies asked with concern.

I shook my head.

"I'm fine. Better than ever."

I organized all the materials and copied them to my encrypted hard drive.

"Mr. Davies, can these materials be used as evidence in court?"

"Yes, we have a professional notarization process."

"Please have them notarized for me."

I stood up.

"Also, I have another commission."

"Go on."

"Help me investigate Leo's background, including his financial situation, personal debts, and any problems at work."

"I want all his dirty laundry."

Mr. Davies nodded.

"Understood. It will take about a week."

When I left the detective agency, I didn't go straight back to the office.

Instead, I went to a law firm.

"Mr. Ethan, based on the evidence you've provided, you have an absolute advantage in this divorce case," the lawyer said after reviewing the materials.

"However, I suggest you don't confront her just yet."

"First, we'll file to have your marital assets frozen to prevent her from transferring them."

"Then, we officially file for divorce."

I nodded.

"Then please help me handle it."

"I want her to walk away with nothing."

The lawyer seemed taken aback.

"Mr. Ethan, according to the law, even if the other party commits adultery, the division of assets won't be drastically different..."

"She used my money to date someone else. Does that count as misappropriation of marital property?"

I cut him off.

"Furthermore, she was already planning to transfer assets, and there's evidence for all of this."

The lawyer re-examined the documents.

"In that case, we can indeed fight for a more favorable outcome."

"I'll draw up a detailed strategy for you."

It was already afternoon when I got back to the office.

Leo saw me and immediately walked over.

"Ethan, where have you been? I've been looking for you all morning."

"Personal business."

I sat down and went back to work.

"Ethan, about Chloe..."

"I said, personal business."

I didn't look up.

"Also, the feature scheduled to go live next week, I reviewed it and found a major security risk. It's rejected."

"What? But it passed all the tests."

"As the Chief Software Architect, I have the final say."

I looked at him.

"As the Product Manager, your recent performance has been subpar. Maybe this is a good time for you to reflect on your performance."

Leo's expression soured.

A rejected feature meant his quarterly KPIs would be shot.

If the launch was delayed, it would be his fault.

"Ethan, are you doing this on purpose?" he asked in a low voice.

I stopped typing and looked at him.

"Leo, are you questioning my professional judgment?"

"No, I just think..."

"Think what? That because we were brothers, I should go easy on you?"

I stood up, raising my voice slightly.

Colleagues around us all looked over.

"Leo, I'll say it again. In this company, I am the Chief Software Architect, and you are the Product Manager."

"Your job is to revise the plan according to my professional feedback. You don't have the right to bargain."

"If you have an issue, you can file a complaint with the director."

Leo's face was flushed.

He wanted to say something, but in the end, he just nodded.

"I understand, Ethan."

Watching him walk away, his shoulders slumped in resentment, I felt a sharp, satisfying surge of victory.

This was just the beginning.

I was going to make them understand the price of betraying me.

It was more than just losing me as a friend.

Much more.