Sometimes people try to pretend they’re better than they are by lying about important parts of their past. In today’s story, an abusive father and husband is finally exposed for who he really is when his ex-wife finds his military discharge papers.

Let’s see how the story unfolds…

My mother finally got revenge on her abusive ex with his own paperwork

This all started several years ago during my parents’ divorce, but the revenge took place this November.

Backstory: Growing up, my father was an emotionally abusive piece of s*** who got off of religious authority and controlling every aspect of our lives. We were kept so isolated and made to fear the police/CPS to the point where we thought it was normal.

After I went off to college, my little brother came out as gay and my father started beating him (unbeknownst to my mother and I).

Both the mother and brother moved out.

When my brother threatened to tell my mom about this, my father kicked the then 15 year old out of the house.

My mother was understandably horrified by this and tried to get my father to see sense, at which point he started hitting her.

Long story somewhat short, I got my mom out, my brother went to live with friends, and divorce proceedings were started.

It was nasty, no one wanted to go to the police (father was friends with the local small town cops), and thankfully my dad agreed to a no fault divorce.

OP’s mom found out her ex-husband had lied about his military service.

While my mom was cleaning out her stuff from the house under the watchful eye of her amazing coworkers, she found my father’s discharge papers.

This is where the plan started.

You see, my father spent his entire 25 year marriage telling everyone that he was a Special Forces vet who had been awarded a Purple Heart and Bronze Star which were both coincidentally destroyed in a housefire along with all his uniforms and paperwork.

But here were his discharge papers and they clearly stated he was given an Other Than Honorable Discharge after 4 years in the motor pool.

Years later, it was time for revenge.

Not wanting to be seen as the vindictive ex-wife, my mom quietly took the papers and didn’t tell anyone for years after my father moved away to a new state to join a militia.

When she finally told me while tipsy this past year, we hatched a plan.

Over the next few months we snooped on social media to make a list of his former and current employers, family, major friends that we knew of, and his new church. She enlisted our extended family and I my college friends from all over the country.

Now everyone knows OP’s dad was lying.

In November we each purchased Veteran’s Day cards and wrote out messages such as “stolen valor” “motor pool” “pretender” etc. Everyone attached a photocopy of the page listing his discharge. And then we sent them on the same day from the nearest major cities with the return address listed as his current church.

They arrived on or around Veteran’s Day from Atlanta, Orlando, Washington DC, New York, St. Loius, Kansas City, Seattle, Portland, LA, Houston, Ontario, London, and Edinburgh.

Immediately my mother was inundated with calls/emails from people who “had no idea” and “couldn’t believe he would lie like that” and ” we’re sorry for not believing her/my brother”.

My dad sent a nasty email implying horrible things if he ever could prove my mother did this, which she forwarded straight to her lawyer along with the nasty letters from his more vocal supporters.

Now everyone views OP’s mom and brother differently.

Now most people in our hometown look at her as the battered spouse who walked out with her head held high rather than “that tramp who divorced such a godly man”.

My little brother has no idea we did this (he didn’t want anyone to confront my father), but later told me he got a random call from our old pastor apologizing for kicking him out of the church over my father’s lies.

And I can finally sleep well at night with the knowledge that his reputations is in shambles by our hands.

Revenge truly is a dish best served cold.

I’m surprised OP’s mom didn’t want to tell everyone the dirt on her ex sooner.

Let’s see how Reddit reacted to this story…

This reader is surprised he got away with it for so long.

I think these vets want to do more than talk…

This reader likes the timing of the revenge.

Another reader thinks OP and mom need to tell the brother.

This reader points out that the dad committed a crime.

Another reader shared a similar but opposite story…

It’s never a good idea to lie!

If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a daughter who invited herself to her parents’ 40th anniversary vacation for all the wrong reasons.