I’m Daisy, an 18-year-old university student from Florida. My parents divorced when I was 12, and I’ve lived with my mom ever since. Last year, my father succumbed to cancer, which was profoundly challenging for me because we were very close. He left me a significant amount of money in his will, but I could only access it once I turned 18. This year, I finally turned 18, and something really crazy happened to me. To be honest, I still can’t believe how everything turned out.
One day, my stepdad Arlo, who’s in his mid-40s and has been married to my mom for 5 years, called me into his room. We’ve never had the best relationship, but I’ve tried to be civil with him. However, he hasn’t always been nice to me. Anyway, he said, “Hey Daisy, I need to talk to you about something important.”
I asked him what it was, and he brought up the money my dad left me. He said that I should give it to my stepbrother, David, because he needed it for his college education. He wanted to go to university just like me, and Arlo thought I should hand over the inheritance money to him.
I was shocked by what I heard. I couldn’t believe that Arlo was asking me to give away my own money. I told him, “I don’t think I can do that, Arlo. This money was left to me by my dad. What if I need it in the future?”
Arlo didn’t agree with me and said, “Don’t be silly. You don’t need that money, and even if you do, David needs it more.”
I firmly replied, “I’m sorry, but the answer is no.”
Arlo got angry and warned me, “Daisy, don’t push me.”
I told him calmly, “There’s no need to get angry. I answered your question honestly. Saying no isn’t meant to disrespect you, it’s about setting boundaries. I’m standing my ground. And if you’re getting mad because I said no, you need to think about your attitude. Arlo, don’t forget you’re a guest in this house too, so let’s be civil.”
“Well, I don’t think that’s going to happen. Goodbye,” I said before he could say anything else.
Arlo’s behavior didn’t surprise me at all, given his past actions. I knew he’d eventually ask me for the money. You might be wondering where my mom was during all of this. Well, that’s another story. My mom didn’t seem to see Arlo’s flaws. She stood by him no matter what, almost like she was under a spell. She loved me, but I didn’t want to ruin her view of him, so I tried to get along with Arlo for her sake. It’s strange how, even though I was one of the youngest in the house, I often had to act the most mature.
My mom, Rose, was out of town at the time, which is why she wasn’t here. If she were, she’d have been furious. That’s why Arlo felt like he could boss me around. But little did he know, I was on to his sneaky plans.
Arlo followed me out of the room, scolding me and calling me a bad sister because I didn’t want to give money to David, which wasn’t true. I do want to help David, but not at the expense of my own future.
When people say “like father, like son,” they might be talking about David and Arlo. These two troublemakers are like Pinky and the Brain. You can decide who’s who based on what happened next.
“Hey, don’t walk away while I’m talking. You need to listen and do what’s right,” Arlo called after me.
“Arlo, can you give me a good reason for that?” I asked.
“Well, it’s what’s going on with you too. Your arguing woke me up. David, tell Daisy about what we talked about earlier.”
David yawned and said, “Sure, what was it again? Oh right, the inheritance money. Yeah, Daisy, Dad and I were talking, and we demand this money because of that important thing we talked about.”
“You mean the business?” I asked.
“What business?” Arlo said.
“You said this money was for my university tuition,” I replied.
“Yeah, that’s because that’s what it’s for,” David added.
“Yes, it’s for university. I have an interest in attending university and I demand the money for myself. Thanks.”
“Well, that’s a cute attempt, but not cute enough. The answer is no,” I said firmly.
“Why not, Daisy? He knows what he wants. This wasn’t up for discussion. We’re getting that money.”
“We’ll see about that,” I replied.
The rest of the evening was filled with tension. While Arlo was known for his silly pranks and attempts to test my patience, this new effort to annoy me was quite unusual. I had met a really immature and selfish person. This situation was pretty big, but I didn’t want to tell my mom about it yet. I wanted to keep dealing with them, especially after I found out this.
“Daisy, stop playing around. You need to be a grown-up and do the right thing,” Arlo said late that night.
“And the right thing is giving away my money?” I asked.
“Are you okay, Arlo?”
“Just wait until I tell Mom,” I said.
“Don’t tell Rose anything,” Arlo warned.
“Why not? She’s my mom. She deserves to know how I’m being treated,” I said.
“You think she cares? Listen, I’m just trying to help you. If you bring this up to her, she’ll get upset at you for wasting her time and being selfish.”
“Well, Arlo, that’s a risk I’m willing to take,” I said calmly.
“I’m warning you, don’t tell your mother,” he said, his angry tone surprising me. I had never seen him so worked up, especially over something like this. Something was going on, especially with that business idea David let slip. They think I’m not smart enough to catch on. Arlo is acting so strongly against me talking to my mom about it.
I talked to my mom as soon as I could. “Hey, Mom, how are you doing?”
“I’m good, baby. How about you?”
“Not very well, Mom. Something’s off with Arlo and David, especially Arlo. He’s acting weirder than usual.”
“Oh, Daisy, don’t be paranoid. I know you don’t really like him, but he’s not weird.”
“Mom, he asked me for the inheritance money.”
“What? Really?”
“Actually, he demanded to get the money. Both him and David.”
“That’s not true. He wouldn’t do that.”
“I know you love him, Mom, for whatever reason, but this is true. He said it’s for David’s education, but I think something fishy is going on. He even got pretty aggressive when I told him I’d tell you.”
“I don’t know, baby. I just feel like I need more proof.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll get all the proof. Just wait and see.”
Even though my mom wasn’t ready to fully believe me yet, I kept telling her that man put a spell on her. I was still determined to figure out this strange behavior.
Late at night, I used the family computer and found something shocking. Luckily, it seemed Arlo forgot to log out of his email. That was a big mistake. I saw something very concerning. Arlo had been sending emails to a lady named Bella. These emails weren’t nice at all. It looked like he was having an affair. I took notes on what I found, but the next thing I found was even crazier. The emails talked about Arlo divorcing my mom and running away with her. He said they’d get a lot of money soon for some business, but from what I read, it seemed like a shady business.
Arlo isn’t dumb enough to put illegal stuff in his emails, but he’s dumb enough to have an affair and forget to log out. I knew I needed to gather more info, and I thought I could maybe get something out of David. So the next day, I talked to David with my phone recording our conversation.
“Hey, David.”
“Hello, Daisy. You seem happy today.”
“Why not? It’s a beautiful day. I have some questions for you. I’ve been thinking about what you and Arlo said, and I’m thinking about giving you the money.”
“Really? That’s great. I’ll let him know.”
“Not so fast. Before I give you this money, it is for your college, right?”
“Oh yeah, right. My college tuition. Yes, right. Anyways, I need to be sure you’re serious about getting this money.”
“Yes, I’m very serious.”
“Are you sure? And Bella, is she serious?”
“Bella? Who’s Bella?”
“Oh, she’s, um, a student adviser for the college.”
David and I were scared. We didn’t know Arlo had come into the room.
“I don’t appreciate you interrogating my son,” Arlo said angrily.
“I wasn’t doing that. I was just asking how my money would be used,” I replied.
“Well, once you give someone money, it’s not yours anymore, so it’s not your business,” Arlo snapped.
“Is that any way to speak to someone who’s thinking of giving you money?” I asked.
“You’re not thinking. You’re giving me that money. If you don’t, I’ll kick you out.”
I was shocked, and it seemed like David was too. “Dad, this wasn’t part of—”
“Shut up! I’m the parent, and I make the rules. If you don’t give me that inheritance money, you can leave.”
I decided not to say anything. Little did Arlo know, I was still recording this conversation. I had caught him in the act.
I walked out of the room, shooting Arlo an angry look, and locked myself in my room. I started collecting all the evidence I could find against him. It felt like those detectives on TV who gather clues and put them up on their walls. I had voice recordings and screenshots of Arlo’s conversations with Bella. I prepared myself for the upcoming storm.
After I had everything, I called my mom.
“Hello, Mom?”
“Hey, love. How are you?”
“Mom, are you sitting down?”
“Why, what’s wrong?”
“I’m afraid I have some really bad news to share, and you won’t like it.”
I began telling my mom everything I had discovered. She kept denying it until I made her listen to the audio recording I had made earlier. At that point, she started to crumble.
“Why would he say those things to you? Why would he do that to me? Why would he be so cruel?”
“Because he’s a bad man. I’m sorry to say it, but you married a monster.”
“This is just terrible. I can’t believe I left you alone with those two sickos.”
“Absolutely not. I’m coming home right now. You stay where you are. Have you locked your door?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“I’m going to ruin that man and make sure he never shows his face in public again. When I’m done with him, he’ll wish he never married me.”
“That’s the spirit, Mom. Now hurry up and get home. We need to make a plan.”
My mom arrived several hours later and came straight to my room. We hugged and cried for what felt like hours. I could tell that this news was tough to hear, but I was glad she was in the angry stage because it motivated her to take action. We talked for hours, and by the end, we had a plan.
Several days passed, and Arlo couldn’t figure out why my mom had come home early from her work trip and why she was ignoring him. He acted very happy, almost too happy, to convince her of his innocence. However, she saw through his act and was ready to kick him out.
My mom decided to hire a private investigator after I showed her the suspicious messages about his supposed business. She also felt strongly that the money wasn’t going to be used for legal purposes. This made her furious because she couldn’t understand how a parent could be so cruel and scheming. She knew we couldn’t handle this situation on our own.
The private investigator shared the findings with my mom, who then told me, “I’m speechless. What did the investigator find?”
“Well, it turns out he’s planning to use a laundromat for money laundering. It’s an old trick.”
“Wow. That’s not all, is it?”
“No, it’s not. This woman, Bella, whom he’s cheating on me with, has a criminal record for drug-related activities. She’s been arrested multiple times for conspiracy to sell illegal substances. So, it wouldn’t be surprising if their business involves drugs too.”
“That’s unbelievable. I would have never expected this. I feel like a veil has been lifted from my eyes. Now I can see that the man I married isn’t a man at all but a sick and twisted person.”
“When are we going to confront him, Mom?”
“Right now. Follow my lead.”
“Wait, let me get my camera.”
We went to the living room and found David and Arlo discussing their shady business.
“We’ll have to use this as a cover for our business. It’s all going to be hidden. Just act like you don’t know and serve the customers,” Arlo was saying.
“But what about—” David started.
“Oh, hey, everyone! We’re just finalizing stuff for David’s college application.”
“Cut the act, Arlo. The game is up. We know everything.”
“What do you mean? Your innocent act won’t work anymore. Smile for the camera.”
“Get that out of my face, you spoiled brat! I mean, Daisy.”
“We know everything, Arlo. Do you know how many years you’d spend in jail for planning these crimes?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Maybe we should call Bella and see what she has to say.”
“You two think you know everything. Bella is just a friend.”
“Well, the explicit photos suggest otherwise. Who even uses emails to cheat nowadays? It’s so dumb.”
“You two went through my things? How dare you?”
“No, Arlo. How dare you? How dare you threaten my daughter multiple times to give you money that doesn’t belong to you? How dare you threaten to kick her out of my house? Are you sick in the head? How dare you put your son in your foolish schemes, endangering him? And how dare you plan to use this money for illegal activities? Now you’ve got nothing to say, huh?”
“We know everything, and we’re going to take you down.”
“Get that camera out of my face!”
Arlo tried to lunge at me, but I moved too quickly. His aggressive behavior was scary. “You want to attack my daughter? It’s like you want to go to prison.”
“You’re crazy. Do you think you know anything? You know nothing!”
“Yeah, well, tell that to the police who should be here any second now.”
“Police?”
“Yes, the police. Your behavior today makes me not want to call the cops, especially with how you’re acting.”
At that moment, we heard police sirens approaching our neighborhood. I had never seen Arlo look this way before. He was always smirking, like he was smarter than everyone else, but when he heard those sirens, it was like all the color drained from his face. He looked terrified.
“Please, Rose, you don’t have to do this. I could explain everything.”
“Save it for the judge, you cockroach. You disgust me. And David, don’t think you’re off the hook for this. Both of you are getting arrested. That should teach you a lesson about mistreating my daughter and me. I know you’re a kid, but you’re old enough to know better, and for that, you need to be punished.”
“Yes, Mom.”
“Come on, Jasmine. Don’t you think all of this is a bit too much?”
“On the contrary, it’s not enough.”
“How’s our live stream, Daisy?”
“We’ve got over 3,000 people watching the live stream. This is going to be big.”
“Oh, and in case it wasn’t clear, I want a divorce.”
“That’s right, folks. Over 3,000 people witnessed the whole mess, and surely enough, the news made it to local newspapers and tabloids. It was crazy to be in the middle of all this with my sick ex-stepfather and his son, but it was also satisfying to see his downfall.
He lost his job, his friends, and even some family members who don’t want to speak with him anymore. He’s facing charges for all these schemes, and if the judge sees fit, he could spend up to 20 years behind bars just for this.
The police also found Bella, who had been in hiding when all of this was blowing up. She’s facing the same charges.
Life was good on our side, though. My mom and I grew closer due to this situation. On weekends, we’d often relax on the patio, drinks in hand, and laugh at how foolish and evil Arlo was.
Good riddance.