Soldier Returns from Duty and Finds His Mom Living in Tent near Her House – Story of the Day

Craig returned home to spend Christmas with his mother but was shocked to find her living in a tent. After learning she was conned and forced out of her home, Craig couldn't care less about crossing lines to get his mother's house back.

Craig didn't notice the "For Sale" sign on the lawn until he started up the frosty path. The heavy duffle bag fell from Craig's shoulder, and he stared up at the old Victorian-style house he'd grown up in, only to find curtains missing from the windows and Adirondack chairs gone from the porch.

Craig pulled out his phone and dialed Mom's number. He instantly heard the 80s song his mother used as a ringtone nearby. When he followed the sound around the house, he stopped dead.

An old tent stood on the narrow patch of grass, and Mom was sitting inside, huddled in a blanket, staring at her phone in shock. She looked up as he approached and burst into tears...

"Oh, Craig! Oh, thank heavens you're okay!" She cried, jumping to her feet and pulling him into a hug.

"Of course, I'm okay, Mom," Craig said, pulling away from her. "But what's going on here? Why is the house for sale?"

"I had to pay a ransom, honey," Mom sniffled, looking at Craig from head to toe. "Did those kidnappers hurt you? I got a call from this man who said he'd taken you hostage. I couldn't inform the military or civilian police, or he'd kill you. So I paid him the money he wanted."

A chill ran down Craig's spine. "What are you talking about, Mom? You know I was at the basic training!"

"I…I tried to call you, but the calls and messages didn't go through. And I mortgaged the house," she sobbed. "They foreclosed the property when I told them I couldn't make the payments. Oh dear, Craig, everything the kidnappers told me…was it all deceit?"

Craig pulled her into a hug. "Yeah, Mom, it was," he said softly. "But don't worry. I'll get the house back, and I promise they won't get away with it!"

Craig immediately went to see his friend, James. They'd endured a lot together during the basic training, and Craig hoped his friend would help him.

James' jaw clenched, and his hands tightened into a fist as Craig told him everything. "You and your mom are welcome to stay here, bro, but you aren't alone in this," he revealed. "My mom got a call too."

"No way!" Craig was shocked. "Is she alright? Did they rob her too?"

"She can't sell her house and give money to someone on her own, so no, they didn't rob her, but it wasn't for lack of trying," he said. "Her health has deteriorated, but she's too stubborn to admit she can't cope on her own. She doesn't want to leave her precious Golden Street."

"I also wouldn't want to," Craig said, and James shook his head. "It's not what you're thinking, bro. This neighborhood is godforsaken. The name is a sarcastic nickname locals use."

"My bad, sorry. But you do realize what this means, don't you?" Craig asked. "It's someone from our own ranks, mate. They know when we're out of contact at training, and then they lay out their trap."

"So what are you going to do?" James sighed.

"I have an idea."

Craig returned to the base to see the senior drill sergeant and requested he let him access the information of other recruits so he could warn their families in advance. But the sergeant refused.

"We follow strict protocols regarding access to personnel info, recruit."

"But Sir—"

"Did I say you could speak, soldier? Now out of my office before I write you up."

Craig walked away from the sergeant's office, wondering why the Sarge would stop him from warning the other recruits' families. Until Craig realized…the senior drill sergeant could be his guy! The Sarge had access to all the personnel records and the power to impede any investigation.

Craig spun around and decided to report the scam to the company commander, whose office was at the end of the hallway. But as he reached the senior drill sergeant's office, the door burst open.

"You're still here, recruit? Get going!" The sergeant passed Craig at a brisk pace.

Craig swore under his breath when Sarge entered the commander's office. He rushed back to the sergeant's office and locked the door. Inspecting the computer files, Craig noticed a tab on the taskbar showing a minimized application and found a list of names and phone numbers.

Craig set the list to print and realized that Sarge must have looked at the list immediately after he left, which meant he was already planning which relatives to scam next.

Craig snatched the page from the printer and put it in his pocket. He minimized the application again and stepped away from the desk. When he opened the door to leave, he walked straight into the senior drill sergeant.

"So the nosy recruit returned to poke around my office? Kiss your career goodbye, boy!" The sergeant made a beckoning gesture to someone Craig couldn't see.

"You can't discharge me just for being in your office, sir!" he said.

"Matter of fact, I can. This definitely counts as a lapse in expected conduct, so I'll make it even better and give you an Other Than Honorable discharge."

***

An hour later, Craig sat in a cheap diner drinking bad coffee while waiting for the bus to take him home. His career was over, but he could still save his ex-fellow soldiers.

Craig pulled out the list he'd printed from Sarge's computer and called all the numbers there, warning them about the scam. It took him two days to contact everyone on the list. Meanwhile, he and Mom stayed at James' house, and Craig agreed to work for his childhood friend's uncle to support himself.

A week later, Craig was on his way home from work when he got a call from a woman. "They said they have my boy," she said on the phone. "They demanded money!"

"Relax, ma'am," Craig explained the whole process of how the scammers targeted their victims. "Once they tell you the location for the drop-off, call me back, and I'll take care of it."

"Okay, yes, alright."

As the call ended, Craig rounded the corner and stopped dead. James was home.

"What are you doing here, bro?" Craig asked, shocked.

"I got special leave. Mom's not looking good, bro," he said, and Craig consoled him, telling him it would all be okay. And soon, James was gone to see his mom.

An hour later, the woman called Craig again and told him the scammer wanted the money delivered to a park on the other side of town.

"Don't you worry about a thing, ma'am," Craig said, "and whatever happens next, remember that it's just a scam. Your son is not in any danger and never was."

Craig arrived at the drop-off point early and sat on a bench with a burger and soda. The lady had placed a bag in a hollow at the base of a nearby tree and left. Soon, a slender man in a hoodie approached the tree and turned his face away as Craig drew closer.

Craig waited until the man reached for the bag before he pounced. He must have heard Craig or spotted him in his peripheral vision because he started to run.

Craig yelled at him to stop, but the man didn't listen. However, with his bag weighing him down, the man was no match for Army-fit Craig, who pushed him against a tree and gripped his hands behind his back.

"I'm just a pick-up guy!" the man cried as Craig pulled off his hoodie.

Craig realized he was dealing with a young boy. "I want the info, kid. You know the location and identity of the one who was supposed to get the money, don't you?"

The guy confessed he didn't. Instead, he received orders via an app, and when Craig asked him to tick a box in the app, which would reveal the address where the bag was supposed to be dropped, it just didn't work.

Craig looked around at the people and dogs on the brightly lit paths and realized the mastermind behind the scam was probably aware his delivery guy was caught. "You're too young to end up in prison for following blind orders from someone you've never met."

"When you live on Golden Street, jobs like this are an honest day's work," the guy scoffed.

"Golden Street?" Craig asked, removing his phone. "My buddy comes from there. Seen him?"

"James?" The guy said, looking at the picture on Craig's phone. "You think I wouldn't know him? His mom's my neighbor. Aunt goes there every day to help the old lady."

"Oh really?" Craig tucked his phone away. "Hit me and run away."

"What?"

"Just do what I said, or I'll report you to the cops!"

"You're weird, man!" The guy said as he landed a strong punch on Craig's face.

Craig returned home with a broken nose and swollen face, but his eyes had stopped tearing. "I almost caught the scammers. But the guy escaped with the money. Now I owe one of the soldier's moms a big chunk of money," he told James, who was staring at him blankly.

"You should've told me, Craig! Jesus! I could've helped you! Anyway, take some painkillers and rest."

"Thanks, I'll do that," Craig said and walked away to his room.

***

In the dead of night, a shadowed man slipped through the sash window of the delivery guy's house and crouched behind an armchair. He searched the living room beneath the sofa and then entered the kitchen.

The intruder had one foot on the stairs leading up to the bedrooms when every light in the house switched on. He turned back the way he came, but a siren sounded, and blue lights flashed through the windows.

The intruder spun and raced towards the back of the house, grabbed a skillet from the kitchen, and raised it to smash a window, but a familiar voice caught him by surprise.

"It's over, James!" Craig pointed his gun at him. "I knew you'd come for the money. I had to test you after knowing you were connected to the scammer's delivery guy. And you'd know where to come looking for the money if he double-crossed you."

"And you lied to me that the kid got away with the money!" James cried as officers stormed in and cuffed him. "I did this for my mother, Craig. Just like you did everything for your mother. I could've waited for my sign-up bonus from the Army, but my mom needed the surgery."

"No, mate," Craig said. "You could've found a better way to get the money."

One month later…

James shuffled in, wearing an orange jumpsuit and accompanied by a surly guard. "What are you doing here?" he hissed at Craig, seated at the center table.

''I came to tell you your mom's operation was successful."

''What?" James slumped into the chair across from Craig.

"Everyone, even the families you robbed, got together to raise funds for your mom," Craig met James's gaze and held it. "You should've asked your friends for help in the beginning instead of scamming us, James."

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