When my teenage daughter Rachel saved up to buy a sewing machine, her stepmother Karen destroyed it out of spite. Rachel is 16, creative, and dreams of being a fashion designer. She usually stays with her dad, Mark, every other weekend—but those visits were always hard because Karen is strict and cruel.

Karen hated Rachel spending time on sewing, calling it a distraction, and punished her harshly. One day, Karen threw Rachel’s sewing machine into the pool because Rachel didn’t wash the dishes fast enough. Mark just stood by and did nothing.

Furious, I went over to get Rachel’s things and took her home to stay with me. Then I teamed up with a friend who dressed as a policeman and pretended to confiscate Karen’s laptop as “punishment.” Karen panicked, realizing how it felt to lose something important.

I told Karen she had to pay Rachel back and apologize—or I’d share the video online. She grudgingly agreed. Since then, Rachel hasn’t had to stay at her dad’s house unless she wants to, and she’s happily pursuing her sewing dreams at home with me.