Chapter 2 - The Nanny Who Left Without Goodbye)
Margaret met Sofia the next morning in a small diner twenty minutes from the mansion.
Sofia arrived wearing a gray coat and no makeup. She checked the parking lot twice before sitting down.
Margaret ordered coffee for both of them.
Sofia did not touch hers.
Tell me everything.
Sofia twisted a paper napkin between her fingers.
I do not know everything.
Tell me what you do know.
Sofia swallowed.
Vanessa did not become openly cruel to Clara immediately.
At first, she simply favored Noah.
That was understandable, Sofia said.
He was her biological son.
The problem was not that Noah received more attention.
The problem was what happened when Clara received any.
Whenever Daniel picked Clara up, Vanessa found a reason to interrupt.
Whenever a visitor admired Clara, Vanessa spoke about Noah.
Whenever Margaret sent a gift, Clara’s gift somehow disappeared while Noah’s remained.
Then came the first nanny.
Her name was Grace.
Grace had worked for Emily before Clara was born.
Daniel trusted her.
Vanessa did not.
Grace complained that Vanessa had begun limiting Clara’s meals.
Not starving her, Sofia quickly clarified.
Just controlling things.
If Clara cried too loudly, dessert was removed.
If she threw food, lunch ended.
She was a baby.
Margaret stared at her.
Grace confronted Vanessa.
Three days later, Grace was fired.
Daniel was told Grace had been stealing jewelry.
Was she?
No.
How do you know?
Because I found the bracelet Mrs. Vanessa said Grace stole.
Where?
In Mrs. Vanessa’s bathroom drawer.
Margaret stopped breathing for a moment.
Did you tell Daniel?
Sofia nodded.
I tried.
What happened?
Mrs. Vanessa was standing behind him.
Margaret understood.
What did you say?
I said I had found something that belonged to the family. Mrs. Vanessa looked at me and said, Put it with the other things Grace forgot.
The warning had been clear.
Grace disappeared from their lives.
The second nanny lasted six weeks.
She quit after Vanessa left Clara alone in a dark guest room as punishment for throwing a toy.
The third nanny, Rachel, had been fired only nine days before Margaret’s visit.
Why?
Sofia looked toward the diner window.
Because she took a video.
Margaret leaned forward.
What video?
Sofia pulled out her phone.
Rachel had sent her an eleven-second recording.
In it, Vanessa stood beside Clara’s high chair.
Clara was crying.
Vanessa placed a plate on the counter where Clara could see it.
Then she said, If you want food, stop making that sound.
The clip ended.
Margaret felt cold.
Send this to me.
Sofia hesitated.
Please do not tell her it came from me.
I will protect you.
Mrs. Hawthorne, I do not need protection. I need another job.
You will have one.
Sofia finally looked up.
There is something else.
Of course there was.
There was always something else.
What?
Yesterday morning, before you came, I heard the security alarm.
Margaret remembered the hidden camera in the conservatory only because Daniel had once complained about the expense of the new security system.
Who entered?
I do not know.
The screen showed an old access code.
Whose?
Sofia took a breath.
Mrs. Emily’s.
Margaret stared.
That is impossible.
I know.
Emily’s code should have been deleted after her death.
Daniel had changed the system twice since the accident.
What time?
Nine seventeen.
Where did they enter?
The side garden door.
Did you see anyone?
No. The camera there has been broken for weeks.
Convenient.
Sofia said nothing.
Margaret asked whether Vanessa knew.
I think so.
Why?
Because ten minutes after the alarm, she went into Mr. Daniel’s office and locked the door.
For how long?
Almost an hour.
Margaret’s mind began assembling pieces she did not yet understand.
Did Daniel come home?
No.
Did Vanessa take anything out?
A folder.
What kind?
Blue leather.
Margaret knew that folder.
Emily kept property documents inside blue leather binders.
Did you see where she put it?
No.
Sofia looked toward the entrance again.
Then she whispered.
But yesterday was not the first time Emily’s code appeared.
Margaret’s coffee remained untouched.
How many times?
Three that I know of.
The first was two months ago.
The second?
The night before Rachel was fired.
And the third yesterday.
Margaret reached for her handbag.
Where are you going?
To see Daniel.
Sofia grabbed her wrist.
No.
The urgency surprised them both.
Margaret looked at her.
Why?
Because if Mrs. Vanessa realizes you know, she will erase everything.
Margaret slowly sat back down.
Sofia continued.
You need proof first.
Margaret thought of Clara lying on the marble.
She thought of Emily saying, I need to tell you something about Daniel’s accounts.
Then she thought of the blue folder.
I know where to start.
Emily had kept duplicates of every important document.
Not in the mansion.
In a bank deposit box registered under her maiden name.
Margaret still had the key.
Two hours later, she stood inside a private viewing room at Commonwealth Trust Bank.
The metal box contained Emily’s birth certificate.
Her marriage license.
Clara’s hospital documents.
A copy of the Hawthorne House deed.
And an envelope in Emily’s handwriting.
Margaret’s name was written on the front.
Inside was a single sheet of paper.
Mom,
If you are reading this because something happened to me, do not let Daniel sell the house.
There is a second trust.
Clara owns more than he knows.
And Vanessa Bell knows exactly what that means.
Margaret read the last sentence three times.
Then she called Sofia.
Sofia answered immediately.
May you like
Margaret said only four words.
Emily knew about Vanessa.
