Chapter 2 - The Secret Behind the Quiet Nanny
The phone screen glowed in Adrian Vale’s hand.
Three words.
“She knows everything.”
He stared at the message without blinking.
The charity event continued around him.
People laughed.
Glasses touched.
Music played.
But Adrian heard none of it.
Because someone had just sent him a picture of Beatrice Gallagher.
A picture taken three years ago.
Before she entered his mansion.
Before she became his daughter’s nanny.
Before he ever knew her name.
He looked at the image again.
Beatrice was standing outside the Vale estate.
She looked younger.
Nervous.
And beside her was a man Adrian recognized.
A man who was supposed to have disappeared from his life forever.
His expression darkened.
"Adrian?"
Beatrice's voice pulled him back.
She was standing beside him, holding a small glass of water.
Concern filled her eyes.
"You look upset."
Adrian quickly locked his phone.
For years, people feared seeing anger in his eyes.
But Beatrice was different.
She wasn't afraid.
She was worried.
That bothered him more than fear ever could.
"I'm fine."
She studied him for a moment.
She knew he was lying.
But she didn't push.
That was another thing Adrian noticed about her.
Everyone else wanted something from him.
Information.
Money.
Power.
Protection.
Beatrice simply cared.
"I should probably go home," she said quietly.
Adrian looked at her.
"Why?"
She smiled slightly.
"Because I know when people are uncomfortable because of me."
His eyebrows tightened.
"Because of you?"
Beatrice looked around the room.
At the expensive dresses.
The wealthy guests.
The people who had spent the entire night judging her.
"I don't belong in places like this."
Adrian's expression changed.
For some reason, those words angered him.
Not at her.
At the people who made her believe them.
"You are wrong."
Beatrice looked surprised.
Adrian stepped closer.
"You belong anywhere you choose to stand."
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
The noise of the room disappeared.
Then Adrian's phone vibrated again.
Another message.
This time, no words.
Only a video file.
His instincts immediately told him something was wrong.
He looked at Beatrice.
"Did you ever work for anyone before coming here?"
Her face changed.
Only slightly.
But Adrian noticed.
Everyone else missed small details.
He built his entire life around finding them.
Beatrice slowly lowered her eyes.
"Why are you asking me that?"
"Answer the question."
She was silent.
Too silent.
And Adrian realized something.
She wasn't hiding because she was guilty.
She was hiding because she was afraid.
"I had another job before this."
"What job?"
Beatrice looked toward the crowded room.
"I was an assistant."
"To who?"
Her fingers tightened around the glass.
"Someone dangerous."
The answer was quiet.
But it confirmed Adrian's suspicion.
The woman he thought he knew had an entire chapter of her life hidden away.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Beatrice laughed softly.
Not happily.
"I was your nanny, Mr. Vale. You never asked."
That sentence hit harder than he expected.
Because she was right.
He had never asked.
He had spent years surrounded by people but knew almost nothing about them.
Especially the woman who had become part of his family.
Later that night, Adrian returned to his mansion.
He didn't sleep.
He sat inside his office with the lights off.
The video file remained unopened.
He knew whoever sent it wanted him to react emotionally.
That was how enemies worked.
They wanted mistakes.
But Adrian Vale didn't make mistakes.
Not when his family was involved.
Not anymore.
At 3:00 a.m., he finally opened the video.
The screen showed a security camera recording.
A younger Beatrice.
Three years earlier.
She was standing inside an unfamiliar office.
Across from her was a man sitting behind a desk.
Adrian leaned closer.
Because he knew that office.
It belonged to him.
Before the renovation.
Before the new security system.
Before everything changed.
The man in the video spoke.
"Do you understand what you have to do?"
Beatrice looked terrified.
"I don't want to be involved."
The man smiled.
"You already are."
Adrian stopped breathing for a second.
Because the voice belonged to someone he trusted.
Someone who had worked beside him for years.
The video continued.
The man pushed a folder toward Beatrice.
"You will enter the Vale mansion."
Beatrice shook her head.
"No."
"You will become close to Adrian's daughter."
"I said no."
"And if you refuse..."
The video paused.
A loud sound came from the recording.
Then the screen went black.
Adrian stared at the frozen image.
His mind raced.
Was Beatrice sent into his home?
Was everything about her a lie?
Or was she protecting someone?
For the first time in years, Adrian Vale didn't know who to trust.
A knock came at his office door.
He immediately closed the laptop.
"Come in."
The door opened.
Beatrice stood there.
She looked exhausted.
"I couldn't sleep."
Adrian watched her carefully.
Neither of them spoke.
Then she noticed the laptop.
Her face changed.
Not fear.
Recognition.
She knew what he had been watching.
"Where did you get that?"
Adrian stood.
"That's my question."
Silence filled the room.
Beatrice looked away.
"I hoped you would never find out."
Those words confirmed everything.
Adrian felt something he rarely allowed himself to feel.
Disappointment.
Not because she had secrets.
Because he wanted to believe she was the one person who didn't.
"Who sent you here?"
Beatrice looked at him.
Tears slowly formed in her eyes.
"I wasn't sent to hurt you."
"Then why were you sent?"
She didn't answer.
Adrian stepped closer.
"Beatrice."
Her voice became a whisper.
"Because someone wanted to destroy you."
The room went completely still.
"Who?"
She looked toward the dark window.
Like she was afraid someone was listening.
"Adrian, there is something you need to know about your daughter."
His expression changed.
"My daughter?"
Beatrice nodded slowly.
"She saw something the night before I came here."
Adrian's heart tightened.
"What did she see?"
Beatrice opened her mouth.
But before she could answer, every light in the mansion suddenly went out.
The security system failed.
The office door locked automatically.
Then Adrian's phone received one final message.
A single sentence.
May you like
"Ask Beatrice what happened the night your wife disappeared."
And from the hallway outside the office, someone whispered his name.
