Chapter 6 — The Missing Babysitter
Chapter 6 — The Missing Babysitter
Daniel had spent the entire night staring at one name.
Lydia Moore.
The babysitter who had vanished from his children's lives eighteen months earlier.
At the time, Serena had told him Lydia had stolen money and disappeared.
Daniel had believed her.
Now, after Rebecca's revelations, he wasn't so sure.
Because the dates didn't match.
Lydia disappeared three weeks before the first bruise appeared in the school nurse's records.
And if Daniel was right, she hadn't left voluntarily.
She had been removed.
The Name in the Notebook
At 5:40 in the morning, Daniel returned to the storage room.
Ava and Noah were staying with Daniel's sister under police supervision.
For the first time in months, Daniel knew exactly where they were.
Safe.
He opened Serena's notebook again.
Most entries concerned the children.
But several pages mentioned Lydia.
Lydia asked questions.
Another:
Lydia is becoming difficult.
Then:
She knows too much.
Daniel stopped.
Three words.
They were written six months before Lydia disappeared.
He photographed every page.
Then he called his attorney.
“Find Lydia Moore.”
“I'll have an investigator start immediately.”
“No.”
Daniel looked at the notebook.
“I want to know where she went before anyone contacts her.”
“Why?”
“Because if Serena knows we're looking for her, Lydia may disappear again.”
His attorney understood.
“Give me two hours.”
Daniel hung up.
He didn't have two hours.
But he waited.
The Old Address
At 7:15, Daniel received an address.
Lydia had lived in a small apartment outside Sacramento.
She had moved out eighteen months ago.
No forwarding address.
No active social media.
No current employment record.
But there was something else.
A vehicle registration.
Daniel stared at the report.
“That's strange.”
His attorney looked over.
“What?”
“Her car was registered to a storage facility.”
“Which one?”
Daniel pointed to the address.
“Twenty miles from Serena's mother's old estate.”
Silence.
Neither man spoke.
Daniel grabbed his coat.
“We're going.”
The Storage Unit
The facility manager recognized Lydia's name.
“Yes,” he said. “She rented Unit 214.”
“When?”
“About two years ago.”
“Does she still pay?”
The manager checked.
“No.”
“When did payments stop?”
“Eighteen months ago.”
Daniel's pulse increased.
“Exactly when she disappeared.”
The manager nodded.
“Can we access the unit?”
“Not without authorization.”
Daniel showed him the police report and documentation proving his connection to the children's case.
After several calls, they were allowed to open it.
The metal door rolled upward.
Dust filled the air.
Inside were boxes.
Clothes.
Books.
A broken television.
A child's drawing.
Daniel stopped.
It was a drawing of Ava and Noah.
He recognized it immediately.
Lydia had drawn them.
On the back was a date.
Three days before she disappeared.
And beneath the date were five words:
I need to protect them.
Lydia's Journal
They searched the boxes.
Daniel found a small black notebook.
The first page contained a handwritten sentence.
If something happens to me, don't believe Serena.
Daniel felt his chest tighten.
He turned the page.
Lydia described the children.
Their routines.
Their fears.
Their injuries.
But there was something else.
She had been documenting Serena.
Not just her behavior.
Her visitors.
Her phone calls.
Her meetings.
One name appeared repeatedly.
Michael.
Another name appeared only once.
Daniel's father.
Then Lydia wrote:
Serena doesn't make decisions alone.
Daniel looked at his attorney.
“Keep reading.”
The First Warning
Lydia wrote that she had noticed something strange after Serena hired her.
The children were happy.
Healthy.
Outgoing.
Then Serena began changing their routines.
No more spontaneous play.
No more sleepovers.
No more calling Daniel at work.
And eventually—
the children were instructed never to tell their father about arguments inside the house.
Lydia confronted Serena.
Serena denied everything.
Then she threatened her.
Lydia wrote:
She said Daniel would believe his wife before he believed a babysitter.
Daniel closed his eyes.
That sentence hurt.
Because it was true.
He would have.
At the time.
The Recording
Inside the notebook was a tiny memory card.
Daniel's attorney stared at it.
“Could be important.”
They found a laptop.
The card contained seven audio files.
Daniel played the first.
Lydia's voice came through.
“I am recording this because I'm afraid.”
Then Serena's voice.
“You don't understand your position.”
Lydia answered:
“I understand exactly what you're doing.”
Serena laughed.
“You're a babysitter.”
“And you're hurting children.”
Silence.
Then Serena said:
“You should be careful with accusations like that.”
The recording ended.
Daniel sat motionless.
“Next.”
The second recording was worse.
Lydia had captured Serena speaking to someone on the phone.
“Daniel doesn't suspect anything.”
A man's voice answered.
“How long?”
“Soon.”
“How soon?”
“Once the custody issue is resolved.”
Daniel's blood ran cold.
The recording ended.
His attorney stared at him.
“They were planning custody before the incident.”
Daniel nodded.
“And that means the abuse wasn't spontaneous.”
The Missing Eighteen Months
The third recording contained something Daniel hadn't expected.
Lydia was speaking to a woman.
The woman's voice sounded frightened.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“Then you need to leave.”
“I can't.”
“Why?”
“Because of the children.”
The woman began crying.
Daniel listened harder.
Then recognized the voice.
Maya.
His brother's wife.
Daniel's heart sank.
Maya had known.
She had known before anyone else.
Why Lydia Left
The fourth recording was Lydia's final message.
Her voice was trembling.
“If you're hearing this, I've already left.”
A pause.
“I didn't abandon Ava and Noah.”
“I was forced out.”
Daniel gripped the edge of the desk.
Lydia continued.
“Serena found out I was keeping records.”
“She told me if I stayed, she would accuse me of hurting the children.”
Daniel's attorney whispered:
“She framed her.”
“Yes.”
Lydia continued.
“She has photographs.”
“Not of the children.”
“Of me.”
“She created bruises on herself and planned to blame me.”
Daniel's face went cold.
“She was building evidence.”
The recording continued.
“I couldn't risk going to jail.”
“So I left.”
“But before I left, I hid something.”
The recording ended.
The Hidden Box
Daniel searched the unit again.
Nothing.
Then he noticed the child's drawing.
It wasn't taped to the wall.
It was covering a small vent.
He removed it.
Behind the vent was a narrow cavity.
Inside—
a metal box.
Daniel opened it.
There were photographs.
Documents.
And a key.
One photograph showed Serena entering a private medical clinic.
Another showed Michael.
Another showed Daniel's father.
Then Daniel found something that made his hands shake.
A bank transfer.
Money had been paid to Lydia.
Not by Serena.
By Daniel's father.
Daniel stared at the amount.
$75,000.
His attorney looked stunned.
“Why would your father pay the babysitter?”
Daniel shook his head.
“I don't know.”
But the next document answered part of the question.
It was a letter.
Lydia,
If you ever believe the children are in immediate danger, use the emergency number below.
Do not contact Daniel.
He cannot know yet.
Daniel looked up.
“Why wouldn't my father want me to know?”
His attorney didn't answer.
Because they both knew the answer might be worse than the question.
The Woman at the Motel
Lydia wasn't dead.
The investigator found her that afternoon.
She had been living under a different last name in a small motel near Reno.
When Daniel arrived, she nearly closed the door.
“Lydia.”
She froze.
“You're Daniel.”
“Yes.”
“I can't help you.”
“You already did.”
She looked at him.
“I found your records.”
Her face went pale.
“You weren't supposed to.”
“I know.”
“Then you need to leave.”
“No.”
She stepped backward.
“You don't understand what Serena is capable of.”
“I do now.”
Lydia shook her head.
“No, you don't.”
She whispered:
“Serena isn't the dangerous one.”
Daniel stopped.
“Who is?”
Lydia looked down the hallway.
Then closed the door behind him.
What Lydia Saw
Lydia finally told him everything.
She had discovered Serena wasn't merely abusing the children.
She was documenting their reactions.
Every bruise.
Every fear.
Every panic attack.
She was building a narrative.
A narrative in which Daniel was an absent father.
Serena was the exhausted mother.
And the children were emotionally unstable because of their father.
“But why?” Daniel asked.
“Custody.”
“I understand that.”
“No.”
Lydia shook her head.
“She didn't want custody because she loved them.”
Daniel stared.
“She wanted custody because of what the children could prove.”
“What could they prove?”
Lydia's eyes filled with tears.
“They heard conversations.”
“About what?”
“Money.”
Daniel's heart began pounding.
“What money?”
“The money stolen from your company.”
Silence.
“Serena wasn't stealing it alone.”
“Who was helping her?”
Lydia looked at him.
“Your father.”
Daniel stepped backward.
“No.”
“I saw them.”
“You're certain?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because I was there when they argued.”
“What did they argue about?”
Lydia's voice dropped.
“Serena wanted more.”
“Your father refused.”
“And then?”
“Serena threatened to tell Daniel everything.”
Daniel stared at her.
“What everything?”
Lydia swallowed.
“That your marriage wasn't an accident.”
The Marriage
Daniel felt dizzy.
“Explain.”
Lydia shook her head.
“I don't know all of it.”
“Tell me what you know.”
“Serena met your father before she met you.”
“I know.”
“No.”
Lydia's eyes filled with fear.
“She met him because he introduced her to you.”
Daniel froze.
“What?”
“Your father arranged your first meeting.”
Daniel remembered it.
A charity gala.
A mutual acquaintance.
A conversation that had seemed completely accidental.
His father had encouraged him to attend.
Daniel had thought nothing of it.
Lydia continued.
“Serena was chosen.”
“Chosen for what?”
“To marry you.”
The Last Evidence
Lydia went into another room.
She returned carrying a sealed envelope.
“I kept this because I knew one day you would come.”
Daniel opened it.
Inside was a photograph.
Serena.
His father.
Michael.
And another man.
They stood together outside a private club.
On the back was a date.
Three weeks before Daniel met Serena.
Daniel stared at it.
Then Lydia handed him one final document.
A contract.
Not a marriage contract.
A financial agreement.
His father's signature.
Serena's signature.
Michael's signature.
And a clause that made Daniel's blood run cold.
Upon successful transfer of designated Brooks assets, custody of the children shall remain under Serena's control.
Daniel couldn't breathe.
The children weren't merely part of the marriage.
They were part of a financial plan.
His father hadn't simply betrayed him.
He had helped build the trap.
The Call
Daniel's phone rang.
His attorney answered.
His face changed.
“What?”
He listened.
Then looked at Daniel.
“There's been an emergency.”
“What?”
“Ava and Noah were taken from the safe house.”
Daniel's entire body went cold.
“By whom?”
“The officers found no sign of forced entry.”
Lydia covered her mouth.
Daniel grabbed his phone.
“Where are my children?”
His attorney stared at the screen.
A message had arrived.
One sentence.
Come alone.
Then another.
Bring Lydia's box.
Daniel looked at Lydia.
She was trembling.
“No,” she whispered.
Daniel stared at the message.
A third appeared.
If you involve the police, the children disappear forever.
Daniel closed his eyes.
For months, he had believed he was fighting for custody.
Now he understood.
He was fighting against a machine that had been built before his children were even born.
And somewhere inside that machine was his own father.
Daniel picked up the metal box.
Lydia grabbed his arm.
“Daniel.”
He turned.
“Don't go.”
“They have my children.”
“I know.”
“They want you angry.”
Daniel looked at her.
“I know.”
“They want you to make a mistake.”
He nodded.
“Then I won't.”
He walked toward the door.
Behind him, Lydia whispered:
“Daniel.”
He stopped.
“There is one thing you still don't know.”
He turned.
Lydia's face had gone completely pale.
“Serena didn't take the children.”
Daniel's blood ran cold.
“Then who did?”
Lydia looked toward the photograph of Daniel's father.
And whispered:
“The man who started all of this.”
Daniel stared at the photograph.
His father's face smiled calmly from the paper.
And for the first time, Daniel wondered whether the person he had spent his entire life calling Dad had ever actually been his protector.
Outside, a black SUV waited at the curb.
Its engine was already running.
And inside Daniel's phone, a new message appeared.
May you like
You have one hour.
After that, you'll learn what happened to the last person who tried to expose us.
