Chapter 1 - THE FIRST RULE
“I understand.”
Pia McKenzie said the words quietly, but something in her expression made Marcus pause.
Most people reacted to Ben’s story with pity.
Pia didn’t.
She simply looked at him as though she were trying to understand the child behind the tragedy.
Marcus leaned forward.
“My son has certain routines. He eats at specific times. He sleeps at seven-thirty. He doesn't like loud noises. He doesn't like strangers touching his things.”
Pia nodded.
“Does he dislike those things, or has he been taught to avoid them?”
Marcus’s eyebrows tightened.
“What’s the difference?”
“A child who dislikes something usually tells you. A child who has learned to avoid something usually stays quiet.”
The question irritated him.
“You've known him for less than a minute.”
“I know.”
“And you're already analyzing him?”
“No, Mr. Delgado. I'm asking questions.”
Marcus studied her.
The previous nannies had been desperate to impress him.
Pia seemed almost uninterested in the fact that he was wealthy.
That was unusual.
“I have three rules,” Marcus said.
Pia waited.
“First, Ben never leaves the property without my permission. Second, no visitors. Third, you follow Maria’s instructions regarding the household.”
“What about Ben?”
Marcus frowned.
“What about him?”
“Do I follow his instructions too?”
For the first time, Pia smiled.
It was barely noticeable.
But Marcus saw it.
“You're being clever.”
“No. I'm being practical.”
Before Marcus could respond, a small voice came from the hallway.
“Daddy?”
Both adults turned.
Ben stood there holding a wooden toy airplane.
He looked at Pia.
Then at his father.
His tiny fingers tightened around the airplane.
Marcus noticed immediately.
Ben was nervous.
“This is Pia,” Marcus said.
Ben didn't answer.
Pia didn't approach him.
Instead, she crouched several feet away, lowering herself to his eye level.
“Hi, Ben.”
The boy stared at her.
“My name is Pia.”
Ben looked at the backpack beside her.
“What's inside?”
“Nothing interesting.”
Ben's eyes narrowed.
“Nothing?”
“Mostly boring things.”
“What kind?”
Pia opened the backpack.
“Water bottle. Notebook. Extra shirt. Bandages.”
“Why bandages?”
“Because people get hurt.”
Ben looked at her seriously.
“People get hurt a lot.”
The statement made Marcus uncomfortable.
Pia noticed.
She closed the backpack.
“Sometimes.”
Ben stepped backward.
Marcus stood.
“Ben, come here.”
The little boy immediately obeyed.
Pia watched carefully.
Marcus put his hand on his son's shoulder.
“Be polite.”
“Hello.”
“Hello, Ben.”
Pia smiled.
“Thank you.”
Marcus checked his watch.
“I have to go.”
Ben's face changed.
Only for a second.
But Pia saw it.
Marcus didn't.
He kissed the top of his son's head.
“Daddy will be home tonight.”
Ben nodded.
Marcus walked toward the front door.
Halfway there, he heard Pia say something.
“Ben?”
Marcus stopped.
He turned.
Pia wasn't looking at him.
She was looking at his son.
“Do you want to show me your airplane?”
Ben hesitated.
Then nodded.
Marcus watched as his son walked toward Pia.
It was the first time he'd seen Ben voluntarily approach a new adult in months.
Something about it unsettled him.
He left anyway.
The moment the front door closed, Marcus pulled out his phone.
He had already arranged for a security company to install hidden cameras throughout the house.
They were tiny.
Almost impossible to notice.
Living room.
Kitchen.
Hallway.
Ben's playroom.
Dining room.
Backyard.
He hadn't told Maria.
He hadn't told Pia.
He hadn't told anyone.
Marcus sat in his car and stared at the camera application.
He felt guilty.
Then he remembered the previous twelve nannies.
One had stolen jewelry.
Another had secretly brought her boyfriend into the house.
One had posted photographs of Ben online.
Another had yelled at him.
Trust was a luxury Marcus could no longer afford.
He started the engine.
But before driving away, he looked toward the mansion.
For some reason, he had the strange feeling that Pia had already noticed something.
At 10:17 that morning, Pia helped Ben finish his breakfast.
She didn't force him to eat.
She simply sat nearby.
“What do you like?”
Ben thought.
“Pancakes.”
“Excellent choice.”
“And strawberries.”
“Even better.”
“And Mom made them funny.”
Pia paused.
“Funny?”
Ben nodded.
“She cut them into hearts.”
Pia looked at the strawberries on the plate.
“Would you like me to do that?”
Ben looked at her.
“You know how?”
“I can try.”
She found a small plastic knife and carefully cut the strawberries.
The shapes weren't perfect.
Ben giggled.
“They're ugly.”
Pia laughed.
“I'm still learning.”
Marcus's security system recorded everything.
And that evening, Marcus watched.
He expected to find something suspicious.
Instead, he watched Pia sit on the kitchen floor while Ben showed her his collection of toy airplanes.
He watched her listen.
Really listen.
At one point, Ben climbed onto the sofa and fell asleep against her shoulder.
Pia didn't move for nearly forty minutes.
Marcus stared at the screen.
He couldn't explain why the sight bothered him.
Then something happened.
Pia gently moved Ben's hair away from his forehead.
The little boy whispered something.
Marcus increased the volume.
“Don't tell Daddy.”
Pia looked down.
“Tell Daddy what?”
Ben's eyes remained closed.
“He doesn't like when I cry.”
Marcus froze.
Pia's expression changed.
“What happens when you cry?”
Ben didn't answer.
Marcus leaned closer to the screen.
Then Ben whispered four words.
“Daddy gets sad.”
Marcus's chest tightened.
He stopped the recording.
For several seconds, he couldn't breathe.
He had always believed his distance protected Ben.
But suddenly, for the first time, he wondered if his son had interpreted that distance differently.
As rejection.
As loneliness.
As something he had to endure quietly.
Marcus reopened the footage.
Pia was still holding Ben.
Then she whispered something Marcus couldn't hear.
He increased the volume again.
“You're allowed to miss your mommy.”
Marcus's hand froze over the phone.
His eyes burned.
Nobody had said those words to Ben.
Not once.
Not even him.
Then Ben opened his eyes.
And looked directly toward the hidden camera.
Marcus went completely still.
His son stared at it for several seconds.
Then he raised one tiny finger to his lips.
“Shhh.”
Marcus's blood ran cold.
Because suddenly he realized something.
Ben knew there was a camera.
And someone had apparently taught him to be afraid of it.
The footage continued.
Pia slowly turned toward the camera.
Her eyes met the exact spot where it was hidden.
And she whispered:
“Who put you through this, little one?”
Marcus stopped breathing.
For the first time since installing the cameras, he wasn't watching Pia.
May you like
He was watching his own house.
And wondering what else had been happening inside it while he was gone.
