Overwhelm
She was the image of disbelief: hands drawn up to cover her mouth and eyes wide. Her husband was in a similar state, sweating as they watched the screen. He decided it was too much to handle and stopped the video.
It had happened under their roof without either of them knowing, and it was overwhelming for him to see the tears in his wife's eyes. "It's unbelievable," she whispered, but both knew what had to be done.
Bree And Anthony Mendez
Bree and Anthony Mendez met while they were both studying at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. While she had an aptitude for Philosophy, Anthony’s passion lay in economics and business.
In the span of a few years, they had gotten married, and soon, they were expecting their first child. Realizing that the busy city wasn’t the best place to start a family, the couple decided to move to a safe and affordable neighborhood on the outskirts of New York City. Bree thought that the suburbs would be the safest option for her family, but she had no idea how wrong she was.
Happy Family
Shortly after moving into their beautiful home, the couple adopted an adorable Pitbull named Missy, and a few months later, on a warm, Thursday afternoon, they welcomed their baby daughter into the world. They decided to name her Mikaela, and she was everything they had ever dreamed of.
Bree spent every second of her 12 weeks of maternity leave with the baby. It was during this time that she noticed a close bond forming between Missy and Mikaela. But soon enough, she would have to return to work. She had no idea that in a matter of weeks, all peace in their new home would be disturbed.
Hiring A Nanny
Bree and Anthony were set on finding the perfect nanny to take care of their daughter while they returned to work. When they first interviewed Kelly, she seemed like the perfect fit for their family. They wasted no time hiring her.
She showed up early each morning, taking care of Mikaela while Anthony and Bree got ready for work. They were overjoyed to see how well she got along with their baby. But it was during this time that Missy began spending a lot of time in the nursery, staring at the baby. Bree didn't think much of this, but she should have.
Odd Behavior
Missy’s odd behavior occurred suddenly and it didn’t take long for Bree to notice the change. Since Kelly started working for the family, Missy refused to leave the baby’s side. She would often be found standing next to the crib, staring at the baby for hours on end.
During bath and feeding times, she stood in the doorway of the nursery, waiting for Bree and Anthony to return Mikaela to her crib. Bree became concerned, Missy had never been so high-strung before. In just a few weeks, Bree would discover the horrific truth.
It Got Worse
She knew that Pitbulls had a reputation for being aggressive and dangerous, but Anthony assured her that they were only aggressive when raised to be that way. She tried her best not to think too much of the situation, but things only escalated from there.
Eventually, Missy refused to leave the nursery at all. She spent every second of every day and night in the room. The dog barely slept and she had stopped eating. Bree had every right to be concerned.
Separating Them
Eventually, Bree was too scared to leave Mikaela and Missy alone at night. She knew that Kelly was there to protect her baby during the day, but she feared that something would happen while they were asleep. She decided that it would be best to separate them.
One night, she tried locking the dog out of the nursery, but Missy stood outside the door, whining for hours on end until she was allowed back in. It kept Bree up at night, what was happening to her beloved pet?
Trouble Started
One morning, a tired and anxious Bree gathered her things, ready to leave for work. She was about to step out of the house when she heard a strange sound. It was something she had never heard before. She looked towards Missy as she stood behind Kelly in the nursery, growling at the young woman. At this point, Missy hadn't left the nursery in weeks, determined to stay close to the baby.
As soon as Kelly went to lift the baby from her crib, Missy’s growls became louder. Bree frowned, calling Missy’s name before turning to Kelly, “I’m sorry, I don’t understand why she’s acting this way,” she said. Kelly waved it off, explaining that she was probably just hungry. But that was far from the truth.
She Was Worried
While at work, Bree couldn’t stop thinking about Missy’s odd behavior that morning. She couldn’t understand it, Missy had never acted up like this before. It wasn’t like Kelly was a stranger, she had been taking care of the baby for a few weeks now. Why was she growling at the nanny and why was she refusing to leave the nursery?
She was sick with worry. When she returned home that night, she told her husband about the exchange, and he found it as strange as she did. Something had to be done about this. Scared for the safety of their daughter, the couple discussed returning Missy to the shelter.
He Realized Something
Before making any rash decisions, Anthony assured his wife that he would keep an eye on the situation. In the coming weeks, he too noticed Missy’s aggression, but one day, he realized something important. Missy would only growl when Kelly was around, especially when she was interacting with the baby. He shared this information with Bree, and they agreed that something suspicious was going on.
That was when they decided to install a hidden camera in the nursery. They had no idea what they were about to catch on camera.
Discovering The Truth
They waited until the weekend before checking the footage. It was early in the morning and Mikaela was still asleep. Bree sat next to her husband as he opened the recording on his tablet. They took a deep breath before he finally clicked on the video.
At first, everything seemed normal. It was right after they had left the house and Kelly was feeding the baby. Just a few minutes after they had left, she placed Mikaela back in her crib and made her way to the couch in the nursery. She took a seat and immediately started scrolling on her phone, but what happened next made their blood boil.
She Was Yelling
Mikaela had started crying. Bree expected to see Kelly rush to the crib and comfort the crying baby, but instead, she continued scrolling on her phone. When the crying got louder, Bree watched in disbelief as Kelly started yelling for the baby to keep quiet.
At this point, Mikaela was screaming at the top of her lungs. This set Kelly off as she got up from the couch and rushed over to the crib, yelling at the baby instead of comforting her. Anthony and Bree watched with wide eyes as the dog jumped up, barking and growling at Kelly as she kept screaming at the baby. Bree’s heart ached as she watched the footage. Her baby needed comfort, but instead, the nanny was screaming and using vulgar language.
They Knew What They Had To Do
Anthony paused the video and turned to comfort his emotional wife as tears welled up in her eyes. All along, Missy had been trying to protect their baby. She wasn’t leaving her side, scared that Kelly would harm the baby. The two, concerned parents knew what they had to do.
They couldn’t let Kelly get away with this. All this time, they had trusted her to look after their baby while they were away at work. She couldn’t be trusted.
Confronting Her
When Monday morning came around, they sat Kelly down and gave her a piece of their mind. Anthony told her about the recordings and watched as the color drained from her face.
She was horrified and embarrassed, she couldn’t believe that she had been caught on camera. They asked her to leave their home and never return again. No one was allowed to treat their daughter that way. Just days after Kelly was fired, Missy was back to her calm, friendly self.
A Difficult Situation
The couple now faced a difficult situation. They were good people and generally didn’t like to go on the offensive. But this woman had crossed so far beyond the line that they felt obligated to take action.
It was their baby after all and no one messed with her without facing their wrath. But how would things turn out once the dust settled?
Doing What Was Best
After many discussions, Bree and Anthony decided to do the only thing they could. They decided to press charges. They couldn’t let her get away with endangering their child. And an even bigger motivation was so that she couldn’t do this to someone else.
They didn’t want Kelly to be able to ever do this again. It was their obligation to stop her once and for all.
Pressing Charges
They decided that they were pressing charges. They drove down to the police station and filed the case against her. It could be a difficult battle, but they felt it was their responsibility now.
Kelly didn’t expect them to be so ruthless. But then again, she shouldn’t have crossed them in the first place.
A Difficult Battle
Just as the couple saw coming, the legal battle was a long and drawn out one. They used the footage from their camera as evidence in the court and just hoped that it would be enough.
They didn’t want to ruin the young woman’s life, but they wanted to make sure she would stop doing this to kids. But would things end the way they wanted?
They Won!
It had cost them a small fortune but after six months of difficulties, they had finally done it. The judge found Kelly guilty and she would be sentenced to two years in prison. They thought that was fair.
two Two years was enough for her to get her head on straight. And they could feel good knowing she wasn’t endangering any more children.
Still Nanniless
Even though the couple was happy at their victory. It felt a little shortlived. They had done good by their daughter but there was another matter they had to attend to. Their daughter still needed to be carefully watched while they weren’t at home.
They were scared of getting a new nanny because of their last experience, but they knew they had to try for their daughter’s sake. But they had no idea who the next nanny would be.
The Dust Settled
When the dust settled, Bree and Anthony decided to try once again. After weeks of searching, they found a woman named Betty. Betty was a retired pediatric nurse and since the first time they had spoken to her, they knew that she was the perfect match for their daughter. To make things even better, Missy loved Betty!
They hired her soon after, and after months of taking care of Mikaela, Betty became part of the family. But the couple would learn their lesson and keep their nanny cams around. But they had no idea what dark secret Betty was also hiding.
A Great Nanny
Anthony and Bree were surprised at how amazing Betty was. She was a few years older than them and seemed like a very caring woman. But they had only known Betty for a few months, and they didn’t know much about her.
One day they’d find out something about Betty that would have them in tears. How could they have let this woman into their home?
Betty Tremblay
They didn’t know much about Betty Tremblay. When they interviewed her, she told them that she used to be a nurse in a pediatric hospital. She would care for the sick and injured children six days a week for 40 years.
Now in her retirement years, Betty still wanted to help children. She saw their ad and decided a nanny would do her some good. But the couple had no idea what her true motivations for taking care of her child were.
More Information
Throughout the few months, she’d been their nanny, more information about her life would slip out in small talk and casual chats in the brief moments when they came home from work before letting Betty go home.
She was chatty and told them that she was born in Quebec, Canada. She married a stockbroker, and they had a beautiful baby girl together. But she left out one key detail that would have the couple in a panic.
Everything Seemed Normal
The couple had no concerns about Betty whatsoever. She seemed like the perfect fit. She was great with Mikaela and even took the liberty to tidy up. It was unexpected, but she really did feel like family.
Betty had her own reasons for why she was so good to them. She just hoped they would never find out. Unfortunately, they did.
A Slip-Up
Even though the couple wasn’t concerned about their daughter, one Sunday night, they decided to watch their nanny cam. They expected to see Betty taking loving care of their child.
Instead, the couple would notice a small slip-up that would bring Betty’s facade crumbling down. One that would change everything.
“Sarah”
The couple could hear Betty soothing their child; she was talking while cradling Mikaela. Bree and Anthony were smiling at their bundle of joy. But their smiles turned to looks of concern when Betty said something strange.
She said, “aren’t you just the cutest baby in the world, Sarah?” Alarm bells went off in their heads. Why would she call Mikaela Sarah? They needed answers straight from the source.
Confronting Betty
The couple decided that they had to be careful. They couldn’t have another incident like the one with Kelly. They had to address this before anything bad happened. They sat down one evening with Betty and started asking her.
But Betty’s reaction was one they didn’t expect. The older woman broke down in tears in front of them. What was the truth?
Her Own Daughter
Betty calmed herself down and explained why she had accidentally called Mikaela Sarah. It was because that was the name of her own beautiful daughter that she had 30 years ago. But it ran much deeper than that.
She told them the truth. Sarah went missing when she was only six, and she was never reunited with her. It was a sad truth that made the couple sympathize greatly.
Loving Her Like Her Very Own
Bree and Anthony decided to let Betty know that she could love Mikaela like her own daughter if it helped her mourn. The older woman felt like she had a purpose when she looked after Mikaela, and they didn’t want to ruin that.
With more understanding about why Betty cared so much about children, they kept her on for Mikaela’s entire childhood, and she became something of an aunt to her. In order to protect the privacy of those depicted, some names, locations, and identifying characteristics have been changed and are products of the author's imagination. Any resemblances to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, are entirely coincidental.