I walked to the hallway closet and pulled out the security system monitor. We had a camera in the living room. Mostly to keep an eye on the baby when we were out. I pulled up the feed from earlier that night.

Fast-forwarded to when Claire arrived.

There she was… stepping through the door and greeting Beau with a wary glance. Zoey was in the bassinet. And there, slung over Claire’s shoulder, was a small gray backpack.

We’d seen that bag before, but never thought much of it.

But then I watched as she glanced over her shoulder, slipped it off, and tucked it behind the couch.

My heart picked up speed.

She reached into the bag and pulled out a tablet. Sleek. Black.

Then, she propped it up on the coffee table, opened an app, and angled the camera toward the nursery.

I leaned in.

Claire was livestreaming.

At first, I thought I was seeing it wrong. But then the tablet screen lit up with hearts, emojis, and scrolling comments.

Claire smiled at the screen and whispered greetings. She aimed the tablet perfectly into the nursery, like she’d done it before. She even typed in a title across the bottom of the stream:

“Nanny Nights: Part 12.”

Rose let out a sharp breath behind me.

We watched as Claire cooed at the camera like some influencer, chatting about Zoey’s sleep habits, feeding schedule, and even how long she napped. Then came the caption, “Night routine with Baby Z #NannyLife”

I felt sick.

Our daughter’s bedtime… was content.

We’d trusted this woman to care for our newborn. And she was broadcasting her every move to strangers. Who was watching? How many? And why?

A person watching a video on their phone | Source: Pexels

Then came the worst part.

Zoey stirred in her crib. A small cough. Then a sharper one. Her legs kicked under the blanket, and she made this awful wheezing noise.

She was choking.

That’s when Beau stood up immediately.

First, he nudged the crib with his nose. Then he barked.

But Claire didn’t react. She was scrolling on her tablet, AirPods in, completely zoned out.

Beau barked louder. Climbed onto the rug. Nudged the blanket again.

Then, he turned and snapped his jaws in the air, right beside Claire’s leg. Not to bite. Just enough to startle her.

And it worked.

Claire immediately yanked out her earbuds, jumped up, and rushed to the crib. She scooped Zoey into her arms, patted her back, and after a tense moment, our daughter cried out.

Claire held her tightly, eyes wide with fear. Not just fear for Zoey.

Fear of Beau.

And then she did something that made my skin crawl.

She backed out of the nursery, still holding Zoey. Shut the door. And locked it.

Beau was stuck inside.

I sat back, numb. My hands were shaking.

That night, after Claire left, I watched the footage again. Twice.

I noticed every bark, every snap, and every moment Beau tried to help.

He hadn’t lost his mind. He hadn’t been aggressive.

He was trying to save my daughter.

The next morning, Claire showed up with that same sweet voice and her grey backpack slung over one shoulder. She didn’t know we knew.

Rose opened the door with a printed screenshot from the footage in her hand.

I still remember how Claire just froze when she looked at the screenshot. She didn’t even bother saying anything. She clearly knew she’d messed up and there was nothing she could say to redeem herself.

She just turned back and left.

After the incident, we reported her stream, filed a complaint, and contacted the agency. I don’t know if she’ll face legal action, but I do know one thing. Beau is more than just family to us.

We got a silver tag engraved with the words, “Zoey’s Guardian,” and made him wear it.

And now, he still sleeps beside the crib. The only difference is that we won’t make him leave.

We let him watch over her because we know who he really is. He’s our baby girl’s protector. He loves her as much as we do.

Honestly, I’m glad we hired Claire in the first place. Because what she did made us realize Beau’s true worth. We don’t need to worry about anything when we have him by our side.