"Queenie?"
The Schnabel family had a fair share of nannies and housekeepers, with a rotating crew just to manage the kitchen. Beckett, who was rarely home, couldn't quite place the name at first.
"I remember now, she was initially brought in by Ashlyn because her cooking suits her taste. And she's been with us ever since."
Since Ashlyn and Marcel had divorced, and she wasn't their biological grandmother, it wasn't quite right to keep calling Ashlyn ‘Grandma’.
Noella nodded, getting the gist of who Queenie was.
Beckett thought for a moment. "I believe she hails from the same hometown as Ashlyn; they were even neighbors back in the day. She's been with our family for years, taking care of Mom after she gave birth to us. What about her?"
Noella didn't keep Beckett in the dark.
"I think there's something off about her, so I checked her phone records. She's constantly in touch with Yvonne, and she's been filming videos of our house and sending them out. She's even got a bunch of followers on social media."
Queenie had taken the unconventional route of sharing snippets of her life working for the Schnabels on social media and had amassed quite a following!
"Filming is not allowed in the Schnabel family. Also, I've noticed some large transactions in her bank account. I looked through her online marketplace profile, and she's been selling our stuff."
Beckett was floored.
Queenie had not only filmed and exposed the privacy of their family but was also secretly selling their items on second-hand platforms?
Noella handed her phone to Beckett. "There are so many things in our homes that it’s easy to lose track. Mom's forgotten about a lot of them, and that's how Queenie's been able to sell them."
Items from the Schnabels were pricey, often unique and unavailable for purchase elsewhere, which Queenie sold at half-price, quickly finding buyers. Whether it was Sienna's designer bags, clothes, shoes, or even the family's bonsai trees, garden stones, and kitchenware, everything was listed online.
Beckett was shocked. "That's from my study! The vintage leather briefcase Grandpa Merrick gave me. I never got around to using it, and now Queenie has sold it!"
The leather briefcase, a gift from Merrick Horwich, was worth a small fortune, and Queenie had snapped it up for a mere thousand. A thousand wouldn't even cover the cost of the briefcase’s replacement strap!
Noella opened Queenie's social media account. Almost daily, Queenie posted sneak peeks of the Schnabel family from her perspective, showcasing her mundane work life. This approach had earned Queenie a significant online following, with Sienna and Tristan's faces even appearing in some of her clips.
Grinding his teeth, Beckett said, "Filming is not allowed in our house, and it's stipulated in the contracts. With these videos, we can demand compensation! Noella, don't worry, I will handle this. Come on, let's go down to eat."
Noella followed Beckett into the living room, where Sienna was discussing the menu with Queenie.
"Queenie, serve these dishes by Noella, and place these platters near Beckett—they're his favorites."
"Sure thing, ma'am."
"I got a set of porcelain dinnerware last time. Bring it out tomorrow; it’ll match my outfit."
Hearing about the porcelain dinnerware, Noella raised an eyebrow.
Queenie's hand visibly trembled.
That very set of porcelain had been sold by Queenie just yesterday for twenty-five hundred, and soon it would become a prized possession in someone else's display cabinet.
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