Chapter 5 The Butler's Tears and Family Conspiracy

# Chapter 5: The Butler's Tears and Family Conspiracy

The Craig family estate in Greenwich, Connecticut, sprawled across twelve manicured acres, its colonial architecture speaking of old money and tradition despite the Craig fortune being relatively new. Walter had always found the home excessive—a monument to his mother's social aspirations rather than a place of warmth.

Today, as his car crunched up the long gravel driveway, the mansion looked particularly forbidding. Three days had passed since the dinner at Jade's Brooklyn brownstone—a tense affair where conversation had centered primarily on appropriate consequences for the triplets' server room takeover. They had been sentenced to two weeks without computer privileges (excepting schoolwork), a punishment the tech-savvy children considered practically medieval.

Walter had been surprised by the comfortable chaos of Jade's home. Books and educational games filled the shelves. A robot prototype sat half-assembled on the dining room sideboard. The walls displayed the children's achievements—science fair ribbons, math competition certificates, and surprisingly skilled artwork. It was a home built around nurturing three exceptional minds, so different from the sterile perfection of his own childhood environment.

Now, as Walter parked before the grand entrance of the estate, his mind was focused on a single purpose. The family butler, Harrison Wells, was dying. According to Walter's sources, the man had terminal cancer and had requested to speak with Jade before the end. Walter intended to hear what the butler had to say—and to finally confront his mother about the recording the children had discovered.

Mrs. Phillips, the housekeeper who had worked for the family since Walter was a child, greeted him at the door with evident relief.

"Mr. Walter, thank goodness you've come. Mr. Wells has been asking for you. The doctor says it won't be much longer."

"Where is my mother?" Walter asked, handing her his coat.

"At her charity committee meeting in the city. She's expected back for dinner."

Perfect. Walter needed to speak with Harrison alone first.

"How is he?" Walter asked as they climbed the grand staircase toward the staff quarters in the east wing.

Mrs. Phillips shook her head sadly. "Fading, sir. But he's been very insistent about speaking with you and... a Ms. Annable, I believe?"

Walter nodded. "She'll be arriving shortly."

He had called Jade immediately after receiving Harrison's request, transmitted through the family lawyer. To his surprise, she had agreed to come, though her tone had suggested it was for closure rather than reconciliation.

Harrison's room was modest but comfortable, with a window overlooking the rose garden he had tended for decades. The butler had always been a dignified figure in Walter's childhood—formal, proper, but with occasional glimpses of kindness that had meant more to the lonely boy than the man had probably realized.

Now Harrison lay propped against pillows, his once-robust frame shrunken, his skin yellowed with jaundice. His eyes, however, remained alert and brightened slightly when Walter entered.

"Mr. Walter," he said, his voice a whisper of its former self. "Thank you for coming."

"Of course, Harrison." Walter took a seat beside the bed. "The doctor says you should rest."

A thin smile crossed the butler's lips. "I'll have plenty of time for rest very soon, sir. But first, there are matters I must address." He glanced toward the door. "Is Ms. Annable coming?"

"She should be here any minute," Walter confirmed. "Harrison, about the recording—"

"Please," the dying man interrupted with surprising firmness. "I wish to wait until Ms. Annable arrives. What I have to say concerns you both."

They sat in silence for several minutes, Harrison occasionally closing his eyes but clearly fighting to remain conscious. Finally, a soft knock came at the door, and Mrs. Phillips ushered Jade in.

Walter stood as she entered. She wore a simple navy dress, her hair loose around her shoulders—a softer look than the corporate armor she'd worn to their legal meeting. Her expression was guarded but not hostile as she acknowledged Walter with a nod before turning her attention to the man in the bed.

"Mr. Wells," she said softly. "You wanted to see me?"

Harrison's eyes opened, and he regarded Jade with evident emotion. "Ms. Annable. You look well. Life has treated you kindly, I hope?"

"Life has given me three wonderful children," she replied. "So yes, in the ways that matter most."

The butler nodded, then gestured weakly toward a chair. "Please sit. What I have to say will not take long, but it must be said before I meet my maker."

Jade took the seat opposite Walter, maintaining a careful distance from him. Harrison seemed to gather his strength, his gaze moving between them.

"First, I must confess," he began, his voice trembling slightly. "I was complicit in a great wrong done to you, Ms. Annable. A wrong that separated a family that should have been together."

He reached for a glass of water with shaking hands. Walter helped him take a sip before he continued.

"Mrs. Craig came to me five years ago with concerns about her son's relationship with the new nanny." Harrison's eyes flicked briefly to Walter. "She believed it was becoming... inappropriate."

Walter felt heat rise to his face. His mother had always had an uncanny ability to know what was happening in her household. He had thought his attraction to Jade had been carefully concealed, but apparently not.

"She instructed me to find a way to remove Ms. Annable from the household," Harrison continued. "I suggested various pretexts—budget cuts, restructuring the staff—but Mrs. Craig was adamant that the separation be complete and irreversible." His voice faltered. "She decided that theft accusations would ensure that Mr. Walter would not seek to maintain contact."

Jade's face remained impassive, though Walter noticed her hands tighten in her lap.

"She selected her grandmother's diamond set—pieces she rarely wore and kept in the back of her safe," Harrison explained. "She removed them herself and placed them in a safety deposit box downtown. Then she reported them missing and directed security to focus their investigation on Ms. Annable."

"You knew this and said nothing," Walter said, the words heavy with accusation.

Harrison's eyes filled with tears. "Yes, sir. I have served the Craig family for forty-seven years. Your grandfather saved my life once, and I pledged my loyalty to this family." A tear slid down his hollow cheek. "But loyalty should never require one to abandon moral principles. I failed in that distinction."

He turned his gaze to Jade. "When you were escorted from the property, I saw your face—the shock, the hurt, the betrayal. I have seen that face in my dreams for five years."

"Why come forward now?" Jade asked quietly.

"Because death clarifies what truly matters," Harrison replied simply. "And because I learned about the children."

Walter and Jade exchanged sharp glances.

"How did you learn about the children?" Walter demanded.

"Mrs. Craig has maintained surveillance on Ms. Annable since her departure," Harrison admitted. "Not consistently, but periodically. She wanted to ensure that Ms. Annable did not attempt to make claims against the family or damage the Craig reputation."

Jade's composure finally cracked, anger flashing across her features. "She's been spying on me? On my children?"

"Not directly on the children," Harrison clarified. "I don't believe she knew about them until very recently. It was a routine update from the private investigator last month that included photographs of Ms. Annable with three children outside their school. The investigator noted the striking resemblance to Mr. Walter."

Walter felt sick. His mother had maintained surveillance on Jade for five years, yet had said nothing when the investigator reported children who resembled him. Had she recognized the possibility that they were her grandchildren? Had she deliberately kept this information from him?

"Mrs. Craig received this information three weeks ago," Harrison continued. "She was... disturbed by it. She increased the surveillance and requested more detailed information about the children."

"Three weeks ago," Jade repeated, looking at Walter. "That's just before the children hacked into your system."

Walter nodded slowly, connections forming in his mind. "They must have detected the surveillance somehow."

"They're very good with technology," Jade acknowledged. "They've helped me develop intrusion detection systems for clients. If someone was watching our home or digital activities, they might have noticed."

Harrison coughed violently, and Walter quickly helped him with another sip of water.

"There is more," the butler continued once he'd recovered. "Mrs. Craig has taken steps to... address the situation. I overheard her speaking with Mr. Whitmore about legal strategies for claiming custody."

"Stephen knows about this?" Walter asked, betrayal compounding upon betrayal.

"Not about Mrs. Craig's original deception," Harrison clarified. "Only about her desire to bring the children into the Craig family fold—with or without Ms. Annable's cooperation."

Jade stood abruptly, pacing to the window. "She hasn't changed at all, has she? Still manipulating people's lives like they're chess pieces."

Harrison's breathing had become more labored, but he seemed determined to finish his confession. "There is one more thing you should know. The jewels—the ones Ms. Annable was accused of stealing—they were never returned to the safe. Mrs. Craig has kept them in the safety deposit box all these years, as insurance against anyone questioning her story."

He turned his gaze directly to Walter. "Box 247 at First Manhattan Trust. The key is in her desk drawer, hidden in a false bottom in the center drawer. The diamonds are your proof, Mr. Walter."

Walter nodded, processing this information. "Thank you, Harrison."

The butler's eyes filled with tears again. "I do not expect forgiveness, Ms. Annable. But I could not meet my God without confessing my part in this sin against you and those innocent children."

To Walter's surprise, Jade moved back to Harrison's bedside and gently took his withered hand.

"You were following orders from someone who has spent a lifetime ensuring people obey her," she said softly. "I understand loyalty and its complications."

A sob escaped the dying man, his dignity finally crumbling under the weight of Jade's unexpected compassion. "The children," he whispered. "Are they well? Are they happy?"

"They're extraordinary," Jade told him, her voice gentle. "Brilliant, curious, and deeply loved."

Harrison nodded, tears streaming freely now. "Thank you. For telling me that." He closed his eyes briefly, fatigue overwhelming him. "I have written everything down. A full account. It's in the envelope on the dresser. For both of you."

Walter retrieved the sealed envelope, tucking it into his jacket pocket.

"Rest now, Harrison," he said quietly. "We'll handle things from here."

The butler's eyes opened one last time, looking directly at Walter. "Your father would be disappointed in what his family has become, Mr. Walter. But he would be proud of you for seeking the truth."

Walter felt his throat tighten. His father had died when he was twelve, leaving him in the sole care of a mother whose love had always been conditional on achievement and compliance.

"I'll leave you to rest," Jade said, releasing Harrison's hand. The butler nodded weakly, his eyes already closing as exhaustion claimed him.

Outside in the hallway, Walter and Jade stood in weighted silence, the gravity of Harrison's confession hanging between them.

"I need to see those jewels," Walter finally said.

Jade nodded. "And I need to get back to the children. They're with my assistant now, but after what we've just learned about surveillance..."

"I understand," Walter said. "But Jade, we need to talk about what this means for us—for the custody situation."

Her eyes met his, and for the first time, he saw something other than cold distance there—a vulnerability, quickly masked but undeniably present.

"What it means, Walter, is that your mother orchestrated the destruction of whatever might have been between us. She lied to you, manipulated you, and kept you from your children for nine years."

"I should have questioned her," Walter admitted, the truth he'd been avoiding finally spoken aloud. "I should have trusted my instincts about you. I should have investigated."

"Yes," Jade agreed simply. "You should have."

"What can I do to make this right?" he asked.

Jade shook her head slowly. "This isn't something you can fix with money or power or grand gestures, Walter. Trust, once broken, isn't easily repaired." She glanced back toward Harrison's room. "But people who acknowledge their mistakes deserve the chance to make amends."

It wasn't forgiveness, but it was an opening—however small.

"I'm going to confront my mother," Walter said. "Tonight. And then I'm going to that bank to retrieve the jewels."

"Be careful," Jade warned. "Your mother has proven she's willing to go to extreme lengths to control the Craig family narrative."

Walter nodded grimly. "I'm beginning to understand that. Will you... will you tell the children what we've learned?"

"Some of it," Jade replied. "They deserve to know why their parents were separated, but they don't need all the ugly details yet."

"I'd like to see them again," Walter said. "Soon. On whatever terms you're comfortable with."

Jade considered this, then nodded slightly. "I'll talk to them. They've been asking about you since the dinner."

They walked together toward the grand staircase, an uneasy alliance formed in the face of Eleanor Craig's manipulations.

"Walter," Jade said as they reached the foyer, "what will you do if your mother refuses to acknowledge what she's done?"

Walter's expression hardened, his resemblance to Olivia at her most determined suddenly striking. "Then I'll do what I should have done five years ago—choose truth over family mythology, no matter how painful the consequences."

As Jade left, Walter remained in the foyer, staring up at the imposing portrait of his mother that dominated the entryway. Eleanor Craig gazed imperiously down at all who entered her domain, her expression one of absolute authority and unwavering conviction in her own righteousness.

For the first time, Walter saw not the formidable matriarch who had shaped his life and guided his career, but a deeply flawed woman who had prioritized control over her son's happiness—and in doing so, had denied him the family he never knew he wanted until now.

He checked his watch. Two hours until his mother returned from her charity meeting. Two hours to prepare for a confrontation that would forever change their relationship—and perhaps give him a chance to build a new one with the children who shared his blood and, from what he had seen so far, his determined nature.

Walter climbed the stairs to his mother's private study, Harrison's confession echoing in his mind. The false bottom in the center drawer. Box 247. The evidence of a deliberate conspiracy to separate him from Jade and, unknowingly, from his children.

His world had been upended twice in the span of a week—first by the discovery of the triplets, and now by the revelation of his mother's calculated betrayal. Yet amidst the anger and confusion, Walter felt something else stirring—a resolve to become the father his children deserved, and perhaps the man Jade had once believed him to be.