Kitty had locked down herputer with a password, and some of her most important files were encrypted for added security.


    She quickly found a hidden folder, and after entering the password, her mood soured. The photos and audio files she expected to see were gone. If they''d vanished from a cloud service, she might''ve med it on the unreliability of online storage. But from her ownputer? That was a different story.


    Her fingers tightened around the mouse as she refused to give up, searching through every drive on herputer in hopes of finding the missing files. But no matter where she looked, they were nowhere to be found.


    Frustrated, Kitty tossed the mouse aside and pinched the bridge of her nose, sitting silently for a few minutes. When she finally lowered her hand, the light overhead was bright, but her eyes were cold and steely. She had clearly underestimated that girl, who had managed to pull this off without leaving a trace. No wonder there had been no reaction when she sent those photos; the girl had a trick or two up her sleeve.


    Just then, a knock at the door pulled her from her thoughts. She got up to answer


    it.


    "Mom, are you okay?" asked Yara, who had noticed her mom rushing upstairs as soon as she got home and hade to check in.


    By the time Kitty opened the door, she''d masked her emotions, smiling and shaking her head. "What could possibly be wrong?"


    Yara didn''t see anything unusual and smiled back. "d to hear it."


    Kitty took a moment to admire her daughter''s beautiful face, her simplicity graced with the elegance of a well-breddy. It was a stark contrast to Delh''s daughter, who seemed wild from head to toe. She couldn''t understand why anyone from the Shepherd family would associate with such a rough girl.


    Kitty''s eyes flickered as she casually adjusted Yara''s cor. "By the way, you visited the Shepherds a while back, right? Haven''t heard anything about you going over theretely."


    "I''ve been a bit busy. Why do you ask?" Yara replied, puzzled.


    Kitty kept her tone light. "Just curious." After a pause, she added gently, "Sometimes, girls need to take the initiative. Otherwise, the one you like might end up with someone else."


    Yara paused, "Mom, why are you saying such odd things today?"


    Seeing her daughter''s obliviousness to her advice, Kitty sighed inwardly, knowing Yara''s straightforward nature might not stand a chance against Delh''s daughter. "What I mean is, if you want something, you should go for it, even when ites to people," Kitty said, patting Yara''s shoulder. "Being too polite can sometimes be a disadvantage."


    Yara understood the hint, lowered hershes, and didn''t want to engage further with her mom''s so-called wisdom. She nodded politely, "I get it, Mom. You should rest early. I still have a paper to finish, so I''ll head back to my room."


    Seeing no point in continuing, Kitty let the topic drop. "Alright, don''t stay up toote yourself."


    "Mhm." Yara nodded slightly and turned to leave.


    The next morning, Kitty had just finished getting dressed and was heading downstairs when she got a call from the hospital. Her face lit up with joy after she hung up. She quickly told the chauffeur to get the car ready.


    As Kitty was changing her shoes in the foyer, the butler came in carrying several parcels. "Oh, ma''am, there''s also a package for you."