Chapter 22


    Anna pounded on the table furiously.


    Just then, two more people came in from outside. They were designers at her fashion studio and they


    were all in the same situation.


    “Miss Anna, our sketches are gone too.”


    “Yeah, so is mine.”


    That was when Anna realized the severity of the situation. “Get a technician toe have a look right


    now.”


    From outside, a man replied, “The technician was just with me earlier. He said either someone erased it


    or we were hacked.”


    She was stunned. “Hacked?”


    What hacker would want to attack my small studio?


    “Is there no way to recover it?” she asked desperately.


    “Unfortunately, there isn’t. The technician said it was a skilled hacker. He can’t seem to find a trace.”


    Anna flopped in her chair with a ghastly look on her face.


    Sarah consoled, “Don’t panic, Miss Anna. Do you guys have any hand-drawn sketches? If you polish it


    up a bit, you can probably still make it in time for the registration.”


    Anna red at Sarah. “Are you a fool? The contest wants us to submit a digital copy of our designs!”


    Sarah fell silent. She only wanted tofort Anna. Anna brushed them off, “Okay, just get out. All of


    you.”


    They started to shuffle out of the room.


    Anna sat in her chairpletely dumbfounded. Who would hack her tiny studio?


    She got up and closed the door to her office then made a phone call.


    “Ben, can youe over right now?”


    A man gushed from the other end of the phone, “What’s wrong, sweetheart?”


    “Someone hacked myputer and all my designs are gone,” she said anxiously.


    Còntens bel0ngs to N?(v)elDr/a/ma.Org


    “Don’t fret, sweetheart. I’m out of town right now. Can I go tomorrow? I’ll take a look at it for you


    tomorrow.”


    She frowned. “Can’t youe back now?”


    “Sweetheart, I’m in Mastar. I can make it back tomorrow at the earliest. Don’t worry. When have I ever


    pushed off your things?”


    She murmured, “When is your flight? I’ll go and pick you up.”


    The voice on the phone suddenly turned dubious. “Do you miss me already?”


    “Ugh, did you have to ask?” she grumbled and started to blush.


    Heughed. “I’ll let you know after I book the ne tickets. I miss you to death.”


    They flirted back and forth for a while before hanging up.


    She sat in her chair and spent some time thinking. I can’t just sit here in defeat. What if Ben can’t


    recover the data either? Won’t I just be wasting my time?


    All of a sudden, she sprung up and left the studio, then drove home to the Maxwell Residence.


    When she got home, Amy was the only one there.


    “Mom!” she yelled as soon as she entered the house.


    Amy was quite taken aback to see Annae home. “Why are you back already?”


    “Did you throw away all of Olivia’s things?” Anna asked.


    Amy could not understand what was happening. “All of her things are in storage.”


    Anna did not have time to exin and went straight into the storage. She searched through it for about


    half an hour beforeing out with a book of design sketches.


    Amy asked, “What is that?”


    “Design sketches. The sketch I prepared for thepetition got erased. There are only a few more


    days left before the registration closes. I’m going to see if I can find anything useful in here,” she said


    as she flipped through the book.


    Those sketches came from the sudden bursts of inspiration Olivia got while she studied design. They


    were allpiled into one thick book. When Olivia left the housest time, she did not manage to take


    all these things with her.


    Anna stopped flipping abruptly and her gaze fell on the page in front of her. There were four formal


    wear sketches altogether; each of them was in a different shade—plum, orchid, bamboo, and


    chrysanthemum. There was a fusion of traditional Chinese art in the designs and each one was


    mesmerizing and refreshing to look at.


    Originally, Anna wanted toe home to distract herself. She figured those designs from years ago


    must be out of fashion by now. She did not expect, however, that Olivia would have such contemporary


    ideas in designs from seven years ago.


    “This one. I should be able to use this to enter the contest,” she mused.


    Amy was slightly concerned. “I heard that Olivia is back. If she catches you, aren’t you afraid she’ll sue


    you for copyright infringement?”