We have identified the culprit

It looks like it was an inside job

Locking one’s doors and windows are wise precautions, but all the safety measures in the world are utterly useless if the miscreant is already inside the house.

Lily and I have become very intentional about where we set things down. It is not unusual for small items to disappear on a regular basis, especially if those things are fluffy or have a distinctive aroma.

In a truly just world, I would suspect the co-kittens equally, but experience has proven more often than not, Layla is the thief. She has a habit of jumping onto forbidden surfaces, only to leap down seconds before the humans walk in the room. She will then lie about where she’s been and attempt to blame Raya for whatever mayhem she has caused.

That’s what remorse looks like. Right?

Sometimes, however, we are able to catch her red handed. In this case, she nonchalantly wandered into the living room carrying the grape stem she had stolen from the sink. When I confiscated it from her, she hung her head in shame and seemed to understand the magnitude of her crime.

We had a long talk about taking things that do not belong to you. Rarely have I seen such genuine remorse.

I’m sure such behavior will never happen again.