Chapter 80 Coincidence
Daisy froze for a moment, instinctively looking at Vincent.
She thought he would say "thank goodness you're okay," or "thank goodness you weren't badly hurt" - something like that. Though she had meticulously prepared her defense and her poise, the realization hit her like a physical blow: she wasn't the source of his concern, nor the reason for his sigh of relief.
Daisy swallowed the words that had reached her lips, smiled awkwardly with a touch of self-mockery. She had already decided not to delude herself anymore, yet she still...
Taking a steadying breath to settle her nerves, she shielded her eyes to ensure not a single flicker of her true feelings escaped, then replied in a carefully neutral voice: "Yeah, good thing she wasn't there."
Maybe it was just her imagination, but Vincent seemed to stare at her for a few moments before looking away.
The hallway was very quiet, the smell of disinfectant hanging in the air. Sunlight streamed through the window, falling on his bandaged arm, blindingly white.
The two of them just sat there like that, neither speaking again.
Between Vincent’s treatment and Daisy’s escorted arrival, it was almost eleven o'clock.
She entered the lab, interrupting a group of researchers who looked up as she approached.
"Ms. Hart's here!" Amy greeted her with a smile.
Daisy nodded and put down her bag. "Did I miss the morning meeting? Sorry, I got held up with something this morning."
"No worries," a guy waved his hand. "Mr. Reed said you had something going on today, so he led the morning meeting."
Another girl came over and lowered her voice. "Ms. Hart, you don't look so good. Are you okay?"
Daisy touched her face and smiled. "I'm fine, just didn't sleep well last night."
She didn't want to mention what happened to her, afraid of causing unnecessary panic.
Everyone nodded and didn't ask further.
In the corner, Noah leaned back in his chair, twirling a pen in his hand, his gaze sweeping over her face.
She really didn't look good - pale with a hint of gray, faint dark circles under her eyes, and her lips had no color.
He wondered if it was intentional.
"Really had something come up, or were you too scared to come?" he said casually, his tone mocking.
The lab went quiet for a moment.
The researchers glanced at each other. Amy started to speak, but Noah stopped her, leaning back with a smirk.
"This morning's meeting discussed the next phase of the project. You're the academic advisor - of course you can't just talk nonsense, so using an excuse to avoid it isn't impossible, right?"
"What are you talking about? Ms. Hart is—"
Before she could speak, Noah waved her away and gave Daisy a playful look.
"Of course, if you can explain something coherent right now, I'll apologize to you."
The atmosphere grew tense. The researchers looked at Noah, then at Daisy, not knowing what to say.
Daisy smiled tiredly, not angry, just saying: "Sorry, because... something came up last night, so I didn't have time to prepare. Next time I'll definitely..."
"Hahahaha." Noah laughed loudly, interrupting Daisy, shaking his head. Although he didn't say anything, the laughter said it all.
"Noah, you..." Amy clenched her fists, looking like she wanted to punch him, but Daisy stopped her.
"This is my fault to begin with. I haven't been in good shape lately and have caused trouble for everyone. I'm sorry, I'll get myself together as soon as possible."
The lab members all expressed understanding - after all, they had seen Daisy's abilities.
Only Noah snorted coldly, dismissive.
--
That afternoon, Ethan’s assistant swung the lab door open and called out cheerfully to Daisy: "Ms. Hart, guess who's here?"
She stepped aside, revealing an elderly man with gray hair behind her, looking at Daisy with a smile.
"Professor Owen!" Daisy stood up in surprise and hurried over. "What brings you here?"
Professor Owen walked in with a smile. "Just passing through, on my way to a conference. Thought I'd drop by to see you. How's everything going these days?"
Daisy felt a bit embarrassed. "Pretty good. Please, come in and sit."
She invited Professor Owen into the lab and poured him a cup of coffee.
Professor Owen took it and looked around the lab - experimental data written on the small blackboard, reports stored separately in a transparent cabinet, machines running, everyone busy in an orderly fashion.
"Not bad, this lab is very well organized."
Daisy smiled and said: "Professor, would you like to look at our latest experimental data? Give me some guidance?"
"Sure." Professor Owen smiled, not forgetting to tease: "You're just like Ethan - the moment I arrive, you put me to work!"
Daisy handed over the latest data reports to Professor Owen. He reviewed them with a sharp eye, pausing to ask the occasional question, while Daisy provided fluent, confident answers.
Just then, Noah passed by outside. Through the glass window, he saw what was happening inside and paused.
He certainly recognized Professor Owen.
A genuine industry authority, highly respected. Countless people couldn't even get him to glance at their projects.
Watching Daisy explain the findings, he nodded occasionally, his expression radiating pride and approval.
Noah watched for a while, couldn't help thinking sarcastically - this woman really has some tricks, even fooling Professor Owen.
He couldn't help but sneer.
Fake is fake in the end. Let's see how long you can keep up the act.
--
Vincent came home quite late from work.
The lights were on in the villa's living room. Vanessa had also just returned from the company and was sitting on the sofa waiting for him.
Vincent casually took off his coat and handed it to her. He was used to it - whenever he handed over his coat, someone would take it and hang it up.
Vanessa clearly wasn't used to taking other people's coats. When Vincent handed it to her, she hesitated for a moment, then took it and just placed it on the sofa.
"Vince, why are you so..." Before she could finish, she saw his heavily bandaged arm. At some point it must have been pulled, as a bit of dark red blood was seeping through the gauze.
The smile on Vanessa's face froze instantly.
"What happened to your hand?" She quickly walked over, reaching out to touch his arm but then pulling back. "How did you get hurt? Is it serious?"
Vincent cleared his throat. "It's nothing, just a surface wound."
"How can it be nothing?" Vanessa's voice trembled slightly. "It's bandaged like that, it must hurt a lot... What happened? Who did this?"
Vincent didn't answer the question, mainly because he didn't want Vanessa to know he had been with Daisy last night.
He could only awkwardly change the subject. "Have they caught the person who stabbed you last time?"
The expression on Vanessa's face immediately became somewhat unnatural.
"Not... not yet."
Vincent said offhandedly, "Maybe it's the same group as today's."
"Impossible!" Vanessa blurted out.