Mafia Lord's Mute Sweetheart

Chapter 180: Chapter 180 Why was he so addicted to hearing her voice?

Late that night, while the rest of the house had gradually fallen silent, Daisy sat at her desk with several sheets of paper spread neatly in front of her. A small desk lamp illuminated the pages, leaving the rest of her room softly shadowed. Her hair was loosely tied back, with a few strands falling around her face as she leaned over her notes, completely absorbed in her work.

She had been thinking about developing a new formula for some time now.

It wasn’t fully formed yet but the basic idea had started taking shape in her mind. She had already written down several observations, possible combinations, expected reactions and a few calculations. Some lines had been crossed out, rewritten, and circled, while other parts were covered with small notes reminding herself to verify certain results before presenting anything. The pages were a careful mix of neat handwriting and messy corrections, evidence of hours of thought.

Ace had encouraged her earlier. He had told her that the team would likely support her if she could properly explain the idea and demonstrate that the formula was practical but there was one problem: the proposal needed the manager’s approval. And before it could move any further, Daisy had to impress him.

That thought made her pause. Her pen hovered above the page for a moment.

The thought of Mr. Higgins made an uncomfortable feeling settle in her chest. She remembered the way he had looked at her before, the way he had leaned closer than necessary. Even thinking about it made her shoulders tense slightly. She didn’t like the feeling at all but after a slow breath, she pushed those thoughts aside and focused on the formula in front of her.

The next morning, Daisy was already dressed and ready for work. She had gathered her bag and was quietly making her way toward the door, planning to grab something from the laboratory cafeteria later because she didn’t have much appetite so early in the morning.

She had barely taken a step when a familiar voice stopped her.

"Have breakfast before you leave."

Daisy paused. She slowly turned around and found Cedric sitting at the dining table, looking at her with an unreadable expression. He seemed considerably better than he had been a few days ago, although there was still some tiredness in his face. His hair was neatly combed, and he was dressed in a casual shirt but there was a gentleness in his gaze that hadn’t been there before.

Across from him, Jenna was eating her breakfast elegantly, her posture perfectly composed. The moment Daisy looked toward her, Jenna’s eyes moved over her coldly before returning to her plate.

Daisy stood there for a second, slightly surprised. Cedric had never asked her to eat breakfast before. He had never noticed whether she ate at all.

Cedric looked at her bag. "You’ve been leaving without eating again, haven’t you?"

Daisy hesitated before giving a small nod. She hadn’t realized he had been paying attention to her habits.

"Sit down and eat something."

She glanced at Jenna. The older woman didn’t say anything but her expression remained distant, her knife and fork moving with practiced precision.

Daisy quietly walked toward the table and pulled out a chair. The wood scraped softly against the floor as she sat down.

Cedric watched her sit down before returning to his breakfast. He didn’t say anything else, but his gaze occasionally drifted toward her as she reached for a piece of toast.

For some reason, his behavior felt strangely different lately. He wasn’t being particularly affectionate but he was paying attention to little things he had never seemed to notice before.

Daisy lowered her eyes to her plate, wondering what had suddenly changed.

Meanwhile, Cedric still couldn’t get Daisy’s voice out of his head.

Ever since his grandfather had sent him that old recording, he had listened to it more times than he was willing to admit. At first, he had told himself it was simply curiosity. He had spent years knowing Daisy only through her gestures and written words, so hearing the voice she had lost felt strange enough to make him want to listen again.

But somehow, one replay had become several.

Then several had become far too many.

He had even started wondering whether Grandpa James had somehow sent him a recording containing black magic, because what other explanation could there possibly be for this ridiculous obsession?

Why was he so addicted to hearing her voice?

He had ignored Jessica’s calls twice this morning because he was sitting alone in his room with his earphones in, listening to fifteen-year-old Daisy nervously delivering her speech on that old recording. He had replayed the video so many times that he could almost anticipate her pauses, the way she would glance at the audience when she was unsure, the subtle shift in her tone when she gained confidence.

It made absolutely no sense.

Cedric frowned at himself. "This is ridiculous."

Yet the moment he heard her voice again, his expression softened despite himself. The clear, youthful tones filled his ears and he felt something in his heart. He didn’t understand it. He didn’t want to understand it. But he couldn’t stop.

Now, as Daisy stood from the breakfast table and quickly gathered her things, Cedric’s eyes followed her. She seemed unusually eager to leave, moving with a sense of urgency that caught his attention.

She slipped her bag over her shoulder, gave a small polite gesture to indicate she was going, and hurried toward the door. Her footsteps were quick, almost as if she was trying to escape the room.

Cedric watched her disappear from the room.

For some reason, she looked almost as though someone were chasing after her. Her posture was tense, her movements brisk, and she didn’t look back once.

His eyebrows drew together. Why was she always in such a hurry? And why did he suddenly find himself wanting to hear her voice again, even though he knew she couldn’t speak anymore?

He looked down at his breakfast, lost in thought. The food sat untouched in front of him, his appetite completely gone.

Then his mind betrayed him again. That old recording. Her nervous little pauses. The clear, delicate sound of her younger voice.

Cedric sighed and rubbed his forehead. Something was definitely wrong with him.

Perhaps Grandpa really had put some kind of spell on that recording. Because there was no other explanation for why he couldn’t stop thinking about it.