The Man Who Never Looked Away novel Chapter 91

Right before Lavinia Joplin stepped into the classroom, a message from Garnett Harper popped up on her phone.

It was an image of a simple, repeating curve—like an S lying on its side.

The attached text read: *[Lavinia, have you ever seen this crest?]*

She paused, staring at the screen. It looked undeniably familiar, like she had seen it somewhere before, but she just couldn't place it.

She casually typed back: *[Never seen it.]*

"Hey, Lavinia, we wanted to ask you something."

A voice broke through her thoughts.

Looking up, she saw three girls from her certification prep class standing in front of her.

She slipped her phone away, blinking with a friendly smile. "What's up?"

The girls exchanged glances before the one in the middle, Lucy Locke, lowered her voice. "Is Charley Sheffield really your cousin?"

Lavinia was taken aback. "Yeah, why?"

"Then is he an LP at Celestial Capital?" Lucy pressed.

"Huh?" Lavinia froze. "He's..."

She left the sentence hanging, unsure of how to proceed.

She couldn't exactly tell them that Charley had lost his job, was currently taking some time off, and was only teaching these classes as a side gig.

Lucy flipped open a photocopied page of an alumni directory and handed it to her.

"Look, this is the alumni book from The Wharton School. This 'Vincent Sheng' has to be him, right? The age and graduation year match up perfectly."

Every profile in the yearbook had a picture, except for this Vincent Sheng. The photo slot was noticeably blank.

The bio section stated that Vincent Sheng was the heir to a prominent Asian-American family and a senior partner at Celestial Capital.

"There's no photo, so how can you be sure it's a match?" Lavinia laughed it off. "My cousin is just a regular corporate drone. He's not the big shot you think he is."

The girls exchanged doubtful looks.

"Really? But his whole vibe just screams elite boss," Lucy pointed out.

"That's just the halo effect from his gorgeous face," Lavinia teased, sticking her tongue out playfully.

Inwardly, she was rolling her eyes. *If only you knew. The guy's apartment is practically bare, he can't even afford to fix his broken-down car, and he rides around on the back of my electric scooter.*

"What are we chatting about?" a cool, resonant voice drifted from behind her.

The girls paled instantly, scattering like startled birds.

Lavinia turned around and met Charley's devastatingly handsome, aristocratic face.

He let out a soft scoff, a breath of amusement escaping his nose. "Did someone tell you I was a capital heavyweight?"

She shook her head, holding his gaze. "That's not what I'm asking about."

Reaching out, she caught the edge of his sleeve, her eyes dropping to the cufflink. "Where does this crest come from?"

Charley froze.

"You're interested in this?"

She nodded.

He fell silent for a beat, then let out a resigned sigh. "I'll take you somewhere."

***

Lavinia never could have guessed that the place Charley wanted to show her was the Overseas Heritage Museum.

It was nearing closing time, but he led her straight to the main exhibit, stopping in front of an old photograph.

"That's my grandfather," Charley said, arms crossed.

Lavinia stared, her eyes fixed on the aged portrait.

It was a black-and-white photo, clearly digitally restored but still a bit grainy.