Page 256 of The Billion Heirs Boxed Set

Austin flies the corporate jet into a private airfield outside of the big city. We left Carly and Sadie back home. Both have to work and we aren’t lingering.

Once the attendant lowers the stairway, I make my way out onto the tarmac and wonder if the soles of my boots will melt.

It’s a dry heat. Right?

It has to be at least a hundred degrees and not a tree in sight. Rugged orange and brown mountains are all I can see in the distance.

“Holy fuck,” I say as Austin and Miles flank me.

“Shit, it’s hot,” Miles offers.

“Who can live in this?” Austin glances at the sky. “I thought the sky was blue in Montana, but this? I’m used to rain. All the time.”

“We’re not staying,” I tell them. “If I wanted to become a snowbird, I’d pick Hawaii.”

“Good choice,” Austin adds. “This togetherness thing is really fucking weird.”

Our father’s will requires us to remain together for the entire year, including travel. If I came to Arizona solo, the will’s rules would be broken and we’d forfeit the billions.

We went to Seattle with Austin when his mom was hurt and when that asshole she hired stole flights from their seaplane company. We didn’t stay more than a day because that was when Carly fell over Joey Hopkins’s dead body.

There aren’t going to be any dead bodies on this trip, and we aren’t sticking around. Sweat is already dripping down my back. I’m getting Avery and getting the hell out of here.

We stride to the tiny terminal and find an SUV waiting for us as arranged. Shankle is good for something. I take the driver’s seat, Miles takes shotgun, and Austin sits in the back.

“Crank that AC,” Austin says.

Miles is already fiddling with the buttons while I start the engine. We don’t close our doors until the air is pumping out nice and cold.

I use my phone to map out the directions to Avery’s house and pull out. I’m watching the road as we talk.

“At this point, after all the fuckery that’s been going on, I shouldn’t be all too surprised about the payout.”

I updated the guys on the plane about what I learned, and why I was hustling to Phoenix. I’ve waited long enough, and if Avery’s living with her mom and not knowing she had a hand in our separation, I’m going to fix that.

I’m the only one who’s told her the truth all along. I’ve been there for Avery from the start. Ever since high school, she’s been the constant. The thing I’ve wanted. Loved. I gave my heart to her, which meant I would protect her. Cherish her. Possess her.

I’ve shown her how I can cherish and possess. Now I’ll protect.

Even if it’s from her mom.

An hour later, through some of the worst fucking traffic, we pull up in front of a ranch house. It’s in a subdivision of them, one after the other looking identical. Stucco, tile roof, one story. There’s no grass or greenery anywhere. Yards are made of decorative rock and cactus. I feel like I’ve landed on the moon. A very hot moon.

“Stay here,” I tell the guys.

“Like we’d leave the AC,” Miles says.

I smirk, leaving the car running as I hop out.

I ring the doorbell. No answer.

I ring again. Still no answer. I glance around, note that all the houses are quiet. Bikes and a few toys are strewn on driveways down the block, but no one’s out. It’s too fucking hot. I have to wonder if everyone behaves like vampires, only coming out at night when it’s cool.

On Avery’s front door is a decorative wreath. Kicked in the corner are a pair of worn cleats, and I wonder if Avery took up a sport. Maybe FBI softball games? Again, at midnight?

“Fuck,” I mutter to myself. But it’s the middle of the day so I return to the car and settle in.

“Pull up the FBI field office on your phone. Let’s head there,” I say to Miles.