Chapter 554

Yannburgh in July had entered the blistering heat of summer, with temperatures soaring higher than usual. By afternoon, the streets were almost deserted, even the street performers and hustlers seemed to have given up under the scorching pavement. Summer vacation was Chloe Shaw's favorite time of the year. Among the childhood friends she grew up with, apart from Jackson Summers—the youngest son of Caleb Summers and Auntie Grant—she was the youngest kid in the group. And in this bunch, she was the only girl besides her big sister, Leanne Shaw. So, when she was seven and heard that Aunt Ava Quarles in Elaris had given birth to a baby girl, Chloe couldn’t contain her excitement. Seven years apart wasn't much of a big deal, and over the following fourteen years, she and Scarlett Harris easily became close, like inseparable best friends. Each summer break, Scarlett would spend two months in Yannburgh without fail. From a distance, at the airport terminal exit, Scarlett stood out in the crow