Page 57 of Hallowed Eve (The Obsidian Brotherhood 2)

“Sebastian is having a party later. You gonna drop by?”

My mother shot us a glare as she took the seat on the other side of me.

“Nah.” I nodded my head in Mom’s direction. “Family shit.”

I didn’t do parties anyway—not the kind my mom was throwing or the kind Ethan was talking about. Ethan knew that. But he was always trying to find ways to get me out of my head.

The lights dimmed and the heavy velvet curtains opened on the stage. Mom nudged me with her elbow.

I chuckled and leaned back in my chair, then watched the ballet in silence.

Mom had put together an elaborate party in a nearby ballroom after the ballet. The room was full of people celebrating my sister’s dream and waiting for my father to announce he wanted to change the world. Dicksuckers. Fake fuckers. People who would burn you at the stake at the drop of a dime if you ever Tweeted anything politically incorrect. If I didn’t have a fight next month, I’d have smoked a fat one in the bathroom.

Dad trolled the room, smiling and shaking hands. Mom moved from group to group, throwing her head back and laughing at all the appropriate times. Her four-carat diamond glinted in the light every time she brought her hand to her chest to catch her breath. Well-dressed servers handed out hors d’oeuvres and glasses of champagne to bankers, judges and real-estate moguls. It was a beautifully orchestrated performance, just like the ballet we all just watched. The only genuine person in this room—besides me—was my sister.

I watched as my father introduced Tatum to a man who oozed wealth and ill-intent, signaling that his days of shielding her from this world were over. The man slid his arm around Tatum’s waist and smiled. It reminded me of the serpent slithering over Eve in the Garden of Eden.

I wasn’t sure how much more I could take.

Dad excused himself thanks to a disruption in the hallway, so I took the moment to sneak up behind Tatum and whisper in her ear. “I think I saw an exit over by the bar. If we’re really quiet maybe no one will notice us leaving.”

She laughed and shook her head. “Thanks for the tip, but I’ve got this.”

The sad part was that she probably did have it under control. Dad’s creepy friends had been lurking around Tatum since she was sixteen years old. While their wives drank champagne and talked about all the different ways to spend their husbands’ money, the men were out fucking the maids or ogling teenage girls. It was a sick fucking world.

And they wondered why I didn’t want to be a part of it.

I shrugged a shoulder like I didn’t care. “If you say so.”

At the front of the room, there was a long rectangular table for our family to sit at while Dad reveled in being the center of attention. I took a seat at the end of the table next to my mother. I didn’t want any attention.

A few moments later, Dad walked back in and over to our table. The serpent had taken a seat next to Tatum like he fucking belonged here. This table was for family. Since when was this motherfucker consideredfamily?

I reached for my drink, worried there wasn’t enough alcohol in this room to get me through tonight as Dad began his speech. Then Caspian fucking Donahue barged in and announced to the world that he was going to marry my sister. The room full of power-chasers and socialites erupted in praise, and Dad played right along, acting as if the news wasn’t the shock of a lifetime. It wasn’t a secret between families that ours didn’t get along. I’d been waiting for the day when a Donahue would deliver a big, hearty dose offuck youto a Huntington—or vice versa. I just never imagined it would be Caspian handing it to my father.

They both played it off well, exchanging handshakes and wide grins, baring their teeth like two animals ready to rip each other’s throat out. Dad went on to announce that he was running for president, then Tatum ran for the door—with Caspian not far behind.

And I thought the night was going to be boring.

I waited until Dad was alone before walking up to him and clapping a hand on his shoulder. “I guess congratulations are in order.”

His jaw clenched. “Now is not the time, Lincoln.”

He never had the time. Good thing I didn’t give a damn.

“You look like you could use this.” I handed him a glass of Macallan I’d grabbed from the open bar. I was always the bigger man, even though he would never see it.

He knocked it back the way a frat boy would shotgun a beer, hissing after the last gulp as if the alcohol burned his throat.

The serpent from earlier walked up. His nostrils were flaring and his breath was short and heavy. “What the fuck was that, Huntington? We had a deal.”

A deal? What the fuck kind of deal?

Dad cut his gaze in my direction, then back to the snake hiding beneath an Armani suit. “I’ve already made a phone call. It’s being taken care of as we speak.”

What. The. Fuck?

Something told me thatdealhad something to do with my sister, and my father was talking about her like someone would talk about a roach infestation.

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