Chapter 1

The night Sabrina won the governorship was the night my world ended.

I stood in the corner of the grand ballroom, watching her on the stage. She wore a red dress that shimmered under the lights. She looked like a queen. My queen.

My family, the Hollow Keepers, had made this happen. We performed the old rituals, the ones forbidden for a century. We woke the earth spirits. A sudden flood wiped out her primary opponent' s campaign headquarters. A freak landslide blocked the road to a crucial debate for another. "Natural disasters," the news called them. We called it paving her way.

I loved her that much.

After her speech, she came to me, her smile bright. But her eyes drifted past me, toward Andrew Fuller. He was a tech billionaire, all slick hair and expensive suits. He was her biggest donor.

"Ethan, darling," she said, but her hand was already reaching for Andrew' s. "You must meet Andrew. He' s been so instrumental."

My parents, quiet mountain folk, stood awkwardly near the edge of the crowd. They weren't comfortable in these fancy clothes, under these bright lights. Andrew Fuller looked at them like they were dirt on his shoe.

He whispered something to Sabrina, a smirk on his face. Then he walked over to my parents.

"You must be the Lesters," he said, his voice loud enough for everyone nearby to hear. "I have to say, your... traditional ways are quite something. But a little respect for the Governor is in order, don' t you think?"

My father, a proud man, just stared at him. He didn' t bow. He didn' t scrape.

Andrew' s smile tightened. "No? Well, perhaps a night in a state cell will teach you some manners."

He snapped his fingers. Two state troopers, men on his payroll, grabbed my parents. My mother cried out. My father struggled, his face turning red with fury.

"Sabrina!" I yelled, pushing through the crowd. "What is this? Stop them!"

She looked at me, her face a mask of cool indifference. Andrew put a hand on her shoulder.

"Don' t worry, my dear," he said to her. "Just a little lesson in civility."

I ran to Sabrina, grabbing her arm. "You can' t let him do this. They' re my parents. They' re your family."

She pulled her arm away. Her voice was ice. "Don' t make a scene, Ethan. It' s my night."

I watched them drag my parents away. I felt a cold dread creep into my heart. I tried to follow, but security blocked my path. I called Sabrina all night. She never answered.

The next morning, a junior aide found me in the hotel lobby. His face was pale.

"Mr. Lester," he said, avoiding my eyes. "There was an incident at the detention center. Your parents... they' re gone. It appears to be a suicide."

Suicide. My father would never. My mother would never.

I stormed into the Governor' s office. Sabrina was there with Andrew, laughing at something on his phone.

"They' re dead," I said, my voice shaking. "Sabrina, they' re dead. He killed them."

I pointed at Andrew. He just raised an eyebrow, looking amused.

Sabrina sighed, a long, theatrical sound of annoyance. She stood up and walked over to me, her heels clicking on the marble floor.

"They' re gone, Ethan," she said, her voice low and sharp. "Are you seriously asking me to ruin a powerful man like Andrew over a couple of nobodies from the sticks?"

The words hit me harder than a fist. Nobodies.

"As my husband, you need to show some class and let this go."

I just stared at her, unable to speak. The woman I loved, the woman I had given everything to, was a stranger.

"In fact," she continued, her eyes cold and empty, "I don' t think this marriage is working out. My office will be announcing our annulment this afternoon. And your... advisory role? Andrew will be taking that over. You' re dismissed."

She turned her back on me and walked back to Andrew' s side. He put his arm around her, a triumphant smirk on his face. I was nothing to them. My family was nothing. And they were just getting started.