Snow and the Seven Alphas (A Wickedly Ever After Omegaverse #1)
Prologue
As written by the Brothers Grimm…
Once upon a time in the depth of winter, when the glistening snowflakes fell faster than fat raindrops from the clouds, an omega Prince Consort sat sewing at his window, framed in black ebony wood.
As he looked up at the falling snow, he pricked his finger with his needle.
Three drops of blood fell into the snow.
The red atop the white looked so beautiful that he thought to himself, "If only I had a child as white as snow, as red as blood, and as black as the wood in this frame. "
Soon afterward he and his mate, the king, had a tiny, precious baby who was as white as snow, with lips as red as blood, and hair as black as ebony wood, and therefore they called him Little Snow White. Sadly, Snow would lose his beloved papa too soon.
A year later, the king took himself another husband.
Snow’s step-papa was a beautiful man, but he was proud and arrogant, too.
He could not stand the idea that anyone might surpass him in beauty.
He possessed a magic mirror, and every morning he stood before it fully nude, looked at himself, and asked:
Mirror, mirror, on the wall,
Who in this land is fairest of all?
To this the mirror answered:
You, Your Majesty, are fairest of all.
Then the Prince Consort was satisfied, for he knew that the mirror spoke the truth.
As the years passed, Snow White grew up and became ever more lovely.
When he was eighteen-years-old, Snow was as beautiful as the light of day, even more beautiful than the Prince Consort himself.
While all in the kingdom knew this to be fact, no one spoke their thoughts aloud, knowing the evil Prince Consort would become jealous of their sweet omega prince.
It wasn’t until one day several years later when the Prince Consort finally learned this truth. He asked his mirror:
Mirror, mirror, on the wall,
Who in this land is fairest of all?
It answered:
You, Your Majesty, are fair; it is true.
But Snow White is a thousand times fairer than you.
The Prince Consort turned rancid green with envy. From that hour on, whenever he looked at Snow White, his heart shriveled inside his body, so great was his hatred for the boy he’d helped raise. The envy and pride grew ever greater, like a weed in his soul, until he had no peace—day or night.
Unable to stand it a second longer, he summoned a huntsman and said to him, "Take Snow White out into the woods. I never want to see him again. Kill him, and as proof that he is dead, bring his heart and his womb back to me."
The huntsman obeyed and took Snow White into the woods. He took out his hunting knife and was about to stab it into Snow’s innocent heart when the prince began to cry, pleading, "Oh, dear huntsman, let me live. I will run into the wild woods and never return, I promise."
Because the prince was so beautiful, the huntsman took pity on him, and said, "Run away, you poor child. Never return or the Prince Consort will have both our heads.”
The huntsman thought to himself, ‘No way the prince can last out here. The wild animals will soon devour him and absolve me of this wicked task,’ but still it was as if a stone had fallen from his heart, for he would not have to kill the beautiful prince himself.
After Snow raced into the trees, the huntsman turned back towards home.
On his way, he happened upon a wild boar sow in the brush.
The huntsman killed it, cut out its heart and womb, and took them back to the Prince Consort as proof of Snow White's death.
The cook had to boil them with salt, and the wicked Prince Consort ate them, supposing that he had eaten Snow White's very beauty.
The poor, sweet omega prince was now all alone in the great forest, and he was so very afraid.
He ran over sharp stones and through thorn-filled briars.
His clothes were torn to shreds, and his delicate shoes fell to pieces and slipped off as he sped.
Wild animals jumped at him, but they did him no harm.
He ran as far as his feet could carry him, and just as evening was about to fall, he feared he’d not make it to see the sun rise again.