Snow hunted reign of the.., p.1
Snow Hunted (Reign of the Wicked series), page 1
Snow Hunted
S.N. Moor
Copyright © 2022 by S.N. Moor
All rights reserved.
No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher or author, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law.
Note
This is a Kindle Vella series Episodes 1-41. This is an ongoing series with no planned end.
Season 2 will be called Huntress Snow – where the Hunted become the Huntress and will start at Episode 42 in Vella.
WARNING:
This is an adult book, not a child's fairytale. It is an adult paranormal romance fantasy reimagining of Snow White. It is a why choose with enemies to lovers, forced proximity, some kinky fuckery, one bed, and other yummy tropes. There are werewolves, shifters, mages, sirens, hseins, and witches and some more I am sure. ;)
Hey Dad
If you've made it this far past the Note and the Warning then I implore you to stop reading now. I super love your support, but this isn't the book for you. You've read Snow White before and this is just like the many many others out there so no need to read… all done. The End! Actually, seriously it's not, which is why you have a page dedicated to you in this book. You can just text me and be like OMG girllll that was totes your best book ever! The twists and turns... wowzers! Can't wait for your next one (which you also won't read) and obviously you will scribe above text in your words, or just copy and paste.
Love you! Now go read a book about the Appalachain Mountains or something!
Thanks to all you smutty fuckers out there who opened my eyes to the world of word porn. Go charge your toys, clean your hands or don't (dirrrty girdies!), light some candles, run a bubble bath, get some pop rocks… wait what? Sit back, lay down, slouch, whatever floats your boat and enjoy the book!
Contents
Prologue
1. Snow - Midnight Run
2. Dark Queen - Healer and the Head
3. Snow - House in the Woods
4. Gage - Hard Days Work
5. Snow - First Encounters
6. Huntsman - A Deal with the Devil
7. Snow - Scarlet the Disruptor
8. Barrett - Jerrypoo on a Humdinger
9. Snow - Bosom Berries
10. Gage - Out of my Bed and Out of my Head
11. Snow - A Warning and a Quest
12. Huntsman- An Encounter with a Siren
13. Gage - Hunt for the Purple Mangor
14. Snow - Truth Revealed
15. Merla - Secrets and Betrayal
16. Gage - Battle Within
17. Snow - A Werewolf in the Woods
18. Gage - Rehashing the Past
19. Merla - Hatching a Plan
20. Snow - Truth Told
21. Merla - Gardening is Good for One's Health
22. Enzo - We Protect our Own
23. Snow - Off to Find a Mage
24. Gage - Brotherly Bonding
25. Snow - Stubborn Gage
26. Gage - On the Run
27. Snow - Wet Dreams
28. Merla - A Mother's Love
29. Calix - Home for the Wayward Souls
30. Garrison - Protector of Nothing
31. Jace - Second Times the Charm
32. Merla - Better Do Some Magic
33. Snow - Magic Lesson's
34. Lilibet - Art of Deception
35. Garrison - Rabbit Duty
36. Gage - History of the Dark One
37. Snow - Spell Making
38. Lilibet - The Miner Seven
39. Snow - Journey to the Castle
40. Merla - Revenge at Last
41. Snow - Last Cry
Thank You and What's Next!
Prologue
Everyone knows the story of my mother, the beautiful Queen, who on a day much like today sat by her window looking out, admiring the beautiful falling snow while she sewed. Startled by a blackbird, she pricked her finger with her needle, causing blood to pool. Laughing graciously at her mishap, she stroked the bird's head, wishing she could finally bore the King a child.
What the Queen didn’t know is the blackbird was in fact an evil witch and when she made her wish and rubbed the bird, the witch cast a spell on the Queen, binding it to her life.
Some months later, I was born and my mother was dead. My father loved me dearly and tried to raise me as best he could, but knew I needed a mother, so he went looking for one. After searching for over a year, he found a beautiful woman who would make a suitable wife. Fair and youthful skin with dark hair- she reminded him of his Queen.
I don’t remember the day she came to live with us, or much about my mother, or what my dad was like before she came.
I only remember the after.
She was a darkness, rooting herself in the castle, casting her evil shadow over everything.
My father was too heartbroken and weak minded to stop her and I never understood why….
Chapter one
Snow - Midnight Run
“Shoot! Take the shot, Snow!” the huntsman urged.
I chuckled and released the arrow out of the bow, striking the rabbit square in its eye. It fell to the ground immediately. “I told you I knew what I was doing. You’ve taught me well.” I smiled at the huntsman, shifting my weight into him.
He shot me a weary side glance but didn’t speak as he made his way over to the rabbit. I stood up and wiped the dirt from my dress, following behind him. “How did I do?” I grabbed his arm to peek over.
He gently pulled his arm out of my grasp and looked at me again. He wasn’t a man of many words and liked to keep things strictly professional between us. I had a natural curiosity about the man and found him quite attractive and sometimes I would have dreams about him… inappropriate dreams.
He was a full head taller than me, clean-shaven face, brown eyes, wide shoulders, and very muscular. Aside from my father, the King, he was the only man I knew and one of the few people I ever talked to. I used the term ‘know’ loosely since he wouldn’t even tell me his name. I would call him Hunter if I needed to get his attention because Huntsman seemed too long and too formal.
I watched him as he pulled the arrow out of the rabbit's eye. The muscles in his arms flexed, and it made my stomach feel things… like butterflies dancing.
“It was a clean kill.”
“I had an excellent teacher.” I smiled.
“Snow.” He lightly reprimanded.
“What?”
“You’re flirting with me. We’ve talked about this.”
I laughed, spinning in a circle. “I’m turning eighteen tomorrow and will be a woman.”
“Snow.” He said, pulling out a knife and laying the rabbit on the ground.
“What? All I’m saying is that I will be a woman and I have no prospects. I’m not allowed to attend parties and aside from the cook who leaves me food, you’re the only other person I know. I’m going to die alone in that castle.”
“You won’t.” He took the skinned rabbit and ran a stick through it from head to tail.
“You don’t know that. For my birthday,” I paused, waiting for him to stand back up, “Can you give me a kiss? That way, if I die alone, at least I would have kissed a man before... you know.”
“No,” he said matter-of-factly.
I shook my head. “Ass.”
“Language.”
“Give me a fucking break. I hear you cuss all the time.”
“You’re a lady.”
I rolled my eyes. “Who you’ve taken under your wing and taught how to hunt? Doesn’t seem very lady like to me. And again, I go back to, it doesn’t matter. No one knows I exist.”
He ignored the latter part of my argument. “You looked lonely and seemed to have a natural skill for shooting.”
I studied him, quietly.
He continued. “I would watch you shoot apples out of the tree.”
“You watched me?” I asked, almost too excitedly.
He cocked his head to the side.
“You creeper.” I teased.
“It wasn’t like that, Snow.”
“Why do you say my name like that? Like it’s a bad thing. Like I’m a bad person?” I walked over to him and placed my hand on his arm.
“Snow.” He warned, but didn’t pull away.
“What?” I stared him in his eyes and could see a look of panic. “Do I make you nervous?”
“No.”
I pressed my body up against his and it felt like my heart was going to pound out of my chest. “I don’t?” I said the words quietly. I raised up and his beautiful face looked down at me and in that moment I knew what he didn’t want me to know.
He found me attractive.
He wanted me to kiss him.
“Kiss me.” I pleaded softly.
He didn’t say anything as the entire world around us froze.
“Hunter.” I encouraged.
A bird chirped, bringing us crashing back to reality.
He shook his head like I’d captured him in a trance and backed away from me. “Snow. I said I would not kiss you.” His words were short.
“Whatever.” I grabbed my bow off the ground and started walking back to the horses.
“Snow.” He called after me.
“Leave me the fuck alone.” I shouted, not turning around.
A few minutes later, I untied my horse from the tree and gave it a loving pat on its neck. “Let’s go boy.” I threw
“Get up, child! Get up!” I stirred from my sleep to find my father standing over me, shaking my arm.
It had been at least a month since I had seen or talked to him.
“What?” I sat on the edge of the platform bed and rubbed my eyes.
“Get up Snow. You must leave.” His words were rushed and quiet.
“Leave?” I was awake now.
I watched him race around the little room and stuff as many things as he could into a bag in his hand. I didn’t have much. The evil bitch of a Queen made sure of that when she banished me to this Goddess-forsaken room.
Room?
More like a closet. Big enough to hold a mattress on a wooden table, a small sink and a bucket for my other needs. I had a small dresser that held a few changes of clothes and a secret compartment that held my mother’s necklace- the only thing I had left from her. One of the staff had found it and swiped it away for me when I was little.
“Why in the hell do I have to leave?” I stood up and grabbed his arm. “Dad. I’m talking to you.”
“Snow, we don’t have time.” He lightly reprimanded.
I shook my head in disbelief. “I have nowhere to go.”
“You must go.”
“Where?” I yelled.
He slapped his hand over my mouth and looked around, panicked. I pushed him off, but didn’t speak.
“I’ve called a friend to help guide you out of the castle grounds.”
I snatched the bag from him and dumped all the contents on the bed. None of them meant anything to me. I refilled the bag with two outfits, my toothbrush and brush. I popped the secret bottom out of the drawer and pulled out my mother’s necklace and quickly slipped it on, tucking it under my gown and jacket.
I caught my father looking at the necklace longingly.
“Don’t. You don’t get to miss her. You let that bitch lock me away in this fucking closet and didn’t do a goddam thing to stop her. She is evil- a disease taking over everything.”
“You’re right Snow. But I’m trying to save you now. You turn eighteen at midnight and you can’t be on property when you do. She’ll…” His words trailed off.
“What? What will she do?” What more could she do? She left me completely isolated in this room. I barely saw my father and had no one else, except my horse and the few birds or mice that came to visit occasionally.
He shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. You need to go!”
I heard a dog howl outside.
“It’s time. Let’s go.” My father nearly pushed me out of the room, looking both ways before he shoved me into the spiral stairwell. “Let’s go Snow, let’s go.”
“I’m going as fast as I can.” I seethed in frustration.
I stepped outside and felt a bag thrown over my head.
“No!” my father shouted.
Obviously, this wasn’t part of the plan.
I swung my arms around, catching a man in the face because I heard him let out a grunt and my fist stung like it had touched fire.
“Stop her!” I heard a woman’s voice command off in the distance.
It was her.
The evil bitch and cause for all this misery.
I suddenly remembered my necklace and reached up to grab it, yanking it off, the metal burning against my skin as the clasp broke.
“Please don’t hurt her.” My father pleaded.
I quickly pulled the chain into my hand, balling my fist around it. I only hoped the distraction of my father and the Queen was enough to pull their attention away from me.
“What do we have here?” The Queen queried, walking up. I could hear the gravel parting under her feet the closer she got.
“Please don’t do this.” My father pleaded.
“Don’t do what?” She snapped before quickly regaining her composure.
“She’s not a harm to you.”
“You know nothing, you idiot. My mirror told me what’s going to happen.”
“Your mirror is lying. I won’t hurt you.” I added.
“My- My mirror does not lie! Take the bag off her head.” She thundered.
I shook the hair out of my face and looked around and realized I had punched my father in the jaw. Part of me figured he deserved it, but the other part felt guilty. I loved him, even though he never protected me from her. “Queen.” I said with as much disgust as I could manage.
“Snow.” Her one word equally dripped with hatred. Then she looked at my father. “What were you doing?”
He was still rubbing his jaw, but he put his hand down before he spoke. “I can’t let you do this. I can’t let you kill her.”
She gasped, clutching her chest. “I’m not going to kill her.”
I looked between the two of them.
My father seemed confused. The clarity I saw in his eyes was fading fast, second by second. “I… I heard it. I heard you. Your mirror said Snow was a thousand times fairer than you. You yelled out…”
She walked over to him and extended her hand, gently rubbing it across his face. The cut on his cheek healed, and he stood up taller, like he was in a trance. “What you heard, my King, was the frustrations of an old woman.” She laughed. “Nothing more. I,” she paused, “would never harm a hair on our precious daughter’s head.”
“You wouldn’t?” He dribbled out.
“Darling. No.” She shot her wicked gaze at me.
The semantics of her words- she wouldn’t hurt me, but that didn’t mean she wouldn’t have someone else do it for her. Did my father actually believe this garbage?
“You go back up to your room and we can talk about this in the morning.”
My father nodded and started walking back to the main part of the castle, like the mindless drone he’d become.
The Queen glared at the man behind me and spoke in hushed tones. “See to it that he goes straight to his chamber and try not to mess this up!”
“Yes, my, my Queen. Right away.”
“Now what to do with you?” she asked, circling me.
I turned my head following her and saw my bow and quiver was propped on the wall near the door, just out of arms reach. “I could leave.” She stopped in front of me, so I pretended like I was scared, taking a step back closing the distance to the door.
She bobbled her head from side to side. “See, that doesn’t work for me.” She took another step closer to me, sticking her nose in the air. “You smell… so sweet… So youthful.” She looked at the sky. “It’s almost midnight.” She clasped her hands together.
I realized I was running out of time and had to move quickly. I reached down and looped my arm through my quiver and grabbed my bow, swinging it at her and striking her across the face. I heard her yell out in pain, but I ran as fast as I could, not turning back. A flame shot past my head and landed in the field in front of me. I dodged to the right and saw another ball of flame land just to my left.
I grabbed an arrow and placed it in the bow, drawing the string before I looked over my shoulder. I waited for a beat and then turned, found her and released the arrow at the same time a ball of fire was coming straight at me. I dodged as the arrow was shooting out, so I knew my aim was off, but I heard her scream out and fall to the ground.
I knew I didn’t kill her, so I kept running.
I ran as far and as fast as my legs would carry me.
Chapter two
Dark Queen - Healer and the Head
“My Queen, my Queen, are you ok?” One of the house staff ran outside.
A flash of anger crossed my face, but I reeled it in and opted for the poor, distressed Queen. “Please… help me…” I pleaded, reaching up from the ground.
“My Queen. What happened?” They asked, rushing over. It was a frumpy little woman in a bland brown dress with a bonnet tied around her head, holding a candle. I didn’t know their names. They weren’t important enough to me.
“My goodness, thank you. I think you saved my life. Snow…” I paused, shaking my head. “I thought…” I wiped the invisible tear from my eye. “She tried to kill me.”
“Snow?” she said in utter disbelief. Of course, who would ever think that wretched girl would do something so heinous?
