Before the Snow Read Online Free Page A

The dress was way too pretty for a riverbed, or really anywhere. Where she was expecting to wear that dress was beyond Nepenthe. That was one of the many differences between them. Ora liked things.
    Nepenthe liked the water and everything that lived beneath its surface. She liked the Coven and the boat and the few feet of land that the Coven sat on and she dragged herself onto for ceremonies and meals.
    â€œJust because you have manners and a pretty face doesn’t mean that you aren’t ugly on the inside,” Nepenthe bit back, without hesitation.
    â€œYou wouldn’t understand, River Witch. You probably just have a balloon full of water where your heart should be.”
    â€œYou know if I had a heart, that would hurt. But it doesn’t,” Nepenthe countered and stuck her forked tongue at her sister witch.
    Ora turned away as if wounded . . . and then she began to laugh. She turned her attention back to the dress. Her nimble hands swept the needle back and forth, sewing an elaborate flower into the bodice.
    â€œFancy threads. When’s the ball, Princess?” Nepenthe teased.
    â€œYou jest, but you never know . . .” She winked, just as the ground rumbled beneath her and the King’s carriage pulled to a stop by the riverbank.
    A man dressed in burnished steel from head to toe climbed down beside it. It was the Enforcer, the King’s henchman. The man did not speak, but he pointed to Nepenthe and then the carriage. The King was summoning her.
    Nepenthe didn’t want to go, never mind alone.
    But Ora had been waiting for this carriage her whole life. When they were younger and no one was around, she would waste her magic on playing princess. Being royal appealed to her more than being a witch. She looked at Nepenthe expectantly, hoping for a chance to see how the royal half lived. The Witch of the Woods had told her the story of when the Coven erased the Prince’s memory, and she felt like she’d missed out.
    â€œOkay, Ora,” Nepenthe said. “Let’s go.”
    Ora clamored to her feet before Nepenthe emerged from the water. The Enforcer never moved from his place next to the carriage.
    From what they had heard, no one had ever seen his face and there was a rumor that the Enforcer was not one man but a series of rotating guards. The Witch of the Woods believed it was something more supernatural: one man serving his entire life behind the metal helmet only to take it off at death and pass it on to the next Enforcer.
    Inside the carriage, Ora began to ask questions.
    â€œWhat was the Prince like?”
    â€œLike a ten-year-old kid whose whole world was ending. And then we made it right again. Until now. ”

8
    The Enforcer walked them past the Throne Room and up the staircase, which was as wide as the grand hallway. Nepenthe heard Ora gasp as she took in the palace’s grandeur.
    â€œI was sorry to hear about your mother,” the King said when Nepenthe was brought before him. “She was the loveliest of her kind.”
    He was shorter than Nepenthe remembered. There was a coldness now that she wasn’t sure was there before. She could hear it in his words. She could see it in his eyes.
    Expecting to find another room full of ice statues, Nepenthe wanted to prepare Ora for what they were about to see. But instead, they were led to a corridor of rooms. The Enforcer stopped beside one of them and pointed, and then continued on his way.
    Nepenthe reached out for the door’s handle and then paused. “Ora, maybe you should just stay out here. I’ll see what’s inside and come back out.”
    Ora shook her head. “I know I don’t have my powers like you. But I have seen things. I am still a witch.”
    Knowing there was no winning the argument, Nepenthe pushed the door open and saw a winter wonderland of ice and snow. Everything was covered—from the floor to the bed to the mirrored nightstand.
    The boy was standing in