Fairest Betrayals

By Kali Willows

Welcome to a retelling of the classic Grimm tale of The Pink. "Father, will you see the maiden who brought me up so tenderly, and who was afterwards to murder me, but did not do it?"

The Witch trials are over, but the witch hunters still rule Salem with an iron fist. Men and women fear the smallest whisper of magic, yet sometimes magic is the only way to have a baby. No child, however, born of the same can ever be accepted in such a place.

Jasper Woodman was stolen from his sleeping mother's arms. For years, he was raised begrudgingly by a man who clearly despised him yet shared no knowledge of Jasper's magical origins. Treated like a loathed servant, the only kindness he knew was from that of Judas' own daughter, a beautiful maiden not much older than he. She was full of purity and love despite her father's cruelty.

One dark night, Rosalind Braddock is faced with the choice between taking a life or losing her own to the mad cook's wrath. For blood or for love? Her choice decides the fairest betrayal. The beauty of pink petals can fade over time, but the sting of betrayal can fester forever.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Kinderd Productions
• Release date: Feb 5, 2021
• ISBN: 9781393669296

Kali Willows

Born and raised in Toronto, Kali now resides in the exquisite eastern Ontario countryside where she enjoys the serenity of nature. When she isn't busy being the married mother of two, certified trainer or counselor extraordinaire, she shadows worlds of paranormal passion & intrigue.Kali strives to create emotional, compelling stories and characters you can't help but love, hate and cheer for. Captivated by her love of dragons, gargoyles and everything paranormal, she pens these delightful creatures into epic tales of romance and adventure and often infuses her passions of martial arts, music and ironic twists even she didn’t foresee.

Book preview

Fairest Betrayals

By Kali Willows

Part of a Sisters Grimm Anthology

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Please purchase only authorized electronic editions and do not participate in, or encourage, the electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated. This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Fairest Betrayals

Copyright 2020 by Kali Willows

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All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work, in whole or in part, in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher.

BLURB

Welcome to a retelling of the classic Grimm tale of The Pink . Father, will you see the maiden who brought me up so tenderly, and who was afterwards to murder me, but did not do it?

The Witch trials are over, but the witch hunters still rule Salem with an iron fist. Men and women fear the smallest whisper of magic, yet sometimes magic is the only way to have a baby. No child, however, born of the same can ever be accepted in such a place.

Jasper Woodman was stolen from his sleeping mother’s arms. For years, he was raised begrudgingly by a man who clearly despised him yet shared no knowledge of Jasper’s magical origins. Treated like a loathed servant, the only kindness he knew was from that of Judas’ own daughter, a beautiful maiden not much older than he. She was full of purity and love despite her father’s cruelty.

One dark night, Rosalind Braddock is faced with the choice between taking a life or losing her own to the mad cook’s wrath. For blood or for love? Her choice decides the fairest betrayal. The beauty of pink petals can fade over time, but the sting of betrayal can fester forever.

Acknowledgements:

Andi Lawrencovna, you are my unrelenting muse these past precious years. You ignite a spark of inspiration that at times eludes me. Thank you for always being there to cheer me on, motivate and challenge me to create. Your positivity and go get ‘em attitude is the perfect atmosphere for crafting epic tales. You are truly my soul sister.

Kate Richards, you are always there, just a keyboard away, cheering me on and helping in any way you can. I’ve learned so much from you over the years, and I cherish our friendship. You have helped shape me into the author I am today. Thank you for always being there.

A Note from Kali

Thank you for choosing Fairest Betrayals . It was an honour to be part of the Sisters’ Grimm retelling of the classic Grimm’s Fairytales and a privilege to create a different version of the original Grimm Brothers’ tale, The Pink .

I hope you love this retelling as much as I did.

Happy Reading,

Kali Willows

Dedication:

To the fairest story lovers of old and new. For those who not only love the written word but seek to delve into new worlds and adventures. Our readers are the zenith of a writer’s purpose. Without you, our stories go untold, and our characters hang in limbo. When you open our books to read, you breathe life into these worlds. Thank you for your ongoing support.

Prologue

Amajestic, black raven sat on the window ledge between the bars and cawed.

Be gone, you foul creature, the raging man bellowed.

Judas, never mind the bird. For the love of our daughter, please. Do as I tell you, and do not dispute this. Sybil writhed in her iron shackles. Held back by the length of her restraints, she was unable to reach her embittered husband. I know you have never agreed with my gifts, but it is not her fault. You are her only hope. You must protect her. Do it now, before she is taken away, she pleaded frantically.

How could you have been so stupid? he spat. To live in Salem and know the witch hunting continues despite the hangings stopping. How could you be so selfish? Now you face certain death, and you want me to steal away in the dead of night to protect your evil secrets?

Listen to me, Judas. She is not evil. If there was ever a part of you that loved me—

Loved you? he seethed. Of course I loved you. Now you leave me to manage this all alone.

Believe what you must about me, but she needs you to protect her.

What will become of us? Your sorcery, he scoffed. How do I know I will not be smited for helping you?

Metal doors clanked, followed by loud grumbles and heavy footsteps quickly approaching.

Sybil tipped her chin up and growled through clenched teeth. Go now, do this one thing I ask of you and make haste, husband. Do as I say, for the love of all that is divine, or I swear by the gods and goddesses, I will haunt you endlessly in the afterlife.

Judas’ eyes widened with fright as he stepped back. You would not.

Sybil glared at him. I most certainly will. You know only splinters of my capabilities. Go now and do as I say.

Judas crossed his arms over his chest as the crew of lawmen approached. The men in black sported their daggers, tunics, and their silver hangman’s knots dangled from their leather cords. Tunics embroidered with the red scales of justice and embellished with metal noose charms symbolized their power across the land. Any man who wore the mark of the lawmen claimed the authority to arrest, judge, and execute anyone they deemed guilty.

The witch trials had spurred immense hatred and fear for all in Salem in just one year’s time. Turning neighbours against one another, no one remained safe under the wretched cloud of suspicion and mass hysteria. Accusations required little proof, and the lawmen’s brand of justice was swift and unrelenting. A simple whisper of distrust from another servant in the Woodman home had led to Sybil’s arrest. Too much outrage from the church and their disciples arose when some of the prominent wives of the Salem hierarchy had been accused. The trials had ended abruptly just a few years ago, but the oppression continued tenfold.

Magistrate Woodman entered last. His shoulder-length white hair was tucked under his black, wide-brimmed hat. His Puritan attire was simple, yet elegant— unrelieved black