The Rose and the Thorn

by Michael J. Sullivan

  The thieves stopped and looked up, concerned.

  Royce shook his head. “Not clearing the brush—the robbery. You picked a nice spot. I’ll give you that. But you should have come at us from both sides.”

  “And, William—it is William, isn’t it?” Hadrian asked.

  The man winced and nodded.

  “Yeah, William, most people are right-handed, so those coming in close should approach from the left. That would’ve put us at a disadvantage, having to swing across our bodies at you. Those with bows should be on our right.”

  “And why just one bow?” Royce asked. “She could have only hit one of us.”

  “Couldn’t even have done that,” Hadrian said. “Did you notice how long she held the bow bent? Either she’s incredibly strong—which I doubt—or that’s a homemade greenwood bow with barely enough power to toss the arrow a few feet. Her part was just for show. I doubt she’s ever launched an arrow.”

  “Have too,” the girl said. “I’m a fine marksman.”

  Hadrian shook his head at her with a smile. “You had your forefinger on top of the shaft, dear. If you had released, the feathers on the arrow would have brushed your finger and the shot would have gone anywhere but where you wanted it to.”

  Royce nodded. “Invest in crossbows. Next time stay hidden and just put a couple bolts into each of your targets’ chests. All this talking is just stupid.”

  “Royce!” Hadrian admonished.

  “What? You’re always saying I should be nicer to people. I’m trying to be helpful.”

  “Don’t listen to him. If you do want some advice, try building a better barricade.”

  “Yeah, drop a tree across the road next time,” Royce said. Waving a hand toward the branches, he added, “This is just pathetic. And cover your faces for Maribor’s sake. Warric isn’t that big of a kingdom and people might remember you. Sure Ballentyne isn’t likely to bother tracking you down for a few petty highway robberies, but you’re gonna walk into a tavern one day and get a knife in your back.” Royce turned to William. “You were in the Crimson Hand, right?”

  Will looked startled. “No one said nothing about that.” He stopped pulling on the branch he was working on.

  “Didn’t need to. The Hand requires all guild members to get that stupid tattoo on their necks.” Royce turned to Hadrian. “It’s supposed to make them look tough, but all it really does is make it easy to identify them as thieves for the rest of their lives. Painting a red hand on everyone is pretty stupid when you think about it.”

  “That tattoo is supposed to be a hand?” Hadrian asked. “I thought it was a little red chicken. But now that you mention it, a hand does make more sense.”

  Royce looked back at Will and tilted his head to one side. “Does kinda look like a chicken.”

  Will clamped a palm over his neck.

  After the last of the brush was cleared, William asked, “Who are you, really? What exactly is Riyria? The Hand never told me. They just said to keep clear.”

  “We’re nobody special,” Hadrian replied. “Just a couple of travelers enjoying a ride on a cool autumn’s night.”

  “But seriously,” Royce said. “You need to listen to us if you’re going to keep doing this. After all, we’re going to take your advice.”

  “What advice?”

  Royce gave a gentle kick to his horse and started forward on the road again. “We’re going to visit the Earl of Chadwick, but don’t worry—we won’t mention you.”

  BOOKS BY MICHAEL J. SULLIVAN

  THE RIYRIA CHRONICLES

  The Crown Tower

  The Rose and the Thorn

  THE RIYRIA REVELATIONS

  Theft of Swords

  Rise of Empire

  Heir of Novron

  GLOSSARY OF TERMS AND NAMES

  ABBY:Prostitute at Medford House in the Lower Quarter of Medford

  ALBERT WINSLOW:A landless viscount hired by Royce and Hadrian to arrange jobs with the gentry

  ALRIC ESSENDON:Prince of Melengar

  ALVERSTONE:Name of dagger used by Royce Melborn

  AMRATH ESSENDON:King of Melengar

  ANN ESSENDON:Queen of Melengar

  APELADORN: The four nations of man, consisting of Trent, Avryn, Delgos, and Calis

  AQUESTA:Capital city of the kingdom of Warric

  ARCADIUS VINTARUS LATIMER: Professor of lore at Sheridan University

  ARISTA ESSENDON:Princess of Melengar

  ARTISAN QUARTER:The geographic region of Medford where most of the goods are produced

  AVON:Former prostitute at The Hideous Head Tavern and Alehouse, killed by Stane

  AVRYN:The central and most powerful of the four nations of Apeladorn, located between Trent and Delgos

  BA RAN GHAZEL:The dwarven name for goblins, literally “Goblins of the Sea”

  BERNUM RIVER:Waterway that joins the cities of Colnora in the north and Vernes in the south

  BLACK DIAMOND: International thieves’ guild centered in Colnora

  CALIAN: Pertaining to the nation of Calis

  CALIANS:Residents of the nation of Calis, with dark skin and almond-shaped eyes. An isolated people, not much is known about them in the northern and eastern kingdoms of Avryn, except that their women are among the most beautiful in existence, but the suggestion of their use of magic makes them reviled and outcast.

  CALIS:Southern- and easternmost of the four nations of Apeladorn, considered exotic and strange as most in the north have little interaction with people from that part of Elan. The region is in constant conflict with the Ba Ran Ghazel.

  CARTER:A person who makes their living by moving goods from place to place, usually employing a horse-drawn cart

  COLNORA: Largest, wealthiest city in Avryn. A merchant-based city that grew from a rest stop at a central crossroads of various major trade routes.

  CROWN TOWER:Home of the Patriarch and center of the Nyphron Church

  DELGOS:One of the four nations of Apeladorn. The only republic in a world of monarchies, Delgos revolted against the Steward’s Empire after Glenmorgan III was murdered and after surviving a goblin attack with no aid from the empire.

  DIXON TAFT: Carter operating out of Medford and employee of Medford House

  DROME:God of dwarves, second son of Erebus

  DUSTER:Person (or persons) responsible for a gruesome set of murders one summer in the city of Colnora

  ELAN:The world

  EREBUS:Father of the gods Ferrol (god of elves), Drome (god of the dwarves), Maribor (god of men), Muriel (goddess of nature), Uberlin (god of darkness)

  ERVANON: City in northern Ghent, seat of the Nyphron Church, once the capital of the Steward’s Empire as established by Glenmorgan

  ESSENDON:Royal family of Melengar

  ESSENDON CASTLE:Home of the ruling monarchs of Melengar

  ETHAN:Sheriff in the Lower Quarter of Medford

  ETTA: Least attractive prostitute at Medford House in the Lower Quarter of Medford

  GENTRY Quarter:The geographic region of Medford where the wealthiest (usually noble or rich merchants) reside

  GHENT: Ecclesiastical holding of the Nyphron Church

  GLENMORGAN:Historical figure and a native of Ghent who reunited the four nations of Apeladorn 326 years after the fall of the Novronian Empire. He initiated the new Steward’s Empire, founded Sheridan University, created the great north–south road, and built the Ervanon palace (of which only the Crown Tower remains).

  GWEN DELANCY:Calian native and proprietor of Medford House

  GWENDOLYN:Given name of Gwen DeLancy

  HADRIAN BLACKWATER:Originally from Hintindar, he left home at fifteen, spent two years as a soldier (with multiple armies) and three years as an arena fighter in Calis

  HEAD, THE:Nickname for The Hideous Head Tavern and Alehouse

  HIDEOUS HEAD TAVERN AND ALEHOUSE:Brothel and tavern run by Raynor Grue in the Lower Quarter of Medford

  HINTINDAR:Small manorial village in Rhenydd, home of Hadrian Blackwa
ter

  HOUSE, THE:Nickname used for Medford House

  JOLLIN: Prostitute of the Lower Quarter working at Medford House

  LADY BANSHEE:Large fishing boat operating out of Medford

  LOWER QUARTER: The geographic region of Medford where most of the impoverished reside

  MAE:Prostitute of the Lower Quarter working at Medford House

  MANZANT: Infamous prison and salt mine, located in Manzar, Maranon

  MARANON: Kingdom in Avryn, rich in farmland and known for breeding the best horses

  MARES CATHEDRAL:Center of the Nyphron Church in Melengar

  MARIBOR:God of men, third son of Erebus

  MEDFORD:Capital city of Melengar. The town is divided into four distinct quarters: Artisan, Merchant, Gentry, and Lower.

  MEDFORD HOUSE:Brothel in the Lower Quarter of Medford run by Gwen DeLancy and employing prostitutes who once worked at The Hideous Head Tavern and Alehouse

  MELENGAR: Small but old and respected kingdom of Avryn ruled by King Amrath

  MERCHANT QUARTER:The geographic region of Medford where most of the goods are sold

  MERRICK MARIUS:Former best friend of Royce Melborn, known for his strategic thinking

  MONTEMORCEY:Excellent wine imported through the Vandon Spice Company

  MURIEL:Goddess of nature, only daughter of Erebus

  NOVRON:Savior of mankind, demigod, son of Maribor, defeated the elven army in the Great Elven Wars, founder of the Novronian Empire

  NYPHRON CHURCH:Predominant church of mankind. Worshipers of Novron and Maribor.

  PATRIARCH: Head of the Nyphron Church, lives in the Crown Tower of Ervanon

  PERCEPLIQUIS:Ancient city and capital of the Novronian Empire, destroyed and lost during the collapse of the Old Empire

  PICKLES:Street urchin from Vernes and former companion of Hadrian

  RAYNOR GRUE:Proprietor of The Hideous Head Tavern and Alehouse in the Lower Quarter of Medford

  REUBEN HILFRED:Son of Richard Hilfred. After the death of his mother, he was raised by an aunt until the age of fourteen, when he came to Essendon Castle to live with his father and become a member of the castle guard.

  RHENYDD:Poorest of the kingdoms of Avryn

  RICHARD HILFRED:Father of Reuben, member of the king’s bodyguard

  ROSE:Prostitute of the Lower Quarter working at Medford House

  ROYAL PERMIT:Legal paperwork allowing a proprietor to operate a business

  ROYCE MELBORN:Thief, assassin, and former inmate at Manzant Prison

  RUE: Nickname of Reuben Hilfred given to him by his father

  SENTINEL:Inquisitor generals of the Nyphron Church, charged with rooting out heresy and finding the lost Heir of Novron

  SERET: Knights of Nyphron. The military arm of the church, commanded by sentinels.

  SHERIDAN UNIVERSITY: Prestigious institution of learning, located in Ghent

  SIGHT, THE:Ability, usually possessed by Calian women to see the future

  SONG OF MAN, THE:Poem that tells the history and mythology of mankind

  SPADONE:Long two-handed sword with a tapering blade and an extended flange ahead of the hilt allowing for an extended variety of fighting maneuvers. Due to the length of the handgrip and the flange, which provides its own barbed hilt, the sword provides a number of additional hand placements, permitting the sword to be used similarly to a quarterstaff and as a powerful cleaving weapon. The spadone is the traditional weapon of a skilled knight.

  SQUIRE:Errand runner or servant of a knight

  STANE:Net hauler for the Lady Banshee, killed a prostitute of the Head

  TENENT:Most common form of semi-standard international currency. Coins of gold, silver, and copper stamped with the likeness of the king of the realm where the coin was minted: 1 gold = 100 silver; 1 silver = 10 copper.

  THREE CRUELTIES OF HUMANITY, THE:As described in the poem “The Song of Man,” they are age, disease, and hunger

  TRENT:Northern mountainous kingdoms of Apeladorn, generally remote and isolated

  UBERLIN:God of darkness, born from the rape of Muriel by her father, Erebus

  VERNES: Port city at the mouth of the Bernum River

  WARRIC:Most powerful of the kingdoms of Avryn, ruled by King Ethelred

  WAYWARD INN: A defunct establishment that used to reside at the end of Wayward Street in the Lower Quarter of Medford

  WAYWARD STREET:Road leading to the most impoverished section of the Lower Quarter in Medford

  WILLARD:Bartender at The Hideous Head Tavern and Alehouse in the Lower Quarter of Medford

  WINTERTIDE:Chief holiday, held in midwinter, celebrated with feasts and games of skill

  WOLVES: Street gang of children; Royce Melborn was once a member

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  CONTENTS

  Cover

  Title Page

  Welcome

  Map

  Chapter 1: THE BATTLE OF GATEWAY BRIDGE

  Chapter 2: ALBERT WINSLOW

  Chapter 3: THE COUNCIL OF AMRATH

  Chapter 4: THE GHOST OF THE HIGH TOWER

  Chapter 5: AFTER THE PARTY

  Chapter 6: THE HOUSE AND THE TAVERN

  Chapter 7: THE LADY OF FLOWERS

  Chapter 8: THE NEW SWORD

  Chapter 9: THE CRIMSON HAND

  Chapter 10: THE DANDY AND THE TROLL

  Chapter 11: THE NEW GUARD

  Chapter 12: THE AUTUMN GALA

  Chapter 13: THE COACHMAN, THE LADY, AND THE DRUNKS

  Chapter 14: TRAITORS

  Chapter 15: ROSE

  Chapter 16: THE LORD HIGH CONSTABLE

  Chapter 17: THE FEATHERED HATS

  Chapter 18: DUSTER

  Chapter 19: THE FIRE

  Chapter 20: FALLOUT

  Chapter 21: THE DAY AFTER

  Chapter 22: HOMECOMINGS

  Chapter 23: HILFRED

  Chapter 24: THE ROSE AND THE THORN

  Chapter 25: THE VISITOR

  Extras

  Meet the Author

  A Preview of Theft of Swords

  Books by Michael J. Sullivan

  Glossary of Terms and Names

  Newsletters

  Copyright

  Copyright

  The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

  Copyright © 2013 by Michael J. Sullivan

  Excerpt from Theft of Swords copyright © 2011 by Michael J. Sullivan

  Map by Michael J. Sullivan

  Cover design copyright © by Lauren Panepinto

  Illustration copyright © by Larry Rostant

  All rights reserved. In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher is unlawful piracy and theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), prior written permission must be obtained by contacting the publisher at permissions@hbgusa.com. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.

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  ISBN 978-0-316-24373-5