RuneScape: Return to Canifis (64 page)

“Then what do you want?”

“What I paid for. The documents that incriminate me in my dealings with the Kinshra. It was, as you know, a long time ago, but selling weapons to your order was in direct opposition to the commands of the present King’s father.

“Still, I suppose they didn’t do you much good when you attacked Falador.”

“Very well,” Sulla said, biting his lip to keep his temper in check. “You will have your documents—if you do something for me.” He paused for effect. “Like I said, I want to remain in Varrock. There is nowhere else for me to go. Jerrod, too, is in a similar situation. After killing the Wyrd he cannot return home. And you have lost Gar’rth. A werewolf working with you would be useful. His knowledge of Morytania alone is worth a huge amount, and he is tenfold the best tracker in Varrock.”

Ruthven considered his words for a moment.

“I will put that to the King in the coming days. He won’t like having a werewolf here, though. Jerrod will have to live a life under lock and key.”

At least this buys me time. An extension of the King’s mercy.

Sulla nodded slightly.

“That is understandable.”

Ruthven gave him an unpleasant glare and then moved away from the drawers and to the door.

“And those documents,” he said. “If you are to come in and... be one of us, then I will take possession of them. We may as well make use of them where we can.”

Sulla smiled.

“But I am the only one who can read them, Lord Ruthven. They are in an old Kinshra code. You see, I am not entirely stupid.”

“No, Sulla. Not entirely.”

The old man left and Sulla was alone. But he felt good, and he knew it wasn’t just because of the wine he had consumed. He stood up and went to the window to look out onto the palace bailey. He noticed the number of guards and soldiers, far more than there had been the day before.

It appears King Roald could be building an army. But for what purpose?

As Sulla walked back to his chair, something caught his eye. On a cushion on his bed, where he had spent so many hours, was an envelope.

Someone must have slipped it there when I distracted, but who?

His mind spinning, he fumbled it open and saw just a single black mark drawn upon the paper. To most people it would have been meaningless, but Sulla gritted his teeth when he saw it, and his scars began to itch violently.

It was a warning. A warning from the Kinshra that was used to intimidate those who had betrayed the knighthood’s cause, and to tell them they could be killed at any time.

I could be killed at any time...

It could only mean one thing. Someone inside the palace— someone who had been in this very room, talking with him,
pouring him wine, eyeing him with unease—was a Kinshra spy.

I am not safe here. If they can leave me a message such as this, then they can easily put poison in my wine or a knife to my throat.

Suddenly, despite the warm summer’s day, he shivered. All his plotting and bargaining now seemed so very fragile. And one thing was for certain.

The palace of Varrock was not the safe place he had thought it to be.

The End

Re-writing a novel in two months is very hard work. Especially when it becomes an entirely new piece of work from the one you started out with. Fourteen-hour days, friends who somehow managed to turn a blind eye (and even laugh) when the pressure of the deadline got to me, my temper made worse by gout, a Spanish holiday where I rose with the sun to ensure the project was on target and essentially abandoned my fiancée! Phew! The summer of 2010 was tough indeed!

But it was tougher on those who supported me—and for that I thank my family and friends who tolerated the madness of the time. I am proud of what we achieved together.

Thanks must also be given to Giuseppe Grassi for his excellent work on the maps and covers, and to the leader of Jagex’s content team, Mark O, who I once watched, slightly horrified, as he consumed a very rare steak for two by himself. That alone deserves an acknowledgement. Of course, no acknowledgement would be complete without the Titan editorial team: particularly Steve Saffel, who, as usual, spent many hours polishing a rough diamond, correcting my innumerable mistakes, and preparing it for publication.

Now, it’s over to the marketing gods.

T.S. Church was born and educated in Worcestershire, England. He holds degrees in Information Systems and Business, as well as an MA in Marketing, all from the University of the West of England, Bristol. In his free time, he enjoys playing
RuneScape
. When not spending time in Gielinor, he likes to read and study history. He also participates (reluctantly) in adventure sports, from canoeing the length of the Thames to running half marathons. He wrote the first
RuneScape
tie-in novel
Betrayal at Falador
. To find out more, visit his website,
www.tschurch.com
.

In the kingdom of Asgarnia, the Knights of Falador are beacons of order and chivalry, but their dominance is threatened by the forces of chaos which plot to shatter the time of peace.

When a mysterious young woman suddenly appears in the city of Falador in the teeth of a storm, her arrival launches a chain of events that will alter the fate of the kingdom forever.

Unless the knights can solve the riddle of Kara-Meir, everything they hold dear may be lost.

The first official tie-in novel set in the world of
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