The Sleeping Prince - Melinda Salisbury Page 0,120
could control both my tongue and my temper.
As if he knows what I’m thinking, the corner of his mouth twitches as though he’s holding back a smile. “Or is it because you’re trying to collect some of his blood?”
“What?” The room seems to shrink and I glance around, looking for something to defend myself with.
“I’ve heard about you. You’re an apothecary. I know what Tregellian apothecaries can do. I know they can break potions apart, find what they’re made of.”
“What does that have to do with anything?”
His eyes lock on mine. “You always try to hurt him in a way that will make him bleed. Always. I think you want his blood to test. To take it apart. To find a way to stop him. And I want to help you.”
“I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about.”
“What if I said I knew a way out of here? What if I promised to help you get what you need, and then to get out of here with it? Would that change things? I can get you out of here, Errin. Whenever you wish.” He pauses, looking at me from the side of his eye and taking a deep breath. “It used to be my castle.”
It takes a moment for his words to sink in, and then I look at him, scouring his face. Yes… Yes, in the tilt of his cheekbones, the curve of his jaw. The curly hair is shorn, and the clothes are simple and tatty, but now I see it: that face looking down from the back of a white horse, so many moons ago. “We all thought you were dead.”
“One thing I learned from what happened to the Tregellian royal family is that if there are those at your gates who mean you ill, you have two choices. Run, or die. And a dead king is useless.”
“You mean to take back the kingdom?”
“If a Sleeping Prince can awaken, then surely a dead king can?” He smiles without moving his mouth at all. Something in his eyes conveys a big, bold grin. I find myself grinning back.
“Why not indeed, Your Majesty?”
“Call me Merek,” he says. “All of my friends do.”
Acknowledgements
I find it hard to believe I was lucky enough to have one book published, let alone to be here again, a year later, still supported, guided and talked down from the ledge by the following people:
My agent, Claire Wilson, who has handled all of my “Claire. Claire. Help me” emails with such grace and patience. Half of the reason I haven’t lost my mind in the past year is because I am lucky enough to have you on my side. Thank you. And thanks again to Lexie Hamblin, I will miss you, and Rosie Price, who has it all to come...
Team Sin Eater at Scholastic UK, and in particular my splendid UK editors, Genevieve Herr and Emily Lamm. Having one editor who gets what you’re trying to do is pretty lucky, having two is just jammy. I am that jammy. Here is a fun story: early on in the editing process they sent me a list of edit suggestions, which I then argued against. Every. Single. Point. And my lovely editorial team (including Mallory Kass in the US) simply replied saying, “OK. We trust you. You know the story best. If you say it won’t work, we know you’ll find another way.”
Every single suggestion they made ended up in the book, one way or another. Every single suggestion they made was the right call. Because as I was editing, I realized I might know the story best, but I was far from the only person that knew it. They could see what I couldn’t, and The Sleeping Prince is so much better for it. I am so lucky to have these guys as my editors, and that they trusted me. I can never thank them enough for that and I’m so proud of what we made here.
Once again Jamie Gregory made me the most perfect cover, and I should probably offer him my soul or something. Jamie, I would if I had one. Magical Publicist Rachel Phillipps, who can literally work miracles and is one of the greatest people in the world. Thank you for being brilliant. Always brilliant. Pete Matthews, Team Sin Eater project manager and proofreader extraordinaire.
Also thanks to David Sanger, Fi Evans, Sam Selby Smith, the Rights team and everyone else who has worked hard on my behalf behind the scenes. One day I will know all of your names and I will fill pages of acknowledgements with them.
On the other side of the world at Scholastic Inc., millions of thanks need to go to Mallory Kass, who, as mentioned above, has offered the kind of support every writer dreams of, as well as lending me her apartment in New York for a night. And buying me cheesecake. And wine. Thank you. And also to Saraciea Fennell, Bess Braswell and everyone else who has supported me, in a non-wine way.
Thanks to my lovely writing-friends-who-are-now-just-friends, especially Robin Stevens, crit partner extraordinaire. Massive thanks to my bros Sara Barnard, Holly Bourne, Alexia Casale, CJ Daugherty, Catherine Doyle and Katie Webber, for a lot of fun and support and laughter over the past year.
Thanks in particular to the following people who have done at least one or more amazing things for me this year: the Lyons Family, and the Allports too, Sophie Reynolds, Denise Strauss, Emma Gerrard, Lizzy Evans, Mikey Beddard, Bevin Robinson, Stine Stueland, Neil Bird, Franziska Schmidt, Katja Rammer, Julie Blewett-Grant, Romana Bicíková, Jim Dean, Lucy Powrie, Kate Ormand, Leigh Bardugo, Nina Douglas, Sofia Saghir, Chelley Toy, Laura Hughes, Auntie Penny, Uncle Eddie and all, Steven, Kelly and co., Auntie Cath and Uncle Paul. You are all magnificent.
The very biggest thanks of all go to Emilie Lyons: the DCI Eugene Morton to my Sheriff Dan Anderssen. Bem bem bem… Really glad we didn’t get arrested in Portugal; let’s definitely not get arrested again. I’m also so terribly excited for you to see the All-New Shabby-Chic Melseum.
Finally, Javert.
I did not forget you. I did not forget your name.
Melinda Salisbury lives by the sea, somewhere in the south of England. As a child she genuinely thought Roald Dahl’s Matilda was her biography, in part helped by her grandfather often mistakenly calling her Matilda, and the local library having a pretty cavalier attitude to the books she borrowed. Sadly she never manifested telekinetic powers. She likes to travel, and have adventures. She also likes medieval castles, non-medieval aquariums, Richard III, and all things Scandinavian.
She can be found on Twitter at @AHintofMystery, though be warned, she tweets often.