Is it possible to raise lockpicking skill upwards from the default skill cap of 5? I choosed Hermosa and can't find the option for training lockpicking from the list ...
The bandit vendor guarding the hatch at Lanilor Lane will give you +1 skill point if mindread, and the female trainer (name escapes me) at the Ministery will push it to L-7 which is max.
I'd like to close by quoting Bellegar's famous last rhyme:
"Cursed be the mother that bred thee! The wench must have been a hell-spawned banshee!"