Free Air: Merlin's Chalice (The Children of Avalon Book 1) by Meredith Bond Page B

speak. “What? What do you mean, you don’t want to? You can’t just go around putting locks in people’s minds! That’s not right.”
    “I know, but sometimes it’s necessary to do that. It ensures that others don’t give away your secrets. I don’t do it often, I assure you.”
    “But you should never do it. It’s wrong.”
    “It’s necessary.”
    “No. It’s never necessary to impose your will on a person in this way.” I was beginning to panic. The magic Dylan had put into my mind was snaking itself down, slowly winding its way around my throat, choking me.
    Closing my eyes, I forced myself to calm down. Taking a few deep breaths, I slowed my rapidly beating heart. And then I attacked my problem—this “suggestion” that Dylan had put into my mind. It was like a lock, but like a lock it could be pried open. I did just that, prying the suggestion out of my mind. The lock burst, and in the same shot of energy I projected into Dylan’s mind, “ You will never do that to me again!”
    Dylan’s mouth dropped open, but I didn’t wait to hear what he had to say. I spun around and returned to Sir Dagonet, who sat facing the river a short distance away.
    Still furious, I took my bag from where it was strapped to his horse and threw it onto the ground next to where he was sitting.
    Sir Dagonet jumped. “Hobnobbit! I lost it.”
    “Lost what?” I asked, dropping down onto the ground next to my bag.
    “The fish. I had nearly lured it onto my hook and now it’s gone.”
    “Oh.” I drew my knees to my chest and wrapped my arms around my legs.
    Sir Dagonet narrowed his eyes at me. “I say, something’s wrong. You’re strung tighter than a string on a long bow. What is it that’s got you ready to snap?”
    I tried not to smile at Sir Dagonet’s colorful analogy. I glanced behind me to see if Dylan was there. He wasn’t, so I told the knight all that had just passed. I noted with satisfaction that his eyebrows went up a notch when I told him about the “suggestion” Dylan had put into my mind. They went up another notch when I told him that I had broken it.
    What I didn’t see was Dylan coming up behind me while I talked. I only realized that he was there when Sir Dagonet looked up and said, “Why didn’t you want Scai to tell anyone that you’d helped that woman?”
    I twisted around and looked up into Dylan’s scowling face.
    “Because knights aren’t supposed to make people feel better. I’m sure you know that,” he replied, biting out his words in his anger.
    Sir Dagonet looked perplexed for a moment. “And who told you that?”
    Dylan’s eyes widened in surprise. “Why, my foster–brother… when he beat me for comforting a woman from our local village.”
    Sir Dagonet just shook his head and gave Dylan a sad smile. “Well, he was wrong, don’t you know? It’s a knight’s duty to save the damsels in distress, whether it be physically or emotionally. Did your foster– father never tell you that?”
    “No,” Dylan said. “He left most of my training to his eldest son.”
    “You weren’t raised by your own parents?” I couldn’t help but ask. Was he, too, abandoned by his parents? Was that the connection I felt with him?
    Dylan and Sir Dagonet turned to look at me, and then Dylan answered, “No. From the time I was seven I lived with a foster family whose duty it was to train me to be a knight.”
    Oh. A slight feeling of disappointment wafted through me. I brushed it out immediately, knowing it was wrong.
    Sir Dagonet nodded in agreement with Dylan. “That’s right. Boys from noble families are sent to another nobleman’s home to be trained, don’t you know. Weaponry, horsemanship, how to care for armor, all that a knight needs to know, wot? In return, the boy works as a page for his foster family—only fair. At thirteen, he becomes a squire to a knight in the household and completes his training until eighteen or so when he is knighted himself.”
    Dylan nodded and