“I’d rather not,” I said quietly.

“Nor would I,” Luccio said. “That could be a true nightmare. All that knowledge, without conscience to direct it. The necromancer Kemmler had such a spirit in his service, a sort of miniature version of the Archive. Nowhere near as powerful, but it had been studying and learning beside wizards for generations, and the things it was capable of were appalling.” She shook her head.

I took a sip of tea, because otherwise the gulp would have been suspicious. She was talking about Bob. And she was right about what Bob was capable of doing. When I’d unlocked the personality he’d taken on under some of his former owners, he’d nearly killed me.

“The Wardens destroyed it, of course,” she said.

No, they hadn’t. Justin DuMorne, former Warden, hadn’t destroyed the skull. He’d smuggled it from Kemmler’s lab and kept it in his own—until I’d burned him to death, and taken it from him in turn.

“It was just too much power under too little restraint. And it’s entirely possible that the Archive could become a similar threat on a far larger scale. I know you care about the child, Harry. But you had to be warned. You might not be doing her any favors by acting like her friend.”

“Who’s acting?” I said. “Where is she?”

“We’ve been keeping her asleep,” Luccio said, “until you or Kincaid got here.”

“I get it,” I said. “You don’t think I should get close to her. Unless you’re worried about what’s going to happen when you wake her up and she’s really scared and confused.”

Luccio’s cheeks flushed and she looked away. “I don’t have all the answers, Dresden. I just have concerns.”

I sighed.

“Whatever,” I said. “Let me see her.”

Luccio led me into Murph’s guest bedroom. Ivy looked very tiny in the double bed. I sat down beside her, and Luccio leaned over to gently rest her hand on Ivy’s head. She murmured something and drew her hand away.

Ivy let out a small whimper and then blinked her eyes open, suddenly hyperventilating. She looked around wildly, her eyes wide, and let out a small cry.

“Easy, easy,” I said gently. “Ivy, it’s all right. You’re safe.”

She sobbed and flung herself tight against me.

I hugged her. I just rocked her gently and hugged her while she cried and cried.

Luccio watched me, her eyes compassionate and sad.

After a long while Ivy whispered, “I got your letter. Thank you.”

I squeezed a little.

“They did things to me,” she said.

“I know,” I said quietly. “Been there. But I was all right after a while. You’re going to be all right. It’s over.”

She hugged me some more, and cried herself back to sleep.

I looked up at Luccio and said, “You still want me to push her away? You want her baseline to be what she shared with those animals?”

Luccio frowned. “The Senior Council—”

“Couldn’t find its heart if it had a copy of Grey’s Anatomy, X-ray vision, and a stethoscope,” I said. “No. They can lay down the law about magic. But they aren’t telling me who I’m allowed to befriend.”