“That would depend,” said Louis, ignoring the intended slight, “on what sort of spirit was being summoned. If it is a Gentle Spirit, merely … reluctant, it might happen that no connection is made. If, however, it is a Dark Spirit, and vehemently resists the control of the necromancer, well, it might … cause difficulties.”

My father raised his eyebrows eloquently.

“I mean to say,” Louis pressed on, “the spirit might exert its own will upon the necromancer, or the gathering. He might cause harm.” Even Louis could hear the inadequacy of his response. He fell silent.

Father walked into the room, pacing slowly as he spoke.

“A Dark Spirit incompetently summoned can wreak havoc. He can inflict actual pain and injury upon not only the inadequate necromancer, but also anyone present. More than this, he may refuse to return to the Land of Night and set out on a haunting. This coven can only exist so long as its code of secrecy is observed.” He stopped close to Louis and looked at him sternly. “How long do you imagine that could continue if recklessness allowed spirits to flit hither and yon, terrifying people and muttering about being risen from the dead by members of the aristocracy?”

Louis opened his mouth to speak, but my father raised his hand to silence him.

“What is more,” he went on, “you have not touched upon the other very real danger attendant on inexpertly performed summonings.” He turned to me. “Well, Lilith, can you enlighten us?”

“Yes, Papa. The gravest outcome would be that a being from the Darkness would take advantage of the rupture brought about by the summoning…”

“The rupture in…?”

“… in the Rubicon. That is, in the divide between the Land of Night, where the deceased dwell, and the Land of Day, where the living tread the earth. The Darkness, as we know, contains those souls who are not fit to inhabit either of the other realms.”

“Such as?”

“Such as demons, warlocks, poltergeists, and many other creatures, most not human.”

“So, Louis.” My father sat on one of the tapestry-padded benches that ran along the wall of the antechamber. His momentary anger had passed, and he looked at Louis with a face that was stern but kind. “Would we want those sorts of beings abroad in the Land of Day, do you suppose?”

“No, sir. No, we would not.”