Grave Peril (The Dresden Files #3) - Jim Butcher Page 0,113

that are going to start cropping up as soon as people start missing those kids. But they can stick a bunch of things in the way of it. Crap."

"I know," Michael said. "I tried to find Susan, the girl Justine, and the sword, after. Nothing."

"We almost pulled it off. Sword and captives and all."

"I know."

I shook my head. "How's Charity? The baby?"

He looked down. "The babythey still don't know about him. They can't find out what's wrong. They don't have any idea why he is getting weaker."

"I'm sorry. Is Charity?"

"She's stuck in bed for a while, but she'll be fine. I called her yesterday."

"Called. You didn't go see her?"

"I guarded you," Michael said. "Father Forthill was with my family. And there are others who can watch them, when I'm away."

I winced. "She didn't like that, did she. That you stayed with me."

"She's not speaking to me."

"I'm sorry."

He nodded. "So am I."

"Help me up. I'm thirsty."

He did, and I only swayed a little as I stood. I tottered out into the living area of my apartment. "What about Lydia?" I asked.

Michael remained silent, and my eyes answered my own question a few seconds later. Lydia lay on the couch in my living room, under a ton and a half of blankets, curled up, her eyes closed and her mouth a little open.

"I recognize her," Michael said.

I frowned. "From where?"

"Kravos's lair. She was one of the kids they hauled away, early on."

I whistled. "She must have known him. Known what he was going to do, somehow."

"Try not to wake her up," Michael said, his voice soft. "She wouldn't sleep. I think they'd drugged her. She was panicky, gabbling. I just got her quieted down half an hour ago."

I frowned a little and went into the tiny kitchen. Michael followed. I got a Coke out of the icebox, thought better of it with my stomach the way it was, and fetched a glass of water instead. I drank unsteadily. "I've got hell to pay now, Michael."

He frowned at me. "How do you mean?"

"What you do comes back to you, Michael. You know that much. Roll a stone and it rolls back upon you. Sow the wind and reap the whirlwind."

Michael lifted his eyebrows. "I didn't realize you'd read much of the Bible."

"Proverbs always made a lot of sense to me," I said. "But with magic, things like that come a lot sharper and cleaner than with other things. I killed people. I burned them. It's going to come back to haunt me."

Michael frowned, and looked out at Lydia. "The Law of Three, eh?"

I shrugged.

"I thought you told me once that you didn't believe in that."

I drank more water. "I didn't. I don't. It's too much like justice. To believe that what you do with magic comes back to you threefold."

"You've changed your mind?"

"I don't know. All I know is that there's going to be justice, Michael. For those kids, for Susan, for what's happened to Charity and your son. If no one else is going to arrange it, I'll damn well do it myself." I grimaced. "I just hope that if I'm wrong, I can dodge karmic paybacks long enough to finish this."

"Harry, the ball was the whole point. It was Bianca's chance to put you down while staying within the terms of the Accords. She laid her trap and missed. Do you think she's going to keep pushing it?"

I gave him a look. "Of course. And so do you. Or you wouldn't have played watchdog here for the past day."

"Good point."

I raked my fingers through my hair, and reached for the Coke, my stomach be damned. "We just have to decide what our next move is going to be."

Michael shook his head. "I don't know. I need to be with Charity. And my son. If he's if he's sick. He needs me near him."

I opened my mouth to object, but I couldn't. Michael had already risked his neck for me more than once. He'd given me a lot of good advice that I hadn't listened to. Especially about Susan. If I'd only paid more attention, told her what I felt, maybe

I cut off that line of thought before the hysterical sob that rose in my throat became more than a blur of tears in my eyes. "All right," I said. "I thank you. For your help."

He nodded, and looked down, as though ashamed. "Harry. I'm sorry. I've done all that I could. But I'm not as young as I used to be.