Unbinding by Eileen Wilks

theory,” Lily said firmly. “Please.”
    Amusement flickered over Nathan’s face. “A simile, then. The magic in a spell has been put in order, like a ball of yarn. In chaos energy, the yarn isn’t neatly ordered. It’s tangled all up with itself and with snarls of thread, with all of that wrapped around a tiny kernel of true chaos. The thread,” he added helpfully, “being
arguai
, or spirit.”
    “I can picture that.”
    “Good. I should add that spirit is geographically sticky. It can and does move, but it tends to move in relation to itself.”
    “Is that supposed to explain anything? Because I can tell you right now it doesn’t. But never mind—I’ll take your word for it. The chaos stuff can’t get to France, and without it, Dyffaya can’t, either. But that doesn’t matter, because we’ll be on the next flight back.”
    “You and Rule both, I suppose?”
    “Of course.”
    “Hmm.” Nathan considered a moment. “That’s your decision, of course, but you should keep in mind that Dyffaya was born an elf. Elves don’t consider humans as worthy targets for truly elegant revenge. You don’t live long enough. He’ll likely settle for something more pedestrian, but just killing you wouldn’t please him. He’ll be after making you hurt, which means his first target is likely to be your Rule . . . just as he’s already taken a swipe at my Kai.” Nathan looked at Kai as he said that. Something dark and burning hid at the back of his eyes, and red splashed through his colors like spilled blood.
    Lily said, “My family.”
    “They’re here?”
    “In the city, not at Clanhome.”
    “He’s more likely to target them if you’re nearby so he can see you suffer.”
    Three heartbeats of silence. “Can he watch us from wherever he is, then?”
    “He’s a god, so he has some degree of clairvoyance. It’s likely limited, and we don’t know how much or by what factors—but location will be one of them.”
    “You think my family is safer if I hide out over here.”
    “No guarantees, and it’s not a matter of hiding. But that’s my best guess.”
    “Toby,” Rule said, his voice taut. “He’s in North Carolina. How far can Dyffaya reach?”
    Toby was Rule’s son, a hard-charging charmer maybe ten years old. When Rule and Lily went on their honeymoon, he’d stayed with Isen, but the day before yesterday he’d left to visit his grandmother on the other side of his family.
    “I don’t know,” Nathan told Rule. “I believe it would be somewhere between extremely hard and impossible for the god to reach that far, especially with the Mississippi in between. But I can’t guarantee that he won’t.”
    “Can you hold a moment?” The call went mute again, but only briefly. Lily Yu came back on. “Tell Isen we’ll be flying Toby to France. His grandmother, too, if she’ll come.”
    “He’ll be safest there with you.”
    “He’ll be in France. Whether I am or not is still undetermined. You need a Unit agent. Regular FBI can’t handle this. I haven’t talked to Ruben yet, but—”
    “No worries there.” Nathan’s voice was soothing, but amusement shot hot pink through his thoughts. “He’ll be calling you any time now to let you know he’s found a Unit agent. The fellow he’s given the job to is an outsider who will have to use borrowed authority, but I think he can do the job.”
    Kai’s eyebrows shot up. She didn’t ask. She knew.
    So did Lily Yu. “He’s made
you
a Unit agent?”
    “More or less. Seems he had one of his feelings. Ah,” he added, turning toward the front of the house. Kai hadn’t heard anything, but he probably had. “I think some of my borrowed authority has arrived.”
    *   *   *
    N ATHAN’S borrowed authority scowled at him across the big dining room table. “Let’s get one thing clear. You may be able to tell me what to do, but you are not in charge of my people.”
    Nathan nodded seriously. “I understand the distinction.”
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