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“So why are you in such a foul mood?” Mags asked, bravely but unwisely in my opinion.

She filled her teapot with steaming water and banged that on the table as well. “I’m having trouble with a feral shifter. Keeps getting to my traps before I can. Can’t make a living if that cockwaffle keeps stealing my demons.”

Cockwaffle? “You sell them?” I blurted before I could stop myself. Demons turned to ash when they were killed. Did that mean she sold them alive?

Agatheena took her chair. “Yep. I bind them so they don’t lash out, then harvest their organs and bones, mainly.”

Jesus, that was grim.

“So what do you want?” she said, pouring the tea.

“Well, we were hoping—”

“Not you,” she said, cutting Mags off and pointing a bony finger at me. “This one needs the help, she can do the asking.”

Mags stared at her for several seconds. “You really are pissed off, huh?”

She scowled, and Mags gave me a nudge.

I jumped again and ground my teeth. I needed to stop doing that. “Right, well, this is the thing…” Agatheena stared right at me, as if she could see through skin and bone, right to my soul. Mags gave me another nudge, and I barely stopped myself from jumping again and forced myself to talk. “Um, so my sister is Death’s consort.”

“I know.”

“You do?”

“I know everything.”

Mags snorted. “I told her.”

Agatheena turned her scowl on Mags, and I was glad of the reprieve and quickly rushed on. “Okay, so Limbo and Hell are both missing souls. Death wants me to find them, only I have no idea where to look, and I was hoping you might have an idea where to start?”

“You’re right. I do,” she said and took a sip of her tea.

“You do?”

“Yep.”

I waited for her to continue. She did not.

“Oh, you think you should have that information for free, do you?” she said. “Well, that’s not how this works.” Agatheena sat back in her chair. “Get rid of the feral, I’ll give you the information.”

“You want me to kill a feral shifter?” I asked in disbelief.

Her eyes darkened. “Not you. As if you, who probably jumps at her own damn reflection, could kill a feral. No, princess, I meant for your fox to do it. I know him. I’ve seen what he can do. Get it done. I’ll give you what you want.”

I frowned. “My fox?”

She rolled her eyes, shook her head, and turned to Mags. “I can’t deal with you clueless goddamned Thornhearts today. When you come back to see me, come alone.”

Magic snapped around us, and we were lifted out of our seats and, feet hovering above the ground, were thrown with force toward the door. Thankfully, it flung open before I could crash face-first into it.

“When the feral’s dead, come back. I’ll leave what you need on the tree,” Agatheena said.

Then the door slammed behind us, and we were dragged back down the path. Ren and Bram watched, eyes wide, as we were thrust toward them, then dumped outside the wards. I landed on my butt in the dirt. A burst of power followed, letting us know her ward that had allowed Mags and I to pass was back in place.

Ren hooked me under the arms and hoisted me to my feet.

Mags turned to me. “I don’t think she liked you.”