“They probably actually read their contracts,” Nash snapped.

“Or else they went through Dekker again. I’m guessing he doesn’t care if they renege, so long as they provide a replacement soul.” Tod rocked back and forth on the uneven legs of his folding chair.

“Lovely,” I spat, closing my eyes briefly in disgust. “Any idea how to ID the hellion on our own?”

“No.” The reaper sighed in frustration and grabbed a handful of popcorn. “I’ve never actually met a hellion, and so far as I know, there’s no demon directory to refer to. Not that we have a name to look up.”

“But hellions have specialties, right?” Nash asked. “Like, there’s a demon of pain, and a demon of lust…”

“…and a demon of joy, and a demon of hope, and even a demon of love,” Tod finished, gesturing with a corn chip. “There’s a hellion for every emotion and weakness known to man. More than one. There are hundreds of hellions in the Netherworld. Maybe thousands. Knowing what Addy’s demon specializes in won’t be much help without something more specific.”

“But it’s a starting place, right?” I twisted my can on the table. “It’s more than we knew yesterday.”

Tod nodded slowly. “For what little good it does us.”

“Wait…” My thoughts had stalled on something he’d said, like a thorn caught on a loose thread. “How can there be a hellion of love? Or of hope? I thought hellions fed on pain and suffering. And chaos. How can they possibly feed on emotions that make people happy?”

Nash smiled at me, but it was a sweet, pitying smile, like he was humoring me. As if I were too naive for words. But it was Tod who answered, as usual more than willing to enlighten me on the darker side of life.

“A hellion can wring pain and chaos from any emotion, Kaylee. If you want love, he gives you unrequited love. Pangs of it so torturous you go insane and die. If you ask for hope, he makes it vain hope, hope so fruitless that after grasping at it, clutching it, you eventually go insane and die. And if you beg for faith, you get blind faith. Faith you cling to, and build upon, until the day you discover that it’s unfounded, and you—”

“I get it,” I interrupted, a chip halfway to my mouth. “You go insane and die. Hellions are the sum of all things cruel and evil. Thanks for clarifying.”

Nash chuckled, and I couldn’t hold back a grin.

“You two are cracked,” Tod snapped.

My smile widened. “Says the undead man in love with the soulless pop star.”

Tod scowled, and I thought I saw his cheeks flush. Which struck me as kind of weird for a man who’d died two years ago. “I’m not in love with her.”

“So you pulled us into apotentially deadly scheme to save the soul of some girl you don’t even care about?”

His scowl deepened, and Tod scooted his folding chair across the faded linoleum. “Fine. You don’t want to help? I’ll do it myself.” He stood. “So what if I get killed in the process? Permanently, this time.”

I rolled my eyes. “Sit down, reaper, we’re going to help.” I just couldn’t resist getting back at him for constantly invading our privacy. “But we’re suffering from a conspicuous lack of ideas, here. We need someone who knows more about hellions. Or at least about the Netherworld in general.”

“Hello? Reaper here.” Exasperated, Tod laid one hand flat on the tabletop. “I know about the Netherworld.”

“Not enough, apparently.” Nash tossed another piece of popcorn into his mouth, ignoring Tod’s annoyed under-his-breath muttering. “We need to talk to someone who’s been around longer.” He eyed me solemnly. “Kaylee, we need to talk to your dad.”

“No.” I shook my head firmly. “No way. If I even mention the word hellion he’ll lock me in my room and swallow the key.”

“He’s the oldest non-human I know, and you don’t have to tell him what we’re doing.” Nash shrugged, as if my decision should have been a no-brainer. “Just tell him you’re curious. Or come up with something that won’t make him worry. Besides, he promised not to keep any more secrets from you.”

“Yeah, but he never promised to give me the inside scoop on demons.” I looked him straight in the eye to convey my final word on the subject. “If I ask my dad about hellions, this whole thing is over.” Then I smiled as an alternate solution came to mind. “Why don’t you ask your mom?”

Nash frowned, and Tod’s expression echoed the sentiment. “Because not only would she freak out, she’d call your dad so they could freak out in stereo.”

“So we’re back where we started.” My shoulders slumped, and I dipped a chip into the bowl of salsa. “We need someone old enough to have lots of experience in the Netherworld, but who won’t care what we’re up to.”

Tod sat up straight in his chair, as if the lightbulb over his head had just blinked to life. “Libby. We need to talk to Libby.”

9

“HOW MUCH TROUBLE are you going to be in if we get caught?” Nash asked, concern lining the edges of his perfect, practically edible mouth. A tall, skinny guy in a letter jacket rushed past us in the hallway, carrying a huge black tuba case. He narrowly missed smashing my shoulder with it, and when Nash tugged me out of the way, the tubaist ran into the lockers instead with a horrible metal-crunching crash.