Dragon Down (3 page)

“Jason, what do you believe our chances are of finding Traygen alive? I love life too much to ask Lauren. She won
’t even consider that he could already be dead.”

“Not good, but I also respect Lauren
’s intuition. If she says she feels a connection, I believe her.”

I started to respond to Jason, but a popping sound announced Zane
’s arrival. He was an average sized man, with dark hair and a neatly trimmed beard. He moved forward to greet Jason with an agile, confident air. He reminded me of a panther, alert and ready to strike.

“Jason,
how are you?”

“Zane, I
’m well thank you. How are you?”

“Surviving. Why did you send for me?”

“I need your help on an assignment to the Paradise Islands.”

The color drained from Zane
’s face and he clenched and unclenched his fists. He waited several minutes before responding. “You know that I cannot refuse an assignment. Yet, you know the Paradise Islands are the last place on earth that I’d willingly travel to.”

“You also know I wouldn
’t ask if it wasn’t of the up most importance. One of the council’s most trusted allies is missing and the last ones to have him were vampires. We don’t know which court, but we are ruling out the White Court. He is a changeling and they couldn’t handle him.”

“The Whites are into seduction not abduction. What changeling are you referring to?”

“His name is Traygen and he is a dragon when he isn’t in his human form. He is the Prince of Carndonagh. You may have heard of him. He works with Lauren Simon. She is the person you will escort to the islands.”

“Hey, what about me? I
’m not chopped liver you know. I’m the most well-known of the trio. I’m d’Artagnan to their Athos and Porthos. He can be Aramis if I accept him.”

“
Tokem that is enough. Zane, this is Tokem. He is the third member of your party.”

“I hope he can fight as well as he reads and
that he can provide some useful service.”

Tokem flew at Zane. “I
’ll show you a thing or two.”

Jason stepped between the two. “
Tokem that is enough. Zane, I assure you Tokem is a valued member of the council’s team. Now if you have no more questions, I’ll have Tokem get Lauren.”

“You may as well. I have too many questions to ask now. I
’ll iron out things with Lauren.”

Tokem darted from the room and returned moments later with Lauren.

“Lauren, this is Zane. Zane, this is Lauren. I’ve given Zane a brief outline of what we need help with. Now I’ll leave you three to work things out. Lauren, summon me if you need anything. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got other matters to attend to.”

I
looked from Tokem to Zane and back. Tokem glared at Zane who looked dismissively at Tokem. “If you two can bury your animosity, we have work to do. Zane, I don’t know what Jason told you. However, we have reason to believe that vampires have abducted Traygen. We do not know which court, but it is unlikely the Whites have him. He’s too powerful for them. I’ve uncovered some past disputes between Traygen’s kingdom and the Jade Court.”

“
Do tell?”

“As far as I can tell it was several hundred years ago or more. The Jade Court aligned with the Sidhe fae after Traygen
’s father drove the fairies into the underworld. The Jade Court agreed to side with the Sidhe to protect their trade routes. That is all I can tell from their histories.”

“The Jade Court is still involved in smuggling and illegal trafficking of drugs, prostitution, and stolen art. But, I find it hard to believe they would gain anything by kidnapping Traygen.”

“Great, the mafia of vampires. I’m not sure we can rule them out. Traygen and I helped the council recover the Sphere of Destiny. There were vampires involved in trying to steal the sphere. It would give them a motive if they had any interest in the sphere. Still, I’m inclined to agree with you. It is more likely something the Red or Black vampire courts would try.”

“Have you had any run-ins with either court?”

Tokem landed lightly on my shoulder. “Too many to mention,” he replied.

“A better question Zane is have you tracked either court to their homes?”

Zane’s face turned scarlet, and he turned his back and walked away. He paced back and forth for several minutes before answering. “More than I ever wanted. As you know, they’re responsible for the death of my family.”

“Zane, I
’m sorry. If this is too hard…?”

“Lauren, I have a debt of my own to settle. I have tracked both courts across contents. If they have Traygen then we need to plan carefully and get moving. They won
’t let him live long. You can start by bringing me up to speed. Tell me exactly what happened.”

“Pull up a chair and I
’ll fill you in.”

It took me several hours to tell Zane everything that had
occurred since Traygen’s disappearance. When I finished and Zane asked everything he could think of and then some. We turned in for the night.

Chapter Three

I had a hard time falling asleep. My mind raced and I just couldn
’t settle down. I hadn’t worked with anyone but Traygen since I started as an apprentice wizard. Where had the time gone?
Traygen where are you my love
? I must have fallen asleep at some point because a knock on my door woke me. It took me a moment to remember where I was. Grumbling, I got up to answer my door.

“Lauren, it is Trevor. May I have a word with you?”

“Trevor, just give me a minute, and I’ll be right out.” I threw on some clothes and ran my fingers through my hair. I hated slapping myself together, but there wasn’t any time to lose.

“Are you hungry? I thought we could talk before you meet with Zane.”

“Are you kidding, since when did I ever pass up a meal? Lead the way and how is your father? Is he regaining his strength?”

“It is looking like my father will make a full recovery, at least physically. He hasn
’t gotten over Traygen’s disappearance and my brother’s betrayal.”

“I
’m glad to hear your father is on the mend. You can assure him I’ll bring Traygen home, alive and healthy.”

“If I
’m not prying, what are your plans? What do you know about Zane?”

“We are meeting later this morning to begin planning. Zane has firsthand experience with the Red and Black Courts. Jason assures me he is one of the best vampire hunters
they have. Other than that, I don’t know a thing about him.”

It was good to speak with Trevor. He reminded me so much of Traygen. I filled him in on what little I knew about the vampire courts. Before I could finish
, Tokem buzzed in and interrupted our chat.

“Good morning everyone. What
’s for breakfast? I’m hungry enough to eat a Happy Meal.”

“Then you
’re out of luck. There is no Mickey D’s here. You’ll have to settle for pancakes. What have you been doing all morning or need, I ask?”

“If you must know Miss B
usybody, I was watching reruns of The Price Is Right.”

I laughed despite myself. “I should have known. How did you pull that off? There isn
’t any electricity here.”

“I brought my own portable battery pack. I can watch several episodes on one battery. Now if you
’ll excuse me, I’m going to eat my breakfast.”

“Has anyone seen Zane this morning?”

“He ate early this morning and asked me to have you join him in the library when you were finished eating.”

“You two go ahead. I
’ll be in as soon as I’ve finished my breakfast.”

Trevor and I left Tokem and headed for the library. When we got there we found Zane up to his eyeballs in maps.

Trevor walked over to Zane. “Did you find everything you were looking for?”

Zane glanced up from his map. “Lauren, Trevor. Yes I found the maps I needed. But, I have a few questions.”

“Certainly, what can I help you with?”

“We will need a small sailboat, preferably one that will hold three or four people and supplies. It must be sea worthy and fast. Do you have such a vessel? We need to travel light and fast. A crew is out of the question.”

“Why can’t we fly in?” I asked.

“Lauren, the vampires would detect the energy
. Let’s not forget, they can fly. No, we need to approach them from the sea. It is the one place, they can’t follow us.”

“You have a point, but next time can we discuss things first?”

Zane shrugged in reply. “Trevor, do you have such a vessel?”

I stuffed my fists into my pockets to keep from slugging Zane. In retrospect
, I probably should have shoved them into my mouth. If he was trying to annoy me, he was doing an excellent job.

“Zane, I believe we took such a vessel from the Vikings. I
’ll go check with General Wingo and get back to you. If you’ll excuse me, I’ll see to it straight away. Lauren.”

The second the door closed behind Trevor, I turned to face Zane. “Zane, you need to understand one thing. You are assisting me and we make our decisions together. Got it?”

Zane never took his eyes from the map, but his hands betrayed his anger. His knuckles were white and the area around his temples pulsed. The map shook ever so slightly. “I heard you. If you have finished can we get back to the task? The longer the vampires have Traygen the less likely we are to find him alive.”

I nearly jumped across the table to choke him. Of all the arrogant, obnoxious fools, I
’d ever meet. He might be the worst.
Jason, what in the world were you thinking
?
Tokem and I’d be better-off without him.
Instead of chocking him, I waited, controlling my breathing, silent. Realizing I hadn’t answered, he raised his head and looked at me. “That’s a start. Now will you answer my question? I want to make myself clear. If you can’t work with us, then we’ll go without you. Understood?”

“Lauren, I don
’t like this any better than you do. Nevertheless, we both know Jason will not allow you to go alone. I’ll do my best to work jointly with you on this rescue. Good enough?”

I looked closely at Zane before I answered. He was right about Jason and he seemed to be sincere. I
’d keep an eye on him and hold him to his word. Then I asked, “What do you think is our best approach?”

“I found the area where I believe the Paradise Islands are found. I
’ll show you.”

He turned the map he had been studying around to face me. It looked like he was pointing at an area off the coast around the Hebrides.

“Is this around the Outer Hebrides?” I asked.

“In our century, yes. In this time and place the area hasn
’t been thoroughly mapped. I suggest we get Trevor and his dragons to fly us to the coast. Then we can gather our supplies and plan our trip. What do you think?”

“Are you
trying to tell me that the islands might not be in the same place in this time period? How is that possible?”

“For the same reason that Atlantis isn
’t still above water, they may have sunk. Remember, these islands are enchanted by strong vampire courts. They’ll be shrouded in the Mists. The vampires will in all likelihood find us, not the other way around.”

I let out a low whistle.

“Exactly, all we can do is prepare, as thoroughly as possible, to defeat theses vampires on their own turf.”

I
’m sure my jaw dropped. Before I could embarrass myself further, Tokem zipped past me.

“It isn
’t nice starting without me. I’m little, but I still have feelings you know. Did I just hear you say that we would have to fight the Black Court and the Red Court on their turf?”

I nodded numbly. All I could think about
was how close I had come to being killed by Vicor. He was a Daywalker from the Red Court.

“Lauren, you better get your affairs in order. If these vamps are related to Vicor
, you can kiss your ass goodbye. Those islands will look like…”

“I hate to interrupt
but, we do have work to do. As I was…”

Before I could grab him Tokem darted at Zane
’s face. Zane was studying the map and didn’t see Tokem coming. He hit Zane on the side of his face and climbed up out of reach.

“Tokem, what in the world are you doing?”

“Teaching him some manners.”

Zane gave Tokem a murderous glare and started in his direction.

“Enough, both of you. This isn’t going to help us rescue Traygen. Tokem, you behave or I’ll take away your TIVO. Do you understand?”

Tokem didn
’t speak, but he nodded.

“Zane, if you
’ll please continue.”

“The islands will be cloaked by The Mists
. This makes detecting them without being sensed, next to impossible. Lauren, is your magic strong enough to penetrate The Mists?”

“I can see through The Mists
. Unfortunately, I can’t mask my presence. I’d need to get lucky. Employing my sight during the day, when there is less chance anyone would be looking. Do you know much about the two courts? How they operate?”

“Yes, I
’ve studied a fair amount about the Red Court and the Black Court. Your sight will help. However, the ocean will be our safest refuge. Vampires hate water and they will not willingly venture out into it. This is why I suggest we begin our search from the water.”

Before I could say anything further
, Trevor returned followed closely by General Wingo.

“Lauren.
Zane. I’ve discussed your request with General Wingo. I’ll let him explain.”

“Thank you Prince Trevor. The prince tells me that you need a small sailboat, perhaps a
cutter. We took possession of a Viking cutter that might be just what you are looking for. It is a twenty-four foot, single mast boat that can carry four people. I can fly you out to it, if you like.”

I looked to Zane for a response to the general
’s question.

“General Wingo, that sounds like just what we need. Is the vessel in good order?”

“It is sir, and if you’d like I can send a crew to ready it for sailing.”

“Thank you general. We will need food and water for several weeks. I have no idea how long it will take to find the vampires.”

“I’ll see to it straight away. Will you need men to run the boat?”

“No, I can sail it and I don
’t want to risk any more lives than necessary.”

“Is there anything I can do to be of assistance?”

“Prince Trevor, what do you know about the waters around the Hebrides? Have you or your men sailed them?”

“Zane, I don
’t know much about the waters in that area. We usually fly. It is faster for us. If you’d like, I’ll check with my father and see what he knows. Nations have traded with us for years. My father will know something.”

“Thank you, Trevor. Please give your father my best
,” he said.

Trevor left and I turned to Zane for some direction. “What would you like me to do?”

“Lauren, you can read everything you can find on the two vampire courts. I noticed this library has a fair amount about them. We will need to know anything we can that might help us. I know more about the Red Court. I’ve had run-ins with Erol and his lackey Mavre. Fortunately, I haven’t had to deal much with the Black Court.”

“I
’ll see what I can find. If you don’t mind my asking, how do you know Erol? He represented the Lazarian Court when I battled Vicor.” I had to strain to hear his reply.

“Erol is the Prince of the Red Court. He is the most powe
rful of the Red Court vampires.  He ordered my family’s deaths and he ordered them killed by his top assassin Mavre.”

“Zane, I
’m sorry.”

When he didn
’t respond I asked, “Where do you suggest I begin?”

He answered by dropping several large tomes on the table in front of me. Resigned to my fate
, I opened the nearest book and began reading. I’d have preferred the condensed version. Unfortunately, this wasn’t going to be my lucky day. I mean I couldn’t Goggle the answer. I’d have to sift through the kingdom’s history. I read until my eyes began to glaze over and then some. Rubbing my eyes, jiggling my legs and shrugging my shoulders, I tried hard to keep myself awake. Then I found something that got my full attention. The section was titled Vampires Raid Coastal Mountains. It wasn’t going to win a Pulitzer. Still it gave me a fair idea what we were up against. From what I could gather, the Black Court was comprised of the garden-variety, bat changing, cape sporting, and Dracula type vampire.

The Black Court vampires looked human
. In all aspects except, they didn’t have a heart. It sounded like one or two men I’d dated. They had super human strength, tremendous jumping ability, stealthy, silent movement and they fed off blood. They clearly were not picky. They consumed animal, reptile or humans. It didn’t seem to matter. They usually drained their victims and left them for dead. Those were the lucky ones. Black Court vampires turned a select few to do their bidding.

I kept reading until Tokem buzzed my head. “It is about time you joined us. What have you been doing?”

“The usual. You know eating, sleeping and watching The Price Is Right. No, I’ve been ease-dropping on the captives. You never can tell when a useful fact will slip from someone’s lips.”

He looked so proud of himself
. I knew he had overheard something of importance. I waited a few minutes before asking. “What have you found out?”

“Well since you asked nicely
, I’ll tell you. It seems there is a price on your head. The vampires are willing to pay anyone that kills you a million dollars.”

“That is a flattering amount. To what do I owe this honor? The vamps have come after me before. What
makes this time different? And who is after me?”