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’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