Jasper saw the High Councilors fuming. He could tell the Head Councilor wanted to stop Dr. Pasko’s speech, but wasn’t sure how the crowd would react. The entire audience was raptly listening. When Jasper glanced back, he saw that a few were even nodding their heads. Dr. Pasko turned then, and looked directly at Jasper. Jasper was startled to see tears in the old man’s eyes.
“Jasper, I know words will never be enough, but I have to at least try. I’m sorry for the way I treated you. I was blinded by evil, and it was wrong. I’m asking for your forgiveness, in front of all of Lost Garden. I’m standing here in front of the entire Lost Garden Clan to say that you aren’t a traitor. You didn’t commit treason. And if the High Council can’t see that, then they don’t deserve to have a man like you in our town, anyway.”
“Lies!” the Head Councilor shouted, no longer able to contain himself. “Dr. Pasko is speaking lies! Enough of this. I’ve heard all I need to hear. Jasper is a traitor and I sentence him to the maximum punishment of death. Guards, seize him!”
“No!” Dr. Pasko shouted, moving to stand between Jasper and the Head Councilor. “You are the one who speaks lies. This city has suffered nothing but corruption since we drove Jasper away. Enough is enough.”
“Guards!” the Head Councilor screamed again. And then, all hell broke loose. All across the courtroom, rushes of power boomed out as shifters began to switch into animal form. The whir of wizards’ broomsticks sounded off as many of them rose into the air, preparing to fly above the crowd and launch magic attacks where necessary. Jasper himself didn’t waste any time in shifting. He roared, and a rush of power emanated from his body as his human form began to fall away, replaced with his fearsome dragon form.
All around him, people were screaming and fighting. The room was awash in chaos, and Jasper could hardly tell who was fighting whom. Some wizards were launching attacks at him, and a few bear shifters were trying to claw at his legs. But none of the attacks managed to get through his thick dragon skin. Jasper’s main concern right now wasn’t for himself, though. He glanced around the room frantically, searching for Julia. She’d just come out of a coma, and should not be fighting. But if he knew her like he thought he did, he had a feeling that she would attempt to join in the fray.
A flash of red hair high above him and to his right confirmed his fear. He looked over to see Julia whizzing by on a broomstick. He had no idea who she’d gotten it from, but she was making good use of it. She swerved up, down, left, right, and in loops, launching attack after attack from her magic ring as she did. Jasper shook his head in amazement. That girl was something else. You’d never know that less than twelve hours ago she’d been in a coma, on the verge of losing her magical abilities completely.
Jasper couldn’t admire her for long, though. Telling himself that he was just going to have to trust that she could take care of herself, he turned his attention back to the wizard guards rushing toward him. He realized in horror that they had stopped attacking him directly now, and had turned their attention to Dr. Pasko.
“You want your little friend to live? Then you better turn yourself over now!” the wizard guard shouted.
Jasper’s eyes met Dr. Pasko’s, and time seemed to stand still. Here in front of him was a man who had made his life miserable a few years ago. A man who had dragged him to court and ridiculed him. A man who had been the last straw in Jasper’s decision to leave Lost Garden. And yet, here was a man who had stood up for him today in front of everyone. A man who had apologized and admitted that what he’d done before had been wrong. A man who had saved Julia’s life.
It was that last point that finally spurred Jasper to action. He didn’t have time now to stop and think about whether Dr. Pasko’s apology was heartfelt. But it only took a second for him to realize that the gorgeous, fiery redhead who was zooming around on a broomstick high above him, beating back the wizards and shifters who wanted to hurt Jasper, would be dead or have no magical abilities, if not for Dr. Pasko. And that was enough. Jasper could work out all the other details later. For now, he knew that Dr. Pasko had taken good care of his Julia. And that was worth everything to him.
With a roar, Jasper turned toward the wizard and bared his giant dragon teeth. He was giving the man a warning. If the wizard didn’t let Dr. Pasko go, there would be consequences. But this wizard clearly didn’t think that an angry dragon was something to fear. Perhaps the years of peace had made him too soft. Too bold. Whatever the case, the wizard only laughed at Jasper and raised his magic ring toward Dr. Pasko.
Big mistake, Jasper thought. With another roar, Jasper breathed out a carefully aimed stream of acid. The wizard didn’t even have time to scream. With a look of shock on his face, he dropped his grip on Dr. Pasko and dropped to the ground, lifeless. Dr. Pasko wasted no time in running. He made for the exit, doing his best to dodge around the many attackers. Jasper was glad the old man had sense enough to run instead of staying to fight. Dr. Pasko was a wolf shifter, and wolves were usually fierce fighters. But this battle was full of younger, stronger shifters and trigger-happy wizards. Better for Dr. Pasko to take cover.
Dr. Pasko hadn’t gotten very far, though, when another wizard guard attacked him. Jasper grunted in annoyance and went to rescue the old man again, when suddenly a surge of fire stopped him in his tracks. Jasper looked around in surprise, and saw that one of the other dragon shifters had just taken out the wizard guard. The dragon winked at Jasper, and Jasper turned his dragon lips up in a smile. Perhaps, when all this was said and done, Torch Lake might have recruited a few new dragons.
For the next few minutes, the chaos continued. Jasper wasn’t even sure whom to fight. He had no idea who was on his side or not, and he didn’t like killing people unnecessarily. Even though he wasn’t afraid to step up when necessary, he was a peacekeeper at heart. And so he concentrated on defending himself, doing his best not to do any more harm than necessary. Surely, at some point this mess would all die down. Everyone would come to their senses and realize that this brawl was nothing more than an unnecessary bloodbath. Jasper kept an eye on Julia to make sure that she was okay, but she seemed to be having the time of her life. She was performing some sort of freezing spell on people, and several of the wizard guards were now frozen in place all over the courtroom. Dr. Pasko was gone, probably hiding somewhere safe outside the courtroom. The High Councilors were safe as well. They were all huddled behind a squadron of wizard and shifter guards, yelling angry commands but not fighting themselves. Cowards. Jasper knew that if this was Torch Lake, the High Council wouldn’t have just stood by while their citizens were harmed.
And then, as though his thoughts had the power to summon people, the Torch Lake High Council suddenly burst through the door of the courtroom. The shifter councilors were all in animal form, ready to fight, and the wizard councilors all had their magic rings raised high.
What in the world? Jasper thought. Why were they all here? Had they come to fetch him back, to give him their own punishment for the fact that he’d kidnapped Julia from the hospital? Surely they hadn’t come here just to defend him? No High Council cared that much about just one citizen.
Did they?
As people in the room realized that another High Council was in the room, the fighting ceased. A hush fell over the crowd, and the wizards who’d been zooming around on broomsticks came down for a quiet, soft landing. Julia landed next to Jasper’s dragon form, and put a steady hand on his side. He looked back at her and nudged her gently with his dragon nose, then turned again to look at the Torch Lake High Council, wondering what in the world they were up to. He saw that Jake had reentered the room, in dragon form now. Jasper realized that Jake must have known the Torch Lake High Council was coming, and his absence had been because he was going to meet them as they arrived.
Jasper noticed then the first hint of real fear in the eyes of the Lost Garden’s High Council members. Good. Jasper had a feeling they were about to get schooled by Torch Lake’s most elite citizens, and
he was glad he was around to watch. This was going to be a day to remember.
Chapter Fourteen
“Citizens of Lost Garden,” Councilor Morgan shouted, his voice booming in the empty space even without an amplifying spell. “I am Councilor Blaise Morgan, the Head Councilor of Torch Lake. I’m here to retrieve Jasper Moffatt, one of our most prized, upstanding citizens, and a noble dragon shifter. I come in peace, and wish you no harm. There need be no more bloodshed, as long as you turn Jasper over to us peaceably.”
For a moment, the silence in the room continued. And then, it was broken by the loud, sneering laughter of Lost Garden’s Head Councilor.
“You’ve got to be kidding me. We are not turning Jasper over to you. He was only in your city because he turned into a traitor and left our clan without permission.”
Jasper watched as Councilor Morgan turned dark, angry eyes toward Lost Garden’s Head Councilor. Councilor Morgan rarely lost his cool, but when he did, it wasn’t pretty. He was not someone you wanted to make angry, and Jasper could tell that Lost Garden’s Head Councilor had just made Councilor Morgan very, very angry.
“You know very well you drove him away,” Councilor Morgan said, his voice calm but threatening. “He saved your clan and you repaid him with legal sanctions. Instead of treating him like a hero, you treated him like a problem. Little wonder he didn’t want to stay. Worse, you robbed the wizard and shifter worlds of one of their greatest warriors and allies for several years after the Great Dark War. You treated Jasper so poorly that he wanted nothing to do with any of the clans, and hid away. He wasn’t easy to find and bring back to the world of magic and shifters.”
Jasper saw the scowl deepen on the face of Lost Garden’s Head Councilor. “He’s a traitor for leaving, and we will punish him for that. We’re not turning him over. If you want to take him, you’ll have to do it over my dead body.”
Councilor Morgan sighed. “If that’s the way you want it.”
A split-second later, a bright flash of light filled the air, and Councilor Morgan and the other Torch Lake High Councilors were rushing forward. Jasper had barely had time to process what Councilor Morgan had said before the attack started. The Torch Lake High Councilors who were wizards were setting off attack spells, and the ones who were shifters were running forward fearlessly, with teeth bared. Bears, wolves, and lions fought for Torch Lake. The older dragons were even joining in the fight. Torch Lake had a few dragon shifters on its High Council, but they almost never fought since they were so old. They left the battles to the younger dragons. Tonight, however, they were fighting. And with a sudden surge of emotion, Jasper realized that they were fighting for him.
That realization jolted him into action. He roared, and rushed forward to join in the fray. For the most part, he just used his giant dragon claws to knock people out of the way. He didn’t want to use acid and kill people, when most of these people were merely curious citizens who’d been caught up in this circus the Lost Garden High Council was conducting. Jasper didn’t want to kill innocent people, but he would not hesitate to kill the Lost Garden High Councilors, if it came to that. Those fools were not innocent.
Beside him, he saw Julia rise into the air. He kept an eye on her to make sure she was safe, but she was doing a good job of holding her own against the Lost Garden soldiers. Jasper would have laughed if he had been in human form and capable of laughing. Julia was a feisty one, and he loved that about her.
Now that the Torch Lake High Council was here, though, the battle ended almost before it began. The Torch Lake High Councilors might be elderly, but they weren’t weak. Councilor Morgan soon had Lost Garden’s Head Councilor trapped beneath a threatening, outstretched magic ring.
“Please don’t kill me!” Lost Garden’s Head Councilor squeaked out. “You can have Jasper. Just take him and go, but please don’t kill me.”
Even in dragon form, Jasper couldn’t help but roll his eyes. What a coward.
“We’re taking Jasper, certainly,” Councilor Morgan said. “But we’re also taking any of Lost Garden’s clan members who are looking for a better way to live. Anyone who wants to live in a town that is free from corruption, and where shifters and wizards work together to fight evil, come to Torch Lake! Anyone who pledges to stand up for what is good and right is welcome. We’re a growing town and have plenty of jobs.”
All around Jasper, pops of power sounded off as shifters switched back into human form, including Jasper himself. Wizards lowered their magic rings, and many of Lost Garden’s citizens looked around nervously at each other. Jasper could tell that many of them wanted to take Councilor Morgan up on his offer, but no one wanted to be the first one to “desert” Lost Garden.
That’s when Dr. Pasko spoke up. Jasper wasn’t sure when the doctor had come back into the courthouse, but now he stood on one of the benches and spoke up loudly. “I will come to Torch Lake, if the High Council would be so gracious as to have me.”
Jasper felt his stomach clench up uneasily. Dr. Pasko had helped Julia, and he had stood up for Jasper. He’d apologized in front of everyone. And still…could Jasper handle having his old enemy in the same town as him? It wasn’t up to Jasper, though. It was up to the High Council, and Councilor Morgan was nodding enthusiastically.
“We’d be honored to have a doctor of your expertise in our town.”
Dr. Pasko beamed happily, and that opened the floodgates. Dozens more shifters and wizards declared their interest in moving to Torch Lake, and Jasper watched with satisfaction as the Lost Garden High Council grew angrier and angrier.
Serves them right. They can’t expect to have loyal citizens when they treat people so horribly.
The best part, though, was when the three dragon shifters in Lost Garden stood up to declare their intention to move to Torch Lake. They introduced themselves as Stan, Hugh, and Mitch, and they asked if Torch Lake had room for three more dragons.
“It hasn’t been easy, living here in Lost Garden,” Mitch said sorrowfully.
Hugh nodded his head in agreement. “I moved here because I wanted to be part of a clan again. I wanted a ‘family’ that I could love and protect. But the High Council here made everything about money and power. That’s all they cared about.”
“Exactly,” Stan said. “They did whatever they could to get more money, even if it meant turning a blind eye to evil.”
Jasper watched as Lost Garden’s High Councilors grew red with rage over these accusations. But Councilor Morgan and the Torch Lake High Councilors were all beaming. Torch Lake had been desperately trying to recruit more dragons, so gaining three at once was almost more than anyone in Torch Lake could have hoped for. Jasper glanced over at Jake, who was standing across the room next to Julia. They had been near the front of the room when the fighting had ceased. Jake was grinning from ear to ear at the news of the dragons, and Julia was clapping excitedly. She gave Jasper a little wave and thumbs up, and he waved back. She looked like she was almost as good as new. Apparently, fighting and using her magic again had revitalized her.
“Dragons are always welcome in Torch Lake,” Councilor Morgan said, his voice booming across the courthouse. Torch Lake’s Head Councilor looked about as giddy as Jake had looked. Jasper knew Councilor Morgan would think all of this fighting had been worth it, if they got three new dragons out of the deal.
“Thank you, your honor,” Mitch, Hugh, and Stan said in unison.
“The honor is ours. We can’t wait to get to know you better. In fact, why don’t you go introduce yourselves to Jasper over there? He can brief you on all of the wonderful things Torch Lake has to offer to dragons like yourselves.”
Jake rushed over, too, and joined Jasper in welcoming the new dragons. All three of them seemed like great guys, and Jasper was looking forward to getting to know them. He knew that, with darkness growing stronger every day, having these three in Torch Lake was going to make the town much more secure. He hoped that the Torch Lake High Council would take this into considerati
on when considering whether or how much to punish him for kidnapping Julia from the hospital.
Julia herself sidled up to him then. He smiled at her, and took her hand gently.
“How are you feeling?
She shrugged. “Great. All the pain is gone, and I feel completely normal now. Dr. Pasko knows his stuff. Those magical herbs he gave me worked really well. How does he infuse them with magic, though, if he’s only a shifter?”
“He has an assistant who is a wizard. They work together. Dr. Pasko instructs him on what spells to cast on the herbs. It’s a win-win. Caleb learns a lot, and Dr. Pasko gets the help he needs.”
“Speaking of Dr. Pasko…how do you feel about the fact that he’s coming to Torch Lake?”
Jasper felt his stomach tighten up again. What could he say? He still couldn’t look at Dr. Pasko without thinking of everything the doctor had put him through. And yet, he also couldn’t look at Dr. Pasko now without remembering that the man had saved Julia. Jasper furrowed his brow. “It’s going to take some getting used to.
As if on cue, Dr. Pasko suddenly appeared at Jasper’s side. “Jasper! I’ve been trying to get through to you but the crowd in here is so thick.”
Jasper tensed up even more, but told himself to be civil. After all, Dr. Pasko was a fellow Torch Lake citizen now. “Thank you for sticking up for me to the High Council here today. And don’t worry, as soon as we get back to Torch Lake I’ll write you a check for the fee I was never able to pay you after the Great Dark War. I suppose you want your fee for saving Julia as well. Just tell me what I owe you and I’ll write you a check to cover all of it.”
But to Jasper’s shock, Dr. Pasko was shaking his head. “I don’t want any of it, Jasper. I don’t want a penny from you.”
Jasper’s eyes widened in confusion. “You don’t?” For as long as Jasper had known Dr. Pasko, the man had been obsessed with money. His biggest goal in life had always seemed to be to grow his bank account. But now, he was shaking his head.
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