“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 consideration 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.

“I don’t want your money, Jasper. I’m ashamed of the way I acted after the war. You saved me, and this town. And I was too greedy to appreciate it. All I can do now is say I’m sorry, and tell you that you don’t owe me a damn penny for any of the treatments I gave you. And please, consider Julia’s treatment a gift, too. I know there’s nothing I can do to change the way I acted after the war, but I hope that by not charging you for Julia’s treatment, you’ll see that I’ve changed. I hope that in time we might even become friends. I know it’s a lot to ask, but I promise you I’m a changed man. I want to do what’s right, and to work for the side of good.”

Jasper was in shock. “I…I don’t know what to say,” he finally managed to stammer out.

Dr. Pasko smiled kindly. “You don’t have to say anything now. Just know that I truly am sorry, and I hope we can put all of this bad blood behind us. If there’s ever anything I can do to help you or Julia, let me know. I’m at your service for the rest of my life. No charge for you, Jasper. Ever.”

Dr. Pasko reached out to shake Jasper’s hand. In a daze, Jasper shook the offered hand and even managed a small smile. Then Dr. Pasko disappeared into the crowd again, and Jasper turned to look at Julia, who was beaming.

“I guess he turned out okay, after all,” she said.

Jasper shook his head in wonder, still not believing how this day was turning out. “I guess so.”

He reached for Julia’s hand, then, and started walking toward Jake and the other dragons, who had been separated from them by the thick crowd. Jasper wanted time to sit and talk with Julia, and tell her how much he cared about her. They still hadn’t had a chance to discuss their relationship, with all the craziness of the last twenty-four hours. But he knew he’d never have a chance to talk to her in peace here. He needed to get back to Torch Lake. He hoped Jake was ready to leave, too. They could all fly out together—Jasper, Jake, and the three new dragons. And Julia could ride with Jasper. They’d be back in Torch Lake by dinnertime. The thought filled Jasper with happiness. He could hardly wait to be home.

But before he could make it to Jake, Jasper was intercepted by Councilor Morgan.

“Jasper! We need to talk to you, please.”

Jasper’s heart sank. In all the excitement of the last half-hour, he’d nearly forgotten that he would still have to face the High Council and answer for his actions at the hospital. But couldn’t they at least wait until everyone was back in Torch Lake to come after him? He was bone tired. Wearily, he turned to face Councilor Morgan, who was joined by the entire High Council.

“Your Honors?” Jasper said respectfully.

“Jasper, I don’t think I need to tell you that we don’t condone breaking out of hospitals and kidnapping patients,” Councilor Morgan said.

Jasper nodded. “I know. I’m sorry for the chaos it caused. But, with all due respect, I’m not sorry for what I did. It was, quite simply, the right thing to do. Julia’s life and magic were at stake, and someone needed to take quick action.”

To Jasper’s surprise, Councilor Morgan smiled. “I agree. And we are very proud of you for taking that quick action.”

Jasper blinked in confusion. “You are?”

“We are. If not for you, we would have lost one of our most promising citizens. We are well aware of how far Julia has come, and how hard she has worked at the Advocacy Bureau. We know she has the potential to become a great Advocate Defender, and it would have been a tragedy to lose that—not just for her personally but for all of us in Torch Lake.”

“I completely agree,” Jasper said, glancing over at Julia to see that she was blushing deeply, embarrassed by the praise a High Councilor was giving her. He squeezed her hand and she gave him a timid smile.

“Because of your heroic actions, tragedy in Torch Lake was avoided. And, as a byproduct of your coming out here to Lost Garden and standing up to their High Council, we’ll be welcoming three new dragons to Torch Lake. The Torch Lake High Council would like to thank you for your efforts. Due to the emergency circumstances, we will not be bringing any legal actions against you for what you did back at the hospital.”

Jasper let out a huge sigh of relief. “It’s nice to have a High Council actually appreciate heroism, instead of prosecuting me for it.”

Councilor Morgan smiled. “I’m sure you know by now that Torch Lake is very different from Lost Garden.”

Jasper smiled. “Yeah, I’ll say. Thank you for coming out to defend me. It means a lot to me that the Torch Lake High Council flew out here to stick up for me.”

Councilor Morgan patted him on the back. “We’re a clan now. A family. We stick together. There is one thing I’d like to ask of you, though?”

“What’s that?”

“The hospital room Julia was in back in Torch Lake is quite damaged. I think the hospital would appreciate it if you gave them a hand in repairing it. It would be good for the city’s morale, too, to see a dragon taking care of our public buildings.”

Jasper grinned. “I can definitely help with the repairs. I’m happy to help, in fact. I do feel badly about ruining that room, but I didn’t feel like I had much of a choice.”

Councilor Morgan smiled. “We know. And we are proud of you. We also appreciate your help in getting the hospital back in shape. You’re a good man, Jasper. A good dragon. And…it looks like you might have found yourself a good woman.”

Jasper realized then that he was still holding Julia’s hand, and that Councilor Morgan had noticed. Julia blushed, but Jasper merely shrugged.

“What can I say? I know a good thing when I see it.”

The Torch Lake High Councilors all chuckled, causing Julia’s blush to deepen. But Jasper just looked at her and smiled. “Come on, Julia. Time to go home. I have a feeling things are only going to get better from here on out.”

Julia’s shy smile warmed Jasper all over, and told him that she agreed. Better days were ahead for all of them.