"He must have cheated us!" one of the party members, the archer, accused, pointing directly at Broken.
"That accusation is baseless," Broken shot back.
"So, who else should we blame? You're the only outsider here. Are you saying we should accuse one of our own?" the archer pressed.
"I came here alone, in secret. You all saw that, didn't you?" Broken reasoned, trying to keep his voice calm.
"Enough!" Marlene barked, cutting off the argument. Her gaze snapped to Broken, frustration clear in her eyes. "Broken, are you absolutely sure no one followed you?"
"You saw it yourself," he replied firmly.
Broken's mind raced. Could this really be his fault? No. He had used his stealth skills to slip out of the city unnoticed, keeping his identity hidden. Polly had moved too fast for anyone to have tailed him without being detected. Though he couldn't prove anything with certainty, he knew deep down he had no part in this intruder's arrival.
