The Mayor sat frozen, the weight of the news crashing over him like a tidal wave. His mouth hung open, breath shallow as he gripped the dining table, knuckles white. Hook and Ruffus, equally stunned, stared at each other, eyes wide, as if the world had tilted beneath them.
Inside Mayor Aderte's mind, a storm raged. If the magistrate had been captured and was now facing trial, then how long before his own sins came to light? The secrets they had shared, the crimes they had committed hand-in-hand—extortion, abuse, betrayal of the very people he was sworn to serve—it was all unraveling.
If the people were called as witnesses, wouldn't the townsfolk speak against him for the many atrocities he committed against them? They did not say anything before because he used terror to reign, but now with someone from the capital...
