by Джуд Уотсон
"You are the one who does not give any thought to putting yourself in danger," Mica said softly.
As Lena watched her cousin stand and leave the room, Obi-Wan thought he caught a first glimpse of tension and fear on her face. He looked at Qui-Gon to see if he too had noticed it, but Qui-Gon had retreated inside himself once more and was gazing into his tea cup.
"I'm sorry," Lena apologized, suddenly placing her hand to her brow.
"I'm wasting your time, and I have not been entirely honest."
Obi-Wan sat up and Qui-Gon placed his cup on the table. They did not speak, but waited for Lena to continue.
"It is true that I need an escort to Coruscant. And it is true that I wish to testify against the Cobral. I must complete the task that Rutin started. The task he died for." Lena's voice caught and she stood, turning toward the shrouded windows before continuing. "In so many ways it is my fault. I did not mean to fall in love with him. I did not know he was a Cobral. But love isn't a choice, is it?"
Obi-Wan thought he saw Qui-Gon nod slightly.
"Before we married, Rutin promised he could stop the crime, but he could not stand to be cast out of his family. He was his parents' favorite and he loved them. He hoped that he could convince them to change their ways. He was not content to remove himself; he wanted to stop it all." Lena spoke more quickly as she went on, as if she could not stop the flow of words.
"But then his brother Solan found out that Rutin was trying to change things. Furious, he went to their father. Rutin could not close the crime ring from the inside. So he decided to try to close it from the outside. It was the hardest decision he ever made. I wanted him to get out, but I begged him not to risk his life. He insisted. For me, he said. He did it for me." Lena paused again and turned back toward the Jedi. Her dark eyes were moist with tears.
Obi-Wan felt she was looking only at him, and her eyes bore straight into his heart. It was as if she were searching him, checking to see if he had the strength and courage to help her. If he could be trusted.
Obi-Wan knew instinctively that he trusted her. There was something about the way she carried herself, about the way she spoke. She was not lying to them. He could sense her fear, yes, but also her honesty. And he could feel her strength. Lena Cobral was not a coward.
"That is why I must carry out his plan," Lena said, straightening. "I can't let Rutin's death be for nothing. I will testify, I will stop the crime. But…"
Obi-Wan leaned in. So far the story was as he expected. But what?
"I don't have any solid evidence to bring before the Senate." Lena sighed. "Rutin worked very hard to protect me. Although I have heard many things, as all Fregans have, I have only my word against theirs."
Qui-Gon stood. Obi-Wan could tell by the look on his face that he was not happy about being fooled. They were sent to escort a witness in danger and now it seemed their witness had no testimony.
"Please," Lena said, taking Qui-Gon's large hand. "I beg you, stay until I have the proper evidence. I know it exists — lists and dates, accounts and records of the Cobrals' crimes. With your help — "
"We were sent only to protect you. If you cannot testify we must return to Coruscant alone," Qui-Gon said flatly.
Obi-Wan flushed, unable to believe what he was hearing. How could Qui-Gon deny this woman help?
Chapter 3
"Master!" Obi-Wan said, more sharply than he'd intended. "I — " He stopped, realizing that it would not be good to discuss their differing opinions in front of Lena. "I would like to speak with you," he finished.
Obi-Wan nodded to Lena and walked quickly toward the stairs and down one flight. Qui-Gon's footsteps followed. When he reached the landing, Obi- Wan whirled.
"Master, you can't mean to leave this woman here. She is obviously scared and in danger!" he burst out.
"She lied to us about having evidence, Obi-Wan. Who's to say she is not lying about the danger as well?" Qui-Gon said calmly.
"Her fear is real," Obi-Wan said. "Surely you can feel that. We cannot abandon her." His face felt warm. He had not spoken so strongly to his Master since before Tahl's death, but since then Qui-Gon seemed to feel nothing outside of himself.
Qui-Gon gazed at his Padawan for some time. Obi-Wan did not look away. He would not allow Qui-Gon to walk away from this.
"We can stay for two days, that is all. If she does not have the evidence by that time we will return to Coruscant without her," Qui-Gon decided. "But I do not think this is a good idea. You are letting your emotions guide you."
"I will not regret it," Obi-Wan said tightly.
"That is my hope," his Master replied.
Anger and frustration welled up inside Obi-Wan. He started back up the stairs without another word. Hadn't Qui-Gon let his emotions guide him in the past? If only his Master would allow himself to feel some of those emotions now he would understand. They were making the right decision. Lena — and Frego — needed them.
Struggling to let go of his frustration, Obi-Wan paused before reentering the living quarters. Lena heard the Jedi on the stairs and turned. Her face was full of hope.
"We will stay two days," Obi-Wan told her with a smile.
"We will protect you while we are here, but that is all. We will not gather evidence against the Cobral," Qui-Gon added.
It was enough. Lena threw her arms around Obi-Wan's neck. "Thank you, " she said in his ear. "Thank you. It is more than I can ask."
Obi-Wan felt his face and neck grow warm as he hugged Lena back awkwardly. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Qui-Gon and, behind him, Mica. Neither of them were smiling.
"Two days will be plenty, but there is no time to waste," Lena said.
She dashed from the room and returned a moment later with a robe similar to Mica's. She quickly coiled her hair and pinned it on her head before covering it with a hood.
"I'm coming with you," Mica stated.
Lena shook her head. "There's no reason to put you in danger, too."
Obi-Wan thought he saw a flicker of annoyance in Mica's expression, but she was silent as the Jedi and Lena left the apartment.
Lena's manner was very brusque and her expression one of pure determination as she led the Jedi outside into the alley. Obi-Wan noticed her brows were drawn before she covered them with a pair of dark goggles that hid most of her face.
Lena moved through the streets even faster than her cousin. She led the Jedi from the dark, towering warehouses to a neighborhood filled with tall, sparkling buildings. Bubble like turbolifts silently glided up and down their outside walls.
Lena came to an abrupt halt a dozen meters away from a particularly large and grand-looking building. Three imposing men stood on guard outside the bubble turbolift.
"We'll have to go in the back way," Lena said, finally turning toward the Jedi. She sighed sadly. "I haven't been back to my apartment since — "
"Your apartment?" Qui-Gon interrupted.
Obi-Wan guessed that his Master was not entirely surprised about their destination, but that he didn't think going inside was a good idea.
Obi-Wan wasn't sure it was, either. But he wanted to help Lena.
"Are you certain that's wise?" Qui-Gon finished.
"We have no choice," Lena explained. "There's vital information inside. I need it to testify.
Qui-Gon did not reply as Lena turned and made her way down a narrow alley to a back entrance. Luckily this one was not guarded. Lena punched a code into a small panel and the door slid open. But there was no turbolift on this side of the building. They had to walk up thirty-seven flights of stairs.
By the time they reached the top floor, all of them were out of breath. But Lena did not pause to rest. Instead she led them around a corner to what looked like a duracrete wall. It wasn't until he got up close that Obi-Wan realized it was actually a concealed door. Lena pressed a small button concealed inside a panel, and the door slid open.
Before Obi-Wan could even get a look inside, Lena gasped and put a hand to h
er mouth. They were standing in what had once been a beautiful parlor. But the apartment had been ransacked, and piles of debris littered the floor. Everything was ruined.
The rich fabrics that had covered the furniture were torn to shreds and strewn across the rooms. Tables and bureaus were smashed. Drawers were overturned and shelves cleared, their ripped and broken contents randomly spread across every surface.
The apartment had been lavishly decorated, but now it looked like the inside of a garbage scow. Whoever was responsible for the ransacking had done a thorough job. Even the carpets had been pulled up and hacked to pieces.
Beside him, Lena leaned heavily on Obi-Wan's arm. "I should have guessed that they would search," she said, forlorn. She leaned down and picked up the pieces of a small stone carving. She turned them over in her hand, and her eyes welled with tears.
Obi-Wan wanted to comfort her, but wasn't sure what to say. He squeezed her arm gently.
"I suppose you should be glad you weren't at home," Qui-Gon replied dryly. He obviously hadn't noticed Lena's expression, and Obi-Wan felt a flash of annoyance. How could his Master be so insensitive?
Lena drew a deep breath and let go of Obi-Wan before picking her way carefully through the mess toward the back of the apartment. Qui-Gon stayed near the lift doors. Obi-Wan followed close behind Lena, in case she needed his support again. The apartment did not look like it had been searched so much as destroyed.
Her face full of sadness, Lena surveyed the damage. She paused once to pick up a trinket that was not entirely shattered, then placed it on a shelf still barely attached to the wall. Obi-Wan wondered how long it would stay there before sliding off.
"How strange!" Lena exclaimed as she walked into her bedroom, at the end of a long hall. Nothing in this room had been touched. The furnishings stood upright. The bed was made. Even the portrait on the wall was straight.
Obi-Wan stepped closer to the portrait. It was a picture of Lena and Rutin. They stood together in front of a waterfall, their eyes locked on each other. Something about the portrait disturbed Obi-Wan, but before he could place the feeling, the portrait and the wall it was on swung aside to reveal a small office.
"It's where Rutin worked in the evenings," Lena explained, walking through the secret door. "All of his family files are stored here. I just can't believe that whoever searched the house didn't — " Lena trailed off as she activated the computer screen.
Blue light and horror shone on Lena's face as a message flashed on the screen: YOU CANNOT STOP US. YOU CAN ONLY DIE TRYING.
Chapter 4
Qui-Gon entered the back room just in time to see the message flash a final time. Then the computer went dead.
Lena sank into a chair. "They've erased the evidence," she said.
"They've erased everything."
For a moment Lena's determination was replaced by desperation. Qui- Gon was surprised to feel a similar desperation coming from Obi-Wan. He gazed at him thoughtfully. This was unusual behavior for his Padawan.
Qui-Gon turned his attention to the matter at hand. "Was the computer connected to a network of some kind?" he asked.
"I don't think so," Lena said. Then she shook her head firmly. "No.
Rutin would not have kept the information here if it was."
"And no one else had access to the information?" Qui-Gon questioned.
"Well, the information was no secret within the family. They all know what's going on, but they are careful not to leave a trail. Solan makes sure of that." Lena stood up and walked back into her bedroom, talking more to herself than the Jedi. "Still, Rutin managed to construct a trail. Any of them could, but Solan…"
Qui-Gon could see that Lena was already recovering from the setback.
She was formulating a new plan. Qui-Gon could not help but admire her resolve. And yet, if she loved her husband as she claimed, she was remarkably strong in the aftermath of his death. He thought perhaps she was deceiving them.
"They all know," Lena said again, louder. "And one of them might just help." Lena turned and began picking her way back toward the lift.
"Come on," she beckoned the Jedi. "I may need your protection even more now. We're going to the Cobral Estate."
"Really?" Qui-Gon asked. "Are you sure that's the best plan of action?"
"Only my mother-in-law lives there now. She's not part of the family business. Taking the risk will be worth it. It has to be."
In the basement of the building, Lena and the Jedi climbed into a large landspeeder. Within moments they were zipping outside the city, toward the home of Lena's mother-in-law, Zanita Cobral.
"We've always gotten along," Lena explained as they skimmed the surface of the planet. "Rutin was her favorite son. He was the youngest.
Losing him was devastating for her, for all of us."
Qui-Gon had trouble focusing his attention on Lena from his seat in the rear. As he forced himself to stay present, in the back of his mind he wondered if coming on this mission had been a bad idea. It called for subtle judgments he wasn't certain he was equipped to make. He felt as if he was moving through a fog of unclear emotions.
"Zanita may be the only person on the planet who is not under Solan's thumb," Lena said to Obi-Wan. "She's the only one who can help. I just hope she wants to."
The Cobral Estate sat on a high ridge overlooking Rian. When the large home was within sight Lena activated a transparisteel roof, which quickly covered the travelers. Then she pushed another button and the transparisteel turned a dark shade of gray.
"When we reach the gate you'll have to duck down," Lena said. "The Cobrals don't like strangers."
Qui-Gon wondered how much the Cobrals would like seeing Lena. Even though she'd said that she and her mother-in-law were on good terms, her presence might stir things up rather than settle them.
At least they had someone to remind them of Rutin. But who did Qui- Gon have to remind him of Tahl? No one had known her as he had. Fresh memories came to him every day. There was no one to share them with.
Crouched in the back and covered by his own robe, Qui-Gon felt Lena tense. He could tell it was not just apprehension about the meeting with Zanita. Something else was happening.
"That's Solan's speeder," she whispered to the Jedi. "And his brother Bard's. The whole family is here."
Qui-Gon raised his head enough to see a number of luxury vehicles parked in the bay outside the mansion. There was no doubt that the Cobrals possessed extraordinary wealth.
"Maybe we should come back later," Obi-Wan suggested gently from the front seat.
"No. I don't have time," Lena said with her familiar resolve. "We'll sneak in, and I'll find a way to get Zanita alone. Or maybe I'll find what I need on my own and we won't need her help after all. We might be able to get additional information. Having several of the Cobrals present could turn out to be a good thing. "
Or a deadly one, Qui-Gon thought.
Lena parked her speeder at the far end of the row, next to a metal statue.
"We can get in through the galley," she said, motioning with her head toward a small entrance.
Qui-Gon watched as Lena and Obi-Wan moved silently into position by the galley door. Moments later a cooking servant emerged. He did not notice as Lena slipped her foot into the door, preventing it from closing. When the servant rounded the edge of the building, Qui-Gon slipped into the galley after Lena and Obi-Wan.
The entrance had been too easy.
The cooking quarters were vast, with rows of gleaming countertops and food storage units. Servants bustled about, busily preparing a large meal.
Lena waited until most of the servants had their backs to the door, then pulled up her hood and walked through the quarters. She carried herself with such authority that nobody bothered to ask who she was or where she was going.
Soon after entering a spectacularly long hallway covered in lush, thick carpet, she ducked into a small room and pulled Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon in after her. The room held several holoscreen
s.
"This used to be a guard station," Lena explained. "But when her husband died Zanita didn't think she needed as much protection, so it's no longer used."
Qui-Gon felt slightly relieved. At least there was an explanation for the easy entrance.
Lena adjusted one of the holoscreens until it showed a large dining room filled with people.
"It's Bard's birthday," Lena said with relief. A large Fregan birth celebration banner lay across the dining table. "I should have remembered."
