Star Wars - The Trouble With Squibs Read online

  “It’s a good deal,” Emala assured him. “You won’t regret it.”

  “I regret it already,” Han turned to Leia. “Enough listening?”

  Leia nodded. “More than-”

  “Emala!” Sligh said. “You forgot to tell them about the software!”

  “Right - the software,” Emala said, not appearing forgetful at all. “You keep the boasas, and we give you the guidance software for the MS-19.”

  Leia’s jaw felt. “The Imperial MS-19? Sienar’s new MS-19 shield buster?”

  “You mean Sienar’s new self-guiding MS-19 shield buster,” Sligh said, “We understand the first deployment was quite a surprise at Gondagali.”

  Leia stared speechlessly at the Squibs, but Han knew an empty promise when he heard one.

  “Forget it,” he said. “You need a better lie than that to take us.”

  “There’s no need to be rude,” Emala said. “We’re only trying to help the New Republic.”

  “I’m hurt.” Sligh added. “After all we went through together, how can you doubt us?” Though he was speaking to Han, he kept his gaze fixed on Leia. “You have an NRI clearance. I’m sure you heard how valuable those S-thread codes we provided were?”

  Leia stiffened, but said nothing.

  “S-thread codes?” Han turned to find Leia’s eyes as round as saucers. “What S-thread codes?”

  “And how about the boron missile spec we sent?” Emala-asked, also looking at Leia. “I’m sure those have proven useful. The Imperials are certainly puzzled by its sudden ineffectiveness.”

  Leia gasped, “How do you know… never mind.”

  Han began to see the rest of his vacation swirling down a refresher drain, but he did not complain. Leia’s reaction meant this was important.

  After a moment, Leia swallowed her shock and said, “Okay. Tell me about this piece we’re going to buy for you.”

  “What?” Han’s question was nearly a shout - but that was okay, because no one could hear it over Chewbacca’s roar of disbelief. “Have you gone deepsick? At least get them to put up the money!”

  “If we could get our money, do you think we’d be bothering someone as important as you?” Sligh asked,

  “Until we get Second Mistake, we’re shut out of our own lockbox,” Emala explained. ‘That’s why we need you.”

  Han turned to Leia. “You can’t trust them.”

  “Probably not,” Leia said.

  Chewbacca groaned, warning her not to forget what happened on Tatooine.

  “Oh. I haven’t forgotten.” Leia’s brown eyes began to smolder with a fierce light that Han thought of as her stubborn glow, “We still have to do it.”

  Han shrugged in resignation, then turned to Sligh, “So how much is this Second Mistake going to cost us?”

  “Not that much,” Emala said. “The value is mostly sentimental.”

  “It’s not worth more than a hundred credits,” Sligh added. “But Lebauer is attached to it. It’ll probably take ten.”

  “Ten hundred?” Han asked. “Why don’t you just say a thous-”

  “Ten thousand, Solo,” Emala shook her head sadly. “And we used to think you were big time.”

  The comment stung more than it should have.

  “I’ve got the credits - don’t you worry about that,” Han said, fairly sure he had just seen the last of his sabacc money, “And I really wish I didn’t.”

  Emala stretched forward and laid a small hand on his knee. “It’s best for everyone,” she said. “Trust me.”

  Encircled by opalescent walls and illuminated in ambient light, the VIP lobby of the Pearl Island Casino felt much like what it had been designed to resemble; the interior of a pearl. The lobby rotunda, which was just large enough to feel majestic without sacrificing intimacy, was even appointed in alabaster furniture with chalk-white upholstery. Though Leia normally found casino architecture gaudy and overdone, she was impressed - and hopeful. The combination of both taste and money boded well for her chances of persuading the owner to return the boasas to the survivors of Alderaan.

  What the Pearl Island possessed in grandeur, it lacked in service. Like many fine establishments, at its front desk it eschewed the efficiency of droids in favor of the graciousness of sentients. The Solos had been waiting nearly ten minutes for someone to escort them to their suite, and Leia was starting to fear they would be late for their meeting with Lebauer.

  “How sure are you about their story?” Han asked, He was sitting on the alabaster settee next to Leia, and there was no need to clarify who he was talking about. They had been discussing the Squibs off-and-on since parting ways outside the luxsub docks. “They might be playing us with some rumor they heard in a tapcaf.”

  “There are no rumors, not about this.” Leia pulled Han down beside her so they could speak more quietly, and even then she was careful not to mention any specifies. “NRI is keeping a tight lid on this stuff, They wouldn’t even tell the Provisional Council where their intelligence has been coming from.”

  “That’s my point,” Han said. “We’ve got no way to verify their story. We might be blowing my ten thousand credits on a scam.”

  Leia took his hand. “Han, NRI will reimburse you.” She understood the reason for Han’s hesitation, because she resented the intrusion into their getaway as much as he did. They both needed a break from New Republic missions. “When we tell them we have the guidance software for an MS-19, they’ll probably rush the money out by courier.”

  Han gave her a cynical look. “Now you’re starting to sound like a Squib.”

  “Ouch.” Leia chuckled, then said, ‘The point is, we’ll still have time for sabacc… and other things.”

  Han gave her a crooked grin. “Now you’re talking.”

  C-3PO, who had been standing with the luggage next to the sturdy armchair where Chewbacca had settled in, came over.

  “Pardon me for interrupting, but it appears the porters have finally returned from their break.”

  C-3PO started toward a hallway beside the registration counter. Leia turned to see a burly Jenet in an ostentatious noron doublet-and-tunic ensemble leading a half-dozen confederates in similar attire into the lobby. With domed muzzles, beady red eyes, and pointed ears rising dose to their temples, they had a menacing and somewhat repulsive appearance that even a diplomat’s eye had trouble looking past.

  “It’s about time!” C-3PO said. He pivoted on his waist rotator and gestured at the luggage. “It shouldn’t take all seven of you. We have only three pieces.”

  The Jenet regarded him coldly. “That right?”

  “Uh-oh.” Han stood. “Something tells me those aren’t porters.”

  “Would that be the hand-tailored clothes?” Leia replied, rising beside him. “Or the blaster bulges under their arms?”

  C-3PO continued, oblivious to their exchange. “We’re staying in the Admiral’s Suite.”

  “Right,” the Jenet said. “I’ll have someone get your bags.”

  He turned and snapped a pair of clawed fingers at the Twi’lek clerk behind the registration counter.

  “Not good,” Han whispered,

  “Very not good.” Leia started across the floor. “Threepio, I don’t believe these gentlemen are porters.”

  C-3PO turned to Leia. “They aren’t?”

  “No.” Now that Leia was closer, she could see that the Jenets’ pink skin was covered with a sparse white fuzz. “Please forgive my droid. He seems In have developed a processing fault.”

  The leader’s gaze swung to Leia. “Forget about it.” His red eyes were dead and unreadable. “Welcome to the Pearl.” He thrust out a fuzzy hand. On the smallest Finger was a pinky ring with a corusca gem as large as his thumbnail. “Ludlo Lebauer.”

  Leia was so shocked that it did immediately register that he expected her to take the hand he had thrust out. The Jenet’s gruff manner and flashy clothes were so out of character with the Pearl’s elegance that her mind was having trouble reconciling one
to the other.

  Fortunately, Han had come over with her. “Han Solo.” He reached in front of Leia and took Lebauer’s hand. “Thanks for having us.”

  If Lebauer noticed Leia’s astonishment, his inert expression did not reveal it. He merely shook Han’s hand and said. “Good to see you again.”

  Now it was Han who could not hide his surprise. “Again?”

  “I was at the Seahorse when that pit boss insulted your Wookiee.” He tipped his head at Chewbacca, who was coming to join them. “You might remember: in the third row of spectators, four places to the dealer’s left.”

  Han did not even try to recall, “Uh, sorry.”

  “I’m afraid human memories are more fallible than yours, Administrator,” Leia said. The Jenet were famous across the galaxy for their perfect memories. “But I’m sure he appreciated your support.”

  Lebauer snorted. “I doubt it. My clan was invested in ihe Seahorse.”

  “Well…” Leia forced herself to ignore her sinking feeling and looked around the room in awe. “You certainly seem to have recovered.”

  Lebauer let out a rhythmic his that might have been a laugh. “Yeah, you could say that.” He looked back to Han. “But don’t even think about gambling here.”

  “Hadn’t even crossed my mind,” Han said innocently. “This trip is strictly business,”

  “Good, then we’ll get along fine.” Lebauer motioned at a four-armed Codru-Ji who had appeared next to the registration counter. “The porter can take your droid and bags to your room. I need to show you the shapes now.”

  “The ‘shapes’?” Leia asked.

  “You know,” Lebauer said. “The statues.”

  Chewbacca, who insisted on running a security sweep before the Solos stayed anywhere outside their own apartment, left with C-3PO and the porter, then Lebauer - still neglecting to introduce his associates - led Leia and Han into the luxury wing of the casino, it was even more majestic than the rotunda, with four-story atriums, a minor forest of indoor plants, and a masterpiece from a different corner of the galaxy around every corner. Of course, there were also plenty of high-stakes gaming tables and mixer droids offering complimentary intoxicants to anyone still able to stand. But the tables were tucked in sound-shielded pits where they would attract attention without being intrusive, and the droids disappeared into the foliage whenever they were not needed to renew a refreshment.

  Once, as one of the droids retreated between two trebala leaves, Leia thought she saw two pairs of dark eyes watching them from the shadows. She glanced over at Han, but he seemed not to notice.

  Lebauer led the group past a formal sabacc pit where decorum seemed to require stately full-tabards for males and barely-there glittergowns for females, then ascended a slideramp to a U-shaped mezzanine with a security gate protecting the entrances to a dozen of the Pearl’s grandest suites. Between each set of double doors hung an ornamental niche containing one of the boasa statues Leia had come to claim. With ten niches and ten statues, she found herself wondering whether the boasas had been acquired to decorate the wing, or the wing built to display the boasas.

  Lebauer brushed past an astonished Jenet guard, then led Leia and her companions around the mezzanine to inspect the statues. Each piece was about a meter tall and constructed from some organic resin whose source science had yet to identify. Ranging in color from saffron yellow to a ruby so dark and rich it was nearly black, the boasas were little more than translucent shapes surrounding hollow patterns. There were graceful spirals rising inside a flared orange cylinder, tightly curved ribbons waving within a thin-waisted rectangle of amber, a single bubble sitting in the heart of a scarlet sphere. The pieces were as utterly hypnotic as Leia had recalled, and by the fourth one, she and Han both had to be prodded gently to move to the next one.

  When they reached the final piece - a twisted, copper-colored column with a single straight line rising along the central axis - Lebauer turned to his mesmerized guests.

  “They take everyone that way,” He glanced at his associates, who obediently mumbled their confirmation, then drew his lip back in an expression that was more snarl than smile. “People book the Regal Suites just to see them.”

  “Then there must be few who can afford the privilege,” Leia said, trying to lay the foundations for the request she had come to make. “Have you ever considered the public relations value of displaying them in a more accessible area?’

  “Public relations ‘value?’” Lebauer glanced at his associates, who took the cue to chuckle in unison. “Princess, what you think the Pearl is selling? We’re exclusive. We don’t want any public relations.”

  “Of course not,” Leia said quickly. “But a sophisticated clientele also appreciates the value of philan-”

  Leia let the sentence drop midword, for Lebauer had raised his hand to the statue and was running his fingers up along its swirling surface. She had to struggle to hide her outrage. Either Lebauer did not care about the destructiveness of what he was doing or he had not bothered to learn the basics of caring for the statues.

  “Excuse me,” Leia said. “But you really shouldn’t touch the statue. The oil in your skin leaves growth-medium for a destructive bacteria suspended in the boasa.”

  “You don’t say?” Never taking his eyes off Leia, Lebauer continued to touch the statue. “Security tells me people do it all the time.”

  Leia knew the Jenet was deliberately provoking her - though she could not understand why - but the knowledge did not keep her anger from rising. Whether he intended to relinquish the statues or not, he gained nothing by damaging them,

  “You know,” Han said, “that bacteria might not be so great for you, either. I’ve heard it eats skin. There’s even a theory it’s what killed the Killiks.”

  Lebauer’s red eyes flashed in alarm, and he almost removed his hand. Then he smiled and said, “You’re bluffing.”

  “Did I bluff at the Seahorse?”

  “Once,” Lebauer said, “Horribly.”

  Han shrugged. “There you have it.” He looked over to Lebauer’s associates. “Who takes over when he’s gone?”

  “That won’t be for a while, Solo.” Lebauer pulled away from the statue, then turned to Leia, “Let’s go somewhere and talk about this “philanthropy’ of yours. Princess.”

  “I’m glad to hear you’re open to this idea,” Leia said.

  Actually, she was trying to guess what Lebauer might want from her; he was obviously hoping to turn her concern for the statues to some purpose of his own... which meant that now would a good time to interrupt his timing.

  Lebauer motioned his associates ahead, then took his own position in front of Leia and Han and started toward the exit. They were about halfway around the “U” when a soft rustle sounded in a bushy boranut tree that rose from the floor below. Leia glanced over to see a head-sized leaf waving at her.

  A small voice hissed, “Missstake!”

  “What was that?” Lebauer asked.

  He stopped and turned to Leia, and this leaf stopped waving.

  “I didn’t catch that.”

  Leia snapped her eyes back to Lebauer. “Catch what?” She had to force herself not to look away. “I didn’t say anything.”

  Lebauer frowned. “You didn’t?”

  Han looked over at Leia. “I didn’t hear anything,” he volunteered. “Nothing at all.”

  Lebauer’s frown deepened, He studied Han for a moment. “Funny.” He shoak his head and started away. “I coulda sworn I heard something.”

  Leia glanced back at the boranut to find Emala’s nose and eyes poking out between two leafstalks.

  Go away, Leia mouthed.

  “You forgot!” Emala whispered.

  Leia scowled and shook her head, then mouthed, No.

  Han nudged her in the back. She turned to find Lebauer a few steps ahead, turned half-toward her and frowning.

  “Excuse me. Administrator,” Leia started after him. “I was just admiring that bora nut tree.�
��

  Lebauer’s red eyes finally showed an emotion: bewilderment. “You don’t have trees on Coruscant?”

  “Not many,” Leia said.

  “Yeah?” Lebauer started forward again. “We’ll have to send one back with you.”

  Leia exchanged relieved glances with Han, and together they followed Lebauer around the mezzanine. She had not forgotten Second Mistake - quite the contrary. The point Lebauer had made of mistreating the boasas had convinced her that he wanted something from her just as badly as she wanted the statues from him. Given that he was attached to Second Mistake, she had decided that the best time to ask for it would be as their other negotiations neared completion, when Lebauer would not want the matter to become a deal buster.

  Unfortunately, the Squibs were not so patient. As Lebauer and the Solos were approaching the security gate at the end of the mezzanine, Leia heard more rustling beside her. She refused to look, but that was no help.

  “You’re selling us out!” Sligh’s voice was a little louder than a whisper. “Some double-crossing jilly you are!”

  Lebauer stopped at the gate and spun on his heel. “That time, I know I heard something.”

  “You might have,” Leia said, trying to think of a way to cover - and hoping that Sligh was well concealed. “I was, uh, saying goodbye to the boasas.”

  “You were talking to a bunch of resin blocks?” Lebauer’s gaze had turned steady and dangerous. “Really?”

  A rustle sounded in the plant beside Leia - she did not know what kind it was because she was trying very hard not to look.

  It didn’t do any good. Lebauer’s eyes started to slide toward the mezzanine.

  “Actually, Han and I were discussing whether we’re interested in another piece you have,” Silently cursing all Squibs - and Sligh and Emala in particular - Leia stepped into Lebauer’s line of sight and asked, “May we see Second Mistake?”

  Lebauer’s muzzle fell open, and his associates - listening from the other side of the security gate-sputtered in astonishment.

  “Second Mistake!” he asked, “How did you hear about Second Mistake?”