“Corusca gems,” Luke finished for him.
“Industrial grade,” Lobot added.
“Right,” Lando said morosely. “They used our own gems against us.”
“Rare and expensive,” Lobot said. “Not just anyone could purchase them.”
Tenel Ka saw Luke’s eyes light with sudden hope. “Can you tell us where your shipments of such gems were sold?”
Lando shrugged. “Like my friend said, industrial-grade gems are fairly rare. We’ve made only two shipments since our operation opened.” He sent a questioning glance at his cyborg assistant.
Lobot pressed a panel on the back of his head and cocked it to one side as if listening to a voice no one else could hear. A moment later he nodded. “Both shipments were sold through our broker on Borgo Prime.”
“Can you find out who he sold them to?” Luke asked.
“I doubt it,” Lando said. “Gem brokers are pretty skittish. They pay a good percentage, but they’re secretive—afraid that if we know who their customers are, we won’t need the middlemen anymore.”
“Then we must go to Borgo Prime and find out ourselves,” Tenel Ka said with fierce determination.
Luke sent her a warm smile, then turned back to Lando. “What is Borgo Prime anyway?”
“An asteroid spaceport and trade center. It’s also a hangout for merchants, thieves, murderers, smugglers … the dregs of the galaxy.” Lando flashed Luke a grin. “A lot like Mos Eisley on Tatooine. You’ll feel right at home.”
Tenel Ka waited in silence as Master Skywalker faced the screen in GemDiver Stations Communications Center.
Han Solo stood with one arm around his wife, Leia, who was supported on the other side by Lowie’s uncle, Chewbacca.
Tenel Ka studied the images on the screen and decided that at this moment Leia Organa Solo looked more like a concerned mother than a powerful politician.
“But Luke, they’re our children,” she was saying. “We can’t simply stand by and do nothing if they’re in danger.”
“Not on your life!” Han said.
“Of course not,” Luke agreed quietly. “But as the New Republic’s chief of state, you can’t afford to put yourself in that same danger. Mobilize your forces. Start an investigation. Send out spies and probe droids. But stay there and act as a central clearinghouse for information.”
“All right, Luke,” Leia said. “We’ll work from Coruscant for now, but once we’ve done everything we can from here, we’ll go looking for them ourselves.”
“I’ll come get you in the Falcon” Han said.
“Give me ten standard days first,” Luke said. “I have a lead I’m going to follow right now before the trail gets cold. We need to get going. We’ll keep you informed of our progress.”
“We?” Han asked. “Is Lando going with you?”
“No,” Luke replied. “The heir of Hapes will honor me with her company,” he said, gesturing to Tenel Ka.
“We are grateful for your assistance,” Leia said formally.
Tenel Ka nodded toward the screen with a brief, stiff bow. “Jacen, Jaina, and Lowbacca have a greater call on me than honor,” she said. “They have my friendship.”
Leia’s face softened. “Then I owe you my gratitude as a mother as well.” Chewbacca rumbled what Tenel Ka could only interpret as an agreement.
“Don’t worry, we’ll find them,” Luke said, his voice filled with urgency. “But we need to leave now.”
Han lifted his chin and smiled at Luke. “Okay, get going, kid.”
Just before the communications link was broken, Leia spoke again. “And may the Force be with you.”
6
Jaina came back to consciousness with Lowie shaking her shoulders. The lanky Wookiee moaned plaintively until she groaned and woke up, blinking her eyes.
A rush of unpleasant sensations flooded through her: queasy stomach, pounding head, aching joints—aftereffects of the stormtroopers’ stun beams. The human body wasn’t designed to be knocked out with a blast of energy. Her ears hummed, too, but her instincts told her that the sounds were real—the rumbling vibrations of a big ship in hyperdrive.
Uncertain about whether she dared risk a more vertical position, Jaina cautiously turned her head. She saw that she, Jacen, and Lowbacca were together in a small, nondescript room. Jaina took a deep breath, scratched her straight brown hair, and ran her hands down her grease-smeared jumpsuit to make sure everything was still intact.
Suddenly recalling the attack on GemDiver Station, Jaina sat up so quickly that a fresh wave of nausea washed over her and pain exploded at her temples. She gasped, then forced herself to relax and let some of the pain drain away. “Where are we?” she asked.
Jacen was already sitting up on a narrow pallet, rubbing his brandy-brown eyes and running long fingers through his tousled hair. He wore a look of confusion, and Jaina sensed deep turmoil coming from her brother. “Not a clue,” he said.
Lowbacca also made a dismayed, questioning sound.
“Least we’re all together,” Jaina said. “And they didn’t put binders on us.” She held up her hands, surprised that the Imperials had not separated their prisoners and tied them up. Water and a food tray lay in an alcove by the wall. From the looks of it, Lowie had already sampled some of the fruit.
“Hey, I wonder what happened to everyone at GemDiver Station. What do you suppose they did to Lando?” Jacen asked.
Jaina shrugged, still feeling queasy. “Saw him lying unconscious just before they stunned us. But I don’t think they planned to kill him. They weren’t looking for Corusca gems, either. Seems like they only wanted the three of us”
“Yeah … kinda makes you feel valuable, huh?” Jacen agreed glumly. Lowie growled.
Jaina stood up and stretched, feeling better as she moved. “Guess I’m okay, though. How about you two?”
Jacen smiled reassuringly, and Lowie nodded his shaggy head. The streak of black fur that swept over his eyebrows bristled with uneasiness. He smoothed the fur back and grunted.
It was then that Jaina noticed something else wrong. She looked down at the Wookiee’s waist, but the miniaturized translating droid was no longer there.
“Lowie! What happened to Em Teedee?”
Lowie made a strange, sad sound and patted his waist.
“Imperials must’ve taken it from him,” Jaina said. “What do they want?”
“Oh, just to take over the galaxy, cause a bunch of problems … hurt a lot of people—you know, the usual,” Jacen answered flippantly He went over to the flat metal door. “Hmmmm … it’s probably locked, but there’s no harm in trying,” he said, tapping the controls with his fingers.
To Jaina’s surprise, the door hummed sideways to reveal a guard standing at attention just outside. A stormtrooper in a skull-like white helmet turned to face them.
“Whoa!” Jacen cried, then he lowered his voice. “Well, at least the door opens.”
“Maybe they just can’t figure out how to lock the door,” Jaina said. “Remember how clunky and unreliable Imperial technology is.” She let sarcasm seep into her voice for the guard’s benefit. “And you know how lousy stormtrooper armor is. Probably couldn’t even stop a water blaster.”
“Just walk past him,” Jacen suggested in a stage whisper, seeing that the stormtrooper hadn’t moved. “Maybe he won’t stop us.”
The stormtrooper shouldered his blaster rifle. “Wait here.” The filtered voice coming through the white helmet was flat, but somehow menacing. The guard spoke quietly into his helmet comlink, then shut the three young Jedi Knights in their cell again.
They sat in anxious silence for a moment. “We could tell jokes,” Jacen suggested.
Before Jaina could think of an appropriate answer, the cell door whisked open again. This time, beside the stormtrooper stood the towering, sinister woman from the assault on GemDiver Station. Jaina took a quick breath.