The Only Witness Page 4

  Qui-Gon was impressed with Lena's composure. And he didn't need to

  glance at his Padawan to know that Obi-Wan was as well.

  Zanita's turban was askew, and the older woman seemed slightly out of

  breath. But she did not show any surprise at the fact that Lena had come to

  her home with two companions she had never met.

  "We really must strengthen the base of that statue," Juno said,

  eyeing the giant metal sculpture on the ground. "It's quite unsafe."

  "Quite," Qui-Gon agreed dryly.

  "Zanita, do you remember Obi-Wan Kenobi and Qui-Gon Jinn?" Lena

  asked, raising her eyebrows slightly at her mother-in-law. "They are

  friends of mine."

  Qui-Gon knew instinctively that Lena was trying to lead her late

  husband's mother away from saying out loud, or even somehow suggesting,

  that she had never met them before. He guessed that this was because of

  Juno's presence.

  "Of course," Zanita replied easily. "How nice to see you again."

  Qui-Gon smiled with a graciousness he didn't feel. "And you as well,"

  he said, taking her hand for a moment in the Fregan custom.

  Juno appeared annoyed that he hadn't been introduced to the Jedi.

  Clearing his throat loudly, he stepped toward the group. "You must come

  inside and rest," he declared. "We have a medical droid who can examine you

  for injuries."

  Qui-Gon tried not to grimace as he realized that a family like the

  Cobrals probably needed its own medical droid. But there was something odd

  about Juno's offer. Qui-Gon was quite sure that in spite of the look of

  concern he wore, the servant was not truly worried about their welfare.

  Perhaps he had other motives for wanting to get the group back inside the

  house.

  "I'm sure that won't be necessary, Juno," Zanita said pointedly.

  "Lena and her friends were just leaving." She looked around furtively.

  After the exchange with her son in the library, Qui-Gon guessed that the

  mention of going inside - or the possibility of someone coming out - made

  her nervous.

  "You can borrow a landspeeder, Lena," she added. "It's the least I

  can do."

  Lena smiled at her mother-in-law. 'That would be most appreciated,"

  she said. "Thank you, Zanita."

  Juno scowled at Lena, then started off toward the vehicle storage

  building.

  "Lena knows where the landspeeders are housed, Juno," Zanita said.

  "And she can take either of mine. You don't need to direct her."

  Juno's frown deepened, but he didn't say anything.

  "We'd best be getting back inside," Zanita said brightly when Juno

  didn't move. "We have guests to attend to."

  With a last look at the three visitors, Juno turned and followed his

  employer back into the cooking quarters.

  "Another close one," Lena whispered, shivering slightly. "Rutin never

  liked Juno, and he gives me the creeps." She eyed the door Juno and Zanita

  had just disappeared through, then turned and started toward the vehicle

  hangar. "Let's get out of here before something else happens."

  Minutes later Lena and the Jedi were on their way back into the city.

  "It was nice of Zanita to offer up her land-speeder," Obi-Wan noted

  from the front seat.

  "Very nice," Lena agreed. But she did not say anything else. She

  suddenly seemed to focus very hard on piloting the speeder.

  Once again in the backseat, Qui-Gon considered the events of the last

  few hours. Though he didn't particularly want to admit it, he felt at a

  loss. He was not able to decipher whether Zanita or Lena were being honest

  - either with each other or himself and Obi-Wan.

  Qui-Gon sighed. For the millionth time he wished that Tahl were still

  alive. Aside from the aching absence that still burned inside him, he knew

  that her sharp perception and intuition would uncover the truth. She would

  not be distracted by the composed, polished surfaces of these women. She

  would cut through all of that and get to their real intentions, their

  motives.

  Qui-Gon bowed his head and tried to let the grief of missing Tahl

  move through him. Isn't that what Yoda had taught him - what he had

  repeatedly told his Padawan?

  Allow yourself to feel the emotions, then let them go. Qui-Gon

  focused on the words. He felt the grief well up inside him until he was

  sure it would break him, shatter him to pieces. Then, with every nerve of

  his body, he tried to let the pain go.

  It wouldn't.

  His head aching, Qui-Gon opened his eyes. It was always the same. He

  felt the incredible fullness of the pain, and then endless hollowness. The

  grief never actually left. It emptied him, but it would not leave him

  alone.

  CHAPTER 7

  Obi-Wan was silent as the landspeeder traveled through the city. He

  could sense his Master's melancholy mood, and Lena was attentive only to

  driving. She navigated skillfully through the city, and Obi-Wan was yet

  again impressed by her composure. Less than half an hour ago they had

  nearly been killed. Yet she seemed to have wiped the memory away as easily

  as one wipes a crumb from a table.

  Obi-Wan had assumed that they were going back to Lena's warehouse

  hideout. Instead she turned off toward her ransacked apartment after making

  sure they were not being followed. Obi-Wan considered inquiring about this,

  but thought better of it. He guessed that Lena was being silent for a

  reason.

  Lena parked the landspeeder several hundred meters away from her

  building. They approached carefully, and found only one guard outside the

  turbolift. He was dozing off. Moving quickly past him, they entered the

  turbolift and were whisked to the top floor. Once inside her flat, Lena

  moved through room after room at a rapid pace, the Jedi at her heels.

  Qui-Gon did not say anything, but followed with assurance. Obi-Wan

  felt a moment of frustration as he realized that his Master was not

  experiencing the same confusion he was. Even in his depressed state he

  seemed to know exactly what was going on.

  It took a bit of effort for Obi-Wan to keep up with the two people in

  front of him. Lena led them out the secret exit they had used before, then

  down flight after flight of stairs. She did not slow her pace when they

  reached the alley. She simply hurried down several blocks, turning this way

  and that. Finally she hailed an air taxi and they all climbed inside.

  Relieved not to be chasing after Lena and his Master, Obi-Wan sat

  back against the seat. "Were we being followed?" he asked. It was the

  logical reason for Lena's actions.

  "Not that I know of," Lena said in a strange tone. She sounded almost

  giddy, as if the idea were amusing. "Zanita is really a wonderful woman.

  I'm lucky to know her."

  Obi-Wan thought it was strange that Lena was speaking about her

  mother-in-law as if they were acquaintances and not family. But once again

  he kept quiet. What did he know about families, anyway?

  Lena told the taxi driver to let them off several blocks from the

  warehouse. Once they were walking again, she relaxed a little. A moment

  later she reached out and touche
d Obi-Wan's arm.

  "Sorry about that," she said, looking into his eyes. Obi-Wan tried to

  ignore the way he felt when she gazed at him.

  "I couldn't talk in the taxi because of the sky drivers' collective,"

  she explained. "They are Cobral supporters. And as for Zanita's vehicle,

  well, let's just say that it has plenty of added surveillance equipment

  that even Zanita might not know about."

  Obi-Wan nodded, and Lena turned and kept walking. She spoke quietly,

  but loud enough for both Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon to hear.

  "That statue falling was no accident. I'm sure the base is completely

  secure, no matter what Juno says. There are several traps on the property -

  the Cobrals call it security. They say they have to protect what's theirs."

  "Who do you think triggered it?" Qui-Gon asked, speaking for the

  first time since they'd left the Cobral property.

  "I don't know," Lena replied. "The Cobrals have many allies - paid

  and unpaid. Although Juno is Zanita's servant, he works for Solan first.

  I'm sure he would be handsomely rewarded if he succeeded in killing me."

  The group's mood was contemplative as they navigated the streets and

  arrived back at the warehouse.

  Inside, Mica was pacing the living space. A medium-size package lay

  on a low table.

  "This arrived while you were out," Mica said. She picked up the

  package and thrust it into her cousin's hands. She seemed slightly

  agitated.

  Lena took the package and turned it over. It was covered in a thin

  gray wrapping material. There was nothing written on the material other

  than her name in block letters: LENA COBRAL.

  CHAPTER 8

  "Rutin," Lena said, gazing down at the package. She ran her fingers

  over her name. "This is Rutin's handwriting," she explained, looking up at

  the Jedi. "I'd recognize it anywhere."

  Qui-Gon looked down at the package, feeling quite certain that it was

  some sort of trap. Rutin was dead, was he not?

  "I'd like to have a look at that," he said, stepping forward. "I want

  to make sure it is not dangerous before you open it."

  Lena frowned. "Rutin would never put me in danger," she said

  adamantly.

  Qui-Gon raised an eyebrow. From what he could gather, Rutin had put

  her in significant danger. But he saw no point in reminding Lena of that

  now.

  "It could be a trap," Qui-Gon said plainly. Lena scowled slightly at

  Qui-Gon. Perhaps, Qui-Gon mused, she felt he was stealing her last gift

  from Rutin But she gave Qui-Gon the package.

  Closing his eyes, Qui-Gon held the package for several moments. When

  he opened them again, he returned the package to Lena.

  "I do not sense anything immediately grave," he said. But he was not

  convinced that the package was from Rutin, or that it would help them gain

  evidence against the Cobral. He was not convinced of anything.

  Lena set the box on the table and opened it with a small pocket blade

  before removing the wrapping. Then she began to empty its contents and set

  them on the table: a pair of black boots, a small vial of dirt... Lena's

  face fell as she looked over the contents of the box. "This doesn't make

  sense," she murmured.

  "I think I'll go make us all something to eat," Mica said, excusing

  herself.

  "Good idea, Mica," Lena said. "I'm starved."

  Qui-Gon sat down next to Lena as soon as Mica left the room. He was

  unclear about the motives of both women, but felt he might be able to get

  some answers if he addressed them individually.

  "Have you had any visitors to the warehouse?" he asked, not wasting

  any time.

  Lena turned her attention away from the package and shook her head.

  "No, why?"

  Instead of answering, Qui-Gon asked another question. "Have you

  received mysterious packages before today?"

  Lena shook her head again. "No, of course not. I would have told you

  about them."

  "I'm glad to hear that," Qui-Gon said, not entirely sure that he

  believed her.

  The next question was perhaps the most important. "Is Mica the only

  one who knows about this place?" he asked quietly.

  Lena looked up quickly. She was frowning.

  "I think I'll go see if Mica needs any help with the food," Obi-Wan

  said abruptly.

  Qui-Gon gave a brief nod to his Padawan, indicating that he thought

  it was a good idea. But he did not take his eyes off Lena's face.

  Still frowning, Lena got to her feet. "Yes, Mica is the only other

  person besides you and Obi-Wan who knows about this apartment," she said

  flatly. She turned to face Qui-Gon again, her hands on her hips. "But do

  not question my cousin's loyalty. Mica and I grew up together. We are like

  sisters. And she is not in league with the Cobrals."

  Lena crossed the room, then let out a sigh and came back to sit next

  to Qui-Gon. "I don't even like to discuss the Cobrals in front of Mica,"

  she said slowly. "As a very young girl she witnessed the murder of her

  mother, and the memory is still excruciatingly painful."

  "The Cobrals were responsible for her mother's death?" Qui-Gon asked,

  slightly surprised.

  Lena nodded sadly. "They killed her in cold blood. Mica was only

  seven and she saw the whole thing. It was a huge loss, and perhaps an even

  bigger trauma. She has never gotten over it."

  Qui-Gon was silent as this information sank in.

  "Everything on Frego is so complicated," Lena said with a heavy sigh.

  "But I will try to explain. As I've said before, the Cobrals have many

  allies on Frego. For centuries Frego's government treated the citizens

  poorly - taxes were high and public services virtually nonexistent. Fregans

  worked hard only to have their money taken from them.

  "The Cobral family changed all of that. While it is true that they

  made their fortune selling drugs and weapons and had a rough reputation,

  they used their power to force the government to provide the basic services

  people needed. They even lowered taxes and raised wages."

  "Which made life for the people better," Qui-Gon said. He had visited

  planets with similar stories. A corrupt power ousted an unjust government,

  making positive changes. But the means through which those positive changes

  were made had its own kind of evil.

  "Today the government acknowledges that the ways of the past were

  wrong, that they treated the people unfairly," Lena continued. "And many

  politicians resent having to operate under the Cobral thumb. They want to

  do right by their people. Or at least some of them do. Others appear to be

  noble, but are corrupt to the core."

  "I see that the Cobral makes things quite complicated," Qui-Gon

  commented. "For everyone, it seems."

  "There is no honesty, no safety," Lena stated. "We live by whims and

  not laws. That is why the violence has to stop. I know there is a better

  way, and I want Frego to have a chance for a new beginning-the beginning

  that Rutin and I did not have."

  Tears welled in Lena's eyes, and for the first time Qui-Gon softened

  toward her. He understood just how she felt. He and Tahl had never had a
<
br />   new beginning, either.

  Lena wiped her cheek. "There are some politicians who would also like

  to forge a new path for the future. And some people would like to support a

  new government. But many others feel a strong debt to the Cobrals for

  making life better."

  Lena gazed solemnly at the package and the boots on the table. "It

  seems that no one can break free."

  "But you trust your cousin completely?" Qui-Gon asked, getting back

  to his original line of questioning.