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“Nonsense—you’d have been wrong not to investigate.” Wuul waved a dismissing hand, but without meeting Leia’s gaze. “Now let’s talk about this bill you want me to write. I assume that, basically, you want the Jedi’s current status written into law, with guarantees of financial support and military cooperation.”

Leia raised her brow. “Are we that obvious?”

“Only to me, my dear,” Wuul said. “You need this bill to come from someone you can trust, but someone not normally aligned with the Jedi, because Daala will be on the lookout for that. You also need someone who can bring a lot of votes your way, because you’ll have to override the Chief of State’s veto—and that makes it fairly obvious what you want from me.”

Jaina nodded, but looked nervous. “I really hope Daala isn’t this smart,” she said. “Because if it’s that easy for her to figure this out, the galaxy is in big trouble.”

“Unfortunately, she is that smart,” Luew said. “And that’s the weak spot in your plan. We can’t make this happen without talking to each other. Sooner or later, Daala is going to catch a whiff of our communications and realize what we’re doing. Once she does, we need to bring the bill to the floor before she can gather enough support to block a vote.”

“Why don’t we just attach it to something she can’t have blocked?” Leia asked.

Wuul shook his head. “They outlawed that little maneuver when they chartered the Galactic Alliance,” he said. “To tell the truth, I’m surprised the Jedi decided to take the political route after the attempt on Bwua’tu’s life. With the support you have in Hapes and the Empire, I’m surprised you’re not threatening to just leave Coruscant.”

“Probably because we’re not the ones in charge,” Jaina said, allowing her frustration to show. “And Grand Master Hamner is afraid to call Daala’s bluff.”

“Actually, he thinks a political solution would be better for everyone, if we can work it out.” Leia shot her daughter a disapproving scowl, then turned back to the Senator. “But what does the attack on Bwua’tu have to do with anything? Even Chief Daala doesn’t seem to think the Jedi were involved with that.”

“That’s not quite right,” Wuul corrected. “The rumors I hear actually have her saying, ‘If the Jedi were that incompetent, I wouldn’t be worried about them.’ ”

Lando cocked his brow. “Meaning?”

“Meaning she can’t imagine the Jedi failing,” Wuul explained. “So she’s wondering whether it was someone trying to make the attack look like Jedi, or a Jedi plan she just doesn’t understand yet. By all accounts, she was really thrown for a loop when Asokaji accused her of ordering the admiral’s assassination in retaliation for the arrangement with Grand Master Hamner.”

There was a moment of stunned silence as Leia and her companions contemplated the arrangement to which Wuul might be referring. As Bwua’tu’s aide-de-camp, Rynog Asokaji would be privy to the admiral’s most closely guarded secrets—including any clandestine bargains he had struck with Kenth Hamner.

Finally, Han blurted out, “Arrangement?”

This was quickly followed by a demand from Jaina, “What arrangement?”

Wuul’s wrinkled brow rose. “You don’t know?” He raised a hand and rubbed a finger across his lips as he considered their ignorance, then shrugged and said, “Apparently, Admiral Bwua’tu was worried that the Order intended to launch its StealthX wing to break Chief Daala’s siege. So he cut a deal with Grand Master Hamner. Hamner agreed to keep the StealthXs in their hangars, and Bwua’tu promised to block any attempt to use the military against the Temple.”

Leia went cold inside, and she could tell by the fury in Han’s and Jaina’s faces that they felt just as betrayed as she did. She wasn’t angry about the agreement itself. Tensions had been high during the siege, and taking steps to defuse them had probably saved a lot of lives. What angered Leia was that Hamner had done it without consulting the Council. He had taken it upon himself to leave Luke and