Star Wars_ Fate of the Jedi 07_ Conviction - Aaron Allston [55]
Leia turned to Daala. “You can’t think that the Order had anything to do with this.”
“I don’t think you would, and perhaps that means the Order as a whole would not.” Daala steepled her fingers and stared over them at the Solos. “So I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt. The benefit of the doubt says that Seha Dorvald went mad, decided to perpetrate murder, and fled … and the benefit of the doubt says that the Jedi Order will now find her and turn her over to me before I decide to withdraw the benefit of the doubt. We know what my displeasure can mean.”
Han said it before Leia had a chance to kick him under the table. “Another failed assault on the Temple by the Mandalorians?”
Before Daala could rise to the bait, Leia interrupted. “What about Moff Lecersen? And the other passengers—Wynn, were you poisoned? The aides?”
Wynn gave her a little smile. “Thanks for asking. I’m fine, and the others are, too. Lecersen’s poisoning was detected, and an antidote administered, as soon as we notified him of General Jaxton’s troubles.”
The doors slid open behind the Solos. A naval lieutenant—a Bothan female—hurried in, moved behind Admiral Parova, whispered in her ear, and, at the admiral’s nod, repeated the process with Daala. Daala spoke to her, a few whispered words, and the Bothan departed as rapidly as she’d come.
Daala turned back to the assembly. “Fleet Intelligence has found at least one more component of Seha’s sabotage. A small tank with a timer, spliced into the main Senate chamber’s water supply, containing the same poison. Fortunately, it had not yet triggered.”
“How …” Han wasn’t acting; he was so surprised that his words started out stumbling all over one another. “How could she—Seha, I mean—have gotten access to those pipes? And how did this whole situation come to light?”
Daala jabbed a finger at the security officers. “Incompetence on the part of our much-vaunted security forces. One of them was dating your mad Jedi. We’re still trying to determine how much information she seduced out of him. Fortunately, Fleet Intelligence was doing due diligence on the Dust Dancer’s part in transporting so many important people back to the Coruscant system, noticed some irregularities in their authorizations, and went from there.”
Leia kept her face impassive as her mind roared through the possibilities. Seha had taken her shuttle back to orbit yesterday, rejoined Dust Dancer, and accompanied the transport on its exit from the system—an exit to a location very different from the course it had filed with Coruscant authorities. She should have transferred to another vehicle and returned to Coruscant yesterday, but Leia had not followed her movements, was not sure if that had happened as it was supposed to. In any case, GA forces looking for Dust Dancer at its destination of record would not find it. Unless Han and Leia were immediately arrested, they’d be able to get back to the Temple and get a transmission to the transport, letting its crew know it was being sought.
Now to test the waters and find out if the Solos were to be arrested. “As soon as we return to the Temple, I’ll get word to Master Hamner and convey to him your wishes regarding Jedi Dorvald.”
“See that you do.” Daala gave Leia the unblinking stare of an enemy. “Immediately.”
Han and Leia did not speak during their quick march back to the Millennium Falcon. In fact, they did not speak until they had landed the transport in the hangar bay at the Jedi Temple and had themselves gone through the similarly strenuous security check there. Only then, sure that they were not carrying new transmitters, did they convene with the Masters to report, and told their story.
Han, no stranger to being accused of crimes against the government, sometimes rightly, was not furious, just curious. “We know Seha didn’t poison anyone. So who did poison Jaxton and Lecersen?