• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

“Right. I don’t think he’s dead either. I don’t even think they’ve caught him. Anakin knows Yavin Four as well as we do, maybe better. The Yuuzhan Vong don’t know it at all. If they didn’t catch him when they landed, it would take a miracle for them to find him.”

“Unless he ran right up to their ships, lightsaber swinging, which is just what Anakin is likely to do,” Jaina said.

“He’s headstrong,” Jacen said, “but he isn’t stupid. He knows help is on the way. He probably knows Karrde is there already. The problem is, he can’t get to Karrde or Karrde to him because the Yuuzhan Vong are in the way. Uncle Luke is right—a couple more X-wings or even the Falcon won’t change that equation much. The Errant Venture would.”

Jaina’s nostrils flared. “Uncle Luke, you aren’t just trying to get us out of the way, are you?”

Luke shook his head. “How do you plot that course? No. Jacen’s laid out the situation perfectly. Let me add to that the fact that since Valin is Booster Terrik’s grandson, Booster will be more than happy to help.”

“And Terrik isn’t tied directly to the Jedi.”

“What are you talking about?” Mara interrupted. “Corran Horn is Valin’s father, and last I heard, he was with Booster.”

“Corran distanced himself from us after Ithor,” Luke replied. “Fey’lya might suspect something, but he won’t be able to prove it. Which reminds me—Shada got here without revealing she has most of the Jedi candidates with her. If they turn up here on Coruscant, with us, Fey’lya will know we’re behind Karrde being there. That may or may not be a situation I can control. But they aren’t safe here anyway. When you go to find Terrik, I want you to take the candidates with you.”

“What, in an X-wing?”

“We have Shada’s ships—” Jacen began.

“Oh, no,” Shada said. “They aren’t my ships, they’re Karrde’s, and he needs them. I’m returning to the Yavin system, and I’m doing it very soon, no matter what you work out here.”

“We’ll take the Jade Shadow,” Mara said. “I can convert some space. It may still be a little cramped, with all of the kids, but she’ll do the job.”

“You and I can’t leave Coruscant,” Luke said bluntly.

Mara’s eyes flashed. “Skywalker, if this is about my ‘delicate state,’ you can shove—”

“It’s not, Mara. We can’t attract suspicion. Fey’lya’s watching us. It’ll be hard enough to get Jacen and Jaina out without raising eyebrows, but that can be done.”

Mara seemed to roll that around in her mouth. I don’t like playing these games, she practically hurled at him.

I don’t either, he replied.

The room was silent for a score of heartbeats, during which time Luke realized that everyone else in the room was staring at them. Their mouths were admirably closed, but their read in the Force was purely gape-jawed.

No, not all of them are surprised, Luke suddenly knew.

It was typically Jaina who broke the silence. “Mara? You’re? …”

“Bright kid,” Mara said. Her eyes narrowed a little. “Jacen?”

Jacen seemed to be trying to see the individual atoms in the floor. His face was redshifting.

“You peeked,” Mara accused.

“I, uh, didn’t mean to,” he mumbled. “But when I started using the Force again at Duro …” He looked around helplessly for support.

“We were going to tell you soon, anyway,” Luke said.

“That’s wonderful!” Jaina exploded. “Mara, congratulations.” Her brows scrunched a bit. “I guess? I mean, I didn’t think—”

“What?” Mara said, nailing the younger woman with a pointed gaze. “Didn’t think what?”

“Oh, I—nothing,” Jaina replied, her face suddenly twinning her brother’s in hue.

“It’s just suprising,” Jacen said, for her. “You were sick for so long.”

Mara nodded. “Yeah. Well, the universe surprises you sometimes. And sometimes—on rare occasions—in a good way.”

“In the best way,” Jaina burbled. “Congratulations. To both of you.”

“Thank you,” Luke said.

“ ‘Cousin Jaina.’ I like the sound of it.”

“So do I,” Mara replied, lips twitching in a smile. “But that doesn’t solve the immediate problem. So, ‘Cousin Jaina’—why don’t you take the Jade Shadow and go find Booster, already?”

Jaina’s eyes widened. “You’re offering me