Star Wars_ The Old Republic_ Revan - Drew Karpyshyn [96]
She rose to leave the table, then was hit by a sudden inspiration. “How much to purchase the slave at the door?” she asked.
If she could buy the young man, she could give him his freedom.
“If you are interested in purchasing slaves, you’ll find a much better selection in the city’s central market,” he assured her.
“I’m interested in him specifically,” she said.
“Why?”
There was no mistaking the sudden suspicion in Sechel’s voice, and Meetra knew she had misplayed her hand.
“I like his look,” she said with a coy smile.
“You can hire his services by speaking with the concierge of the club,” he said.
“That’s something I’ll have to look into,” she said, her heart sinking as she realized she could do nothing for the young man now.
Sechel wouldn’t just forget about her unusual interest in an otherwise anonymous slave. If she did anything to help him win his freedom, it would certainly get back to Sechel, and she couldn’t risk blowing her cover.
“Would you like me to have him escort you out?” Sechel offered.
“Thank you,” she said, grinning lasciviously.
The young man was summoned to the table, and she could feel his fear at being singled out by the woman he thought he had offended earlier. He didn’t speak as he led her to the door, where T3 was waiting for them.
“It was our pleasure to serve you, mistress,” he said, his voice cracking.
“Everything was satisfactory,” she said, her voice dripping with disdain and contempt.
The slave bowed and backed away, obviously relieved at what he perceived to be a more normal reaction from a patron of the club. Once he vanished back inside, Meetra spun on her heel and walked away quickly, anxious to put the club behind her.
T3 scurried to keep up, beeping out a question.
“We’re getting closer,” she promised him. Then she added, “The sooner we’re off this accursed world the better.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
YOU WILL UNDERSTAND IN TIME.
Back in his private quarters, Scourge tried to push the last words of his most recent conversation with Revan from his mind, but they kept returning.
It had been almost a week since he’d walked out on Revan, abandoning him to suffer the torments of his solitary confinement. They had been talking about visions: how the Force could speak to you if you listened; how it could show you visions of your possible future.
The Jedi had implied that he had witnessed something to do with his eventual release from Nyriss’s prison, but Scourge knew better than to take anything the captive said at face value.
Revan was smart. Even as Scourge used him to learn about the Force, the Jedi was trying to manipulate Scourge into helping him escape. It was possible everything he’d said had been nothing but lies. It was also possible he had been telling the truth. Maybe he really had seen something that gave him hope of escape.
Scourge knew he should tell Nyriss about this latest development, but so far he had kept silent on the matter. If she knew, there was a strong chance she would simply decide to execute Revan rather than allow him any opportunity to escape.
And that was the real problem. If Revan died, did any real chance of stopping the Emperor die with him? When the Jedi said Nyriss would never step forward to lead the others against the Emperor, the words rang true. Revan, on the other hand, had already proved he was both eager and willing to stop the Sith from invading the Republic. He had hinted at an alliance between them, and as ridiculous as it might have seemed at first, Scourge couldn’t help but see some merit in the idea.
They shared a strong commitment to a common goal; alliances had been forged on far less. But agreeing to work with the Jedi wouldn’t just mean freeing him from his cell. It would mean a betrayal of Nyriss, and Scourge wasn’t ready to take on both her and the Emperor quite yet.
Especially when all of this was predicated on an alleged Force vision of Revan’s that might not actually have existed.
The sharp knock on his door came as a relief.