Star Wars the Truce at Bakura - Kathy Tyers [39]
Luke clipped his saber back to his belt and holstered his blaster, then walked to meet the tall officer. Leia followed Luke, leaving Chewie with the droids. “Cover us, Chewie,” Han murmured, and he followed too.
“Your Highness,” oozed the officer as he bore down on Leia, “what an honor to meet you at last. Captain Conn Doruggan, at your disposal.”
Han wouldn’t’ve minded disposing of him for good, but Leia had slipped into her senate manners again. “Captain Doruggan,” she said with an elegant nod. “This is Commander Skywalker, Jedi Knight.” Then she condescended to notice him. “And General Han Solo.”
Luke shook the officer’s hand, but Han kept his right hand low. He glanced over his shoulder at Chewie. The Wookiee stared back, watching (and covering) faithfully. Leia could take a few steadiness lessons from Chewie.
“We must be going,” said Leia. “Thank you for introducing yourself.”
The Imperial captain reached for her hand. Han pressed his palm to his blaster, barely keeping his trigger finger disengaged. She met the handshake and let him smooch her fingers. Immediately Luke glanced in Han’s direction and flicked his hand. He must’ve done something with that Force of his: Han’s jealousy cooled a hundred degrees, but it didn’t go out. Leia led them up the echoing hall toward the roof port.
Following with Luke and Chewie, Han glared at Luke. “Don’t do that to me,” he said. “Don’t ever do that.” He’d been jealous before, of Luke. That’d been unnecessary. This probably was too.
“I’m sorry,” Luke murmured, eyes ahead. “I had to. We couldn’t afford what you wanted to do.”
“I’ll control myself, thanks.”
Leia turned around and walked backward. “What’s wrong, Luke?”
Not Han. Luke.
“Nothing.” Luke shook his head. “I want to speak with … a couple of those senators. And Commander Thanas promised to make contact today. Let’s go dig into our new data files.”
CHAPTER
8
Their conductor/guide drove them by tram back across the Bakur complex, then took them to a second-floor apartment. The instant the suite’s door slid shut behind Chewie, Han spun around. Leia guessed what he was going to say from the sour look on his face. It would’ve curdled Bantha milk.
“You told them too much.” He waved one arm. “Especially about the Endor troops. Those Imperials don’t need to know our people are exhausted. They’ll gather up every fightership for parsecs and wipe out the Fleet.”
“No, they won’t. They can’t contact anybody else. They’ve tried.” Relieved, she laid her palms on his chest and looked up into his glittering dark eyes. She’d expected a lecture about that renegade Alderaanian. For one instant, the dead world had lived—bitter memories with the sweet. Imperial policies had never been approved on Alderaan. It was a rare and suspect individual who volunteered for Imperial service.
“Well, you did,” he muttered. “Don’t tell them so much.”
“They’ll assume—” Leia began.
“Hold it,” said Luke. “Did anyone else hear the aliens’ human say they came ‘at the behest of your own Emperor’? These Bakurans are ignoring it.”
“I caught it.” Leia stepped away from Han. “I’m trying to figure out how to use it.”
“Good.”
“But did you—” Leia began again.
“Save it,” said Han. He circled the apartment’s main room, peering into all of its floor and ceiling corners. Paneled in pale yellow natural wood, the main room had a single long window looking out on one of the greenwells. A hexagonal lounge pit filled the room’s center, cushioned in green with small blue pillows floating several centimeters above it. Han overturned every pillow, then started rapping walls. “I don’t mind telling you I’d rather sleep on the Falcon.”
“I wouldn’t,” sighed Leia.
Threepio stood by the door, one hand covering his restraining bolt as if he were self-conscious. Sometimes his pseudoemotive programming amused her. “Sir, droids require no rest. May I