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Which ought to be enough to make Carniss think secrecy is still important to us. Corran dearly wished he knew the full extent of Wedge’s plan to deal with Isard’s forces, but he respected the security provided by the compartmentalization of such information. I doubt I’ll know everything that goes on unless or until this is all over and I get debriefed.

Corran brought his X-wing around on the appointed exit vector and chopped his throttle back to 51 percent of thrust. In hyperspace, the X-wings were twice as fast as the freighters, save Carniss’s Diadem and Mirax’s Skate. By dropping his thrust to just over half, the X-wing would arrive in-system just before the freighters and could head off any ambushes.

The other X-wings pulled up off his S-foils. “Nine to Skate. Escort is ready to head out.”

“Lead on, Nine, and be careful.”

“As ever, Skate. Wouldn’t want your father to be disappointed in me.”

33

Melina Carniss managed to keep a smile on her face and a light lilt in her voice despite being anxious to leave the Yag’Dhul station. “No, Mirax, no need to apologize. I’ve enjoyed your company over the last two days. I would have felt quite out of sorts and lonely had you not taken me under your wing.”

Mirax smiled. “I’m glad you feel that way. I am sometimes accused of being somewhat smothering.”

Somewhat? Lady, you could smother a Givin, and they don’t need to breathe. “Again your company was appreciated. And let your father know I’m sure Karrde won’t have a problem with my having been kept here awaiting payment. He’s very understanding that way.”

Mirax stepped back away from the turbolift opening. “See you on the next trip.”

“I’m sure. Good-bye.” Melina remained smiling even after the door closed. Be just like her father to have security holocams set up here in the turbolift. I have to maintain the charade until I’m back aboard Diadem.

Carniss had hoped to be away from the Yag’Dhul station as quickly as possible, but the delay in payment meant her ship was the last of the convoy to leave. Despite being a huge station, Yag’Dhul’s docking bays were mostly in use, requiring a piecemeal unloading of the convoy. That delay meant the shipments couldn’t be verified, hence the reason payment was late. Mirax’s insistence that she leave Diadem and enjoy the station’s facilities meant she had no chance to send a message out to Thyferra to report the location of Rogue base.

While it certainly was Mirax’s fault that she’d not been able to make her report sooner, the fact was that she didn’t really want to make it until her ship was outbound anyway. Her navicomputer had worked out the time it would take for Iceheart’s taskforce to arrive at Yag’Dhul from Thyferra. Had she sent out the coordinates when she arrived, she would have been trapped on the station and killed along with all the others. While Iceheart appreciates my information, I don’t doubt I’m seen as expendable.

Carniss exited the turbolift and cut between two battered freighters on her way to her ship. The motley collection of freighters and fighters reminded her of the force Karrde had said had been used to take Coruscant from Isard. Except this force is lacking Star Destroyers and Mon Calamari cruisers. Most of the ships looked as if they had been cobbled together from scrap salvaged from Endor or Alderaan. Isard’s Virulence could defeat this fleet all by itself.

She walked up the ramp on her modified Corellian YT-1210 light freighter, the Empress’s Diadem, and closed it behind her. The disk-shaped ship had a pair of blaster cannons in a turret mounted above and below a boxy concussion missile launch tube assembly that fired into the ship’s aft arc. What I can’t outrun I can discourage from chasing me.

“Peet,” she shouted at her pilot, “get us off this station and bound for Corellia. We have business on Selonia. Once you compute the route and have the times, let me know. I’ll be in my quarters.”

“As ordered, Captain Carniss.”

Melina headed back to her quarters and sealed the hatch behind her.