[Galaxy Of Fear] - 02(19)

Zak and Tash followed as stealthily as they could. Even though it was getting late, there were still a few pedestrians on the street, and it was easy for Zak and Tash to remain out of sight as they followed their target. Boba Fett never looked back. He seemed unaware that he was being followed. Still, Tash thought they should take no chances. They dashed from hiding places behind pillars to covered doorways set in the sides of buildings, trying to remain as invisible as possible as they shadowed the bounty hunter.

After a few minutes, they reached a quieter section of town. There were no pedestrians at all. Zak recognized the neighborhood right away. They were getting closer to the cemetery.

The alleyways became as tight and narrow as a maze, and Zak and Tash soon lost sight of the bounty hunter as he turned a corner.

They hurried to catch up, but as they turned the same corner, they found themselves at an intersection of two streets. There was no sign of Boba Fett.

“Which way do you think he went?” Zak wondered.

“Your guess is as good as mine,” Tash answered. “Why don’t you take a quick look down that road, and I’ll look down the other one. Then we’ll meet back here in a minute.”

Zak hesitated. He had to get back to the hostel. “Tash, I-“

“Come on, Zak!” Tash interrupted. “We might lose him.”

She hurried down one of the two streets. Zak shook his head. When Tash locked onto something, she was as stubborn as a dewback.

He hurried down the avenue on the left. He hadn’t gone far before the street divided again. Zak was at a loss until a figure passed beneath a faint glowpanel farther down one of the two lanes.

Quietly Zak hurried after the figure. He wondered if Boba Fett would even speak to him, or what the bounty hunter would say if he knew the man he’d killed had come back to life.

The figure ahead of him was moving slowly, and Zak easily closed the distance between them. He closed the gap just as the figure passed beneath another glowpanel, and Zak got a better look at him.

It wasn’t Boba Fett.

It was Kairn.

Meanwhile Tash hurried down her chosen lane for two hundred meters. There were no side streets and no sign of Boba Fett. She decided he must not have come this way and turned back. She arrived back at the intersection and waited, but Zak didn’t show up. She waited a little longer, then called softly, “Zak? Zak, are you there?”

“Zak is not here, but I am.”

Tash turned. Boba Fett was behind her, with a blaster in his hand.





CHAPTER 12


“What did you do with Zak?” Tash demanded.

“You were following me,” the bounty hunter stated. “Why?”

Maybe it was his voice, maybe it was the blaster in his hand, or maybe it was the fact that his face was hidden beneath his helmet, but Tash found Boba Fett unnerving. She stammered, “B-Because I saw you at the hostel the other day. T-Talking to my uncle.”

“The Shi’ido,” Fett stated flatly.

“Yes. I know he spoke to you, but he wouldn’t tell me why. I wanted to find out by following you.” Boba Fett said flatly, “You were clumsy. I was on to you the minute I left my ship. Your clumsiness saved your life. If you had any skill at shadowing people, I might have mistaken you for a professional and taken you out immediately.” He slowly holstered his blaster. “I expected your brother to be with you. I want him.”

Tash tried to overcome her fear. Boba Fett uses his reputation to intimidate people, she thought. And he uses that helmet to hide what he’s thinking.

“We split up,” she said, keeping the nervousness out of her voice. “We lost you and separated to find you.”

The cold voice spoke again. “I hear your brother says he saw Evazan again. Explain.”

Tash was surprised. “How did you know that?”

“Explain.”

Tash swallowed. Was Boba Fett angry at Zak? Did he think Zak would hurt his reputation? “Leave Zak alone. Whatever he says is our business.”

“I want details. I killed Evazan. How could your brother have seen him?”

Tash gathered her courage. The bounty hunter had asked her a question, and it gave her an advantage. She had information he apparently needed. “Let’s make a deal. I’ll tell you what Zak saw, if you answer a question of mine.”

“No promises. Tell me.”

“Promise,” she challenged.

The bounty hunter said nothing. He waited.

Tash tried to outwait him, but it was impossible. Boba Fett was like a statue. Finally she blurted out, “All right, I’ll tell you!”

Tash quickly told the bounty hunter what Zak had seen aboard the starship. When she was finished, Fett simply nodded.