Helped us rebuild? Offered to recompense the other clans for their share of the bribe? Sent a single work crew of slaves to help with the rebuilding?” Jabba let his voice scale up to a near-shout. “No!
Fellow Hutts, what they have done is to raise the prices on their spice to the point where the profits of every kajidic are compromised—at the worst possible time! Some may say this is just good business, just the urge for profit—but I say, No! Besadii is trying to take over! To put us all out of business! Besadii wishes that there was no Hutt clan on all of Nal Hutta-except Besadii!”
Jabba’s voice had risen to a thundering pitch. He slapped his tail for emphasis, hard. The echoes fled around the cavernous hall.
“I demand that Besadii be censured! I demand that the Grand Council take a vote to censure them now, and levy a fine, to be distributed among those they have wronged! I demand this in the name of all Hutts everywhere!”
The hall erupted into pandemonium. Tails slammed, voices cried out with indignation. Some Hutts turned on the Besadii contingent with threatening tail-waves, shouting insults and curses.
Zier looked around wildly, and saw no friendliness in the hall. He raised his arms and voice, shouting in turn, but his voice was drowned out by the combined fury of the other Hutts.
Finally the furor began to die down. Grejic slapped his tail for quiet, and finally got it.
“By custom, Zier, as the ranking member of Besadii, has the right to answer his accuser. What have you to say to all this, Zier?”
Zier cleared his massive throat, swallowed. “Fellow Hutts, how can you condemn Besadii? Making profit is to be lauded, not denigrated!
Jabba and Jiliac lost the most in the attack on Nar Shaddaa, and they are attempting to sway you into siding with them against Besadii. The truth is, Besadii did nothing wrong! We did nothing—” “You did nothing, all right!” the leader of Trinivii kajidic shouted, breaking in. “Desilijic offered the strategy that saved us. Besadii grabbed profit at all our expense!”
Zier shook his head. “What we did was” “We are Hutts!” another leader shouted. “It is our pride to take from other species! It is our pride to make profit! But we do not seek to destroy our own kind! Compete, yes … destroy, no!”
Chaos erupted. A cacophony of tail-thumps, shouts, curses, bellows, and raging diatribes filled the air.
Grejic had to tail-thump many times to restore order. “I believe it is time for a vote,” he called. “All kajidic representatives in favor of officially censuring and fining Besadii—vote now, yes or no, on the motion.”
Each kajidic leader pressed a thumb against the vote tabulator before him.
Moments later, Grejic raised a hand. “The votes are tallied.
Forty-seven to one in favor of censuring Besadii.” Cheers rang out.
“Zier of Bes—” “Wait!” A voice broke in. Jabba recognized that voice, and turned to see Jiliac undulating across the room. “Wait, I did not vote!”
“Jabba voted for your kajidic, Lady Jiliac. Why this interruption? Do you wish us to re-take the vote?” Grejic was respectful, but clearly impatient to get on with the matter at hand.
“Re-take the vote?” Jabba looked at his aunt and their gazes locked.
After a moment, she shook her head. “My nephew is my accepted proxy, Lord Grejic. Please proceed.”
Jabba let out his breath very slowly. For a moment he’d thought Jiliac was going to question his judgment and his authority in front of everyone.
Many of the other Hutts were giving him curious glances, clearly wondering why Jabba had been voting if Jiliac was not going to support his position unreservedly.
Jiliac glided over to lie beside her nephew, but Jabba found himself wishing she’d just stayed away. It was embarrassing to have his judgment questioned in front of his own people. He thought again of what it would be like just to run Desilijic by himself, without interference—and unthinking interference, at that.
“Zier of Besadii,” said Grejic, continuing where he’d left off, “it is the will of this Council that you be excused from our ranks until your clan has paid one million credits in damages, to be divided among the other kajidics equally. May I suggest that you endeavor in future not to regard your own people as you would those of other species—as dupes to be exploited.”
The Executive Secretary waved to the guards and their ranking officer, who were standing at the entrance. “Guardsmaster, you will escort the Besadii delegation from this hall.”
As Zier and the other Besadii undulated along toward the entrance, Jabba saw that they were all trying to look confident and scornful and failing utterly. The soft mutter of the other Hutts swelled into a tumult of hooting laughter, raucous bellows, and shouted insults, jeers and threats.