In other words, Zan Arbor hadn’t been a suspect. So why had Qui-Gon asked for this list?
Back then, Obi-Wan thought that the Outlaw Tech gang had hired the bounty hunter. But Qui-Gon must have had his doubts. Had he been trying to link the bounty hunter to Zan Arbor?
They had never solved the mystery of how the bounty hunter had been able to break into Didi’s CafŠ after Zan Arbor’s guests had left. They knew the cafŠ had been locked up tight, every door and window bolted.
Could Qui-Gon have wondered if one of the guests had stayed behind? Astri might not have noticed in the confusion of departure.
And the bounty hunter was a master of disguise…
Obi-Wan looked over at Astri. She was sleeping peacefully. He could leave her for a short time.
He crossed to a small desk in the corner. Quickly, he copied the fading names onto a fresh durasheet and tossed the old one in the trash container.
He headed out the door. It wasn’t much to go on, but it was a direction.
CHAPTER 5
Yamele Polidor
Nontal Quincu
Aleck W’a Ni Odus
Dobei Eranusite
B’Zun Mai Reesa On Von Taub
Obi-Wan took an air taxi to the Official Committee Liaison Office at the Senate. This office handled the transportation and residence needs of the many committees from around the galaxy that came to petition the Senate. Since it was a Jedi request, he was given the homeworlds and contact information of each being on the list.
Quickly, Obi-Wan scanned it. Only three of the guests were still staying on Coruscant. The others had returned to their homeworlds. He would start here. If he found nothing, he would move on. If he had to travel to the Outer Rim for a clue, he would do it.
Yamele Polidor and Von Taub still had business with the Senate and were staying in a guesthouse nearby. Obi-Wan went there first. He found them together in the sitting room, going over the record of the meeting they had attended that day.
Obi-Wan explained that he was on a Jedi mission to discover who had broken into Didi’s CafŠ after their group had left.
Yamele Polidor was a petite Rindian with pointed ears and two eight-fingered hands. She nodded politely at Obi-Wan. “Of course I will be glad to help.”
The Corweillian Von Taub nodded. “As will I.” “Did anyone come into the cafŠ while you were there?” Obi-Wan asked.
“Just the members of our own party,” Yamele Polidor answered in the low, singsong manner of a Rindian.
“Did you notice anyone on the street outside?”
Von Taub shook his head. “We left, and the owner of the cafŠ, a young woman, locked the door after us. Jenna Zan Arbor was very upset with the service and food. I didn’t think it was that bad, myself.” He smiled. “Maybe I’m more used to disorganization. But Jenna is a scientist who can’t tolerate disorder.”
“Do you know the other names on this list well?” Obi-Wan asked. He handed the list to them.
Yamele Polidor ran one of her long fingers down the list. “I know all of these scientists personally, except for Dobei Eranusite and Reesa On.”
“I know Dobei quite well,” Von Taub said. “Reesa On was a stranger to me as well.”
“Did anyone know her?” Obi-Wan asked.
“Jenna Zan Arbor,” Yamele Polidor answered.
“Yes, they worked on a research project together,” Von Taub added. “Jenna was very complimentary about her skills as a scientist. None of the rest of us knew her.”
Obi-Wan kept his voice steady despite his rising excitement. “Do you remember what she looked like?”
“Not really,” Yamele Polidor said with a shrug. “Tall, maybe? She was humanoid. That, I remember.”
“Very striking,” Von Taub said. “She wore a silk turban and a lovely septsilk robe.”
Obi-Wan realized he had seen her himself. He had a vague memory of a woman in a jeweled turban. He pushed his urgency away and left his mind open, let the memory come as it would, as he had been taught. The information he sought would come to him.
He and Qui-Gon had been talking to Astri when the guests arrived. He remembered the look of distaste on Jenna Zan Arbor’s face. And one tall woman had gathered her rich robe around her as if it would get dirty from touching a chair or the floor. She had very strong hands…
It had been her. The bounty hunter.
He was sure of it. And now he had a name.
“One last question,” Obi-Wan said. “Do you know if Zan Arbor has more than one lab? I know that her main lab is on Ventrux.”
Both the scientists looked puzzled. “But why would she need another lab?” Von Taub asked.
“I have never heard such a thing,” Yamele Polidor added.
“Thank you for your help,” he said, rising and bowing. He hurried outside and immediately summoned Tahl on his comlink.