[Jedi Apprentice] - Special Edition - 01(30)

Obi-Wan considered his options. They could resist. Escape from this room would be easy. He was not threatened in the least by the security officers in the room, although no doubt Uni and Vox gained comfort from their presence.

But where would they go? They could hide on the ship. Den would help them. But what would that accomplish? He had not seen any evidence that beings aboard the BioCruiser were mistreated. There was no compelling reason for him to defy Uni and Vox at this point.

The veiled triumph in Uni’s gaze now blazed into life. He had Obi-Wan cornered, and he knew it.

Obi-Wan reached for his comlink and activated it. He punched in Garen’s frequency.

“We are done here,” he said. “We need a pickup.” He gave Garen the coordinates that Uni handed him.

“That was fast. You’re lucky. I’m nearby, in the Tentrix system. I can be there in an hour,” Garen replied.

They cut the communication. Uni nodded in satisfaction and held out his hand. Obi-Wan put his comlink into it. He then turned to Anakin. After a nod from Obi-Wan, Anakin placed his comlink in Uni’s hand.

“These will be returned to you before your departure,” Uni said.

“Unlike you, we are not thieves,” Vox sneered.

“The security officers will escort you back to your quarters,” Uni said. “I will not be seeing you again, Obi-Wan Kenobi.” For the first time, he smiled. “I must admit I am glad of it.”





CHAPTER 18


Obi-Wan requested that Anakin be allowed to remain with him in his quarters. After a second of hesitation, the first security officer agreed. The door hissed shut, and they were alone.

“Do we really have to leave?” Anakin asked.

“We have an hour,” Obi-Wan said. “We should be able to find something out in that time. I wish Uni hadn’t asked for our comlinks. We need to hear from Tnani about the background check on Kern.”

“But what can we do locked in here?” Anakin asked.

“They didn’t take our lightsabers,” Obi-Wan pointed out. “I think they knew we would not give them up voluntarily. We can get out if we have to. But I don’t think we’ll need to cut our way out.”

Anakin grinned.”Den?”

Obi-Wan nodded. “I’m sure he’ll be along. Now, what were your conclusions about the meeting?”

Anakin sat on a chair and focused his concentration. “Vox was afraid,” he said at last.

Obi-Wan nodded. “Good.”

“It is hard to separate fear from anger,” Anakin went on slowly. “Yet I sensed the fear propelling the anger.”

“We don’t know if he can pinpoint that we were looking for information on Kern,” Obi-Wan said. “I have to assume that Den was smart enough to cover his tracks in that area. But he knows we were searching the text-doc files. That was enough to unnerve him. It’s a good sign. Den was right. Something is wrong here. Anything else?”

“The point where he should have been nervous, he wasn’t,” Anakin said. “Most beings in his situation would worry about the Senate’s reaction to kicking two Jedi off the ship. After all, they had no evidence we were involved in the text-doc theft. Uni looked worried. But that seemed the least of Vox’s concerns.”

“Very good, Padawan,” Obi-Wan congratulated him. “I could not ask for a more perceptive reading of the situation.”

Anakin gave him a sidelong look. “If I am so perceptive, why don’t you trust me?”

Surprised at the blunt question, Obi-Wan sat opposite from Anakin. Memory flooded back. Qui-Gon had kept things from him, too. Now Obi-Wan understood his Master’s caution. But he also remembered how Qui-Gon’s decision to share his past had deepened their connection. It was what he wanted for himself and Anakin.

It was time to tell his Padawan about Bruck.

He took his time, explaining theTemplesabotage, his history with Bruck, and the agony of seeing a boy he’d known die. He explained the hearing but did not tell Anakin of the guilt he felt. Anakin did not have to know every detail.

Anakin shook his head in disbelief when Obi-Wan had finished. “How could they suspect you?”

Obi-Wan’s gaze grew cloudy. “Bruck and I had never gotten along. After his death I wondered if I had been the best Jedi I could have been. Instead of meeting his anger with my own, could I have absorbed it without complaint? Could I have tried to understand the source of it? Would that have changed the course of Bruck’s life?”

Obi-Wan’s gaze cleared, and he looked at Anakin with his usual keenness. “You see why the Jedi Masters at theTempleoften speak to you of anger and fear, Anakin. They have seen what it can do. So have I.”