“Of course.” Anakin knew what Ferus was getting at. He felt his neck heat up, and he turned away before the flush could reach his cheeks and betray him. The truth was less certain than his words. He was thinking of the mission, but he was also thinking of himself. He had been in a position to capture Omega without help. He had left Ferus behind with a secret satisfaction. He had wanted to win.
He sneaked a look back at Tru. His friend looked strained and unhappy. Anakin resolved to talk to him as soon as he could do so privately. Tru’s friendship was very important to him. But Tru had to understand what was important to Anakin, too.
Anakin joined the Masters. Ry-Gaul and Soara were examining the battle droid wreckage.
“These are the super battle droids we’ve been hearing about,” Soara said. “A complete violation of Republic regulations.”
Obi-Wan looked grim. “We are lucky to all be standing. This could have been much worse. I think our next step is to trace the route of the Sith if we can. He most likely used the exit that you used to get inside, Ry-Gaul.”
Ry-Gaul nodded. “That’s why he blocked it.” “There’s another possibility,” Siri said. “The landing pad could be functional.”
Anakin shook his head. “Auben said it’s buried.” “So maybe it just looks buried,” Siri said.
“Let’s ask Auben,” Anakin said. “She can show it to us, at least.”
They walked inside the service bay. It was empty. “She was hiding behind the old cruiser,” Soara said. “Where could she have gone?”
“I doubt she’d return to the monastery,” Ferus said. “She was afraid of the Commerce Guild army.”
“She must have sneaked behind us when we were tending to Ferus,” Siri said.
“Most likely heading for the other exit.” Ferus swallowed. “She went toward the Sith.”
The Jedi exchanged glances.
Without a word, they moved back to the dark front of the hangar. Using the Force, they searched each service bay as they ran, making sure Auben hadn’t hid there. Finally they ended at the pile of vehicles and debris the Sith had used to block his escape. Grimly, they set to work with their lightsabers and cleared a smoking hole through the pileup. One by one, they crawled through.
They walked into the last bay on the line. A new cruiser stood there, its ramp down.
“Did you see this when you came in?” Obi-Wan asked Ry-Gaul.
He shook his head. “It must have landed after I left.” As they moved closer, they saw a body on the ramp. It was Auben.
She was dead.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Anakin rushed forward. He checked her vitals, even though he knew she was gone. “What happened?” he asked. “There’s not a mark on her.”
“Her heart just stopped beating,” Siri said. “It’s said that the Sith were capable of stopping a heart without even touching their victim.”
“The question is, what was she doing here?” Obi-Wan asked.
Ferus had climbed up the ramp into the cruiser. He poked his head out. “That’s easy to answer. Stealing.” He held out two thermal capes. “She told Anakin and me that she could get her hands on some luxury goods.”
“While you check out the ship, Darra and I will see if we can find the landing platform,” Soara said.
Obi-Wan ran up the ramp. Quickly, he moved through the ship, searching for clues. It was evident that the ship had been left bare of everything except essentials or items that couldn’t be traced. He quickly checked the nav computer. Even the archives were wiped.
“This is the Sith ship,” he said.
“Expensive tastes,” Ferus said, dropping the thermal capes with distaste.
“Auben must have found the ship sometime earlier,” Obi-Wan guessed. “She wanted to nab some items on her way out.”
“Never got the chance,” Ferus said.
“Maybe,” Obi-Wan murmured.
He started out of the cruiser. “Something I learned from Qui-Gon. When you catch a thief, he’ll always pretend he was on his way in, not out.”
Anakin followed closely on Obi-Wan’s heels. Obi-Wan bent over Auben. Gently, he reached underneath her body and withdrew her hand. He uncurled her fist.
“We just got lucky,” he said. “The Sith was in a hurry. He didn’t check.”
“What is it?” Anakin asked.
“A holo-recorder,” Obi-Wan said, holding it up. “One of the micro versions. She’d get a good price for it on the black market. And there’s a received message here in the archive.”
He pressed a button, and a miniature image of Granta Omega appeared.