“That’s very Thrackan-ish.” Mara took the canteen, unscrewed the cap, and took a long drink of its contents-water, tasting slightly of its storage in a metal container. “So, first: Master Skywalker says ‘Good work’ on your staying here like this.”
Tiu beamed.
“Second-your report?”
Tiu sat down, cross-legged. “The short form? I’ve been here several days, have figured out how to patch a datapad into their internal holocam system and beep my comlink whenever the area I’m in is about to fall under active observation. I’ve dived under more tables recently than you can possibly imagine.”
Mara grinned and took another drink.
“Sal-Solo isn’t spending much time here,” Tiu continued. “Which has given me several opportunities to enter his personal quarters. I’ve found equipment there I think is a master control set for this building’s security and communications computers, but they’re too well defended for me. They apparently require Sal-Solo’s biometric identification, which I didn’t think to bring.”
“I did.” Mara patted one of the pouches beneath her robes. “What else?”
Tiu shrugged. “I’ve mapped out as much of this building as I’ve been able to visit, but I’ve concentrated more on not being discovered. Which is tricky, as Sal-Solo seems to be very paranoid, and has security agents with mentalities to match his. I don’t think I’ve been that effective.”
“You’ve been very effective. But I think we’ve asked all we can of you here. You’ll be leaving with me.”
Tiu smiled again and mimed a sigh of relief.
“All right,” Mara said. “I’m going to rest for a while-until whatever time you think is best for a visit to Thrackan’s quarters. That’s when we go to work.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
TWO YVH COMBAT DROIDS LED HAN AND LEIA ALONG THE CURVED hallway. Only a third of the glow rods in the ceiling were activated, and the shadows in the hallway were deep. Most of the doors from the hall were on the right wall; an occasional door or side passage led away to the left.
Marching in lockstep unison, the droids came to a halt before one of the right-hand doors. One of them gestured at it, doubtless transmitting a security code, and it slid up.
The droids waited. Leia and Han exchanged a look. Han shrugged, and they entered.
The chamber beyond was spacious and airy. The far wall was mostly transparisteel, looking down on a larger chamber; from the doorway, Han and Leia could see the far wall but not the floor of that chamber. That chamber seemed to be circular and ringed by viewing chambers like this one; it was dimly lit like the hallway.
The chamber they stood in was completely unlit; its only illumination came in through the transparisteel wall and the door, and the latter source of light vanished as the door slid closed behind them.
There were chairs and couches scattered throughout the chamber, including a line of high-backed swivel chairs set against the transparisteel wall, and one of them now rotated so that its occupant faced Han and Leia. It was a male human. The dimness made it difficult to make out the man’s features, but he seemed to be dark-haired, with handsome but rather bland features; he wore garments that were similar to Han’s in cut and style, but all in red and brown hues and topped by a long-sleeved military-style tunic, unfastened along the front seam for its wearer’s comfort.
He rose. “Captain Solo. Princess Organa. I’m glad to meet you at last.”
Han and Leia approached and shook hands with him in turn. “Prime Minister Teppler,” Leia said. “Thank you for seeing us. And allow us to offer our condolences on your loss.”
“Losses, actually,” Teppler corrected. “My brother died defending Aidel.”
Han looked at the man more closely. There was something familiar about the Five World Prime Minister pro tem, and even in the dimness Han could now make out what it was-Denjax Teppler was the slightly older, slightly softer-edged image of the CorSec guard who had been with Aidel Saxan during their first meeting with her.
“I apologize,” Leia said. “We didn’t know.”
“I shouldn’t have mentioned it,” Teppler said. “I’m too used to a role as a minister dispensing information, not used to being a Prime Minister keeping it all bottled up. Please, sit.” He gestured to chairs opposite his, and resumed his seat.
His visitors settled into chairs. Leia said, “We were surprised to receive your coded communication.”
“Surprised that Aidel had shared her secrets with me, as we were no longer husband and wife?”