[Legacy Of The Force] - 08(38)

“Try again, “Ben said.

They had to get access to Jacen’s StealthX. Ben would have difficulty infiltrating the GAG hangars-not impossible, but not a stroll, either-and even Shevu, with all his valid passcards, would draw attention if he so much as popped the canopy. They needed an hour in a cramped, conspicuous space to do painstaking work. It wasn’t like slipping in and attaching an explosive device and sliding out again. In a saner world, they could have applied for a search warrant. Ben knew that would rapidly become a death warrant for Shevu if he tried to do it by the book.

But Shevu could be as flexible as Girdun in his own way.

“Maintenance, “Shevu said. “Somehow, we need an ex-cuse to call it in for servicing.”

“Don’t StealthX’s have a thousand-hour maintenance interval?”

“Unfortunately. And I don’t think Incom will oblige us with a recall.”

“Who can we trust on the ground crew?”

Shevu sat upright. “It’s not a matter of trust. The fewer who know, the shorter the chain-the less we risk being discovered.”

Ben had another brief urge to abandon the idea and just go with his gut rather than put Shevu at risk. If only Mom had said one word: Jacen. It wouldn’t have been perfect proof in a court, but Ben would have had closure, and maybe the end would be the same anyway-and Jacen on trial was a pipe dream.

“I better call Dad, “Ben said. “Don’t worry, we’ll think of something.”

Ben suspected that his father would have a good idea of what he was doing, even if he didn’t know where he was doing it. He’d break it like he’d planned, gently, audio only.

“Hi, Dad. How are you doing?”

Luke sounded as if he was making an effort to switch into an upbeat voice. “I’m okay. Where are you? I can’t trace the link.”

“Coruscant.”

“I thought as much.”

“Would it really help to hear me say the same things again, Dad? I’m sorry I never told you.”

“I could take it, actually. But thanks for trying to protect me.”

“Dad, I’m-I’m pretty sure Jacen was implicated.” If Ben used the detached, oblique language of investigation, Luke would know he was in full control of his emotions and not about to do anything dumb. But he didn’t say

Mom’s murder. He found himself stopping short of that. “I have to prove or disprove that for my own peace of mind. He’s worse than you imagine, Dad. He just killed one of his own crew. He broke her neck.”

There was a faintly crackling pause, and then Luke said, “I know. Admiral Niathal told me.”

“Niathal?”

Shevu looked up at the mention of her name.

“She’s moved from being helpful to us to taking the risk of contacting me direct. Ben, I’ve told her to trust Shevu.”

“Where do you think I am?”

“There you go… you trust him, too.”

“How far do you think she’ll stick her neck out?”

“Pretty far.”

As far as Cat Omas and Dur Gejjen did when they met in secret to discuss removing Jacen, and look what I did then. If I hadn’t assassinated Gejjen, would we be here now? Is this all my fault for just obeying Jacen?

“You might hear that I’ve asked a favor of her, then, Dad-sooner or later.”

Ben struggled again with the thought that was upper-most in his mind, more important even than nailing Jacen-that he had seen his mother’s Force ghost. The first thing he’d wanted to do was tell Luke the news, and then he wondered how his dad would feel when he knew that his wife hadn’t appeared to him. Ben now knew exactly how desperate you could be to grab one more minute-one more second, even-with someone you’d lost. It was the greatest hunger he’d ever experienced, all-consuming and blind, but he’d got that wish.

And Dad hadn’t.

Would he feel robbed? Would he torment himself wondering why Mom had chosen Ben?

Did I even see what I thought I did?

Ben was sure he had. And there would be a better time to tell Dad. Maybe he had seen her, too, but wasn’t saying so yet for exactly the same reason.

“Just tell me if I’m likely to run into you while you’re doing it, “Luke said, jerking Ben’s attention back to the here and now. “And you might hear crazy rumors about Jaina, too. They’ll be true.”

“How crazy?”

“She’s gone to ask Fett to train her to take on Jacen.”

Ben didn’t find that crazy at all. “We all have to think outside the box these days, Dad.”

He could have sworn his father started to laugh for the first time in months. “You know, I must have blinked and missed you growing up. And overtaking me.”