Durga the Hutt crouched beside his parent’s repulsor sled, griefstricken, watching the med droids and Grodo, the Hutt physician, work desperately to save Aruk. But even he could tell that their efforts were doomed to failure.
Aruk had collapsed minutes ago, gasping in pain, retching, moaning, then jerking in frenzied spasms. Durga had never felt so helpless as he watched his parent struggle for life and breath.
Aruk the Hutt had always been strong, strong and stubborn. It took him four hours to die, four agonizing, pain-filled hours. Durga crouched by him the entire time, hoping that his parent would regain consciousness, but Aruk never did.
It was a relief when the Besadii Lord’s straining heart finally gave up the struggle, but even though he was glad that his parent was free of the terrible pain, Durga was devastated. He had lost his best friend, as well as his parent.
He clutched Aruk’s limp hand, seeing the rivulets of green slobber running out the slack, dead mouth, and knew, without knowing how he knew, that this death was murder.
Who had done this?
Who else but Desilijic stood to profit by Aruk’s death?
For days Durga was too devastated to function, barely eating, dragging himself around like a lost spirit. He refused to let his parent’s body be interred. Even though the physician’s tests on the contents of Aruk’s stomach indicated that there was no poison, that the Hutt Lord had died of natural causes, Durga was convinced that there had been foul play. He had Aruk’s massive corpse frozen, and resolved to hire a team of forensic specialists from Imperial Center to perform a thorough autopsy as soon as things settled down.
The Besadii kajidic was in an uproar. Two factions emerged, the proDurga and the anti-Durga faction. Durga took steps to consolidate his power. He contacted an infamous crime syndicate, Black Sun, that was owned and commanded by the powerful prince Xizor, and explained to the prince how their organizations might prove beneficial to each other …
Over the next three weeks, three powerful Besadii Lords died—two in shuttle crashes, one by drowning when his river barge struck an uncharted rock and sank.
After that, the anti-Durga faction became far less vocal.
While he waited for the forensic specialists to arrive from Imperial Center, Durga made a list of possible suspects. Surely there would be some clue, somewhere, as to who had done this—and how.
Durga resolved to start with the financial records. As a Hutt, he understood finances, and profit. He would check the finances of every member of Desilijic, then go on to Besadii, then the other clans. He would look for a pattern. There was always a pattern to finances, if one knew how to see it …
Slowly, day by day, the young Hutt Lord found the strength to carry on without his parent.
Someone is going to pay for this, he vowed every morning when he looked at Aruk’s holo hanging on the wall in his chamber. And they will pay dearly .
. .
16
The Payoff
This time around, the snooty administrative aide waved Han into Admiral Greelanx’s private sanctum without question. It was obvious to Han that his arrival was eagerly awaited. The Corellian smiled grimly as he walked in. He supposed he’d be glad to see someone who was going to give him a fortune, too …
The admiral was standing by the viewport, staring out moodily. He turned as Han came in, nodded, but did not smile. “Did you bring them?” he asked.
“Yes, sir, they’re all here, exactly as specified,” Han said.
Carefully he pushed items away from the center of Greelanx’s desk and then emptied the small pouch he carried into the cleared spot.
Greelanx stared down at the sparkling fortune in assorted untraceable gems, and his eyes lit up. “The Hutts are true to their word,” he said.
“But you won’t mind if I—” He gestured with a magnifier.
“Go right ahead,” Han said.
The admiral spent the next few minutes examining several of the largest, most beautiful gems—Gallinorean rainbow gems, corusca stones, and Krayt dragon pearls of various sizes and hues. “I assume you found your shuttle at the rendezvous point,” the admiral said, “since you are here exactly on time.”
“Yes, sir, everything was just like you said it would be, Admiral.”
Greelanx glanced up, still holding the magnifier up to his face. His right eye was enormous, as seen through the lens. “How are you planning to get off my ship?” he asked, as if only mildly curious.
Han shrugged. “I have a partner who will pick me up.”
“Very well. Young man, these stones are exactly as specified. Please tell your Hutt masters that I am satisfied.”
Han nodded, but said, “They aren’t my masters. I just work for them.”