“Yes,” said Fett.
“Good.” Calrissian waved a jaunty good-bye to the bounty hunter and headed for the ramp.
Han stared hard at Boba Fett. “Have a nice trip, bounty hunter. I hope I never see you again. And you can tell Teroenza from me that the next time I come back to Ylesia, he’s one dead t’landa Til. You hear me?”
“Yes.”
“So long, Fett,” Han said. He could hear the engines whine, and the ramp trembled beneath his feet as he ran down it, pressing the close button as he did so. He had to jump down from the ramp as it rose beneath his feet.
Lando had already scooped up Boba Fett’s weaponry, and together, the young men jogged to a safe distance. They turned back to watch Slave I rear up on its end, then take off, its powerful engines flaring.
Only when it had disappeared into the distance did Han finally draw a long, deep breath and then let it out slowly. “Whew. Close call,” he said. “I’ll say,” Calrissian agreed. “You’re lucky I spotted you, Solo.”
Han nodded and held out his hand to the other. “Call me Han. I owe you, Calrissian.”
“Call me Lando.” The other man’s irresistible grin flashed. “And ˇ .
.
don’t worry. I’ll see you pay up.”
“Whatever you want, pal. You don’t know what would have happened to me if Boba Fett had succeeded.” The Corellian shivered, even in the sun’s warmth. “Trust me, you don’t want to know.”
“I can guess,” Lando said. “Boba Fett doesn’t work cheap. If somebody wanted you that bad, chances are it wasn’t just because you welshed on a debt, or anything minor.”
Han grinned. “You are an insightful guy, pal.” He beckoned to the other, and they began walking back across the landing platform. “Want to get some breakfast? I find I’m really hungry. Nearly meeting a fate worse than death has that effect on me.”
“Sure,” Lando said. “You buying?”
“You bet.”
By the time they were settled at a little cafe Han knew, sipping cups of stimtea, Han was beginning to feel as though he’d known Lando for years, instead of just an hour. “So, tell me,” he said, finishing off the last slice of flatbread, “how did you find me? And why were you lookin’ for me?”
“Well, I’ve actually seen you a time or two before,” Lando admitted.
“You were pointed out to me in a couple of night spots as a fair sabacc player, a good smuggler, and an excellent pilot.”
Han tried, without much success, to look suitably modest. “I don’t recall seeing you, Lando, but I didn’t have any reason to remember, I guess. So, okay, you knew what I look like. What happened this morning?”
“Well, last night I went by your place to talk to you, and your friend told me that he didn’t think you’d be home that night.” Lando gave Han a knowing smile. “But he told me you’d probably be staying with a . .
.
friend … at The Chance Castle. So, when I finished the night’s work, I dropped by on my way home.”
“You work at night? What do you do?” Han asked.
“Gambler,” Lando said. “Mostly. Though I’ve been known to try my hand at various schemes as they come along.”
“I see. So you hadn’t been to bed yet, but you came by The Castle on the way home.”
“It wasn’t far out of my way. Most of the big casinos in that section of Nar Shaddaa are within walking distance of each other. Anyway, when I got there, I saw you on the street, ahead of me. I followed you, intending to catch up and introduce myself—” “Only to see Boba Fett get the drop on me,” Han guessed. “Exactly. I don’t much like bounty hunters, so I followed you until I was pretty sure where he was heading. Then I managed to slip around the perimeter of the landing field and get ahead of you. You were walking pretty slowly, you know.
I recognized Slave I, so I was able to hide between you and the ship, then get the drop on Fett when he walked past.”
Han nodded. “And I’m real glad you did, pal.” He shook his head.
“Listen, don’t tell Chewie about this, okay? He’s sworn something called a life debt to me, ‘cause he thinks he owes me, you see. I had a hard time talkin’ him out of coming with me last night. He was sure I’d get myself into trouble …”
“Well, you did,” Lando said, chuckling.
“I know I did,” Han admitted ruefully. “But if Chewie ever finds out about it, he’ll never let me out of his sight again. And, hey …
there are times when a guy would like some privacy, you know?”