The Mark of the Crown(18)

“I am sorry to tell you this, Beju,” Queen Veda said gently. “It is true. He regretted it. He wanted to make it right.”

“You defile Father’s memory,” Prince Beju whispered in horror.

“Will you go to any length to shame me?”

The Queen turned to Giba. “Tell him,” she begged. “You were there. You know it is true.”

Giba shook his head. “I’m sorry, Queen. I will do anything for Your Highness. Except lie for you.”

The Queen staggered backward. Obi-Wan moved forward to support her.

“Now I see it all,” Prince Beju raged. “You are in league with the Jedi. You have conspired against me. You will do whatever it takes to make sure I do not gain the crown.”

“No, Beju, my son,” Queen Veda said weakly. “No…”

***

“I am catling the guards’ Prince Beju said firmly. He moved toward the tubes mounted in the wall.

Obi-Wan was still holding on to the Queen’s arm. He could feel her shaking. She was close to collapse. Yet with a sudden burst of strength, she pulled away from Obi-Wan. She had time to give him a look that told him to run. Then she staggered forward and collapsed against her son.

Prince Beju was thrown off balance. He held on to his mother so that she wouldn’t fall. Giba took a step forward to help him.

Obi-Wan quickly ran out the door.

Obi-Wan fled. He burst through the door to the gardens and saw the flick of a silver robe as the elder council member with the milky blue eyes moved off into the trees. Obi-Wan turned in the opposite direction and snaked through the orchard.

He had to leave the palace grounds, and he could not leave by the main gate. He was sure now that Giba was behind the Queen’s poisoning. The only question was if Prince Beju knew about it. The Prince had seemed genuinely stricken by his mother’s condition.

He heard running footsteps behind him. Obi-Wan quickened his pace. He was almost to the high stone wall that surrounded the palace grounds.

“Obi-Wan! Wait, friend!”

It was Jono. Obi-Wan hesitated. Could he trust him? He wanted to trust him. He liked him.

But had it just been a coincidence that Giba and Beju had burst into the room while he was talking to the Queen? Had Jono followed him there from the gardens, then run to fetch them? Qui-Gon’s warning lay heavy on his heart.

“Please!” Jono called. In another moment, he would round the turn of the path. What if he was bringing the guards? Obi-Wan still had time to run.

I knew you would return…. I have waited for a friend for a long time, Obi-Wan.

He remembered the look in Jono’s eyes that day, wistful and sincere. Jono had trusted him. Obi-Wan had to return the favor. Obi-Wan stopped short.

Jono burst into sight, his blond hair flying. He almost slammed into Obi-Wan, but instead tripped and went flying.

“Ow!” he cried, rubbing his knee. He pushed his hair out of his eyes and grinned. “That will teach me to try to catch a Jedi.”

Obi-Wan helped him to his feet. “You can run fast.”

“That’s why you need me,” Jono said. “You must let me help you. I was coming to attend the Queen. I heard what happened. Do you really think the Queen is being poisoned?” he ended on a whisper.

“Yes, I do,” Obi-Wan said.

“Beju has called the guards. It’s not safe here, Obi-Wan. They’re already searching for you.”

“I was just about to leave,” Obi-Wan told him.

“But where will you go?” Jono asked, frowning.

“I’ll hide in the city,” Obi-Wan said. “I’ll wait for Qui-Gon to return.”

“They will catch you,” Jono said. “There are spies everywhere. I must go with you. And I know where we should go.”

“Where?” Obi-Wan asked.

“To Deca Brun,” Jono said firmly. “He will help us.”

Deca Brun’s headquarters were in a crowded, bustling area of Galu, in the middle of shops and tall residential towers. Red banners proclaiming his name flapped from almost every window. Large posters of a smiling Deca were plastered on walls. Written on the bottom in Deca’s bold handwriting was: I AM YOU! WE ARE ONE!

“It was Deca who showed us that we are all Galacians,” Jono told Obi-Wan as they approached the building. “Before, family lineage was the most important tie on Gala. The great families of Gala - the Tallahs, the Gibas, the Prammis, and others - received the favors of the court. It was Deca who said that we owed loyalty to each other, to all Galacians.”

The boy’s face shone with pride. “He made me realize that there was a world outside the palace.” Jono pushed open the door. The office was filled with campaign workers. Some tapped on datapads, others huddled in groups, talking earnestly.