The Dangerous Rescue

18

Qui-Gon leaned against the trunk of a tree, his eyes closed, as Adi ran the samples through an analyzer and then sent the data to Tahl.

Obi-Wan approached him and sat down gingerly. He knew that Qui-Gon did not want him to speak. But he was worried.

“You have not regained your strength, Master,” he said quietly. “Are you sure that—” He stopped. Qui-Gon had opened one eye. That was enough to stop his voice in his throat.

“Winna Di Uni told me it would take time,” Qui-Gon said. “It is doing so.” He closed his eyes. “Do not worry, Padawan. This will be over soon. Then I will rest.”

Obi-Wan nodded, even though Qui-Gon did not see him. He had observed his Master tired and in pain before, but never so diminished. It was a strange feeling. If Qui-Gon could weaken, any Jedi was vulnerable.

Adi’s comlink signaled, and she quickly pressed the holo function.

Tahl appeared.

“The bacteria have been bioengineered,” she said without any preliminaries. “It has been cleverly done. The measures taken to restrain it actually caused it to grow.”

Qui-Gon sat up, alert. “Can you tell the scientists here how to control it?”

“They already know,” Tahl said. “A scientific research company on Belasco announced a discovery just a few hours ago. They now know how to neutralize the bacteria. They also have found a way to treat those who are already sick. They will make a fortune.”

“A fortune,” Obi-Wan repeated softly. “And a piece of a fortune was offered to Ona Nobis if she came back.”

Adi leaned toward Tahl. “Can you trace the company back to—”

“Zan Arbor Industries? I already have,” Tahl said.

Siri slapped a hand on her leg. “We’ve got her.”

“Now we have to find her,” Adi said.

“I’ll be standing by,” Tahl said, and her image faded.

Qui-Gon stood. “Let’s head back to the royal grounds. I’m certain the answer is there.”

The sun was lowering as the Jedi hurried through back streets toward the palace gates.

Streams of Belascan citizens were heading there as well. They realized quickly that news had spread about the discovery. The people were gathering to celebrate. They would have plenty of cover.

And so would Ona Nobis.

They moved through the crowd on the palace lawns, searching for Astri.

“I don’t see her anywhere,” Qui-Gon said. “She’s supposed to be keeping an eye on Uta S’orn.”

“There she is,” Obi-Wan said, pointing. “She’s wearing a medic aide coverall.”

Dressed in white, Astri wheeled a young boy through the garden. She bent down to pull a blanket over his lap.

“It’s good cover,” Qui-Gon said. “But what about Cholly, Weez, and Tup?”

Tup burst out of one of the Med Wards at the head of a group of children, juggling three bright laserballs. Weez followed.

“At least they are staying out of trouble,” Qui-Gon said.

Astri caught sight of them and hurried over, her face alight.

“Have you heard the news? A cure has been found!”

“We’ve heard,” Adi said. “But we still have a problem.”

“I’ve been keeping track of Uta S’orn,” Astri said. “I haven’t seen anything suspicious. She’s out in the open all the time. She’s devoting herself to the children. She does everything, even helps with food service.”

Qui-Gon tensed. “Do you have access to the palace kitchens?” he asked Astri.

Astri nodded. “Food delivery is one place that they are shorthanded. Everyone can pitch in and help.”

“Do you think it’s possible to track the meals that leave the kitchens? Can you count the meal trays?”

“Yes,” Astri said. “Cholly has been helping to prepare the trays.”

“How are the meals delivered?” Adi asked.

“Through the tunnels, mostly,” Astri said. “They were built about a century ago, during a war with a neighboring planet. It’s the fastest way to get from the kitchens to the ward areas. They built the domes over the old entrances in the gardens, just for that reason.”

“When is the next meal?” Qui-Gon asked. Astri checked her timepiece.

“Cholly should be preparing the trays right now.”

“Good,” Qui-Gon said. “Obi-Wan, Siri, I want you to go with Astri to the kitchens. Compare the number of food trays with the number of sick children. If there are more trays than children, follow Uta S’orn. Make sure she does not see you! Note where she delivers the trays. If Ona Nobis and Zan Arbor are on the grounds, they have to eat.”

Qui-Gon fixed Obi-Wan and Siri with his most serious glare. “If you see, or even sense, that Ona Nobis is near, do not engage with her. Come back for Adi and myself.”

Obi-Wan and Siri agreed and followed Astri to the palace kitchen. It was an enormous room filled with food stations and storage. Obi-Wan and Siri waited in the dim hallway while Astri went inside.

Cholly was busy setting up trays with bowls of stew, bread, and a fruit tart. Other workers milled about, dishing up the stew and pushing the trays forward in a line to be loaded onto carts.

Swiftly, Astri ran her eyes down the rows of trays, counting. She slipped outside to the hall.

“There are sixty-four trays,” she said. “Two extra. Qui-Gon was right. Now we have to wait for Uta S’orn.”

Moments later, the other workers began to fill the kitchen. They each took a cart and slid trays inside the warming element. Uta S’orn arrived and quickly worked to fill her own cart.

“I’ll take Ward Five, as usual,” she said.

She rolled the cart out into the hallway and headed for the tunnel.

Obi-Wan and Siri pressed back against the wall. They moved silently behind Uta S’orn, keeping as close as they dared through the twisting maze.

Uta S’orn delivered the meals to Ward Five first. They watched as she ascended the ramp into the ward. When she returned, she still had two trays on her cart. She made a sudden turn and came straight toward them.

Obi-Wan and Siri threw themselves back into a side tunnel. They flattened themselves against a wall and tried not to breathe. If Uta S’orn came down this way, they would be discovered.

They were lucky. She turned down an opposite tunnel. After a moment, they followed cautiously. The tunnel narrowed as it turned sharply to the left. Obi-Wan had been careful to keep track of how they were moving. He knew that they had turned away from the main wing of the palace and the wards and were heading toward Uta S’orn’s private quarters.

Suddenly, they heard the cart stop. Obi-Wan crept forward. He peered around the corner long enough to see Uta S’orn place the trays on the floor. Then she turned toward him.

He ducked back and motioned to Siri. The two ran lightly down the tunnel, hearing S’orn behind them. She could not move as fast due to the cart. They reached the main tunnel and Obi-Wan headed left, guessing she was on her way back to the palace kitchens.

After a few moments Uta S’orn emerged and took the route Obi-Wan had predicted. Obi-Wan and Siri headed back the way they had come. They waited at the curve of the tunnel.

“What if Ona Nobis comes from behind us?” Siri whispered.

“We run,” Obi-Wan whispered back.

To Obi-Wan’s surprise, a small vent in the ceiling over the food trays opened. Ona Nobis slithered through, her Sorrusian skeletal system compressing to allow her to fit through the tiny space.

Siri’s hand went to her lightsaber. She began to draw it out. In a swift move, Obi-Wan put his hand on her wrist to stop her. She glared at him, but he did not let go.

Ona Nobis picked up the sweet fruit tart from one tray and popped it in her mouth. Quickly, she gobbled up the second tart, then wiped her fingers delicately on her tunic.

“Sneak,” Siri whispered in Obi-Wan’s ear.

Ona Nobis pushed the food trays through the vent overhead. Then she hoisted herself up and through.

“We should have attacked,” Siri whispered fiercely after Nobis disappeared.

“Siri, Qui-Gon told us not to,” Obi-Wan said irritably.

“But we were so close! And she didn’t have her whip,” Siri argued.

Her blue eyes glinted a challenge in the darkness of the tunnel, and she thrust her chin at Obi-Wan. “Or were you afraid to meet her again?”