Chapter XII – Turncoat
“CELA!” Mara shouted searching throughout her ship
for her slave. “Perhaps she hasn’t returned yet. I
am quite faster than she is,” Mara quipped as she
turned around and heading for her quarters. “That
just allows me to check on my new acquisition,” she
said with a laugh.
__________________________________*****__________________________________
“I’m
surprised she slept through it,” Obi-Wan commented
as he peered down at the slumbering girl.
“I
am too. Evidently she’s a very heavy sleeper.”
Sakoya replied and then bent down and shook the
girl’s shoulder. It took a few minutes and more
shoulder shaking before Sakoya was able to rouse
Cela from her slumber. Slowly opening her eyes, Cela
looked around, trying to get her bearings. The
torches barely reached the area she was in and she
couldn’t make out the faces of whoever was hovering
over her, but she could see there was more than one
outline.
“Wh-what do you want?” she asked frightened,
instantly scooting backward only to be stopped by
the cave’s wall.
“We
won’t hurt you,” Sakoya said in a calming voice.
“What are you doing here?”
Cela
looked around hoping to find some avenue of escape.
Mara would do worse than kill her if she exposed her
mistress. “I, uh, got lost,” she replied, not at all
convincingly.
“You
needn’t be frightened. What’s your name?” Sakoya
asked.
Cela
refused to answer and suddenly jumped to her feet
and ran farther into the cave. She almost fell and
had to grab onto one of the formations to support
her. She only stopped as she reached the torch lit
area. Glancing over, she saw the bodies of the two
men she had met before with Mara.
“Old
habits die hard – literally,” she said to herself.
“Do
you know who did this?” Sakoya asked the girl as she
came up behind her.
Cela’s heart skipped a beat at the sound of the
voice. She hadn’t heard the person approach and she
quickly turned around, her jaw dropping almost
instantly. Her face full of fear, she slowly backed
up and said, “Wh-who are you? What do you want?”
“I
told you we won’t harm you. There’s no need to be
afraid,” Sakoya reassured her.
“We
are Jedi and would like to find out what happened
here,” Obi-Wan said lightly, trying not to scare the
girl further.
“Jedi?” Cela looked at the woman Jedi’s face,
puzzled. “You look almost exactly like her…” her
voice trailed off, realizing what she was saying.
“Like who?” Sakoya pressed the silver haired
teenager.
Oh, no. Was it Mara then?,
Obi-Wan thought.
“I-I
can’t say. I’m sorry, I really should go,” Cela
stammered.
“It’s late, we could escort you home. It would be
safer than you traveling by yourself,” Sakoya
offered.
“Thank you, but I’ll be fine.”
“Please, I insist. You never know who may be on the
streets.”
Cela
didn’t know who this woman was but she was much
kinder than her mistress, Mara Jade, and the
likeness between the two was eerie. And then it
struck her…this was her way out. Her freedom
was standing right in front of her. Finally the
opening she had longed for. She could bid Mara
goodbye forever and be under the protection of the
Jedi. Yes, no more beatings, no more…she
thought to herself with relief.
Obi-Wan saw the sudden change overcome the girl; her
fear was gone and replaced by a sense of relief.
“Are you alright?” he asked.
“Yes,” she replied, “I am now. My name is Cela
Sinatt and I believe you both have become my
benefactor.” She paused and then added, “I request
your protection of my life.”
__________________________________*****__________________________________
Mara
held the vial up to the light and grinned from ear
to ear. “You,” she stared hard at the light orange
colored liquid, “will make me rich beyond my dreams.
If you are what I believe…and I think you are…I’ll
never have to be a subordinate to anyone again.”
With extreme care she walked over to her desk and
set the vial down on a small pillow. “I’ll need to
gather the rest and get them on board the ship. No
one else knows of this I’m sure – those two idiots
were too greedy.” Mara softly rubbed her chin with
her hand, considering her possibilities. “Since I
can’t land my ship anywhere near that beach I think
I need to make other arrangements.”
__________________________________*****__________________________________
“Protection? From whom?” Obi-Wan prodded.
“My
mistress. Once she realizes I’m not coming back
she’ll hunt me down. I’ve seen how she deals with
those that betray her.” Cela shivered as the
memories flashed in her mind. “She’ll do worse than
kill me.”
“This person can’t possibly be that cruel,” Sakoya
commented.
Cela
looked into the woman Jedi’s eyes, eyes that
reminded her so much of Mara. “Oh, she can and is.
Trust me on that.”
“Well then, consider yourself under Jedi
protection.”
Cela
glanced over at the other Jedi, the man who looked
so kind and caring. “Thank you, ah, um…”
“I
apologize, I am Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi and
this,” he indicated to his counterpart, “is my wife
and fellow Jedi Knight Sakoya Jade-Kenobi.”
Cela’s eyes burst open wide. “Jade?”
“Yes,” Sakoya answered, looking slightly confused.
“Are you alright?”
“I’m
fine.” Cela smiled, her momentary shock quickly
erased. They may look very much alike but they
certainly don’t act it, she silently thought.
“You asked if I knew who did this,” Cela pointed to
the corpses. “Well I do. I can’t offer proof because
I seemed to have fallen asleep, which is strange,”
Cela suddenly looked confused and then continued,
“because I’ve been taught not to do that.” The girl
shook her head. “But I can help you as long as you
promise to protect me no matter what.”
“You
are under our protection – we give our word,”
Obi-Wan responded.
Cela
breathed a sigh of relief and walked over to the
open rectangular container. She grabbed the first
figure she saw, a nexu, and a poorly done one at
that, and proceeded to break the sculpture against
the edge of the container. Tossing a few broken
pieces away she looked inside and removed the
miniature vial and then handed both to the Jedi
Master.
Puzzled, Obi-Wan took them both, glanced at the vial
and then handed it to Sakoya. “What do you make of
that?” he asked.
“Hmmm, I’m not sure…” Sakoya furrowed her brow. “Is
this it?”
Obi-Wan looked inside the broken sculpture. “It
doesn’t appear so,” he answered as he turned the
broken piece of art upside down and watched as a
small datachip tumble into his palm.
The
cool breeze licked at their heels as the trio
discretely made their way back to Montique Resort.
They took no chances of being followed and kept to
the shadows, each of them keeping their senses fully
alert. The last thing Cela wanted was for her
mistress to find her and in the company of two Jedi
no less. Her only dilemma at this point was how much
she should divulge to the Jedi about Mara’s ‘deals’.
Once
they reached the employee entrance at the rear of
the resort they slipped through the door and used
the employee turbolift to take them to their desired
floor. Cela waited as they rose higher and higher
and wondered if they planned on shooting through the
roof when the lift suddenly stopped and the doors
opened.
Obi-Wan peered one way outside the lift doors while
Sakoya did the same the other way.
*All
clear*, she said through their mental bond.
“Now, young lady,” Obi-Wan escorted the girl over to
the oversized armchair and invited her to sit. “I
think you have some explaining to do.”
“I’ll get us something to drink,” Sakoya offered.
Cela
was beginning to get nervous. Am I doing the
right thing? What if Mara catches me? I can’t lie to
her – she always knows. But I want this to end, I
want my own life. I don’t want to be a slave anymore.
She was still fidgeting when Sakoya returned with
the drinks. Her hand shaking, she managed to take
the drink and took a sip. The warm liquid felt good
as it went down her throat and Cela leaned back into
the chair with a sigh.
“Better?” Sakoya asked as she sat down on the divan
next to her husband.
Cela
nodded and took another sip.
Both
Jedi stared at her, waiting for her to begin
talking. Cela’s eyes shifted from their gaze, it
made her feel guilty for the things she had done in
the past. The silence remained and the Jedi waited
patiently, they knew she would begin when she was
ready.
Several minutes passed, causing an uneasy silence
for the teenager. She was scared yet empowered at
the same time – she could finally end one way of
life and maybe make Mara pay for her crimes as well.
Of course, there was the other action to consider –
if Mara would take her revenge at some point. I
have to be strong, she silently repeated to
herself.
Cela
drained her cup and set it down, her movements slow
and she still shook from fear. “I need assurances
first,” she boldly stated.
“Go
on –” Sakoya prodded.
“I
need to know absolutely that my life will be
protected. That I will be placed where she can’t
find me and I can live in peace.”
“We
have offered our protection and will maintain that.
You will not come to any harm,” Obi-Wan said,
smiling warmly at the girl.
“Perhaps what evidence you provide can be taken into
consideration by the Supreme Chancellor. She can
then direct your safe passage to another planet for
relocation,” Sakoya offered.
“Who
is this person? I’ve spent a long time in the Outer
Rim.”
“Pardon me, I thought you would know – her name is
quite infamous.”
“Master Kenobi,” Cela half-smirked at him, “the
Outer Rim has its own justice system – if you want
to call it that. There’s no need to know or care
about the New Republic. What little I do know is
from the holonews when I am able to see it.”
“Then let me enlighten you.” Sakoya smiled. “The New
Republic’s Supreme Chancellor is Padmé Skywalker.”
Cela’s eyes lit up instantly and her mouth dropped
open in surprise. “S-Sky-walker?”
“Oh,
you’re familiar with the name?” Sakoya inquisitively
asked with a nod of her head.
“You
could say that,” Cela murmured as her heart began to
beat faster. Her head was beginning to swim at the
mess she had unwittingly gotten mixed up in. I
can do this…I can do this, she chanted in her
mind to herself. “First I-I’ll tell you what I know,
which is little. Beyond that you’ll have to discover
for yourselves. My mistress was sent here for an art
deal – at least to determine its worth and if the
men involved were trustworthy enough to join the
organization. Those are the men we saw dead in the
cave. I guess they didn’t pass.” Cela shook her
head. “What I do know is that when she met the
brothers the first time she said their art was
worthless and then she found a datapad that has a
list of some kind. Of what I don’t know, she didn’t
share. And she took a vial that contained some
liquid, the same thing I gave you when I broke the
sculpture. I don’t know what it is though. She went
to her quarters and was running tests on her
computer. She never told me much, only what she felt
I needed to know. I can tell you that she was
meeting with those brothers again tonight and she
wanted me to follow and listen. I was to be her
backup if she needed it. She never did though. My
mistress can handle anything all by herself.”
“A
datapad and a vial – and you don’t know what they
contain?” Obi-Wan asked. Curious, he withdrew the
vial from his robes and held it up to the light,
still maintaining his attention on the conversation.
“No,
she didn’t tell me. I’m only a slave not a partner.”
Sakoya was disturbed by the girl’s statement and
asked, “Cela, who is this woman you keep referring
to as your mistress? We’ll need her name in order to
track her down and alert the authorities.”
“Then you better move fast, she won’t stay around
long.”
“Her
name, Cela, please,” Sakoya asked again.
Cela
hesitated but knew she couldn’t turn back now. This
was her first step and she only hoped she would live
to reap the rewards. “My…mistress…” She took a deep
breath and repeated over and over in her mind,
courage, I must have courage. I can do this. “is
Mara Jade also known as The Emperor’s Hand.”
There, I said it. It’s done,
she wordlessly told herself.
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