CHAPTER THIRTEEN: MORAL CONFUSION
"Thank you for coming," Master Nurk told the villagers of Tandrev as they left. "Rest assured that we Jedi are here to help." When she stood up from her seat, Sten and I followed suit. I also had something to say:
"Speaking of which, I think you should check -" In my mind, the Mon Calamari's voice quickly silenced me. Immediately the mayor emerged from the town hall's back chambers, having changed his pants faster than I thought anyone could. Good thing you brought a fresh pair of trousers. Is there a dressing room in here? I suspected he hadn't wanted to walk to the town hall in his good clothes, so that might have been the case. "Excuse me, sir," I said. "May I have a word with you in private?" I sensed Master Nurk's glare.
"I'm truly sorry, but I have many more important matters to tend to," he said, flashing a bright smile. "I wish you good day, and thank you for saving my life. I could have been shot, and shall someday repay you."
How about repaying your own people instead? I thought angrily. Miln and Lorenna may not be the only ones from whom you've stolen money. They tried to kill you, but you're committing fraud. Sometimes even criminals are right! The mayor turned his back to us, retreating through the rear exit of the town hall while we took the front. All the way out to the speeder, I could feel Master Nurk's eyes upon me. Since she was a squid-like being, those were very large eyes indeed. The three of us entered and activated the vehicle.
"You're welcome, Per'dra," said Master Nurk, her voice low. "You nearly fell into a verbal rancor pit."
"If I could have finished my sentence, I think you should check the Mayor out, it would have been better."
"How? The mayor was right behind a door, and you would have done nothing but humiliate yourself."
"Never mind that. At least some people might have been motivated to look into his accounting practices! As everyone was recovering from all the chaos that Miln and Lorenna stirred up, I suddenly remembered that the mayor had lied to them. I detected it through the Force, although it didn't really take a Jedi to see that he was nervous when Lorenna started questioning him about her taxes. He's cooking the books, as she put it, and that's why I thought it fit to warn the good citizens of Tandrev about their corrupt leader."
"I also detected his lie, but neither of us has any hard proof. That's what you need to convict him in court."
"We could give testimony. I also think that we should visit Miln and Lorenna and talk to them about this."
"Will that work?" asked Sten with a smirk. "Hello. We're the Jedi who foiled your plot to kill the mayor and landed you in jail. Now we'd like you to testify against him under oath." He shook his head. "Other ideas?"
"Add the words mitigating circumstances and lesser sentence, and you have two cooperative witnesses."
This time Master Nurk shook her head. "No. Even if we were successful in that endeavor, the villagers are facing far greater problems than being defrauded in their last tax payment. They need the mayor to distribute weapons to fight the Flesh Raiders and the Mandalorian robbers. He may be less than honorable, but for now he has his uses. Once the more dire situations threatening the people of Tandrev have been dealt with, then we can talk about a court case and a special election. In the meantime, he has the authority to give his people what they need. Who knows? He may have bought more equipment with the funds he's stolen. If that's the case, it's not right, but it's beneficial in light of the dangers still present."
"Isn't that how the Sith think?" I asked sharply. "He's useful, and so we'll temporarily ignore his misdeeds?"
"The Sith think in absolutes," the Mon Calamari replied. "To them the galaxy is black and white, with nothing in between. Either you are good or evil, light or dark. We Jedi recognize that there are shades of gray among the stars and the great voids of the universe. Sometimes both sides of a conflict can be right. You are correct, Per'dra, in that the mayor should be brought to justice, but I am also correct in that this elected official, no matter what his conduct, has the chance to save his citizens' lives as well as his own."
I was confused, and sighed wearily. Sten, however, gave me a pointed look: I'm with you on this one.