A/N: Don't take the dream too literally. It does mean something though.
Chapter 21
The first thing that Siri did in the morning, of course, was to call Simon. He sounded absolutely shocked to hear that Zan Arbor had commed Siri.
"How did she even get your frequency?" he asked. "And what could she possibly have to say to you?"
"As for the first part, I have no idea how she got my frequency. As for the second part, she says she plans on destroying the K-Directorate compound."
That certainly got Simon's attention, as Siri was certain that it would. "Sounds like one of her plots. Be careful if you try to stop her. It's probably a trap."
"That's what Obi-Wan thought. But I can't turn down the chance to catch Zan Arbor, even if she does mean to set a trap for me."
"You just had a baby, Siri, and it's the K-Directorate compound she's threatening, not the Temple. Please, let me try and find her first."
"And how are you going to do that?" Siri asked. She was sure that Zan Arbor, wherever she was, was on the run.
"We have our ways of finding people. We're a spy agency after all." And Simon was probably right. If he could find Zan Arbor and have her arrested before Siri's meeting with her the next week, it would save Siri a lot of trouble and danger. And the last thing she wanted to do was leave Isabelle when she was so young. But she just had to save her father and catch Zan Arbor if she had to and possibly could, Isabelle or no Isabelle.
"If you find her before next standard week, that would be great. That's when I'm supposed to be meeting with her." Somehow Siri had a feeling they wouldn't be able to find her, but it was worth a try.
"I'll do my best to catch her and we'll be on full security here. And don't you worry about me going after her. This is what I do for a living, same as you. You concentrate on Isabelle and Obi-Wan." Simon used the voice she remembered from early childhood when he was trying to get her to do something.
"I will, I promise. But you better promise to tell me if K-Directorate has no leads." Siri had a feeling she wouldn't be hearing anything if they couldn't find Zan Arbor as Simon and K-Directorate wouldn't want to admit they needed help.
"I'll let you know if we need help. Just don't fall into any trap."
"I won't if I can help it." How did Simon think he was helping with that comment? Did he think Siri wanted to fall into a trap? But Siri didn't say this as she knew she was only trying to help.
"I know you won't. I'll get back to you later with what K-Directorate knows about this." And with that, they ended the conversation.
After a few days, though, she hadn't heard anything back. She thought about Zan Arbor when she was taking care of Isabelle. While she didn't want to face her exactly, there was the excitement that Siri craved, was used to in her missions, and couldn't exactly find in feedings and changing diapers. This must be what Zan Arbor was counting on to lead her into her trap.
But then she got a comm from Simon. "Sorry it's taken me a few days to get back to you, but I wanted to be sure that I had something to tell you. The truth is, Jenna Zan Arbor seems to have disappeared from the Galaxy."
"Somehow I don't think we're that lucky." Siri was sure that she was still out there somewhere.
"I don't think so either. But we've got nothing to go on until she contacts you. Let me know the moment that she does."
"I will." That would only help both of them, after all.
"And then K-Directorate will try and track where the transmission is coming from. Try and let me know she's commed you and keep her on as long as you can."
Siri knew that Simon would be able to come up with a plan. At least this sounded like it just might have a chance of working. She hated just waiting for Zan Arbor to call with plans to lead her into some sort of trap, which was after all what she'd been doing.
And surely enough, not long after she'd gotten off the comm with Simon, Jenna Zan Arbor commed again.
"So, are you willing to meet me?" Zan Arbor asked in her now familiar, icy voice.
"Yes, if it's going to save K-Directorate," Siri answered, trying to sound braver than she felt. She tried to keep her hands out of the holo while she turned on the other comm and began to punch in Simon's frequency.
"Very good. Then meet me near the K-Directorate compound on the first day of the next standard week at 0900 hours to stop me."
"I'll be there," said Siri, trying to ignore how strange and dangerous this all was. While trying to decide what to say next, she finished typing the comm number for Simon, careful to keep right out of sight of Zan Arbor. "But what do you plan to do when I get there?"
"Let you try and stop me," Zan Arbor said in a tone that Siri knew was a dare. A dare that was starting to give her a headache at the moment. She wondered how long it would take her father to get a lock on Zan Arbor's location.
"There's no way you're going to be able to pull this one off," said Siri, with more bravado than she actually felt. She wasn't sure whether she was trying to convince herself or Zan Arbor that the explosion or whatever Zan Arbor had planned wouldn't happen.
"I'm not so sure. I've gotten away with quite a bit under the radar of you Jedi." And Siri actually believed this one, which was the most frustrating part.
Suddenly she heard a beeping noise from the comm, which she thought meant that Simon and K-Directorate had tracked Zan Arbor's location. She now couldn't get off the comm with Zan Arbor fast enough.
"I'll see you then," Siri told her. She then hung up the comm as she was sure she had gotten all she was going to get out of that conversation. She then couldn't comm her father fast enough to see what he had to say.
"We've located her," said Simon. "And she didn't know we were tracking her comm?"
"Not as far as I know," said Siri. "I was careful to keep that I was punching in a frequency out of sight."
"Great," said Simon. "Some people from K-Directorate are off to find her as we speak."
"Do they know who they're dealing with?" asked Siri, who was trying not to sound discouraged. She somehow doubted that they'd be able to catch her before the meeting time.
"They know as much as I do, which is more than I want to know," said Simon. Siri could tell that Simon was getting just as tired of trying to catch Zan Arbor as Siri was.
"That's great. Just let me know in a day or two how that's coming along."
"Will do. Now, you focus on Isabelle. She needs her mama. Promise?"
Siri smiled. "I promise, Dad."
And after Siri got off the comm with Simon, she certainly did check on Isabelle. She was somehow getting more used to taking care of her than she'd thought possible. At the moment, she seemed to be hungry, so Siri went to get a bottle out of their cooling unit.
While she was doing that, Obi-Wan came in after training with Anakin. Siri knew that Anakin was getting close to taking his trials, and hoped the pair could work together after he was knighted. That was just one of the thoughts in her head. Her mind was going a thousand kilometers an hour, and she started speaking just about that quickly.
"Zan Arbor called, and she wants to meet me on the first day of next standard week, but Simon and K-Directorate have a trace on her," she managed to get out.
"I hope they're able to find her using that trace. I think we're all more than ready to never hear from her again."
"Me too. Then I wouldn't have to worry about leaving the two of you." This whole trap was getting beyond exhausting and irritating.
"Well, I suppose there's nothing we can do but wait," said Obi-Wan calmly.
"How can you be so calm during waiting? I find that to be the worst part."
"Jedi training."
"Can't be just that. I had the same training you did, and I'm not being nearly as calm."
"We just balance each other well, and after all, you're the one she's after."
After that, they changed the subject as they both needed a change of pace. Obi-Wan filled her in on how Anakin was doing, and he certainly was going to recommend him for the Trials once Zan Arbor was taken care of. Siri shared some of what she and Isabelle had been doing all day, as Obi-Wan could never hear enough about that. They were both worried that they'd miss one of her milestones being such busy Jedi.
But the next day, Simon commed again. She could tell just by the look on his face that it wasn't god news. "We haven't found her Siri, so it looks like you may have to meet her after all. I'm sorry."
Siri nodded solemnly. "It's probably because she was expecting this. It's all right, I'm up to facing her again."
"You're getting K-Directorate backup. I insist."
"Thanks so much, Dad. I know you tried."
After she turned off the comm, this time she was determined. This would be the last time Zan Arbor would be able to threaten her or anyone in her family.