Samuel Thomas Gillespee breathed putrid air as he followed Shada's directions. He never seen a planet so devoid of life. No birds made a cacophony of noise and the buildings hadn't been repaired in generations. Entering a massive apartment complex, he found his destination and knocked at a dilapidated door with peeling green paint. His knock was answered promptly by an older woman.
"Can I help you?" She knew he was a stranger she'd never seen in the neighborhood before.
"I'm looking for Quinn D'ukal." Gillespee smiled, hoping to put her at ease.
"May I ask who you are?" She didn't move or open the door wide enough for him to see inside the small apartment.
"I'd rather not talk where I can be overheard."
A man moved behind the woman and Gillespee saw the resemblance to Shada. "You must be Quinn."
"That I am. Who are you, stranger?"
Gillespee looked around and whispered, "Friend of Shada's."
The door opened and he was pulled inside. Before she closed the door, the woman looked to see if anyone lurked nearby. He saw an equally drab apartment, but his eyes were drawn to the people before him. "I am a friend of Shada's," he repeated and gave his name. "I'm the captain of a ship called the Kern's Pride and work for Talon Karrde. Have you heard of him?"
"No, Emberlene is a closed planet and news from afar is rare. Few are allowed to leave and nobody wants to move here, but to answer your question, I am Quinn D'ukal."
Gillespee smiled at him. "I see Shada in you. She's talked at length of the uncles who raised her."
"When one becomes a Mistryl Shadow Guard; they have to sever contact with family and friends. Most leave, never to return. We hated to lose her, but knew her best chance of a good life was off this planet." Quinn stopped talking and looked around. "Please forgive my manners; have a seat. We don't have much, but would be honored if you'd join us in a cup of tea."
Gillespee hated to take their meager fare, but somehow knew to refuse would be considered an insult. "Thank you." He took a seat at the kitchen table while the woman bustled about making refreshments. "I've known Shada for years. I take it you know nothing of her fate?"
"Not a word since she was accepted into the Mistryl Shadow Guard at age eleven."
Gillespee withdrew a holograph and turned it on. Shada's holo popped up between them.
"Oh my." Quinn turned to his wife. "Myrna, look at my niece."
The woman put a pot of tea on the table and set cups before them. "She's as beautiful as you keep telling me."
"Even more so." Quinn looked over the holograph at Samuel. "Why now after all these years, is she trying to contact us? She still lives?"
Gillespee nodded. "I have much to tell you and not much time." He filled them on her early years. "She was assigned by the Mistryl to work with a smuggler named Mazzic. She spent twelve years with him. During that time she met the king of smugglers, Talon Karrde." Gillespee pushed a button on the small projector and a man replaced her. "Talon Karrde."
They looked at a powerful looking man who was also very handsome. "I take it, he's important in Shada's life?" Quinn guessed.
Gillespee smiled. "I hope so. He's her husband."
"Mistryl are forbidden to marry," Myrna gasped. "What happened?"
"She was ordered to stand aside and let Mazzic be killed by a Mistryl operative. She intervened and was kicked out of the order. Actually, she had a death mark put on her and that's where Karrde comes in. Mazzic didn't want someone so hot near him. He knew the Mistryl would kill him to get to Shada, so he told her to leave. Karrde picked her up and one thing led to another and they got married."
"Why are you telling us all this?" Quinn was resigned to never knowing about his niece again, although the news was welcome.
"She has a death mark on her if she comes to Emberlene. She's banned from the planet and is coming back to do a job."
Quinn's hand shook and he sat his cup down before sloshing some over the edge. "There's nothing on this planet to risk her life over. Tell her to stay away."
"She is the only one who can identify an item that we need in our possession. Are you familiar with a Mistryl warehouse near the headquarters of the Eleven Rulers?"
"Of course. A lot of our supplies are housed behind that fortress, where the starving people can't access them." Quinn sounded bitter.
"Shada needs to get in and take a large item out. It will take two men to carry it. Karrde will provide cover and flatten this planet if anything goes wrong."
"That important, huh?" Quinn tried to focus when all he wanted to do was look at pictures of his niece and show his brothers.
"Might avoid another war, so yes. Also, Karrde extends an invitation for all Shada's family to leave here and be relocated on Aphran, his home planet for now."
"We'd never get passports to leave."
Gillespee chuckled. "We're smugglers. Our ways aren't exactly sanctioned by governments so don't worry about the proper permits."
"I'll have to discuss it with my family, but I would sure like to see Shada again." He looked at the projector, still displaying Talon.
Gillespee pushed the button and two small boys in Shada's arms appeared. "Their son's, D'ukal and Terrik. They're two and a half and a handful."
"My word," Myrna breathed. "Mistryl are forbidden to have children, how?"
"Like I said, she's not longer Mistryl, but a smuggler, or rather married to one. On this projector, Shada recorded a message and transferred many pictures. Make sure nobody outside your family learns of it, or as Shada warned me to tell you, you'll all be imprisoned for the rest of your lives."
"The people of Emberlene know all about keeping secrets, especially from the government." Quinn carefully took the projector, scared his handling would break it and Shada would be lost to them again.
Gillespee stood. "I need to get back to my ship. You have one standard day to render a decision. I have to get you off planet before Shada can do her work. When the Eleven find out what's been stolen, they'll come after you. Shada's words, not mine, but she knows them. I brought supplies that aren't under control of your leaders, but will be sold on the black market. I brought two scrubbers on contract that the government bought, as a cover story to be allowed to land. I have room to evacuate you, but we have to do it fast." Gillespee went to the door and thanked Myrna for the tea. "I'll return this time tomorrow. If the answer is yes, have your family gathered and ready to leave."
Quinn called his four brothers, Corad, Zed, Thade and Aston. The eldest brother, Shoel, Shada's father, was long dead. He died in an airspeeder accident when Shada was four, as did her mother. He didn't say what it was about, but important. Within an hour, they were crowded around the table and Quinn started speaking. "A man who knows Shada, was here. Shada has a message for us."
"What's it say?" The youngest, Thade, who never could wait for anything, asked.
"I don't know. I want us to watch it as a family." He hit play and Shada, a grown woman now was smiling at them. "I know the Mistryl rules forbid me from contacting you, but if you have this then you know the truth."
"What's she talking about?" Aston asked and Quinn paused the holoprojector. He filled them in and showed pictures of her, Talon and the boys.
"Our family sure is top heavy on boys," Corad commented. None of the brothers ever got a drawing to have a child. Population control was strict and a lottery was held each year where five thousand permits for children were given out. Everyone suspected it was rigged as certain families were drawn multiple times, while most family lines were dying off. Pregnancies outside permits meant automatic forfeiture of the child and a long prison sentence. They all had wives, but now were too old for families. Seeing another generation lifted their spirits.
"Well, Quinn, now that we're up to speed, let's hear the message." The usually quiet Zed spoke.
Shada resumed speaking, "My life is so much better now and I want all of you off Emberlene and back with me. I hope all of you are still alive and well. I've learned much of our ruling body and not all is what it seems. When Gillespee leaves the planet, I hope you're on his ship. Until we meet again." She disappeared.
"I say we leave and don't look back." Quinn spoke after a moment's silence as the news was absorbed.
"What about our wives' families?" Corad asked. "I know Amii won't like leaving her parents and brother." Others agreed.
"The offer was for us and our spouses. Nothing was said about extended families. Of course, I didn't fill Gillespee in and he didn't ask," Quinn added. "Myrna and I are going."
"Either we leave families here or Shada and her family on the outside." Zed deliberated the issue. "We have lives here, Quinn. It may be austere, but we're together."
"I was hoping not to use this card, but Shada warned Gillespee that when the item she is stealing is detected, they will come looking for us. Our lives here are over anyway. I suggest we gather whoever of our families wants to go. I'm sure Gillespee can make room. We meet back here by noon tomorrow, belongings we're taking packed. Travel light.
The next day, Quinn answered the knock on the door, expecting Gillespee. To his dismay and shock, security forces in riot gear were crowded in the hall. They pushed him back into his now crowded apartment and looked around.
"Going someplace?" The burly officer asked looking at backpacks.
"Since when is it unlawful for a family gathering?" Quinn blustered, trying to put up a strong impression of normalcy.
"We gather all the time," Corad added.
"But not after a stranger was seen entering yesterday."
There was silence. They never suspected their building was monitored or housing spies, but with Shada, should have known. Never in all those years did the forces let them know they'd been under surveillance.
Thade stepped back and slipped into the refresher with a hand on Zed's arm. He pointed to the small window while pocketing the small holoprojector. Before he could formulate a plan, blaster shots were heard in the other room along with screams. Weapons were forbidden, so the populace couldn't resist. Zed opened the window and squeezed through. Thade followed and they dropped to a fire platform ten feet below. Not looking back, they jumped flights of stairs down until at ground level. They ran into the city to hide at a shop of a friend. Only then did they allow grief for what they lost, brother's and wives.
A Mistryl entered and looked at the carnage. "Find anything?"
"We've searched everyplace. The place is clean, but two of the D'ukal brothers are missing. Surveillance shows they entered a refresher and the window was open. The neighbors are asking questions. What's our cover story?" The commanding officer inquired. He'd been placed in this position before. The tradeoff was he and his wife had three children for him towing the party line.
"Evidence was uncovered that they were plotting insurrection against the government and aiding our enemies. There is no evidence they heard from their Mistryl niece, but we can't be sure. Put out a warrant for the missing two. Make it extremely dangerous, don't approach, contact authorities."
"Do you have an ID on the man who was here yesterday?"
"Not yet. We tried to confiscate his ship and he got away and made space. We don't have enough ships to stop a merchant of that firepower. He blasted four of our high-priced headhunters that we can't afford to lose." The Mistryl's comlink beeped.
"The ship Moogan's Pride, is registered to a Moogan named Tee Va."
"What do you have on this Tee Va or his ship?" The Mistryl inquired.
"Nothing, no associations. The Moogan government has no record of it and the name Tee Va is common."
"Thank you. Continue trying to identify the human male."
Gillespee barely made it back to his ship when Rapapor warned him they had company. "Get us ready to leave." He wasn't taking any chances. They looked at the monitors of holo's mounted around the ship. What looked like a branch of the military surrounded their ship and Gillespee was sure he saw a Mistryl in their midst and recorded for Shada to examine the people.
"You don't suppose they recognized you?" Rapapor's hands got edgy to fire the cannon mounted underneath the ship.
"Karrde's overlays are superior to anything I've ever bought. He says it would take Emberlene months to crack this code. I've never been here and they have no reason to suspect me."
His ship's comm beeped and a voice blasted into the bridge as the communications officer hurried to turn the volume down. "Human male who just entered this vessel, disembark for interrogation."
"You play captain, Rapapor. Find out why they want me?"
"This is the Mooga's Pride," Rapapor smoothly answered. "I'm captain Tee Va. My crewmember is off duty. I'll give him a message. What do you wish to talk with him about?"
"Mooga's Pride, you're on a restricted planet. Stand down for boarding and have your permits ready for inspection."
"We've already presented our permits. I assure you, nothing's changed."
"Your crewman was in an unauthorized area. He must be questioned."
Rapapor looked at Gillespee. "What do we do now?"
"I fear this isn't going well for Shada's family. We can't help them now or even warn them." He sat at the pilot's station and gave a ship wide announcement, "All hands to weapons, we're lifting off." He fired up the engines on a cold start and rose in the same motion, not waiting for a systems check and headed to space. Harmless blaster fire pinged off the hull and he saw bodies fly as his cannons returned fire.
They hadn't reached the atmosphere when Rapapor called out, "Headhunters."
"Take care of them. I need to get us out of here." Gillespee concentrated on his systems and navigation called in coordinates for a hyperspace jump. Turning the ship to line up with the jump up, he saw flashes of exploding headhunters and reached for the hyperspace levers and didn't relax until they were safe. He felt horrible at what he knew was certain death or imprisonment for Shada's uncles. What little he saw of Quinn D'ukal, he liked him.
"What now?" Rapapor asked when he saw his boss still sitting, staring out the now black viewport.
"We put some space between us and Emberlene and find a safe place to call Karrde."
Two hours passed before Gillespee felt safe enough to drop out of hyperspace and make his call. First, he went to his office and called up news for Emberlene. Nothing. Maybe they didn't make the connection and he walked through an area that was restricted on his way to the apartment complex. A niggling in the back of his mind asked, why was a Mistryl present?
Talon took the incoming call at his desk in the Emberlene Suite. Shada was in bed and he opted to have his son's playing on the floor where he could keep an eye on them, with the nanny also monitoring. When he saw Gillespee, he asked before the other man could get a word out, "Did you see Shada's uncles?"
"I met one called Quinn. I gave him the holoprojector and arranged to meet him the next day to leave when my ship did. I no sooner got back to my ship than we ran into a boarding party. I must have gone someplace I wasn't supposed to and they followed me back. Whether or not it was at Shada's uncle's place, I don't know. I opted to take off rather than end up in their jail where they would beat my true identity from me."
"That complicates matters." Talon didn't like glitches in his plans.
"Standing by for instructions, Boss. I can't take this ship back. We had to blast our way out and shot some of their planetary defenses in the form of headhunters."
"No, you're done on the surface. We'll have to send someone else in to retrieve the family before Shada goes in. She's still sick so it won't be soon. I won't let her go until she's a hundred percent. I need you to go back and monitor ships coming and going. Mark everything and shoot the names to Corvis. See if anything makes a direct run between systems."
"What do you want me to change my code to?"
Talon pulled up his vast amount of false ship identities. "Use Widow Maker."
After cutting the link, he went to the sofa where the boys forgot their enormous assortment of toys and climbed on his lap, one on each leg. "Daddy, read to us," D'ukal begged.
"Wead," Terrik echoed.
"That's Rrrread." He tickled Terrik, making him squeal. "Nana, bring me the story pad." He took the holopad.
"Little Lost Bantha Cub." D'ukal, always the first to request, yelled.
"Quiet, Mom is sick." He tried to calm them. Terrik as usual let his brother pick for them. "Terrik, what would you like to hear?"
"Smuggl….Smuggl…Wun."
"No, Little Lost Bantha Cub." D'ukal reached over and punched his brother.
"Hey, for that we get Smuggler's Run. Be nice to your brother." He pulled the story up and the boys leaned into him to listen to his urbane tone as he made the character's come alive. They were asleep before he finished. He motioned for Nana to take D'ukal and he carried Terrik to their cribs. He noticed how large the boys were getting and made a mental note to ask Shada to get them beds. He pulled Terrik's small boots off, and motioned to Nana, he would take care of D'ukal's boots as well.
Shada woke to a quiet suite. Her head wasn't pounding any longer and she was soaked in sweat. Her fever broke, but left her weak. Struggling up, she took a shower. Feeling better, she dressed and went to see what her family was doing. Toys were scattered all over and Talon was at his desk. Of the boy's, she saw no sign. "Boys sleeping?"
He looked up. "Yes. D'ukal is outpacing Terrik in speech and cognitive function."
"Don't worry about it. They are different. D'ukal will have your garrulous tongue and Terrik will be more like me."
"I'm going to have Nana work with Terrik on his pronunciation."
"He's not even three. Don't push him." She sat on the sofa after moving the holopad and two toys. "How long have I been sick?"
"Five days." He shut his monitor off and joined her.
"It's your turn to worship the disposal goddess."
"I'm waiting and nothing. Not even a sneeze."
"I hate you."
He smiled and took her hand. "You must be better. For days whenever I tried to get close, I had to dodge zenji needles."
"Now you've seen my worst side. I just wanted to die, alone in my misery."
"You've never seen me ill. I make the boys seem like mature adults with my whining and demands. I insist on being waited on hand and foot. I cuss and throw things."
"How will I know when you're sick then?" She giggled as he pushed her down and lay on top.
"Can I kiss you now?"
She pulled his head down.
Gillespee set up shop behind a moon and monitored the entire system. He had all his diagnostic consoles monitored. Within an hour, he witnessed two smuggler's enter and land. His code buster identified them as Righteous Hutt and Beggar's Haven, both owned by the aging crime lord, Ephant Mon. "Great, I thought he was retired and holed up in his temple." He wondered why two of his ships entered at once. He looked at Talon's extensive database and pulled up the Chevin male. He re- acquainted himself with Mon's past and associates, most dead by his hand. Deciding Karrde needed to know, he sent a message to the boss' holopad, complete with holovids of the two ships.
Rapapor was assigned to monitor and slice into government communiques, specifically anything with the words D'ukal or Hammertong. Massive amounts of information floated before his eyes almost putting him to sleep. His eyes registered the name before his brain focused. "Halt." The holoscreen froze. He hit on the name Quinn D'ukal. "Kriff," he muttered as the classified information popped into view. Quickly he saved and routed it to Gillespee as a precaution against Emberlene tracking his slice. He backed out of that file quickly, now wide-awake. He opened another holo interface and searched news outlets.
"Two brothers survived, a Thade and Zed D'ukal." Gillespee appeared from thin air and read out loud over his shoulder. "Quinn, Aston and Corvis D'ukal all perished along with all their wifes and several additional family members." Shock was setting in at the call he had to make. He reached a hand to Rapapor's shoulder and gave it a pat. "Good work. Record everything you see. I have to call Karrde." He made his way back to his office, planning what he had to say. His carefully rehearsed speech fled when he saw who was on the other end.
"Gillespee, do you have my family?" Shada's exuberance and her bright smile almost brought tears to his eyes.
"I was hoping to find Talon. Where is he?" He deftly sidestepped her question.
Shada picked up on his deflection immediately. "He's with the boys and Vornskr. The boys are well and wanted to run energy off so he took them to a gymnasium." Her initial enthusiasm waned. "What aren't you telling me, Samuel Thomas?"
"I can't tell you, but sent a report. Shada. I don't know what I could have done to facilitate a different outcome. I'm sorry." He cut the link.
Shada sealed her emotions off as she played the information and saw the pernicious actions of the leaders of her home world against her family. She was unaware of the tears streaking down her cheeks and dripping on her breasts.
At the end, Gillespee recorded a message for Talon. "I didn't have the information when I spoke with you yesterday, I swear. Rapapor found it today and I had him copy everything. I don't envy you having to tell Shada."
She looked at the dark holopad, having shut down with Gillespee's final word. Wiping her eyes with the backs of her hands, she felt rage building. How dare he not tell her Gillespee failed and left her family to die to save his own neck. Nobody dared get in her way as she marched to the gym upon seeing murder in her eyes. Talon was rolling a large ball to his sons for them to stop with their bodies. Their laughter filled the area and Terrik kicked the ball back with accuracy and got praise from his father. Her roundhouse into his shoulder rolled him off his knees in a complete somersault.
He came up with his hand on his blaster. "Shada, what the nine hells?"
"You didn't tell me, you bastard. You let them die." Wanting to hurt him again, she drew her zenji needle and flung it into the ball between him and the boys, who were now crying at their mother's apparent rage. The ball deflated with a hiss. Picking the ball up by the head of the needle, she flung it as hard as she could at her husband.
He felt the sting and guessed somehow that she discovered the Emberlene debacle. Without a backwards glance, she stormed off. He felt his son's trying to be held and comforted. Sitting, he drew them into his arms. "It's okay, mom's not mad at you, just me."