Chapter 10
Adia huffed leaning against Er Shua's desk. She'd pulled the office apart and still she'd found nothing. Nothing whatsoever to link him to her past. She was beginning to think that perhaps this was not who she'd thought he was.
But then again, this Er Shua knew her. For he'd spoken her name and yet Adia hadn't given that information away to anyone at the station.
She rubbed the rim of her nose, groaning beneath her breath.
The remainder of the desk drawers had proven useless to her. Only full of utensils for writing and such.
The cupboard inside the bookcase was a safe, containing probably the family's values and savings. She needed a key to get into it and so far she'd found nothing of the sort.
Adia was wasting time. She knew the others would be expecting her.
Adia stood upright.
The others… Mosah. She'd lost track of time. It was late. She needed to get out of here before Er Shua decided to come home.
Making a last minute scan of the room she headed for the door when Aquria nimbly stepped in.
"Umm," The child mumbled. "Mesa finding der butler."
From behind her a figure pushed her into the room. He was tall and thin. Wearing an elegant suit, he held his knife out at Adia, scowling. Adia simply held up her blaster. The butler's eyes widened, the word 'bandit' leering from his lips. He held out his hands letting Aquria go and backed out. Adia grinned, edging forth. But lunging forward, the butler slammed a hand down on the doorway panel. Adia dashed for it but the doorway sealed as she reached it. Battering at the panel on her side it was useless. He'd overridden the command. Adia screamed slamming her fists against the door, she was trapped.
"It's your fault!" she shouted. Turning and aiming her blaster at Aquria. "You went and got him didn't you!"
The banquet was loud and brilliant. All around the huge ballroom Gungans chatted, laughed and danced. Er Shua sat alone. In his own mind he begged to get away. The Nasses were constantly holding large gatherings and festivals. What they were celebrating this time, Er Shua cared not to know, for he had more important things to attend to. But his position in the Boss' favour insisted that he and his family attend tonight. He had no choice in the matter. But for some reason the Boss had disappeared. Er Shua had seen one of the Council's Rep members approach him, whispering something into his ear. Then when Er Shua looked back, the Nass was nowhere to be found. Slid out of his own party to tend to some kind of matter.
Er Shua wondered if he too could do the same. It felt like hours had passed that he'd been there and in that time he'd done nothing but poke at the platter sitting in front of him.
"General Er Shua." The Captain's tap on his shoulder snapped him back to his sensors. "There is something important you need to see."
The Captain guided Er Shua to a smaller room to the rear of the ballroom. Where there, in the form of a hologram stood his butler, Be'char. The image wavered and fidgeted, something that his butler hardly did, signalling to Er Shua that something was very wrong.
"Sir, there has been an invasion. I returned home to find two intruders."
"Intruders?" Er Shua perked. "Where are they now?"
"I have them in custody, sir. A female and a child."
For a moment Er Shua froze, the girl, Adia. Was it possible? She'd gone and gotten herself trapped within his own premises? All he had needed to do was wait for her to come to him.
"Keep them locked up Be'char, I'll be there right away."
Aquria sat on the floor as from afar and watched Adia pace around the room in her own enraged frenzy. She'd given up on accusing Aquria for giving them away to the authorities. What they'd both failed to realize was that the butler was indeed permitted to come and go as he chose when the family was out.
No doubt, by now Er Shua had been informed and was on his way. There was no escape this time, Aquria felt. Adia had tried every possible method of breaking out, even to the extent of shooting the door panel. But still it proved futile.
Finally Adia settled, leaning back on the desk she stared down at her feet. Then something happened that Aquria hadn't thought possible of such an agitated personality. Her eyes gave way to tears.
Aquria stood, at first unsure on how to react. Until eventually she made her way over to the female.
"Its okiday Adi." Those were the only words of comfort she could offer her. "It's not all bad."
Clambering onto the desk she attempted to put her small hand on Adia's shoulder. But as she did her foot kicked a vase, sending it spiralling to the ground. It smashed into a million tiny pieces as both sets of eyes locked onto the strange looking key lying amid the mess.
Instantly Adia jumped forward and grabbed the key. Scanning the room she came across Er Shua's safe. Jamming the key inside she wrenched open the door. Inside it was emptier than she'd expected. There were no items of great value such as jewellery or treasures of the sort. Rather all it seemed to contain was a pile of dusty old papers and a large picture frame shaped package. Rummaging through the papers she found that they were in fact birthrights and documents containing the information of an individual. Something Adia knew was to be kept strictly to the council.
As she went through them she noticed that in the space where a name was to be provided there was none. This person was unnamed.
"Whatsit?" Aquria trotted over, questioning.
Adia gave her a baffled look. "Nothing, Aquria, nothing of interest at all."
She placed the papers aside, pulling out the large package. It was wrapped in some kind of leather and it smelled old. Unravelling the old leather Adia cast her eyes onto the woman in the picture and instantly she couldn't move.
It was her mother.
Be'char met Er Shua at the entrance and immediately directed him inside. Even from here he could clearly see the workings of an invader by the utter disorder of the place. Very much like his office back at that station, it looked as if someone had been snooping around.
"Where are they?" demanded Er Shua.
"In your office…"
The Gungan didn't wait for the butler to finish as he stormed up the passage toward his room.
"Sir! Wait."
Er Shua halted just before entering.
"What?"
"The girl, she could be dangerous, she threatened me with a blaster." Be'char blurted.
Er Shua nodded, not really taking the butler's statement into account and hit the panel to the office door.
The door's surface gave way just as a small child came dashing out, running into him. Er Shua grabbed the child by the collar, leering down at her cowering form.
"Aquria Binks. I figured you'd have a part of this."
The child gulped as Er Shua roughly led her back into the office. He stopped short. Staring at the girl with the picture in her hands. Pale faced she seemed to gaze into the painting. She was almost the exact replica of her mother, Alishka.
Adia dropped the painting, reaching for her blaster.
"I… I have the child." Er Shua stated a matter-of-factly. He held up Aquria by her collar who hung inches from the ground.
"She's been a hard one to catch." He signalled to Aquria. "Hard to put a proper report on, being so young and all. But now, that you coned her into your little expedition she'll be a fine asset to the station's detention centre I am sure of it. "
Adia sneered, "Why do you always hide behind that mouth of yours?"
Er Shua, unconcerned by Adia's remark continued.
"Make it easy for the both of us Adia. Hand yourself in and I'll let the child go free."
"And if I choose to go?"
"I never gave you that option. After all, what was your motto? Always lookout for your fellows?"
Er Shua barely flinched, "Surprise me then."
There was a moment of silence. Adia stared from Er Shua, to the blaster, to Er Shua again.
"It was you in the alleyway wasn't it. Shooting at us with my very own weapon." She eyed off the blaster. "You had the setting on low. So what if I was to change that?"
With the flick of a finger she set the blaster on high. One shot would kill.
"And what if I were to then get this blaster and aim it at my head?" she pressed the nozzle against her skull. "And what if I were to fire?"
Er Shua's cool face instantly changed.
"You wouldn't"
Adia merely grinned. "Mosah would."
She closed her eyes, fingering the trigger.
"Don't you dare!" In a sudden outburst Er Shua shoved Aquria aside, lunging out at Adia he snatched the blaster from her hand. Grabbing her he twirled her into a headlock where he reset the blaster.
Whispering in her ear "Forgive me," before firing it into her head…