Chapter 3--The Great Escape
Trouble arrived a few days later, when Dr. Sydos summoned Beru to Amidala's room. He told her, shamefacedly, that the young Queen had specifically instructed him that Beru was not to bring Luke with her. Beru felt like disobeying this ukase, but in the end, she presented herself--alone--for inspection.
Amidala was standing beside a chair, her back to Beru. The little girl was not in evidence.
Beru could sense Amidala's tension clearly. She was up to something.
She turned and held out an encrypted datacard. "I want you to take this to Obi-Wan. I believe that he's on Diotin right now. It's urgent."
Beru didn't move to take the card. "No."
"No?" Amidala repeated, as if she were unfamiliar with the word.
"Have it sent by messenger."
"That's too risky. It's highly confidential."
Berus shrugged. "Let it remain confidential, then. I'm not going anywhere."
"You'll do as you're told!" Amidala said, her voice rising.
Beru did not reply.
"I *order* you!"
"I'm not under your command," Beru said, deliberately omitting Amidala's title. The peasants are revolting. And mutinous, too.
"Obi-Wan ordered you to look after me."
"Yes, he did; and that's what I'm doing. I'm not your messenger boy."
Amidala was trembling. "Get out!" she said to Beru. "I'll tell Obi-Wan of your behaviour, be sure of it!"
On the way out of Amidala's room, Beru ran into Dr. Sydos. He gave her an apologetic look. Beru seized his wrist and pulled him into her own room.
"Is she getting worse?" she asked.
"She's very depressed--"
"Quit telling me she's depressed! Is she having a breakdown?"
"It's not my area of expertise--but, but--yes, she's showing definite signs of obsessive symptoms."
Beru knew the score. "You mean Luke," she said. "She wants me out of the way, so he can have a nice quiet little accident."
Dr. Sydos looked miserable.
"Well, this is the planet to find treatment for her, isn't it?"
The doctor shook his head. "Any treatment would require full disclosure of her background to be efeective. I think it's too dangerous right now."
Beru wished the good doctor would grow a backbone, but there was no use wishing for a red star when you were born under a blue one. The truth was that he was simply not up to committing Amidala. Fair enough; she would have to deal with the situation herself, and soon.
Beru made her preparations carefully over the next two days. She did not let the baby out of her sight, even showering with him, an amazingly awkward undertaking. After avoiding her previously, Amidala now watched her obsessively. Beru expected her to make her move soon. She was not disappointed.
Late that night, the alarms on the perimeters went off. Beru was out of her bed in a moment, scrambling for her blaster. She ran out the door and stopped, counting up to ten. Then she holstered her blaster and turned back.
Amidala was standing in the middle of Beru's room. She was fully dressed; the lights were on. Luke was awake, too. He lay on his side and clung to the rungs of his crib. His eyes were wide open, and fixed, not on his mother, but on her. Beru and Amidala stared at each other for what seemed a very long time.
"Didn't work, did it?" Beru said.
Amidala did not respond.
Beru circled to her left. She wanted to lure Amidala away from the baby's crib, but the younger woman wouldn't move.
"How did you set off the alarms?" Beru asked calmly. "With the Force? I'm just curious."
Still Amidala said nothing. Her hands hung at her sides. Her eyes were glassy.
Beru wondered if she could knock her over. Amidala was taller, but no heavier.
Finally Amidala moved. She rapidly drew her light saber and snapped it on. Beru didn't hesitate; she drew her blaster, set it on stun, and shot Amidala in the head. The younger woman fell to the ground. Not very graceful that time, either, Beru thought.
Beru stepped around Amidala, and lifted Luke into her arms. He seemed startled, but thankfully, was quiet. A child was crying, however. Beru realized that it was the little girl. She could not recall that she had ever heard the child's voice before. She carried Luke into Amidala's room. The little girl was wailing loudly in her crib. Luke stared at his twin, then looked at Beru. He seemed disconcerted. He was usually the vocalizer. In spite of the stuation, she smiled at him.
"Don't worry, Luke, she's okay," she whispered. She put Luke into the crib and picked up his sister. She could tell that Luke did not care for this solution at all. She smiled again.
The little girl quickly calmed down, stuck a finger in her mouth, and inspected Beru with enormous dark eyes. She was beautiful, and strikingly like her mother. Beru could see nothing of Anakin in her features, and her Force signature strongly resembled Amidala's. That's why Amidala loves her, she thought. Luke was now articulating his dismay at Beru's desertion, but his decibel level was still reasonably low.
The door opened. Beru turned to see Dr. Sydos standing there, wearing a robe and looking rumpled. He blinked at her.
"Amidala's in my bedroom," Beru said. "I had to stun her with my blaster. You'd better take a look at her."
He turned white, and hurried out. Beru picked up Luke in her other arm and took both children into her room. Dr. Sydos was kneeling beside Amidala. He looked up at her.
"Why did you do this?" he asked.
"Why do you think?" Beru said impatiently. "I don't stun people as a recreational pastime, thank you very much! She set off the alarms to distract me, and then made a try at Luke. By the way, I didn't see you when the alarms went off. Why was that?"
He avoided her eyes, and didn't answer. He knew about it beforehand, Beru realized immediately. Amidala told him; she thinks he's an ally. She doesn't know he's playing both ends against the middle.
"I guess this is where we kick the wall," Beru said, putting both babies into Luke's crib. She kept a weather eye on them. Luke was not exactly delighted to share Beru with anybody else, let alone another baby. Beru feared he might express his displeasure graphically.
"I intend to leave before she wakes up," she said. The doctor looked startled. Beru smiled. "In the interests of my own self-preservation. When she wakes up, she's going to be mad."
The doctor winced.
"I mean, she'll be angry," Beru correctly herself smoothly. "I'm taking Luke with me. It's just too dangerous to leave him."
The doctor nodded weakly.
"I can't manage two of them. You'll have to look after the little girl."
"She's in no danger. I'm sure of it."
"I certainly hope you're right. I've already packed."
"You were expecting this?"
"Just as much as you were," Beru said reprovingly. He could have warned her. The doctor flushed.
Beru had already raided the money supply. She had carefully gauged what she needed; she did not want to leave Amidala, the other twin, or Dr. Sydos short. The resort fees had been paid in advance.
"I'm taking the speeder to the space port," she said. " There's an early morning flight. We should be off before she recovers; if we're not, I'm relying on you to make sure she can't stop us."
She gave the doctor a hard look. He nodded shortly.
"Apologize to her Majesty for me, will you?" Beru said, gathering Luke in her arms. "Sorry about the stun blast. She may thank me for it someday, though somehow I doubt it."