Hearts Are Meant To: Chapter 17
By Knight Mara
Handcuffed and guarded at blaster-point, Genna glared at the back of Laire's head as they strode through the hangar on Derra IV. She still had not spoken a word to him, but now her situation seemed grim. Wedge's hunt had turned up nothing in her favor. In fact, what he had found pointed the finger of guilt even more squarely at her than anything else. She cocked her head slightly to the side as a medical team rushed by with the battered body of Lieutenant Grey on a stretcher, his face unrecognizable beneath the oxygen mask. The young man had been found beaten bloody and shoved in a utility closet near the hangar bay. No one knew why he'd been singled out, but Laire suspected it was because he'd grown suspicious of Genna, and she'd arranged to put him out of commission for a while.

Genna couldn't help but smile grimly at the irony. Grey had topped her own list of suspects.

She heard a rush of footsteps and peered around the back of Laire's head to see who was approaching. Her heart sank when she saw Commander Narra moving swiftly at the front of a large group of men who were mostly blocked from her sight by Laire. She immediately saw his shock as his gaze fell on her, and she felt ill at the thought of what he might be thinking of her at this very moment. Thankfully, he turned his gaze to Laire.

"Commander, is this your traitor?" he asked in a flat voice.

"Indeed it is," Laire answered in a cold, self-important tone that made Genna's stomach turn.

"What proof do you have?"

Genna's already weak stomach turned to lead and her heart seemed to stop at the sound of the voice that had just growled the question. The moment seemed to freeze in time as a thousand thoughts coalesced in her mind. She hadn't seen him enter, hadn't even realized he was on Derra IV already. Oh stars, what would he think? Did he think she would really betray him? Her gaze fell upon her shoes and remained there for fear of seeing his face at this moment. The sight of Narra's shocked expression had been enough for her. She wouldn't be able to handle the sight of Luke Skywalker at this moment.

Laire's angry reply startled her. "How dare you question me, Skywalker! You are certainly in no position. After you deliberately disobeyed my orders. ...Officers! I move to charge him with insubordination, conduct unbe-"

"You'll do no such thing!" Narra shouted back.

"Who gave the order, Laire?" Luke yelled simultaneously.

Laire stiffened. "What?"

Luke pressed on. "Who gave you the order to drop us out of hyperspace in front of that cruiser? Who was it Laire?"

"I don't have to answer to you!"

"Oh, don't you?"

Genna's curiosity got the better of her and she glanced upward to peer beyond Laire at the group of men facing him. She gasped in shock. Narra's face was hard and commanding, staring Laire down with a coldness that demanded answers. Luke, on the other hand, was flushed with fury. She'd seen the fire in him when he'd first confronted Narra about the mission, but that was nothing compared to what she saw now. Something had happened out there. Something had fueled an anger in him that was close to being unleashed upon Laire. And the stuffy commander was not making matters any better for himself.

"Narra," Laire snapped, "get him out of here."

At that, Luke pushed forward until he was an inch away from Laire, the magnitude of his rage making his small frame appear menacing. Narra, probably fearing some rash move, grabbed Luke's arm to stop him from advancing any further. A look at Luke's face told Genna that Narra needn't have worried. Although he was furious, he was still in control.

Glaring into Laire's eyes, Luke continued. "I'm not going anywhere until you tell me who gave you that order. I want to know who it was who tried to get me killed or captured by the Empire! I want to know who gave you those coordinates! I want to know who decided the Rogues were expendable enough to send out there with no hyperdrives just so the Empire could have my hide! Who was it, Laire?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Laire snarled.

Narra stepped forward, "That's enough."

"Who was it?" Luke growled in a whisper.

"I said that's enough," Narra repeated, more forcefully this time and shooting Luke with a harsh gaze.

Genna watched his jaw muscles twitch as Luke's eyes continued to bore into Laire for a moment before he finally took a step back.

Narra turned from him and saluted a man who now approached the group. "General," he said in address.

General? Genna looked at the man who had just entered the hangar. His brown hair was peppered with grey, and his dark brown eyes surveyed the scene with discerning clarity. He was not a man to be taken lightly, of that Genna was certain. As she continued to stare at him, he spoke.

"Gentlemen," he said, his voice rich and deep, "I trust there is a good explanation for all of this." He gestured at the group, and to Narra, Skywalker, and Laire in particular.

Laire straightened and saluted. "General Fen, perhaps you would intervene?"

Genna threw a panicked glance at the General, who only arched an eyebrow at Laire.

"In what matter?" Fen asked.

Laire tried to draw himself up even further as he replied, "Young Skywalker here thinks he can question my orders."

"When they jeopardize the lives of my men, I think I'm entitled!" Luke shot back.

Fen turned to Luke. "Skywalker, was it?"

Luke looked away from Laire long enough to nod to Fen. "Yes, sir."

Fen scrutinized the young pilot. "Skywalker, is it true that you challenge the orders of a superior officer?"

"No, sir," Luke answered, calming himself. "I question the validity of those orders as it appears they lead us into an Imperial trap."

Laire interrupted, "The traitor in question is right here! Why not ask her about the orders?"

"General, sir, if I may speak?" a voice called from behind Genna.

She turned her head to see Wedge Antilles stride forward with Tycho Celchu at his side. Both saluted the General and waited solemnly for his reply.

"And you would be?" Fen asked.

"Acting Commander of Rogue Squadron, Wedge Antilles, sir," Wedge replied, meeting Luke's shocked gaze just long enough to assure him that this was all Laire's doing.

Fen arched an eyebrow and spoke, "Go ahead, Antilles."

"I'd like to speak with you privately, sir, about information revealed to me in confidence by the accused traitor, Ms. Genna Cage," Wedge requested.

Genna didn't think anything could drown the sound of her own heart thudding in her ears. Laire's voice managed to do it, however.

"You can't be serious!" he exclaimed. "She confided in you, Antilles?"

"Commander," Fen remarked to Laire sternly, silencing the irate man. He then returned his attention to Wedge. "Antilles, I'd like to see you in my office right away, along with Commander Narra."

"Sir," Wedge added, "I'd like to request Skywalker's presence as well, as this concerns him."

Genna looked over at Luke who was meeting her gaze for the first time since her arrival. His expression held both confusion, fear, and doubt. She wished she could speak to him, to tell him what she'd told Wedge, but she knew Laire would somehow twist it into more incriminating evidence of her betrayal. And right now, it didn't seem she would be let out of Laire's custody long enough for her to say anything out of the obnoxious man's hearing. Grimacing at her own powerlessness, she tried to reassure Luke wordlessly.

Then Laire intervened. "And what of me?" he demanded.

"You," Fen replied, coldness evident in his tone for the first time, "will remain with your crew. I'd like to have Cage escorted to a holding cell here on the base."

Ignoring Laire's incredulous expression, Fen gestured to two of his officers who approached Genna and took their places at her side. Genna felt relief for the first time since she'd been accused, gladly relinquishing the presence of Laire's guards.

"Let's go," Fen ordered curtly, and ushered those he would be meeting with out of the hangar. Falling in step beside Genna as her new guards urged her to follow, he murmured, "That man tries even my patience."

Genna couldn't help but smile at his words and the sounds of Laire's complaints behind her fading into the background.
* * * * * * *
Pressing the tips of his fingers to his temples, Luke let out a deep breath and sank even further into the chair he occupied in Fen's office. Having a gut feeling that the Dark Lord of the Sith was after you was one thing. Having it confirmed was something entirely different. After all, he'd expected to wind up on the Empire's "Most Wanted" list after Yavin; but he'd never expected to become the pet prey of the Empire's most fearsome henchman. It was a lot more than he was ready to handle at the moment.

"You're sure about this?" he asked softly, as though fearing the reply.

Wedge nodded at him solemnly from his seat beside him. "She was telling the truth, I'm sure of it. I mean, why else would she tell me all of this if not to protect you?"

"She could be trying to throw us off," General Fen suggested, leaning forward and resting his elbows upon his polished desk. "Maybe she wants us focused on Skywalker here and away from what the Empire is really after."

Luke shook his head. "No," he whispered. "No, Vader was on that ship."

Fen leaned forward even further. "How do you know?"

Luke looked up at him and caught his scrutinizing gaze. Feeling suddenly trapped, he rose from his seat and paced behind it. As he wiped beads of sweat from his brow, he realized he was reacting foolishly to all of this, but he couldn't seem to be able to keep his emotions in check. In truth, he was terrified. And not just because of Vader's hunt. He was terrified of the stirrings in the Force he'd felt out there, stirrings that had told him, without a doubt, that Vader was on that ship and hunting him personally. He'd never experienced anything of that magnitude or clarity before. Hours had been spent trying to control the Force, to move objects, to sense other people. But never had the Force flowed so freely through him, and he didn't know why it had happened. He hadn't even been able to control it.

Realizing that Fen, Wedge, and Narra were all staring at him in concern, he stopped his pacing and said as steadily as he could, "Something told me he was there. I knew it was him on that ship."

"A Force thing?" asked Wedge after a moment.

As Luke nodded to him, Fen jerked in puzzlement. "Force thing?"

Narra explained, "Luke's father was a Jedi Knight. It's one of the reasons he's such an amazing pilot."

Rubbing the back of his neck to ease some of his own tension, Wedge added, "Genna told me herself that the Executor is Vader's flagship. More than likely, Luke's little hunch is correct."

There was a long period of silence before Luke muttered, "Ben Kenobi told me that Vader hunted and killed all of the Jedi, including my father." Leaning heavily against the back of his chair, he added, "Maybe he's just trying to finish the job."

Narra interrupted, "But Cage said that she was given strict instructions not to harm you, just to gather information about you." He exchanged puzzled glances with the other men, before suggesting, "Maybe he isn't really sure you have Jedi potential. Maybe he's just trying to gather as much info on the young pilot who destroyed the Death Star in order to make you pay for it personally."

Luke shivered at that thought. "That's comforting."

"Well," said Fen, shifting back into his seat, "I think we should question Cage about it a bit more about all this, although, like you, I'm fairly certain she's not here to betray us. Laire's got it all wrong, as usual."

"I'll say," murmured Wedge under his breath before noticing the harsh glare from Fen.

"His shortcoming, Antilles, is that he fails to take into consideration that most of us have checkered pasts," Fen went on, "Imperial pasts most commonly. If it were up to him, we'd all be traitors. But it only serves to illustrate just how truly devoted to the Alliance's cause he is. Take him with a grain of salt, and accept him for the sometimes-intolerant man he can be. He's a good leader."

Luke snorted. "With all due respect, what good leader can't tell a genuine order from a falsified one?"

Fen held up a hand, "We don't know that the order was falsified yet. It could have, indeed, come from Alliance High Command. They may have received some other bit of information leading them to that particular course of action. At this moment, we don't really know. But don't be too hasty to place the blame solely on Laire. I suspect he was acting capably."

"In any event," Narra broke in, "we all need to keep our eyes open and stay on our toes. I, for one, don't want one of my best pilots winding up in the hands of the Empire."

Fen nodded in agreement, while Luke shifted uncomfortably.

Wedge, however, chuckled slightly. "Thanks for saying one of the best instead of the best," he joked to Narra. "I'd hate to be slighted to my face."

In response to his words Narra laughed and rose, patting Wedge on the shoulder as he did so. "And this, gentlemen, is why we keep Antilles, here, around." He then turned to Luke who was grinning at Wedge's remark. "Well, Skywalker, how do you want to handle this on your end?"

Luke sobered. "I'd like to talk to Cage myself, if that's permissible."

"Indeed it is," responded Fen. "As long as you control that temper of yours."

Luke winced at his remark. "Believe me, I only want to talk. I think all my anger and frustration was spent on Laire."

At that, Fen laughed heartily. "That I'll believe!"