SORRY I FORGOT TO POST THIS CHAPTER AND INSTEAD POSTED CHAPTER 10. HERE IS THE REAL CHAPTER 9
Chapter 9:
Han Solo cursed as the whiskey and ice fell onto his lap. He brushed the ice and liquid off of himself. The cold alcohol tingled and burned as it seeped through his pants, and he stood up as much as he could behind the table of the booth. He looked up at Princess Leia Organa. She was talking with a service droid and pointing at Han. The service droid rolled toward Han's table, and she continued on.
"Back off or you'll find yourself in pieces, droid," Han growled as the service droid attempted to clean off the whiskey on Han's lap with its suction arm.
The droid ignored him. Solo grabbed the droid's arm and shoved it away. The droid twittered and beeped as it backed away and used its suction arm to suck up the whiskey from the table. As that extended appendage did its job, it collected the glass under the table, tangling itself in Han's feet. Han kicked at the droid. Another string of electric curses assaulted Han before the droid then left the booth.
Solo spotted their contact sitting a stool away from the corner of the bar. The lanky woman was hunched over her drink, her eyes focused on the contents in his glass; Han knew this was a ruse. Their contact was taking stock of the patrons of the bar. Her arm rested on the bar, and she cupped her glass as if she were guarding it with her life. Han bit the inside of his cheek. A rifle strapped to the woman's back wasn't the only weapon she carried. Han surmised from her carefully careless posture that she carried concealed weapons on various places on her body. He rolled his lips; Leia carried no blaster, and Han hoped she had her knife strapped to her thigh under her dress.
Not that a knife could outwit a blaster.
Solo sat back down in the booth and watched the exchange between the princess and the woman. Leia leaned against the bar; her elbow rested upon the bar, and her hand held her chin. The way she reclined against the ledge of the bar emphasized her breasts and brought too much attention to her. Han looked around. Attracting attention to herself and her contact threatened their mission and could scare their contact away. Was Leia aware of her appeal to the other customers? She must have; her large brown eyes scanned the room every so often, but she never appeared to take her attention off of their contact.
The woman bought a drink for Leia and one for herself, two shots of Midori tequila. The princess straightened her posture. She then lifted the glass to her lips, through back her head, and slammed the shot glass upside down on the bar. Han could see their contact's smile from her profile. Their contact mimicked Leia's actions.
Their conversation continued; and the smiles exchanged by the two women faded. Their contact turned away from the princess and ordered another round of drinks. Leia ran her finger along her small glass as she listened to the woman; she nodded and frowned. From Han's point-of-view, things didn't look like they were going well. They couldn't fail this mission; despite the reason he and Leia were on Ord Mantel—hiding out as Chewie and Luke hunted Leia's would-be assassin—the weapons Han and Leia were meant to procure were needed by the Alliance and important to Leia.
It was time for Han to use his good-looking charm to close the deal. Certainly, he would have more luck with their female contact than Leia. A little flattery here, some flirting there, the woman would be putty in his hands.
Solo strolled over to the bar and took a seat on the other side of their contact. Leia's eyes widened and retracted and her mouth was set in a straight line. Their contact turned her yellow-outlined blue eyes to Han.
"Hey, good-looking," Han said. "Care for another drink?"
"I already have a drink," their contact said.
"Scram, flyboy," Leia said. "We're having a private conversation here."
"I'm certain I'll…enhance your conversation."
The princess rolled her eyes as Han winked at their contact.
"He's with you," their contact said.
"Unfortunately. Fardera, Han. Han, Fardera."
"Han Solo." Fardera smiled. "Rumor has it that Jabba has placed a hefty bounty on you."
He shifted in his seat. "Yeah, well you can't always believe the rumors."
"You're lucky I'm not a bounty hunter."
"That I am." He leaned in. "I understand you desire to make a contribution to my friends."
"So the famous Han Solo believes in a cause. I hear that is not your style."
Han felt Leia's eyes on him. He showed no reaction to Fardera's words.
"It's steady work. I can't complain."
"I'm sure it is," Fardera said. "That's why I'm here."
"So the deal is closed?"
"Not quite."
The princess downed her drink, tilted her head, and formed her lips into a promising smile. "Would you rather dance with Han? Or me."
Fardera's own lips stretched into a mischievous smile and her blue eyebrow rose as she gazed into Han's eyes.
Han grinned and started to hold out his hand.
Fardera smiled at the princess before turning her attention to Han. With the grace of a chiconi monkey, the woman slinked off of her stool, sliding her body against Han's. Han granted Leia a lopsided grin. However, that smug grin faded when Fardera, held her hand out to the princess. Leia smirked at Han as she allowed Fardera to take her hand and lead her to the dance floor.
Solo ordered another drink, this time a shot of Coruscant vodka and a Corellian ale. He downed the vodka and swiveled on his stool to watch Leia and Fardera dance as he nursed his Corellian ale. Fardera had her hands on Leia's waist, and Leia rested her hands on her partner's shoulders. Han grumbled into his ale as he watched them sway to the music. It was a moderately slow song, one that those who chose to dance could either dance close to each other or keep a distance. Han didn't like that Leia and Fardera chose to dance close, but how else could they communicate with each other?
As they rocked back and forth in a circular pattern, Han watched Leia's expression. Sometimes her expression was all business, while other times her face was lit up with a smile. The former smuggler took another gulp of his ale as Leia leaned close to Fardera's ear. Han's face screwed up, and his stomach pinched with, what was it...jealousy?
That was ridiculous. Leia was out there negotiating a deal with their contact, a deal that meant a lot to the Alliance. He couldn't be jealous of Fardera as she danced with the princess. Definitely a ridiculous emotion. No, Han was angry that Leia was the one dealing with the contact when Reikken made it clear that Han should do the negotiating. Their contact, Fardera, was dangerous, a notorious criminal and mercenary. If she figured out who Leia was…
Han finished his ale in one gulp and moved to stand near the dance floor. He leaned against the bar with his fingers looped through his belt. Although it felt like a lifetime to Han, Leia finished up the negotiations in record time. When the song ended, Fardera held out Leia's hand as she gave the princess a slight bow. At first, Han worried that Fardera figured out who Leia really was but noticed other dancers ended their dance that way. Leia stood with her back to Han as she watched their contact walk away.
Han saw an opportunity: he stepped behind the princess, grabbed her hand, and whirled her into his arms. Leia's eyes widened, and her cheeks flushed pink. Han couldn't help but smile. Still holding her hand, he pulled her close to him, leaving no space between them. He held her hand against his chest and wrapped his arm around her hips. To his surprised, Leia didn't try to distance herself from him. Instead, she wrapped her arm around his shoulder.
"You close the deal?"
"Do you doubt my negotiation skills?"
He leaned down to speak into her ear. "Not in the least. But you shoulda let me take care of it."
"You would've ended up making her finder's fee go up."
"You doubt my charms?"
Leia smiled up at him. "When it comes to negotiations, I out charm you."
Han raised an eyebrow. "If she were a fan of males, I doubt you would've been successful."
"She's more interested in men than women. She just didn't want to dance with you."
Han grimaced. "She doesn't know what she missed."
"You're right," Leia raised an eyebrow. "You're a much better dancer than you look."
Han's lop-sided grin spread across his face. "You like my dancing?"
"You're not bad."
"No bad?"
Leia looked away. "Maybe better than not bad."
He whirled her around and delighted in her smile. "So how'd negotiations go?"
She lifted her heels off of the floor to reach his ear. "The shipment will be delivered three days from now under the guise of medical supplies."
"Fardera is a greedy mercenary, and Gorobian is ruthless. How much higher did the price go up?"
"Actually, I got her to lower her finder's fee, and got her boss to lower the price."
"What?"
Han pulled back to look into Leia's face. She wore a smug smile before pulling him close and resting her head on his chest.
"How was she able to do that?"
"Goroborian is here. They had a code."
"So how'd you get them to lower the price?"
"I explained to them how much the Alliance needed their weapons, and of course, they have no love for the Empire who interferes with their business. The Imperials are bleeding them dry." She shrugged. "Turns out that they believe in our cause."
"Your cause. I'm just here for the ride."
Leia looked up at him. "So you say."
"One day I'm going to have to go and pay Jabba off."
Leia put a small distance between them and stared at his chest. "I know."
Han grimaced. He just had to open his big mouth. He whirled her around again, but she didn't seem to take as much pleasure in his move as before. He pulled her back into his embrace when a thick finger tapped his arm.
"May I cut in."
Still holding Leia's hand and hips, Solo pulled back to take in the owner of that finger. A large man, belly extended and arms the size of Han's thighs, stood next to him. His two friends, an Imgis and a Harisco, leaned against the bar as they watched the man cut into Han and Leia's dance.
"Sorry. We're enjoying ourselves."
"I wasn't asking."
Han saw the fear in Leia's eyes. "She's with me."
"Not for long."
"Thank you, but I'm not interested in dancing anymore. I think I need a rest."
Still holding Han's hand, she started to toward the edge of the dance floor. The large man punched Han in the stomach, and he doubled over, clutched his abdomen, and fell to the floor. The man grabbed Leia's free hand. Han could hear the man's friends laugh. Han fought to catch his breath as he watched the mad drag Leia away. Leia dug in her heels as the man pulled her. Han tried to rise from the floor but still couldn't catch his breath.
The princess looked down at Han, and then agreed to dance with the man. The intruder held her tight to his body, his hands pulling her hips close to his. Leia pressed her hands and forearms against his chest in an attempt to keep her distance. Han's hazel eyes narrowed on the pair as he managed to sit up. The dancers around him avoided Han, Leia, and the man. Obviously, no one was going to step in and help.
Leia smiled at the man, the smile Han recognized as her political game face. Before the man knew what happened, Leia slammed her foot into his, lifted her leg, and shoved her knee into his crotch. The man released her and grabbed his delicate parts, giving Leia the chance to knee him in the chin and blind him with her fingers. The mouth of the large man's friends dropped as they watched their friend fall to the ground, moaning in pain.
Wasting no time, Leia grabbed Han's hand and pulled him to his feet. She looked around the bar; they had caught the attention of all the dancers and nearby patrons of the bar.
"This way!"
Han pulled her toward the back of the bar, but there was no back door.
"Just great!"
"Now what?"
"Do I have to think of everything?"
"Since I took care of—"
"Come'n."
Han dragged Leia into the men's bathroom and locked the door.
"Oh, he won't find us in here."
"They. He had a couple of friends."
Solo rushed to the window.
"Step back and cover your face."
Solo removed his jacket, wrapped it around his arm, and slammed his elbow into the glass of the window. It shattered. He used his jacket to clear out the remaining glass before draping it over the edge of the window ledge.
He held out his hand to Leia. "Come'n."
Leia took his hand, and she rushed to the window. She bit her lip and her eyebrows peeked.
"I don't think you're going to fit."
"Don't worry about me."
Han grabbed her hips and effortlessly lifted her off of the ground. Leia grabbed the edge of the window and pulled herself into it. She hunched down as she drew her legs into the small opening. She dropped her legs out of the window, and Han took her hands, lowering her out of the window until she was close enough to the ground to jump.
"What about you?"
Han stared up at the window. It would be a tight fit, but if he could drop out of it head first, it just might work.
"I'm comin'."
He reached up and grabbed the edge of the window. His arm muscles strained as he pulled himself into the window. He wiggled his shoulders through the tiny opening until he managed to free them. Bracing himself by pressing his hands to the wall, he pulled his waist through. Next came his hips.
"Put your arms around my neck."
"You can't possibly—"
"Just do it, flyboy."
Han wrapped his arms around Leia's neck, and she pulled him out of the window. She stumbled under his weight and ended up on her backside with Han falling between her legs.
"Sweetheart, you're full of surprises."
She smirked. "I know."
Han sat back. "I'm sure they figured out our plan."
He put his hands under Leia's arms and picked her up as he climbed to his feet. Once she was settled on her feet. They looked both ways down the alley. Just as Han expected, the muscular man with his friends were rushing towards them. Han grabbed Leia's hand and ran in the opposite direction. He feared Leia's short legs would hold them back, but she managed to keep up with him.
They turned down various alleys and rushed through the back doors of some businesses only to make their way to the front door. On any other planet, their actions would be suspicious, and the authorities would've been called. However, this was Ord Mantel, and the situation Han and Leia found themselves in was quite normal.
Leia looked over her shoulder. "I can't see them."
"Doesn't mean they stopped chasing us."
Han turned down another alley and they rushed right into a wall.
"What now?"
His brow lowered. "I have to think of a plan, again?"