CHAPTER SEVEN – YOU CAN'T BRIBE A MANDALORIAN

Ten hours earlier, Hutch prepared a small case for Sabine.

"All right," he said. "So, when you take the soil sample you first need to add two drops of this solution. Then follow it with one drop of the solution in the smaller bottle."

"What's in it?" Sabine asked. "How do you know it's going to turn colors?"

"Because the big bottle is filled with corn starch solution and the little one is iodine," Hutch explained. "Molly played with it when she was a kid."

SABINE

"So, what is this?" Spencer asks, gesturing to the little vial as we sit in his office.

"Found why your fields aren't producing." I announce. "It looks like the soil is testing for high levels of nitrates."

"Nitrates? Isn't that why we put manure in the fertilizer?"

"Overfertilization is the most likely cause." I tell him and set the vial back in my briefcase. "Too much nitrate slows and stunts plant growth. If the plants can't grow, they can't produce."

"Well then what does it mean?" he asks.

"Sabine, he's nibbling at the hook." Sierra says. "Reel him in, slowly."

"Karabast, I love this." Zeb says gleefully. He loves watching Imperials squirm.

So do I. "The good news is there's a solution." I say. "You just have to let the field lie fallow until the levels dissipate."

"Fallow?"

I yank on the proverbial fishing line.

"Yes. A full year for the levels to go down."

"A year?" Spencer sputters.

"That's what the studies show." I begin to pack up my briefcase. "Of course, your contract to the Empire still applies. You'll have to make compensation payments to the Department of Agriculture."

I grab a piece of flimsi and scribble down Hera's bank account number. "Here's the account you can send the payment to."

"H-how much would this payment be?" Spencer squeaks.

I scroll through my datapad. "You generate three million credits of output each year, so you'll need to repay that to the Empire."

I hand him the flimsi and he reflexively takes it, mouth open at the amount I've stated.

"I'll be around to pick up receipt of the payment this evening." I say, smiling and starting out the door.

Ha, yes! I've actually pulled this off. I may be wearing the blandest colors in existence and I've never done this before, but it was easy. All I did was mess with Imperials and Sierra didn't have to coach me much at all. My mind cheers. Maybe I should do this more often and give Kanan and Hera a break a few times.

Suddenly, Spencer straightens up and scrambles. "Miss Blane, please. Livia!"

I stop short. "Sierra, what's going on?" I whisper.

"It's okay, this happens all the time," she says calmly. "Just go back into the room and act receptive."

Easy for you to say, I think as I turn back around. You're not here!

"Yes?"

"Livia, may I call you Livia?" Spencer babbles, rushing to shut the door behind me. "Ah, Livia…is there any way those numbers could be different in the near future?"

"Different?"

"Oh boy," Kanan sighs.

"I mean, is there any way the soil sample could be wrong?" Spencer asks. "Is there any way that, if proper provisions were made, you could reduce the levels?"

Is this what it sounds like?

Ahsoka apparently reads my mind. "Sabine, he's trying to pass a bribe."

That's what it sounded like.

"Go along with it." Sierra instructs.

Is Sierra nuts? "Maybe," I test the waters. "What kind of provisions?"

"Sabine, don't go any further." Ahsoka orders. "Sierra, are you crazy? Accepting a bribe can get her arrested."

"Spencer's not going to report her; he'll be digging his own grave." Sierra snorts. "Think of it. A bribe would go through underground channels and wouldn't leave us vulnerable to Imperial attacks. We could even hack it later to get the rest of the funds."

"A personal account would be way easier than an Imperial one." Hutch notes. "We might get a bigger payday out of this."

"Well," Spencer shifts in his seat. "Possibly a smaller compensation payment that I could give to you as thanks for alerting me to the problem."

"Oh…"

Hera swoops in. "Sabine, take the money and let Sierra coach you. She knows how to handle bribes."

"I think that can work," I tell him.

"Great, great." He says, quickly grabbing a stylus. "Now, ah, would fifty thousand credits do?"

"He'll give you more than that if you ask." Kanan reminds me.

"Honestly, this guy's pathetic." Sierra snorts. "Pulling out that bribe is the only original thing he's done all day."

"That wouldn't be enough to cover our expenses," I say smoothly. "A hundred thousand should work."

"Maybe not that high." Kanan admits.

"He can always haggle down." Ahsoka points out.

Spencer's breath catches for a second. "You see, Livia, I don't think we have the money for that high a payment."

"That's a load of daglo manure," Hutch says. "I'm looking at his financials right now, he can pay out the wazoo with what he's taking from these farmers. Sabine, go eighty thousand, final offer."

"Eighty thousand." I offer without thinking of what's coming out of my mouth. "Take it or leave it."

"That'll do, that'll do." He says frantically. His pen flies across the check, filling in the spaces. "How do you spell your name? Or, do I need to make it out to you?"

"Livia Blane has a bank account." Hutch says.

"Livia, L-I-V-I-A. Blane, B-L-A-N-E." I spit out.

Spencer signs the check and slides it over to me. "If you don't mind putting that in your pocket…"

I check the amount. Eighty thousand credits.

"Of course." I place the check in my wallet next to Livia Blane's ID. "Well then, I guess I'll be on my way."

"It's a pleasure doing business with you, inspector." He says, hurriedly shaking my hand and opening the office door for me. "Now, allow me to show you to your speeder."

"I'm driving around to get you," Kanan says. "Well done, Sabine!"

A swell of pride fills my chest. I may be decked out in the galaxy's least exciting color and never have done this before, but I've just pulled off a con. I've just gotten an Imperial businessman to write me a check for eighty thousand credits! I've never seen eighty thousand credits all together before in my life, and now I'm holding a check for them in my pocketbook.

I'm going to have to get myself some new paints to celebrate.

Spencer babbles on about something, but I'm not listening. If it's something really important Hera and Sierra will prompt me and if it's not, then I don't want to hear it. I'm too busy basking in victory.

"Mr. Spencer, who is this?"

My victory bubble pops.

A tall, middle-aged man in an ISB uniform strides down the hallway, directly toward me and Spencer.

Through the comlink, Ahsoka sighs.

"What's wrong?"

"Mr. Nightwine." Spencer half-squeaks. "I was just showing the inspector from the Department of Agriculture out."

"This isn't good." A harried Sierra says after uttering a string of what I think are Onderonian swear words. "Sabine, that man is Konrad Nightwine. He's a loss prevention agent from the ISB. He specializes in tearing down grifters."

Hera's concern is audible "Is this the -."

"Yes, Hera." She says flatly. "He blasted my alias. Hutch?"

"Beefing up alias as we speak!" Hutch calls. "Don't worry, Sabine. I've been refining my art for fifteen years now. You're going to be just fine."

EZRA

"Vanilla fried nuna? Are you guys serious?" Kiara squawks. "You know how Aunt Hero gets when her recipes fail."

"You didn't stop us!" Tav protests, pointing at his sister. "And neither did Molly. How were we supposed to know?"

"I dunno, maybe because vanilla is so common a Geonosian could identify it by smell?" Kiara shoots back.

Molly and I have backed away from the bickering siblings. She's hiding behind her computer monitor, I'm just sitting next to her to distance myself from the conflict. This is eerily to Zeb, Sabine's and my fights on the Ghost, and those always end with Zeb locking one of us in the refresher, Sabine painting an unflattering picture of us, or me sending Chopper after them.

I don't want to put myself in a sibling war that isn't my own. You don't survive the streets of Lothal being that stupid.

"So," I say awkwardly, looking at a bunch of nonsense on Molly's screen. "What are you doing?"

She shrugs. "Hacking my dad's system."

I try not to sound like an idiot. "Why would you want to do that?"

"If you can think of anything better to do, I'm all for it." She says. "But until then, I don't want to deal with Tav and Kiara. If he doesn't try to back-hack me, then nothing should end up broken or otherwise permanently damaged."

"If he can back-hack you, then why are you even trying? Why not go for something else?"

Molly rolls her eyes. "If you can get into the Cashier from Hell's system, then literally anything else is a cakewalk. I'll say one thing about Dad, he knows how to keep all our digital stuff safe."

"Cashier from Hell?"

"It's his hacker handle." She explains. "He started hacking from a cash register so the Empire and everyone in the underground calls him that. Mom's Waitress from Hell, Katooni's Initiate from Hell, and I'm Baby from Hell. Creative, I know."

Considering she's named all four members of the St. James/From Hell family, it's impressive to say the least.

"But," she says. "I do have one advantage. Dad and I are on the same ship, so we're using the same broadband. Thus, I have one foolproof channel to get in to his system."

The code stops scrolling on her screen.

"I'm in the authorized channels." She happily starts clicking through force-knows-what, and I turn my attention back to Tav and Kiara.

"You didn't even fess up to it while Aunt Hero cried." Kiara growls.

"I didn't hear you saying anything." Tav snaps.

"Guys," Molly says. "Guys."

Tav and Kiara stop fighting.

"What, Molly?"

"I'm in our authorized channels looking for a way into the central server." Molly begins. "And I thought it would be fun to see what Dad's doing for the con. Right now, he's beefing up an alias. Like, really beefing it up."

"Who's it for?" Tav asks.

Molly squints. "The name is Livia Blane."

I startle to my feet. "That's Sabine! Is she okay?"

"Not sure," she says, fingernails clicking against the keys. "But we're going to find out quickly. Does 'Nightwine' mean anything to you?"

A/N: Molly is in some trouble if she ever saw it. Hacking Hutch is never a good idea!

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Lux's Sister