Chapter 3

The one thing Kayla hated most about being confined to a cargo bay was that most vessels didn't have adjustable air control systems for that portion of the ship.

Most passengers were expected to stay in the upper levels and because of this, Kayla found herself constantly in a state of being just slightly too cold to be comfortable despite her socks and layered clothing. She managed to make do, catching sleep whenever she could, but it was not a pleasant experience overall. So when something rather warm settled against her chest not long after the lights had been extinguished for the night, she woke at the sudden difference in temperature.

She looked down through a tired fog to see a familiar green someone curled up on her legs while leaning against her chest. She had no idea how long the kid had been there or how he got out of wherever the Mandalorian put him but she didn't mind the company and the small amount of warmth he provided.

"Hey, little guy." She croaked in a quiet mutter, shifting to get a bit more comfortable. "Pretty sure you're not supposed to be down here with me."

The child just continued breathing deeply and slow, eyes closed as he was lost to the comfort of sleep. Logic suggested calling for the Mandalorian again but the pull of rest was just too much. So she decided she'd deal with him in the morning if it caused a problem.

"I won't tell if you won't..." She whispered. Then she yawned and closed her eyes, slowly slipping back into restless sleep.

The trip continued on for several days until finally, Kayla watched the Bothawui port workers guide two slabs of carbonite with their unfortunate victims down the ramp towards a receiving building.

"Alright! Bring 'em on down!" The worker called.

She stood beside the Mandalorian as he held her in place with a grasp on her binders. She could feel his masked gaze on her several times but she didn't pay him much mind. The frozen Zabrak, whom Kayla assumed she'd heard get frozen when up in the rafters, wore an expression of sheer terror, his eyes squeezed shut and mouth wide open in a silent scream. The other slab held a dug, snout contorted in a sneer of anger or rage, and she couldn't help but wonder what he had done or where the Mandalorian had caught him.

A unexpected and rather stern shove suddenly sent the redhead stumbling a few steps down the ramp.

Kayla managed to maintain her footing and looked back at the helmeted bounty hunter with a glare only to see him casually holding the binders that had kept her wrists behind her. She had been too preoccupied watching to even notice that he'd taken them off. Rubbing at her wrists was more reflex than pain but after being restrained for so long, it felt like it relieved some of the soreness.

"Get going, thief." He called after her, though the bite she had expected behind the words wasn't there. He instead stood relaxed and unconcerned.

Kayla had been compliant with all his safety measures and hadn't caused any trouble while aboard just as promised. He'd even let her stand the second day to stretch her legs a little and slip her boots back on. Kayla couldn't help but wonder if maybe he wasn't as mad about giving her a free ride as she'd thought. So with a small half-wave and a playful grin, she turned away to leave.

"Thanks for the lift, Mandalorian. Let's hope not to see each other again." She called back in a tease.

"Let's hope." Was his poker-faced reply. The helmet gave nothing away, as usual.

And so Kayla started towards the exit to the landing bay without a glance back, passing several workers and the head engineer on her way.

"Watch the kid for a short while and I'll throw in extra." She heard the bounty hunter tell the head engineer. The engineer agreed but the conversation after that was too distant for Kayla to hear.

The kid.

Kayla was willing to admit that her few days aboard the bounty hunter's ship hadn't exactly been terrible. Aside from the cold confinement, bound wrists, and sub-par food, having the little green child make surprise visits to her down in the cargo bay had been something she found herself looking forward to; not to mention watching the Mandalorian get exasperated with the continual repeated escapes of his small companion had provided her a pretty decent level of amusement. She couldn't help but feel a small part of her was going miss the little guy, with his cute little smile and his big pointed ears-

Kayla shook her head.

No. She was never going to see the kid again so she had to let go. She couldn't feel bad cuz now she had to get to work: with nothing but the clothes on her back and a determination for a decent meal after several days of bland ration packs, the redhead re-tied her hair back and pulled up her hood before slipping into the crowd of tourists and travelers.

Now where could all those wealthy sons-of-banthas be hiding?

In comparison to Bothawui, Rodia had been much less technologically advanced. Not to say that Rodia was primitive but by standards of architecture alone, it was undoubtedly outdated and rather old. Stone buildings and towers that at one point served as actual defensive positions comprised 90% of it's cityscape. Not to mention just how confusing it was to navigate anywhere, as her escape had shown. The one facet it did win in was it's natural beauty.

But here in Bothawui the buildings are a dazzling white and smooth-faced, rounded when it could afford to be. Statues of abstract shapes and water features dotted the city plazas that were teeming with life from all parts of the galaxy. People of all planetary origins mingled tougher among the place. Needless to say, Kayla's initial assumption of Bothawui as a backwater planet was vastly incorrect.

Kayla now leaned against the counter of a food shop serving some local specialty.

The thief had no idea what "bok stew" was but it sure tasted delicious, served in a steamy broth of planet-native vegetables. It had cost her the pickpocketing of a twi'lek's small pouch of credits but was definitely well-worth the ten minutes of stalking needed to swipe it. Then again, anything tasted better than the dehydrated meat from The Mandalorian's ration packs so it tasted close to fine-dining by comparison.

Her gaze took in all those that passed her by, the hood of her jacket keeping the overly-vibrant green in shadow. Crowd-watching was the best source of targets for a thief and Kayla had become quick to learn the difference of how the wealthy went about their lives: they walked differently, holding themselves with a great deal of importance and respect that others did not, and tended to give themselves away most of the time, though hearing them speak to others was a very large indicator too. Figuring out those same visible and verbal cues on many species could be quite challenging but after years and years of watching and studying, she knew the signs.

Her eyes flitted from a motherly Trandoshan walking with a younger child to the lumbering Wookie that seemed to tower over most of the crowd, gesturing animatedly at his dark-haired human companion. Neither really stood out to her much so she kept watching, waiting for something to jump out and catch her interest.

Then a Sullustan pilot walking past the food establishment caught her attention. His head was bowed as he read over a data pad, her eyes caught a snippet of the text but it was in a foreign language she didn't know, and the corner of a rather thick purse of credits in his back pocket kept her unwavering attention. So she moved to casually set down her empty bowl and gave the shop owner an appreciative thank and smile.

Looking around the plaza with interest, more so to stave off suspicion of her intentions, she followed in the direction the Sullustan had gone, catching glimpses of him through the crowd as they went. Kayla slowly gained on him but kept close enough to avoid losing him completely in the sea of people while remaining far enough away that it wasn't obvious she was tailing him. He was still completely absorbed in his data pad and seemed oblivious to his impending robber.

Ten minutes of following led her to a tightly-packed cantina, the Sullustan only a person or two ahead now. There was barely much room there to move without bumping or brushing into someone beside you and she had to admit that it was one of her preferred environments for thieving or pickpocketing. She quickened her pace as much as possible within the crowded building, closing the distance so that she was now right behind him. Kayla waited until the Sullustan had to slide past a group of Deveronians to proceed towards the back of the cantina, then snatched at the pouch of credits in his pocket before skillfully sliding the pouch into her own pocket. He thankfully didn't react, no doubt thinking the feeling had simply been someone passing him by, nor did anyone in the crowd call out to her or seem to notice.

Instead of immediately turning to leave though, Kayla then moved to take a seat at the bar nearby and waited for the bartender to notice and serve her. She knew from experience that entering a building and then leaving right after would make her look strange so she waited it out, knowing it could turn to be risky if the Sullustan was quick to notice his missing credits but preferring not to make a scene or impression on anyone in case he began asking questions later. But a quick glance at her victim confirmed that he had sat at one of the back tables and was still smitten with his data pad.

The poor fool really had set himself up as an easy target and she jokingly hoped he didn't start a tab for drinks.

So ordering a single cheap nikta shot paid for by the clueless Sullustan, she gestured to the human bartender and leaned in close when he approached from the other side of the counter.

"More nikta?" He inquired, reaching for the bottle. But Kayla shook her head and laid several credits on the surface between them. Interested, the bartender eyed them and smiled. "Information, then?"

Kayla nodded, several fingers playing casually with her hair.

"I've never been here to Bothawui before. You know where I could find a med clinic?" She asked casually, a smooth smile on her rosebud lips as she innocently blinked her dark lashes. He picked one of the credits up, inspected it for a moment, then pointed back the way she'd come inside.

"Not far, just a few minutes walk from here." He told her with a rather smooth smile of his own. "First take a right down this main road then several streets up on the left. You can't miss it with the sign above the entrance."

"Thanks." She thanked, flashing him a small wink before leaving the cantina.

Kayla didn't know how casual food or room renting on Bothawui cost but a quick count of her new credits put her at sixteen-thousand: enough to keep her comfortable for several days, at least.

Following the directions the bartender gave her just in case anyone had heard her asking, Kayla took the time to really appreciate the city. At face value, it looked cleaner and safer than most planets she'd been unfortunate enough to land on. She wasn't hassled by merchants as she walked by and the population was diverse enough that being human didn't make her stick out like a stormtrooper in a cantina. Her people-watching continued as she casually walked along the street, eyes sweeping over those around her.

But then the sight of long green ears along in the arms of a nearby woman caught her attention; Kayla couldn't help but double-check only to recognize the small tan robe that The Mandalorian's kid had been wearing.

She frowned when she realized it was one of the ship techs carrying the child.

But… What was she doing with the kid? The Mandalorian had instructed her boss to watch the kid so where was she taking it? They were a good distance away from the landing bays too, and the thief was fairly certain that he wouldn't want her to leave the area with-

Kayla shook her head.

No, this wasn't her problem. Who cared what happened to the kid, it wasn't her child. Besides, maybe The Mandalorian really had stolen the baby and the ship tech was trying to save him? She didn't know a single thing about what was going on, where they came from, what they were doing together and Kayla had more important things to do than worry about the Mandalorian's adorable little foster baby. And if needs be, he was more than capable of saving him on his own. It just wasn't her concern.

By chance though, as Kayla continued to follow the bartender's directions to the clinic the ship tech happened to do the same. Despite trying to ignore the woman and the stolen child, the redhead couldn't help but watch as they moved through the crowd in front of her. Those large green ears just kept drawing her attention and she then couldn't help but notice that the women looked very nervous.

They both took a left at the next corner and the clinic came into view. But instead of heading inside like the thief had planned to, Kayla paused when the tech instead ducked into the small alley beside it and disappeared. She didn't have any obligation to know what was going on and the selfish half of her brain told herself that this was a waste of time, that all of this could be for good reasoning. Maybe the kid was sick? Maybe the Mandalorian knew what was going on? Maybe Kayla was way too invested in a cute kid she'd spent only a few hours with during her confinement on his ship? This could all be her paranoia extending to the kid for absolutely no reason.

But… then why bypass the main entrance and go around to the back?

Her thoughts battled for a minute between minding her own business and following after the woman until eventually her moral side won over. She then found herself tugging her mask up over her mouth and nose and pulling her hood a bit lower as she snuck down the same alleyway the ship tech had gone. Before she reached the end of the alley, she could hear conversation between the ship tech and someone else so she carefully inched the last few steps to the edge of the wall, crouching lower and carefully peeking around the corner's bottom.

The ship tech was speaking to a man clad in a gray uniform with the child wrapped tightly in a blanket in her hands. Even from her distance Kayla could see the insignia in silver on the man's shirt glinting in the afternoon sunlight and she scowled.

Imperial.

"This is it, right? Small, green, big ears; that's what you said." The woman asked, showing the kid to the man for a better look. "Only thing I've seen around here that looks like it."

"Yes it is." He replied, scrutinizing the kid with a critical eye like he was inspecting the wear on a ship rather than a living child. "We have been searching for him for quite some time. How fortunate that you've found him for us."

The child seemed rather confused, looking back and forth between these two unfamiliar people. Kayla now felt even more befuddled than before. Why were Imperials after the kid?

"Good. Then about those credits you guys were offering? I'm risking my neck just handing him over to you, with that Mandalorian hunter- ah!" The woman suddenly jumped with a small yelp, shaking out her hand that the kid had just bitten. She glaring down at him and smacked his head. "Damn brat…"

The small child cried out from the pain of being struck and whimpered quietly. Kayla couldn't help but let out a silent but outraged breath as her hands clenched to fists.

How dare she hit a child-?!

"Naturally, we do understand the risk you undertook to bring him to us." The man continued, looking entirely uninterested in the woman. "And here is payment for delivery as promised."

Kayla's green eyes narrowed as the Imperial pulled a very-well-sized pouch of credits and handed them to the woman, who in turn handed off the child with a small shove. And without another glance or care, she then turned and walked away in another direction while counting the credits she'd received.

Kayla's jaw all but dropped: she'd stolen then sold the child?! And to Imperials of all people!?

The redhead felt her fists tighten with barely-restrained anger of disbelief, watching the Imperial take the kid through a backdoor of the clinic and then the door shut with a hiss behind him. Had she been confident enough to take him out one-on-one then she no doubt would have attempted to take the kid back right then and there, but the Mandalorian hadn't bothered returning her knives or blaster before sending her on her way. And although she was skilled and experienced in hand-to-hand combat, it was far from her favorite means of fighting and she would have no other way.

Kayla chewed on her lip nervously as she thought: technically the kid wasn't her problem, the bounty hunter could take care of him. It was his responsibility so he could-

No! No- this is a living child! The kid could be moved or even dead by the time the Mandalorian realizes it!

So deciding in finality that she couldn't just abandon the small child, Kayla quickly doubled back to the main street to grab the first blaster she could get her hands on. Somehow, she is going to steal the kid back and she will return him to the bounty hunter.