"What was he afraid of?" Astri asked.

"Her," Tino said. "Whoever she is. He said he'd stared pure evil in the face."

Obi-Wan felt a chill. This was the person who held his Master.

"Then why did he have to go back?" Obi-Wan asked.

Tino shook his head. "He wouldn't tell me. Maybe because I didn't really believe him. Ren was always such a big mouth. Always talking about his big connections. Said he came from a powerful family."

"He did," Obi-Wan said.

"Yeah. So I heard, after he was dead. But I didn't know then. So when he said he had to get insurance, that this scientist wouldn't dare kill him if he went back, I didn't believe that, either." Tino looked up, his eyes bleak. "And then he died."

"I'm sorry," Astri said quietly.

"Me, too. You know, I told all this to the security force."

"Simpla-12 has a security force?" Obi-Wan asked, surprised. He'd thought it was one of the lawless worlds.

"The Coruscant security police investigated," Tino said. "Some big Bothan…"

"Captain Yur T'aug?" Obi-Wan asked.

"That was the guy. He was in charge of investigating the murder. I told him what Ren told me — that if something happened to him, he had left behind a clue, something that would lead them to this scientist and her lab. I told them to ask Cholly, Weez, and Tup. Ren talked to them, too. But he never questioned anybody on Simpla-12. He just shipped Ren's body back to Coruscant, to his mother. I guess they didn't care that much about solving the murder."

Obi-Wan thanked Tino. He and Astri walked slowly from the warehouse.

"What now?" Astri asked.

"I wonder why Captain Yur T'aug didn't follow up on any leads," Obi- Wan said.

"You know him?"

"He investigated Fligh's murder," Obi-Wan said. "He didn't seem very interested in finding that killer, either."

Astri nodded. "I have a feeling we're heading back to Coruscant."

Chapter 14

Qui-Gon floated in the chamber. His limbs felt heavy, but the paralyzing dart was wearing off.

Jenna Zan Arbor's face loomed through the vapor outside the chamber.

He could just make out the outlines of her face. "Did you really think you could escape?"

"It seemed worth a try," Qui-Gon said.

"I am tired of our game," Zan Arbor said. "You amused me once. I was kind to you. I let you out of the chamber."

"Let us not forget that it was you who imprisoned me in the first place," Qui-Gon said. "It's hard for me to muster up gratitude under these conditions."

She shook her head slowly. "Look at you. You still have your dignity, even when you are at my mercy."

Qui-Gon met her gaze steadily. "I am a Jedi."

She waved her hand, as if this was something that didn't matter.

"You know," Qui-Gon remarked, "there is something strange to me in your attitude. You seem to have great respect for the Force. Yet you do not respect those who are closest to it."

"That isn't true. I respect you, Qui-Gon. Just as I respect a chemical, or the physical properties of a gas. You are a means to an end."

"You will never gain what you seek," Qui-Gon told her. "There is a fatal flaw in your plan."

She smiled. "So you say. And what is that?" "Understanding the Force takes wisdom — " "Are you telling me I am not wise?" she asked.

"You have intelligence. Maybe genius. But that is not wisdom."

He had disturbed her. She covered it with a laugh. "I've heard of Jedi mind tricks. You are trying to get me to doubt myself. "That is impossible."

"Here is an example of what I mean," Qui-Gon said. "You do not recognize what truth is, so you call it a trick. That is why you are not wise, Jenna Zan Arbor. Wisdom is something you cannot identify because you cannot measure it with your instruments."

She struggled to maintain her tight smile. "Anything else I am lacking to understand the Force?"

"The most important thing of all," Qui-Gon said. "An open heart."

Her expression tightened. "That is an abstraction. Meaningless.

Enough of your games. Enough of you. The final experiments will begin.

Thank you for your contributions to science. You will die in the isolation tank. I need your blood.".

The vapor grew thick. Jenna Zan Arbor's face disappeared. The syringe entered and pierced his flesh. He watched his blood move down the tube.

Qui-Gon closed his eyes. Now, there were only two things ahead. Two things he must keep in balance, far apart though they might be. He must hope for rescue. And he must prepare for death.

Chapter 15

"Captain Yur T'aug is busy," the sergeant said.

"He will see me," Obi-Wan said firmly. "This is a Jedi matter."

The sergeant paused. Coruscant security forces were expected to cooperate with the Jedi, even if they didn't want to.

"I will ask him — "

Pushing past the sergeant, Obi-Wan strode through the door. Captain Yur T'aug sat at a long, polished desk. He was a tall, muscular Bothan, dressed in the security force navy uniform with tall boots polished to a high gleam. He was bent over, staring in a mirror while he clipped his beard. He looked up in surprise as Obi-Wan and Astri walked in.

"I am not to be disturbed!" he shouted. "Why did you drop the investigation into Ren S'orn's death?" Obi-Wan demanded. He had no time for preliminaries.

"How dare you question me!" Captain Yur T'aug sprang to his feet and stalked toward Obi-Wan and Astri. He came within centimeters of their faces. "Get out!" he bellowed.

"Not until I get answers," Obi-Wan said, meeting the captain's gaze resolutely. He had learned from Qui-Gon how to meet bullies with calm strength. He did not raise his voice. Still, he felt intimidated by the captain's manner. He was only a boy. Would the captain listen to him?

"I have no answers to give you," Captain Yur T'aug sneered. "I investigated a murder. The killer was not found. The case file was rotated to inactive. Do you know how full our caseload is here?"

"Ren's friend told you that he might have been killed because he had information that someone did not want to get out," Obi-Wan said. "You did not question anyone else. Why is that?" Obi-Wan paused. "The Jedi are making this investigation a priority, Captain Yur T'aug."