Star Wars - Jedi Fugitive

Chapter 14

Jethro sat propped up at the table.

Daneran was gone. Jethro had given him a description of Hanc Freemont and instructions to bring him back to them without letting on that he was a Jedi.

He had refused at first, but finally left at the prodding of his wife.

Jethro noted that she seemed to be the level headed of the two.

The strain of the previous encounter had worsened his wound. Blood was beginning to show through the bandages.

Marsie put a cup of broth down in front of him.

He picked it up to take a drink, then nearly spilled it as she began to probe his wound.

"You sure you're not trying to kill me?"

Jethro winced at the pain as she ignored him and started to apply more bandages.

When she was done, Jethro sagged in the chair and closed his eyes.

"What would your husband think of you," he asked, "helping the enemy?"

"Forgive my husband. He is devoted to the cause. He thinks the Jedi have become too loyal to the senate."

Jethro snorted.

"Look where that got us."
"I'm sorry," she said.

"And what about you? Why are you helping me, instead treating me like the enemy he says I am?"

"I..."

She was cut off as the door hissed open and Hanc was shoved through, quickly followed by Daneran, shutting the door behind them.

"Alright, I brought him."

Seeing Marsie, Hanc bowed low before her.

"Hello there, my beautiful lady."

He took her hand and kissed it.

Daneran grabbed him by the back of his collar and hauled him around to face Jethro.

"Well there, after the shooting I didn't think I would see you again." He noticed the bloody bandages around his waist. "Say, you don't look too hot. What happened, pick a fight with a street gang?"

"Something like that," Jethro said, looking away.

"Look," Daneran cut in, "I brought you here because he said you could help get us off world."

"Now there friend, what did you do, tell the whole planet about my offer?"

"Can you do it or not?"

Hanc looked at Daneran, then Marsie, and finally at Jethro.

"I'm sorry, but not anymore. I'm as stuck as the rest of you."

"You said all you needed was a little help to spring your ship, that it would be easy," Jethro said.

"Yea, but that was then."

"What's the difference?"

"Look out the window! This so-called Empire has seized everything. It's no longer a handful of police protecting the space port, it's dozens and dozens of clone troopers, trained killers."

Jethro slumped in his chair more. This had been his only plan. He didn't know what else to do, what he could do.

"I'm sorry, but I'm not into suicide."

"It's suicide if we stay."

Hanc looked around at the group.

"Maybe for you guys, but I'm just a small-time smuggler. They don't care about folks like me."

Daneran pulled his blaster and aimed it at Hanc's head.

"Now it's suicide if you stay."

"Actually, I believe that's murder, and you're not gonna shoot me."

"What makes you so sure?"

"The sound of blaster fire will bring the entire might of the army down on you. As long as you want to remain hidden, I'm safe."

"You wanna bet."

"That is enough!"

Marsie stepped between Hanc and her husband.

"She's right," Jethro said. "This is getting us nowhere."

He forced himself out of the chair, grunting against the pain, and walked to stand face to face with Hanc. He straightened as much as his wound would allow, and stared him in the eye.

"We can get your ship out, if you fly us past the blockade."

Hanc looked at everyone in the room.

"No offence, but you guys don't have a chance. An old hunting rifle and trigger happy here," he motioned to Mersie and Daneran, "not to mention you. You look like you're about to collapse."

He wasn't wrong. Jethro's head was begging to swim, making it hard to focus. On top of that, his side was screaming at him to lay down.

"All we need is a good plan," he said.

"No plan is getting my ship out before they decide to release it."

"And if they don't."

"Don't what? Release it? Kriff, why wouldn't they?"

He tried to play the whole thing off, but Jethro could see in his eyes, he had scared him.

"All it is is a little unpaid port tax. They'll get tired of holding it and release it. It's happened a dozen times before."

"But that was the Separatists and the Republic. This is the Empire."

"They're all the same mate. Unless you've got a Jedi with you, and from what I'm hearing there ain't any left, then my ship will sit there until they release it."

With that, he headed for the door. Keying it open, he started to step through, before it closed in his face.

He looked at the keypad, pressed it again, and got the same result.

"What the Kriff?"

His jacket slipped off his shoulders and flew through the air, landing on the table.

Hanc stared at it, dumbfounded. He turned to each person in the room, his eyes finally landing on Jethro. They widened.

"It's you. You're a Jedi." His mouth dropped open, then closed and opened a few more times. "There's a reward out for you Jedi. A pretty large one at that."

His hand was slowly reaching for the door lock, but the muzzle of Marsie's rifle pressing into his side froze him in place.

His mouth opened and closed like a fish's a few more times before he slumped, head down.

"What's the plan?"