�Samla?

The amazon woman half perched on a none-too-stable stool and leaning against the bar stiffened imperceptibly. Someone in the Airlock must have caught her profile when she had turned from her drink for a moment to scan the seedy cantina for her contact. There weren�t many people who would recognize her now. Lilith doubted that her own mother would have been able to spot the daughter she had known beneath the mane of bleached blond hair and spacer�s clothing. //That�s because the little girl moms knew is gone,// she told herself ruthlessly. Lilith wasn�t Samla any more, hadn�t been for years. Since her mother and father were both dead, there was no one who should have been able to recognize her at all, but someone had.

�Samla Tragoni?�

The voice was closer now. She could hear his boots clicking on the fusionformed floor over the tinny music being piped into the dingy, poorly lit room. The tall woman forced her right elbow to stay on the bar, her hand on her drink instead of the blaster weighing down her hip. Her left hand did leave the bar though, settling on her thigh in a casual manner, where a quick move would bring her vibro dagger shooting out of its wrist sheath and into her waiting hand if necessary.

//Wait for it, wait.// The freighter captain wanted to whirl and confront whoever was coming up behind her, to demand an explanation, to kill him out right if his face matched one from the memory forever inscribed upon her mind. But she knew that she could not afford to react to the name. //The person he is looking for is not here.//

�Samla?� A hand settled lightly on her shoulder and as she turned Lilith looked at it first before moving her attention to the bright green regard of the man standing there. Raising a single bleached eyebrow in a movement that managed to hide her shock and express bored irritation, she frowned.

�Excuse me?� Demodae asked him.

The young man�s expression of happy discovery wavered and faded a bit and his hand was quickly removed from her person. A small part of her mind ran in confused, frightened circles shouting that her father had come back, that he was here to make it all better again. The more rational part, the part in control, kept the mildly irritated expression firmly on her face and waited for an explanation.

�I just thought, I mean,� he began, �you looked, or I thought you looked, just like someone I know. Samla Tragoni?�

�My name�s Demodae, but have a seat and explain this to me,� she suggested mildly, gesturing to the empty seat to her left.

The young man sat down and hesitantly accepted the drink Lilith waved to the bartender for. She thought of him as a young man, though he was probably a couple of years older than she herself was, but she felt much older most days. He fidgeted for a bit and sipped from the glass in his hands.

When he finally spoke it was apologetically. �You looked just like my cousin, Samla.� That bleached eyebrow hiked back up Lilith�s forehead and he hurried on. �My mom, she�s got holos of her brother and his wife and daughter. We�ve got holos of Samla clear up until when she was about seventeen. Except for your hair, you look a lot like her.�

Family. The thought exploded like a thermal detonator in her mind. Moms and dads had never mentioned any brothers or sisters. No aunts or uncles had ever been brought up in conversation. Kriff, they�d hardly even mentioned their own parents, and then it had been with a sort of stubborn and defiant pride, like they�d done something that hadn�t been approved of but didn�t really care what their parents thought. She�d believed for a long time that her two parents had been the end of the line for both families. Now it appeared as though she had been wrong.

She had a family! //No!// Lilith squashed the though before it could go any further than that. //Not yet. You can have a family again when your task is done. When the hunt�s over Samla can come back to life, and not a single second before.//

�The three of them,� the young man continued, oblivious to her momentary distraction, �disappeared about six years ago. We�re pretty sure they�re dead, but when I saw you . . .�

�You were thinking that maybe you�ve been wrong?� Lilith finished for him.

He looked down at the bar top, twisting his glass back and forth between his fingers, and nodded. Every mannerism that she could recognize drew fresh claws across her heart and threatened to break down the walls she had built, walls she had thought strong and secure. It was all she could do to keep her voice steady and nonchalant.

�So now what?�

�Oh, I�m looking for a freighter to haul a cargo for me,� he shrugged.

�Legal?� Demodae asked immediately. �You got the papers for it?�

�Sure,� he looked surprised by her question, astonished that it would be asked of him, but the galaxy-wandering Lilith had seen much more innocent faces hiding hearts blacker and colder than the very depths of space. �My folks just wanted some supplies for the station that weren�t on the regular supply run, sweets, some new clothes, a couple of new holodramas, that sort of thing.�

�No ship of your own? How�d you get here?� the amazon asked curiously.

He hung his head and shook it ruefully. �Poor planning. I hitched a ride on an outgoing passenger ship, but didn�t think about how I�d get back.�

A shrewd look altered her expression. She didn�t expect that she could make much, but a little money was better than sitting around doing nothing and spending docking fees waiting. �How much�re you willing to pay for transport?�

�It�s not far,� he began, already haggling, �only two hours in hyper.�

She eyed him mildly and he blushed. //Blushed! Just like Dads did,// she laughed to herself before wincing at the pain the memory dragged along with it.

�I said, how much?�

�Five hundred.�

�Ha! I couldn�t pay the docking fee and refuel for that,� she replied, deep into bargaining mode.

�Seven hundred, and I�ll wave the docking fee.�

The only sign of her inner glee was a bright shine in her hard, muddy green eyes. Any discomfort she might have felt before was pushed aside effortlessly as she relaxed into what she really knew, flying and parting people from their money. //I haven�t even made a counter offer yet.//

�You can�t wave my docking fee,� Lilith mock protested.

�I can too. My folks own the refueling station.�

�Then they can make my refuel and wave my docking fee and pay me for the seven hundred for my time.�

He caved and caved fast. �Fine, done. Yeesh, you and my mom are both hard cases.� He looked up at her and extended a hand. �Nidi Freezier.�

She took it and gave his hand a firm shake. �Lilith Demodae.�

�When do we leave?�

Lilith tossed back the last of her drink and stood, towering over her still seated companion. �The Scorpion�s in docking bay seventy-three. Get your cargo there and loaded. I�ll comm Mick and let him know you�re coming. I�ve got someone to see.� She flipped a coin to the bartender who deftly snagged it out of the air. �We�ll raise ship as soon as I get back.�

�See you there, then.�

Lilith nodded briskly and strode away, her eyes scanning for her very tardy contact as she pulled her commlink from her belt. �Mick?�

�Yes, Captain,� the droid replied immediately.

�There�s a Nidi Freezier on his way to the ship with a cargo for us. When he gets there, open the hold and get it loaded. I�m going looking for Krell.�

�Is that wise, Captain? He keeps some rough bone-breakers on his payroll, and you are not known for your iron grasp on your temper.�

�I can be tactful when I need to, Mick. I need that data he claimed he had for me and I�m not lifting from this planet without it.�

�In that case, Captain, might I suggest beginning your search in the Graveyard cantina?�

�Mick, I don�t know where you get your info, but keep it coming.�

M1-CK, a military grade astromech droid with more adjustments and upgrades than his designers had ever intended, let a smug silence answer for him.

*******

Lilith paused just outside the doorway of the Graveyard to let her eyes adjust to the brighter light inside the cantina. The dismal planet of !Ts�een had a dense ozone layer and perpetual cloud cover keeping the daylight hours in eternal twilight. The humanoid natives were all pale and ghost-like. As a result, the cantinas all tended to be bright beacons in the constant gloom.

The smuggler waited until her eyes were adjusted to the higher light levels so that she wouldn�t be blinded, no matter how briefly, when she stepped through the doorway. Krell was hard to miss. The Dug was ensconced in a corner of the cantina, a low-browed bone-breaker bracketing him on either side. Lilith didn�t make any attempt to conceal her attention as she stalked across the room. Heads turned, conversations hushed, and a wave of whispers followed in her wake.

The bone-breakers, she couldn�t grace them with the designation body guard since they hadn�t the intelligence necessary, moved closer to their boss as she stopped only a couple of steps from the table Krell sat behind. Hard grey-green eyes stared straight through him.

�You�re late.�

The Dug waved that away with a hand-foot and indicated that she should sit. Conversations returned quickly to their original levels. �I was busy. Would you like a drink?�

�No.� Lilith remained standing. �I want that data you said you had for me.�

�I said that I might have the data you were asking after,� the Dug dissembled. �I never said that I actually had it.�

�Last chance, Krell.� Lilith�s voice was low and angry, powered by the hatred and built up vengeance of over six years. �If you have it, give it to me and I�ll still pay. If you don�t, tell me and I�ll take my money else where.�

The Dug�s face hardened and a fist slammed on the table top, making the glasses there jump and dance. �Do not threaten me, Human. The paltry sum you offered me for the information is laughable.�

�You accepted the amount,� the bleached blond woman snarled. �Deal struck, bargain made, carry through or pay the price.�

�Tz�hek.� One of the hulking bone-breakers stepped forward when Krell hissed his name. Lilith struck with brutal efficiency. This wasn�t the time to play around, she had a cargo to move and vengeance to complete, and the being before her held one of the pieces to the puzzle. The amazon�s left hand, hanging casually by her side, twisted and the vibroblade slid right into it. The weapon hummed to life and was promptly buried to the hilt in Tz�hek�s throat. Thick, dark blood welled up around the blade and the lifeless body fell away, freeing the weapon.

The only sound in the entire cantina at that moment was the high pitched humming of the vibroblade. Lilith held it extended for a moment longer before switching it off. She flicked a significant glance at the remaining thug. Krell didn�t seem inclined to give him any orders though. Lilith stayed where she was. She didn�t want to get in reach of those powerful limbs the Dug possessed, she knew the limits of her own abilities and hand-to-hand combat with a Dug was well outside those limits.

�My data?� she asked quietly into the deepening silence.

Krell fidgeted but finally signaled over one shoulder. A skinny Human stepped forward and placed a datacard on the table. �There it is. Take it, but pay me first.�

�No.� The word was hard, final, non-negotiable. �Toss me the datacard, then I�ll pay you.�

An irritated flick of a finger sent the Human lackey scuttling forward to retrieve the card. He tossed it hesitantly to her. The card fell short of her outstretched hand. Lilith watched the vicious gleam spring to life in Krell�s eyes. She didn�t so much as look at the card where it lay on the floor. Her blaster came up and the knife disappeared into a vest pocket.

�You.� A single finger indicated the Human and he trembled visibly. �Come pick it up and be very careful about it.� He inched forward and hesitantly stretched out a hand to lift the datacard from the floor. Demodae stepped back a pace to keep the space open between them. �Now, put a little muscle behind that toss this time,� she warned him.

This time the tall woman snatched it from the air and it disappeared to the same place as the vibroblade. A payment chip clattered across the table top and plopped into Krell�s lap as he fumed in silence.

�A pleasure doing business with you, Krell,� Lilith purred as she holstered her blaster. �Don�t let me see you again. I�ll have to assume you�re still mad at me and defend myself.� With a smart salute, the smuggler turned and strode from the cantina.

*******

Lilith flagged down a passing speeder and paid for a ride to the spaceport. A long-legged jog quickly covered the distance to bay seventy-three.

�Mick, open up and get the engines warming,� she called as she approached the freighter. The ramp descended and the inner lock opened. The dark haired hologram the droid had chosen for himself rezzed to life in the hallway to greet Lilith.

�Captain, the cargo is loaded and secured.� He looked her over. �There�s blood on your sleeve,� he noted drily.

�Krell never did play by the rules. Have you checked the paperwork?�

�Yes, Captain.� The hologram floated along the corridor with a pseudo-walking motion, following the tall blond to the cockpit. �They are legitimate, though I�m not sure why you care for such a short hop. I�ve already done the calculations for the hyperspace jump, it�ll take less than two hours. The chances of us getting caught with anything illegal on such a short flight are negligible.�

�Where is he?� She slid down into the pilot�s chair and the droid�s slightly transparent image folded itself into the chair next to her.

�He�s at the game table. Mr. Freezier is not quite as good a player as you are, Captain.�

�I care because I think he�s my cousin, Mick.�

M1-CK hadn�t the fine control over his holographic features to properly simulate surprised shock, but he did the best he could and let his long silence convey the rest. �I wasn�t aware that you had any family left, Captain.�

�Neither was I, Mick. Neither was I.� Lilith paused a moment, one finger hovering over the next switch in the test sequence, to stare out the window and sigh. Then she shook herself and applied her attention to the task at hand.

�Mick, notify Control and get us permission to lift.� She turned and bellowed over her shoulder. �Strap in, we�re leaving.�

Nidi hustled up to the cockpit and strapped himself into the seat behind Mick. Lilith got the distinct impression that he was watching her every move. He confirmed it a moment later.

�I hope you don�t mind if I watch? I figure that if I watch enough professionals I�ll eventually learn the tricks of the trade.�

�Never piloted a craft yourself?� she asked him, her eyes on gauges and readouts.

�No, never. My folks want me to get more hours in the simulator before I get my hands on a real steering yoke.�

Lilith was properly outraged on his behalf. No wonder her own parents had never mentioned the rest of the clan if they were as overly cautious and stodgy as all that! �I had my pilot�s license before I was sixteen,� she told him drily. �I never once set foot in a sim. Nothing teaches you faster than life.�

*******

Once the ship and its contents were safely ensconced in the mottled tunnel of hyperspace, Lilith left Mick to keep an eye on their eager passenger and took herself and the precious datacard back to her quarters. The tall blond shucked out of her vest and tossed it on the bed, keeping only the datacard and her vibroblade, returning the latter to its proper position on her left wrist. Sitting at her terminal, Lilith popped the datacard into the reader slot and waited patiently during the moment it took to access and display the information on the card.

When the information spread out across the screen, the amazon found herself staring at a face, a face indelibly etched into her memory. It was the face of a humanoid woman, the very woman who had been standing over her parent�s bodies, an expression of bored disdain on her cold features.

Demodae�s informants had been right, Chi�sheng was in the area. Under the picture on the screen was a list of known associates and recent activities. The bounty hunter had been on !Ts�een as recently as two days ago.

When she had caught up to them, the other bounty hunters, both of them, had clearly indicated that Chi�sheng had been the leader, had brought the job to them. Now, they were also, both, quite dead.

Chi�sheng would soon be joining them, but not before she told Lilith who she had gotten the job from. Eventually, the tall blond would find out who had contracted for the hit on her parents, and then the hunt would draw to a close.

*******

The dream was different this time.

Samla stands frozen for a single second, taking in the scene before her. The three bounty hunters, the ship in the background, her parent�s bodies laying lifeless on the cold duracrete floor of the bay. Instead of running away, though, Samla screams in rage and runs toward the murderers. They step back and let her come, none of them bothering to even raise a weapon, as though they know she cannot hurt them. She dashes across the distance and skids to a stop, kneeling between Nidaine and Lylah. Both her hands reach out to rest lightly on a shoulder of each parent. A low keening issues from her throat and a tear slides down her face and drips off her nose, followed quickly by others.

The bounty hunters begin to laugh, low and mocking. They are proud of their handy work, proud of a job well done. Samla screams at them to stop, to stop laughing, but they ignore her. When damp, grey-green eyes lift to her tormentors, the redhead notices a dark, shadowy figure standing behind Chi�sheng. It too is laughing.

Samla surges to her feet and lunges past the female bounty hunter to get at whoever it is who is behind her, but the dark figure slips back, deeper into the shadows thrown by the ship, out of her reach. Chi�sheng�s hand on her shoulder keeps Samla from moving forward, from getting any closer to the person behind it all.

Lilith woke with an angry shout and the grip on her shoulder disappeared instantly. She blinked, trying to shake off the lingering wisps of uneasy sleep and disturbing dream. Her eyes settled on Nidi and she had to stifle a relieved cry. //He is not my father!// she told herself sternly. //My father is dead.//

Nidi eyed her uncertainly for another moment before speaking. �I�m sorry, Captain Demodae, but we�re about to come out of hyperspace.� She only grunted in reply and dragged a hand through her thick mane of hair. Nidi�s eyes flicked from her to the monitor and back again. �Who is that?�

�None of your business,� she told him flatly. Standing up, she shut off the reader screen, snatched up her vest and pushed past her passenger and out the doorway.

�C�mon,� she called over her shoulder, �If you�re good I might let you take the yoke for a bit.�

�Really?!� was his surprised and happy shout, and Lilith couldn�t help but smile.

�Really,� she answered as he jogged to catch up. �How many hours in the sim have you got?�

�Only twelve hundred. Mom�s ready to let me try, but dad wants at least another three hundred hours.�

Lilith stopped dead in the passageway and Nidi bounced off her back. She turned to stare at him disbelievingly. �Twelve hundred?�

He nodded ruefully. �I know it�s not a lot-�

�Not a lot?� she cut him off, �I know licensed flight instructors with less hours behind a yoke. You�re more than ready.�

Nidi beamed like a Hutt who had just been gifted with a metric ton of spice and a dozen gorgeous dancing girls. He followed right on the blond�s heels to the cockpit and gingerly lowered himself into the pilot�s chair when she waved him toward it. Lilith jerked her head at Mick and, though it wasn�t necessary, waited until his ghostly image had risen and stepped away before settling herself into the co-pilot�s seat.

�Now,� she glanced at the hyperspace timer, �really quickly, tell me what everything is.�

�Hyperdrive, throttle, shields,� he began pointing out the gauges and controls in front of him, �stabilizers, landing gear, inertial compensator, weapons . . . weapons?� He threw a curious glance sideways at her.

�Gotta watch out for pirates,� Lilith answered glibly. �Okay, you seem to know what�s what. Get ready to cut in the sublight engines.� Her hand settled on the hyperdrive lever and when the time ran out, she powered the drive down. The sublights came up smoothly as the Scorpion transitioned back to normal space. Nidi�s hands were light, but firm, on the steering yoke and Lilith slipped on a headset to contact the station that gleamed in the starlight ahead of them, confident that the ship was in good hands.

�Freezier Station, this is the light freighter Scorpion. We have a passenger and cargo for you. Requesting permission to dock.�

�Scorpion, this is Freezier, what cargo and passenger?�

�A dark haired scamp,� she answered with a grin, �a box of sexy undies and some very naughty holos.�

A throaty laugh came back over the comm channel. �Come about .7 why and -1.2 zee. We have space for you in bay four.�

�I copy, Freezier. Scorpion out.�

�You�re lucky you got my mom,� Nidi told Lilith. �Dad would have had banthas.�

�Dads can be that way. Have you adjusted your course?�

�I know right where the bay is,� Nidi snapped back indignantly. �I live here after all.�

*******

It turned out that Nidi had little brothers and sisters, and while none of them could have been Samla, Lilith thought it better to stay inside the cockpit and let Mick watch while they hustled back and forth removing the small boxes of this and that. Her eyes tracked every movement, her ears strained for every happy giggle or shout of outrage brought on by teasing. She�d never been around kids her own age while growing up. It had always just been the three of them. It should always have been the three of them, but someone else had put an end to that.

Nidi�s father, Stane, who thankfully bore no resemblance whatsoever to his Tragoni wife, came out with the credit chip just as the refueling began. He thanked her politely, if stiffly, for helping out his son and left as quickly as tact would allow. It was obvious she wasn�t the sort of person he approved of. //Why not? So what if my hair is bleached, my roots dyed, and my head nearly scrapes the ceiling plates?// But she knew why not. She didn�t have a �normal� job. She didn�t look �normal�. And she didn�t act �normal�. //I suppose it all depends on how you define normal.//

Lilith walked out and leaned against the loading ramp as the last of the packages was borne away by young hands. Maybe, later, she could settle down like this. A small fueling station would be ideal. She could still bargain and could still meet people from all over the galaxy, but instead of paying docking fees, she would be charging them, and instead of having to go out and search for customers, they would come to her. Yes, this could be a very good life. Later.

The refueling would take a little while, so Demodae decided to take a stroll around the station and stretch her legs. Maybe there would be a couple of shops or a tapcafe where she could get a drink. She wandered aimlessly through the carefully planned hallways of the small station. Space was at a premium in such places and everything was planned far in advance. There were even niches placed at predetermined intervals for the inevitable kiosks and vendor stalls. The stalls dotted the station landscape and created whirlpools and eddies in the slow but steady stream of life forms, without impeding traffic flow, or creating a possible problem should an emergency arise.

Lilith let the lazy current carry her along. Occasionally she would stop and inspect the wares displayed by a vendor, but she didn�t buy anything. A simple but pretty broach caught her eye at one stall, and she paused longer than usual to take a closer look. She looked at the piece without seeming to look, to avoid the attention of the proprietor. The two halves of her mind argued about it in their typical fashions.

//The green stones will stand out and look stellar at the collar of my best blouse.//

//Yeah, stand out is right. Shiny things make great targets.//

//Cynic.//

Her more practical and paranoid side had no reasonable retort for that and retreated to sulk, leaving what was left to admire the broach in peace. Until a flash of pale green hair and greyish skin caught her eye, that is.

//Here of all places?//

Lilith�s head jerked around, and like a snubfighter acquiring a target, her gaze locked on the silhouette of Chi�sheng. The bounty hunter was striding through the meager crowd, not really paying attention to anything. Knowing that looks could be deceiving, though, Demodae averted her eyes, keeping track of her prey with her peripheral vision. She discarded the broach and meandered through the crowd. The green hair, cut Jedi apprentice short, was easy to follow, the Humanoid woman was probably at least a head taller than Lilith herself and she stood out in the station hallways.

Not really having any plan, the smuggler followed after Chi�sheng, hoping that an opportunity would present itself. She didn�t just want to kill the other woman, she wanted to get some information from her first, and that would take a bit of time and some privacy.

�Mick,� she hissed into her communit, �She�s here!�

�Are you sure, Captain?�

�You�re right, it�s probably some other grey-skinned, green-haired bounty hunter who�s a head taller than I am,� she replied with heavy sarcasm. �Of course I�m sure!�

�Yes, Captain.�

�Is the refuel done?�

�Yes, Captain.�

�Good, keep the engines warm. I may be coming back with a large package.�

�You�re bringing her to the ship? Won�t that be a bit, well, conspicuous?�

�Can you think of somewhere more private here on this station where I might be able to ask her about my parents� murders?�

There was no answer.

�I didn�t think so.�

M1-CK was the only person in the whole of the galaxy that Lilith had trusted enough to tell her story to. He knew just exactly how important this was to her, so he kept his voice synthesizer silent and let her get on with things. It wasn�t like he could do a whole lot for her at the moment, anyway.

Or was there?

As casually as he could, the droid/ship struck up a conversation with a passing labor droid. That got him a conversation with a maintenance droid, which in turn introduced him to a security droid.

*******

It was beginning to look like Chi�sheng was headed for a meeting, and Lilith didn�t want to barge into a bounty hunter�s convention. The number of beings in the corridors had slackened noticeably and Lilith had been forced to fall farther and farther back to keep from being obvious about the fact that she was following the bounty hunter. She knew the woman�s reputation and the last thing she wanted was to try and pick a fight with her when there was back up close at hand. In fact, Lilith would have given half ownership of the Scorpion for a deck sweeper or a stun rifle at that very moment. Unfortunately, all the weapons she had were the ones she habitually carried, blaster, vibrodagger, brass knuckles and three ordinary, powerless throwing knives.

A hand swung out of the dwindling crowd and Lilith�s shoulder ducked its grasping reach. Her spatial awareness, that sense that allowed her to know exactly where everything around her was, told her the body attached to the hand was behind her and slightly to her right. She stepped back suddenly, aborting her forward motion with shocking suddenness, and the body behind her bounced off her right shoulder and flank. After the impact, Lilith didn�t wait to listen to scuffling feet and judge distance, though she had been taught to. She just cupped her right fist in her left hand, and with stunning force, drove her right elbow back into the chest of her assailant.

A surprised grunt and the heavy thud of a body hitting the floor told the amazon that she had a moment or two to take stock. Only then did she relax from the offensive and turn to see who had been so foolish as to attack her.

Nidi Freezier stared up at Lilith from where he lay sprawled on the floor, a wounded expression on his face and one hand on his rapidly bruising chest. He was struggling to regain his breath to try and tell her something. She ignored that. The tall blond spun back around and almost frantically scanned the corridor ahead. Chi�sheng was nowhere to be seen.

�Hutt-loving, bantha dung-shoveling . . .� Lilith swore with a creativity and virulence found exclusively in pilots and the military. Nidi stared at her in consternation, totally uncomprehending of why she was so upset. The smuggler finally sighed in frustration, but reached down and offered her cousin a hand up anyway.

�That was a stupid thing to do, kid,� Lilith snarled at him.

�How was I to know that you wallop anyone who touches you?� he replied, a slight defensive whine in his voice.

�I don�t, but you surprised me. Word of warning: not everyone has the control I do, kid. The next time you might wind up in need of a bacta bath.�

�Yeah,� he mumbled sullenly, rubbing at his sore chest.

//How, by the stars, has he managed to stay so blasted naive and immature?// she asked herself in amazement. After all, he was horribly lucky that she hadn�t struck at the same time he ran into her. With her whole body behind the movement and his own forward motion adding to the impact, he�d have several unpleasantly broken bones, rather than a stiff bruise. //Just keep in mind that he wasn�t forced to grow up the way you were,// a small voice of compassion spoke, and Lilith let her severe expression soften. She sighed tiredly.

�What is it you wanted?�

Wary, but plenty willing to avoid more violence, Nidi accepted her calmer tone as the most apology he was going to get. �Not me, Mom. She wanted to meet you.�

Lilith knew that there were all sorts of reasons why she shouldn�t go meet her aunt, but at the moment she couldn�t manage to actually pay attention to any of them. The lure of family, the summons of a mother figure, was too strong to ignore. Instead of begging off and returning to the Scorpion to plan a better ambush for Chi�sheng as her paranoia was screaming at her to do, the tall blond nodded and indicated that Nidi should lead the way.

********

�Captain Demodae?�

�Yes, Mrs. Freezier.� Lilith stepped forward to shake the proffered hand. The woman she faced was even taller than she was, but built on more slender, almost delicate lines. Her face was a clearly female version of Samla�s father, her hair a lighter red-brown than her brother�s.

�Please, call me Casey.� Her grip was firm and friendly. �Have a seat.� Nidi heeded the shooing motions his mother made in his direction and retreated through the door, which closed automatically behind him. Lilith folded her tall frame into a chair that was surprisingly comfortable. Most chairs were too small for her height and ended up cramping her legs or tiring her back. But then, considering the size of her host, maybe it wasn�t that surprising after all.

Casey Freezier didn�t seat herself behind her desk as Lilith had expected, but turned the second visitor chair toward her guest and settled into it. �The reason I had Nidi go track you down before you left was that I wanted to thank you, Captain.�

�Thank me?� One bleached eyebrow rose into a position of inquiry. Casey�s eyes noted the mannerism and then she nodded.

�Yes. Nidi told me that you let him pilot your ship all the way into the docking bay.�

Lilith waved that away with a negligent hand. �Saved me the effort of doing it myself. He was a tad rough on the landing and came in slower than absolutely necessary on his approach, but that�s nothing a little more real experience won�t cure.�

Sighing, Casey leaned back in her chair. �Nidi�s father is keeping him on too short a leash in my opinion. Unfortunately, I don�t think he realizes that all his children have Corellian blood coursing hot and fast through their veins.�

�He�s not?�

Another sigh, this one of loving acceptance tinged with exasperation. �No, Stane�s Alderaani.�

Lilith nodded. //That explains it.// �The only good things that come from Alderaan are the silk, the rum, and the chocolate.�

�Spoken like a woman who�s been there,� Casey agreed. �Speaking of Alderaani chocolate, Captain, both my husband and I long for food stuffs and goods from our respective homes. If you could see your way to picking up a few things next time you are out in either vicinity, I could certainly see my way to paying you top credits for whatever it is.�

A smile curled Lilith�s lips. �Been a while since you�ve had a proper rhyscate, than?�

�Exactly so.�

�I sympathize. I�ll see what I can round up for you, then. Anything in particular that I should keep a look out for?�

�A bolt of blue silk, rhyscate ingredients, maybe a few Alderaani oranges?� Casey listed hopefully.

�I should be able to manage that,� Lilith assured her. �None of it�s proscribed, so it�s not like I�ll be smuggling it.�

Casey Freezier smiled appreciatively at the small joke, then she sobered. �I really do thank you for letting Nidi behind the yoke of your ship-�

�Like I said,� Lilith cut her off, �it�s no big deal.�

�Oh, yes it is,� Casey corrected her. �I know pilots like you, better than the rest of my family would like, in point of fact. You don�t like -anyone- other than yourselves or your copilots behind the yoke. You made a special exception for Nidi, and I know it.�

Lilith knew better than to try and deny the charge. A fellow Corellian would spot the half-hearted lie before it left her lips. So she waited for her host to continue.

�Do you, by any chance, know a family by the name of Tragoni?� Casey asked in a sudden change of topic.

Demodae stiffened, but kept her expression calm and bland. There was no mistaking the reason behind the question. If Nidi had recognized her from a few old pictures he might have glanced at a few times over his mother�s shoulder, this woman, who must have poured over them for hours at a time to keep close to her outcast brother, would have spotted her the instant she walked through the door.

�Nidi mentioned the name to me earlier,� the blond evaded.

�What is your first name, Captain?� Casey pressed.

Lilith�s lips twisted in a feral smile. �The one I was born with, or the one I use?�

�Touch�.� Casey relented, knowing full well that the bleached blond she faced had probably changed her name more than once over the course of her career. Smugglers and free-traders changed names as easily as they changed locations, and there was little or no way to keep track of them all.

�Well, I shan�t keep you any longer, Captain. I�m sure you have a busy schedule that my errant son pulled you away from.� She stood and again offered her hand. Lilith rose smoothly and took it and the two tall Corellian women stared into each others eyes for a moment before releasing their grip.

�It�s been an interesting stay, Mrs. Freezier. I�ll be sure to stop by if I come across any of those items you requested.�

�Thank you.�

Lilith turned and walked through the door without a single glance back. //She knows. If she doesn�t I�ll eat the Scorpion! But I don�t think she�ll tell anyone. She knows and she as much as asked me to come back, again and again.//

*******

Lilith flung herself down into an acceleration chair at the gaming table and raked a hand through her thick mane of hair. Nothing this trip had turned out as expected. She had learned a great deal about her parents that she had never suspected. She had found a family and received at least partial approval and acceptance. She had also found the third of her parents� murderers.

First things first.

Chi�sheng was still out there.

�Mick!� she bellowed, though it was quite unnecessary.

The dark-haired hologram blinked into existence and seated itself across the table from her. �Yes, Captain?�

�Chi�sheng. Did we ever find out if she had a ship of her own?�

�She does not, Captain.�

Lilith slumped over and folded her arms on the tabletop then rested her chin on her forearms. �Then she can�t leave right away. I need to know where she is. I need to know who is behind all this.�

�Captain, I know where she is.�

Muddy green eyes lifted slightly in surprise. �How?�

�No one notices droids, Captain. I have had several conversations with some droids on this station. A maintenance droid entered a room she was in not long after you commed me. A security droid has shadowed her movements since. The other droids are watching her for me.�

Lilith blinked in astonishment. It was true. No one bothered to notice droids that were just quietly going about their proper jobs. She noticed Mick, but that was because he was more than just a droid to her. He was her first mate. He was a person. Of course, the hologram and the human voice synthesizer didn�t hurt that image. �Do you know where she is now?�

�Yes, Captain. And I can arrange for her to be brought to the ship to receive a package, or message, or some other business.�

Demodae rose and walked slowly from the lounge to the entry ramp and the bulkhead opposite it where M1-CK�s physical body was welded. She lay one hand on his cool grey dome and smiled down at him. �Thank you, Mick. I know just how much I owe you. Remind me to pay another visit to Crash next time we�re on Coruscant and we�ll get you those code-slicing subroutines you�ve been asking for.�

�That is not necessary, Captain. I too view you as a friend. I know that you do not think of me as a droid, but that is what I am. You have made me a bit more than the average droid,� a light electronic chuckle came through the nearest speaker, �but I would not leave you now even if you never upgraded me again.�

�You�re a good friend, Mick. I�m going to get you those subroutines anyway. Crash likes doing it and War never asks for much in exchange. You deserve them. If you were Human I�d offer to buy you some excellent Corellian whiskey and a few hours with the dancing girl of your choice.� Lilith smirked at him. �Now, how do we set this up?�

*******

Chi�sheng stomped along in the wake of a slow protocol droid. She didn�t remember what designation it had given her. It didn�t matter. The pathetic thing had told her that she had an urgent message waiting for her and to please follow it. That had been ten minutes ago and she was still winding her way through the drab hallways of this dinky little station. Was it possible that the blasted thing was leading her in circles?

Finally, and with a relieved sigh, the bounty hunter rounded one last corner and entered one of the docking bays. This one was occupied by only a small shuttle and a light freighter. It was toward the latter that she was lead by the droid. A tall blond woman was doing some minor repairs to one of the landing gears as she approached. The protocol droid stopped a respectable distance from the woman and waited to be noticed. Chi�sheng had no such patience just then.

�I was told you have a message for me,� she grated.

Lilith looked away from her work for a quick glance. �Yeah, yeah, hang on.�

The droid, it�s job completed, beat a hasty retreat. He had no wish whatsoever to be anywhere nearby when the fireworks inevitably started.

Chi�sheng cast a bored gaze over the Scorpion and didn�t care for what she saw. It looked well kept, but old. It had none of the little touches that would indicate the owner had any kind of useful wealth. She rounded again on the woman keeping her waiting. �I was told it was urgent. If it is, then I should probably get it as soon as possible.� Her hand strayed significantly toward the blaster carbine slung casually over her shoulder.

Lilith sighed in a good imitation of one beset by an unreasonable person and wiped a dirty hand on the coveralls she had changed into. The hydrospanner she had been using hung negligently from her hand. She nodded and indicated the lowered ramp. �This way.�

Chi�sheng�s instincts told her to be wary, but there was no one else around, her bio-scanner confirmed this, and this dirty, grease smudged woman hadn�t even looked at her twice. It was not the sort of situation that brought ambushes or danger to mind. Which was just the way Mick and Lilith had planned it.

Lilith walked up the ramp, ducking her head to clear the rim of the hatch cowling, and turned right up the corridor. Chi�sheng, nearly a foot taller, hand to bend even farther to clear the opening. Once the bounty hunter was all the way inside, Mick appeared behind them.

�Captain?�

The towering bounty hunter spun, surprised at the voice behind her when her scanner told her that there couldn�t possibly be anyone else on the ship. Lilith spun with her, striking with the hydrospanner before the humanoid was entirely turned way. Chi�sheng crumpled even as Mick was raising the ramp and closing the main hatch. Lilith conducted a thorough search and relieved the unconscious killer of all her weapons, then dragged her back to the airlock and heaved her inside. It was the safest place to keep someone you didn�t want running free in the ship.

Peeling out of the coveralls, Lilith strode up to the cockpit and settled into her chair, Mick materializing beside her. Immediately she flicked the comm switch. �Freezier Station, this is light freighter Scorpion in bay four requesting permission to leave.�

Casey�s voice filtered back to her through the headset speaker. �Scorpion, you are cleared on vector 213.37.19. Clear skies, Captain Demodae. Come again.�

�We�ll see what hand Fate deals, Freezier Station. It�s all up to her. Scorpion out.�

Lilith turned on the repulsors and the ship rose smoothly. It eased forward, nosing out of the bay and pushing gently through the magnetic field that kept the precious atmosphere within the docking bay from escaping into the ravages of cold space. Pointing the ship in the direction they were cleared for, Lilith left the rest to Mick and stalked back to check on her guest.

*******

Chi�sheng blinked, unsure of what had happened. She lifted her head and immediately regretted the move when it brought sparking lights behind her eyes and a wash of pain through her skull. She had been hit by that blond bi-

�Wakey, wakey.� The call came from somewhere above her head and had the slightly tinny quality common to intercoms. Again she blinked her eyes open and came to the quick and alarming conclusion that she was not properly in a ship, but in a ship�s airlock. Oblivious to the pain it caused, the bounty hunter forced herself erect and stumbled to the hatch, her fingers stabbing desperately at the controls.

Nothing happened.

�I�ve disabled it.�

Chi�sheng hunched over and ducked her head to peer through the viewport at her captor. Yes, it was the blond. She scanned what she could of the passageway through the small viewport, but could see no sign of the man who had startled her.

�What do you want?�

Lilith grinned. It was not a pleasant grin. Worse grins are usually only found on large carnivores perched in trees above those they grin at. �Right to the meat of it, huh? Good, that means this may go easier than I expected.�

Chi�sheng waited. This woman before her was completely unknown to her. She was not a fellow bounty hunter, or at least not an established one. She was not on any of the wanted lists. Nor did she seem to be one of the rare vigilantes that roam the galaxy ridding it of bounty hunters, but there was something about her face that sparked a dim memory.

�Six years ago,� Lilith stated calmly, �a job at Pransic. The owners of the Galactic Strider, a light freighter. The Tragonis.�

Chi�sheng cudgeled her brain, making it work despite the lingering pain of what was certainly a mild concussion. Six years was a long time. A light freighter? Oh, right, the family. Three of them. The parents were easy enough, though the woman had almost made it into the ship before they cut her down. The kid, she had stumbled in, looking different enough to confuse. The bounty hunter looked up again, re-evaluating Lilith�s face, studying the features there.

�You�re her.�

�Yes.�

�Then kill me and finish it,�Chi�sheng muttered coldly, knowing that the outcome of this meeting was inevitable. Revenge was a common cause of death among those in her profession.

�Tell me who ordered the kill.� The order was calm, implacable. There was no threat.

//Bila and Cra-ighli are dead. They can�t have told her anything since they didn�t know.// But telling who had paid for someone�s death or capture was not good business practice. Chi�sheng stared through the viewport into the eyes of her executioner. �No.�

Lilith said nothing, but her fingers moved toward the controls of the airlock. Air began to hiss and the pressure in the lock began to drop. The bounty hunter tried not to look frantic. She had expected warnings, threats, additional questions, anything but this. She had expected a blaster bolt through her head or chest, not a slow suffocation. A vice began to close around her chest and breathing became difficult. A little longer and she knew she would grow light headed and dizzy.

�Wait!� she cried. The ominous hissing stopped. There was silence.

Lilith said nothing, only waiting. She would get her answers or Chi�sheng would not have a comfortable passing. With a little work, and a bit of practice, she could keep the oxygen level just high enough to prevent blacking out, but low enough to make breathing laborious and painful.

The silence continued. The grey-skinned humanoid began to sweat. There were no promptings, no repetitions of the question, only that grim, patient, blank expression. Abruptly the hissing started again. One long-fingered hand clutched at her chest, and Chi�sheng knew suddenly that good business practice wasn�t necessarily a good survival tactic.

�Hildona passed on the job. I got it from her,� the humanoid gasped.

�Who and where?�

The hissing had not stopped, so Chi�sheng spoke quickly. �Hildona the Hutt, she�s got a place at Ord Mantell.�

�Why?�

�I don�t know. S-she never said.� The air was getting thin enough that is was hard to speak properly. �Please.�

�Thank you,� Lilith said coldly. A single finger stabbed at the control panel and the outer airlock door sprang open. The force of the escaping gasses ripped everything in the lock out into space. Lilith watched the last glimpse of that pale green hair disappear and cycled the lock the rest of the way through.

*******

�What did she say, Captain?� Mick greeted her as she came back into the cockpit.

�Half-ton Hilda passed on the job. We�ll need to pay a visit to her place at Ord Mantell.�

�Of course, Captain.�

�In the mean time, plot a course back to !Ts�een. I think that guy�s going to come down another hundred credits for that load of Lieky pelts. We can sell them to that bunch that set up that wilderness camp on Hoth.�

�Yes, Captain.�

�And on our way past we can swing by Alderaan and pick up some silk, rum and chocolate.�