“And it is…?”
“Everything about Lothal the Empire would ever want to know,” Arihnda said. “Its mines and refineries, including the quiet and secret mines that no one talks about and no one pays taxes or tariffs on. Its infrastructure and factories, including output numbers and efficiency ratings. The banking structure and how assets are hidden or spirited away. Its people, including social frameworks, and which species get along or don’t get along together. Summaries of archaeological surveys in the northern areas that suggest the presence of untapped mineral resources, on both protected and unprotected lands.”
She straightened up in her chair and set the card on Tarkin’s desk. “The Empire is gathering up the Outer Rim worlds. It might as well be as easy and painless as possible. For everyone.”
“Interesting,” Tarkin said, making no move to take the card. “Some would consider that a betrayal of their homeworld.”
“I prefer to think of it as loyalty to my new homeworld.”
“Well said,” Tarkin said approvingly. “And if I may say so, your timing is impeccable. As it happens, that particular governorship may soon be vacant.”
“Governor Azadi is retiring?” Arihnda asked, frowning. She hadn’t heard anything about that.
“Yes,” Tarkin said. “Rather against his will, it would seem.”
“Interesting,” Arihnda said. Not that Azadi didn’t deserve it. Whether he’d been actively involved in her mother’s arrest and the loss of their company, or whether he’d simply stood aside while others in his office did his dirty work, he still deserved it. “Renking?”
“Perhaps,” Tarkin said. “Perhaps other reasons. Still, Senator Renking is angling for the governorship.” He raised his eyebrows. “I wonder which of you wants it more.”
“I’ve given you the means to take down Moff Ghadi,” Arihnda said, forcing calmness through her sudden flash of anger and frustration. She would not lose now. Especially not to Renking. “I have inside information on other moffs, governors, and senators. I’ve given you Lothal. I want that governorship, Your Excellency. What more do you need to make that happen?”
“Oh, much, much more, Ms. Pryce,” Tarkin assured her. “There are many people in power whom I would like to know better. Fortunately, I now have you.”
Arihnda clenched her teeth. She’d started as a senator’s lackey; and now she was being offered the job of a grand moff’s lackey? “Your Excellency—”
“Of course, as a governor you’ll have much better access to those people than you will as an advocate,” he continued. “Yes, I can see this being advantageous to us both.”
Arihnda let out a silent sigh. So he’d just been playing with her. She should have known. “I’m glad you approve, Your Excellency.”
“Of course, going from a mere civilian to a planetary governor is quite a step,” Tarkin continued. “Still, you’ve had a great deal of experience and contact with the powerful of the Empire, as well as the advantage of being a local of the world in question. Perhaps we’ll begin by designating you as acting governor before granting you the full title.”
“For how long?” Arihnda asked.
“Oh, a few months,” Tarkin said with a shrug. “A year at the most. Technically, of course, these appointments are supposed to be run through the Palace, but I see no reason we need to bother the bureaucrats. You’ll need to spend a fair amount of your first year or two in office here on Coruscant, learning the details of your new position.”
“While also gathering the data you want?”
“But a short absence from Lothal shouldn’t be a problem,” Tarkin continued. “There are several ministers in place there, any of whom can run things while you fulfill your side of our bargain. You’ll simply need to pick one before you return to Coruscant.”
Arihnda smiled. The governorship of Lothal, a clear shot at taking down Renking, and she’d get to live among the elite on Coruscant for a while longer. She couldn’t have planned it better if she’d tried. “I think we have an agreement, Your Excellency.”
“We do.” Tarkin held out a hand. “The rest of your data, please?”
“Here’s half of it,” Arihnda said, pulling two more data cards from her pouch. “I’ll give you the other half once I’ve been confirmed in the governorship.”
“Of course,” Tarkin said. “You’ll fit in quite well here, Ms. Pryce. Or should I say, Governor Pryce?”
“Thank you, Your Excellency,” she said, standing up. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have one more errand to run. I’m sure you want to look over those data cards anyway.” She pointed at them. “Oh, and the recording of Moff Ghadi is on the second card. You’ll want to take special care with that one.”
—
Juahir was walking across the Yinchom Dojo’s central mat, duffel bag in hand, when Arihnda arrived. “Hey—Arihnda,” Juahir greeted her. “You get off early?”
“No, just between jobs,” Arihnda said. “You have a good workout?”
“Fair,” Juahir said. “Senator Xurfel signed up her two newest bodyguards with us this morning. I had to run them through the grinder to see how good they are.”
“And?”
“They’ve got potential, but they’re not up to Coruscant standards,” Juahir said. “But we’ll get them in shape. So which jobs are you between?”
“Well, I was at Grand Moff Tarkin’s office yesterday,” Arihnda said. “We had a nice chat.”
“Yes, I heard about that,” Juahir said, brightening. “Driller said he actually got you in to see him. Congratulations.”
“Thank you,” Arihnda said. “Not much happening today, so I thought I’d drop by here.”
“Great,” Juahir said. “So we doing a workout, or lunch?”
“Neither,” Arihnda said. “We’re making an arrest.”
“Who?”
“You.” She watched Juahir’s mouth drop open as Colonel Yularen and his agents filed silently into the dojo behind her.
“Arihnda, what are you doing?” Juahir asked carefully.
“We’re arresting a traitor,” Arihnda said. “A woman who’s been using her training position to suborn or blackmail high-level bodyguards and send them off to spy on their bosses.” She raised her eyebrows. “And, occasionally, to try to murder them.”
“What?” Juahir breathed, her eyes widening, her skin going ashen.
“Senator Evidorn’s bodyguard Kaniki,” Yularen said darkly as he walked up to them. “He tried to kill the senator this morning. Apparently, your indoctrination on the evils of the Empire was a little too effective.”
“We never told them to kill anyone,” Juahir protested. “They were just supposed to get information for—” She broke off, throwing a sudden look of understanding at Arihnda.
“That’s right,” Arihnda confirmed. “I’m the one who pulled the data Driller and Higher Skies have been collecting and handed it over to the ISB. Driller and everyone else connected to the group are being picked up right now, but given the Kaniki incident Colonel Yularen decided he wanted to arrest you personally.”
“Arihnda—”
“There’s just one thing I want to know,” Arihnda said, her throat suddenly aching with suppressed emotion. “Were you ever my friend? Or was I always just a tool to you?”
Juahir stared at her as the ISB agents moved around behind her, binders in hand. “Yes, I was your friend,” she said quietly. “I wasn’t involved with…this…until after Senator Renking fired you. That was so horribly unfair. It showed me how corrupt the whole system was. It was only later that Driller approached me and—”
“Driller and Nightswan?” Yularen cut in.
Juahir transferred her stare to him. “Driller mentioned someone with that name. But we only talked about what we could do to fix things. To make the Empire better for everyone.”
“And then you thought about me and figured you could use me,” Arihnda said. “Poor Arihnda Pryce, cast adrift in the swirling dregs of Coruscant. The perfect patsy.”
“It wasn’t like that.”