He followed them, but not without a last glance back and up to the distant specks.
One thing he was sure of were the flashes of light he had seen between the two ships.They hadn’t been caused by the suns of Tatooine reflecting off metal.The binding that locked the girl’s hands behind her back was primitive and effective. The constant attention the squad of heavily armed troopers favored her with might have been out of place for one small female, except for the fact that their lives depended on her being delivered safely.
When she deliberately slowed her pace, however, it became apparent that her captors did not mind mistreating her a little. One of the armored figures shoved her brutally in the small of the back, and she nearly fell. Turning, she gave the offending soldier a vicious look. But she could not tell if it had any effect, since the man’s face was completely hidden by his armored helmet.
The hallway they eventually emerged into was still smoking around the edges of the smoldering cavity blasted through the hull of the fighter. A portable accessway had been sealed to it and a circlet of light showed at the far end of the tunnel, bridging space between the rebel craft and the cruiser. A shadow moved over her as she turned from inspecting the accessway, startling her despite her usually unshakable self-control.
Above her toward the threatening bulk of Darth Vader, red eyes glaring behind the hideous breath mask. A muscle twitched in one smooth cheek, but other than that the girl didn’t react. Nor was there the slightest shake in her voice.
"Darth Vader…I should have known. Only you would be so bold—and so stupid. Well, the Imperial Senate will not sit still for this. When they hear that you have attacked a diplomatic miss—"Senator Leia Organa," Vader rumbled softly, though strongly enough to override her protests. His pleasure at finding her was evident in the way he savored every syllable.
"Don’t play games with me, Your Highness," he continued ominously. "You aren’t on any mercy mission this time. You passed directly through a restricted
system, ignoring numerous warnings and completely disregarding orders to turn about—until it no longer mattered."
The huge metal skull dipped close. "I know that several transmissions were beamed to this vessel by spies within that system. When we traced those transmissions back to the individuals with whom they originated; they had the poor grace to kill themselves before they could be questioned. I want to know what happened to the data they sent you."
Neither Vader’s words nor his inimical presence appeared to have any effect on the girl. "I don’t know what you’re blathering about," she snapped, looking away from him. "I’m a member of the Senate on a diplomatic mission to—"To your part of the rebel alliance," Vader declared, cutting her off accusingly."You’re also a traitor." His gaze went to a nearby officer. "Take her away."
She succeeded in reaching him with her spit, which hissed against still-hot battle armor. He wiped the offensive matter away silently, watching her with interest as she was marched through the accessway into the cruiser.
A tall, slim soldier wearing the sign of an Imperial Commander attracted Vader’s attention as he came up next to him. "Holding her is dangerous," he ventured,likewise looking after her as she was escorted toward the cruiser. "If word of this does get out, there will be much unrest in the Senate. It will generate sympathy for the rebels." The Commander looked up at the unreadable metal face, then added in an off-handed manner, "She should be destroyed immediately."
"No. My first duty is to locate that hidden fortress of theirs," Vader replied easily. "All the rebel spies have been eliminated—by our hand or by their own.
Therefore she is now my only key to discovering its location. I intend to make full use of her. If necessary, I will use her up—but I will learn the location of the rebel base."
责任编辑：mman
