A Forest Apart by Denning Troy

Author:Denning, Troy [Denning, Troy]
Language: eng
Format: azw3, epub, mobi
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chewbacca followed the running lights down another half a dozen traffic tiers, being careful to maintain the same distance as had the Rodian, always fighting to keep control of their vehicle. The skylanes grew completely deserted, then-as they dropped another level-nonexistent.

The trip became a pitching, serpentine ride through a darkness as black as night, dodging over sagging bridges and dropping through the heart of a rubble-strewn mezzanine. And always there were the wretched figures who inhabited this part of the city, thousands and thousands of them, half-glimpsed in a flash of headlight as they scurried about their business-or ducked out of sight.

Chewbacca tried to concentrate on his flying and not think about how frightened Lumpy must be in the airspeeder ahead, but it was difficult.

Every instinct in him cried out for him to fly faster, to catch up to his son and let him know his parents were close behind. But Chewbacca could not alert Lumpy without also alerting his son’s captors, and the last thing he wanted was to start a high-speed chase. Even if someone did not crash, it seemed unlikely that the battered vehicle he was driving could keep up.

Malla remained silent also, and Chewbacca could not help wondering what was going through her mind. As hard as his life debt had made their lives, he knew that she would never blame him for keeping it, or wish that he would dishonor himself and return home while Han still lived. She had told him many times that she loved him because she could trust him, and that she could trust him because he kept his honor. But perhaps she blamed him for being too soft on Lumpy, for not making him obey at a time when it was so important. Certainly, he blamed himself.

Chewbacca followed the other airspeeder beneath a long stretch of durasteel gallery that had torn loose of its supports and fallen at a steep angle across the chasm-he could not call this place a skylane-then glanced over at Malla.

“I am sorry,” he said.

Malla looked at him in surprise. “Sorry? Why should you be sorry?”

“I should have been firmer, but I didn’t want to break his spirit.”

Chewbacca returned his attention to the dark path ahead and saw that he had let the running lights creep out of sight. He increased his speed. “I have not had enough practice at this, Malla. Half the time, Lumpy is a stranger to me.”

Malla laid a hand on his thigh. “Then you are doing well, Chewbacca. I have had eleven years of practice, and my words were the ones that made him leap into danger.” She fell silent and looked out the side window. “I should have stayed out of it. You are the only one he wants to listen to now.”

Chewbacca did not know how to respond. Under other circumstances, it might have warmed him to hear again how much his son looked up to him.

As matters were, the reminder just filled him with a frightened ache.

The twisted

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