Read Online The Rise And Fall Of Darth Vader by Ryder Windham - Free Book Online

this.”
    As much as Anakin wanted to apprehend the people who had tried to kill Padmé, he knew that Obi-Wan would not readily approve the idea of using Padmé as bait. Despite his better judgment, Anakin said, “All right, Senator. I’ll help you.”
    Obi-Wan didn’t learn about the plan until later that evening, when Padmé was already asleep. Despite their preparations and the watchful presence of R2-D2, Obi-Wan and Anakin had to move fast to intercept the pair of kouhuns - small, deadly arthropods - that invaded the sleeping Senator’s apartment and stealthily slithered their way onto her bed. The Jedi had to move even faster to catch up with the assassin who’d unleashed the kouhuns.
    Traveling by airspeeder and instinct, the Jedi pursued their quarry for more than 100 kilometers through the skies and streets of Galactic City before their hunt ended in a crowded nightclub. Although the assassin appeared to be a fair-skinned female human, she was actually a Clawdite shapeshifter who wore a dark elastic bodysuit that remained taut when she changed forms. Inside the nightclub, her attempt to shoot Obi-Wan in the back had resulted in the Jedi using his lightsaber to literally disarm her. The Clawdite was still in shock as Obi-Wan carried her through an exit that led to an alley outside the club. Anakin walked alongside them, and the look of simmering rage in his eyes was all the power he needed to encourage the local denizens to clear the alley.
    The Clawdite moaned as Obi-Wan eased her trembling body onto the alley floor. Anakin hoped she would stay conscious long enough to provide some answers. Obi-Wan looked into the Clawdite’s eyes and said, “Do you know who it was you were trying to kill?”
    “It was a senator from Naboo,” the Clawdite muttered.
    “And who hired you?”
    The muscles in her face spasmed as she tried to maintain a human visage. She muttered, “It was just a job.”
    Kneeling beside the Clawdite, Anakin felt his anger rise at this creature who considered killing Padmé “ just a job .” It took all of his self-control to maintain a calm, gentle tone as he leaned forward and asked, “Who hired you? Tell us.”
    The Clawdite’s eyes rolled toward Anakin. When she didn’t answer immediately, Anakin roared, “Tell us now!”
    The Clawdite gulped, then said, “It was a bounty hunter called…”
    Her statement was interrupted by a small projectile that made a ftzzz sound as it streaked down and embedded itself in her neck. Anakin and Obi-Wan turned their heads fast and traced the projectile’s trajectory to a high upper roof, where an armored man wearing a jetpack suddenly launched into the sky and disappeared.
    The two Jedi looked back to the Clawdite, whose flesh turned dark green as her features contorted back to their natural configuration. “Wee shahnit… sleemo,” she gasped before her head tilted back.
    Being fluent in Huttese, Anakin understood the assassin’s last words: bounty hunter slimeball . And with great bitterness, he wished she had given them a name instead.
    Obi-Wan reached to the dead Clawdite’s neck and removed the projectile, a nasty little item that had stabilizing fins for long-range shooting and an injector-needle tip. “Toxic dart,” Obi-Wan observed.
    Anakin felt some relief that at least one assassin could no longer harm Padmé. Looking at the Clawdite’s corpse, he thought, You got what you deserved.
    And then he trembled. He knew it wasn’t the way of the Jedi to think anyone deserved to die.
    But he’d thought it just the same.

CHAPTER SEVEN

    Because Senator Amidala was still in danger, the Jedi Council instructed Obi-Wan to track down the elusive bounty hunter while Anakin escorted Padmé back to Naboo. To prevent anyone from knowing Padmé‘s whereabouts, she and Anakin disguised themselves as refugees and left with R2-D2 aboard a starfreighter for the Naboo system. Anakin remained extremely concerned for Padmé‘s safety, but he was also