Chapter 13 A gaze that lingers
A week had passed since Ben's last conversation with Lando. Each day dragged by, heavy with uneasy questions. He tried to stay occupied, but Rey Kenobi haunted his thoughts. Her life in foster care, the secrets around Obi-Wan's death, and the choices his family had made.
That morning, a courier delivered a thick envelope. Inside was a brown folder, Lando's findings.
Now Ben sat on his motorcycle across from Manual Arts High School. Students were pouring out of the building, their laughter and backpacks swinging with each careless step.
According to the report, Rey was one of them.
The folder clutched in Ben's hand held a few harsh truths: a birth certificate with no father listed, social service notes detailing Rey's movement through foster homes since age six, and several photos. One, a recent Polaroid, stood out.
A teenage girl with sharp, defiant eyes and a strong jawline stared back at the camera. Dark brown hair brushed her shoulders. She radiated strength, but also something else, something brittle and defensive, like a door bolted too many times.
This was Rey.
Ben let out a long breath and scanned the schoolyard. The folder portrayed her life like a crime scene. One failed placement after another, notes about behavioral resilience, guarded trust, and frequent relocation. She had no known ties to Obi-Wan. She was just a girl, caught in a storm not of her making.
There was also a section about Shmi Palpatine, Obi-wan's girlfriend at that time. Despite her wealth and resources after the contract and after marrying an oil and mining tycoon, Shmi had virtually no contact with Rey after the girl entered the system. That abandonment felt intentional.
The school bell rang, and students flooded the sidewalk. Ben's heart beat faster as he searched for the girl from the photo.
Then he saw her.
Rey walked at the fringe of the crowd, chin slightly lowered, her eyes alert and distant. The same wary energy. The same strength.
She moved with purpose, but alone.
Ben didn't move. Didn't call out. He was a stranger, and approaching her would only trigger suspicion.
He watched as she made her way to the bus stop. The vehicle arrived, swallowed her up, and rolled away.
Then, unexpectedly, Rey turned her head toward the window.
And she saw him.
Their eyes met, just for a second.
Ben's chest tightened. There was no recognition. How could there be? But there was something. A flicker of curiosity. Suspicion.
And then she was gone.
Ben sat still for a moment, then tucked the photo into his jacket and turned the throttle. He wasn't going home.
He had another stop to make.
---
Ben's motorcycle roared through downtown, into the underground garage of Organa Securities. He pulled off his helmet, jaw clenched.
He went straight to his mother's office.
Leia was mid-phone call when he entered, her brows rising in surprise. She quickly ended the conversation.
"Ben. You look like hell. What's going on?"
Without speaking, he dropped the contract with Shmi Palpatine onto her desk.
Leia's eyes narrowed as she read.
"Where did you get this?"
"It doesn't matter," Ben said. "I want the truth. Now."
"The truth is complicated."
Ben's voice sharpened. "The truth is you paid Shmi to stay quiet. About Obi-Wan. About what happened the night he died. Why?"
Leia sighed and leaned back in her chair. "At that time, the situation was unstable. Vader had become dangerous. After Obi-Wan was killed, Vader turned his weapon on your father. I was there. So was Han."
"You were there?"
Leia nodded. "Obi-Wan had requested Han's help with a security issue. I went too. Vader lost control. I made a decision."
Ben felt like the room had tilted. "You're saying... you're the one who shot him?"
"I am."
Her voice was calm. Firm.
"He had already killed Obi-Wan. I wasn't going to let him kill Han too. There was no time to debate ethics. I acted."
Ben staggered back a step. "The official report said it was the security team."
"It was easier that way," Leia said. "Safer for all of us."
Ben struggled to process it. "So all these years, everyone lied. For what? Reputation? Power?"
Leia looked pained. "Protection. The world doesn't deal kindly with nuance, Ben. If it came out that I pulled the trigger, even in defense of my husband. It could destroy everything we've built."
Ben's voice cracked. "And Rey? Did you even know Obi-Wan had a daughter?"
Leia blinked. "Rey? No. We didn't know anything about that. And Shmi certainly never mentioned it."
Ben's eyes burned. "She's grown up alone. In the system. You could've done something."
"We didn't know," Leia said. "And even if we had, Ben... Shmi was unstable. She manipulated people. She tried to use Obi-Wan's death to her advantage. The agreement with her was damage control."
Ben shook his head. "But Rey's not Shmi. She didn't ask for any of this. And now she's just another casualty in your cover-up."
Leia didn't respond.
Ben turned to go, but paused at the door.
"One last thing," he said. "The headshot. The fatal wound. You did that?"
Leia's voice was flat. "Yes."
Ben stared at her. "And you don't regret it?"
"I regret what led to it," she said. "But I'd do it again if it meant protecting Han. Or you."
He left without another word.
---
Ben didn't go home.
He needed space. Clarity. Somewhere quiet to think.
Rey wasn't related to Vader. She wasn't even connected to the murder. But she had still been abandoned, overlooked, collateral damage in a war of reputations.
His birthday party was three days away.
He didn't know what he'd do yet.