And they never asked him where he'd been. Everything was on a need-to- know basis.

But the spate of bombings seemed to be over for the time being. It was just a case of working out who to keep an eye on and round up next.

Corellians, Bothans . . . and now Fondorians.

Captain Lon Shevu strode onto the dais at the front of the room, looking as committed as ever, but Ben felt the reluctance and misgivings in him. He could sense it in a few of the other troopers, too, generally the ones who'd been in the CSF. Jacen followed Shevu and got instant undivided attention.

Jacen could do that: Ben wasn't sure if he envied him or not. It was interesting that he seemed to enjoy being the focus for ordinary beings but chose to hide himself from Force-sensitives. It was as if he only wanted to be seen by the mundane world.

I have to learn how to do that. Mom says I did it as a little kid, but that was by instinct, like babies swimming. I want to learn how to do it like Jacen does.

"Brief for the next forty-eight hours, ladies and gentlemen," said Jacen. "We're moving into a different phase. The priority now is to look for professionals—Confederation intelligence agents. Now, normally we'd leave that to our colleagues in Alliance Intel, but seeing as we've got all their best operatives—" Applause and laughter interrupted him. He paused with a big grin and picked up again. "—seeing as we got the pick of the litter, we'll be helping them out. We'll also be providing close protection for Chief Omas and key ministers, to relieve CSF, and monitoring for them. Results of interrogation suggest we might be looking at more targeted and professional assassination attempts—as in government agents, not just disgruntled amateurs and bounty hunters."

A hand was raised at the front. Ben couldn't see who it was.

"What's monitoring in this context, sir?"

Jacen flashed a holoimage onto the screen behind him. It showed a diagram of the various routes by which GA ministers could be reached, physically or virtually: offices, home addresses, private clubs, routes to the Senate, comlinks. "Like this," he said.

"Are we Mowed to tap Senators' comlinks, sir?" asked Shevu.

"Under the Emergency Measures Act, we're authorized to carry out any surveillance to prevent acts of violence against ministers of state and visiting allies."

Shevu's face was unreadable, but Ben felt the sharp unhappiness in him.

Now, there was a guy who knew how to conceal what he was thinking.

Ben wondered if that was a more useful skill than hiding in the Force.

Tapping Senators' comlinks didn't seem to bother anyone else at the briefing. Ben couldn't see the problem, either. It made sense, for their own protection. Jacen tasked squads to their roles, and there was discussion about supplies.

"Draw up a wish list," Jacen said, beaming. "I think we've eased the supply situation. Or we will have, by the end of this week."

There was a ripple of laughter. "Did you persuade them to see things your way, sir?"

"Oh, I just made sure the flimsi was in order . . ."

There was more laughter and a ripple of applause. For a moment, Ben felt a conspiratorial closeness between Jacen and the troopers. It was genuine: Jacen wasn't doing his charisma act to persuade people to do what he wanted, although he was very good at that. He enjoyed the company of his troops, and they enjoyed his. There was a sense of shared danger and that the rest of the world wasn't part of all this. Ben took mental notes about the art of effortless leadership.

The briefing broke up. Ben hung back to talk to Jacen, getting a few joking comments about his recent absence as the troopers filed out, and giving as good as he got. He felt a sudden pressure at the back of his head, and when he looked around, Jacen was watching him from the side of the dais, smiling slightly.

"They like you," he said. "That's good for an officer, as long as you're liked for the right reasons."

"Isn't it important to be respected instead?"

"What's respect, Ben?"

Ben pondered the question, hearing a subtle test in it. "Thinking that a person does something right, and that they do it better than you, and so you feel positive toward them."

"Excellent."

"That's not the same as being liked, though, is it?"

"Not at all. We can respect those we dislike," Jacen said. "The way to be liked by your men is this—that they believe that you would never spend their lives cheaply, that their welfare comes first, and that you wouldn't ask them to do anything that you wouldn't do yourself. To share their trials and triumphs without being one of them, and they know that's how it has to be —because they know an officer has to make decisions that cost lives, and that's something you can only do if you remain sufficiently separate."

Ben hadn't lost a trooper from 967 Commando yet. In fact, they'd had no fatalities or even serious injuries. They led charmed lives as far as the rest of the military were concerned. He had no idea how he'd feel if he had to put them in a position where deaths were inevitable.

Jacen seemed to read his mind again. "Until you can make those decisions, you're not safe to lead."

"But it's easier if you're prepared to die yourself, right?" Ben suddenly felt much better about Lumiya's attempt on his life. He knew it was her now, piecing together what had happened on Ziost and what Mom had told him. But it was okay. He could look all the 967 in the eye now.

"Because if you're willing to make the same sacrifice, that's the one thing that matters."

Jacen leaned close to him. "It inspires. It's the ultimate act of honesty with your troops."

Ben knew that was how Jacen led, and why everyone was so loyal to him. He led from the front, and he loved being in the thick of the fighting. The fact that as a Jedi he had survival advantages they didn't have rarely

"I don't know which way I'll jump when the time comes," Ben said.

"Nobody does. But I'll try to do what's right for the majority."

Jacen's smile was utterly luminous for a moment, but then it faded as if he'd recalled something awful. His Force presence vanished for a few seconds and then returned. That was weird, Ben thought: Jacen was standing right next to him, so what was he hiding from?

"Can you teach me to do that?" Ben asked. "Hide in the Force?"

Jacen seemed shaken. "Why?"

"Because Lumiya is trying to kill me. I thought it might come in handy." And for avoiding Mom and Dad sometimes. Yes, it would be handy.

"Mom says she's got evidence that I killed—that Lumiya thinks I killed her daughter. I don't remember a thing about what happened on that asteroid, Jacen, but maybe it doesn't matter, because Lumiya believes it, and I bet she was behind what happened on Ziost."

Jacen's face was carefully blank. Ben couldn't tell what he was thinking now, not even from the Force.

"Yes, why not?" Jacen said. His voice was softer, almost hesitant.

"Don't you worry about Lumiya. She's not up to killing you."

"When can we start?"

"It's very simple."

"Yeah," Ben said dubiously.

"No, it is. The principle is simple—it's the practice that's hard.

It might take you years to master it." Jacen motioned him to sit down on the floor. "Come on. Meditation position."

Ben sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes automatically, taking deeper and slower breaths until he reached the stage where the world beyond him seemed distant and he was hyperaware of his own body, even the movement of blood in his veins.