Nuworld: Claiming Tara (32 page)

on Torgo. He’d seemed so surprised when, after making
him hard as a rock with her hand, she’d put him inside her
mouth.
It was bigger than she’d expected, and she wasn’t able to
make much of it fit; not like her aunt had. She’d done
something right though. Torgo had almost flipped her when
he’d arched his back and howled. She’d held on tight and
was surprised when he’d soaked her face with his white
fluid. It had been salty, but she liked the taste.
Torgo had then laid her down and spread her legs so far
apart she’d thought he’d split her in two. When his tongue
entered her soft sensitive folds, she’d gone over the edge,
lust tearing through her like a wildfire. He’d sucked, licked
and kissed. It was more than she’d ever dreamed it would
be, and he’d brought her to such an incredible orgasm she
had been dizzy afterward. No way would she ask if Torgo
had seen Darius doing that to Tara.
Thinking about it made her very anxious to do it again.
After
another
quick
glance
at Torgo,
she
shoved
the
thoughts out of her head. It hadn’t been hard to do when
she focused on the fact that she sat next to a very angry
Tara.
“It would be a lot easier if we ditched the trailer, and you
let me ride your bike,” Syra suggested after driving for a
while in silence.
“Syra, I can’t let you go with me. Believe me, I wish I
could. You’re right, I need the help. But, I just don’t have
the right to take either one of you from your parents.”
Syra reached down, opened Tara’s landlink and started
to log on.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Tara grabbed the
landlink from Syra’s lap.
“My papa said I could work for you over the summer,”
Syra started to explain.
Tara tried to stay calm and took a deep breath before
she spoke, “If you log on with my landlink, it will instantly
tell anyone who is watching exactly where I am. Trust me,
they’re watching. I’ve got the heirs of the Gothman and
Runner nations on board.”
“Okay. I’m sorry.”
Tara was startled by the sincerity of Syra’s apology.
Syra met her gaze and her youthful energy pulsated in
her green eyes. “Did you love him, Tara?”
Tara didn’t answer, but she fought the stinging in her
eyes from tears that threatened to come. Had she loved
him? She
still
loved him. She needed to stay focused and
thinking
about
her
feelings for
Darius
would
get
her
nowhere. They continued in silence with still nothing but
rough ground and trees around them.
“We should have hit desert by now, according to what
Taffley told us.” Tara looked up at the sun. “We’re definitely
driving due south. Something is wrong.”
“Could we use my landlink to see if we can activate a
nearby transmission that isn’t a Runner transmission?”
“I guess we should try. For all I know, we have already
passed the border.” Tara stopped the groundmobile, and
Torgo pulled up alongside her.
“Why don’t you get the babies out and let them crawl
around in the backseat?” Tara used Syra’s landlink and
easily found a transmission, although it was definitely
foreign. Images began appearing on the screen.
“Well, there’s life out there somewhere,” Tara
commented as she started to tap the screen. “I found a
map. Here it is. There are several cities that appear to be
not too far from the border. And I see two roads. One of
them comes all the way to the border. We must be farther
east than we thought. According to this, if we head west,
we should pull out of this rough terrain faster than if we
continue south.” She studied the foreign screen providing
this information and wondered what culture shared the
technology.
“Sounds good to me.” Torgo squinted toward the west.
“Let’s keep moving. Syra, why don’t you explore what
these cities have to offer while you’re back there, and I’ll
drive.
Whatever you do, don’t switch transmissions.
Hopefully, no one will be searching for us on this link.”
The drive continued to be difficult as the trees grew
closer together and cliffs and rocks appeared. The terrain
almost appeared mountainous, and Tara noticed some of
the
rock formations appeared to lead into caves. She
continually looked around them and listened. No one would
stop them, she would see to it. Determination pumped
through her, keeping her on edge.
Torgo watched Tara and although he would look in the
same direction as she did, he never saw anything out of the
ordinary. The more time passed, the more often Tara
checked their surroundings. Her actions started spooking
Torgo. Although nothing around him seemed out of the
ordinary, he started feeling as if they were being watched or
followed, just by Tara’s actions.
After driving for a time, Tara stopped. While the two
teenagers watched, she got out of the groundmobile and
stood, listening. She walked a short distance away from
them but then hurried back.
“Syra, I want you to turn this groundmobile around and
take it back to one of those caves.” She reached down to
the floor of the groundmobile and grabbed her suitcase
along with her landlink. “Take these and put them on.” She
handed comms to both teenagers. “We need to put them all
on the same channel and keep them open.”
“What’s going on?” Syra looked confused as she watched
Tara guide her bike off the trailer.
“Get this thing turned around and go hide in one of
those caves we just passed until I tell you it’s okay to come
out.”
“Why?” Syra persisted.
“We’ve driven into an ambush. Head back toward those
caves, and you and the babies will be safe.” Tara’s tone was
enough for Syra to scurry behind the wheel. “Now move.”
Syra obeyed and drove off with the babies.
“Torgo, a good warrior always knows when he’s
outnumbered.” Tara flipped open her landlink and turned
it on. “I’d say at the moment we are grossly outnumbered.”
“Tara, I don’t see anyone anywhere.”
“Trust me.”
“I do.” He looked around nervously.
Tara fastened the landlink to her handlebars, pulled out
her eliminator, and hooked it to her bike. “Do you have a
laser?”
“Of course.” He pulled out one of the nicer Gothman
bang sticks he’d used for target practice.
She tossed one of her lasers at him. “Use this. It’s a little
more accurate. Aim it the same way you do yours. Let’s go.”
Their motorcycles engines roared to life when they took
off, picking up speed as they darted around trees and
rocks. The terrain was similar to Gothman. Torgo kept up
with her nicely, but his loud bike was going to draw more
attention to them. Glancing repeatedly down at her screen
while navigating her bike, Tara quickly activated the main
Runner screen.
Help was nearby—Patha and the Blood Circle Clan were
just on the other side of the border. He really pushed his
clan for them to be this close. Not that is surprised her,
and at the moment she was grateful.
The first shot rang through the air from somewhere
behind them. Tara continued to drive at high speed but
turned and shot at a vehicle closing in from behind. Torgo
did the same, pulling off a decent shot.
An old groundmobile crashed into a tree, making a
horrific sound. They’d hit their target. She tapped her
landlink screen as fast as she could.
What are you doing?” Torgo yelled through his comm.
“We’re too outnumbered. I’m detecting fifteen to twenty
people to the north of us, about ten people behind us, and
there are three coming straight at us from the west. We’ll
see them here in a minute. We need help, or we won’t make
it.”
Three men in a groundmobile not too different from hers
appeared in front of them. As one of them drove, the other
two leaned out, hanging onto the bars. They aimed large
bang sticks at Tara and Torgo.
Tara pulled the eliminator faster than Torgo could even
react.
The first shot coming her way caused a tree to fall in
front of her. She heard men whooping and yelling in
excitement of almost hitting her.
Did that reward announcement say
dead or alive
? She
wished now that she’d read it a bit closer. From the sheer
numbers around her, enough people had gotten wind of
her location to turn the situation into a crazed hunt. There
was no way she and Torgo could take on this many
opponents. Who was to say how many more were on their
way?
And they were River People—a crude people with no
laws. They had no trained warriors. There would be no
pattern, no order, no way of predicting their next move.
Tara aimed the eliminator and shot the groundmobile.
The explosion caused several surrounding trees to catch
fire. If there was anyone out there who wasn’t exactly sure
where she was, they certainly knew now.
“Help,” was all she was able to transmit
without
crashing into a burning tree limb directly ahead of her.
“I’ve got you on my scanner.” Tara saw the response to
her plea and sighed with relief. She would deal with the
wrath of Patha after all of this was over. Right now, she
knew her clan wouldn’t let her down. She hadn’t done
anything wrong, and they knew it.
Tara and Torgo continued to drive as fast as they dared
into dense woods. A shot from the north exploded through
the air, and Tara turned in time to see Torgo’s bike slide.
She slammed to a stop and sent rocks and dirt flying as
she turned around. If Torgo was hurt, she’d never forgive
herself. Relief surged through her as she approached Torgo
and saw that only his tire had been blown out. He had slid
through
the
brush and
was getting
up
slowly
from
underneath the bike. Her heart raced and a cold sweat
broke out over her body. Torgo stood and began slapping
his clothes. She wanted to leap off her bike and make sure
he was truly okay. They weren’t out of danger yet, though.
“Climb on.” She pulled up next to him. “Tell me you’re
okay.”
“My bike.” He looked forlornly at his prize lying on the
ground.
“Casualty of war, son. It’s what you get for following me.”
She grinned at Torgo as he climbed on behind her. They
both noticed blood on his leg at the same time.
“I’m okay.”
Tara took off again, but didn’t make it far. At least ten
men on motorcycles were driving straight at them. They
were
well-armed,
Tara noted
as they spread
out
and
surrounded her, forcing her to stop.
One of the riders in the middle glared at her with cold
eyes as he yelled. “Okay, lady. I know you’re a Runner, and
I’m sure you’re well-armed. Slowly, and I do mean slowly,
you and the boy get off that bike.”
He raised his large bang stick with practiced skill and
pointed it at her head. He wasn’t nervous, Tara observed.
His moves were premeditated and calculated. It wasn’t the
same with the other men. They were shifty and not as
certain of their next move.
The man yelling at her thought his mock army would be
more
intimidating,
which made
him a fool.
A
simple
diversion would send all of them into a panic. They had a
plan by the glances they kept giving their leader, as if
waiting for a signal, but she guessed there was no backup
plan.
Tara climbed got off the bike. She could easily pull the
eliminator and take out at least half of them. But, it would
take just one of them to fire back, and she or Torgo would
be hurt. Or worse. There would be no brave attempt to
escape this time. Her babies needed a mama, and she
wouldn’t risk Torgo’s life.
“I can take the guys on the right, and you take those on
the left,” Torgo whispered at her shoulder.
“No. A good warrior knows when he’s outnumbered. I
told you that already. There’s always time to escape. Right
now isn’t the time.”
“Silence!” The leader yelled. “Be careful, boys. Runners
are sadistic warriors. They keep a calm look on their faces,
but their minds are scheming your death.”
He gestured at Tara with his bang stick as if using her
as an example while teaching young warriors. “Get away
from the bike!” He curled his lip as if her looks repulsed
him.
Tara complied, walking several steps toward him. She
seriously hoped Patha would arrive very soon. She took a
few more steps, and every laser instantly bristled in her
direction. She was less than a man’s length away from the
leader.
“Let the boy go.” She looked straight at him. “There’s no
price on his head.” She paused. “Let him go and fight me
like a true warrior. I’ll show you how a Runner does it.
Then you won’t have to make up stories.”
She glared at the leader and tried her best to let the fury
in her eyes shine through. He was scared. She saw it now.
All she needed was one small distraction.
He didn’t need to yell with her so close but did anyway.
“The boy is Gothman. I’m sure their leader will pay for him
just as he will pay for you. The way they treat their women,
I’m sure he wouldn’t care if we had a little fun with you
first.” The leader laughed, and the men around him joined
in.
This was all the distraction Tara needed. As she raised
her eliminator to fire, the singing of lasers resounded
through the woods in all directions. Apparently she hadn’t
been the only one waiting for that perfect distraction.
She shot the leader. Laser fire took out the other men
before they knew what hit them.

time. I can’t think of many Runners that coul
d have made
it this far being hunted, Taragirl.” Patha sat with his
family around the fire later that evening. “And you did it
with two babies as well.”

Tara accepted another piece of apple pie from Reena,
who was smiling at her.
“I’m just glad you’re all alive and okay. I was worried
sick.” Reena sat next to Patha and took Ana from him.
“This is no life for my grandbabies.”
“My grandbabies, too.” Patha bounced Andru on his lap.
“Traveling is in their blood. But being hunted isn’t. What
are your plans?”
“I know. You’re both right.” Tara looked at her babies as
they giggled in their grandparents’ arms. “Patha, there are
towns south of the border. I’ve heard some things about
them, and they sound fascinating. Did you know that
people decide who leads them down here?”
“Who’d have thought of such a thing?” Reena looked up
from the pie she was feeding to Ana, shaking her head as
she tsked. “How do these people know who would be a good
leader?”
“Yes, the Neurian government. I’ve heard of them,” Patha
nodded. “Gowsky is the head of their council. He’s a young
man with lots of ambition.”
Tara was surprised. Patha seemed to know everything.
“Did you know their main export was a crop to the Sea
People? When we won the war over the Sea People, this
Neurian government lost its main form of income.”
“So you want to help these people?” Patha asked.
“Yes. That’s exactly what I’m going to do.”
“How do you propose to do this, child?” Patha narrowed
his gaze on her. “You don’t know these people. They are
nothing like Runners, or even Gothman. They live a very
different life. You won’t be able to waltz into their country,
change your clothes, and fit into their culture.”
Tara smiled at Reena, remembering her first days at
Gothman. “Maybe not. But I’m going to try. It’s time I find a
new life for myself.”
Both Patha and Reena looked up at her quickly as she
said this.
“Tara, I…” Patha started.
Tara lifted her hand to cut him off. “No, Patha, please. I
can’t go back to Gothman. Darius isn’t going to change. His
definition of love is obviously very different from mine.
There’s no way we are going to become compatible. I won’t
put my children through a life where their parents don’t
love each other.”
“It’s a little late to be coming to these conclusions.”
Patha studied his daughter’s face. “You don’t run away
from your problems. That’s not how I raised you. You need
to place a time limit on this adventure of yours.”
“I don’t know how long I’ll be gone. Now that I’ve heard
about these people, I’ve got to check them out. They live so
differently from anything I’ve ever seen—and apparently
they’re doing it well; or they were until our war ended their
main source of income.”
“She’s living her culture, Patha,” Reena pointed out.
“She’s doing what Runners do best. Love isn’t going to keep
her in one place.”
Patha looked grave. “Is there a message you’d like to
send to Darius?”
“I would think he would have a message to send to me.”
Patha shook his head. “I believe he’s sent you messages,
but it appears they are deleted before they’re read. I’m sure
he’s sorry.”
“Sorry means you won’t do it again. Tell him to call off
this hunt. I won’t have my children continually shot at by
gold hungry fools.” Tara picked up Andru, who had fallen
asleep in Patha’s arms.
Reena got up with Ana, who was also asleep. She
followed Tara into Patha’s trailer and helped put the babies
to bed.
“I’m not accustomed to offering motherly advice, Tara.
And I know your mind is set. But I want to say something
to you.” Reena paused outside the bedroom where they had
put the twins. “Lord Darius has done you wrong. I don’t
blame you for your reaction. In fact, I admire you. There
are many women who would forgive and do their best to
forget. They convince themselves they can handle it.”
“I know. And they would look the other way when it
happened again and again. I can’t do that, Reena. I would
kill him.”
“I believe you.” Reena smiled, but it didn’t cover the
sadness in her eyes. “I think what Patha wants you to see,
and what I want you to see as well, is that you started
something in Gothman. It was you who brought Runners
and Gothman together. You’re the one who insisted women
should have rights. You’ve started something and have
walked away without finishing it.”
“That’s not fair.” None of this was her fault. “I loved
Darius and would have led our nations together. He said
things to me, made promises. He lied to me. He’s the one
who quit without finishing, not me.”
Reena looked away without saying anything.
Tara watched her. For some reason it dawned on her
how much she wanted Reena’s support. They moved into
Patha’s kitchen and she sat at the table across from Reena,
waiting for the older woman to say something, anything.
Finally, Reena spoke. “Tara, I’m Gothman. I always will
be. I have no choice but to be loyal to Lord Darius.” She
lowered her voice and continued. “I can’t help but say that I
feel you’re more of a man than he is, so to speak. You
might just have to make the first move.”
“I don’t know that I could ever trust him again.” Tara felt
defeated.
“How long will you be gone?”
“I don’t know.” Tara got up and moved to the door.
“Patha said he’d let Torgo sleep in the spare room tonight.
I’ll send him in so he can go to bed.” She paused in the
doorway. “You know, Torgo has been loyal to me. He would
make a great lord. But I doubt he’ll ever have the
opportunity to prove that.” She sighed. “I’m leaving
tomorrow, Reena. Tonight, I look forward to lying under the
stars. It’s beautiful out there, and I think sleeping in the
night air might help clear my head. Good night, Reena.”
“Goodnight,
Taragirl.” Reena hugged her daughter.
“Don’t worry about those babies. If they wake in the night,
I’ll take care of them.”
A short time later, Tara threw her bedroll on the ground
next to the fire by Patha’s trailer. The stars glowed larger
than usual and filled the sky. She didn’t have a chance to
enjoy them, though. Sleep overcame her the second her
head hit the pillow.
It was barely light when Tara opened her eyes. A good
night’s sleep was just what she’d needed. Now she was
anxious to get herself organized and hit the road. The
trailer was still quiet when she entered. Tara was gazing at
her sleeping beauties when Patha came out of his room.
The old man looked over her shoulder at the two babies.
“You’ll do a good job with those two.”
“They’ll be great warriors, Patha. I promise.”
“How could they not be? Look at their bloodline.” Patha
gently took Tara’s arm. “Come with me. I’ve something to
show you.”
Tara followed
Patha
out
the
trailer
and
across the
meadow to another trailer. He unlocked the door and the
two of them went inside.
“This is for you.”
“What do you mean?” Tara looked at the kitchenette. A
table
and small couch furnished
the
living
room.
An
extensive landlink system caught Tara’s eye, and she
walked over to it.
“This trailer. It’s for you.” The old man grinned.
“It’s mine?”
“Can’t have my grandbabies running around without a
roof over their heads.” Patha walked to the door. “I’ll see
that your belongings are brought to you.”
Tara was left alone in the living room. She walked down
the hallway and opened the first bedroom door. A nice
sized bed and a tall dresser furnished the room. There were
shelves in the closet as well as a bar on which to hang
clothes. The second bedroom contained a small bed and
another dresser. She gasped when she opened the third
bedroom. Inside were the babies’ cradles from the house.
She walked up to them in disbelief. Who had brought them
here? All their clothes hung in the closet.
Tara stood in the little room, stunned by what she was
seeing. What did all this mean? If Darius was giving her all
of the baby things, did that mean he didn’t want them to
come back? A wave of panic ran through Tara’s body. It
had never occurred to her that he might decide he didn’t
want them to come home. She ran her fingers over a
cradle, and her eyes welled with tears.
He wasn’t willing to change for her. He’d made the
decision and sent her these things. Tara imagined that the
empty nursery had been more than he could bear. The man
had no use for baby things without babies in the house. Or
maybe he thought sending her Andru and Ana’s things
would make her react just the way she had. It would be
just like him to send her everything to scare her into
thinking he didn’t want her—a bluff to lure her home. Tara
wouldn’t put an act like that past the man. Originally she’d
left in anger but now she wanted to teach him a lesson.
She wanted Darius to know she had zero tolerance for what
he’d done.
Tara wouldn’t live
continuously wondering
where he was, and with whom.
As her finger traced the crib’s carvings, it dawned on her
that was exactly what she was doing right now. She missed
him. Maybe she should have stayed and battled it out.
She shook herself, trying to get her thoughts back to
reality. She wouldn’t live with a man who didn’t respect
her. Tara hurried out of the room.
The landlink in the living room was logged on. The
screen indicated there was a message waiting for her
response. Someone had taken the time to program this
landlink to use her pass code. She tapped the screen and
saw the message.
Hello, Tara. This is my third attempt to contact you. I hope
you’ll not delete this message. It’s not possible for me to
right a wrong when you won’t return to allow me to do so. I
hope this trailer will show you that my intentions toward
you are genuine. I’ve made every attempt to bring you back.
I am now made to understand that you still do not plan to
return, and instead are entering Southland. Tara, your place
is here. We’ve united two nations, and you are meant to rule
them with me. You, too, are failing your duty, just as you
say
I have. Return
within
a quarter-cycle, or I’ll sever
relations with the Runners, disowning all of you. I don’t
want to do this. My love for you is strong. Return to me now.
Darius.
Tara read the message twice. Her blood boiled. Did
Patha know of this threat? She slammed her fist on the
table and turned to leave the trailer. As she opened the
door, she almost ran into Syra.
“Have you heard the news?” Syra was grinning. She had
a bag in each hand as she entered the trailer. “I get to go
with you. My papa said it would keep me away from Torgo.
What an adventure. Which one is my room?”
Tara stood there speechless. She hurried to regroup her
thoughts. No one must know about the message from
Darius. She walked back to the landlink and deleted it. She
wasn’t going to bother acknowledging such an insult. He
didn’t control everyone’s life.
“You want me to go with you, don’t you?” Syra
apparently misread Tara’s silence and looked worried. “I’ll
help with the babies.”
“Of course you can go with me.” Tara smiled, trying to
force her thoughts to the future. And not the past.
She looked past Syra at the sound of a groundmobile
pulling up to the trailer. Patha and Balbo entered without
knocking and began bringing Syra’s things into the trailer.
Apparently they hadn’t considered that Tara might say
no to Syra going with her. She glared at the boxes, feeling a
wave of grouchiness swell inside her. It didn’t make sense.
It wasn’t as if Syra moving in with her made her trip into
Southland more of a definite move. She’d already insisted
to Patha that she was going. Patha was simply taking her
at her word. Darius’s transmission had been an attempt to
bully her. She’d already deleted it. Heading south was the
right thing to do. And, she’d just told Syra she had no
problem with her coming along.
Tara forced
a smile
on her
face.
She made
her
grouchiness go away. The pain in her heart, however,
refused to budge.
They put
away
clothes and hauled
furniture.
Tara
watched Patha closely. If her papa knew of Darius’ threat,
he gave no indication. He spoke only of his concern that
Tara stay in touch and report regularly on what the people
of Southland were like.
“Log everything that happens to you daily.” Patha wiped
sweat from his brow. They had just finished putting her
new trailer in order.
“I will,” Tara said as she stood outside the door to the
twins’ room. She watched Syra and Reena sitting on the
floor with Andru and Ana as they played.
“You’re breaking ground for Runners.”
“I know.”
“Keep track of every detail, even if it doesn’t seem
important at the time.”
“I will.”
“Let me know when you are safely in Semore.” Patha
hugged his daughter soundly. His eyes looked moist when
he pulled away.
“And take care of my daughter,” Balbo added, coming
down the hallway.
“I will.”
“Syra, bring the babies outside. I think we’re ready to
go.”
Tara continued listening to Patha’s instructions as he
followed her through the trailer and together made sure
everything was secure for travel. Countless times in the
past they had performed this task together. Except now it
was her trailer, and she wasn’t traveling with her clan.
“Take care of yourself, Patha,” she said before they
stepped outside. “And…”
“Yes?”
“Nothing.” Tara gave him a fierce hug, not sure what
exactly she would have said. What was the point in asking
Patha about Darius’s threat? This was her private war with
Darius and she didn’t need reinforcements. Everyone said
their goodbyes once she was outside. She hugged Reena,
Torgo and Balbo then climbed into the driver’s seat.
The town of Semore was unlike anything Tara had ever
seen. It was built around ruins from Oldworld. There
weren’t ruins like these in Northland, at least none she’d
ever seen.
Tall rectangular
beams jutted
into
the
air
like
the
skeleton of an ancient, gigantic metal beast. Other beams
crossed horizontally above the ground. Tara slowed and
she and Syra stared in awe at a gigantic sign, as long as
her trailer, with strange red shapes on it. It was made of
material that looked like hard, thick paper. It wasn’t
though, but instead a material she’d never seen before.