Tara The Great [Nuworld 2] (40 page)

“Are you sure you can get us out of here?” Tealah followed her to the door.

“Getting out of here isn’t what I’m worried about,” Tara said, almost to herself.

“Oh,” Tealah understood. “Lord Darius and Dorn, huh.”

Polva moaned on the floor and Tara looked at her, then Tealah. “If you don’t know

how to fight, I suggest you learn quickly.”

Tealah opened her mouth to respond, but Tara pulled open the door and jumped

into the hallway. Tealah was definitely no warrior. She did her best though, and

managed a punch here and a kick there. Tara held the weight for both of them and,

although she acknowledged Tealah slowed her down considerably, the two of them

found the surface with little difficulty. Lunians had no warrior blood in them.

It was daytime, midmorning by the location of the sun, and as Tara lifted her head

and upper shoulders through the hole in the ground covered by the canopy, she was

dismayed to see a handful of Lunians setting up tents.

Just like in her vision.

Were the scenes she’d witnessed about to take place? Was her time running out?

She blew a breath from her mouth, studied the landscape and its occupants, and

prepared her strategy.

She hoped she’d made the right decision to flee the area in order to steal her sister’s

son. Maybe she should simply organize a rescue mission. But she’d shaken hands on a

deal with Polva, and if there ever was to be any type of mutuality between the two

people, she had to hold up her end of the bargain. If Darius knew where the prisoners

were, which he did, he was more than capable of freeing them, with or without the

Neurians’ help.

“There’s a large group of Gothman and Runners in the woods,” Tealah whispered.

Tara turned to see Tealah holding her black pad and scanning the area.

“There are two gliders parked over there.” Tara pointed with her finger, as she read

what her findings told her on the thin instrument in her hand. “We’ll have to make a

break to take them. Let’s hope Darius provides us with a good distraction.”

“The group in the woods are getting closer,” Tealah said. The two women stood on

the wooden ladder, made with boards so thick, they almost resembled narrow stairs.

Looking out the hole, the women’s heads were barely visible through the prairie grass

covering the surrounding ground.

“Let me know when they’re—”

“Now!”

The two women exited the hole quickly and ran in the opposite direction from the

Lunians working on the campsite.

“Hey!” A voice yelled causing both of them to run faster.

“Stop them!”

In the next moment, a loud explosion sounded, and Tara knew the Gothman and

Runners were attacking. She desperately wanted to turn her head and confirm her

suspicions, but the gliders were right in front of them. Tara straddled the glider nearest

her, and Tealah climbed on the other one. Obviously, Tealah had studied the schematics

on the Lunian gliders as well, because they both started the machines with ease. The

two women left the scene as the attack began.

Neither one had a communications device of any kind with them or on their gliders.

They were forced to fly close enough to each other to use hand signals. Tara discovered

that the landlink panel attached to the dash of the glider pulled off easily. She threw

hers to the ground and gestured for Tealah to do the same. She didn’t want to leave any

trails, and without landlinks, no one would know where the two women were going.

No telling how many people would disapprove of the mission she was about to

undertake.

For the second time in her life, Tara traveled over uncharted land without a

landlink.

The sky grew dark as they entered Southland. Semore was under tight security and

the two had no weapons, shy a tiny pocketknife. They landed in the desert, to the

southeast of the town, not too far from where Tara had first met the dog-woman.

“You can’t enter town looking like that,” Tealah said, sitting on her glider next to

Tara.

“I didn’t bring any other clothes.” Tara didn’t turn to address the Neurian woman,

but studied the town lights, trying to remember the layout.

“The first poor sap who sees you will recognize your attire as a Runner,” Tealah

pointed out.

“We don’t have a lot of time.” Tara looked at Tealah. “How long would it take you

to get some clothes and bring them to me?”

“I’ll have to go on foot.” Tealah hopped off the glider. “These things aren’t exactly

commonplace in town.”

“How long?” Tara didn’t want to miss their deadline, and she wanted this mission

completed.

“I’ll be back within the hour.” Tealah didn’t wait for consent and began jogging

across the sandy terrain toward town.

Alone in the desert, Tara watched the stars as they became more pronounced in the

dimming sky. The cycle was new and the darkness from lack of a moon accentuated

their brilliance. She studied them, making note of the lights that flickered and those that

radiated continuously. She wondered what these little flecks of light would look like if

she could get closer.

Pulling her thoughts together, she studied the dark desert and wondered if the dog-

woman would approach her while she was alone. The desert was the first place she’d

ever met the old lady and also where she’d buried her. Any advice or words of wisdom

would be really helpful right about now, dog-woman.

Not quite an hour passed when she noticed a figure approaching. It was Tealah and

she had a bundle under her arm.

“Here, these should fit you,” she said and handed a pair of khaki pants and

pullover tunic to Tara. Tealah also produced two Neurian guns and a small landlink.

She held a small black bag under her other arm

“What’s in the bag?” Tara asked as Tealah set it down.

“Medical supplies. I can take a look at your arm and clean it better, if you like.”

Tara glanced at the twisted bandage barely covering the dark spot of dried blood on

her arm. She’d grown accustomed to the pulsing pain from the cut, but agreed cleaning

it would be a good idea. “The last thing I need right now is an infection.”

Tara donned the Neurian outfit Tealah offered her, then watched the lights from the

town while Tealah cleaned and redressed the wound.

They left the gliders and began the short walk across the desert toward Semore.

When they reached town, Tealah suggested they enter through a yard as opposed to

simply walking down the street. “Neurians don’t go into the desert at night,” she

explained. “We don’t want to arouse any suspicions. There are police everywhere.”

Tara remembered Fleeder’s reaction when she suggested they take a ride into the

desert to find the dog-woman. He had shown the suspicion common to a people filled

with myth and superstition. What they didn’t understand, they feared. She’d seen the

look of terror and disbelief in his face at her suggestion.

She nodded to Tealah and they quietly entered the town after passing between two

houses, appearing like they’d simply left one of the houses after a visit.

“Tasha moved into a place just a few streets over from here,” Tealah said quietly as

they walked. “She must have approached Dorn the day she arrived. I think he’s helping

her pay for it.”

Being a tramp has its advantages, Tara thought to herself, remembering her not-so-

friendly welcome by the town.

“We don’t have many fair-skinned people around here,” Tealah went on to say. “I

doubt most of the guards have a good idea of what Tasha looks like. They will probably

think you’re her, if any of them stop to talk to us.” She shot Tara a quick glance before

continuing. “No offense, but you do kind of all look the same.”

Tara didn’t respond, but thought she could say the same thing about the Neurians.

They traveled down a red paved road until they reached a small plain flat-roofed

stucco house set in the middle of a neglected dirt yard. Definitely not Tasha’s style. Tasha

liked her things to be nice, and liked taking advantage of men to gain frivolous items

that otherwise would have been difficult for her to obtain.

Tara placed her hand on the gun in her pocket as they quietly moved to the back

door.

The house was dark inside. Not a good sign, considering it wasn’t that late in the

evening. She hadn’t considered that her sister might have someone watching the child.

Tasha enjoyed the nightlife. It might take most of the night to locate the baby.

She was relieved to find the back door unlocked. At least, they wouldn’t cause a

commotion by breaking into the house. They entered a dark room, obviously the

kitchen. A small counter ran along one wall with cabinets above it. A kitchen table was

pushed against an open window. Directly in front of them, a doorway led into a larger

room. The bedrooms were more than likely on the other side of the living room, since

the house wasn’t that big.

With mounting frustration, Tara noticed that the house was empty. Two of the

cabinet doors stood open revealing empty shelves. As they moved through the house,

they saw only a chair in the middle of the large room and an empty bag lying on a

bedroom floor. She kicked the bag with aggravation. “She’s not here.”

“I bet I know where she is, the bitch. I wouldn’t have guessed she would pull a

stunt like this.” Tealah sounded angry, although in the darkness of the room, Tara

couldn’t see the expression on her face.

The Neurian stood quiet for a moment.

Tara waited to be enlightened.

“She’s at Dorn’s house.” Tealah hissed the words, sounding extremely jealous.

Tara didn’t have time to listen to how her sister had stolen another woman’s

man…again. “Is there still a force field around the house? When Gowsky held me

captive, I remember he had a force field surrounding his property.”

“Yes,” Tealah sounded distracted but quickly pulled herself together. “But it only

goes up twenty feet.”

“Okay.” Tara thought for a moment. “I’ll go in by myself. There’s no reason for you

to burn bridges.”

“I have no intention of giving up my home.” Tealah showed the stubbornness that

obviously aided in getting her where she was today. “I plan on walking in through the