Reena nodded but then continued on as if Patha hadn’t just said something. Her voice was muffled, but she turned her head, resting it against Patha’s chest as she spoke. “It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life. I never saw you after that. We couldn’t risk you entering Gothman, even for a short visit. It was almost impossible pretending I didn’t know you the night you arrived here.”
“I had no idea.” Tara was already comparing features between the two adults on the open room’s swing and herself. She looked more like Reena, she decided, who was her mama. Her throat was thick, and she’d started trembling. “Patha, why didn’t you tell me? You really are my papa? I wish you would have told me. I’ve never had real parents and now I have two.”
“Reena didn’t want you to feel any obligation to visit her. She was afraid you’d be claimed once Lord Jovis knew you were back. He wanted you for his son almost before you were born. The man knew you came from good blood.” Patha chuckled and reached for Tara. She scooted across the open room and sat at their feet. Patha took her hand and held it on his knees. “As you grew and became more beautiful, we both knew the second you returned to Gothman, the first man who saw you would have you. When you left for the Age Of Searching, I knew you would end up here. I also knew no man would be able to claim you if you didn’t want it. You’re an incredible warrior now, not the helpless child you once were.” Patha shook his head at his daughter. “I almost pity the man who would take you on. You’ve two very stubborn parents, child. And you definitely inherited that trait.”
Tara didn’t try to stop the tears. She let them fall as she absorbed this incredible news. Then sniffing, she wiped her teary face on her sleeve.
“So, suddenly I’m no longer an orphan. I’ve never thought to search for my parents because I thought they were dead. I didn’t bother trying to ask questions about them because they were from another clan. No one would have known them. This is too much. I should be mad at both of you.”
Tara swallowed a deep breath and turned to look at the tall pines surrounding them. Patha had raised her as his own. Her mama wasn’t dead. She had sent her away. She searched her emotions and didn’t feel angry. Maybe she should feel abandoned. But she was grateful for who she was and not a Gothman female, living in ignorant suppression. Tara was educated, a warrior with knowledge of Nuworld. She was on the Age Of Searching and had the freedom to come and go as she pleased. She would make her own decisions about her future. Patha and Reena had suffered in silence to give her all of that.
Tara stood and stared at the watery-eyed woman who looked up at her. She saw concern and worry in Reena’s face. The woman feared Tara would hate her for the choice she had made. Maybe she’d lived with that worry for winters. She’d made a heart-breaking, selfless sacrifice and had given Tara a life of opportunity. Tara was the heir to the leader of all Runner clans.
“Hello, mama.” Tara couldn’t keep her voice from cracking as she held her arms out to Reena.
“Oh Tara!” Reena cried, and fresh tears streamed down her face as she leapt up and wrapped her thin arms around her daughter.
“I guess there are many stories to share,” Tara mused. She buried her face in Reena’s gray hair and breathed in the smell of spices and soap. This was her mama—her very much alive mama. “I hope we have time to do that very soon,” she whispered.
Tara looked over Reena’s shoulder at Patha, who smiled at the two women in front of him. Having only known her mama for a few brief seconds possibly made it easier to put stories of her to the side, at least for now. There was more to discuss, and it proved more urgent.
She stepped out of Reena’s arms and cleared her throat. She needed to know how much danger Darius might be in. “Patha, I’m afraid there is about to be war.”
“You refer to the Sea People.” Patha’s smile disappeared.
“Darius rode with some of his men to his borders and returned with stories that don’t sound good.”
The Patha she’d known all her life sat before her. The almost soft, gentle side of him that had appeared while sharing his story with Reena was gone. Tara straightened, staring into his calculating gaze. She needed to know what he knew.
“Patha, Lord Darius will have the Runners stand with him if they’re willing. If there are battles coming, he needs us. Darius has no knowledge of the world outside of Gothman. He doesn’t even know who he’s fighting. I gave him an Eliminator, but he’ll need much more than that.”
Patha’s eyes widened. He didn’t bother to hide being surprised. “So, the son of Lord Jovis is not narrow-minded and full of hatred? Did he say he would have Runners ride alongside him into battle?”
“Yes. He’s not full of hatred at all, Patha. Darius is cocky. And he’s arrogant,” she added. “But he’s intelligent. He might never admit it, but he knows that there is much he doesn’t know of Nuworld. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have asked me to give his message to the leader of my people.”
Tara’s eyes were moist with tears. There was no missing how her face lit up at the mention of the Lord of Gothman. Patha noticed that, and much more. He watched his daughter’s expression transform when she began explaining the thinking of the new, young lord.
“You’ve been in Gothman almost two cycles,” Patha prompted. “You have Reena curious that you might be staying.”
“Oh. I – uh…” Tara hesitated. She shifted her weight and looked away from both of them. Without ceremony, she plopped down and sat cross legged. Tara tugged on that Gothman dress she wore under her Runner jacket. When she pulled her jacket around her, Patha saw the symbol of the Blood Circle Clan on the sleeve. But she’d slipped a ban over the sleeve of her jacket – the symbol of the Bryton house.
“The truth is he had my bike,” she told them, laughing then looking down and tracing her finger along the tip of her boot. “It’s okay, though. You should have seen Darius when I let him ride it.”
“How did Lord Darius know you’re a Runner?” Patha had already guessed but wanted her story.
As he always had, when his clan was close enough to Gothman borders for a transmission to go through, he’d contacted Reena. He’d hurried to Gothman as soon as Reena told him that Lord Darius had claimed Tara. With the Sea People ready to start trouble his clans were primed for action. Patha had left with only a few of his men, knowing they’d travel faster that way. For now, the clan was safe where they were, although he’d left them on alert and was maintaining open transmissions in case the Sea People got stupid while he was away.
He didn’t want to attack Gothman. Now both of his women were here. The last thing he would do was start a war and risk either their lives. However, Patha would make it clear to Lord Darius the same way he had with his sire. Patha would kill to protect his family.
“I told him I was a Runner.” Tara put her hand on Patha’s knee. Her face glowed when she smiled up at him. “He had figured it out, but Darius thinks he has everything figured out. At first I thought he was an idiot, because of his laws about women. But don’t worry, Patha. Darius won’t make me do anything I don’t want to do.”
Reena stiffened and fell clumsily back onto the swing next to him. Patha gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. Tara hadn’t said she wanted to stay in Gothman.
“Have you fallen in love with this Gothman lord?” Patha saw his answer when he looked at his daughter. He’d never seen such a glow in her face.
“Yes, maybe. I think so.” She blushed and looked from Patha to Reena. “He’s a good man. He claimed me, but I told him I wouldn’t be claimed until I was ready. He could have had me killed. But he didn’t. That speaks so much louder about his character than any of the stories do, don’t you think? He told me when they heard a Runner had entered Gothman territory they hunted me, and he found me. Darius wouldn’t have me killed on sight. He told me that he didn’t see a threat, and like me, wanted to know why the law to shoot a Runner on sight existed before implementing it.”
Lord Darius is willing to wait for yo
u to accept his claim?” Patha searched her face for more of an answer than she would give him with words.
“Gothman don’t feel a need for their women to accept a claim.” Tara rolled her eyes but was still grinning at both of them. “I think I’m going to claim him, though.”
“Does he know this?”
“I haven’t told him yet.”
A small smile appeared on Patha’s face. His daughter would never do anything she didn’t want to do. That was his Tara, stubborn as she was beautiful. She was also one of the best warriors he’d seen in all his winters. A union between Tara and Lord Darius would end the ban of Runners in Gothman. Runners would be even more powerful with Gothman under their wing. “I’ll have several thousand Runners here within a quarter-cycle.” Patha turned serious. “Where’s his army?”
“I believe the Gothman armies are preparing to head south.”
“Why are they heading in that direction?” Patha looked surprised.
“He told me his scouts saw the Sea People heading in from the south.”
“There are no Sea People there. We’ve come up from the south after trading with the River People. When we rode north outside of Gothman we spotted several Sea People camps. My scouts report that they are travelling with tanks and heavy artillery. They’ve already attacked several clans north of here. According to the transmissions, there have been quite a few casualties.”
“Oh Patha, this is horrible.” Tara was mortified. She’d been out of communication with the clans for almost two cycles. “If I hadn’t spoken with you just now, I would have allowed Darius to take his army south. Gothman would have been unprotected. “Patha, somehow Darius has some bad information. I need to warn him!”
Tara hurried to her feet and ran into the house to grab her bag. She pulled out the flat landlink. It seemed to take forever to activate. She punched keys the second she had a signal. The tracer she’d put on Darius’ neck appeared as a red dot on a grid map. He was already heading south.
“Patha, Darius has already left.” Tara yelled, but when she turned Patha and Reena were right behind her. Reena moved to the stove and reached for the kettle. “Reena, I’d like to send Hilda and Torgo to stay with you for the time being. I believe they’d be safer here. If the Sea People target the area, they would go after Darius’ home. This place is isolated, and we could post guards to protect you. Will you have them?”
Patha gestured to the Runner who sat on the couch with a landlink on his lap. “I can leave Duru here with you for the time being. He can monitor the area.”
“Of course, child. They can stay here.” Reena walked around the counter and put her hands on Tara’s waist. “That is, if Lord Darius will allow it. You will go to battle with your claim?”
“Oh yes,” Tara said. “I’d be of no help staying in hiding with the women.”
Reena smiled but looked serious, almost sad. “My daughter finally knows me, and she wants to leave for battle.”
“Reena, don’t worry. I’ll be back.”
“Tara, you’re with child. You know this is true, right?”
Tara and Patha both stared open-mouthed at Reena.
“How could I be?” Tara was ready to disagree.
“There’s only one way.” Reena smiled.
Tara looked down at her flat tummy.
“I’d say just over a cycle. I know the glow and I’ve never been wrong. You take very good care of yourself and my grandbaby, you hear?”
Tara glanced at Patha, but didn’t say anything. Instead she grabbed her bag, and ran out of the cabin. That last bit of information was one piece of news too much.
Reena watched as Tara drove down the hill in Hilda’s groundmobile. “Tell me we did the right thing.” She looked up into Patha’s face for reassurance.
“We’ve discussed this for winters and now suddenly you’re worried?” Patha walked into Reena’s kitchen and helped himself to a slice of her pie. “Did you see her, Reena? She wore symbols of the Blood Circle Clan and Gothman on her sleeve. She is quite possibly the first person on Nuworld to do that.”
“She ran out my door more excited to tell Lord Darius about a war than of being pregnant.” Reena still wasn’t convinced they were doing the right thing. “You were right, though. I daresay you always are. Lord Darius claimed her as soon as he saw her.”
“Of course he did. She’s as beautiful and smart as her mama.”
Reena walked up behind Patha, wrapped her arms around his middle and rested the side of her face against his back. “I remember when your flattery, and your just being here, took all my worries away.”
“You remember?” Patha complained and turned in her arms. “Remember? You think I’m too old? I’ll show you too old.” He lifted her without asking and plopped her on the counter next to her pie. Instantly, his large competent hands slid underneath her dress and up her thighs. “Duru, you should go check on Sal.”
“Duru, you should leave Sal alone and let him sleep.” Reena laughed. When she wasn’t strong enough to move Patha, she put her arms around his neck and scratched his short gray hair. “You don’t approve of her fighting when she’s pregnant, do you?”
“You were serious about that?” The mischief in his green eyes disappeared. “I’ll let you know after I meet Lord Darius. What do you know about him?”
“He has a lot of power but he’s young. People that get in his way have a tendency to fall into bad luck, so to speak. I don’t know whether or not he’s good enough for our daughter. But I really hope Tara will stay here. I’d like get to know her. Imagine her living in Gothman as a Runner.” Reena pursed her lips, trying to digest the possibility.
Patha moved his hands to cup her face. “It will be tough on her at first, but their union will create the most powerful nation in Nuworld.”
Reena stared at Patha’s rugged, perfectly weathered, handsome face. She’d seen that incredibly focused, determined look before. It hadn’t always been clear what he planned, but she’d always trusted Patha. Not once had he led her wrong.
With that one statement though, she understood Patha’s thoughts. He was more concerned about how powerful Runners and Gothman would be if the two were claimed. She was more concerned about her daughter’s happiness.
Reena worried that the challenges Gothman, and Lord Darius brought Tara would be enough to satisfy her. Darius would command Tara to stay in Gothman. If she didn’t, and Reena understood Runner blood better than anyone, it might start a war.
CHAPTER SEVEN
TARA PULLED up in front of the Bryton house, ran up
the open room stairs, and called for Hilda and Torgo. The two of them hurried to her, instantly concerned by the worry in her voice. “I’m going to send you two to stay with Reena.”
“Darius wouldn’t leave us here if he didn’t think we were safe.” Hilda crossed her fleshy arms over her bosom and scowled at Tara. “We aren’t going anywhere.”
“Darius doesn’t know how many Sea People are surrounding Gothman right now. The Runners are here and more are coming. With our equipment we can help Gothman. These Sea People are ready to attack. You’re safer at Reena’s outside of Bryton. I’ve already arranged for guards to protect you,” Tara reassured both of them.
“You talked to Runners?” Torgo’s eyes grew large. “Yes, child,” she smiled and ruffled his hair. “It’ll be a great story when I tell it to you.”
“Now quickly, go get some clothes for the next few days.” She followed them up the stairs.
“I don’t like the idea of being sent away from my own
home,” Hilda grumbled. “And by a Runner no less.” “Hilda, I’m not your enemy.” Once in her own room, Tara
changed into her Runner clothing. Completely dressed for
battle, she sat down on the bed and pulled her landlink
from her black bag she had taken to Reena’s. It didn’t take
as long this time to activate. Soon she was communicating
with some of the Runners o
utside Gothman’s borders. It felt good to be connected again. Gothman didn’t have
landlinks and therefore no networks. Now with a Runner
clan close to Gothman, she activated and communicated
with her people.
“This is Tara of the Blood Circle Clan,” Tara whispered
the words as she typed. “Requesting any known
information on Sea People in the area.”
Tara sent the message to the two clans she’d managed
to locate. She would check back soon for a response. “Come on, let’s go!” she yelled as she left her room and
headed down the stairs.
“Whoa!” Torgo hurried down the steps and froze when he
saw Tara fully dressed as a Runner sitting on the couch
with her landlink on her lap. “Tara, is that you?” “Torgo, never fear a Runner.” She beckoned him. “A
Runner will never attack someone unless attacked first.” “I wasn’t scared. You look cool!” Torgo sat next to Tara
and stared at the flat screen. “And I guessed you were a
Runner all along.”
Tara grinned under her headscarf and ruffled his
already tousled curls, then pointed to her screen. “I’m
linked now so I can communicate with any Runner this
way.” She pointed to the map displayed on the screen. “I
can also tell where Lord Darius and his army are.” “You’re kidding. How do you do that?”
“It’s Oldworld knowledge. It’s easy enough though. It
won’t take long to teach you.”
Torgo was leaning over looking at the screen when Hilda
came down the stairs.
“So, you’re a Runner now, are you?” She looked at Tara
disapprovingly. “Torgo, get away from that thing.” “Hilda, I’ve always been a Runner.” In the older woman,
Tara saw some of the prejudice that had obviously kept her son ignorant of the world outside of Gothman. “Now go, both of you. Reena is expecting you. Remember, if you see
any Runners at her place, they aren’t your enemy.” “Can’t I stay with you and fight, Tara?” Torgo pleaded,
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