Free Tara The Great [Nuworld 2] by Lorie O'Claire

The streets were still crowded and Tara couldn’t help but wonder why there
    were so many people wandering around. They all seemed in a hurry to get where they
    were going. Pee-coo-mee included. Although Tara stood head and shoulders over the
    petite woman, she stayed alert in order not to lose her in the crowd of people. After a
    few minutes of pushing and shoving, Tara realized they were headed toward the table
    where Pee-coo and Darius were.
     
    “And how is business today, my mate?” Pee-coo-mee walked around the table and
    looked at the transaction sheet.
     
    Suddenly, a large explosion shook the ground. Several booths at the end of their
    row flew up toward the rocks. People screamed and began running in every direction.
     

 
    Tara dove for the ground and scrambled around the booth to get a protected view. She
    found Pee-coo on the ground next to her with his hands over his head.
     
    “I knew we couldn’t pull this off, I just knew it,” he wailed.
     
    “Everything will be okay.” Pee-coo-mee rubbed his back. “Let me think.”
     
    “We can’t stay here.” Darius moved in over Tara with his laser pulled.
     
    “Do you know who’s firing?” Tara asked Pee-coo-mee.
     
    “Not yet, but I’ll find out.” Pee-coo-mee peeked above the table at the mass
    confusion on the street. “Come on, let’s go.”
     
    They took off running down the street, the opposite direction from which they’d
    come. Another explosion blasted behind them, and the crowd ran faster. Tara looked
    around her and realized she’d lost Pee-coo and Pee-coo-mee. She slowed and dodged
    into a door well to see if she could figure out who was attacking and why.
     
    People everywhere were shouting at each other, climbing the outer stairs of the
    buildings, slamming doors behind them. She was still trying to determine the source of
    the explosions, when another blast went off right in front of her.
     
    It hit one man, sending body parts flying everywhere. Blood splattered Tara.
    Several other people were thrown brutally from the force. Screams filled the air and the
    few remaining people in the area ran for cover in a panic. The vibrations from the
    detonation caused rocks to fall from nearby walls, and dust filled the air.
     
    In the confusion, Tara moved out of the door well and dove behind several barrels
    by the road. From one of the buildings across the street, someone opened fire, shooting
    at something down the street. Several more locations opened fire, then the whistle of a
    small bomb flew past her and exploded at the end of the street by the market. Tara
    realized a civil war of some kind was possibly underway.
     
    Pee-coo-mee had given no indication that there was unrest among her people. Or
    had she? She’d made reference to a faction developing among her people in response to
    an already existing faction from the west side.
     
    “Tara!” Darius crawled alongside her, then ducked as another explosion went off
    directly in front of them. “Let’s get out of here.”
     
    “I’m open for suggestions.” She coughed from the rising dust and debris.
     
    “Come on, this way.” He grabbed her uninjured arm and quickly led her in the
    direction of the tunnel where they had entered this underground community.
     
    The street was far less occupied at this point. Looters had descended on the
    deserted market place. Crashing and banging could be heard as they ravished the
    forgotten merchandise. Something was burning nearby and the tainted smell in the air
    made it hard to breathe.
     
    Tara kept her face down and focused on the ground as she allowed Darius to guide
    her. Suddenly she came to a dead halt causing Darius to lose his grip on her hand. He
    turned quickly to look at her.
     

 
    “Look.” She pointed to the ground. Someone had drawn a circle with a tear shape
    drawn in the middle. The symbol of the Blood Circle Clan.
     
    Tara looked up, first at Darius’ face, then at the buildings surrounding them.