On The Run

The Peace Enforcers were running toward Yern now and the time for talking was done. Hopefully they didn't see him talking to Titan and included him in their crime. Yern pulled Sar with him and started to run using the crowds of people to avoid being spotted again by their pursuers.

Yern had no idea where he was running to but he knew he couldn't stop. He couldn't be sent to jail after just creating their gang. It would ruin everything. Would everyone follow Allen's lead? Or would someone try to take over? Even if everyone did follow Allen, other gangs would take the chance to try and take what little they had.

Then there was the worry about what would happen to him in jail. He could be attacked, which would only get him more time since he would have to fight back. What about Sar? He's small and just barely a teen. Would they be sent to the same jail?

'I just have to get away. We're not going to jail' Yern told himself shaking the bad thoughts out his head. He had to do something to get the PE's off their back so they could get back to the clinic. Then he thought about where he could run to hide. Yern prayed that Titan and the runners made it back to the clinic without issue, it would cripple them if they didn't get the supplies needed for the clinic to continue running.

After running for a few more seconds he saw the stall he had been waiting to see and ran towards it, making sure Sar did as well. The stall had an older lady behind the counter with pots and pans hanging from hooks on the side of the stall. The older woman frowned when she saw Yern and Sar running toward her stall until she saw the PE's running behind them. The woman moved from the front of her stall and pulled a curtain back to reveal what looked like a storage area.

Yern slowed his run until he was just walking quickly and jumped over the counter nearly hitting his head on a pot. He went into the storage area quickly, thanking the woman as he did. Sar right behind him looking surprised but relieved. The woman made her way back to the counter of the stall continuing her business as normal. The curtain was closed now and Yern heard a deep voice come from in front of the stall.

"Hello ma'am, did you see two boys running this way?" 

"Yes, they went out the back towards Brown River." The woman lied 

"Thank you for the cooperation." the voice said before the sound of footsteps could be heard. Yern held Sar back as he tried to leave the small storage room. They waited until the woman came and opened the curtain for them.

"Thank you Ms. Glen." Yern said as he pulled out a few coins from his pouch and offering them to her.

"No need for payment. You have done enough for me." Ms. Glen said, pushing the coins back to Yern. Sar looked extremely confused but didn't ask any questions until they were out of the Marketplace on the street heading back towards the clinic.

"What did she mean about you doing enough for her?" So Yern told him the story. Ms. Glen used to have a son that was involved in the streets. He was notorious for getting away from PE's and it infuriated them. Eventually he was caught and a few PE's beat him to vent their anger. But one took it too far and beat him to death. Ms. Glen paid Yern to get rid of the PE that killed her son and after he did the job she told him to come to her if he ever needed anything.

Sar bombarded Yern with questions about how he killed a PE's without getting caught but Yern didn't want to talk about the dark time in his life.

They were getting closer to the clinic and Yern was worried that PE's might have followed Titan there if they saw them talking. He sent Sar ahead to check since he was smaller and faster than Yern. A few minutes later Sar came back with a frown and Yern already knew the answer.

"PE's all around the Circle. Even a few in front of the clinic talking to Allen." Sar said

"The circle?" Yern questioned

"Oh, that's what we've been calling the place the clinic is in. You know since it's a circle." Sar explained 

"Yeah, I guess we can call it that." Yern said, thinking about where the hell they could go since the clinic was surrounded. They could go to a house Yern used to stay in, the only problem was near Marrow's turf and who knows if it was still empty.

It was around noon, so the PE's wouldn't be going back to their HQ anytime soon and Marrow's men probably were looking for them too after the fight at the bar. They had to get out of the open and hide out until nighttime came around or at least afternoon.

Yern decided they would hide out in his old house. It was better than staying out in the open waiting on the PE's or their enemies to find them. It was about a tin minute walk away but that was close enough for word of them to be wanted to spread so they had to be careful. 

Hopefully Allen was talking to the PE's about them getting off their backs. Maybe they would have to pay a fine for the damages at the bar. It was rare that the PE's accepted pay to leave someone alone since their pay was great from the city but Yern could only hope. The situation would be even worse if the PE's were connecting the clinic to Yern.

Thinking about it, Yern realized it was probably Marrow's men who exposed the location of the clinic. While most people in the slums didn't like the PE's, they had no problems using them to get rid of their enemies even if it was only temporary. 

A very tense walk later they had entered Marrow's territory. They could tell by the increased number of people who were passed out in the street from smoke weed. There were also the M's etched into walls all around them. 'It's so obvious this is gang turf. Why haven't the PE's raided this area?' Yern thought to himself. His men didn't care for the no violence rule that is so heavily enforced in the Marketplace and this obvious gang territory, yet no response from the PE's. 'Marrow has some type of deal with them. That's how none of his men go to jail after doing such obvious crimes. 

Yern was pulled from his realization when Sar called his attention to a group of men at the corner at the street they were on. It was the group of men from the bar plus a new younger face. They hadn't noticed Yern and Sar yet so they slipped into an alley to get out of sight.

"We could take them when they walk past. Quick while they think everything is fine." Sar whispered to Yern. There were two of them and five enemies, they couldn't take them. Maybe three but not five.

"No, we have enough going on now. And if we kill someone else now they fight rush the clinic with all their numbers out of anger." Yern whispered back. Sar didn't look too happy about it but he sat still.They waited in the alley for what seemed like hours until the group of men finally started to walk past. Then one started to turn into the alley and kept getting closer to Yern's hiding place. 'Did he see me? No way. He would've brought the whole group if he did' Yern thought.

The man made it a few feet away from Yern and started to pee onto the wall, laughing like it was the funniest thing in the world. The man was now blocking their exit and would surely see Yern if he made a run for it. Yern looked at Sar who seemed like he was waiting for Yern to do so and mouthed 'Get him'. Sar made his way quickly behind the man. Too quickly, because he wasn't watching his footing and kicked a bottle into the man's leg. Before the man could react Sar put the knife in his back, he and Yern running out of the alley fast as they could.

Now they had made it around the corner and just down the street from where the house was. It seemed like the rest of the group the man was with wandered far enough away that they didn't hear his screams when Sar stabbed him. They made it to the house and it looked the same, rundown and empty so that told them no one had moved in. Going in, weapons drawn just in case, they cleared the house and found a run to sit in. Now it was time to wait.