It was raining in Edge. It began as a soft mist, but by the time I'd found my way to my destination, it was coming down hard and heavy. I parked my bike under an awning and removed my helmet, shaking out my hair. The bar looked packed. I debated leaving, but ultimately decided against it. After all, I wondered, who knows if I'll ever be back here?
Leaving the helmet propped on top of the locked bike, I climbed the few stairs and pushed open the doors. It was indeed loud and crowded. All of the tables were full, including the benches. At the counter, though, I spied a single open space and made my way toward it.
I slid onto the edge of the stool and checked out the selection. No sooner had I sat down than the barkeeper had appeared to take my order. I guessed she was younger than I, but by no more than ten years. She was remarkably pretty and certainly well-endowed.
"What can I get for you?" she asked. "We've got Da Chao's, the Costa del Sol Signature, LOVELESS-"
"You serve anything other than beer?"
She nodded. "Whisky, Gin, Vodka, and Absinthe. What'll it be?"
I wrinkled my nose at the hard liquors. "No wine?"
She offered a sympathetic smile. "We haven't been able to get in a single reliable shipment. All of the major brands have been linked to outbreaks."
"All right. I'll take a LOVELESS, then, for starters."
"You got it," she responded, walking away. "Do you want a glass with that?" I shook my head no, and she returned with a bottle. "Enjoy," she said.
I put the bottle to my lips and took a drink. A fruit beer, it tasted strongly of apples. I smiled to myself and the words to a song ran through my mind unbidden: "For nothing is sweeter than an apple on the eve of a warm summer's night in Banora…"
I took another drink and turned to watch the rest of the bar. There was a certain ebb and flow to the patrons. They all seemed like regulars from the way they greeted each other and the girl who worked the bar. They were loathe to venture out into the rain, and I heard a number of comments about the unnatural showers they'd been getting.
There was nothing unnatural about it. It was just that they'd been living under a giant plate for years, a plate that permitted neither sunshine nor rain for the people living underneath. I pitied them and was disgusted in turn by their ignorance.
The beer went down easy as I people-watched, and I ordered a second. There were two children making their way around the tables. One was a little girl with a red ribbon in her hair. She greeted everyone she came across by name and asked them endless questions about themselves. She dragged with her a little boy with a pathetic mop of hair who didn't seem to want to be there. I watched the pair go round the tables until the girl spotted someone in particular.
"Papa!" she squealed, dropping the little boy's hand to run to a man who had just appeared in the doorway. He was tall, with dark skin and a mechanical arm. I looked back at the tiny, extraordinarily fair-skinned girl clutching at his legs. She was adopted, then, or else he was her stepfather. The boy hung back, looking shy and not a little defensive.
"Barret!" the bartender called out. "Good to see you!"
The man with the machine gun arm waded through the other patrons until he got to the bar. When he leaned on the wood, it groaned under his force. "Tifa!" he boomed, holding the little girl with his flesh arm. "Where's Spikey?"
Tifa the bartender looked to the side and said nothing. The little girl in Barret's arms stopped squirming and looked sad. Behind me, there was a scuffle, and the little boy darted past the bar and up the stairs. Tifa moved to follow him, then thought better of it.
When she turned, I caught sight of her other arm and realized: the ribbon on her arm only meant one thing. Whoever Barret had asked about was probably dead. I tried to tune out the conversation out of respect, but Barret was right next to me, and he was loud.
"Aw, shi-," cutting himself off, Barret just growled. "He'll be back. Don't you worry, you hear? He always comes back."
Tifa was still staring at the ground when she said, "I hope so."
The little girl tugged at Barret's shirt until he put her down. "I'll be right back, okay?" she asked, smiling in the way only a child can. She then darted up the stairs after the boy.
Barret leaned into the counter after the girl disappeared. He glanced to either side and caught me staring. My face flushed, and to cover my mistake, I said, "Excuse me, could I get another?" My second bottle still wasn't empty, but based on the growing pit in my stomach, I was going to need that third.
When Tifa returned with the third LOVELESS, Barret whispered, "How's Denzel?"
Tifa shook her had. "It hasn't progressed at all, but I heard from Reeve that that's how all of the others have been." She held onto her arm just below the colored ribbon. "We've been careful about the water we use, along with everything else. Marlene's just fine."
Barret reached over the counter and put his hand on Tifa's shoulder. "I'm not worried about you with Marlene, Tifa," he said softly. "You're doing me a big favor, watching her while I go scope the fields. I know you're taking good care of my girl."
Tifa offered a weak smile. Someone called Barret's name from the other end of the bar.
"If you need anything," he said seriously, "just call. Maybe we're not the team we used to be, but damn it, Tifa, I'm still here." He held his hand up to his ear to mimic calling as he backed toward the people who had called him over. "I'm heading out tomorrow morning. If nothing comes up, when I see you again, I'll be starting on the biggest damn oil field you've ever seen!"
"Fill me in, okay?" Tifa called. Barret didn't respond. I polished off my second LOVELESS and went to open the third.
"Oh, I've got that," she said. "I'm sorry, I should have gotten it before." She popped the metal cap off and handed me the bottle. "Sorry about that."
"Is there a problem?"
Tifa did her best to smile. "No, not at all. Nothing interrupts business at Seventh Heaven!"
I shook my head and pulled out my wallet. "If you're looking for someone," I said, keeping my voice casual, "I used to work with a private firm that specialized in missing persons." She watched me carefully as I stood up and turned to the door, leaving the third beer untouched. "If you're interested, I'm staying at the Borough Hotel. I'm going to be in the area for the next few days."
When she responded, her voice was tight and guarded. "What brings you to the area?"
I took a few moments to gather my response, then, with a slight turn of my head, I smiled and said, "Atonement."
