Chapter 51: Save My Life

She disappeared and she

She wasn't clear and she

She didn't see where she was going yeah

Save my life

Will you help me?

Save my life

Will you help me?

Save my life

Can you hear me?

Save my life

Will you help me?

Save My Life – Pink

Aeris and Tifa walked slowly away from the bank. In Aeris' bag, much to the surprise of the staff at the bank, was 500,000 Gil.

"Tifa, I need to do something." Aeris suddenly said. She slung the bag off her shoulder and handed it to Tifa who stared.

"What? Aeris, where are you going?"

"There's something I need to do. It's really important or else I wouldn't ask. Take this to the café and tell Barret to look after it. I'll be there as soon as I can."

"Aeris, please. This is too dangerous." Tifa pleaded. Aeris shook her head and set off down the road.

The nurse smiled brightly at her.

"Oh, Mr Gainsborough will be so pleased. He hasn't had any visitors yet, you know."

"I know." Aeris murmured. The nurse opened the door and Aeris went through. Her hands were shaking slightly but she stayed calm. Eric looked at her blearily through bruised eyes.

"Aeris…" He whispered, his voice hoarse. Aeris saw his throat was bruised. She didn't sit down.

"Eric."

"Sit… sit down."

"No. I'm not staying."

His eyes flashed over her.

"Why are you here?" He asked.

"Palmer. He took Cloud. My best friend. Unless I deliver 500,000 Gil to him tomorrow, he's going to kill Cloud." Eric closed his eyes. A moment later he opened them again.

"I'm sorry…"

"I don't want you to be sorry. I want you to tell me where Palmer is. You must know."

Eric shook his head. Aeris ground her teeth glaring with pure, unfiltered hatred at this man who had ruined her life.

"Gainsborough, I don't have time for this bullshit. Tell me where Palmer is."

"I… don't know. He always came to me."

"You must have some idea!" Aeris cried. Eric shook his head. Aeris stared at him for a moment, fighting back tears.

"Eric, please…"

"I'm sorry. I don't know." Eric croaked. Aeris covered her face in her hands. For a moment there was silence. Then Eric spoke.

"Aeris… Palmer probably knows that you're here. You have to go. Give him the money and get your friend back."

"That's what I'm going to do."

"Don't go to the police. If you do, he'll kill you."

"Because I really need advice from you." Aeris spat, turning to leave.

"Aeris, wait!"

She paused and looked over her shoulder at him. He was struggling to raise himself.

"Aeris, I'm sorry."

"Things haven't changed, Eric. None of this would have happened if it hadn't been for you. You can apologise all you want, but it doesn't make a difference. You ruined my life. You hurt my parents, my boyfriend, my friends…"

Aeris found she didn't know what to say. So she shook her head and left the room.

When Tifa explained to Barret what Aeris had done, she almost feared that his head would explode.

"How could you let her go off by herself? Are you freaking crazy?" He roared at her. He had closed the café for the day and he, Vincent and Tifa were in the kitchen. He stopped his rant as the telephone rang.

"Yeah?" He said gruffly.

"It's me, Reeve. Can I come over?"

"Sure. It says closed but ring the bell and I'll let you in." He hung up and frowned as the phone rang again.

"Reeve?"

"No. But if he's on his way to the café, you should know he's being followed. And if he attempts to get in our way he will be stopped forcefully.

"Palmer." Barret hissed.

"Correct, Mr Wallace. Now, I'd like to make a few things clear. If you call the police I will blow up your café, with your precious daughter. Oh, make that daughters. Because your little family is in no way safe until I receive my money."

"If you touch Marlene or Tifa, I swear-" Barret growled. Palmer laughed lightly.

"Temper, Mr Wallace. I don't think you're in any position to be making threats. I want you, Miss Lockheart and Mr Valentine to go into the front of the café and wait for Aeris and Mr Woodman."

Barret said,

"Let me talk to Cloud. 'Cos you're not getting one damn Gil until I decide that he's still OK."

"Oh, very well." There was movement on the other end of the phone and a hoarse voice said,

"Barret? Is that you?"

"Cloud?" Barret asked. Tifa looked up sharply.

"Yeah. Cloud."

"Are you OK?"

"Been better. What's going on?" Cloud asked.

"Hold on, we're getting you out. Aeris is going to give Palmer the money. Do you know where you are?"

"No… I was on my way to a meeting when this guy attacked me. I woke up here."

"Just be strong, OK? I swear you'll be OK." Barret promised. Tifa said,

"Let me talk to him."

"Tifa wants to speak with you." There was the sound of the phone being seized and Palmer said,

"There you go. Alive and kicking. Well, not exactly kicking, but alive at least. Now, Reeve Woodman is at the end of the street and Aeris will be with you in about ten minutes. I want you all to stay in the café until tomorrow when Aeris will deliver the money alone."

The dial tone purred in Barret's ear and he hung up.

"Cloud's OK, I think. Reeve is nearly here. We have to go out into the front." They went out and sat down at the counter. A moment later Reeve appeared at the door. Barret let him in, peering around the street but seeing no one suspicious.

"What's going on?" Reeve asked. Vincent explained and Reeve sank into a chair in shock.

"Oh my god… I can't believe it…"

"I know."

"Don't worry. It'll be OK."

"No. Palmer is going to win. We don't know that he's going to give Cloud back." Tifa said, her voice constricted. Barret shook his head.

"Tifa, listen to me. I made a phone call. Things are going to be fine."

"A phone call? But Palmer is tapping the phones-"

"I know." Barret said with a wry smile.

When Aeris arrived ten minutes later Barret explained his plan to them. Tifa found herself quite in awe of her father. This was a side of him she hadn't seen. Barret looked around at them.

"What do you think?"

"I think you're a genius." Tifa said plainly. Barret turned to Aeris.

"Well?"

"I… it's a great plan. But it's kinda risky."

"I know. And we have to hope that Palmer will fall for it."

"So let me get this straight. You called Marlene and told her that everything was OK, that there was nothing to worry about. And then you told her that the line was breaking up, and was her phone OK?" Reeve said.

"Yeah. And she said that all the lines at Midgar Media Ltd are regularly checked so it must be our phone. I asked her to check the line." Barret explained. Aeris said slowly,

"While Marlene was checking the line, you said that there was a problem with my mobile and could she ring me at 6:30 to check everything was OK."

"That's right."

"So when she rings me at 6:30 we're going to use Reeve's laptop to send an e-mail to her office computer with all the information on it. You then hope she will tell the police."

"That's the plan." Barret agreed.

Reeve cleared his throat.

"Slight problem. He can trace the email."

"Maybe not. Weren't you telling me the other day about those emails that infect computers?"

"What, Computer Viruses?" Reeve frowned. "You want me to send Marlene a virus?"

"No. I want you to send someone else a virus. I don't care who. I'm figuring that Palmer will pick up the email and get infected. His system crashes, we buy a little time to send the real email to Marlene." Barret grinned.

"But… I don't have a virus." Reeve said. Barret's grin faded slightly. But for some reason Reeve started to smile.

"But maybe…" He flipped open the lid to his laptop and started to tap frantically at the keys. They all peered over his shoulder.

"What are you doing?"

"Well, I started developing a new system a while back, when I was building Cait Sith. The toy robot? But there was a problem with it. If I can compact the bugs from that system into an email… How long have we got before Marlene calls?"

"Fifty minutes." Aeris said, looking at her watch. Reeve chewed his lip.

"I think I can do it. If I'm fast."

They all sat around the computer as Reeve worked furiously. Barret made cups of coffee. They jumped as the mobile phone rang. Aeris seized it.

"Hello?"

"Hey, it's me."

"Yuffie… where are you?"

"I was practising piano. You at the café?"

"Yes, come over."

"You OK? You're sounding freaked." Yuffie asked in concern.

"Fine. Come over now. Quickly."

"Aeris, where did you go after you left Tifa?" Vincent asked, as Reeve worked and Tifa and Barret caught Yuffie up on what was going on.

"To the hospital. I wanted to talk to Eric Gainsborough."

"What did he say?"

"He said he didn't know where Palmer was. I don't know if he was lying or if he was telling the truth."

"I wish you'd told us. We were worried." Vincent said, taking her hand in his good one.

"I'm sorry… it was just a spur of the moment thing." Aeris said by way of explanation.

"YES!" Reeve yelled, punching the air. "I've got it! One home-made virus which is ready to send. I don't now how dependable it is, or how long it'll give us. But in theory it should crash his whole system and wipe the memory." He wiped his brow. Yuffie seized him and kissed him. Tifa was clasping her hands together as if in silent prayer. Barret looked at the clock.

"Fifteen minutes until Operation Save Cloud's Ass goes into action. Until then, let's relax a little bit."

"So, when I make the drop tomorrow, we're hoping that the police are going to show up?" Aeris asked.

"In theory. If not, Marlene is never getting another free coffee." Barret smirked. Reeve stared at Aeris. For several moments. To the point where she felt rather uncomfortable.

"Reeve?"

He blinked and snapped out of his daydream.

"I was just thinking. I might have an idea…" He took out his bag and turned it upside down on the counter. An assortment of mechanical tools fell out, along with various little gadgets and spare pieces. He started fiddling with bits.

Everyone looked at each other and then at Yuffie. She leaned over to him.

"Um… Reeve, honey? What are you doing?"

"What? Oh… a tracking device. Aeris, hand me your bag." She did so. It was a blue rucksack, with a number of key chains hanging from the zipper. Reeve examined them and said,

"I started making a tracking device ages ago. I kept leaving my wallet everywhere so I started developing one, but never finished it. I can put it into one of these key chains and we can track Aeris' path from here. And then we can find out where the money is going. And where Cloud is."

He seized a screwdriver and began to fiddle with a tiny object. Yuffie tapped his shoulder.

"Reeve, have I told you how much I love you lately?"

"Actually you've never told me that." Reeve said, looking up at her. Yuffie grinned.

"Now's as good a time as any."

Aeris put a hand on Tifa's arm.

"Don't worry. It'll be OK."

"I hope so Aeris." She replied, hugging her tightly. Aeris hugged her friend back, all the time thinking about Cloud.

She had to save him.

(A/n: Wow, two updates. If I'm not careful people might start thinking I'm actually writing regularly! Lol, well there you go. Another chapter. This was a hard one to get through. I'm trying to make Reeve a bit more interesting, so I turned him into the resident geek apparently. Lol, never mind. Please review!)