"And you're certain her name was Celina?" Ren asked, handing the paper back to Hutch.
"Positive. And even better, is that I now know Salvador had to have returned here sometime in the late 70's," Hutch replied, stuffing the paper back into his information packet.
"So, wouldn't that make him, like, old?"
"I honestly couldn't say. Despite how he looked on Illimev, he had ruled for decades before I even arrived there. Yet, when I first met him, I thought he was about forty."
"Something to do with that amulet, I suspect," Ren remarked, whilst rubbing at his chin.
"That's basically a given, considering what I know," Hutch replied, as he stood from the bench. "Now that we have at least some answers, we can talk more about this after we get home. Let's go spend time with your grandpa. It's not fair of us to leave him on his own and Clara won't be too much longer. Plus, I suspect, he's as hungry as I am. But it's your job to convince him we need to stay here for that free lunch."
"It free," Ren scoffed. "No convincing necessary. Those are magic words to his generation. Now, come on, no more excuses. Time to take a proper look around."
"Fine," Hutch sighed before taking a breath to calm him nerves and forcing himself to follow behind Ren as he weaved his way over to his grandpa.
Mr. Dodge had been quietly wandering around, reading the plaques, and taking in the view, which was excellent given the clear skies and bright day. By the time they caught up with him, he had managed to make his way around most of the floor and was nearing the western side of the building.
"Is Clara not with you?" he asked, taking a glance around.
"She said, she had to check on something, but would be back to fetch us. Shouldn't be too much longer, but I'm certain we can stay up here for as long as we want," Hutch explained, even as he kept a safe distance from the window.
"Frankly, I wouldn't mind heading down to the restaurant. All this walking about has me starving. I just hope the food is as good as the hype, and not just some pretentious, over-priced, hoity-toity garbage that requires instructions to eat."
"On the upside, if it is, it's not like we have pay for it. We can just walk out and go somewhere else," Ren stated as he stared out the window. "Hey, do you think that's a helicopter out there?"
"Where?" Mr. Dodge asked, turning to look out the window with Ren. "I can't see a thing out there."
"Put your glasses on. I swear, it's right there. You can see it, can't you Hutch?"
"I don't care and I'm not looking. One of us needs to stare at the elevator and I've already volunteered," he replied, taking a seat at a nearby table.
"Well look at that, you were right. There is a helicopter. Good thing it's getting closer or I never would have seen it," Mr. Dodge spoke with a jovial tone. "Oh, that brings back some good memories. Your grandma and I scrimped and saved for three whole years, so we could take a trip to Las Vegas for our tenth anniversary. All because she wanted to take a helicopter tour of the Grand Canyon. I can still remember how excited she was for that trip. A real dream come true for her. Hey, maybe I can convince your mom to let me take you to Vegas for a graduation present. I bet they still offer those helicopter tours too. What do you say?"
"I say, we have a year and a half to convince her, so hell yeah, grandpa! I wouldn't miss that for anything!" Ren exclaimed, grinning wildly as he hugged his grandpa.
"And what about you, Hutch? Fancy a vacation away from all of this?"
"Yes, to the vacation. No, to being in anything above the ground," he replied, adding, "this is uncomfortable enough," under his breath.
A few moments later the sound of the helicopter was audible enough to draw even Hutch's attention and the three watched as it began to descend near the side of the tower.
"Where is it going?" Ren questioned as it sunk below the observation deck.
"It's landing on the helipad on the top of the west building," Clara responded, appearing behind them.
"I thought you were watching the elevator?" Ren berated Hutch as he turned to face her.
"I was, until I wasn't," he replied, shrugging it off.
"You can't really blame him for being distracted by it," Mr. Dodge intervened.
"It's good to see that you moved away from the map. Did you find the answers you were looking for?" Clara addressed Hutch.
"I did. The information you provided was very… informative."
"I'm glad you found it helpful. But if you have all had your fill of this spectacular view, I will take you down to the restaurant, so you can enjoy your lunch. I'll rejoin you after and we can end the tour together back on the ground floor."
"Now that sounds like a good plan. I'm starving," Mr. Dodge replied, marching off towards the elevators.
"And there's a man, you can't argue with," Clara responded with her classic smile, as she walked with Hutch and Ren.
With the elevator waiting, it was a quick trip down to the floor below. When they exited, there was a sign on the wall, indicating the restaurant to the left and the Lounge to the right. Following Clara to the left, a few steps passed the elevators, the hallway changed to floor to ceiling windows on one side with cushioned benches separated by plants in vases lining it, providing a slight barrier, and a wall on the other, the upper half being of glass, to give restaurant goers more of a view.
Hutch couldn't have felt more uncomfortable and kept his eyes to the floor. The benches weren't barrier enough in his opinion, and the plants did not make the space any more inviting.
When they reached the entrance, about halfway down the hall, the glass doors were propped open, inviting them to come inside. Passed the doors was a small lobby, with a desk on the far side, replicating the design of the service desk from the ground floor, only in black resin and a white stained wood. Behind it, a wall featuring horizontal slabs of the same white stained wood with the restaurant's name, 'Sixty-fifth Floor' proudly displayed in cursive letters, backlit by a soft blue light. Their hallmark, '65th', was displayed on the breast pocket of every uniform, including the one the hostess was wearing.
"Welcome to the Sixty-Fifth Floor," the hostess greeted them from the desk.
"Mr. Dodge, this is Valerie. She has been the main hostess here for more than a decade now," Clara introduced her, as he fished the cloth pouch from his pocket.
"It's very nice to meet you, Valerie. I was given these vouchers by Hannah at the service desk when we came in and was told to hand them to you," he explained, handing the enter cloth pouch to Valerie, who took it with a pleasant smile.
Setting it aside, she didn't even verify the contents, picking up the three menus that were already waiting, and handing them to the waiter who had been silently standing just off to her right.
"This is Enzo, and he will show you to your table. Everything has been taken care of, so please enjoy your meal."
"If you would please follow me," Enzo said, before turning and walking away at an easy-to-follow pace.
As they entered the restaurants dining room, they were struck by the combination of the ambiance and view, to the north and part of the west. Crystal chandeliers hung from a mirror tiled ceiling. The tables were covered in white tablecloths with burgundy napkins folded into silver rings, and dividers of glass helped to dampen the noise while taking nothing away from the natural light and extraordinary view. The waitstaff were clad in the same black and white uniforms, and nothing appeared out of place, not even the other diners.
At first, Hutch thought they would be seated in one of the booths near the windows and was trying to figure out how to maneuver himself into at least not being sat directly next to it, when Enzo proceeded to make his way towards the bar. Abruptly turning left before reaching the bar area, he led them into an area that was substantially more private, separated from the rest of the dining room by walls, all of which were elegantly curved, forming no sharp corners that could catch the eye. It was obvious to Hutch that those who sat in this area, didn't come for the view, and didn't want to be seen by others. There were several individual rooms, each with a narrow entrance from the hallway, and in every room, surrounded by horseshoe shaped benches of black leather with the restaurants hallmark stamped into the headrests, was a large, rounded table capable of seating eight comfortably, with a straight edge facing the rooms entrance.
The table itself wasn't dressed as those in the dining room but left bare to show off its rich cherry hue, exquisite grain, and mirror like polish. Instead, individual placemats, simple, black, and elegant, were already set out, hosting a formal place setting. The cutlery, three forks, two knives, and two spoons, were of polished silver and matched the napkin ring around the black cloth napkin, that was sitting on the white charger with the delicate silver line painted around the outer edge. A matching bread plate sat off just to the upper left corner, while to the right sat two glasses, one a crystal water goblet, and the other for wine.
And if the place settings and ambiance wasn't enough to tell Hutch, that this place wasn't meant for people like them, the menu had no listed prices, and a scant selection of offerings, most of which he didn't recognize or was incapable of pronouncing. But perhaps what bothered Hutch even more than the stench of wealth, was the fact that their table had been set for four.