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“Thank you.”
Amelia’s bar, The Rising Sun Tavern, was the first place I ever dared to call home. She welcomed me in, overlooked my filthy appearance, and gave me a second chance. I had a full belly, clean clothes, a roof over my head, and someone who actually cared whether I lived or died.
There was power in the feelings she evoked. Hope blossomed. My heart began to mend. Most of all, the broken, forgotten, discarded little girl started to trust again.
“You hungry?” she asked, heading toward the kitchen. “Josie’s going to be in from school soon. You know how she’s always starving. I’m going to make a snack.”
“Cheese fries with ranch and Chicken tenders?”
She chuckled at my favorite meal. “Of course.”
Amelia disappeared into the kitchen as I sat at the bar, my gaze sliding over the empty seats that would soon fill with patrons. A bright L.E.D. sign hung above the entrance with two swinging doors where the bar’s name lit up with a blazing neon orange sun. The rest of the décor boasted more L.E.D. signs for liquor on the painted walls. Dozens of tables were scatteredabout with mismatched chairs, but the bar featured the best seats in the house. Those stools remained packed all night long.
The place was a little run down, but I wouldn’t want it any other way. We touched it up with a new coat of paint every summer and tried to update what we could when Amelia earned extra cash. None of the customers ever complained about the décor or refused to enter the bar. Not that Amelia would bother listening to it.
The back door opened through the kitchen area, opposite the walk-in freezer, leading out to the dumpster. There wasn’t much except for a rusted table and a couple of folding chairs that Amelia kept for the employees who smoked. The ashtray she added always overflowed, cigarette butts littering the table’s worn surface. Most of the staff kept the trash cleaned up so the area didn’t appear too cluttered.
“Mom! Henny! I’m home.”
Josie’s sweet voice shouted her greeting as she entered, not bothering to catch the back door before I heard it slam shut. She appeared a few seconds later, dropping her bag beside the bar and sighing loudly.
“What’s the matter, Josie-bear?” I asked, using her favorite nickname.
“It happened again.”
Shit. Was I supposed to know what she meant?
“Boys?”
She wrinkled her nose. “Eww. No.” Her arm lifted, and my gaze fell on the discolored patches of skin. “The mean girls.”
Little bitches.“I’m sorry, honey. It’s not right they tease you.”
“I can’t help what my skin does,” she exclaimed as her lower lip quivered. “I hate them.”
“Awww. C’mere.”
Josie’s blue eyes filled with tears, and I hugged her, smoothing the long strands of her brown hair.
“It’s rotten that they’re such jerks. I know it’s hard to put up with it every day.”
“I tried to explain about vitiligo, but they didn’t care.” She swiped across her cheeks as she sat back on her stool. “They’re stupid.”
I let her have that since it was difficult enough not to lose my temper. What was the matter with those kids?
“I think you should talk to your mom,” I announced as Amelia entered the bar, carrying a basket of chicken strips, cheese fries, and plenty of ranch.
She placed the food in front of me, casting a concerned glance at her daughter. “What happened?”
I gave Josie an encouraging smile. “Why don’t I eat, and you both go talk? I’ll finish things up here, Amelia.”
“Okay.” Josie hopped off the stool and followed her mother into the kitchen as I picked up a fry, dipping it in the ranch before taking a bite. I shouldn’t have skipped breakfast. Starving, I ate every bite, tossing the trash and leaving the empty basket on top of the bar.
I spent the next twenty minutes preparing to open, breezing through the checklist. Amelia still wasn’t back, and I decided not to bother her, unlocking the front door for customers. She knew I could handle things without her until it became too busy.
Skeet would be here soon to help with security while Ned started his shift in the kitchen. Since this was only a weekday afternoon, no additional staff tended the bar or made drinks.
Amelia and I handled the nightly rush without a problem.
