The Siren (18+)

Chapter 22

April sat on her couch that was facing the window staring outside. The streets of Alta and Vespucci were covered in blankets of snow. She watched as the dainty white spots gently swayed in the winter wind and gracefully landed on the white ground. It was midday and the children that were playing in the snow could be heard from her room. Their laughter like bells and wind chimes singing with the whistling wind. It was almost Christmas. The sweet smell of sugar cookies and ginger bread wafted from the halls.

The serene atmosphere was a stark contrast to the mess inside her apartment. Empty packages filled the small living room. At the corner of her room stood a pile of messily wrapped gifts. Bundles of clear tape and torn wrapping paper covered her floors. She had just finished wrapping presents to give her new family. April brushed her hands on her white pajama pants as she stood up to clean her apartment. The cleaning crew she would occasionally hire was closed during the festive season and she was tasked with maintaining her own mess. She needed to move quickly because she had made plans to collect her outfit for the Christmas party Mari was hosting at the cubby.
She grabbed a large black bag and haphazardly threw all the clumps of tape and wrapping paper away. The sound of the crinkling bows being clumped in a ball and the rustling rubbish bags reverberated in the room.

After cleaning the room in a frenzy and stuffing her clothes that lay on the floor in a washing basket she took a warm shower and got ready for the day. She had called Ray Mond after her shower and was surprised by her lack of response. April had missed her friend dearly and was surprised by the long trip she took. A few days ago Chang informed her that Ray had only told him that she had things to attend to before she left. She hoped that the raven haired woman would soon return from wherever she went and earned her chain. Shaking off her thoughts, April checked the time and saw that she had an hour before they would pick her up. She was seated on her bed brushing out the tangles in her long hair when she received the text for her to go outside.

Ramee parked outside of April's apartment with Randy and Bobby in the four door Mercedes he owned. The three were attending to some business meetings when April asked him for a ride. Her car was currently at Hayes waiting to be repaired after she crashed into a pole. Since it could only be collected in early January she had made a habit of choosing different members of the gang to be her chauffeur for the day, Ramee being the one selected the most. Nobody had trusted the redhead to drive their cars so they just went along with her demands to drive her around.

The redhead appeared from the brass doors at the entrance of the apartment wearing leggings and a hideous Christmas sweater. He watched as the woman started a conversation with someone outside the doors, her arms moving around animatedly. Ramee pulled out the phone from his pocket and watched as she stopped mid sentence to answer.

"Hey Ramee it's your girl April."
"We've been waiting for over ten minutes. Get your ass to the car."

The redhead looked up in their direction and gave a large wave. She turned to say goodbye to the people she was speaking to and walked towards them. Ramee watched as Randy wordlessly opened the passenger door, got out of the car and sat next to Bobby.
"Damn she got it like that?" Bobby's amused voice could be heard from the seat behind him. Ramee rolled his eyes and refused to respond to the black man's comment. April finally entered the car smiling and greeting everyone. When asked if she knew the people she was talking too she shrugged and simply told them no.

"Oh. Are you guys going somewhere? I'm hoping I didn't interrupt you guys."
"Actually April we were busy-"
"No we weren't." Ramee interrupted Randy before he could finish his sentence. The boys were in the middle of a meeting discussing getting a building for Chang Gang Investments but he didn't want her to know in fear of her feeling like a burden. He asked where she was going before pulling out of the apartments.