Reconciled in the End

Chapter 15: Carnal Confrontation

Siren set an order of cakes into individual boxes. They looked so wonderful in bright colors for some sort of celebration. She loved that everything they sold could be used for happy occasions! These cakes looked to be congratulations to an employee in an advertising agency. Tia Duarte, Siren curiously read the name of the employer making the order.

The familiar name struck at Siren, was this the same Tia she once knew? She wasn't given too much time to contemplate it, as that same being strolled into the shop with a snappy click to her heels. Her body language stated she was impatient, a busy woman with no tolerance to have to wait. Siren gulped as she walked to the counter with the cakes. Perhaps Tia might be too busy to acknowledge her presence. It had been a painful thing in the past. For at least a decade now she had relief of the absence.

Siren shifted out to the front reluctantly with the cart of cakes. Luz was manning the register, trying her best to seem easygoing with the terse customer. Tia waited for her employee to place their order in his cart to go. Siren immediately felt eyes on her once out in the open.

"Siren, I haven't seen you in ages! Is this where you work?" Tia spoke in that slow drawl she used on Siren all her life. Oh did she hate that! Why did her peers equivocate her intelligence as a delay?! It made no sense to her at all! She wasn't developmentally delayed at all, quite the opposite, but they assumed her avoidance in dealing with them as some sort of naïve ineptness in handling social cues and functions. She knew quite well their meanness and wanted away from their attentions.

"I work part-time here, yes," Siren bowed politely.

As Tia beamed a radiant smile, Siren felt a pulsing hate coming from the opposite person before her. Tia was returning a smile, yes, but Siren caught a maniacal rage within those black eyes. Siren pondered why this was? Nothing horribly awful transpired in their prior acquaintance, yet this was true murderous insanity. She had been committed in the asylum to have witnessed such behaviors.

"Oh Siren, I haven't seen you in ages! We do need to chat," Tia grinned ever so darkly.

Luz, unware of this fake friendliness, offered, "Siren, you were just about done today anyway. Go have a chat with your friend. See you Wednesday, okay? Great job in the Cirken order."

Siren nodded as she winced, "Let me just put my apron away."

Siren took two minutes to prepare herself for the most likely unpleasant conversation. She didn't honestly comprehend why such hate grew in Tia. Was jealousy over her ability really that worthy? Why treat her so feeble? As if she was slow in thought?

Shrugging, Siren resigned herself to converse until Thomas came to collect her. It wasn't safe going home alone and knew it. Daily now, the train had a shooting and several Crown robberies. Although Thomas was helping her with strength training exercises, her stamina was still poor. She doubted whether she could outrun the common demographic of criminal.

To Siren's chagrin, Tia waited at the front door. As busy as this woman appeared, talking with Siren took priority? What in the world?! She didn't think this was about reminiscing. It would be a good idea to brace up and guard oneself. Perhaps Tia found the chance to belittle her after the asylum too tempting. Brace up indeed!

"Siren dear, how are you? I thought you went to military training to become, well, I guess I don't know what you were aiming for, really. Something technical? You were really smart, I thought... Well, cake making, cake making indeed!" Tia beamed with that wicked smirk and slow speech, "I work in advertising. That means I try to help big companies sell to common people, like you and everyone. It is a very difficult task, but I love the challenge. I have staff that look to my guidance and we make a lot of money."