I already knew the first place I was going to go to see if anyone knew anything about April. And I was kicking myself for not doing this earlier, but I had been leaving this in the hands of the cops.
But I wasn't going to do that anymore. Sure, they were focusing on Kenny. And they could do that- but I was going to start searching myself. I was sick of not having answers. It was to the point where I was barely sleeping- I couldn't stop thinking about all of the possibilities. Whether April was dead or alive or anywhere in between.
I had to go to The Salt Rim- the bar/restaurant April worked at. People might not be willing to tell those in uniform if they knew anything, but I thought they might be more willing to tell the sister of the girl who went missing. It was now the end of February, and April had been missing since August. April was going to be 25 in about a month, on March 22nd- I didn't want to have her birthday pass by with no answers. If I hadn't found her by then, I was going to find answers.
I was debating on telling Ava that I was going to be going to The Salt Rim. Part of me wanted to keep it a secret, but part of me knew I couldn't keep something from her again. But I knew I was going to have to do this by myself. I wanted this to be something that I did by myself. I decided to call Ava before telling her that that I was going to go to The Salt Rim. I decided it was the right thing to do. It was the last Friday in February, and I thought it would be a good night to go get a drink.
I put on an outfit that I thought April would approve of for going to a bar- ripped dark wash jeans, a black long sleeved body suit, and a dark brown leather jacket. I put my hair in a high ponytail and sprayed myself with some perfume. Thankfully no one stopped me on my way out of my house. I wasn't about to explain to anyone in my family about where I was going.
I got in my car and called Ava. She was going to be going down to the city to hangout with some of her friends from college for the night- I had told her I just wanted to relax when she asked me if I wanted to come with and she didn't question me.
"Hey, are you alright?" she asked me, picking up after the first ring.
"Yeah, I'm okay. I just wanted to let you know that I am going to The Salt Rim right now. I want to talk to some of April's old co workers." I said. Might as well just flat out say it.
There was a pause on the other line. "Are you going by yourself?"
"Yes, I am."
"Are you sure that's a good idea?"
"I think it is. I just want to see if I can't get any answers. I'm not going to stay for long, I promise. Or get into any trouble." I said.
"Fine. Just promise me you'll be safe, okay?" Ava said.
"Of course. I'll text you when I am there and when I leave as well."
"Okay. You better. I love you." Ava said. She still sounded somewhat concerned.
"I love you too, babe." I said.
The Salt Rim was a dive bar and restaurant, and a popular one at that. It was about 40 minutes from my house, I hadn't realized it was that far. But it was about 20 minutes away from April's old apartment. I was feeling a bit nervous as I drove up there, playing music on the way. I wasn't sure how I was going to go about asking any of her co workers what they knew, but I would find a way. I knew I would.
I took a deep breath in my car after I pulled up, before I walked in.
You can do this, Josephine. You have to do this.
I grabbed my bag and got out of my car. There were men outside smoking cigarettes as I walked in, and they eyed me up. I remembered April telling me that it wasn't the most savory crowed that went to this bar. The area it was in was a bit more run down- but she wound up making a lot of money working at this bar. It always got packed, especially on the weekends and she had regulars as well.
I found an empty spot at the end of the bar and took a seat. There were two bartenders behind the bar tonight, a man who looked to be in his forties with salt and pepper hair and a beard, and a short blonde girl that looked to be around April's age.
I saw her eyes go wide when she looked at me. She walked up to me.
"Holy fuck. I almost lost my mind. I thought you were April for a moment." she said, standing in front of me. "You've gotta be her sister, right?"
"I am, I'm her younger sister." I nodded.
"Josephine? She talked about you a lot." the blonde bartender said to me. She then stuck her hand out. "I'm Carly." she then turned to the man behind the bar, who was making a mixed drink. She watched as he slid it across the bar to a woman in a very bright pink shirt.
"Dave, come here. This is April's sister." Carly said to him.
He looked at me and walked over. He also stuck his hand out when he stood in front of me. "It's so nice to meet you, I'm Dave. Let me just tell you, we miss April so much here. I am so sorry for what your family must be going through." he said. I could tell by his voice that he was also a part of the LGBTQ community. The G part to be specific.
"Thank you, I appreciate it." I said. I then just decided to be straight up. "I'm here to get some answers. Can either of you tell me anything you know about the night she went missing?"
"I wasn't working that night, so unfortunately I can't." Dave said, "I'm so sorry, honey. I wish I could."
"I was working that night." Carly said, "But I wasn't bartending yet. I was serving. I left before April did."
"Is there anyone else that either closed with her or could possibly remember anything?" I asked.
"You know what, Francesca probably was the closing server that night. I'll call her over." Carly said.
"Can I ask you one thing before you do?" I asked Carly, "Did April seem normal that night? I know cops always say there is a possibility that she could have just up and left. Do you remember if she was acting weird?" I asked her.
"Honestly, she seemed completely like herself. She was talking about how she couldn't wait to get piped by her boyfriend after she left." Carly chuckled.
As raunchy as that was, it sounded exactly like April. There was no fucking way she just up and left.
"That sounds like her." I said.
"It does. I really miss her, she was my favorite bartender. No offense, Dave." Carly nudged Dave, who smiled next to her. "Let me go grab Francesca. She's probably back in the kitchen."
I sat at the bar, waiting for Carly to come back with Francesca.
"Do you want a drink?" Dave asked me.
"Sure. I'll have a a Blue Moon." I said, and Dave poured me a glass with an orange wedge.
Carly returned with a taller girl with long, blue black hair and very tanned skin. By looking at her I knew April either loved her or absolutely hated her. There was no in between.
But right when she came up to me and enveloped me in a hug- this stranger that I didn't even know- I knew April probably loved her.
"Sweetie, I am so sorry about your sister." Francesca said, pulling away. "God, you're gorgeous. You look just like her."
"Thank you, I appreciate it." I smiled at Francesca.
"Let me tell you, I left about 20 minutes before the bar closed the night April went missing. And she was completely normal that night. Of course you can never know, but there were no signs that anything was wrong." Francesca said.
Wow, everyone April worked with was so nice. I thought that- but that wouldn't last very long.
A petite girl with long, straight chestnut brown hair wearing a tight black shirt that said "The Salted Rim" and black yoga pants came over to us. She was holding an empty tray. She didn't say anything for a moment. I could see close up she was wearing a lot of makeup and she smelled like sugary sweet perfume.
"Hey, Kelsey. How's your night going?" Francesca turned to her.
"Not bad." Kelsey said, and then looked at me. "Are you related to April?"
"Yes, she's my older sister." I said. By the how she was eyeing me up I could tell one thing- she wasn't happy to see me there.
"Gotcha." Kelsey nodded.
"April is just trying to get some answers." Francesca said, smiling at me.
"About what? April going missing?" Kelsey then rolled her eyes- and I felt my blood starting to boil, "Come on. I'm sure even her sister knows she probably ran off with some dude who had a girlfriend and is fucking him."
"Kelsey, seriously?" Francesca said.
"Excuse me?" I snapped, "I don't know who you are, but fuck you."
Kelsey turned around and and faced me, "Are you here to do the same? Steal someone's man? Because you sure look like it."
"I don't think my girlfriend would approve of that." I sneered back.
Kelsey just nodded. Then she looked at me and said, "I'm sorry, but April had this coming to her. If you ask me, she deserved it."
And in that moment- I couldn't stop myself. It was like a knee-jerk reaction. My fist flew, and it landed right in the middle of Kelsey's face. Hard.
And all I could see was blood.