Page 32 of To Have and To Hold

“Kind of normal.”

She shook her head. “Not for some of these women. This one feature has been life-changing.”

Life-changing?

“Computers?”

“The ability to research,” Liliana said, “have online accounts, monitor their bank information. When we first opened, not one woman had a bank account. Even if they’re in the computer center scrolling on social media, that’s research beyond their small slice of life. The availability of this technology has broadened their world.”

“Wow. I never thought of it like that. Don’t they have phones?”

“They do. This center is protected against malware and has better security than their phones.”

Her answer short-circuited my mind. I never questioned the security of my phone or other technologies.

The door opened and a woman stopped when she saw us, and her eyes grew wide. She started speaking quickly in Spanish to Liliana. As she spoke, I scanned her from head to toe. Her dark hair was tied back in a ponytail, and her face was clean of makeup. She was wearing a San Diego Padres t-shirt, shorts, and canvas loafers. If I passed her on the street, I would have no idea of her profession.

With each word, the woman’s excitement bubbled out.

Liliana replied before turning to me. “This is Julia. Julia, this is Isabella Luciano. She’s helping here while Mia is out.”

“Hola.”

“Hi, please call me Izzy. It’s nice to meet you, Julia. What’s all the excitement?”

“I was telling Liliana. This morning, I received the email. I was accepted to community college. Online.” Her entire body vibrated with energy. “I want to be a nurse.”

“You will be,” Liliana said.

“I didn’t know you could be a nurse with online classes.”

She nodded. “After I pass the classes, I will need to work in a hospital for the clinical.”

“That’s fantastic.”

She bounced up and down. “I need to tell Angel, my roommate. She’ll be happy like me.” Julia hurried down the hall the direction we’d come.

“They have roommates?”

Liliana nodded. “When they were housed at Wanderland, they lived in a dorm-style room. Here, each classroom has been renovated into three small bedrooms, a common area, and a full bathroom. This gives them privacy while also providing the camaraderie of one another.” We started walking in Julia’s wake. “It’s good that they voted on communal eating. In the blueprints when kitchens were included in each classroom, the number of bedrooms was only two. Originally, there were seventeen classrooms, five bathrooms, and a gymnasium. Part of the gym was converted to the cafeteria, and the communal bathrooms were removed. The other half of the gym became housing units. Overall, there are now twenty units, each capable of housing three women.”

“Wow! Does the club employ that many wh—women?”

“If you include all staff, yes and more. But after a few early rough patches, Mia decided to keep these apartments for the entertainers. They were the ones who were housed in the back of the club. The bartenders, managers, cooks, cleaning crew, and other females were living on their own. They make more money.”

“Oh, Mia did say something about that.”

By the time we returned to the offices, I was introduced to two more women who worked as secretaries for Mia and Liliana. Their names were Reina and Celeste. I also learned that the various jobs such as secretary, librarian, cook, or custodian were paid positions the women could do on the side to earn more money. They paid well above California’s minimum wage. Liliana said the goal was to provide a pathway to move beyond the women’s current status, if they wanted to. If not, this was a safe, clean place for them to live.

“Do you want to eat lunch here or go to a restaurant. There’s a cute café not far away,” Liliana asked.

I was having difficulty wrapping my mind around all I’d seen and heard. Getting away for a while might help. “A café sounds nice. Will Horace and José accompany us?”

Liliana rolled her eyes. “Always.”

As I gathered my purse, the noise level in the front office rose.

Peering around the corner, I saw what or more accurately who was the cause.

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