It's Just Lola (14 page)

“We
’
re lucky.  We have a bathroom on every floor and the rent includes a
big
meal at midday.   We have a good cook.”

It
sounded like heaven to Lola.

Rosita was right.  La Señora
shook her head when she heard that Lola and Enriqueta had babies.
  Lola made an impassioned plea, describing how quiet their babies were.

“
Could you just give us a chance? 
Just until we
find another place
?
”

“Excuse me, Señora,” said Rosita.  “Magdalena’s room isn
’
t making you any money while her mother is sick
.
”

“I have money,” said Lola quickly, bringing the pouch out of the bodice of her dress.  “I can pay right now.”

La Señora made the house rules clear.  They
would be
accepted as temporary boarders because she happened to have an empty room. 
Magdalena
would be back
and
they
would have to leave
, unless they found another place sooner
.
  They were not to make any noise during siesta time that might disturb the sleep of her girls, who needed
their
rest.  In the evening they were to stay in their room and be invisible because that was when her other boarders worked. 

Lola stayed behind in the kitchen that evening when Enriqueta went back to their room.  She
told
Uncle
she
needed
to speak with
Auntie alone about what she had learned that day.  She knew he would assume it was about the doctor. 

Lola quietly told Auntie that they
’
d found a room in a ladies’ boarding house, and would be moving.  She thanked her for her care during the months they had spent with them.  She said they would continue sewing uniforms so Uncle would not be left without their work—only without their mouths to feed.  She knew that part would be an essential element of Auntie’s talk with Uncle later in the evening. 

“You were given money for two doctor birthings and you bought two sewing machines.  We had one doctor birthing, so we
’
ll take Enriqueta’s machine with us.
I
’
m sure Uncle
’
s made enough money to buy another machine, and now he
’
ll have the room to bring in another woman to use it.” 

Auntie’s face darkened with anger
.  “We fed you and took care of you for months.  Without us you would
’
ve starved.  He’ll never give you a sewing machine.
”

Lola rose to go to their room
.
“I
’
m writing to Juan to let him know our new location.  Do you want me to tell him anything for you?”

Auntie
’s face paled
at
the veiled threat.  Written contracts were rare, and a man was only as good as his word;
m
isusing funds given in trust was dishonorable. 

Uncle’s face looked like thunder the next morning when he came into the kitchen. 
Lola lowered her eyes and shoveled a huge
spoon
ful of food into her mouth.  She looked up in shock as the plate was snatched off the table.

“You’ll get no more food in this house,” said Uncle.  “This is the thanks I get for bringing two disgraced sinners into my own home?  You
quit
on me and threaten me?
”

“We aren’t quitting, Uncle—we’re just moving closer to the doctor,” said Lola with sudden inspiration.  “We appreciate all you’ve done for us, and we
’
ll continue to sew for you, like the other women.  We
’
re all packed so we don’t delay your trip to town this morning.”

“You expect me to take you to town?  You’re the ones who want to leave.  Find a carriage for hire.”

“That might take all day,” said Enriqueta with a smile.  “I thought you
’
d want your best seamstresses working today.  Besides, if you don’t take us, how will you know where to pick up the only uniforms that are always properly sewn?”

Lola
saw
the hesitation on Uncle’s face. 
“We’ll pay
,
”
she said, knowing it would close the deal.

It took
Enriqueta and Lola very little time
to get
settled in
their third
-
floor room. 
They were overjoyed to have their own place
at last
, but t
hey quickly settled down to work as Lola pointed out that they had only one machine to earn them a living.

“How did you convince Uncle to send one of his machines with us?” asked Enriqueta.

“It
’
s a gift for you, sister,”
said
Lola with a smile.

“Bah!  Uncle never gave anyone anything in his life
.
”

“All right.  Call it a bribe so w
e
’
ll continue to sew uniforms
.”  Lola gave a small laugh.  “He has no idea that his uniforms are our only source of income.”  Enriqueta returned her sister’s smile, and her foot began to work the pedal of
the
machine.
  Their work was
interrupted by a knock on the door. 

Rosita had come to welcome Lola and meet the rest of her family.  “Wait until the girls see these adorable babies
.
  I came to tell you that lunch is in
an hour
.  You must bring these little morsels of sweetness down with you to meet the rest of the girls
.
” 

Lunch was the main meal and all the residents were there.  The table was heavy with platters and bowls of steaming food.  Lola murmured a small prayer of thanks that Rosita had
helped talk
La Señora into renting them a room.  The women had a boisterous give and take as they ate—a big change from the enforced decorum of their old home or the bored silence of the house they had just left. 
The
women’s
unstinting praise and delight over Blanca and Estela
made
them
feel welcome
.

That night as they lay on the large bed that came with the room, the girls were too excited to sleep.  Lola outlined her plan to use the morning hours to look for work and to come back for the midday meal, do handwork during the siesta time, and take a turn on the sewing machine in the afternoon to give Enriqueta a break.  They would both do handwork in the evenings to be extra quiet.

“Lola, did you know what these women did for a living when you rented the room?” asked Enriqueta.

“No.  I was happy about the location, the running water, and most of all the food included in a rent we could afford.  Whatever they do is
n’t
really our business, is it?”

“Do you know what they do?”

“No.  I didn’t ask.”

“Lola
.
Y
ou
’
re such an innocent
.
  They
’
re streetwalkers.”

“They walk in the streets for a living?  I walked in the streets all morning and I don’t see how you can earn a living at it.”

Enriqueta giggled.  “You silly g
oose.
 
They entertain men for a living.
”  It was seconds before Lola gave a gasp of understanding.

“Oh, they can’t be what you think.  They
’
re
to
o nice
for that.
 
They all
love the babies
,
and they aren’t at all evil.”

“Not everyone who does bad things is evil, Lola.  I thought you
’
d have learned that by now. 
I suppose you’
re right that
it
doesn’t matter.  Besides, the food
’
s good, and I haven’t laughed that much in forever.”

“It
’
s nice to sleep in a bed again,” said Lola
drowsily.
“Good night.”

The girls
easily
arranged their routine around the rhythm of the house.  They rose early while everyone else was sleeping and monopolized the bathroom doing laundry and bathing the babies.  As soon as things began to stir, Lola set off to scour yet another street of the city looking for work and a more permanent place to live.  She would walk up on
e
side of the street talking to every s
hop
keeper, every young mother out for a walk, every old person sitting on a stoop.  When she had spent a couple of hours at her task, she would cross the street and repeat her performance as she walked back.  She made a rough map a
nd drew in each street and side
street as she explored it, not wanting to miss one or waste a day on a street she had already tried. 
She found one widow with a room to rent, but the woman had slammed the door in her face when she found out Lola had a baby. 

While Lola searched for work, Enriqueta sewed and watched the babies.  It was easier than they had imagined it would be because the women of the house wandered in and out of their room all day, playing with the babies and offering advice. 
Both girls
enjoyed the company—something they had sorely missed in Uncle’s house. 

They had arrived on Monday, and by Friday
night
they already felt comfortable. 
Many of the women had children
who
lived “back home” with other family members, and the
y
support
ed
their families. 
Enriqueta
told
Lola that one advantage of living in a bordello was that no one
asked about fathers.

As they were talking, they heard a man shouting
outside their door. 
“Magdalena!  Magdalena!  Why
’
re you hiding from me?
” He
began rattling the handle. 
“
Magdalena
, I know you’re in there.  If you don’t open the door, I’ll break it down.
” 

Enriqueta grabbed Lola and her eyes got wide with
fright.  “Do something, Lol
a.
”

Lola
’s
only thought was to keep the babies safe.  “Quick!  Hide the babies in the wicker chest
.
”  Enriqueta was shaking with fear, but she obeyed Lola without thinking.  Blanca began to cry and Estela followed suit.  The man outside was making enough noise to cover any crying.  He began banging on the door with his fists
, still
shouting for Magdalena.  Enriqueta
’s grip
on Lola
w
as
painfully strong.

“Don’t worry.  Don’t worry
.
” Lola
chan
t
ed
the words
like
a
prayer as the door bulged under the pounding of the man’s fists, and the wood began to make splintering sounds.

“The window!  We can jump out the window
,
” said Enriqueta.
“I’ll hold Blanca so she won’t fall, and
we’ll
jump out the window
.
”
 

“We
’
re on the third floor
.
  You
’
ll both be killed
.
”
  Lola grabbed her sister and pulled her
toward the door
.
  “We have to keep him out
, and I need your help
.”
 

With a final splintering
sound,
the lock tore out of the door frame, and Enriqueta gave an ear-splitting scream of terror.

T
he
man
who
filled the
doorway
was so large Lola thought he might be stuck
. 
She
knew t
here was no way they could fight him off
, but they had to try
. 
Yelling for Enriqueta to help her,
Lola
launched herself at his knees and he staggered backward unsteadily. 
She
sank her teeth into the man’s
leg
as Enriqueta screamed again.  Doors started
slamming and feet running. 
Blanca and Estela added their full-throated cries to the general uproar.