The next morning I call Mrs. Bell who handles the rentals for Du-Kane, Inc. I ask her if we have an apartment complex empty. I know it’s a long shot, but if we don’t, I need to look into purchasing one.

“Alice, it just so happens that we do have one. We purchased an old abandoned warehouse downtown off of Florida Street a few weeks ago. The developer we bought it from was in the middle of turning it into loft apartments. There’s only three floors in the building, but the first two are complete.”

“Mrs. Bell, that sounds perfect. Do we have anyone there working on it yet? I need to get inside and look around.”

“I can meet you down there in half an hour with a set of keys. Does that work for you?”

“Absolutely. I’ll see you then.”

I hang up my phone and do a happy dance. This couldn’t have worked out better. The warehouse is only a few minutes walking distance to the store front. I race upstairs to get ready, tell Zoe where I’m going, and check in on Sally. I grab Dobey’s leash, and we head out.

The warehouse is in better shape than I thought it would be. You can see all the windows have been replaced and the front doors already have the keypad. Mrs. Bell meets Dobey and me at the front door.

“The first thing we have in here is the security desk. Over there,” she says pointing to her left, “is where a small coffee shop and cafe could go. We’re going to have the mailboxes installed next week. Also, over there behind the security desk is the door to the on-site manager’s apartment. Down the hall here, we have a small weight room with a sauna.”

I look around, taking it all in. The small coffee shop idea is perfect. We could hire someone for it and offer all the residents free coffee. We could even have milk, donuts, and fresh fruit each morning for the kids to eat for breakfast.

I follow Mrs. Bell to the elevator and we go up to the third floor. It’s a different world up here. It’s wide open with no doors or walls. The space has been cleaned and laying in the corner are stacks of doors and other building materials.

“Our contractors are set to start renovating this floor tomorrow. It should only take them about two months since everything is already wired for electricity and the water lines have been installed.”

“Can they do it in a month instead of two?”

Mrs. Bell looks over at me. “What exactly are you thinking of doing with this building, Alice? We haven’t started the application process so we aren’t in a rush.”

I walk over to one of the windows that faces the Mississippi River. “I want to do something for my community, Mrs. Bell. I want to use this warehouse to give back. I’m turning it into cheap apartments for low income, single mothers.”

I don’t hear anything from Mrs. Bell so I turn around to look at her. She’s staring at me with her mouth hanging open. “Mrs. Bell, are you okay?”

“You want to turn this into cheap housing?”

“No. I am turning this into cheap housing.”

“But-but, Alice, this is a million dollar piece of property. Are you sure you wouldn’t rather look into something closer to the south side of town? I mean, we have property that might fit your needs better.”

“Why? These moms and their children deserve the same opportunity as anyone else. Why would I want to put them in an area that’s going to do nothing but take them down the wrong path?”

Mrs. Bell looks at me like I’ve grown a second head. “You know, you are nothing like your Uncle. I like you, Alice Du-Kane.”

I smile and pat her on the back. “Thanks, Mrs. Bell. I appreciate you saying that.”

We finish touring the second floor, which houses ten units. Five of them are two bedroom lofts, the other five have three bedrooms. Each one offers state of the art kitchens with appliances, walk-in showers, and garden tubs. They are beautiful and will be perfect.

I take the elevator back down to the first floor. “This is perfect. Call the contractors and tell them we need it ready in four weeks. I’ll have furniture delivered this week for the second floor so families should be able to start moving in next week. Do you already have a manager hired?”

Mrs. Bell is furiously typing away on her tablet, a small smile on her face. “No, I haven't even listed the job yet. I’m guessing you have someone in mind already?”

“I sure do, Mrs. Bell. In fact, I know the perfect person.”

“No. I already told you, I have a place to live. Besides, I don’t need any charity, Alice.”

I throw my hands in the air in frustration. “Sally, you are not a charity case. You will be doing me a favor. I need you to lease the apartments to good women like yourself. The ladies you vouch for will become my employees, not Du-Kane, Inc. You are only receiving free rent because you are under my employment. I expect you to lease apartments, handle renters’ complaints, collect rent, and make sure everything else runs smoothly. It’s a job, not charity.”

Sally hugs me tightly. “A for real job? A for real, real job?”

I giggle at her excitement. “Yes, but there is a catch. The renters can no longer prostitute themselves. If I find out they are still doing it, they’re out. Also, they’re now my employees. I hate to ask this, but I need to save my dad’s company. It has been in the red ever since marijuana became legal. Zoe and I have a product that can make us a profit, but until I get my greedy, thieving uncle out of the picture, we can’t sell it in our store. If the women are willing to sell our product instead of their bodies, I’m willing to give them free rent, utilities, and enough money for groceries and such.”

Sally gives me a weird look. “So you want them to go from one illegal thing to another?”

I shake my head. “Yes and no. It will only be for a few months. Once I get rid of my uncle and I get the company back in the black, we will distribute FLAG in the store.”

“So then what? The girls will all be out of a job?” Sally asks.

“Oh, god no! In the meantime, I can set them up with online courses. Every apartment will come with a computer and Wi-Fi. By the time the product goes to the store, the ladies should be on their way to being able to obtain a good job. Not just a job, but an actual career. Du-Kane, Inc. will hire as many of them as possible, and I’ll help the rest of them. It’s a short-term business deal that will benefit all of us in the long run. Also, the icing on the cake is a free daycare on the first floor that is open 24/7.”

“Alice, it sounds good, but I just don’t know. Getting them to move here and work for you would be easy, it’s getting them away from their pimps that will be the problem. These men don’t play. They own us, Alice.”

I knew this part was going to be a problem, but since this idea came to me, I’ve been thinking about it.

“This is going to have to happen all at one time. Everyone needs to be ready to move when I say. We’ll have a van that will be at their current homes at the same time, on the same day. They have ten minutes to get out, and we’ll bring them straight to the warehouse. We’ll have a security guard stationed there around the clock. There’s no sign anywhere that would tell you what the warehouse is. The only way to get in is with a keycard that they will receive when they get there.”

“What about their furniture? We can’t carry all of it and get it in a van, Alice.”

“I know. I’m going to have every apartment fully furnished. They don’t need anything, Sally. Just have them pack what they can carry, the items they can’t leave behind, and I’ll take care of everything else.”

Sally pulls me into another hug. “I hope you know what you’re doing. This is crazy, but I’m in. Lord help me, I’m in.”

I squeeze Sally back. “It’s going to work out, Sally. Just have a little faith in me.”

My phone ringing interrupts our conversation. I’m surprised to see Mrs. Bell’s name across my screen.

“Hello?”

“Alice, it’s Brandi Bell. I wanted to let you know that I spoke with the contractor and he said four weeks is no problem.”

I let out the breath I was holding. “Thank you. I’ll start shopping for furniture so we can go ahead and get the second floor filled next week.”

I expected her to say goodbye, but once again, Mrs. Bell surprises me. “Alice, I have no idea what is really going on, but I wanted to let you know, I’m here to do anything I can to help. I grew up in the projects. My mom was a single parent that worked two jobs so I understand what these ladies are going through. Please let me know what I can do to help you. Anything, anytime.”

“Well, Mrs. Bell, I’m glad you asked. I happen to need someone to take a group of ladies and kids to Target next weekend…”