Torie

Torie is a former acquaintance of Angel whose unexpected reunion in San Francisco becomes the immediate catalyst for Angel’s plan to establish a refuge and vocational training for women seeking to leave prostitution. Torie’s own desire for another way to live gives that plan a concrete purpose: not simply shelter, but the chance to earn a living by other means.

Reappearance in San Francisco

Angel recognizes Torie in a crowd and, despite her impulse to flee, stops and greets her. Torie is struck by how different Angel looks and asks whether she is still married to the farmer. Angel says she has not been in prostitution for more than two years. The exchange places Torie at a threshold between Angel’s former life and the different life she has built.

Torie also brings news of people from that past. She asks whether Angel has heard about Lucky, and mentions that Mai Ling was caught in the fire. Angel responds with sorrow at the news of Lucky. Their conversation reconnects Angel with the world she left while showing how far she has moved from it.

A meeting that becomes a turning point

After a moment of inward assurance, Angel stops Torie from leaving and invites her to lunch at Virgil’s café. The invitation is more than an act of reunion: Angel recognizes that Torie may be part of the work she has been trying to understand. She draws Torie along, eager to introduce her to Virgil.

Torie tells Angel that she would take a way out if she could find one. At the café, Virgil asks whether she can cook; Torie says she cannot. Angel sees the practical problem clearly: a woman needs skills and a means of support if she is to leave prostitution and live independently.

The refuge Angel proposes

Angel explains her idea to Susanna and Jonathan: Torie should be taught to cook, sew, or make hats, and a house should offer women safety while they learn to support themselves without selling their bodies. She has already identified a house a few blocks from the docks and tells Jonathan its price. He considers the proposal and says he may have friends who can help provide the necessary funds.

Torie’s role in the plan is thus both personal and representative. Her stated wish to leave gives Angel’s idea a specific human starting point, while the proposed training and shelter address the material obstacles that can keep women dependent on prostitution. Torie’s reunion with Angel helps transform remembered hardship into organized, practical assistance.