Esther is the salon lady at the 'mercado' who knows practically everything about everyone. Many of her customers come to her for sage advice. She has a gift of understanding the complexities of the people that she meets, despite not getting a good education. While she enjoys sharing anecdotes of herself, it is surprising that she has never mentioned how she fled home as a young girl to get away from her abusive father. She now lives in peace with her aunt who owns the salon. Esther is sometimes haunted by the ordeal she went through, especially when she sees the cigarette burn on her wrist that was given by her father. But she then reminds herself how lucky she is to have realized sooner that she deserved better.