Mary, Mary

by Lesley Crewe

  And then up popped the picture. Her mother came on the screen looking frazzled. “Hi, honey.”

  “Hi, Mom. I miss you.”

  “I miss you too. What’s going on?”

  “I bought bamboo sheets today.”

  “Oh, they’re lovely. I won’t buy anything else.”

  Sheena noticed her Gran walk up behind her mom. “Hi, Gran! Are you staying out of trouble?”

  “There’s no goddamn trouble to get into. This is the most boring place on earth.”

  “But all you did at home was watch television and sit at the kitchen table. Can’t you do that at our house?”

  “Ain’t the same. I’m afraid to spill something on your mother’s rug, or knock over one of those prissy china figurines she’s got all over the house. It’s like an obstacle course in here,” Ethel grumbled.

  Sheena tried not to laugh. She could tell her mother was about to boil over. “Well, it was nice talking to you, Gran. See you later?”

  “Yeah, see ya. Tell Drew to send me a car and get me outta here.”

  “Will do.”

  Gran wandered out of the room.

  Sheena grinned. “Oh my God. What is up with her?”

  “I have no fucking idea!” Peggy hissed. “It’s like I can’t do a thing right.”

  “Mom, you look stressed. You’re going to have to send her back to Aunt Carole.”

  “Carole doesn’t want her anymore. She’s suddenly seen the light and Ethel ain’t in it.”

  “Poor Mommy. Do you want me to come home?”

  Her mother’s face lit up. “I’d love that! But I thought you were going to try and find a job.”

  “I will once we find a house. I’m not staying in this stinking apartment forever. And at the moment Drew doesn’t care if I’m here or not. He’s so tired when he comes home from work, he just ignores me. Maybe if I take off for a bit, he’ll appreciate me more.”

  “Oh, I don’t like the sounds of that. Don’t start coming home every time you’re mad at your husband. You need to stay and work it out.”

  “Do you want me home or not? I’d only come for a few days. I’m not deserting him.”

  Peggy hesitated. “Okay,” she said with a smile. “Yes, that would be awesome.”

  Mary and Daniel spent a whole weekend dragging the stuff out of her room into the upstairs apartment, but the minute Mary pointed at the wardrobe, Daniel knew it wouldn’t fit up the stairs.

  Mary’s face fell. “But that’s my favourite thing in the whole world.”

  Carole was standing in the doorway. “You can come down and hug it every night.”

  The last items they collected were Roscoe’s bits and bobs.

  “Can’t you leave a couple of food dishes here in case he wants to visit?” her mom said.

  That made Mary smile. “You like him.”

  “He doesn’t give me grief like you do.”

  Daniel and Roscoe went out the door and up the stairs. Mary looked back at her mom. “Are you going to be okay? I’m just upstairs if you need me.”

  “Get out of here. I have things to do.”

  “Okay. Bye. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  Once the kids left, Carole looked around and wondered what she should do. Even with the television on, there was a silence that seemed deafening. She grabbed her jacket and went for a stroll. She ended up on the boardwalk and sat on a bench to watch the water in Sydney Harbour. There were couples out walking together after supper, some of them arm in arm. What was that like? To have someone to share your day with, to talk over the past hours while watching the setting sun?

  With her mother gone, Carole had a chance to mull over the shocking truth about her father.

  It still didn’t seem real. She’d spent so much of her life wishing he would come back and save her from her mother and now she had to reverse the narrative. There was never going to be a happy reunion. Turns out her mother was the hero all along. A drunk, flawed hero, but you can’t have everything.

  And now she was the guilty party. It never occurred to her that Mary would resent not having a dad—she’d never had one to miss. Mary never said anything growing up, but maybe that was because Carole didn’t spend a lot of her time talking to her. She was always too busy trying to make a living and keeping Ethel from imploding.

  And now that Carole finally did have some time, Mary was as good as gone. As Carole and her sister were finding out, babies grow up and leave home and if you have nothing else in your life, the world is a cruel place.

  She was about to get up and return to the house when she saw a woman walking towards her with a little dog on a leash. He was wearing a Cape Breton tartan jacket, this Scottie dog who walked as if he was extremely proud of himself. Carole wasn’t the type to make comments to strangers, but there was something about this little dog’s face that moved her.

  “He’s awfully cute,” she said to the woman.

  The woman stopped and the dog walked over and sniffed Carole’s hand.

  “He’s quite a character,” she agreed.

  “What’s his name?”

  “Billy.”

  “Hi, Billy.”

  Billy gave her a lick and then continued on his way. The woman smiled over her shoulder. “Good night.”

  “Good night.”

  First thing tomorrow morning, Carole was going to the SPCA to find herself a Billy.

  Mary didn’t have to go to work until the afternoon, so after a long and scrumptious goodbye to her man that morning, she decided to go see Gran at Aunt Peggy’s. Mary missed her like crazy and couldn’t believe she was still holding out over there in Coxheath. She knew Gran well enough to know that she’d be missing everything about the old house and her daughter. They might have hated each other’s guts at times, but they didn’t realize how much they depended on each other.

  It crossed Mary’s mind that she was so wrapped up in Daniel she’d let her Gran’s situation stay on the back burner, but today, she would go and see for herself how she was doing.

  The drive up to Aunt Peggy’s house was so easy to navigate without snow. Beside the Lexus, there was a new Jeep in the driveway. Was Sheena home from Halifax already?

  She knocked on the door and pushed against it. It was open.

  “Hello!” she called. “It’s just me.”

  “That you, Mary?” Gran shouted.

  “The one and only!”

  Gran came racing out of the kitchen at a lopsided clip, her arms stretched out in front of her. “Let me see ya.” She grabbed hold of her and patted her back with enthusiastic thumps. “You’re looking good, girl. Love agrees with you.”

  They walked into the kitchen, where Aunt Peggy and Sheena were making a big salad.

  “Hey, Sheena. What are you doing here?”

  “Marriage is a bore. I needed a break, so I came home.”

  “Jeez.”

  “No, Mom needed some help.” Sheena tossed her head at Gran and Mary understood. “And Drew is really busy, so I knew he wouldn’t miss me for a few days. How’s it going with the hunk upstairs?”

  Mary couldn’t hide her smile. “It’s good. Really good.”

  “Sit down, honey,” Aunt Peggy said. “Would you like some chicken salad?”

  “Yeah, that would be great.”

  Gran sat in the seat beside her.

  “How’s it going, Gran?”

  “I’m bored outta my tree.”

  “You are? Well, why don’t you go home? I’m sure Mom is missing you.”

  “If she was, she’d have been over here by now. So she can get stuffed, because I don’t need her.”

  It was plainly obvious to all of them that Gran needed Carole very badly, but since she was such a stubborn old coot, this situation might drag on into the foreseeable future.

&nb
sp; “Maybe she’s just not sure if she should come over because you haven’t been in touch. Have you ever thought of that? It can’t be easy not hearing from you. You can imagine what she’s thinking.”

  “I have no damn idea what she’s thinkin’, and I’m tired of thinkin’ about it. I gotta go take a shit.”

  Gran got off the stool and charged out of the kitchen. The other three looked at each other.

  “This is ridiculous,” Mary said.

  Aunt Peggy put a plate of salad in front of her and whispered, “Have you talked to your mother? Because the last time I did, she didn’t want her back.”

  Mary was incredulous. “Are you serious?”

  Peggy nodded. “That’s what she said, and I’m going crazy because if Gran does ask to go back, I don’t know what to tell her. My blood pressure goes through the roof just thinking about it.”

  Sheena brought over the forks. “That’s why I came back. The look on Mom’s face the other day, I thought she was going to have a breakdown. What should we do?” She looked at Mary. “You know Gran better than we do. You’ve lived with her your whole life.”

  Mary shook her head. “I’m not sure what to do. Maybe it would be a good idea just to get them together in the same room and see what happens.”

  “You’d have to be there, Mary,” Aunt Peggy begged. “I wouldn’t want to attempt this without you. Did you know that my hair is falling out in clumps?”

  After lunch, Gran cornered Mary in the family room. “Did you know my hair is falling out in clumps?”

  “Really?”

  “Yes! I was in that goddamned bathtub the other night and there was a big ball of it. This place is doing my head in.”

  “Umm…was the hair grey or brown?

  Gran thought about it. “Brown, I guess.”

  “And is your hair brown?”

  “It would be if your goddamned mother would dye it for me.”

  “Gran, come sit with me.” She pulled her grandmother into the loveseat. “You’re blaming this house and Aunt Peggy for your misery, but it’s not the house or the things in it that are upsetting you. You’re missing your home and Mom.” Ethel stiffened, but Mary plowed on: “And why wouldn’t you? They’ve been your life. It’s like you’ve been pulled up and planted in a different spot, but this spot doesn’t have enough sunlight or water. You belong on George Street. That’s the only reason you’re sad. Why don’t we go tell Mom that?”

  Her grandmother nodded.

  Mary looked at her watch. She still had two hours before she had to be at work. “Go get your coat.”

  While her grandmother went to collect her coat and purse, Mary rushed back into the kitchen, where Aunt Peggy and Sheena were hiding while Mary worked her magic.

  “I’ve convinced her to go and see Mom. Let’s roll.”

  “Sweet Jesus!” Aunt Peggy cried out, relieved. “If this works, you are definitely going in my will.”

  Mary put Gran in her car and Sheena drove her mother in the Jeep. They followed each other across town. Gran didn’t say anything, so Mary knew she was nervous.

  When they pulled up to the house, Gran surveyed the rosebushes. “You did a nice job cleaning up that litter. I know damn well your mother didn’t do it.”

  Mary gave her grandmother a stern look. “Be nice.”

  The four of them gathered outside the vehicles, as if to catch their collective breath. Aunt Peggy and Sheena were holding hands. What the heck had been happening with this family while she was busy making love to Daniel? Was she the only sane one in the group?

  They walked into the porch and stepped across the kitchen threshold, but they didn’t get any farther than that. A huge Newfoundland dog galloped out of the living room with drool coming out of his mouth, two itsy-bitsy snarling Chihuahuas at his heels. Everyone screamed and rushed out of the house, trying not to be trampled or nipped to death.

  Carole came charging behind them. “Stop screaming, for God’s sake! They’re rescue dogs, and they’re emotionally unbalanced!” She struggled with one thick leash and two stringy ones, trying to corral the dogs as they zeroed in on Gran, who was running around in circles.

  Aunt Peggy and Sheena found refuge in the Jeep. Gran continued to scream, “Fucking little bastards!” so Mary shoved her in the car and helped her mother put the leashes on the dog’s collars. By then she’d figured out that the Newfoundland dog was just trying to kiss everyone and the Chihuahuas were very excitable.

  Mary and Carole stood in the driveway, chests heaving. The other three eventually emerged from their vehicles.

  “I’ve seen it all now,” Gran hollered. “I can’t leave you alone for five minutes and you’re up to something ridiculous! Do these beasts belong to you?”

  “As a matter of fact they do.”

  “Mom,” said Mary, “what were you thinking?”

  Carole faced them down. “I was thinking that everyone else has a life, so why not me? Do you know how many unwanted animals there are in the world?”

  “Yes!” Mary shouted. “Which is why I always wanted some but you would never let me!”

  “People can change their minds.”

  “But three?” Aunt Peggy cried. “Three?”

  “I went in for one but apparently these three are best friends and I couldn’t just leave the other two behind. Look at them.”

  They did. Big bug-eyed Chihuahua rats, who were now shivering and looking pathetic.

  Gran stood with her hands on her hips. “I’ve seen some pretty stupid things in my day….”

  Carole pointed at her mother. “Ma, shut your mouth. This has nothing to do with you. You made up your mind and you’re living with Peggy. These are my pets and they now live in my house. What you think about it doesn’t matter one iota, have you got that?”

  Gran blinked a few times.

  “But Carole,” Peggy whined. “This is Mom’s house. She wants to come back because she’s very unhappy with me. We came here today to tell you she wants to come home.”

  “That’s too damn bad. She made her bed. Now she can lie in it. Come on, boys.”

  Amazingly, the dogs followed her obediently into the house.

  The four of them stared at each other.

  “Don’t worry, Gran,” said Mary. “I’ll talk to her.”

  “I’m not going near that place. She thinks she can kick me out of my own house and then fill it up with hairy beasts, then let her do it. I hope she chokes on dog shit.”

  Gran got in the back of the Jeep.

  Aunt Peggy looked stunned. “What happened? What happened here?”

  Sheena took her by the arm. “Never mind, Mom. Let’s get you home. See ya, Mary.”

  “Yeah. See ya.”

  The Jeep drove away, and Mary got into her car and drove to work.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  Sheena stayed for a whole week, which was awfully kind of her. Sometimes Peggy forgot that her daughter had even moved away. When she bounced down the stairs for breakfast in the morning, it was just like old times. That is until Misery Guts showed up and dampened the mood.

  Both Peggy and Sheena were almost afraid of Gran. They knew she was temperamental, but they’d never seen her in such a foul mood. They put their heads together and tried to help lift her spirits.

  “Gran, I have to go to the mall today and stop in to see Riley. Would you like to go with Mom and me? We’ll buy you a treat.”

  “Pink peppermints?”

  “Sure.”

  “And scratch tickets.”

  “Of course.”

  “Well, I got nothin’ else to do.”

  With that gracious nod, they headed to the Mayflower Mall. Because it was slow going with Gran in tow, Peggy told Sheena to run ahead and see her friend, that they’d be along. They didn’t get too far. Gran wanted a cup of tea at Tim
Hortons and an apple fritter. Peggy sat with her and privately hankered for the apple fritter, but sipped her coffee with sweetener instead. She was down six pounds and felt good about it, but that didn’t stop her from resenting all the skinny people in her peripheral vision.

  When she was done, Peggy helped her mother out of the chair and then took her by the arm. She pointed at The Bay. “I have to run in and get some night cream.”

  “Do they have afternoon cream too? It’s all bullshit. Cream is cream.”

  Peggy steered her over to the Estée Lauder counter. Thank goodness Joan was working today.

  “Hi, Joan!”

  A lovely and very attractive blond woman with a British accent smiled at the two of them. “Hello, Peggy.”

  “Joan, this is my mother, Ethel.”

  “Nice to meet you, Ethel. Are you looking for anything in particular?”

  “I’m looking for sweet F-A. It’s this one who spends her money like there’s no tomorrow,” she said, jabbing her thumb at Peggy.

  Joan hid a smile. “Peggy is one of my best customers. Her skin is lovely; don’t you agree?”

  “I never noticed.”

  Peggy made a face at Joan. “Could I get some more Revitalizing Supreme, the Global Anti-Aging Crème?”

  “Of course.” She took out the box from under the counter. “I must tell you, we just got in our New Dimension Shape + Fill Expert Serum. You’ll love it. Just tap it under the eye and across the cheekbone, like this.” She demonstrated by tapping her ring finger across her face. Her nails were always an exquisite colour. If Peggy could put makeup on like Joan, maybe Ted would still be at home.

  “Sure, I’ll take that too.” Peggy handed Joan her credit card.

  “How much is all that?” Ethel asked.

  “None of your business.”

  “All ya need is Ivory soap. I’ve been using it for years.”

  Joan put the purchases in a bag and gave them a big smile. “Thank you, ladies. Enjoy the rest of your day.”

  “Bye, Joan. Thanks again.”

  They continued up the mall at a snail’s pace. “Mom, why don’t we buy you some new slacks and a top?”