She went back to bed and curled up in a fetal position and tried to go back to sleep. She knew she should shower and dress but she didn't care. She lay staring at the wall trying not to think at all. It was well into the afternoon when by sheer will power she forced herself from her bed. She looked out the dining room window to see if the mailman had gone yet. The flag was down so she went out to get the mail.
One envelope was so large the mailman had to bend it to get it in the mailbox. The return address was for the assistance office. The applications she'd requested. The other envelope was from the Department of Labor. She walked slowly back the driveway tearing open the smaller envelope which contained a form she needed to get filled out by the doctor.
She tossed it on the table and sat down to tear open the large envelope. It was an extensive application for monetary assistance, food stamps and medical assistance; and an application for LIHEAP; a form to take to the doctor and a letter explaining what she needed to do. At the bottom was an appointment at the assistance office for 11 a.m. Wednesday. Included was a list of the paperwork she would need to take along to prove she was needy.
She sighed deeply as she reached for her purse for the card her doctor had given her. She called and asked for an appointment preferably on Wednesday morning.
"I may not be able to do that," the receptionist said. "Can you hold on a minute. I have another call. Mondays are always busy."
Sherry sat tapping her foot impatiently. She'd never liked being stuck on hold, but the woman came back in short order. "Talk about perfect timing," she said. "That was a cancelation for nine o'clock Wednesday."
"I'll take it." One thing taken care of. She began filling out the application. Proof of income. Sherry laughed. "How can I take proof of income when I don't have one." She had only the statement from the dollar store's main office explaining why she was dismissed. She forced herself to work through it. Normally she was a wiz at paperwork but now she had to concentrate on something that seemed so complicated.
She was astonished at all the paperwork required. Utility bills. She didn't have even one yet. She had the receipt from the gas company but that included hookup. She also had a form from the phone company listing the costs each month. She had nothing from the electric company except her copy that the man gave her when he turned on her electricity. She didn't even know what time of the month she would receive her bill. She owned her home and had no mortgage but she had no proof of taxes. Perhaps she could get that information from Uncle Roy.
Proof of bank account. She picked up the phone and called Jan. "I need a letter of proof of my bank account as it now stands so I can sign up for LIHEAP," she explained.
"Easy as pie," Jan said. "I'll drop it off on the way home. You sound like you have a cold."
"Just put it between the doors like you do the paper. Thanks for giving me the paper. I've applied for several jobs from it."
"You are welcome. Is there anything else?"
"No. I'm going back to bed after I get the paperwork done." Sherry didn't want Jan to see her like she was. Let her think she had a cold.
****
"I talked to Sherry today," Jan said as she set Frank's salad in front of him.
"Where?" Mark asked.
"On the phone while sitting in my office. She said she needed a statement of account so she can apply for LIHEAP. She sounded like she has a cold."
"From living in that cold house," Mark reasoned sourly. "What kind of dressing is this?"
"Santa Fe. It's hot. She could have been crying," Jan countered.
"Or both," Frank added. "I'm going to take care of that cold house business when Drew delivers our oil on Thursday. If we don't get our tank filled we'll be living in a cold house. And if I don't get diesel fuel I won't be able to combine those beans."
"I'll pay for Sherry's," Mark offered. "That's the least I can do. I'm going to call her. I can't wait until she's down sick."
"You sit right down there and finish your supper," Jan ordered. "I don't want to have to wait to do the dishes because you've got something else on your mind. A few more minutes won't make that much difference."
"Better do as Mom tells you or she'll get out the wet noodle," Frank advised.
"I don't need any smart mouthing from you, Mr. Blakely."
Mark grinned. "You better take her to bed. She's getting grouchy."
After he finished his meal, Mark went up to his room and called Sherry. She must have been sitting at the table because she answered immediately. "Hello."
"Sherry?" She hung up. Afraid that he wanted to tell her it was over between them, she didn't answer when the phone rang again. When it stopped ringing, she picked it up and dialed Rose's number.
Angie answered. "Mom, it's for you. I think it's Sherry."
"Hi, Sherry. How are you doing?"
"Oh, I'm okay. I'm thinking about applying for work at the hospital and want to know if I can use your name as reference."
"Of course you can."
"Thank you. It's difficult to have references when I've lived here less than a month."
"How are things between you and Mark?"
"They aren't. He found someone else."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. I guess I kept him waiting too long to make up my mind. You win some and you lose some."
"What did you decide?"
"That I love him. That's a moot point now. Thanks about the reference. I'll talk to you later."
"If you need anything..."
Sherry hung up before she started to cry again.
After she rang off, she dialed Dawn's cell phone number. It went to voice mail so she disconnected without leaving a message. She was sure Dawn wouldn't mind her using her name for reference. She could also use Dawn's parents. And Andy, owner of the restaurant where she worked in Newark.
She dialed Uncle Roy's number. She wanted to tie up the phone until Mark gave up trying to call her. "Uncle Roy, I need a copy of this year's property taxes so I can sign up for LIHEAP. I need to get oil in the tank."
He didn't sound very enthusiastic about her request. "I suppose Gail could make copies on her printer. You'll have to come and get them though."
"Can't you bring them out? I wouldn't need to sign up for LIHEAP if you hadn't emptied the tank."
"I didn't do anything illegal," he protested and hung up.
A few minutes later Aunt Gail called her back. "Sherry, I'll make those copies and bring them out. I haven't seen you since you were four." It sounded like squabbling in the background. "The boys want to come along to meet you. Derek and Paul weren't even born when your mother took you away."
"I'll turn on the outside light."
Mark stood at the window nursing a beer when he saw the glow on Sherry's driveway that said she'd turned on the outside light. A short time later the lights of vehicle turned in and he could see in the light that it was a minivan. A frown creased his brow as he tried to imagine who it could be. Because of the placement of the garage he couldn't see who got out and went to the door. With a deep sigh he turned back to the test papers he was correcting.
Gail told Sherry, "Brian couldn't come because he's wearing a GPS bracelet on his ankle. He can only go to work and to church. He asked me to give you this." She handed Sherry a folded paper sealed with a smiley face sticker. It was an apology for breaking into her house.
Gail introduced the other two boys but they didn't stay long after Gail gave her the copy of the tax receipt.
"I need to know where Gram bought her oil," Sherry said. "I'll have to have proof that they'll accept me as a customer."
"Fetterman's. That's where we get our oil, too." Gail and the boys went out to the van leaving Sherry alone. She almost called Mark back just to ease her loneliness. She reconsidered. She dreaded the time when he would tell her they were through.
Her world was falling apart around her and she didn't know what to do. She didn't know how to stop the aching in her heart. She wondered how long it would
be before she could think about Mark without crying.
She finally made herself a cup of chamomile tea and carried it to the den where she sat in front of the fireless fireplace. She saw no choice but to get the oil tank filled. It would leave her desperately short of money but she already knew that, even if she was eligible for fuel assistance, she would not get it until November more than two weeks away. She would hold out as long as she could. Maybe she could find somewhere to buy some wood.
The cold finally drove her to her bed though she didn't fall asleep until the wee hours of the morning. She was awakened by Mitzi sticking her nose in her face. She pushed the kitten away but she came right back. Reluctantly Sherry turned over and looked at the clock. "It's almost ten o'clock." It was way past time to feed Mitzi. No wonder the kitten was so persistent.
She pushed herself to her feet and shuffled off to the kitchen. Mitzi was there ahead of her waiting for her meal. Remembering her lesson from the previous morning she made toast and tea for her breakfast.
The last thing she felt like doing was making a trip to the Laundromat but the basket in the bathroom was full. It was almost noon when she backed the Oldsmobile out of the garage and pointed it toward town. When she returned with the wet clothes Mitzi pounced on her foot as soon as she stepped in the breezeway. She decided to let the kitten outside with her while she hung up the clothes. "Come along, kitty," she called as she opened the door to the back porch.
She glanced at the clock when she went back to the kitchen. 2:05 p.m. She felt dizzy and weak so she guessed she best eat something. Not sure how her stomach would react to food, she heated a can of chicken noodle soup and got herself a cup of tea. As she ate, she wondered how she would go on without Mark. She would continue to see him from time to time because he lived only a few hundred yards away. She didn't think she could bear it.
She pulled her tablet toward her and wrote that day's date. Then she began to write: I, Sherry Lynn Winnette, do this day set down my last will and testament.
Through the window she could see the mailman stop at the Blakely mailbox. After he stopped at hers, she went out and walked along the road and left the envelope in the neighboring mailbox. That was taken care of. It was with extreme sadness that she contemplated taking the coward's way out. She stopped and took the mail from her mailbox and walked with a heavy heart to her door.
She shuffled through the mail as she went through the breezeway. Mitzi greeted her as if she'd been gone all day. What would she do about Mitzi?
The mail contained applications she asked for, a letter of rejection, and a phone bill. "I'll have to pay that right away."
The return address on the last envelope was Bayshore Law Office. Sherry frowned. Why would she be getting something from Bayshore's? She filled a glass with water and took a pain pill. She tore open the envelope and took another pain pill. She took the folded paper from the envelope and stared at the image on the paper--Mark kissing a blond woman. Who could be so cruel as to plunge a knife into her already hurting heart?
She fumbled for another pill as she read the notation at the bottom. "Ha! Ha! You lose! I win! Elena!"
Rage swelled within her and she hauled back the glass in her hand spilling the water on the floor. With all the strength she possessed she propelled the glass across the room to crash against the basement door sending shards of glass flying through the air. Mitzi made a gray streak for the breezeway.
"Never!" Sherry screamed. "I'll never let that bitch have the last laugh!" She grabbed her favorite blue mug from the counter and drew back to send it after the glass. Trembling with fury, she stopped herself and set the cup on the counter. Maybe she was her mother's daughter after all. Breaking up housekeeping was something her mother would do when she let her anger take control.
Sherry walked over and closed the breezeway door so Mitzi couldn't get into the kitchen. She leaned against the door and fought her anger down until it solidified into a tight knot in the core of her being. She decided then and there she would not give up Mark without a fight. She better not ever meet up with Elena Bayshore or she would get more than a bloody nose. And whoever that blonde in the picture was, she better steer clear unless she knew more about karate that Sherry did.
"The Karate Kid from Newark is back!" she told her kitchen. Come hell or high water she was going to win Mark Blakely back.
She'd just finished sweeping up the broken glass and opened the kitchen door for Mitzi when the phone rang. She answered it hoping it was Elena but it was Frank.
"Are you okay, Sherry? This envelope you left in the mailbox scared me. You aren't planning to harm yourself, are you?"
"When hell freezes over," she shot back. "I wouldn't give Elena the satisfaction." She knew she'd have to give Frank an explanation. "It's just a precaution in case something happens to me. Mom would take over and those diaries would go to the highest bidder."
"I'll be over to talk to you tomorrow."
"I won't be home. I have an early doctor's appointment and some other appointments. I might as well do my shopping and put my application in at the hospital while I'm down in Lewistown. I'll call when I get home but it will probably be late. I'm sorry I gave you a scare."
"What should I tell Mark?"
"Nothing. I'll call him tomorrow night."
"What did you decide?"
"I'll tell him."
Chapter 20
Dr. Brighton looked over the forms Sherry brought her. "I am going to send this form back that you are not physically, mentally or emotionally ready to find a job."
"But how will I live. I have utility bills to pay."
"That's why I'm going to fill this form out the same way so you can get assistance for those things. I don't want you working until the end of November. That's when I want you to come back. She filled out the welfare form and handed it back to Sherry. "I must send the other form directly to the Department of Labor."
Sherry wasn't happy when she walked to her car. She had a half notion to just drive home but she really needed the energy assistance. She had almost an hour to wait. She was too tense to just sit in the car so she decided a walk was in order. The day was sunny but a chilly north wind made her pull her jacket collar up around her ears.
As she strolled along the sidewalk a sign with big red letters caught her eye. Anytime she saw the word FREE she stopped to check it out. The words on the sign in the window of a beauty salon proclaimed: FREE HAIRCUT To anyone donating their hair to make wigs for cancer patients. Sherry went inside. "Does that sign mean what it says?" she asked the beautician.
"It certainly does. I'll be with you as soon as I'm done here."
Sherry checked her watch. She had less than an hour. "I have an appointment at eleven."
The woman glanced at the clock on the wall. "We have plenty of time. There you go, Thelma. All done."
After Thelma left, the woman motioned Sherry to sit in her chair while she swept up the gray locks on the floor. "I'm Susan Banks," the stylist said. "You have pretty hair." Sherry already had her hair in a ponytail. Susan braided it and snipped it away. "How do you want your hair now?"
"Short," Sherry replied.
"Do tell. I mean what style."
"Whatever you think is appropriate. But nothing radical."
Sue stood back and studied Sherry's face. "A little heart shaped with freckles. It looks like someone sprinkled cinnamon across your cheeks and nose. How about a pixie cut? It would suit you just fine."
"Fine with me."
Sue snipped and clipped as Sherry watched in the mirror. Sue was a talker and always engaged her customers in conversation but Sherry seemed reticent. "How old are you?"
"Nineteen."
"I would have guessed sixteen. Do you have a boyfriend?"
"He found someone else."
"You aren't going to give up that easy are you?"
"No. I'm going to try to win him back."
"A word of advice. You can't do it in sweatshirts and jeans. You need so
me sexy clothes that will get his attention." She brushed away the hair from the back of Sherry's neck. "Dye your hair. You'd look good as a blond."
Sherry's trip to the assistance office wasn't as successful. She left very dissatisfied with the results. She would receive little help from them until she depleted her savings then she would get just $205 a month.
She drove to the bank and withdrew fifty dollars. That should be enough to buy clothes to entice Mark back into her life especially if she found some good bargains at the thrift store.
"Two dollars a bag today," the woman at the counter said when Sherry walked through the door.
"Good," Sherry said with a grin. "I can use a break." She picked up a bag and headed for the clothing racks. She spotted a burnt orange silky blouse with short sleeves. When she looked for a size tag she noticed how the light gleamed off it with colors shifting from dark orange to brown. She folded it and put it in her bag. She needed something to go with the silky blouse so she searched through the skirts. She took down a light brown faux suede mini skirt that was her size. She held it in front of her. "That won't cover much." She knew she'd never wear it in public but maybe she could wear it to get Mark's attention.
"A pair of shoes." Her sling backs were getting too worn. A pair of black suede flats were perfect. She found a pair of knee high brown boots with spike heels. She didn't even know how to walk in high heels but they went in her bag.
From the thrift store she went to WalMart. She went first to the office to apply for work. Then she headed for the candy aisle where she picked up two bags of candy kisses. Two large bags of plain chips went into her cart. She was tired of canned meat. Looking through the meat department, she found a packet with one top-of-round steak. She put it in her cart and checked out of the food section.
She took those purchases to her car and went back in to find the cosmetic section of the store. The array of hair dyes was overwhelming so she checked prices. She chose a brassy hue of blond and moved on to the women's underwear. She wanted a bra and panty set with a leopard print. She could find none her size but then she saw something that she liked better than the leopard print--zebra print. And it was her size.
No Plans for Love Page 19