After Life Read Online Free PDF

their apartment. It was so rancid and foul, she
    imagined some field animal had come into the house and died in the
    entryway. Perhaps it was a poisoned rat.
     
    The stench made her gag. She retreated quickly to the kitchen and got
    herself a cold glass of water. The cool liquid bubbled when it hit her
    stomach, but it seemed to clear away the stench that had lingered in her
    nostrils and throat.
     
    Poor Lee, she thought. He's going to walk right into that, whatever it
    was. She felt for the clock with the raised numbers and confirmed that
    he wouldn't be home for at least another hour or so. Then she returned
    to her dinner preparations, but kept a keen ear out for sounds of Lee's
    return. She was surprised when she heard him pull his car into the
    shale-stone driveway beside the house only fifteen minutes later.
     
    That was one thing they would definitely miss, she thought, a garage.
    This old house didn't even have a carport. Then she remembered that Lee
    had told her that old man Carter, although easily a man in his late
    eighties, still drove his 72 Chevy. He claims he's had that car for
    nearly twenty years, Lee had said, and never parked it in a garage. Of
    course, all he has on it is thirteen thousand miles. He only uses it to
    go to get what he needs. Can you imagine?
     
    The inside's immaculate, but the outside's quite rusted and faded. No
    dents or bumps to speak of, however. And the engine sounds like it will
    go on for another twenty years. Just like him, Lee had added, and
    Jessie had thought, Yes. Her initial meeting with the old man had left
    her confused. Lee had introduced her to him the morning after she had
    sensed they were living adjacent to a cemetery. The cemetery
    caretaker's voice cracked with age, and the skin around his hand felt
    wrinkled and dry, but he had La youthful firmness in his grip and she
    heard Something underneath the cracking, something buried just under the
    croaking, rasping voice that to her suggested youth.
     
    It was only one of those incomprehensible, intuitive things that Lee
    thought were symptoms of some mental disturbance lingering from the
    accident. Maybe he was right. She certainly couldn't put her feelings
    about old man Carter into words.
     
    Jessie had the table in the dining room set and every thing warmed and
    waiting in the kitchen when Lee entered the house. She turned toward
    the front door as soon as she heard him insert his key in their
    apartment door.
     
    Hi, he called out. She moved quickly to greet him.
     
    She had remained at the rear of the house ever since she had heard the
    footsteps and smelled that horrible stench, but as she made her way
    toward Lee she didn't smell it anymore. Lee embraced and kissed her.
    Something smells great, he said. You didn't smell anything horrible on
    the way in, then? she asked. Horrible? No. Why? She told him, the
    two of them still holding on to each other.
     
    No, he said again. Nothing like that. Maybe the old man had an
    exterminator in and they caught whatever it was and that was what you
    caught a whiff of. This house is probably old enough for that kind of
    problem. Don't forget, we're out in the country.
     
    I know. You told me the nearest neighbor was at least a good half mile
    away in either direction. But why would an exterminator park his
    vehicle so far from the house? I don't know, honey. Maybe you just
    didn't hear him get into the truck, Lee said, and released a heavy
    breath of stored tension from his lungs. She sensed it in the tightness
    of his muscles and even heard it in his voice.
     
    You don't sound as if you had a good day, Lee, she said when he released
    her and started toward their bedroom to change for dinner.
     
    I'll tell you all about it after I get out of these clothes.
     
    Why didn't you shower and change at school like you used to? she asked.
     
    I don't know. I just felt like getting out of there quickly today. I'll
    just be a few minutes, he added quickly, and continued on