Her Yearning for Blood by Tim Greaton Read Free Book Online

go of Jesse’s hand before staggering off the sidewalk. Laughing heartily, he struggled back up and attempted to walk along the curb like a little kid. He took only two steps before losing his balance and staggered back down to the street.
    “It won’t be long before I move back to-to the apartment.”
    Jesse nodded. The chilly breeze made his damp underwear feel cold and uncomfortable.
    “No, serious,” his Dad repeated, swinging his arms wildly as he tried to stay on the curbing. “I’m coming back. Your Mom loves me, y’know . We’re family, and families live under the same-same house.”
    Jesse faked a weak smile and was thankful his father dropped the subject and stepped back up to walk in the middle of the sidewalk. He still seemed to have trouble keeping his balance, but at least they were walking faster.
    Jesse and his Mom lived in an apartment up over a Laundromat where, if Jesse stood on the edge of his bed and peeked over the two-story building across the street, he could make out the very tip of McDonald’s yellow arches. It didn’t take them long to cover the short distance but his father was breathing heavily by the time they made it to the front door. It seemed not long ago that his father could easily have run the same distance. Something was very wrong.
    “Karen,” his father said, a little loudly into the intercom. He waited for only a second before pounding on the button again. “Karen, we’re back. Open the fucking door!”
    “Okay, I heard you,” Jesse heard his mother reply.
    The door buzzed, and his Dad shoved it open.
    “Bye, Dad,” Jesse said, rushing past and bolting up the stairs. He was already in his bedroom when he heard his parents fighting again. His father as usual, wanted to come in and talk. His mother refused to let him in and so they yelled at each other through the door.
    Instead of changing his damp underwear, Jesse quickly crawled into bed. Then trying to drown their voices, he pulled his blanket over his head and began to cry.
     
    * * *

 
     
    2
     
    Under-Heaven
     
    …sometime in 1945
     
     
    AT first , she didn’t say I was dead. Instead, I heard her whisper, “You’ve moved on.”
    I had absolutely no recollection of anything before this Moment. It was as if I had magically appeared before her. She was a heavyset woman in her fifties, or so I guessed. She had a cheerful smile, and a graying stack of brunette hair was tied in a bun at the top of her head. Her loose, white dress with a high open collar flowed freely below her calves. She wore white stockings that barely covered her ankles, and white shoes to match. She reminded me of a nurse. We were standing amidst immaculately cut, green grass in front of a small white house.  A bay window protruded from a wall on the left side of a small porch. The white house was manned by a single unadorned white door and a set of five white steps led to it from the surrounding green lawn. Beautiful flowers of every imaginable color decked the lawn.
    I wondered how I had gotten here and who this woman was. The question made me uneasy. Although a part of me longed for the answer, I was not sure I wanted to know.
    “Are you able to talk?” she asked.
    My thoughts in a jumble, I nodded.
    “You may take your time, Nathaniel,” she said softly. “There’s a lot to get used to. For now, let me show you around your new home.”
    Uncertainty, writ large on my face, I hesitantly, accepted her firm grip. Surprisingly for her size, she seemed gentle and warm. Although I was all of ten years, it seemed a bit odd that I should be left alone with a stranger. With a mind full of confusing questions, I meekly followed her up the stairs. Then I froze.  Inside the house, between two wooden chairs, was a pure white lobster trap. Unspeakable fear gnawed at me from behind my neck, leaving me shivering like a leaf. I had no choice but to follow her into the house.
    “I’m your grandmother,” she declared as we entered a small but