PET SEMATARY - STEPHEN KING

Beginning:
Here are some people who have written books, telling what they did and why they did those things:

John Dean. Henry Kissinger. Adolph Hitler. Caryl Chessman. Jeb Magruder. Napoleon. Talleyrand. Disraeli. Robert Zimmeran, also known as Bob Dylan. Locke. Charlton Heston. Errol Flynn. The Ayatollah Khomeini. Gandhi. Charles Olson. Charles Colson. A Victorian Gentleman. Dr. X.

Most people also believe that God has written a Book, or Books, telling what He did and why--at least to a degree--He did those things, and since most of these people also believe that humans were made in the image of God, then He also may be regarded as a person... or, more properly, as a Person.

Here are some people who have not written books, telling what they did... and what they saw:

The man who buried Hitler. The man who performed the autopsy on John Wilkes Booth. The man who embalmed Elvis Presley. The man who embalmed--badly, most undertakers say--Pope John XXIII. The twoscore undertakers who cleaned up Jonestown, carryinb body bags, spearing paper cups with those spikes custodians carry in city parks, waving away the flies. The man who cremated William Holden. The man who encased the body of Alexander the Great in gold so it would not rot. The men who mummified the Pharaohs.

Death is a mystery, and burial is a secret.

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It was around one'clock that afternoon when Church came back like the cat in the nursery rhyme.

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He played solitaire that night until long after midnight.
He was just dealing a fresh hand when he heard the back door open.
What you buy is what you own, and sooner or later what you own will come back to you, Louis Creed thought.
He did not turn around but only looked at his cards as the slow, gritting footsteps approached. He was the queen of spades. He put his hand on it.
The steps ended directly behind him.
Silence.
A cold hand fell on Louis's shoulder. Rachel's voice grating, full of dirt.
"Darling," it said.
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