Free B005HF54UE EBOK by Willy Vlautin Page B

him from where she stood. She walked into the bathroom where there was an old full size tub, a sink, and toilet. The paint on the walls was bubbled, and loose linoleum sat on top of nearly rotten floor boards. There was mildew on the bath and sink and it all smelled of urine.
    ‘I’m not going to pay for a cleaning deposit,’ the girl said as strongly as she could. ‘I’ll take the place, but it hasn’t been cleaned. I can barely go into the bathroom it smells so bad.’
    ‘It’s been cleaned,’ the landlord said and turned to her.
    ‘I don’t think so,’ she said and walked to the kitchen area. There was a half size refrigerator, a sink, and a kitchen table and stove. She opened the refrigerator. Inside was a package of rotten hamburger, a carton of milk, condiments, and a few Chinese take out boxes.
    ‘Did you clean this out, too?’
    He walked over and coughed when the odor came to him.
    ‘Let me plug it back in. At least we can try to freeze the smell.’
    He found the plug and put it into the wall socket.
    ‘Look,’ he said, ‘I’ll cut out the cleaning deposit and knock half the rent off the first month if you take it the way it is, today. That’s my offer, take it or leave it.’
    ‘All utilities are paid?’
    ‘Yes,’ he said and coughed again.
    ‘It’s three hundred dollars a month?’
    The man nodded.
    ‘You can have a phone here?’
    ‘There’s a wall jack.’
    ‘I’ll take it then,’ she said and opened her purse. She took out seven hundred and fifty dollars and handed it to him. ‘This is for three months then. I’ll need a receipt.’
    ‘Good,’ the landlord said and took the money and left the room. He came back minutes later with a handwritten receipt and the keys. ‘There’s a dumpster’, he said, ‘behind the building. It’s for all the tenants to use. You might want to start at the fridge. I also have a newer mattress in the storage room. If you want it let me know.’
    ‘I guess I’ll take the newer one then,’ she said, smiling, and the man nodded.
    The girl followed him out and walked down to the bus station where she’d left her things and took a cab back to the apartment. The new bed was there when she entered the room, the old one sitting outside leaned against the wall. She dropped her things inside, then went back to the cab she’d kept waiting, and told the driver to take her to a K-Mart. There she bought new sheets for the bed, a couple of bath towels, three gallons of white paint, a roller and brush. She also bought a reading lamp, cleaning supplies, and a set of pots and pans.
    She called another cab from the store and the driver took her back to the Emerald Arms. She left the packages on the floor, then left again and walked down Fourth Street to the Salvation Army. She bought a few plates, glasses, and utensils. She bought a blanket and a faded comforter. There was an old radio from the 1960s, and she took that as well. On the way back she stopped at a liquor store, bought a six pack of beer, a bottle of water, and People magazine.
    She emptied the refrigerator first, then plugged in the radio and set it on the kitchen table. She found a country station, put on a pair of rubber gloves, filled the sink with hot water and soap, and began to clean. She started with the kitchen and refrigerator. She wiped down the counter and the cabinets. She sprayed down the fridge, then put the beer and a box of baking soda inside it. She scrubbed the floors.
    The bathroom she sprayed down with disinfectant and scrubbed it clean. She put her towels on a rack, and put her toiletries in the mirrored cabinet. It was almost evening by then and she began to feel weak, and she stopped and took a beer from the fridge and opened it. She sat at the table and began thumbing through People magazine.
    When she felt rested enough, she washed and put away her new cookware. She borrowed a vacuum from the landlord, ran it over the carpet, and returned it to him. Then she called