The provided text contains excerpts from the novel Afterlife by Douglas Clegg, a work of horror, suspense, and dark fantasy that explores themes of psychic abilities and the supernatural. The narrative follows Julie Hutchinson as she grapples with the fallout of her husband Hut's murder, including the discovery of strange carvings on his body and the subsequent disappearance of his remains from the morgue. Interwoven with Julie's investigation and grief are the peculiar behaviors of her children, Matt and Livy, who exhibit possible psychic talents, and the introduction of a TV psychic named Michael Diamond, who was involved in childhood testing for "PSI" abilities. Additionally, the source includes a brief, ominous excerpt from another Clegg work, the novel The Words, which focuses on a character confronting an unseen, sound-sensitive entity after a crisis.
