The Internet Murders www.silvaredigonda.ca / amazon

Mrs. Delany did not like cats, especially in the house and never on a table. Fr. Francis was not a real saint, though he seemed to be, so many times. However, she had not heard Fr. Francis laugh in such a long time. God had sent Holy Terror to help him and who was she to argue with God. She would have to find out what they ate. In the meantime, there was some tuna …. She found an old soup bowl that was never used and poured some milk into it. She slowly bent to carefully place it on the floor. Fr. Francis moved quickly to help her. “Please let me help.” He took the milk bowl from Mrs. Delany and placed it at the entrance to the kitchen from his room. He then retrieved the tuna dish and placed it next to the milk. “Please allow me Mrs. Delany; it is much easier for me to bend.” Mrs. Delany smiled. Her sight wasn’t very good anymore, and it was difficult for her to bend, but she could manage. She knew that the Holy Terror was good for Fr. Francis. He seemed happier than he had been since they killed poor Fr. Brown. Holy Terror peeked around the corner from Fr. Francis’ bedroom and cautiously went to taste the milk. The cat devoured the tuna in no time and then just sat there grinning. Holy Terror knew this was now home. There was a ring at the door and Mrs. Delany went to answer it. She saw the two uniformed policemen outside and she welcomed them in. They trailed behind her into the kitchen, where Francis was seated. Tomasso spoke in his bellowing voice, breaking the silence in the room. “Francis, this here is my partner Philip.” Mrs. Delany thought that the shorter, fat man was rude “calling Francis by his first name only, without giving him the proper respect he deserved. That was until she saw Fr. Francis smile broadly, welcoming them both to sit down. What a strange day it was! Fr. Francis was getting better. What with a cat in the house now that she would have to tolerate, and the shorter fat policeman that Father seemed to like, things would probably get better. Mrs. Delany silently thanked God for answering her prayers. She wanted God to hold Fr. Francis in his arms and protect him. She prayed this every morning and every night and sometimes she prayed for it during the day. “To!” He shortened Tomasso’s name using a long vowel to pronounce the shorter version. “It’s been a while!” “Yeah! How about some food? You got any food here?” He looked down at the saucer of milk. “You gotta cat?” “Mrs. Delany, I want you to meet Tomasso. He and I went to grade school and high school together. Please bring out some food and we will all have something to eat!” Excerpt From: Silva Redigonda. “The Internet Murders.” www.silvaredigonda.ca and Amazon (for your signed copy)