Play@YSDC

”I don’t really recall, but then she spoke to Father Ortega, rather than me. Talking to some old clergyman about affairs of the heart don’t sit right with some of these youngsters,” replied Father Daigle.

"How often did she talk to him?" asks William.

”When she first got here, we’d see her on Sundays, with Billy and his mother, but as things started to go south with their marriage, she’d be here more frequently. I’m not sure she really knew anyone else her own age.”

Father Daigle looked at William carefully. ”Is there something behind these questions? Something you’re not telling me?”

"Well, Father, Billy Trahan's mother was making certain insinuations," says William.

Father Daigle’s gaze moved from William to Father Ortega and back again. ”So what ‘insinuations’ were those?”

"That she was seeing him for more than spiritual ministering," Alex puts it as delicately as he can. "Of course, Mrs.Trahan seems to dislike everyone, but it did strike us as a bit odd that Father Ortega acted as though he barely knew the younger Mrs. Trahan."

By no means a prude, Ivy nonetheless keeps her distance from the conversation, lest she embarrass Father Daigle. Instead, she cracks open the vestry door and peeks back out to Father Ortega, to see what he's up to.

"That's why we wanted to talk to you first," says William. "It's a delicate situation."

Father Daigle’s studied his visitors for a long moment, then looked through the open door. ”Father Ortega, would you join us, please?”

”How can I help?” said the younger padre with a smile, as he entered the vestry.

Alex has a bad feeling about all this. Father Ortega would deny the accusations, and valid or not they'd lose their most sympathetic contacts in the town.It wasn't as though they even cared if he and Billy's wife were having improper relations (though he would certainly frown upon it.) they were trying to figure out if Father Ortega was corrupted some way into the cult. They would have to be very careful here.

"We have some questions about Billy Trahan's wife," says William, watching his reaction.

I already succeeded at a Psychology roll for him, 33 vs. a skill of 67%.

Father Ortega smile faltered as he glanced around the room, taking in the looks of his visitor’s. He frowned.

”What about her?” he asked.

"Billy's mother--a thoroughly unpleasant woman if you'll forgive me saying so-- mentioned that you and her spoke often. We've discovered evidence that she may have been struck with the same obsession and fear of snakes that that poor oil worker was before his untimely demise. We were wondering if she mentioned anything about these concerns to you when you both spoke."

Father Ortega sighed with exasperation, then looked at Father Daigle for a moment.

”Please appreciate that I must observe the confidences of those to whom we minister.” he said. ”But I can tell you that Florence - Mrs Trahan junior - told me that her mother-in-law told that her son had married beneath her. She said nothing she did was good enough. That certainly didn’t help with marital harmony.”

"Understood, Father," says William. "She had nothing good to say about her daughter-in-law. I was hoping for a more unbiased perspective."

”Of Billy Trahan’s mother?”asked Father Ortega. He looked about, then said bluntly, ”She’s a widow who’s been on her own too long and Billy is her only child. She claims to want grandchildren, though I doubt she’d know what to do with them if any arrived, but thought that Florence was too fly-by-night to have any.”

“I dare say they would have happened if they’d been left to their own devices, but Mrs Trahan insisted on interfering, picking up on anything she didn’t think was good enough until Florence had had enough and went back New Orleans.”

She’s her own - and Billy’s - worst enemy. Florence is a nice girl, but she wouldn’t let her be.”

"Our main concern was that the only verse Florence had marked in her bible concerns snakes. Combine this with the oil workers who were and are obsessed with them, and we feared she may have been touched by the same mania. But if in your counseling with her she never mentioned anything about them, perhaps the 'vipers' she feared were a more human type. You don't recall her ever mentioning anything that led you to believe she had an unhealthy phobia of snakes?."

"Although given what happened to Brian Tucker, such a fear might be healthy," says William. "Was she still here when that happened?"

"Perhaps someone else has been talking to them - filling their heads with talk of serpents." Ivy muses.

"Between the two of you, as priests of this town you must know whom confides in who among your congregation."

”She was here when Brian Tucker was here,” replied Father Ortega. ”I don’t think she had anything to do with him, though, so I’d be surprised if the two things were related. It could be a simple as someone moving from the city and finding the countryside full of creatures she wasn’t prepared for.”

He looked at Father Daigle, who shook his head. ”As clergymen, we are privy to any number of confidential matters that we cannot discuss without our parishioners express permission. I can tell you though, that no-one has raised any concerns about snakes with us,” continued Father Ortega.