Canyon Secret (37 page)

Steve sobbed again as he pulled the blanket up over Tomas’ body, “He told me it was for his niece. I guess he called her Butterfly.”

“So he never married?”

“Oh ya, he was happily married for a long time. His wife died a few years back. She couldn’t have kids, but it didn’t matter. His niece’s kids were like their kids, I guess. They sure love him anyway.”

Steve wheeled Tomas’ body inside to the infirmary. As he removed the blanket, a faded photograph drifted to the floor. Steve picked up the photo and smiled as he looked at two older men, two women, and a smiling, young man. The other men and women in the photo also smiled. This must have been one of his favorite days. He read the aged inscription on the back, “Polebridge, North Fork, August 1952. Dad, Uncle John, Hannah, her mother, and me.”

Patrick “Paddy” Lee was born and raised in Dublin Gulch in Butte, Montana. While living his adult life in Kalispell, Montana, Lee continues to remain closely connected to his Butte roots and values the diversity of the people and the history of Butte. The loss of the Butte neighborhoods to the Berkley Pit mine and the monumental construction of the Hungry Horse Dam are of special interest and significance to Lee. This is his second novel.

His third novel titled, "Power Switch" is scheduled for release in July 2012.