"That's a good boy" the old lady rasped weakly in a doting voice as she sent her coal black puppy running into the garden. She smiled faintly as she watched her dog romp happily in the garden, rooting in the bushes for hidden treasures.  Sunlight piercing through the patches in the foliage of the surrounding trees gleamed off the unusually scarlet skins of healthy ripe tomatoes. Whincing slightly at the twinging pain in her back, she leaned heavily on her walking stick as she sunk gingerly to her knees in the soil. Gnarled and age mottled fingers reached forth from grey robes and tenderly caressed one fleshy fruit. Plucking it from the stem, she bit into the skin. Swallowing slowly with ruby coloured juices dribbling down the corners of her lips, she shuddered as she felt a wave ran through her body for a few seconds. With a sigh of satisfaction, she brushed off the soil from her robe and pulled herself to her feet without the aid of her stick. She turned sharply to her right as a rustle in the undergrowth caught her ears. Amused, she watched as her dog trotted proudly up to her with his tail wagging rapidly. His rear sticking up in the air, the puppy lowered his chest onto the ground and proudly presented his prize.  "What's that in your mouth boy".She reached down and pried the decaying finger, too small to belong to a human adult, from the mouth of the dog. The dog whined as she tossed the finger under the maggot ridden roots of one of the plants. She smiled and patted his head. "That's a good boy"