Hometown Haunts by Poppy Nwosu

Author:Poppy Nwosu
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: book, YFD, YAF026000
ISBN: 9781743058879
Publisher: Wakefield Press
Published: 2021-11-01T00:00:00+00:00

Euryhaline

MARGOT McGOVERN

I won my first swimming race years before I laid eyes on a pool. Nan says I’m precocious. Mum calls it ambitious. Truth is, there aren’t any competition-size pools on the Yorke Peninsula. In Innesburgh we learn to swim in the sea. But even among our community of fishing families and oyster farmers, I always had an unusual affinity for the water, and after I became the youngest person to swim across the bay at high tide, a rumour went around that I was part mer.

Perhaps that’s why the Milford pool unnerves me. From my dorm-room window, the water sits so flat and achingly blue inside the glass-walled swim centre that it hardly seems real. It’s an intelligent pool, according to the school website. Capable of chemical regulation and equipped with cutting-edge performance monitoring systems.

‘Bit of a step up from the old Innesburgh tidal pool,’ Mum says, dropping my duffle bag on the floor to join me at the window and pulling me in for one of her bone-crushing hugs. ‘I’m proud of you, Tam.’

I squeeze her back and catch sight of something dark jetting beneath the pool’s surface. The shape resolves itself into a girl as she rises for air. She hasn’t bothered with a swimming cap. Her dark hair moves behind her, fanning then slickening over her pale back. My pulse ticks up as I see how fast she moves.

‘Tamsin?’

Mum steps back, and I realise I’m gripping her shirt.

‘Sorry,’ I mutter, letting go.

‘Will you be alright here?’ She scrutinises my face and a worry-line creases the smooth skin between her eyes. I force myself to take deeper breaths. Steady.

‘If Milford’s a bad fit, you can always come home.’

Part of me wants to take her up on the offer, climb back into our dusty ute and make the three-hour journey back to Innesburgh. But I already know what waits for me there, and the Milford scholarship is the escape ticket I’ve been working for. So I smile, bright as I can manage, as the girl in the pool executes a perfect turn in the corner of my eye. ‘I’ll be fine.’

‘I have something for you.’ Mum fusses in her overlarge handbag. I cross my fingers for extra pocket money, but she presents me with a caterers’ box of salt.

I stare at it, confused. ‘Thanks—?’

‘For protection. Remember when you were little, I’d pour a line of salt along your windowsill before bed—?’

‘To keep out ghosts from the wrecks. It’s been years since I had those dreams, Mum.’

‘I know.’ Mum takes a final, appraising glance around my room. ‘Just something to remind you of home.’

***

After Mum leaves, I want to swim. My limbs are restless from the long car ride, and I’m keen to test the pool before the first squad training tomorrow afternoon, but the dark-haired girl is still doing laps, staking her claim with each slicing stroke. So I shelve the idea and set about unpacking. My dorm room is bisected by an invisible line, identical furnishings on either side: narrow bed, wardrobe, desk and a nightstand that doubles as a locker for valuables.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.