CHAPTER FIFTEEN

The alarm jarred Suzie from sleep, and she shook. The blue and white patterns on the comforter swirled while her insides raced like an engine on full throttle. Instinctively, she pulled her knees to her chest and scrunched under the spread, but it all stopped. Shock filled her veins and she straightened. Was she still alive? Nothing trembled. No excess energy rushed through her. The weakness hadn’t swept over her. She pulled her arm out from under the covers and pinched it. Hope soared to Suzie’s heart like a rocket. She bounced out of bed.

She wanted to shout, Dr. Granger’s treatments work, to the rafters as she walked to the bathroom and brushed her teeth. What a glorious day, the best she’d awakened to in months, but she needed to settle down and focus on work. She dried her face then grabbed her swimsuit. The team needed U.S. swimmers. If only she had time to call Cammie now.

She tugged on her suit, wiggled into a pair of Bermuda shorts and a t-shirt, and glanced at the clock on her nightstand. She hurried down the stairs and out the door without a second to spare.

Within twenty minutes, she arrived at the Destin Community Club. Harold’s two-door yellow coupe sat in the parking lot. He charged out and headed toward her as the white bus pulled up, its brakes squealing. The door swung open, and the chattering kids bounded off, racing toward the playground.

Harold stared at the children with wide eyes. “Stop running. You’re gonna get hurt.” He rubbed a handkerchief over his thin, balding, black hair.

His unease ratchetted Suzie’s nerves a notch. Would the children sense his anxiety? She caught up to the swimmers. “Six-and-unders. At the pool.”

Harold flailed his arms. “Everyone else sit in a circle. We’re going to play doggie doggie where’s your bone.”

Suzie gasped. Did Harold have a clue?

Bob and Jay fast-stepped up to him. “If you want, we’ll start a game of ultimate Frisbee with the older kids.”

Suzie sighed with relief as Harold wiped his forehead. “Thank you,” he said.

The five and six year olds rushed to Suzie, huffing and puffing. Joey punched Melissa on the arm.

“Suzie. Make him stop,” she whined.

“Joey, cut it out.”

“I’s jest clownin’ around.” Joey cast his gaze to the ground and rubbed his foot in a circle.

“I know, but someone could get hurt. We have lots of work to do. I’m going to teach you to dive.” Without Matt, the youngsters seemed scattered like kids in a game of hide-and-seek with no home base. The sooner they busied their little hands the better.

“Dive?” Joey jumped back.

“Yes. Stay with Harold and behave until it’s time for your group.”

The youngest swimmers sat on the bleachers, stomping their feet, rattling the footing planks, and laughing.

“All right. Everyone to the deep end of the pool.”

“I wanna go first.” Rico, her demonstrator, puffed out his chest.

Anna rolled her eyes. “You always say that.”

“Stop fussing.” Suzie spoke with as much harshness as she could, trying to bring order to the children to make their practice meaningful. She glanced at Anna and Rico. Rico’s lips turned down like a basset hound. “If it’s really that important, Rico...”

“Yeah.” Happiness rang in his voice. “I can tell my mama I went first. She’s so busy taking Juan to football practice, helping Lori with her homework, and wiping Jose’s nose, I never have a chance to talk to her.”

Rico’s words pricked Suzie’s heart. “You can also tell her you’re becoming a fine swimmer.”

Rico’s face beamed.

Suzie pointed to the edge of the pool. “Line up and leave some space between each person.”

“Move over.” Alex, a stocky little guy with red hair and freckles swung his arm toward Rico. He was a quiet, obedient child until someone riled him. Then he barked like a little dog snapping at a larger one.

Rico cut his dark eyes at him. “All right, man. You don’ hafta push.” He stepped toward Anna.

Suzie blew her whistle. As much as the children seemed to need attention, they also needed to learn that hard work, dedication, and discipline paid off. That was her job. “Listen up. I want everyone to be very careful learning to dive.” The desire for them to catch on burned inside Suzie, but she couldn’t push them too fast. They were kids. “There’s no rush. It’s fine for six-and-under racers to jump in the water at a meet, so each of you can decide when you dive. First, hold your arms out straight then bring them together in front of you. Place one hand over the other.”

The kids slung their arms every which way.

“This way?” Melissa asked.

“It looks like a triangle.” Suzie demonstrated.

“I see the triangle,” Rico said.

“You’re lined up at the deep end because I don’t want you to hit your heads on the bottom of the pool. Don’t make a sound while I’m talking. You must learn correctly.”

The children fixed their gazes on her, their arms at their sides like little soldiers. Affection burst inside Suzie and turned into a smile.

“You’ll spring straight out into a shallow dive, like this.” Suzie extended her arm forward. “Not like this.” She pointed downward. “If you’re at the end of the pool where there’s only three feet of water, if you dive deep, you might conk your noggins.”

“Ouch.” Rico rubbed the top of his short hair.

Melissa teetered on the edge of the pool as Suzie said, “Get on tippy toes, lean forward, and push your bodies outward.”

Water splashed. Splats pierced the air.

Melissa shot into a good dive for a first attempt. She pulled herself up on the side of the pool and hopped out with a big grin. “That was fun. Can I do it again?”

Pride in the children swelled in Suzie’s chest. If the little ones dove at the meet, it would give them a head start over swimmers that jumped. “Absolutely. I want everyone to keep practicing.”

“Oooogh.” Rico and Alex climbed out and rubbed their stomachs.

Anna pulled on Suzie’s shirt. “Diving hurts your tummy.”

“It won’t if you do it right. I hope everyone dives perfectly, but if you don’t, belly flops are better than bonked skulls.”

The six-and-unders lined up and tried ten more dives. Little troopers.

Harold staggered over, looking as though he’d been in the spin cycle in a washing machine, but he grinned at the children. He squatted down and rested his palms on the tops of his knees. “Want to play doggie doggie where’s your bone?”

This time he asked the correct age group, and the kids hollered “Yeah!”

The six-and-unders left with Harold, and Suzie repeated the diving routine with the seven through ten year olds. Then the older children walked over, joking and clowning around, but underneath they needed the self-confidence that came from accomplishment. Suzie wanted with all her heart to give it to them.

“Line up four to a lane then swim your favorite stroke. We’re going to work on technique.”

Twelve-year-old Ray Sims hopped in the water in lane one and swam backstroke. His arms strayed too much to the side. Bob, swimming freestyle right behind Ray, needed to keep his feet closer to the surface, and Jay could pull more water if he cupped his hands.

Suzie observed the tweens and teens closely, noting the techniques she needed to correct for each of them. By then Harold plodded over with the younger children.

“Everyone take a seat. It’s nearly time for Ellie.”

The kids stomped onto the bleachers as Harold wiped his brow.

“Thank you for coming. I don’t know what I would have done without you.”

He slipped off his glasses and cleaned the lenses with his t-shirt. “Oh, it’s a challenge all right, but you’re welcome. It worked out fine. See ya.” He trod toward the playground. Had he left something there?

Ellie pulled in, the brakes squealing as the bus stopped.

The kids sprang out of their seats and charged to the parking lot.

“Walk. Don’t run.” Suzie caught up to the youngsters and instructed them to wait behind her while she spoke to Ellie. “Thanks for transporting the swimmers.”

The kids flipped their towels, shifted their weight from one foot to the other, and chattered among themselves until Suzie stopped talking then they started piling on board.

Ellie leaned toward Suzie. “You’re welcome. I’ll bring them to the first meet on June fourth. Most of the parents can’t take off for it, but they’re coming to the home meet.”

Great. Just her and a bunch of nervous kids who needed support they wouldn’t have. Suzie whipped printed directions to the upcoming competition out of her swim bag and climbed to the top step to hand them to Ellie. However chaotic Monday, June fourth, would be, this job would pay for her to see Dr. Granger. “Here ya go. We’re swimming the Willow Tree Barracudas.”

Ellie laughed. “It sounds fierce. I’m available that night to help.”

The load Suzie carried grew a bit lighter, and she smiled. One helper was better than none.

Ellie cocked a dark eyebrow. “Matt hates that he won’t be here.”

Ellie’s words rubbed Suzie’s nerves like sandpaper. “Thank you for volunteering. I’ll need someone to take the kids to the starting blocks.”

“I can do that. I know all the children very well. See you later.” Ellie pulled the lever and shut the door.

Suzie waved bye to poor Harold, who slumped in a seat at one of the picnic tables. He wiped his face with his handkerchief then held up his hand.

Suzie left for home. Just how chaotic would the meet be? Could she handle it with little to no help? What about this malady? Would it stay at bay until the meet ended?