Page 14 of In Dangerous Water

Afterwards I hit the showers. I tugged on a fresh swimsuit, pulled my hair up and put on my competitor’s face. Checking my reflection, I saw thatIce Cold Cordeliawas back…at least temporarily. Which was good, as the last thing I wanted was for my assistants, instructors, or the parents to see me and know that I was upset or had been crying. It would hardly encourage confidence in me as a coach.

That evening, I greeted all of my pupils and their parents at the smaller pool with a professional smile, determined to make their swim lesson fun and educational. My façade slipped a bit when Ryder Desroches, Angela’s husband, strolled onto the pool deck with his arm around the shoulders of a thin boy with dark curly hair who couldn’t have been more than seven years old.

I’d known Ryder for a few years, longer than I’d known Angela in fact. He volunteered his time with the community center—the building adjacent to ours. Ryder coached little league football, and he also sponsored a girls’ competitive tumbling team. He was a good man, very involved in the community center and an excellent coach.

“Hi Cordelia,” Ryder greeted me with a smile.

“Hey, Ryder,” I said. “Who’s your friend?”

“This is James Renard. He’s a friend of mine from the community center and he wants to learn how to swim. Maybe race some day.”

I stuck my hand out to the boy. “Hi James. I’m Cordelia.”

The boy took my hand and peered owlishly up at me. “Ryder says you swam at the Olympics.”

“Sure did,” I said.

“Did you win any medals?” he wanted to know.

“A couple,” I told him.

“Wow!” James sounded desperately impressed. “I can swim. Kinda,” he told me next. “But I’m not very good at it. I don’t know the...” He trailed off and did the arm motion for the freestyle.

“The strokes?” I asked.

“Yeah,” James said. “I know one is called a butterfly, and a back stripe.”

“Backstroke.” I grinned. “I can help you with that,” I promised him. “What do you say we get you a pair of goggles and we’ll get started?”

“Okay!” James flashed me a gap-toothed smile and went to the benches to take off his shoes.

Ryder stepped a tad closer. “James’ older brother, John, is in my football program. I found out that over the summer James rescued his three-year-old sister from the neighbor’s pool, but damn near drowned himself.”

My gaze fell on the brave boy as he stood wearing swim trunks and a T-shirt. He was smiling at the other kids, but his eyes were all for the water in the pool. I understood that obsession—and the longing.

“His family can’t afford swim lessons, so I pulled some strings, and the community center gifted them to James.”

“That’s wonderful,” I said to Ryder. “I tell you what, I’ll donate lessons to his little sister as well. The aquatic center also offers a Saturday swim class designed for preschoolers.”

Ryder flashed a big smile. “The Renard family will love that.”

“It’s the least I can do.” I patted his arm. “Why don’t you take a seat with the parents, and we’ll get started.”

We all stayed in the shallow end. The students were divided into groups of three—depending on their skill level—and James ended up in my group.

The first group was graduating from dunking their faces in the water to holding their breath and going under for the first time. Eva, one of the lifeguards and swim instructors from the center, was in charge of the second group. Her group was using blue foam kickboards and learning to paddle up and down the shallow end of the pool. The third group—my group—was starting to learn how to put the kicks and the strokes of the freestyle all together.

By the end of the lesson, I had James swimming in a loose freestyle while I kept my hand under his belly. His head was still above the water, but I estimated in a few weeks he’d be able to manage putting his face down in the water and turning it to take a breath. In fact, as I worked with him, I got a sudden vision of James as a teenager competing in the future.

Before you know it, little man,I thought as he kicked and splashed his way across the pool,you’ll be racing across the water and loving every minute of it.

Out of my peripheral I saw Ryder taking pictures of James with his cell phone, and I gave him a thumbs up.

Once the lesson was concluded, the parents and children began to make their way to the exit. I stayed behind to gather up the kickboards and any stray items left behind. Spotting a bright yellow rain jacket, I made a mental note to drop it in the lost and found box. My other instructors were leaving too, and I paused when I heard my name being called.

“Hey, Cordelia.” Ryder smiled and walked over towards me.

“Hey.” I nodded in return.

---