Shadows of Wildstone

Chapter One

CHAPTER

The day after her twenty-ninth birthday, Nyah Love did what she always did when she felt pent up.

She ran.

The physical exertion served as a temporary balm for the emotional scars she carried.

And although she knew her path might, one far-off day, lead her southward, back to the New South Wales township of Wildstone, where she’d have to confront her disgruntled mother and her horrific past head-on, for now, and the foreseeable future, she relished the solace she always found in the rhythmic cadence of her feet pressing against the tropical Far North Queensland earth.

Beside her, her faithful three-year-old giant poodle, Ragnar, named after her favourite Vikings character, kept pace with ease.

His curly black coat shone under the gentle rays of the rising sun as he proudly carried his beloved squishy toy duck between his teeth, its occasional squeak bringing smiles to the faces of other exercise junkies who were also out at sun-up.

For Nyah, this was the best time of the day, before she was bombarded by the hectic and sometimes heartbreaking expectations of her job as a child psychologist at the Palm Cove State Primary School.

As for her four-legged exercise buddy, come rain, hail or shine, Ragnar always joined her on her daily treks, and she adored him for his unconditional companionship.

Unlike most people she’d encountered throughout her life—bar her father Robert and stepmum Rae—her pooch offered unwavering strength, and his loyalty was a comfort against the uncertainties that often lingered within her heart.

The tropical humidity hung in the air as the first rays of dawn painted the ocean-hugged coastline of the Cairns Esplanade with a vibrant array of mesmerising shades, the hues of ruddy rose and fiery auburn blending together to create a breathtaking panorama against the emerging powder-blue spring sky.

Wiping beads of sweat from her brow, Nyah enjoyed the invigorating scene unfolding as her runners left the concrete path and met the timber boardwalk with a steady rhythm.

As she circled the glistening lagoon that buzzed with an early class of aqua aerobics, her quickened breath mingled with the salty breeze from the nearby Coral Sea as she immersed herself in the old-school trance music playing from her AirPods—for her, this was her ultimate happy place.

Cardio was her saving grace from what could sometimes be an overwhelmingly chaotic world, and each of her practised footsteps was a declaration of her commitment to face the shadows of her past that, if left to darken, would threaten to consume her.

And she knew all too well what that deep dark hole felt like.

She was never going back there.

Her long, dark curls pulled back into a ponytail that swayed in time with her movements, and her piercing blue eyes focused on the horizon where the endless expanse of sea met with the sky, she slowed a little as she jogged along the familiar path, towards the pier where she would circle back to her Jeep Wrangler.

Watching one of the tourist boats heading out for the day, she felt her mind float back to last month, when she, her dad and Rae had joined a snorkelling trip out to the reef—what a magical day it had been, witnessing the brightly coloured aquatic world that thrived beneath the water’s surface.

It had blown her mind to learn that the Great Barrier Reef was one of the very few biological structures visible from space—she couldn’t wait to find the right moment to go back and do it again.

Breathing in nice and deep, she drank in the beauty of the great outdoors from the farthest point of the jetty while letting the vast Far North Queensland sky ease the restlessness within her soul.

She paused, briefly, for a moment of silent gratitude—the esplanade was her sanctuary, a place where she could outrun her past, if only for a little while.

In her early twenties, she’d done her fair share of travelling the globe whenever she’d had a break from university, seeing Italy, Spain, England and the USA, but she hadn’t even contemplated settling down anywhere else in the big wide world.

Here in Cairns, she’d found her home, her haven.

And just like she did every day when she stood in this spot, pondering her existence while hoping her missing sister’s heart was still beating with life, she felt blessed to be able to call such a majestic place her home.

And that was all thanks to her wonderful dad.

She hoped and prayed he would make a full recovery from his recent knee replacement, so he could eventually go back to doing what he loved, teaching martial arts.

But for now he was under strict orders from his surgeon to move, but not too much, so he healed well and didn’t end up with blood clots.

Nyah couldn’t even imagine Robert Love having to rely on a walker to get around the house, but it was his reality, much to her stepmother’s exasperation.

He hated feeling ‘like an invalid’—his words, not hers.

In just two days, he’d found himself stuck on the loo, in the lounge chair and on the patio day bed.

Nyah had inherited her stubbornness from him.

Closing her eyes, she stole one more second of peace, then made a move. It was time to head back home, shower, eat and then get to work. So, turning around, she fell back into her own tempo, to the beat of Darude’s ‘Sandstorm’.

Mid-stride, she reached down and ran her hand through Ragnar’s fur. ‘You’re the best, buddy.’

The giant poodle looked up at her with adoration and pride shining in his intelligent eyes.

She chuckled to herself. ‘You already know that, though, right?’

In these shared moments with her friend, her world narrowed down to nothing but the sound of her breathing, the scent of the sea, and the warmth of the air enveloping her as if Mother Nature was offering a protective embrace.

It was here, amid Cairns’ natural beauty, that she found respite from the haunting memories that lay dormant, waiting for their chance to resurface in her nightmares, on a bad day, in idle time—she never knew when they would come. But it was never while she was running.

The pair continued their trek along the water’s edge, each step carrying them back along the winding path, where the boat-dotted harbour faded into the background.

Their movements were synchronised—a testament to their unbreakable bond forged through shared moments of unspoken understanding and loads of chuckling, duck-throwing playtime.

Even when the occasional jogger passed by while tugging a lively dog back from Ragnar’s path, her loyal pooch remained entirely focused on her, as if he understood the significance of these morning rituals for her wellbeing.

Nyah loved him even more for his doggy awareness.

Lost in her thoughts, she felt a subtle vibration against her thigh cut through the soothing hum of the uplifting music.

She quickly reached into the pocket of her shorts, retrieving the phone that was demanding her attention.

Slowing to a halt, with her chest heaving from exertion, she glanced at the screen and smiled.

She had planned to call her dad hands-free on the drive to work, for their usual morning chat, but he’d beaten her to it.

‘Hey, Dad,’ she answered, her voice breathless. ‘You’re up nice and early.’ Ragnar sat beside her, tilting his head curiously at the sudden pause.

‘Nyah, sweetheart.’ Robert’s deep voice came through, heavy and weary in a way that immediately set her heart racing with dread.

‘Dad, are you okay?’ She immediately imagined him having fallen, alone if Rae was at one of her early yoga classes.

‘Yes, it’s not me, I’m fine, sweetheart.’ He breathed in sharply. ‘It’s your mum.’ He cleared his throat. ‘She’s…she’s passed away.’

The words hung in the air like a dark cloud, stark and surreal against the backdrop of the iridescent tropical morning sunshine.

‘Passed away?’ The words slipped through the hand covering her mouth.

‘But she’s only fifty-three.’ The ground felt as if it might give way, and she quickly sank onto a nearby bench.

‘What happened?’ She choked through the lump of emotion now lodged in her throat.

‘Apparently it was cancer, love.’ Robert paused, as if trying to find the right words. ‘I’m so sorry, Nyah.’

‘Cancer?’ She shook her head. ‘I know she and I haven’t spoken in forever, but surely, if she knew she was dying, she would’ve reached out to me, to at least try and…’ Her voice broke and she stopped speaking before she broke, too.

‘Oh, sweetheart, I know it’s a hard blow, especially when you’d hoped for some kind of resolution for the two of you.’ He sighed sadly. ‘But whatever you do, please keep reminding yourself that your strained relationship with her was never, ever your fault.’

‘Mm-hmm.’ It was all she could murmur as she sought comfort from Ragnar, who now had his head resting on her legs. ‘Who let you know?’

‘Rhonda’s wife, Donna, called me.’ He sniffed, as if warding off sudden feelings. ‘I hadn’t spoken to either of them in years, not since we left, really.’

‘Well, you’ve had the same mobile number forever, Dad.’ She looked to a seagull, swooping towards its breakfast somewhere beneath the rippling water. ‘When’s the funeral?’

‘On Saturday.’ Her father’s voice was thick with emotion. ‘And as for the will…’ He trailed off, then he cleared his throat once more. ‘It’s being read on the following Tuesday, and her lawyer has asked you to be present.’

‘Wildstone.’ The name of her childhood town tasted bitter on her tongue, and she felt a sting on the raw edges of the wound that had never fully healed after the unexplained disappearance of her baby sister, Skye Love.

‘Nyah, are you still there?’