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Chapters (50)
  1. Cover
  2. About the Author
  3. Dedication
  4. Epigraph
  5. 1
  6. 2
  7. 3
  8. 4
  9. 5
  10. 6
  11. 7
  12. 8
  13. 9
  14. 10
  15. 11
  16. 12
  17. 13
  18. 14
  19. 15
  20. 16
  21. 17
  22. 18
  23. 19
  24. 20
  25. 21
  26. 22
  27. 23
  28. 24
  29. 25
  30. 26
  31. 27
  32. 28
  33. 29
  34. 30
  35. 31
  36. 32
  37. 33
  38. 34
  39. 35
  40. 36
  41. 37
  42. 38
  43. 39
  44. 40
  45. 41
  46. 42
  47. 43
  48. 44
  49. Acknowledgements ♦ Diolchiadau
  50. THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING

‘My father, he was fishing and he caught her in his net one day by Porth y Wrach. It’s a stone arch on the headland. She was stolen. Taken. He kept her in this house. Wanted her to love him but she didn’t. He forced her … and women of the sea, they always have twins. Two children. Together. One boy. One girl. Every time.’

‘Like your brother and you?’

Nefyn nodded. ‘She had a cloak; when he caught her, he hid it. She could never leave him without it. But one day, we came home. She was gone.’

‘She found it?’

‘She had spent her whole time here looking for it. Looking for a way to get away. Knowing that although she loved us, she didn’t belong. We never saw her again.’

Hamza waited for the words to fall between them.

‘So, you belong to the sea like your mother?’ he asked. Nefyn shook her head.

‘My father was from the land, my mother from the sea. Do you see? I’m trapped.’

Hamza thought of all the half-lives he had seen.

‘Yes, I do,’ he said. They sat in silence for a moment. ‘It’s a good story,’ he said quietly. Nefyn looked at him and felt something change.

‘Yes,’ she said, ‘yes, it is.’

16

Adre ♦ Home ♦ Bayt

JOSEPH HAD BEEN LYING with the girl in her bed when the storm hit the coast. She had been talking and he had stopped listening. She had lit like a struck match, her anger flaming, and turned her back on him until he placed his hand on her hip, tugged her towards him. Pressed some words into her ear. They had kissed again, angrily, and then, softening, she had climbed on top of him. Afterwards, he had lain listening to the wind around the small house and had thought of Nefyn and how all this would go. The girls that would show an interest in him, the nights he would share with them and then the inevitable questions. It was at this point that Joseph would turn in on himself and wait for the crying to start. Their frustration growing more heated the more he locked them out. His desire cooling further.

He had risen early, packed his things and worked for a day or two out of the harbour doing odd jobs, helping with the clear-up after the storm. But as the storm had kept boats in the harbour, and setting out fishing now would add a few more weeks, his mind turned back to Nefyn and the cove.