headlong their car rocking side to side They whizzed upwards The passengers shrieked as a single organism For a second Will saw the gleaming steel rollercoaster rail below then they whipped downwards As Will’s insides were catching up with the rest of him they rocketed into an S-bend right left right to the groans and squeals of the riders behind They missiled toward the string of tattered flags that marked the finish Then as violently as it had all begun invisible hooks grabbed their carriage and yanked them to a dead stop A lanky teenaged attendant his baseball cap angled over an ear leaned across and unlatched the bars He offered a steadying hand Pollo didn’t seem to notice it and sprang unaided onto the platform That was insane she screeched Let’s go again She hurried toward the exit steps shouting over her shoulder I’ll pay for you Will if you’ve run out of money The attendant hauled Will from the car and gave him a nudge But Will remained rooted to the spot his legs wobbling like jelly-snakes the mob pushing past either side He stared like a zombie his mouth hanging open at the attendant’s chest as though hypnotised by 8
the image on his black T-shirt Ee-yew Will You don’t look so good Pollo was making her way back along the platform to her friend Will’s skin had taken on the colour of boiled cabbage The ride attendant unplugged music earphones and jerked his head toward the exit Move along please buddy Pushing a tss-tss-tss-tss cymbal sound through his teeth and dipping his head to the beat he shrugged and took Will by the armpits Pollo alongside he eased Will along the platform and down the metal steps onto the grass thoroughfare Will’s feet trailing unhelpfully Take it easy eh said the attendant plugging in his earphones and springing back up the steps for the next round of victims Will stood on the pathway swaying with the crowd at the Riddle Gully annual fair snaking around him and Pollo He tried to breathe deeply tried to focus on something other than his squirming insides Gee Will said Pollo I’ve heard of people going green before but I’ve never actually seen it I’ve gotta get a picture She pulled her camera from her pocket and snapped before Will could summon the strength to duck You’d better not put that in your newspaper column he mumbled 9
Don’t worry my friend My section of the Coast is only ever black and white You’re safe I’m saving the embarrassing photo spot for Mayor Bullock Why stop this year eh Two youths eating hotdogs with fried onions and pus-like mustard sliding down their fingers stopped to gawk Watch out one laughed This one’s gonna blow They were rocking together pointing at Will and sniggering when with the same suddenness the rollercoaster ride had come to an end everything Will had eaten at the Riddle Gully fair that afternoon the hamburger-with-egg sour cream wedges chocolate muffin corn dog two doughnuts and large blueberry slushy rocketed up his throat and propelled themselves in a colourful arc towards the boys feet Pollo clapped a hand to her mouth The youths gazed from their spattered shoes to Will and back again Both looked like they wanted to beat him up on the spot but were too disgusted to go near him They stalked away muttering and swearing hurling their hotdogs onto the path Two ravens flew down and began stabbing at the pink meat hopping back and forth as pedestrians passed Will looked at Pollo sheepishly Whew I didn’t feel it coming till the last second 10
Well it’s not like you’re a giraffe or anything Huh A giraffe You know with a mile-long neck A giraffe would know something was coming I wonder how long it takes a giraffe to throw up Maybe they never do maybe the gunk never reaches the top said Will That’d be neat I’ll have to ask Dad He’ll know Handy having a vet for a dad sometimes Not as handy as you having a police sergeant for a stepdad That would be brilliant in my line of work I could get the scoop on Riddle Gully every night over dinner It has its ups and downs said Will HB has this way of getting details out of me before I even know what we’re talking about Like the time he From the corner of her eye Pollo could see the rollercoaster attendant his hi-top sneakers planted wide as he trickled sand from a bucket over Will’s offering He seemed to be taking extraordinary care over it His head was tilted towards them and his earphones dangled loose from the pocket of his baggy jeans Was he eavesdropping on them wondered Pollo Getting the low-down on the local arm of the law 11
