Head Spinners (17 page)

I couldn't stop looking through the old Greek recipe book either. It seemed to hold the ideas and experiments of so many people. Starting with the ones who first worked out how to cook with fire, or how to make dough, then adding all the other people who'd come after them who'd tried adding sugar, or sultanas or whatever, to make it taste even better. And then my great-grandmother had come along and collected recipes, changing them or adding something new and finally passing it all on to me and Mum.

It made me feel, I don't know,
lucky
to have that book. It seemed like something worth looking after.

After lunch we sat around the table, too full to keep eating but too relaxed to leave. Even Clio and Poppy were in a good mood.

I leaned over and snuck a piece of lettuce from the salad bowl. The tang of the dressing tasted good but it needed a bit more salt. Maybe next time I could add some soy sauce . . .

Dad shifted in his chair and cleared his throat. ‘I have a confession to make, everyone,' he said. ‘Your great-grandmother didn't just leave you jewellery in her will. She also left a bit of money as a wedding present for each of you when you get married . . .'

‘How much?' asked Clio straight away.

Poppy was grinning. ‘What does
a bit
mean?'

They looked pretty interested. I was too, though not as much as I would have been two weeks before. I don't plan to ever get married. And now that I had a way to earn my own money, I wasn't so fussed about having it given to me.

‘I'm getting to that,' said Dad to the girls. Then he looked at me. Mum was smiling strangely at me too.

‘We're very proud of the way you worked this past week, Tony,' said Dad. ‘The way you treated your great-grandmother's watch, paying for it to be fixed up.' He looked at Mum, who nodded. ‘We think you've been very mature with your money . . . mature enough to manage a bit of your own. And since it'll be such a long time until you get married . . .'

‘And there's no guarantee that you will . . .' interrupted Mum.

‘We thought the inheritance money would mean more to you now,' finished Dad.

Really? Everyone was looking at me. I wasn't sure if I was imagining it, but something seemed to change in the air. It wasn't fizzy, or even pulsing, but I could still feel
something
 . . .

‘Come on, Dad!' cried Poppy. ‘How much are we talking here?'

‘Eight hundred euros shared between the three of you,' said Dad.

That sounded like a whole heap of money, but no one knew how many dollars were in one euro. We all started talking at the same time.

‘Calm down, you lot!' called Dad. He pulled out his mobile and started pressing buttons. ‘If I find out the exchange rate . . . euros into Australian dollars. . . . then I subtract a commission for exchanging the money . . . and divide that amount by three . . .'

Dad looked at the screen and raised his eyebrows. ‘Well son, nothing to sneeze at, eh?'

As I leaned forward, the sense of
something
increased in the air around me. It was good to have it back. It made me feel safe somehow . . . part of something.

‘How much, Tony?' asked Poppy.

I looked at the screen and burst out laughing. It read 390.90 – the exact price of the new-release game console. I had a feeling that this one would work fine.

Mum leaned forward. ‘We want you to buy something that will remind you of your great-grandmother.'

‘No problem!' I grinned. It was pretty much guaranteed that I'd think of my great-grandmother each time I played my new game . . .

Each time I turned it on, and it didn't go
zap!

About the author

Thalia grew up on a farm on the outskirts of Melbourne. After a stint as a dancer she edited websites and travel guides. But her biggest passion has always been writing. Thalia has published multiple books in the Go Girl! series, as well as the non-fiction children's book
It's True! Sleep Makes You Smarter!
(which
is
true, in case you're wondering). She has also published two novels in the Girlfriend Fiction series,
Step Up and Dance
and
What Supergirl Did Next
.

These days she lives in north-eastern Victoria with her husband and two children, as well as two cats, three frogs and a big family of micro bats. She is currently trying to think up a logical reason why time travellers from the future haven't popped in yet to say hi.