"The Taint"

by Brian Lumley
originally published Weird Shadows Over Innsmouth, 2005

James Jamieson, former American physician, has come to a remote seaside community to retire.  He makes a few friends, including the snobby Tremains, and the strange, spacy Jilly White and her withdrawn daughter, Anne.  And then there's Geoff, the "village idiot", a hulking, fish-like teen boy who says little, frightens the locals, and apparently herds fish for his guardian.  And Anne's strange fondness for him.

As James hangs around, and gets to know people, much is revealed.  About Jilly's dreams of undersea cities.  About Geoff's ichtoid afflictions.  About Anne and Geoff's shared parentage.  And connections to Innsmouth.  And finally the revelation of Dr. Jamieson's true nature, of Anne's, and of what the Deep Ones have been up to since the raids of 1928...

This is a well-above-average Lumley piece; quite well-written and thought out, and it shows how greatly Lumley has matured, compared to, say, his 70's-era stuff.  The payoff isn't quite what I'd hoped for, but the buildup is solid.  One of his best.