Right then, I thought it was time to get smart. I saw that Layla was walking along the edge of the meadow. I thought she probably knew something I didn’t. So, I walked behind her. At least I knew I wouldn’t get lost. But every step she took, she hit me with gritty slush she was kicking up. There were patches of snow on the meadow that were melting really fast. Even though the valley looked flat when we started, it was actually tilted a bit. So, there was slushy ice water running towards us as we walked. I started walking faster so I could walk next to her and get out of the line of fire.

As I came up next to her, Layla just gave me a sideways glance.

I couldn’t think of anything to say so I said, “Nina says this area can get five to ten feet of snow in the winter—more up there.” I continued, pointing up to the mountains above us. Layla didn’t say anything.

I kept talking. “I guess it’s all starting to melt,” I said, noticing that the water on the meadow was actually flowing down in small streams coming down from the mountains above. I knew it was kind of boring to talk about, but I still thought it was pretty amazing to be in a place that still had snow in June.

Layla smiled and changed the subject. I guess she took pity on my lame conversation skills. “You heard about Darmo, right?” she asked me.

“Darn what?” I answered.

“Not darn, Darmo,” said Layla. “How about the gold, you heard about the gold?” I had no idea what she was talking about.

I said, “Layla, I don’t know about it. Whatever. Just tell me your story.” “It’s not my story, Robby. It’s the legend of Windpipe Camp.

Didn’t you find out anything about this place before you came?” I was beginning to feel like an idiot. I wondered if I should fake like I knew what she meant, but I did want to hear the story. So, I just shrugged.