Wind Lady
By Donnette Hatch

“You shouldn’t have picked those flowers, Katy. We’re in a park and that’s not allowed.
You’re a bad girl!” chided Piper, her four year old sister. Katy’s bottom lip trembled and tears
welled up in her dark blue eyes. She had pretty eyes, deep dark blue. Ellie, her mom, said they
were navy blue just like her grandmother’s. Springtime had come to Zion National Park; the
shuttle service had just started ferrying people into the canyon for picnics, hiking and all the
other things winter weary people were eager to enjoy. Katy’s family and her Dad’s brother and
his family had planned a fun day in the park complete with a springtime picnic.

“I just wanted to put them on the table. They’re so pretty,” pouted Katy, her little fist
clutching the yellow daisies and mallow that were already beginning to look wilted.

“It’s okay, Honey, they’re already picked.” Aunt Dora gave Piper a look and put her arm
around Katy. “They can’t grow back now, we’ll just put them in a cup of water and set them
right in the middle of our picnic table.” Aunt Dora always spoiled Katy and nine year old Piper
because she and John had three teenagers, all boys! Dora led Katy over to the wooden table
which Katy’s mother, Ellie, had covered with a red and white checked tablecloth. Dora pulled a
plastic cup from the picnic basket and took a bottle of water from the blue ice chest. She
poured the water into the cup. “Here, Honey, put those flowers right in there.”

“I hope the rangers don’t see them and arrest Katy for flower picking,” muttered Piper.

Wind Lady caressed the bright new spring leaves and rippled the edges of the
tablecloth, whispering,”No way, no way.”

“Would I go to jail?” asked Katy her big blue eyes open wide.

“Who’s going to jail? They don’t put little girls in jail.” Katy’s mom walked over holding
six month old Kenny who’d been getting his pants changed. “Oh, we have flowers, aren’t they
lovely?” cooed Ellie.

“Katy shouldn’t have picked them,” said Piper still using her accusatory voice.

“Well, they are still lovely and Katy’s not going to jail and she won’t pick any more
flowers. Okay, Katy?”

“Okay, I’m sorry,” Katy snuggled against her mom’s leg. Ellie’s jeans felt warm and
slightly rough against her cheek. She pressed her nose into the fabric and breathed in the now
familiar scent of Mom – spit up and diapers.

Ellie switched Kenny to her other arm and smiled at Dora, “Thanks.” Turning to the girls
she said, “Come on, kids, let’s help Aunt Dora get the table ready for lunch. The guys will be
back soon.”

Piper really loved her little sister, but it had been hard on the girls ever since baby Kenny
arrived. He took a lot of Mom’s time and Mom hadn’t felt too good ever since Kenny had been
born. She got so tired and didn’t play with them as much as she used to. It was fun, though to
have a baby brother. He couldn’t boss her and Katy around like her big brother, Ronn, did.

Ellie and Dora both looked up as they heard heavy footsteps approaching. A man with
shaggy, unkempt hair, wearing a ball cap, sunglasses and a tan canvass backpack strode into
their campsite. He stopped and looked directly at the ladies, then at the two little girls. He
nodded, said “Howdy,” and without further comment continued across the campsite towards
the river.

Just then sounds of laughter and shouting drifted in on the breeze, becoming louder as
Dora’s three boys and Ellie’s oldest son, Ronn, raced each other into camp with their dads, John
and Bill bringing up the rear.

“We’re starving!”

“Where’s lunch?”

“I need a soda.”

“Can I open these chips?”

“Hold on, guys, all in good time, and no, you won’t starve, there’s food a plenty.” Ellie
placed Kenny in his infant seat and fastened the belt around his firm little tummy. Wide eyed and wriggling he flailed his arms and legs, then quieted as Ellie put the binky in his mouth. Bill leaned over Ellie’s shoulder and kissed her cheek.

“Hi there, little fella,” he smiled at his new son.

“How was Weeping Rock?” Ellie asked Bill.

“She was bawling like a baby. Lots of snow melt this year,” answered Bill as he gave Ellie
a playful swat on the bottom and reached into the ice chest to grab a soda.

Faint sounds of voices, laughter and squeals of kids playing could be heard. Other
families were also enjoying the warm spring day. Wind Lady embraced the happy sounds and
smiled as she sped them on their way across the canyon.

Lunch over, the boys became restless and were rearing to go again.

“This afternoon we’re going to hike up to Emerald Pools,” announced Cory. He and
Ronn were both 14 and acted more like brothers than cousins. “Just us guys, no girls allowed,
so nyaah, nyaah,” he taunted Piper and Katy.

“Okay, so go. We got fun things to do right here. So go, go on.”

Wind Lady agreed and whispered, “So, go. Go. Go.”

“Come on boys, get this table cleaned up. Help your mom and Ellie put away our lunch
stuff. Tote that trash over there to the garbage can. Let’s get everything contained in one spot
so we can load it on the shuttle when it’s time to go. John hauled one of the ice chests over to
a sheltered spot out of the direct sun. Bill set the blue one on top of it. It was only April but the
sun felt really warm. The Virgin River in springtime was still cold from the winter’s melting
snow and was running fast and full. Everybody was tired of winter and ready for the change of
seasons.

“Dad, let’s go!” The boys were marking time by throwing a Frisbee back and forth to
expend some of their bottled up energy.

“Okay, okay.” Bill opened the ice chest, “Here, each of you take a couple of bottles of
water.” Turning to Ellie he said, “Probably two or three hours by the time we make the loop.
We’ll get supper in Springdale, maybe Oscars or that Mexican place you like.”

“Sounds good,” replied Ellie as they shared a quick kiss. John and Bill gathered the
troops and the wives watched as they set off towards the bridge that crossed the river and led
to the Emerald Pools trail. The boys dashed on ahead, eagerly and noisily vying for lead
position.

Afternoon was quiet in the canyon. Wind Lady rocked the bright new leaves to and fro
as she crooned a gentle lullaby. The sun was warm, little insects scurried back and forth on the
ground and dust motes floated in the shafts of sunlight. Wind Lady’s touch had just enough nip
to remind you it wasn’t quite summer.

Ellie had fed little Kenny and he was fast asleep in his infant seat. She took up her
crocheting while she and Dora laughed and visited, recalling good times and planning others.
Piper was lost in cyberspace games on her iPod and Katy was painting in a watercolor book.
The water she used to clean her brush had gotten all dark and icky looking. “I’ll use the water
in flower cup,” she thought, but she tipped it over the first time she reached for it. Flowers and
water made a puddle on the table.

“Now look” sighed Piper. “You’ve made a mess.”

“I need some clean water,” Katy told Piper as she slid off the bench of the picnic table.
Carrying her cup she went over to where the ice chests were stacked, one on top of the other.
She opened the one on top but all the water bottles were gone. The boys had taken them all.
Probably there were more in the other ice chest. She took hold of the top chest and tried to
scoot it off onto the ground but it was too heavy and she couldn’t budge it. Well, she wasn’t
going to ask for help, Piper would just fuss at her and make her feel like a baby who couldn’t do
anything by herself and Mom and Aunt Dora were all engrossed in whatever it was grownups
talked about. She could take care of this problem herself.

She looked toward the bridge the way her dad and the other guys had gone. “I’ll just go
get some water from the river,” she decided and marched off on her sturdy little legs. When
she reached the bridge she saw that she’d have to climb down a rocky embankment before she
could reach the water. Upstream two older girls were wading along the river’s edge. One of
them was wearing a red shirt. A third was stretched out on an air mattress, trying to get a head
start on her summer tan. Downstream Katy could see the hiker with the backpack and
sunglasses that had walked through their campsite. He was just sitting there on a rock, it
looked like he was eating a sandwich. “I’ll just ignore him,” she thought. “He looked kind of
scary.” Katy clambered down over the rocks easily enough, her new Disney Princess sneakers
had good rubber soles. Clutching the cup in her left hand she eased herself down the rocks
until she was standing on one big flat boulder right over the water. She knelt down and moved
the cup to her right hand. Leaning over she discovered the water wasn’t as close as she
thought it was.

Wind Lady got worried. She picked up a little speed and rustled the leaves as she
whispered, “no, no, no.” She blew a strand of Katy’s hair across her face to get her attention,
but Katy just brushed it back as she scooted closer and scooped at the water with her cup. She
slipped just a little and squirmed to regain her balance, but just then Katy saw a man’s shadow
pass behind her, the cup slipped from her hand and she made a fast grab for it. Wind Lady sang
a sad song, “No, no, oh, woe. Woe.”

“Where’s Katy?” Ellie looked over at the picnic table where Piper was still engrossed in
her iPod games. “Piper, where’s Katy?”

“I dunno. She went to get some more water.” Piper looked over towards where the ice
chests were stacked then looked back at her mom. “I dunno.” She pointed. “She was right
there.”

“Katy, Katy” Ellie called, then louder, an edge of panic in her voice, “Katy.”

“Dora was on her feet walking quickly around the picnic area. “Katy, come here, Katy,
answer me! Don’t be hiding, this is no time to play games.”

“Oh, God, oh God, where is she? Katy, Katy!” Ellie was starting to cry. The loud voices
woke Kenny and he set up a wail.

Piper sat still, clutching her iPod, afraid to move. Where was Katy? She had been right
there beside her on the bench, it was just a minute ago she had spilled the water and gone to
get more. I yelled at her because she spilled it. But she was right there. Is this my fault, is
Mom going to be mad? Was it because I scolded her again that she went to hide? I didn’t
mean to, she thought.

Dora ran down the way to the adjacent picnic site and interrupted a nap and a game of
cards, “Have you seen a little girl? Four years old, brown hair, double pony tails, wearing shorts
and a Disney tee shirt?”

“No, no little girl.”

“Please, please help me, help us. Her name’s Katy. Go down that way and ask
everybody, I’ll go up the other way and ask around, “Katy! Katy!” she called again.
Ellie had picked up Kenny and had Piper by the hand. Her face had gone white and she
was shaking, “Katy!” she called, “Katy!”

“Let’s look this way, Mom,” Piper tugged on her mother’s hand. “Aunt Dora went the
other way. Let’s go look over by the bridge.”

“Oh, no, she wouldn’t have gone that far. She couldn’t have. No.” Then Ellie saw the
two girls coming out of the water just up from the bridge and she called out. “Help, help us.
We’ve lost a little girl, my daughter, her name is Katy, have you seen her? She’s four.”

“Gosh, no lady. We didn’t see any little girl. Sure we’ll help you look. How long has she
been gone?”

“I don’t – don’t know. I’m not sure. Not long – it can’t have been very long. She was
just right here.” Ellie was crying and needed to wipe her nose and eyes. She shifted Kenny,
trying to pull a tissue from her pants pocket without letting go of Piper’s hand.

“She went to get some water,” offered Piper eyeing the river fearfully as it splashed on
the rocks below and surged under the footbridge.

Dora ran up just then and told them she’d alerted everybody she’d seen in the area and
that more people were spreading out to help. “I’ll go back up to the road and watch for the
shuttle. I’ll make it stop and we’ll get them to call for help”

The girl in the red shirt was punching numbers into her cell phone. “Nothing. I can’t get
service. I tried 911. Nothing”

“Okay, let’s all keep calm,” Dora was taking charge. “I tried my cell phone too, there’s no
service. Ellie you and the kids go back to where we had the picnic. Katy will probably come
back there or someone will find her and bring her back there.”

“I can’t, I have to look for her. I have to find her. I have to!” she choked out as sobs
broke her words apart.

Dora placed a firm hand on her back. “Go! We’re all looking for her. You need to be the
center point. Katy’s okay – we just don’t know where she is.” She turned to the girl in the red
shirt and her two friends. “Could you try to check the trailhead to Emerald Pools – talk to
anyone coming down — ask if they saw a group of four teenage boys with two men, their dads?
We need to get my husband and Katy’s dad down here right away.”

“We’ll check both sides of loop and along the river bank too. We’ll keep our eyes open
and keep calling. We’ll ask everyone we see.” The girls took off across the bridge and Dora
propelled Ellie back to camp, and then struck out for the road to flag down the shuttle.

Piper looked back at the bridge. What had been a soft breeze became a gusty wind and
clouds gathered over the canyon. Wind Lady moaned low, “I know. I know.”

Dusk descended on the canyon. Hours earlier park rangers had assembled and
Washington County Sheriff’s deputies were on the scene and had organized the searchers. An
ambulance had arrived with paramedics. Browser and Lucy, two specially trained search and
rescue dogs, had trailed Katy to the bridge and to the water’s edge, but there was no sign of the
child. An Amber Alert was being broadcast. All vehicles were stopped and the occupants
questioned at both park entrances.

Ellie was alternately hysterical or sitting dry eyed and stony faced rocking back and
forth, clutching Kenny and not letting Piper move an inch away. Paramedics wanted to take her
and the kids back to Springdale where she could wait and be more comfortable but she refused
to go. John and Dora were on one of the search parties. Bill, Ronn and Cory on another as
were Dora’s other sons, Jake and Marty.

When it was getting too dark to see the rangers and the deputies agreed the search would have
to resume in the morning. Ellie was given a sedative and John and Dora took her and the
children into Springdale where they found motel accommodations for all of them. Bill refused
to leave the area. He was given blankets, some water and a few energy bars, but no blankets
could stop the cold chill that drove so deeply into his bones.

At half past 3 in the morning Bill heard the sound of an engine, then the slam of a car
door. John walked into the campsite. He had gotten permission to drive his own car up into
the canyon. “Hey, it’s me, Bro .Anything?”

“No, not a sight, not a sound of her. Nothing.”

“Let me take over now. They gave Ellie something to make her sleep but she’ll be
waking up come morning and she’ll need you to be there. I’ll be here for Katy, Go.” John
clapped his brother on the shoulder and Bill turned and grabbed him in a big bear hug. His
shoulders shook with grief. He took the keys to John’s car and headed towards the road.

At first light the search resumed. Browser and Lucy searched and searched again.
Sheriff’s deputies, rangers, family members and volunteers scoured the canyon. They walked
every inch of the river bank for miles. Wind Lady trilled her lamentations, “I know. I know,” but
the people didn’t hear.

Three Years Later

August was hot and rain had been just a memory that summer. Kohl and his buddy,
Josh, had been hiking for several hours. They had left Kohl’s car at Cedar Pocket and had driven
north up the Virgin River Gorge on I-15 to the Black Rock exit. There they hiked down to the
bottom of the gorge planning to follow it all the way back to Cedar Pocket. This summer most
of the river had either evaporated or gone underground, leaving just a muddy red track with
occasional pockmarks the size of teacups full of rusty colored water to mark its course.

Rounding a bend, the boys saw a bit of gray green brush up ahead and found a decent sized
pool of shallow water just beyond. It was tucked into a little coved area where the river bottom
was always shaded by the tall cliffs protecting it from the brunt of the summer sun. It was a
little oasis in the desert. The boys soaked their kerchiefs in the warm silty liquid and tried to
wash the dust and sweat from their faces. The evaporation was cool and refreshing.

“I’m going to soak my shirt and cool my whole self off,” announced Josh.

“Great idea. Me too.” The muddy pool wasn’t more than six or eight inches deep and less than
3 feet across, but it was water and it was wet. They stripped off their shirts and felt the sun
grow hotter on their backs. A little frog jumped out from behind a rock onto the muddy bank
and Kohl made a pass at it and missed. “Come here you little bugger,” he muttered and reached
again. The frog escaped into the pile of brush that was half in and half out of the water.

“Missed again,” laughed Kohl, “but looky here. I found somethin’ else. It’s a little shoe.”

He pulled it loose from the sticks and held it up for Josh to see. “Guess we aren’t the only ones
who have hiked down here. This is rough country. I’m glad we didn’t have a little kid to tag
along – we’d probably have to be carrying him piggy back by now.”

“Her, carrying her,” corrected Josh examining the shoe. “This shoe belonged to a little
girl, it has some kind of lprincess pictures all over it, but they’re pretty faded off. I’d guess it’s
been here for quite a while.”

“Well, she’s not coming back for it,” said Kohl as he tossed the shoe away
downstream. He didn’t notice if it landed in the water or in the weeds. Pulling on their wet
shirts the boys headed south for Cedar Pocket. A breeze kicked up and cooled their skin.

Wind Lady sighed, “I tried. I tried.” They did not hear..

—

[box]This post is one of the winning entries in the Z-Arts 2013 Writing Contest and has been reprinted here with permission of the author, who retains the copyright. Opinions expressed in this piece are not necessarily those of the Zion Arts and Humanities Council.[/box]