The riverbank was raised, so they didn’t see the water until they were almost on it, and then before anyone could speak, the dog barked furiously and bounded down the bank. There was a splash and flurry of movement in front of them, the unmistakable outline of a caiman slipping beneath the surface.

Tom searched the murky water, trying to see if it would reappear, but Shen was standing next to him and said, “It was one of the smaller species, which is a good sign.” Tom looked at him. “Black caimans are the ones we have to watch out for, but if there was a black caiman here it probably would’ve eaten that one.”

Joel came to the bank. He looked briefly at Tom—an oddly unfriendly look that Tom couldn’t quite work out. Far from acting friendlier toward Tom since the cocaine factory rescue, Joel seemed to be becoming steadily more resentful. To Shen he said, “So it’s safe? To launch the boats?”

They all looked toward the river where the dog was busily patrolling the water’s edge, apparently baffled by the caiman’s disappearance.

“Nothing’s coming after the dog and the water’s flowing fast, but not dangerously so. It’s wide enough too, though we’ll have to make sure we keep to the middle, to avoid getting snagged. That’s where Barney’s oars should help.” When Shen got no answer, he turned to face Joel. “So yes, I’d say it’s safe to launch the boats.”

“Great. In which case, why don’t you and Barney open them and get them pumped up.” He glanced at Tom again before turning to the group. “Chris, Nick, Sandeep, Oscar, you help Shen and Barney with the boats. Everyone else, check your backpacks, see if there’s anything that can be left behind.”

Shen looked puzzled. “The boats are going to be pretty big.”

“Even so, everyone, check your packs.”

People started to move, though with the exception of Shen and Barney, none of them seemed to have much idea what they were supposed to be doing.

Alice walked over to Tom and said, “I notice he didn’t ask any girls to help put the boats up.”

“He didn’t ask me, either.”

“Probably for the same reason. Scared of you, scared of girls.”

Tom laughed and they watched as the boats were opened for the first time. They were yellow octagonal rafts, big enough that they had to be moved onto the sloping bank, touching the water’s edge. As their scale became apparent, Tom noticed a couple of people picking up discarded items and putting them back into their packs.

Once the boats were fully inflated, Joel pointed one by one, saying, “Okay, my boat, I’ll take Chris, Nick, Chloe, Mila, Oscar, Lara—”

Lara looked put out. “Oh, I thought I’d go with Alice.”