He sounded like a teacher in response. “We’re all going to be together anyway so it doesn’t matter which boat you’re in. Sandeep’s in the other raft and he’s not complaining. We’re just dividing the group, not worrying about who’s friends with who.”

Alice and Tom exchanged a glance, acknowledging the lie of Joel’s last comment, given that he’d made sure all of his friends were with him in his boat. Or all but one, anyway.

Despite Joel’s comment, Sandeep looked just as put out that he’d been assigned to Tom’s boat, and Tom didn’t get it, either, because he’d imagined Sandeep being good friends with Joel. His dad was a professional golfer and Sandeep had won a couple of amateur trophies himself—Tom only knew this because he’d overheard someone at school explaining once why Sandeep dressed like a middle-aged man.

So maybe it was just Tom’s prejudice—automatically linking Joel with a kid who played golf—and maybe they weren’t such close friends. Tom didn’t mind this arrangement, anyway, and would have more or less chosen the people he’d been allotted, especially because, with the exception of Lara, his raft contained most of the people who’d originally asked to leave with him.

“Okay, let’s get launched. Everyone who’s in my boat…”

Joel headed down to the water’s edge and the others dutifully followed him, while he dished out instructions. He seemed incredibly eager to get on the water, and Tom wondered if it was just that he wanted his boat to be in the lead. Sure enough, within a couple of minutes they were on the river and being pulled out into the current, even as the rest of them just watched.

Shen stepped forward and called, “Keep in the middle of the channel!”

Joel waved, though it was unclear whether he’d heard, and the raft slipped out of view.

They stood there for a second, and then George said, “Okay, they’re gone, let’s go back to the plane and wait to be rescued.”

Laughing, they started getting their things into the raft, lifting it out onto the water, and climbing aboard one by one. In their group, a few words were exchanged, but no orders, and no one took charge. They still managed to launch the boat as quickly as Joel had launched his, which Tom saw as a vindication in some way.

The dog had paced manically up and down the bank the whole time, but as soon as Tom climbed in, he jumped over the side and stumbled into the middle like a drunk, earning another collective laugh. Then George pushed the raft and jumped aboard in one fluid movement, while Sandeep and Barney started to row as they drifted quickly into the middle of the channel.