I GRABBED A BEER and sat on the riverbank with my bare feet in the water. The sun had slipped behind the monolithic hills of the canyon sometime earlier, setting the surrounding grasses awash in a warm haze that crept down the cliff walls and spread across the river’s surface like a claret oil spill. The air was crisp and finally comfortable, a welcome relief from the day’s unrelenting desert heat. I cracked my beer and cursed as it sprayed foam all over my shirt.
Suddenly my eyes caught movement across the river.
