Inna decided to give it one more go. She moved slowly and carefully upstream with both arms extended as far as she could reach under the bank. She stopped and sucked in a sharp breath, crouched even deeper into the water, then exploded back and up with a powerful jump. I saw her shoulder muscles flex and ripple as she whirled and threw an enormous fish up on the bank.
I knew Inna had landed a big one when I saw Ru Ta’s reaction. His eyes bulged as he pushed himself to his feet and made his way toward the fish that was wriggling its way toward the water’s edge. Shiya dove for the bank, clutched handfuls of river grass, and yanked herself out of the water. They would have arrived at the flopping fish at almost the same time had Ru Ta not snagged a foot on a ropelike vine. He tumbled hard on
