The talk was always of Madeleine's family, followed by fantasies that I concocted so as not to feel impoverished in the wake of her tales!  
Now, as he paced the breezy deck of the river barge, stars glimmered overhead. Holtzman gazed ahead into the sheer rock walls of the Isana canyon, a deep gorge formed by the torrential river. He could hear a whispering rumble of rapids approaching, but knew the barge would steer through a safe channel along one side. He let his mind wander.