Border Patrol Agent Erica Sanchez was stalking immigrants on the banks of the Rio Grande, her long brown hair pulled back in a knot, her foundation and eyeliner intact despite the sweat running down her face in the 100-degree heat.
She picked her way down treacherous trails full of obstacles — downed trees, thorny branches, muddy holes. She watched for snakes too.
The well-worn dirt path was littered with remnants of the immigrants she tracks: men's and women's soggy underwear hanging from mesquite trees, diapers, toothbrushes, discarded Mexican bus tickets, torn yellow rafts and orange life preservers.