Joked about their appearance.
And asked whether she intended to charge by the pound or by the splinter.
Dileia tried to explain the research.
Most weren't interested.
A few listened politely but declined.
By afternoon, she had no buyer.
She drove home with the same roots she'd brought.
That night, she found her tractor damaged.
The machine sat inside the shed where she'd parked it.
Hydraulic fluid had spread across the concrete.
One of the lines showed a clean cut inconsistent with ordinary wear.
Another had been damaged near a fitting.
Dileia stared.
Then looked toward the shed entrance.
The lock had been forced.
Tire impressions were visible in the dry soil outside.
She photographed everything.
Then called the sheriff's nonemergency line.
An officer arrived to document the damage.
He examined the shed.
The lines.
The lock.
And the tire marks.
Dileia explained that Harlon Whitmore had repeatedly pressured her to sell and that she'd seen his truck near the property on previous occasions.
The officer listened.
Then asked whether she had witnessed him enter.
“No.”
“Do you have video?”
“Not of the shed entrance.”
He nodded.
“Then we need to investigate before identifying a suspect.”
Dileia understood.
She hated that she understood.
Because every part of her wanted to drive to Harlon's ranch and demand answers.
Instead, she supplied the photographs.
Preserved the damaged components.
And filed a report.
The officer gave her a case reference and advised her to improve the security arrangements.
Then he left.
Dileia stood beside the broken tractor.
Her hands trembled.
The repairs would cost money she didn't have.
The foreclosure deadline was approaching.
And the crop remained unsold.
For several minutes, she stared toward the workshop.
Then she remembered an old website her father had bookmarked.
Agrich Global.
A platform connecting agricultural researchers, technical buyers, and suppliers of unusual plant materials.
She searched the computer.
Found the link.
And created an account.
She uploaded photographs of the roots.
The cut white interiors.
The unusual sap.
The field.
And selected technical sketches from Walter's journals that did not disclose the most sensitive cultivation details.
Her listing was cautious.
Drought-tolerant experimental root crop. High biomass yield under documented field conditions. Uncharacterized water-retaining phytochemical fraction. Research inquiries welcome. Not offered for food use. Independent testing required.
Then she added one sentence.
Serious institutional inquiries only.
She submitted the listing.
Turned off the computer.
And sat at the kitchen table staring toward the dark window.
At seven-thirty the next morning, a notification woke her.
A secure message had arrived.
The sender displayed a green leaf wrapped around a double helix.