David smiled faintly.
“Maybe. After we determine what work is appropriate and what permissions are needed.”
Sarah looked toward the farmhouse.
For a moment, she seemed overwhelmed.
Daniel had spent years studying the land.
Then died without clearly explaining what he'd built.
Now a fourteen-year-old boy had followed the notebook closely enough to bring professionals to the exact location.
She felt pride.
And sadness.
Because Daniel wasn't there to see it.
Eli noticed her expression.
“Mom?”
She looked down.
He smiled uncertainly.
“Did I do okay?”
Sarah's eyes filled.
She pulled him close.
“You did more than okay.”
The boy held her.
For a moment, he was no longer thinking about the bank, the drought, or Hank Barlow.
He was simply fourteen.
And his mother was proud of him.
The inspection continued over the following week.
Nora contacted the relevant local and state offices to clarify what the family could lawfully do with the existing water system. The property records showed references to historic agricultural uses, but those references needed careful interpretation.
Water regulation wasn't something Eli could solve by discovering an old pipe.
A landowner's right to use water could depend on established rights, permits, location, purpose, and other legal factors.
The family also had to consider the seep's environmental role.
The small wet area below the garden supported vegetation and wildlife.
Drawing too much water from it could damage both.
Nora explained all of that to Eli.
He listened.
Then asked whether the existing passive moisture movement could be left largely undisturbed.
She smiled.
“That may be the best approach for now.”
The important result was not a newly authorized pumping operation.
It was confirmation that the North Bed occupied an unusual part of the farm where naturally available subsurface moisture, careful planting, and reduced surface evaporation could combine to support a small area during dry weather.
The stones didn't create water.
They helped reduce some losses.
The seep didn't make the field immune to drought.
It provided a limited source of moisture that other parts of the farm lacked.