The company wanted exclusive purchasing rights over nearly everything she produced, with prices largely determined by the buyer. There were also penalties if she failed to meet delivery quantities, even under conditions where weather or crop losses reduced production.
She looked up.
"You're asking me to guarantee volumes I can't safely promise."
Grant smiled.
"That's how large contracts work."
Marlene looked back at the paper.
"Not every large contract."
He leaned forward.
"Miss Caldwell, I can put real money into your operation."
She nodded.
"I understand."
"Then what's the problem?"
She looked toward him.
"The risk."
Grant sighed.
"Farmers who want to grow have to take chances."
Marlene smiled faintly.
"I've taken plenty."
He gestured toward the ranch.
"Then why hesitate now?"
She took a slow breath.
"Because I spent two years proving this land can produce something. I'm not going to sign away the right to decide what happens to it because somebody offers me a check."
Grant stared.
Then laughed.
"You're thinking too small."
Marlene looked toward the green rows.
"Maybe."
She closed the contract.
"But I'm thinking long term."
Grant tried persuading her for another twenty minutes.
When that failed, he grew impatient.
He warned her that other producers would enter the market and that she might never receive a similar offer again.
Marlene listened.
Then thanked him for his time.
She didn't sign.
After his truck disappeared down the driveway, she sat on the porch with the contract resting beside her.
For several minutes, she wondered whether she'd made a terrible mistake.
The advance could have paid down much of the remaining debt.
It could have bought equipment.
It could have allowed her to expand more quickly.
Then she remembered her father's warning.
Never gamble the whole ranch on a single season.
She looked toward the cactus.
Then smiled faintly.
"Or a single buyer."
She carried the unsigned contract inside.
And returned to work.
The offer from Grant Holloway became the subject of gossip before autumn ended.
Marlene hadn't told many people about it, but West Texas was the sort of place where a stranger's expensive truck could become a conversation topic before he finished buying gasoline. By the time she visited the feed store in October, several ranchers had heard that she'd turned down a distribution agreement supposedly worth more money than the Caldwell ranch had earned in years. Nobody seemed particularly interested in the contract's conditions.
They were interested in the amount.
Wade Haskins was standing near the counter when she entered.
He looked toward her.
"Well, if it isn't the cactus queen."
Marlene continued toward the supply shelves.
"Morning, Wade."
He laughed.