Then he added quietly, "For everything."
Marlene looked toward the cactus.
"You're welcome."
After the call, she returned to her accounts.
The reserve was helping.
But she still had a business to protect.
And she refused to turn a successful drought-resilience project into another bankrupt ranch simply because she was afraid someone might call her selfish for setting limits.
The next difficult decision came when two more ranchers requested emergency forage.
Neither had contacted Marlene before.
Both had heard that the three neighboring properties were receiving help, and both assumed the Caldwell ranch could simply supply whatever they needed.
Marlene met them in the office.
She listened to their situations.
Then reviewed the available inventory.
For several minutes, she studied the figures.
Finally, she looked up.
"I can't supply everything you're asking for."
One rancher frowned.
"But you've got four hundred sixty acres of cactus."
Marlene nodded.
"I've got a four-hundred-sixty-acre ranch. That doesn't mean every acre is ready for harvest, or that everything growing here can be taken without consequences."
He looked irritated.
She continued.
"We're already committed to several emergency feeding arrangements, and I have to protect the plants that will support next year's production."
The rancher folded his arms.
"So you're turning us away?"
Marlene shook her head.
"No."
She placed a list of contacts on the table.
"I'm telling you what I can provide and helping you find the rest through other sources."
The second man looked toward the paper.
It included county agricultural contacts, livestock specialists, transportation options, and information about available assistance programs.
Marlene continued.
"I won't promise feed I can't deliver."
For several seconds, the men were quiet.
Then the second rancher nodded.
"Fair enough."
The first still looked disappointed.
But he accepted the explanation.
After they left, Daniel approached.
"That was difficult."
Marlene sighed.
"Yeah."
He looked toward the fields.
"You could've told them yes and figured it out later."
She shook her head.
"That's what Dad did with cattle for too many years."
Daniel looked toward her.
She continued.
"He kept hoping the land would produce what he'd promised, even when the records showed otherwise."
She closed the inventory folder.
"I'm not going to repeat that mistake with cactus."
Daniel nodded.
Then smiled faintly.
"Guess that's why you're running the ranch."
Marlene laughed.
"Some days, I'm not sure either."
Grant Holloway returned during the second week of September.
He drove through the county in a polished black truck, visiting ranchers whose pastures had failed and asking questions about who owned land that might soon become available for sale. Then he stopped at the Caldwell gate, where trucks were loading prepared cactus material for neighboring properties.