If it failed, if someone got hurt or killed because of her idea, that blood would be on her hands. Holden appeared in the doorway, already dressed for the work ahead. Second thoughts? About a dozen of them. Want to back out?
Evelyn looked at him. Do you? No. Then neither do I. He nodded, something like respect in his eyes.
You know, when you first showed up here, I thought you'd last maybe 3 days. So did I. I'm glad we were both wrong. Before Evelyn could respond, Caleb stuck his head in. Wagon's loaded.
We ready? Ready as we'll ever be, Holden said. They rode out under a sky that looked like it was holding its breath, gray and heavy, full of the promise of snow that wouldn't fall. The temperature had dropped overnight and the wind cut through their coats like it was looking for bone. The irrigation channels started about 5 mi north of the ranch where the land began to slope upward toward the hills.
From a distance, they were almost invisible, just depressions in the earth filled with decades of dirt and debris and dead vegetation. When they reached the junction point Jonah had identified, Evelyn understood why everyone thought this was impossible. The blockage was massive. Tons of earth and rock had collapsed into the convergence point creating a natural dam that had been building up for years. Tree roots had grown through it.
The whole thing looked like it had been there since the beginning of time. "Well," Caleb said, staring at the mess. "This is going to suck." "Yep," Cain agreed. Holden jumped down from the wagon and grabbed a shovel.
"Then let's get started." They worked for hours, digging, hauling, prying rocks loose with crowbars and brute force. The ground was frozen solid in places making every shovelful feel like chipping away at iron. Evelyn's hands blistered within the first hour, but she didn't stop. None of them did.
The sun climbed higher offering light but no warmth. Sweat froze on their faces. Their breath came in ragged clouds and still they dug. "This is insane!" Levi panted leaning on his shovel.
"We're not even making a dent." "We're making progress," Holden insisted, though even he sounded uncertain. "How can you tell?" "Because we're still digging." It wasn't much of an answer, but it was enough to keep them moving.
By midday, they'd cleared maybe a quarter of the blockage. It wasn't enough. Not even close. And the temperature was still dropping, the wind picking up bringing with it the smell of snow. Evelyn straightened up pressing a hand to her lower back, and looked at what they'd accomplished.