Wooooong!
A heavy, rhythmic metallic vibration rose up through the surface, signaling that the drill bit had reached the deepest and hardest layer of the earth’s crust. The massive drilling rig had reached 300 meters underground.
If you think of a household well in Korea, you might wonder how anyone could dig down 300 meters, but commercial farm wells in California commonly go 150 meters down as a matter of course, and sometimes 300 meters, or even as deep as 600 meters—about 2,000 feet.
The reason they dig so deep is that in California’s Central Valley and the Brentwood area, decades of excessive groundwater extraction have caused the water table to drop drastically. There is water near the surface as well—15 to 50 meters underground—but it is highly likely to contain pesticides or pollutants, and in a drought it dries up immediately, making it of little real use.
That was why they had to go deeper than the depths from which existing wells were drawing water, down to the bedrock aquifers between 250 and 400 meters.
In any case, the moment we reached the fated depth predicted by the USGS’s old data, the pressure gauge at the top of the drilling rig began dancing like mad.
“The bit’s under load! Lower the RPM!”
Along with the foreman’s urgent shout, the drilling rig’s engine roared and belched black smoke.
It was at that moment.
From deep underground came a thunderous boom—Kwaaang!—like some enormous cannon being fired. Air under tremendous pressure, long suppressed, burst out through the gaps in the drill pipe, followed by thick muddy water that shot upward like a fountain.
“Aaaah!”
Chloe screamed, clutching my arm tightly. But I did not take my eyes off it. The muddy water soon turned clear, and a cold, transparent liquid surged about fifteen meters into the sky.
A confined aquifer.
It was the moment when primordial water of life, trapped and compressed beneath layers of bedrock for tens of thousands of years, finally gained its freedom.
“It’s burst! It burst!”
Frederick cheered as he was drenched by the cold groundwater raining down from the sky. Chloe, too, gazed at the soaring column of water, overwhelmed with emotion.
Calmly, I took out the sampling bottle I had prepared in advance and collected the gushing water. Then I activated the portable water quality meter.
“pH 7.1, electrical conductivity, EC, 0.35... Perfect.”
A faint smile spread across my lips. The sodium content was low, and the magnesium and calcium levels were ideal. The water from the surface canals controlled by William Hartford was always unstable in quality because it contained fertilizer residue and salts from upstream farms, but this groundwater was premium agricultural water that required no filtration system whatsoever.
“Mr. Frederick, you can forget about the water beyond that sluice gate now. With this one well, we can supply the cherry trees on our farm with the purest nutrients.”
My voice pierced through the roar of the water column and reached them clearly.
“Hahaha! Of course we can. Let them do whatever they want with the irrigation canal water now! With this, I’ll never have to worry about water for a hundred-acre cherry farm for the rest of my life. Hahaha!”
“Exactly!”
Seeing Frederick and Chloe filled with joy, I naturally found myself smiling as well.
---
At the same time, the atmosphere at William Hartford’s house in Deer Ridge Country Club was flowing in the complete opposite direction from Harris Farm.
The door to William Hartford’s study was flung open roughly, and Samuel and Thomas, directors of the association, barged in. In their hands was an “Emergency Administrative Order” sent by the county health department.
“Mr. William, we’re in trouble. The administrative order really came down. Just like Rainmaker said, it’s fifty thousand dollars a day!”
Samuel placed the administrative order in his trembling hands on the desk. William Hartford looked down at the document with unfocused eyes.
[Providing Habitat for West Nile Virus Vectors and Acts Endangering Public Health]
Below that, the amount of the punitive fine to be imposed each day was written clearly.
“That lawyer, Harry Montis... he’s no ordinary man. I heard he already brought local newspaper reporters to the sluice gate this morning and finished reporting from the scene. The headline ‘Association Chairman’s Stubbornness Drives Brentwood Residents Toward Threat of Infectious Disease’ is about to run on the front page tomorrow!”
Thomas, too, looked despairing. With trembling hands, William lifted his coffee cup, but the coffee had already gone cold, and he could not even tell what it tasted like.
“It’s my water... my canal!”
“What are you going to do? Honestly... even if we find a lawyer right now, a fifty-thousand-dollar-a-day fine is too much. If we delay just ten days, that’s five hundred thousand dollars. Five hundred thousand dollars means selling how many cherries... Let’s go open the sluice gate right now!”
The reason ordinary farmers and Napa Valley wineries showed an incomparable gap was the scale of their revenue. Wineries that brought in millions or tens of millions of dollars in annual sales could earn so much money that it was hard to call them the same kind of farmers, while ordinary farmers were in such poor circumstances that annual sales exceeding one million dollars were enough to classify them as corporate farms.
Five hundred thousand dollars was more than 30 percent of the annual revenue of a farm owner with a hundred acres. From a farm owner’s perspective, a ten-day fine of five hundred thousand dollars was enough to make one’s legs give out.
The administrative order from the health department trampled all over William’s pride. He had reigned as the king of Brentwood his entire life, but before federal law, health law, and the terror of capital called fifty thousand dollars a day, there was no resisting. In the end, with a twisted expression, he picked up the keys to his truck.
“Let’s go.”
At those words, the association members inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. In their hearts, they had been thinking it would be disastrous if William continued to dig in his heels.
One hour later, in front of the northern canal of Harris Farm.
William Hartford’s pickup truck came to a stop, kicking up a cloud of dust. Hartford’s face was ashen as he got out of the vehicle. He jerked his chin at the workers who had followed him.
“Cut it off.”
The workers started up the cutting machine. Sparks crackled and flew, reflected in Hartford’s eyes. The very chain he had welded himself, certain of his victory, was cut away helplessly. As the heavy sluice gate creaked open, the blocked water rushed toward Harris Farm like a burst dam.
Harry Montis, who had been watching the scene from afar, stuck his arm out the car window and waved.
“Excellent work, Chairman William Hartford! Your welding was pretty good, so I imagine it was a bit of a struggle to cut through. Oh, don’t forget to spray disinfectant! A health department officer will be coming by later for an inspection! And Harris Farm has successfully installed its well! So you can let the water flow just like that! Hahaha!”
At Harry’s hearty mockery, William Hartford’s rage shot to the top of his head.
“Hmph! Let’s see how long you can keep laughing. Let’s see where you plan to sell a hundred acres’ worth of cherries...”
He instructed them to take photos and video to prove the sluice gate had been opened and send them to the health department, then irritably got into his vehicle and headed home. The fact that he had been completely toyed with by the opposing lawyer drove him to despair, but he had not abandoned all hope just yet.
It was simply a pity that he would have to wait until after May to see the result.
---
A day later, at Chloe’s house in Deer Ridge Country Club. Harry Montis, with his massive build, came to visit.
Harry sank his heavy frame deep into the leather sofa, took several documents out of a thick briefcase, and spread them across the table.
“Now, everyone, have a seat. I’ll tell you how the situation has been wrapped up.”
Harry adjusted his glasses and pointed to the map and a copy of the administrative order.
“First, William Hartford opened the sluice gate himself because of the fine, but that is what will put a leash around his neck. It amounts to a self-admission that the act I blocked was wrongful. Legally speaking, he has admitted with his own actions that the managing party was at fault. If Hartford had held out to the end and insisted, ‘I was justified,’ we would have had a long fight in court. But the moment he opened the sluice gate because he was afraid of the fine, he effectively proved on his own that ‘the welding I did violated health law and water rights.’”
“Ah...”
At his explanation, Frederick and Chloe stared with their mouths agape and nodded.
“Of course, all of this was his misfortune for having me as his opponent. Even so, if he knew he was up against me, he should have hired the best lawyer available. Now... it’s too late.”
It was an outrageously arrogant thing to say, but no one sitting there thought his words were arrogant. Not even me.
Then Harry’s gaze turned toward Frederick and Chloe. His voice was calm, but it carried a merciless warning.
“There are exactly three things you need to watch out for from now on. First, transparency in water quality data. Hartford will now either release contaminants into the canal water or, conversely, file retaliatory lawsuits claiming that your groundwater has lowered the water pressure of nearby farms. So record the well’s water level and water quality data every morning. That data will become your shield in court later.”
“Understood.”
Chloe nodded with a grave expression. Harry then held out the second document.
“Second, the independence of your water rights. Don’t relax just because William opened the sluice gate today. He may cut off the water again at any time under the pretext of maintenance. You can’t call me every time that happens. So I’ve completed the registration process to legally designate the groundwater well Brian drilled as an independent primary water source. Now, even if the association cuts off the water, you will legally maintain the status not of victims, but of an independent business capable of self-sufficiency. In other words, we have publicly declared, both internally and externally, that no matter what tricks Hartford tries, your farming operations will not stop.”
Chloe carefully wrote down Harry’s words with her pen. Finally, Harry tapped a page of the law book with his finger.
“Lastly, the most important thing is to make evidence part of your daily routine. If a stranger appears near the canal, or if there is even the slightest sign that someone touched the sluice gate, take photos and record it without fail. That way, the moment the cherry association chairman violates the law, I can strip him not only of his position as chairman, but even of his farmland as compensation for infringing on your water rights.”
Having finished speaking, Harry rose from his seat and picked up his leather jacket. His massive presence dominated the living room.
“It seems my work here is done. If you need anything else, call me, and I will help you without hesitation.”
After saying that, Harry looked at me and gave a broad grin.
“My younger sibling’s shop has already become known as a hideout in Beverly Hills. It’s all thanks to your wine, Mr. Brian. I’m always grateful.”
“I’m the one who should be grateful.”
“Well, then...”
Harry bowed his head to me and left the house.
“I’ve never met such a capable lawyer in my life. As expected, lawyers who work in Napa Valley are on a different level.”
Frederick clicked his tongue in amazement.
“It’s my first time too. I suppose Mr. Warren didn’t introduce him for no reason.”
“Exactly. Anyway, we’ve already received calls from the merchandisers at the big-box retailers. They said they may not be able to purchase our cherries this year. If you hadn’t looked into overseas air freight in advance, we would have been in serious trouble. Maybe we would have had to ask your farm to take on our entire shipment this year.”
“Hahaha! We might have ended up with ten thousand bottles of Serasia.”
“It’s a relief. Fortunately, Itochu requested a meeting next week. Even if the domestic buyers won’t take the volume, it looks like we can move a significant portion.”
“Chloe will have to show what she’s made of again this time.”
At my words, Chloe made a V sign with her fingers.
“Thank you. It’s all thanks to you.”
They had suddenly broken away from the association and found themselves in serious difficulty, but since I had handled not only the cherry shipments but even the water rights without issue, Frederick looked at me as if I were a benefactor who had saved his life.
“Of course I should help. We’re in a strategic partnership... and besides, it’s Chloe’s farm.”
When I took Chloe’s hand firmly in mine, Frederick looked at us and smiled with deep satisfaction.