Leigh Bale - Falling for the Forest Ranger

“The Fisheries Restoration and Irrigation Mitigation Act. They’re a voluntary, nonregulatory program that provides funding to screen water diversions. All you need to do is help ensure that it’s maintained. Can you do that if it means keeping the fish out of your ditches and moving in a safe passageway?”

“Well, um, yes, I suppose if you’re gonna pay for it, I can at least help maintain it,” Harry said.

“Good! I knew we could count on your help.” Tanner smiled, hoping to lighten the tense mood.

Zoë’s face flooded with color and Tanner could tell she was upset. Didn’t she realize that angering the local farmers would never help them achieve their goals? Threats would just get everyone fighting mad.

Harry smiled and nodded at Tanner but tossed a sneer at Zoë. And that’s when Tanner realized that she’d just made an enemy who would talk to the other farmers in the area. Word would soon spread like wildfire that they had a hard-nosed federal marine biologist in town. Tanner knew how it worked. He’d been at this game a long time now.

Tanner needed to talk to Zoë in private. He should have explained things better before he brought her out here. Letting her face an irate farmer hadn’t been Tanner’s intent, but he’d had no idea when Harry resisted their proposal that she’d make such a do-or-die threat.

“Okay, I’ll set it up and be in touch with you soon,” Tanner told Harry.

“Good, you do that. You can call me anytime,” Harry said.

As they walked back to Tanner’s truck, Zoë didn’t say a word. From her narrowed eyes, he realized this wasn’t over. She was very upset. At him. He could almost imagine hot steam jetting from her ears, eyes and nose. He figured she was keeping her silence because of Jonah. But once they were alone again, he dreaded the inevitable flare-up that was sure to follow.

* * *

Zoë bit down on the inside of her cheek to keep from telling Tanner what she really thought about the way he’d coddled Harry Ragsdale. No doubt he was doing the same kind of appeasement with the other farmers in the area. And what about the ranchers and logging companies?

Glancing at Jonah, she almost wished she hadn’t brought her son along. She was angry and burned to give Tanner a piece of her mind. But she didn’t want to have harsh words with Tanner in front of her little boy. For now, she clamped her mouth closed and thought of calm, professional words she should say to Tanner later on.

Tanner drove them out to meet with two more farmers, with the same results as the first. One farmer argued, even when Tanner told him that FRIMA would cover the expense. The farmer didn’t want the nuisance of dealing with a screen. He didn’t want to be bothered.

And then Zoë stepped in with her usual blunt candor, which triggered Tanner into cajoling the man to get him to agree. The way Tanner tried to accommodate each farmer made Zoë think Tanner was part of the problem rather than the solution. No wonder so many fish were dying!

By the time noon rolled around and Tanner parked his truck near a campground at the base of the Bingham Mountains, Zoë seethed with annoyance. She didn’t want to be so hard-nosed, but she had her orders. Her employment was riding on her success here. With a young son to raise, she couldn’t afford to lose her job.

While Jonah raced ahead to play by the stream that threaded its way through the tall cottonwoods, Zoë reached for her bag and their lunch. She then walked with Tanner toward a picnic table nearby.

“Jonah, don’t go too far. Stay where I can see you,” she called as the boy bent over the shallow creek and poked the water with a stick.

Tanner tugged the picnic basket from her hand and carried it for her. Finally they were alone and she could have a private word with him. Taking a deep breath, she vowed to remain civil.

“Who do you think you are?” she asked quietly.

Okay, that didn’t come out the way she’d intended. She was so troubled that her emotions seemed to burst out of her mouth.

His response sounded just as clipped, telling her that he was also flustered by today’s events. “I’m the Fisheries and Wildlife staff officer over this national forest. We want to get these people’s attention, but we also need their cooperation. And we can’t do that with threats. If we’re gonna solve these problems, we need the support of the farmers.”

Zoë wasn’t so sure that was true. And yet, she didn’t want to cause more problems, either. She felt like an astronaut in outer space, not quite sure of herself anymore. “They’ve already taken too much advantage, Tanner. These problems didn’t happen overnight. They happened over years and years of abuse. The fish are out of time. Coaxing and being nice will take too long. We need action right now.”

“And you think threats will work better?”

“When people refuse to do what’s right, yes. We have the law on our side.”

His dark eyes met hers. “Threats only work as a last resort,” he said. “But I’ve found that we can get a lot of cooperation from these people if we show them what the problem is and offer to help them solve it. If we fix problems by cramming solutions down their throats, we just end up with a bunch of congressional inquiries.”

She tilted her head in confusion, never quite taking her eyes off Jonah. “Congressional inquiries?”

He nodded. “That’s right. The farmers and ranchers have a direct line to their senators, whom they support with reelection funds. And believe me, their senators listen to everything they have to say.”

He chuckled without humor and she realized he was serious.

“But congressional inquiries?” she said again. “They really resort to such drastic measures?”

He hitched one shoulder. “Would you really resort to shutting off their water?”

She nibbled at the end of her pinkie finger, thinking this over. “Yes, I would.”

“Well, so would they. Before I came here, we had congressional inquiries all the time. The Steelhead National Forest doesn’t need politicians breathing down our necks. Which is what will happen if Harry Ragsdale and other farmers like him start making angry phone calls.”

No, that wouldn’t be good. It’d stir up a pot they didn’t want stirred and delay getting the job done even longer. Zoë never knew working at the local level could be so complicated.

“I can certainly understand why you want to avoid that,” she agreed.

But what about her orders? Her boss in Portland had made it very clear what he expected her to accomplish this summer. There wasn’t any room for pampering.

“So you can see why I tried to be pleasant with Harry Ragsdale instead of bullying him,” Tanner said.

“Did I bully him?” The thought made her feel horrible. She didn’t want to bully anyone. She was just trying to do her job.

His handsome mouth flashed with a brief smile, telling her that she’d surprised him today. “Yes, and you’re the prettiest bully I’ve come across lately.”

His words caught her off guard and her cheeks flushed with heat. From the sudden color in his face and the way he quickly looked away, she could tell he’d let the compliment slip out without thinking.

Okay, better to forget about his flattering remark. She’d just let it drop.

“I’m sorry I didn’t warn you before we came out here. I should have explained the situation to you better,” he said.

She appreciated his apology, but it didn’t solve anything right now. “Then what do you propose? If farmers won’t agree to let us install the screens on their property, then we’ll need to force them to comply.”

He snorted. “Good luck with that tactic.”

Zoë couldn’t help feeling bitter about the situation. From what she’d seen, most people didn’t care. They just wanted to go on with their lives, without any inconvenience to themselves. And Tanner seemed to be letting them do it. “I just don’t like the way you baby them.”