Read Online Boy on a Black Horse by Nancy; Springer - Free Book Online Page A

and it almost bit him. Then it bit two of the horses before he could get it killed. The horses had to be put down, and that almost killed Topher. Now he kept a rifle leaning in the corner of the stairs leading up to the hayloft. That gun was there in the night too.
    â€œAnd the fat black cat,” Chav was saying, “the fat, fat stable cat, comes padding along the top of the stall. He curls up right on top of Rom’s back, because Rom is a warm place, and he starts to purr.”
    Chav’s voice had gone singsong, but he must have rolled his eyes or something, because Chavali started to giggle. She would go to sleep now and dream of warm things, cuddly cats purring. “Rom’s not scared anymore,” she said.
    â€œThat’s right. The night is big and black, but so is he.”
    Liana and I were still up at midnight, which is when Grandpa slammed in, spitting mad.
    â€œAll right, where are they?” He glared at me.
    Cops must practice their glares in front of a mirror. Grandpa’s was good. I just about wet my pants, I was so scared of him for a minute, and I couldn’t say a thing. But Liana said as if nothing much was happening, “They’re asleep.”
    â€œGet them out here.”
    â€œNo. Sit down, Dad.”
    He didn’t sit down. “What do you mean, no ?”
    â€œI mean no. They’ve had their showers, and I’m washing and drying their clothes while they’re in bed. You can talk to them in the morning.”
    â€œMaybe you’re not understanding me,” Grandpa said between clenched teeth. “Read my lips. Get them out here now .”
    â€œThis is my house,” Liana said in a hard tone I had never heard from her before. “Do you have a warrant?”
    I dared a look at them, and I could see Grandpa begin to realize Liana was really going to stand up to him. And she was his daughter, so he didn’t want to get into a big fight with her. But he was a guy with his ego hanging out. He couldn’t back down now. “I can go get one,” he threatened.
    â€œBull. What have these kids done?” Liana puffed out a breath between her lips and let go of the hardness in her voice. “Sit down and have a cup of coffee, Dad,” she said very gently. “There’s no way I’m going to let you near them when you’re all fussed up like a stampeding buffalo. If you’d seen them, you’d understand.”
    I guess he didn’t want to lock horns with her anymore. He actually did what she said—he sat down. But now he was scowling at me.
    â€œMy own granddaughter,” he said. “I sat out there in the cold for hours waiting for those squatters to come back before I started to get it. And then I couldn’t believe it. My own grand-daughter, making a fool of me.”
    â€œSorry, Grandpa,” I mumbled, feeling really bad that I hadn’t thought before about what he’d do or how he’d feel. I guess I just kind of figured Grandpa would survive, but Chav might not. “I couldn’t let you take them to the juvenile home.”
    â€œWhy the hell not?”
    â€œBecause Chav—you might as well kill him.”
    â€œChav’s the oldest one,” Liana said, giving Grandpa his cup of coffee. “He takes care of the little ones like a mama hen, but he really needs somebody to take care of him.”
    â€œSomething terrible happened to him,” I told Grandpa. “He has all kinds of scars, like he was in some kind of horrible accident, or maybe a fire.”
    Liana gave me a strange look. “No,” she said. “No, I can see why you might think that, but that doesn’t account for all of it.”
    â€œAll of what?” Grandpa looked at the cup of coffee in his hands and set it down. “No damn coffee,” he grumped.
    â€œIt’s decaf.”
    â€œI don’t care. I don’t need it. All of what?”
    â€œThe look in his