Read Online Jumper by Michele Bossley - Free Book Online Page A

what difference would that make?” Bellamy said.
    â€œThe rules were pretty clear about not selling those horses for meat,” Grandpa retorted. He waved his handful of forms.
    Bellamy stopped, his eyes narrowing. “I could have you arrested for breaking and entering, Gus, not to mention theft if you intend to go anywhere with those manifests.”
    â€œGood!” Grandpa bristled. “Go ahead. We’ll see what the police have to say when they have a look at those forms.”
    Bellamy grinned, a cold grin that sent shivers down my spine. “They won’t say anything. They can’t prove a thing. Those horses were slicks.”
    That halted Grandpa in his tracks.
    â€œThere’s nothing on them to say that they weren’t mine in the first place. How are you going to prove that the horses I’m shipping are the ones I bought at the auction?” Bellamy continued.
    â€œWhat are slicks?” Kayla whispered.
    â€œHorses that aren’t branded.” I felt my stomach clench. Bellamy was right—unless the military had kept exact records of who bought what horse, or had branded them all, there was no way to differentiate between Bellamy’s horses and the wild horses. They’d all have Bellamy’s brand now.
    â€œYou low-down slimy skunk,” Grandpa sputtered.
    â€œHand over the forms, Gus,” Bellamy said with an air of menacing patience. “I’m not about to lose a forty-thousand-dollar profit to an old man who wants me to play by the book.”
    â€œHow many of those horses did you buy?” Grandpa asked, astonished.
    â€œSome fifty head.” Bellamy tipped back his hat.
    â€œHow...?” Grandpa said.
    â€œOther people’s names on the registration. Some were legitimate. My mother, for instance, God rest her soul. Others, not so much. Fred Flintstone made it on there I think. The auction officials didn’t seem to notice.”
    Grandpa stared at him in utter disbelief. “You planned this all along. My granddaughter wanted that mare, and you bid against her. And all along you knew you were planning to destroy them.”
    Bellamy shrugged. “Your granddaughter can buy another horse. Didn’t I tell her the only good reason for owning a horse was to make money, and jumping over fences didn’t pay? There’s good money to be made on these broncs, and I don’t aim to let anyone stand in my way.”
    The implied threat was there. But Grandpa didn’t budge. “Is that so?” he said evenlybefore he hauled off and punched Bellamy right in the gut.
    â€œGrandpa!” I gave a small shriek.
    â€œOoof,” Bellamy grunted, leaning forward and clutching his stomach. He straightened immediately, reached for Grandpa’s jacket and shoved him up against the truck. Grandpa tried to push back, but with the forms in one hand he couldn’t get Bellamy off. Bellamy had his hands around Grandpa’s throat.
    â€œThe forms, Gus,” Bellamy said through gritted teeth. Grandpa’s face turned a deep brick red and he struggled for breath. Bellamy squeezed harder. I couldn’t stand it any longer.
    I sprinted out of the bushes and charged like a rampaging bull, leaping onto Bellamy’s back. “Let him go!” I said fiercely, pounding the man’s shoulders with one fist. Bellamy shrugged off the blows, hardly noticing them, still keeping his hands around Grandpa’s throat.
    I saw Grandpa’s eyes begin to roll back in his head, and in a fit of desperation I woundup and slapped Bellamy with an open palm as hard as I could over the hollow of his ear.
    He reacted then, whirling around to shake me off. My shoulder smacked into the bottom of the open truck door, sending a sharp spasm of pain down my arm. It was enough to loosen my hold, and I fell off into the dirt.
    But I had accomplished what I set out to do. Bellamy had let go of Grandpa when I hit him. Grandpa’s face lost