Read Online Starting Gate by Bonnie Bryant - Free Book Online Page B

her,” Skye stuttered again, staying in his role as the pizza guy.
    “Yeah, I bet you were.” George stalked over and grabbed the lead rope from Skye’s hands, and Mabel whinnied with fear. “If Fred were here this wouldn’t happen. I wouldn’t have to put up with this nonsense from people who just wander in from Virginia and poke their noses where they don’t belong!”
    As Stevie watched George tug Mabel back to her stall, she realized why he looked so familiar to her—the black hair, the dark, brooding eyes, the slightly crooked nose looked just like Fred Gamble’s, another young actor who had played a number of roles similar to Skye’s. Though the fan magazines called them rivals, Fred had never been cast in any of the good roles that Skye had gotten, and he’d never shown any particular acting talent on the screen. However, if George was Fred’s brother, then he would think that Fred should have been cast in this role instead of Skye. So he was making life hard for Skye on purpose. If Skye got fired from the movie, Fred could come in and take his place! Stevie jumped as George slammed Mabel’s stall door shut. This was the meanest, most underhanded plot she’d ever discovered!
    “All of you have about thirty seconds to get out of here!” George growled. “And if I ever see any of you in this barn again, I’m calling the police!”
    “C-Come on,” Skye said shakily, still pretending to be a dork. “He means business!”
    They hurried out of the stable while George watched them go. Back in the bright sunshine, Carole spotted a shady hill that overlooked the stable and racetrack. It looked just like the hill they sat on so often in Virginia.
    “Come on!” she said, tugging at Skye’s shirtsleeve. “Saddle Club meeting. Now!”
    Without another word, they hurried to the top of the hill and sat down beneath a shady oak tree. As they caught their breath they could see George storming out of the stable and over into one of the movie trailers.
    “What is going on?” Lisa cried. “That guy is the rudest person I’ve ever met in my life!”
    “That’s George Gamble,” explained Skye. “You might have heard of his little brother.”
    “You mean Fred Gamble, the actor?” Stevie asked, her eyes bright.
    Skye nodded. “My big rival in Hollywood.”
    “You’re kidding!” Lisa cried. “That guy is Fred Gamble’s brother?”
    “He sure is. And remember Marcella, the girl who was flirting with Shev Bayliss?”
    Stevie frowned—she hadn’t realized that Shev and Marcella were an item—but Carole and Lisa nodded.
    “Well, she’s Fred and George’s sister.”
    Carole lifted an eyebrow. “But if she’s the film’s animal coordinator, isn’t she George’s boss?”
    Skye nodded. “That’s right. They both signed on to do this movie thinking Fred would get the part. But the producer hired me instead, and they’ve been furious ever since.”
    “And that’s why they’re making your life miserable,” said Lisa. “If you fail and get fired, then Fred can take over your role.”
    Skye sighed and threw a pebble down the hill. “That’s about the size of it.”
    “Wow!” Carole slumped back against the tree. “We’re up against a whole lot more than just retraining a nervous mare. We need to retrain a whole bunch of powerful people!”
    For a moment they all just stared at the stable, watching as one of George’s assistants led a horse out for some exercise.
    “What can we do?” said Lisa. “I’ve never tried to reeducate grown-ups in basic stuff like manners and respect.”
    Stevie snapped her fingers. “I know! If our own horses ever get here from Virginia, we could have the van drivers come over here to the set. Then we couldlure George and Shev and Marcella into the trailer and lock the door! Then we could tell the van driver to take them up to Anchorage, Alaska. By the time they got there, the movie would already be made!”
    Everyone looked at Stevie for a moment, then they