Over the Edge by Gloria Skurzynski Read Free Book Online Page A

participates in this free-for-all?”
    â€œYeah. The contest is legal. Any hunter with a license can take part. He’s got a license. He says they do it all over the country.” Morgan shifted uneasily. He was not enjoying this conversation.
    â€œA license to pile up carcasses for a reward? Hunting laws were created with the idea that when you kill game, you use the meat. This—this is— body-count killing. It’s slaughter, not hunting,” Olivia declared. “Unethical in the extreme.”
    â€œSnipe sees it differently. And I don’t want you talking to him if you’re going to go ballistic about the hunt,” Morgan insisted.
    â€œThat’s the point. This isn’t a hunt—” Olivia sputtered to a stop and then began again, “Take a look at the pictures on this screen.” She tapped her index finger on each face as she spoke. “A fox. A bobcat. A mountain lion, for heaven’s sake. Whoever made the decision that these were varmints? The word ‘varmints’ is supposed to mean ‘useless predators.’”
    â€œThis is so gross,” Ashley said, glaring at Morgan.
    â€œHey everybody, let’s take it down a notch,” Steven broke in. “Morgan isn’t the one participating in the hunt. He’s trying to help us get information. We’ll get to Snipe’s Web site and see what we can learn about the guns. Morgan, do you have his Web address?”
    â€œYeah, sure. It’ll just take a second to bring it up,” Morgan said, looking relieved to have an excuse to get away from the Predator Hunt page. After he punched in a string of numbers and letters, a jagged mountain peak appeared, followed by an animated hunter with a spitting automatic gun. It hit a target that blew apart into a thousand blood-red pieces.
    â€œSnipe’s always been into cool graphics,” Morgan said sheepishly. “I have to warn you, he talks a lot about the government and conspiracies, but that’s just his politics. He’s good at gaming.”
    â€œYes, he seems to have a lot of opinions about a lot of things,” Steven agreed, inspecting the screen.
    â€œWhen are you going to write your question about the pellets?” Jack asked, pressing to get a better look. Beneath bold headlines Snipe had written blocks of text, but Jack couldn’t get close enough to read it. Steven’s and Olivia’s heads were in the way.
    â€œThis is quite a Web site,” Steven murmured. “He talks about the predator hunt here, and there’s a list of preferred guns…then all kinds of….” Steven’s voice trailed off. Blue backlight turned his skin gray as he scrolled through graphics and other blocks of text, moving from one line to the next.
    â€œDo you see that?” Olivia’s face suddenly hardened. She looked at Steven, whose own jaw had set. “Are you reading what I’m reading?”
    Nodding tersely, Steven answered, “I see it.”
    â€œSee what?” Jack asked, trying to get a look. Whatever it was, his parents hid it as they moved closer together. Olivia looked as though an ice storm was raging behind her eyes, Morgan kept rubbing his chin with the tips of his fingers, and Ashley had turned deathly quiet.
    â€œJack, I’d like you and Ashley to go into the other room,” Olivia ordered. “Right now. Morgan, stay here.”
    â€œWhat’d I do?”
    â€œI think you know,” Steven answered.
    â€œCan’t I stay and—” Jack began, but when he saw his mother’s face, his voice dried up in his throat. “Come on, Ashley,” he said quickly, retreating through the door.
    The moment the door shut a flood of muffled words erupted from the other side. Jack couldn’t understand them, but he didn’t have to. His mother was angrier than she had ever been with Morgan, that much was certain. His father, who had usually been so