Turning as I went through the window, I steadied myself on the window ledge and lowered myself to the ground.
Luke leaned his head through the opening. “Go check if she left the hammer.”
After straightening my shirt, I hurried around the front of the cabin and onto the porch.
Right there, next to the stack of firewood, was a carpenter’s hammer.
I shook my head as I picked it up. Walter was right. Sarah truly was full of arrogance.
“I found it!” I yelled and attacked the first nail on the boards barricading the front door.
The claw part made quick work of the nails, and in minutes, I had the boards off.
But the moment I reached for the doorknob to let Luke and Walter out of the cabin, I noticed all the nails through the door and into the door jamb.
Sarah had nailed it shut.
“Oh, man.” I let out a groan.
“What?” Luke’s muffled voice came from the other side.
“The door’s nailed shut. I’m going to try to pull the nails, but I’m not sure I can. Some of them are flush with the wood.”
“Do your best.”
Bending, I peered closer, assessing the nails, then attacked the one sticking up the most. I was able to wedge the claw under it and bend it up, then hook it and pull it out. Two more came out much the same way.
But when I tried the fourth one, there was nothing to get the hammer under. The fifth and sixth ones were the same.
“I can’t get the rest,” I said. “There are three left.”
There was a moment of silence, then the door rattled in its frame.
With a soft squeak of surprise, I stepped back. He was insane. He’d never get it open from the inside.
“Luke, stop! Stop! Stop!” My voice grew louder to carry over the heavy thuds. He finally paused.
“The door swings inward. You’ll never bust out. Let me check the back door.” Before he could answer, I hurried around to the back of the cabin. This time, I pried up the middle of the board covering the doorway and peered inside.
Metal glinted around the knob. More nails pinned the door to the frame.
“Well, shit,” I hissed, letting go of the board and straightening. I turned, looking for something I could use to help me break the door open, but the yard was devoid of debris.
My gaze landed on the shed. Maybe there was something in there.
“Mina?”
“Hang on.” I backed away from the cabin. “I’ll be right back.”
I was halfway to the shed when I heard Luke’s voice again.
“What are you doing?”
Glancing back, I saw him with his head poked out the window. “Checking the shed,” I answered, then broke into a jog.
When I reached the shed, I sent up a silent prayer it wasn’t locked. There were no windows in it for me to squeeze through here.
But I was in luck. When I grasped the lever-action handle, it moved easily, and the door creaked open.
