Free Fenzy by Robert Liparulo Page A

get a big rectangle of wall—the one that acted as a secret door—into place over the opening.
    “Keal!” Xander said. “There’s no time.”
    “Hand me a two-by-four, those nails, and a hammer!” Keal yelled.
    “Keal!” Xander repeated.
    David ran to a stack of long wooden studs. He handed one to Keal, who crossed it over the door and the wall on either side.
    David could hear Phemus coming down the stairs.
    “Nails, nails!” Keal said.
    Xander grabbed a handful and a hammer. He pounded one into the end of the stud. He put in another one, and ran around to Keal’s other side.
    “This is stupid,” Xander said, as he pounded in another nail.
    “David,” Keal said. “Get another stud ready!”
    David started to turn, and the door exploded out. Xander flew back and tumbled along the floor.
    David yelled, stumbled back, and tripped over the stack of studs. Sitting on the floor, his legs hitched up over the wood, he saw Keal on the floor, flat on his back. The door lay over him. Only his chest, head, and arms protruded out from it.
    Phemus ducked his head to fit through the opening, and stepped on top of the door.
    Keal groaned and fought to get free, but he was pinned under Phemus’s massive weight.
    “Keal!” David and Xander yelled at the same time.
    Phemus noticed their stares and looked down at Keal. Stepping forward on the door—pushing a gasp of pain from Keal—the big man stooped, reaching for Keal’s head.
    David snatched up a stud and thrust it into Phemus’s neck. Phemus reared up, and David rammed the stud into his stom-ach. The big man grabbed the wood and shook it. David held on, stumbling around like a bull rider.
    Xander grabbed Keal’s arm and began pulling. Keal put a hand on the top edge of the door and pushed, inching his way out.
    Lightning bolts shot into David’s shoulder from his broken arm, but he refused to release his grip. He had to keep Phemus busy for as long as it took to free Keal. The stud slipped over his hands, pushing splinters into his flesh. Phemus swung the stud, slamming David into the wall.
    “Hurry!” he yelled.
    Xander dropped to the floor. He hooked his hands into Keal’s armpit, planted a foot on the top of the door, and pushed. Keal slid farther out until only his legs remained pinned.
    Phemus jerked David back and forth on the end of the stud. Then he yanked it toward himself, and David stumbled forward. He had no choice: he let go just before coming close enough for Phemus to grab him.
    Phemus hoisted the stud and jabbed it down at Keal. Keal twisted sideways, and the stud smashed into the floor. It broke through the hardwood floor, penetrating it like a pick shattering through ice. Phemus raised it for another strike.
    Xander pulled. Keal thrashed, and shot out from under the door. Xander rose and fell back, pulling Keal along the floor with him.
    David helped them up, and together they ran round the corner into the main hallway without looking back.
    “Outside!” Keal yelled.
    They hit the stairs leading to the foyer, and David leaped down, touching every fourth step.
    “Haven’t we done this already?” Xander said, moving past David in a near-freefall down the stairs.
    “He’s going to keep coming,” David said, arching around the door that Xander swung open.
    “Let him try,” Keal said. He pushed the brothers down the porch steps. “Get to the car! The car!”
    At Keal’s rented Charger, David looked back. Phemus was coming down the porch stairs. David jumped into the back-seat as Keal dropped down behind the wheel.
    “Aaah!’ Keal yelled. He reached behind him, and his hand came back holding the dagger. He dropped it into a cubby in the center console and cranked the engine.
    Phemus was running now, clomping through the trees toward them. Keal didn’t bother turning the car around. He looked through the rear window and peeled away in reverse.
    “Pull a Jim Rockford,” Xander said.
    “What’s that?” Keal said.
    “From The