Cal’s whole body was in the room now, his right hand pushing the door wide ahead of him. Water streamed down his face. He brushed it out of his eyes with the left hand and caught sight of Ken, near his feet. Instinctively he leaned forward over Ken’s prone body.
“Now!” Ken shouted.
The heavy door traveled only six inches before it struck its crouching target. But those six inches were enough. Somewhere Sandy had found the strength to put his whole weight behind the push.
Cal’s body zoomed sideways. The force of the drive had knocked him off his feet like a bowling ball hitting a tenpin. His arms flailed as he fought for balance. His mouth opened on a shout.
But the shout was never uttered. Cal flew across the cabin, missing the stove by inches. His head crashed against the far wall with a thud that jarred loose a frying pan hanging above the stove. The clang of metal on metal was still echoing in the little room when Cal’s whole big body collapsed in an inert heap.
The door banged shut.
CHAPTER XVI
WITH THE HELP OF FIRE
“You did it!” Ken’s exultant shout broke the spell of silence that had fallen on the cabin.