We left the car and joined two of the firefighters, relaxing by their truck, sipping coffee.
“What happened?” Diesel asked.
“Not sure,” one of the guys said. “Probably some accelerant involved, since it went through the house like lightning. Impossible to know for sure, but it doesn’t look like anyone was home. Lucky we got here fast and kept it from spreading.”
I was thinking probably when the roof went it released all the evil spirits into the air, like the scene in Ghostbusters when the spook containment facility exploded.
Twenty minutes later, we were standing in front of The Key House again, and Diesel had a big screwdriver in his hand.
“So you think that screwdriver is going to do the job?” I asked him.
“I shouldn’t have a problem if it’s just cemented in at the corners.”
“And if the whole thing is cemented?”
“I’ll have a problem. Keep your eye out for company.”
He rammed the screwdriver into the brick and mortar, chipping away chunks of brick.
“You’re making a mess,” I said.
He stopped work and looked at me. “Do you want to try this?”
“No.”
Thunk, thunk, thunk.
“Jeez,” I said. “That’s awfully loud.”
“I’m starting to think I’d be better off with Hatchet,” Diesel said. “At least I could beat him.”
“Just trying to be helpful,” I said. “I thought you’d want to know you were loud.”
Second-floor lights went on in The Key House.
“Uh-oh,” I said. “Can you hurry it up?”
Diesel rammed the screwdriver in one last time, wrenched it back, and the plaque popped off. He scooped it up and stepped off the stoop just as the front door opened and a man wearing boxers and a striped pajama top looked out at us.
“What the devil?” the man said.
We turned and ran, and I heard the man whistle and yell for Bruno. Seconds later, Bruno bounded out of The Key House and took off after us.
“Dog,” I said, gasping for air. “BIG DOG!”
The dog was doing a lot better on four legs than I was doing on my two. We were still a block from the car, and Bruno was gaining. Diesel stopped in front of a house with a six-foot privacy fence, grabbed me, and threw me over.
One minute, I was running for all I was worth, and next thing, I was flying through the air, and then—wump—I was flat on my back in someone’s backyard. Diesel followed me over, landing on his feet.
He bent down and looked at me. “Are you okay?”
“Unh.”
Bruno was barking and scratching at the fence.
“He’s going to bring people,” Diesel said, pulling me to my feet. “We have to go.”
We looked around. No place to go. Six-foot fence on all sides. No gates.