She smashed the candlestick against the padlock with all the strength she had left. Clang. The lock held. She hit it again. Clang. Again.
On the fourth try, the hasp gave way with a screech of protest. The iron door creaked open.
A rush of fresh, cold air hit them. It smelled of pine and snow.
Elena looked into the darkness of the shaft. It was a narrow tunnel, carved directly into the rock, sloping upward.
"We can fit," she said. "It's tight, but we can fit."
Caleb looked at the tunnel, then at his broken legs. "Elena... I cannot climb."
"I'll pull you," she said immediately.
"You are wounded. You have lost blood," Caleb argued. "You won't have the strength."
"Don't tell me what I can't do," Elena snapped. She knelt beside him and took his face in her hands. "I carried you out of
