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.The basket barely grazed his ribs.He gave a grunt and a yank.Sophraea twisted around, trying to get more solid footing, but the doorjack was stronger than her.She couldn't pull away.He stretched out one hand and fastened on her arm, pulling so violently that she stumbled.The rough floor scraped her open hands when she tried to catch herself.The doorjack continued to pull at her, trying to force her down upon the floor.Sophraea twisted, let the loose cape slip aroundher shoulders, and scrambled to her feet.He held on.The collar cut against her throat.Furious, Sophraea spun toward him and lashed out with one foot.He dodged her kick but the cape slid between his fingers.She was able to back up another step away from him."I'll get you!" he growled.He shifted, trying to get a better grip.She pulled one arm free and plunged her hand into the basket.Her fingers clamped around a half brick.Hauling it out, she thrust the brick with all her might at the man's hairy face.It crushed his long nose with a loud snap.The doorjack let go with a wild howl.Sophraea dropped to the floor and rolled away.Once clear of the villainous servant, she sprang to her feet.She knew he was much stronger, but so were her brothers.Through the years she had learned that her small size let her dodge more quickly than a large man.As long as she could stay out of his grasp, she had a chance.Her best defense was to stay beyond his reach.He staggered back and forth, both hands clapped over the center of his face, blood flowing in a glittering ribbon down his chin."You broke it," he burbled through the mess."You're mine!"While he was distracted, she raced past him and jumped up to the second stair.He heard her.His head snapped up arid he struggled to stand, his knees bent, one hand over his face and the other braced on the floor.For a terrible moment they both wete motionless, staring at each other.She thought about running up the stairs, but they were steep, double height, impossible for her to do anything other than climb carefully.Knowing that, she hesitated, two steps up, facing him, unwilling to turn her back on him and chance the stairs.That was a mistake, she realized a moment later, as he sprang forward, leaping more like an animal than a man, covering the distance twice as fast as she expected.Terrified, she stumbled backward up a step.In her head, she heard Leaplow's advice, "Whatever you do, don't let a man pin you.Hit him, keep hitting him, don't quit!"She swung the basket high and brought it down like a club on the top of the doorjack's head.His feet slid on the tread and he landed on the floor at the bottom of the steps.From where she stood on the stairs, for once in her life, she was taller than her opponent.She took advantage of that fact.Sophraea thumped the heavy basket against his skull again and again.With a yelp, the doorjack smashed into the floor of the basement.He didn't move.For a long moment, Sophraea just stood there, breathing heavily, her fingers clutched tightly around the basket's handle.He still didn't move.She edged back down the stairs, crept forward and tentatively put out a hand to see if he was dead or alive.The doorjack groaned and she jumped.But he didn't open his eyes, just whimpered a little and curled upon his side.Sophraea circled cautiously around the unconscious man.She rerurned to the candle.With many glances back over her shoulder, she reached into the pile of lumber.But the glint of gold was nothing more than the edge of a broken picture frame.The shoe was not there.The doorjack groaned again.A quick search of the debris turned up several stout cords that had once been used to tie up sacks of flour.Sophraea lashed the man's hands and feet together, using the best knots her brothers had taught her.All she needed was a little time to find Gustin and get out of this house.With some regret for the destruction of a favorite garment, she tore the muslin flounce off her petticoat and gagged the doorjack.Sophraea hurried back to the stairs.She looked up.The door at the top was firmly closed.She listened for a minute or two, butcould hear nothing of the activity in the kitchen.With luck, nobody had heard her skirmish in the basement
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