Oh, no. He thought. She couldn't possibly be thinking of filling a flush.
He knew perfectly well that she was.
The second man said: "And raise two hundred."
The Queen equably tossed (counting, Malone thought, the ante) five hundred into the pot.
The cowboy muttered to himself for a second, and finally shoved in his money.
"I think I'll raise it another five hundred," the Queen said calmly.
Malone wanted to die of shock.
Unfortunately, he remained alive and watching. He saw the last man, after some debate internal, shove a total of one thousand dollars into the pot.
"Cards?" said the dealer. The first man said: "One."
It was too much to hope for, Malone thought. If that first man were trying to fill a straight or a flush, maybe he wouldn't make it. And maybe something final would happen to all the other players. But that was the only way he could see for Her Majesty to win.