Kohler flung himself forward, drawing a gun, but stumbled over Hashknife’s outflung foot and lunged heavily to the floor, almost under the roulette wheel. Torres darted toward the front door, while Garcia chose to make his exit at the rear, and all the while Jack Baum was trying to get past the clumsy Sleepy, who seemed to be innocently trying to efface himself from the scene.
It was only a matter of seconds before it was all over. The room was in an uproar. Baldy was swearing painfully, as he tried to check the bleeding of his wrist, assisted by Lee Yung. Kohler was still trying to find his gun, which had flipped out of his hand, and Jack Baum was trying to make up his mind whether Sleepy blocked him intentionally, or whether Sleepy was the most clumsy lout he had ever met.
Kohler’s face was scarlet, as he painfully dusted his knees and peered under the roulette wheel, where he found his gun. He holstered it savagely and came back toward the bar. He faced Hashknife, shaking with rage.
“You tripped me!” he snorted. “Damn you, why did you do it?”
“Yore feet are too wide,” said Hashknife evenly. “How much room do yuh need?”
The crowd lost interest in Baldy’s injuries now.
“You tripped me on purpose!” roared Kohler. “I’ll show you how I pay——”
He drew back his right fist and let drive with a blow that was so obvious that Hashknife moved easily aside to avoid it and smashed Kohler square in the center of his wide throat. Kohler seemed to be falling almost before the splat of the blow, and he went flat on his face. Hashknife stepped back, his right hand swinging loosely at his side, and glanced around.
Jack Baum was standing almost against the bar, his hands half-raised, while Sleepy was very close to him, his gun-muzzle resting square against Baum’s waistline. Baldy’s face was gray with pain and anger, but he was in no condition to lend anyone assistance.
Some of the men turned Kohler over on his back, while the bartender poured a glass of water over his face. The knockout was so complete that many of the men ventured the opinion that Kohler was dead. Lee Yung examined him and shook his head.