painfully tight grip as he tried to drag her toward the stairs. Anna Marie was hanging back like a balky mule, but she was no match for Coffin’s strength, and no one else in the room was making a move to help her. He hauled her onto the stairs.
Longarm sighed. Looked like things weren’t going to be settled peaceably after all.
“Coffin!” he said, his voice ripping through the uneasy silence that still ruled the room. “Let go of her.”
Coffin stopped on the third step and frowned ominously. “You buttin’ in again, mister? Thought I’d told you to run along like a good li’l feller.”
Longarm walked steadily toward the staircase. “I said let her go. You can say what you want about me, but you ain’t going to mistreat a lady while I’m around.”
“Lady?” Coffin repeated, then gave a braying laugh. “This ain’t no lady. This is just a worn-out old whore.”
Not hardly, thought Longarm. Anna Marie was a long way from that. As if to prove it, she gasped in anger at Coffin’s words and reached up to slap him across the face.
He blinked, more surprised than hurt by the blow. Then his bearded face contorted in an ugly scowl. He raised a ham-like hand to swat her in return.
Longarm palmed the Colt out smoothly and eared back the hammer as he raised the gun and lined the sights on Coffin’s broad chest. “I wouldn’t,” he said quietly.
Coffin’s face flushed an even darker shade of red as anger shook him. With a visible effort, he controlled his rage and said, “You don’t know what you’re doin’, mister. You’d better put that gun up and get the hell outta here whilst you still can.”
“I ain’t going to tell you again,” said Longarm. “Let go of the woman.”
With a grimace, Coffin released Anna Marie. She stepped back and rubbed her wrist, which bore the marks of Coffin’s fingers. Then she spat on his boots before turning and rushing across the saloon to a door at the end of the bar. She disappeared through it.
“All right,” said Longarm as he lowered the hammer of his Colt and replaced the weapon in its holster. “It’s all over now.”
“The hell it is!” Lazarus Coffin stepped down from the staircase and started toward Longarm. One of the poker tables was in his way, so he grasped it and flung it aside as if it was no more than a piece of kindling. Chips and cards flew every which way, and the men who had been sitting at the table sprawled on the sawdust-littered floor as they flung themselves from their chairs and tried to get out of Coffin’s way.
Longarm tried being reasonable one last time. “No need for any more trouble,” he said with a shake of his head.
Coffin was in range now. He spat an obscene epithet at Longarm and swung a roundhouse punch at the lawman’s head.
The blow might have taken Longarm’s head off if it had connected, but despite the obvious power in Coffin’s body, the man was slow. Longarm ducked under the punch easily. He stepped in and hammered a punch into Coffin’s midsection, hoping to end the fight quickly. He hadn’t wanted this trouble in the first place.
Longarm winced as his fist connected with Coffin’s belly. It was almost like punching a wall. Coffin grunted, just enough to let Longarm know that he had felt the punch, but other than that it didn’t seem to have any effect. And Longarm was close enough so that he couldn’t get out of the way as Coffin swept him into a bear hug.
Son of a bitch! thought Longarm. This was just about the worst possible thing that could have happened. Coffin’s arms closed around him with overpowering strength. Luckily, Longarm had sensed what was about to happen and had quickly caught a deep breath even as Coffin was grabbing him. He had enough air in his lungs to last for a few moments.
Long enough, anyway, for him to lower his head and butt Coffin in the nose. Coffin grunted again and stumbled back a couple of steps. Longarm took advantage of the opportunity to thrust a booted foot between Coffin’s ankles. Coffin tripped and swayed backward, trying desperately to hang on to Longarm and keep his balance at the same time. It was a losing proposition. He fell to the floor with a crash, Longarm landing on top of him.
The impact loosened Coffin’s grip enough for Longarm to tear his right arm free. He slammed his fist into Coffin’s jaw, making the bigger man’s head bounce off the planks of the floor. Longarm was about to strike again when Coffin arched his back and with a furious roar flung Longarm off to the side.
Longarm rolled over a couple of times when he landed, then came up quickly on his hands and knees. Everyone else in the saloon had backed off to the edges of the room, giving the combatants plenty of room. Quite a few of the spectators were shouting encouragement, and Longarm judged them to be divided about equally in their support. It was no surprise that Coffin wasn’t an overwhelming favorite, even though Longarm was a stranger in Del Rio. He figured that Coffin had been running roughshod over folks around there, so that some of them would be glad to see him get his comeuppance.
Longarm just wished he could guarantee that was the way the fight was going to turn out.
Coffin lunged at him again just as Longarm regained his feet. For a long moment, the two men stood there toe to toe, trading punches, each of them absorbing the punishment dealt out by the other. Longarm knew he couldn’t win the fight by this means, but at least he was softening Coffin up a little, he told himself. He tried not to think about the damage Coffin might be doing to him.
Gradually, while they were slugging each other, Longarm worked his way around so that Coffin’s back was turned toward the bar. Then, ducking a punch, Longarm threw himself forward and wrapped his arms around Coffin. Taken by surprise, Coffin was forced backward by Longarm’s charge. Summoning up all his remaining strength, Longarm rammed Coffin into the bar, bending him back over the hardwood. Coffin roared in pain and rage.
Longarm straightened and landed an uppercut that rocked Coffin’s head back even more. The man’s throat was exposed below the dark beard, and Longarm chopped at it with the edge of his hand. Coffin gagged and grabbed at his throat. Longarm stepped back to give himself some room, then threw a left and a right that both landed cleanly, snapping Coffin’s head from side to side. Longarm hooked another punch to Coffin’s belly, and this time his fist sunk satisfyingly in the man’s midsection. Coffin doubled over. Longarm clubbed his hands together and brought them sledging down on the back of Coffin’s neck.
