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Show 2* I figured drunk or not he had to be stupid. And damned if Loretta wasn't there, one arm around his shoulders holding him against her, brushing the hair out of his face, telling him not to worry, he'd be all right, calling him honey and crooning to him. A real stupid mess, and I drifted back toward the hall, and there outside the side door were three CCC boys talking about the fight. One was a tall guy, at least six-four with a big rangy frame and an iron face, and he was saying, "Oh no, nobody kicks my buddy there and gets away with it! Not while I'm around:" The other two were trying to settle him down but he threw them off and charged into the hall. "My god, if he won't kill the guy," one of the two said, and they scooted after him. I didn't think there would be a killing but if that giant caught up with Buck I sure did want to see it. But Buck wasn't around and I soon lost sight of the CCC boys, but later when I went out back and stood on the bank of the swamp to add my bit to it, I found myself near two more CCC boys. Those guys all knew each other. "I'm tellin' you," said one, "I wouldn't wanta be that guy when Fred catches him. He's gonna kill 'im." "Yeah, listen, we gotta stop him. He really will kill him." "Think I care? Stinkin' people around here anyhow." "No, listen, if he kills him, he'll be in a hell of a fix. We gotta find him." They went back and I hurried, but inside all was peaceful, if you can call "Roll out the Barrel" peaceful. It did seem to me though that the deputy Sid hired knew something was up. He was a chunky bald-headed man who worked during the week as a butcher and did a lot of walking around looking important, but now he was really on the lookout. Worried too. Then that dance ended and the crowd spread out like a wave around me. That's when I saw Buck, laughing and talking, and about the same time I saw the big guy, Fred. Buck hadn't seen him and even then I was surprised that he wasn't more on his guard. Maybe he hadn't heard anything, or thought he was too tough to worry, because he stood there with that audacious face of his like he was nothing if he wasn't cock of the walk. And I stood there jostled but not feeling it, my heart pounding, in a sort of trance while the big guy bore down on him with a furious concentrated singleness of purpose. Buck saw him at the last second and tried to get his hands up but I don't know whether it would have done any good if he had. I never saw fists move so fast: he hit Buck in the face three or four times before Buck could even stop grinning. And before that magic circle suddenly opened for them in the crowd, he hit him three or four more times. He hit him so fast that when Buck began to sink he didn't miss a lick, and from the time Buck started down until his head had sunk out of sight, that guy must have hit him three or four more times. Maybe Buck hit him back once or twice but the blows were not only inconsequential, they were irrelevant. That big guy was a furious triphammer pounding Buck into the floor. Then the deputy got there. Over my left shoulder I'd seen him coming and sort r>f stepped over in front of him; he hit me like a blind horse and gottW«ujJi £ar"^y 216 |