[Mortimer]

Originally Posted by hi_im_god

"take your goddamn mitts off my shirt. palooka"

this big man frowned. he wasn't used to being talked to like that. he took his meathooks off my shirt and doubled one into a fist about the size and color of a large eggplant. he had his job, his reputation for toughness, his public esteem to consider. he considered them for a second and then made a mistake. he swung the fist very hard and short with a sudden outward jerk of the elbow and hit me on the side of the jaw. a soft sigh went around the room.

it was a good punch. the shoulder dropped and the body swung behind it. there was a lot of weight in that punch and the man who landed it had had plenty of practice. i didn't move my head more than an inch. i didn't try to block the punch. i took it.

a minute later it was all over. the gorilla was crumpled in a corner moaning quietly. i picked my hat up off the floor, dusted it off and put it back on.

"velma!", i called. "whiskey sour! and turn that music up!"

i didn't like to fight. never have. but is there any sight more ridiculous that a man letting another man knock his hat off?

i drank the sour in one slow swallow, heard the sirens coming, and walked slowly out to central avenue. it smelled like spring.

OOOOOOOOOO