“Queee-ee-eeeee!” chortled the snake in what sounded like a merry laugh. Prelude to strangulation? Hog wondered. The next coil whipped around his ankles, and he fell to the mat like a hundred and thirty-eight pounds of frozen meat.
“Two-point takedown!” whinnied the ref.
“Augggh!” Hog grunted, trying to keep from rolling onto his back. The snake was trying to get him to do just that, but it didn’t have a firm enough hold on his legs, and he was able to scissor hard and gain some leverage, getting himself halfway up to his elbows and knees. “Hunhh! Uunhh!” He was struggling just to breathe. He could feel himself sliding a bit inside the slippery coils, despite the pressure. If only he could slide out . . .
In fact, he was moving a little, squirming in the coils. “Unhhhh! Unhhh!” He inhal
