by the time he 'd freed it from the holster , she had ripped two bars from their heavy bolts , snapping the reinforced boards `` as easily as a man snaps a toothpick , '' the same two bars directly beneath wilson 's lifeless body ; his arm was free finally , but too late , and he tumbled into that noisome void to the hold below , where her companion , roused by the bedlam and , no doubt , the acrid smell of fresh blood , waited for him .