She runs a finger over the carved head of a knight. “It’s beautiful.”
I nod. “It was my grandfather’s.”
She looks back at me, a question in her eyes.
“Do you want to play?” I ask.
A small smile touches her lips. “Sure.”
I turn, opening a drawer and hitting a switch that turns on the gas fireplace. I pull the screen close before returning to her. We set up the board on the coffee table, Sandra taking the white pieces, me the black. The fire crackles, casting a warm glow over the room. The silence, for once, doesn’t feel heavy.
I move my king’s pawn forward two spaces. Standard. Safe.
Sandra mirrors my move, advancing her own king’s pawn.
“So,” she says, her gaze fixed on the board. “Chess club in high school?”
I move my knight out, a slight smile touching my lips. “Something like that.”
She develops her knight, mirroring me again. “Figures. You seem like the type.”
I raise an eyebrow, moving a bishop. “And what type is that?”
She considers, moving a pawn. “Strategic. Analytical. Quiet.” She looks up, meeting my gaze across the board. “Not impulsive, likesomepeople.“ A teasing glint enters her eyes, no doubt a reference to Ross and Oli.
I let out a short breath of laughter, and continue the game, moving my other bishop. “Accurate assessment.” After a few more moves, she pauses, her hand hovering over her queen. “How did you get into coding?” she asks, her gaze meeting mine. “You seem passionate about it.”
I consider my next move, a pawn, then look up at her. “It started with video games, actually.” A slight, self-deprecating smile touches my lips. “I wanted to know how they worked. How to make them.”
Sandra moves her queen’s pawn, a cautious move. “So you learned to code?”
“Self-taught, mostly,” I nod, moving my own pawn, blocking her advance. “Online courses, books, a lot of trial and error. It’s…logical. Structured. There are rules, patterns. It makes sense.”
She studies the board, then moves her bishop, putting pressure on my knight. “Like chess.”
“Like chess,” I agree, defending my knight with a pawn. I try to keep my voice neutral, not betraying the unexpected warmth that spreads through me at her observation. Sheseesme, understands a fundamental part of me, in a way few people do.
“Did you always want to do it as a job?” she asks, moving a rook’s pawn. An unusual move. Uncharacteristic.
I consider. “Not at first. I considered…other paths.” A subtle nod towards the framed photo she’d examined earlier, the one with Jethro in his uniform. “But coding, it suited me. It gave me a sense of control, of creation. I could build things, fix things, solve problems.” I move my queen, a calculated risk.
Sandra takes my knight, a small, triumphant smile on her lips. “Check.”
I frown, studying the board. She’s good. Better than I expected. “Good move.” I move my king, escaping the check.
“So, what made you change your mind on your other path?” She contemplates her next move. I take a deep breath. “I realized that I could do more by using my skills this way. I had been so angry, so closed up, but, helping people that was better than my other thought.” She looks up and studies me and I shift slightly. “I’m glad you did.”
I almost smile as I speak again. “Me too.”
She studies the board for a long moment, then moves her rook, putting my queen in jeopardy. A bold move. I counter, sacrificing a pawn to protect her.
“It’s funny,” she says, her gaze still on the chessboard. “I used to be…angry. All the time. When I was younger.”
I look up at her, surprised. “Angry?”
She nods, a faint, self-deprecating smile touching her lips. “At the world, I guess. At my father, mostly.” She picks up the pawnshe captured, turning it over in her fingers. “He…wasn’t a good man. He taught me things…things I’m not proud of.”
I understand, more than she probably realizes. The urge to lash out, to break things, tohurtpeople. I’d channeled that into other pursuits. She, it seems, hadn’t had that option.
