“It’s all right,” he soothed. “Close your eyes. Forget the room,” he coached. “Play for fun.”
He didn’t understand what was happening to me. He didn’t know I couldn’t care less for the room, couldn’t care less about the game, how I understood in that moment I’d give up every single piece on that board just for him to touch my skin once more. He didn’t understand how dangerous he was to me.
I shook my head as clear as I could get it and begged myself to remember why I was there, begged myself to remember my sisters. I fell into my chair and Peter Aurek finally glanced my direction. He slowly perused me from the top of my head to the tips of my toes before meeting my eyes. His eyes fell hooded, a slight smile on his face. He looked like he would either eat me for breakfast or offer to make it instead, but was torn between both. It was meant to intimidate me.
I looked up at the ceiling, sat up straight, cleared my head, then met his gaze again.
I’ll be doing all the eating this evening, Aurek.
“Good luck,” I told him over the board.
“I won’t need it,” he cleverly replied, and made the first move.
I moved my first piece and recorded it and he followed suit.
“You’re very pretty,” he whispered to me just low enough I wasn’t sure the officials even took notice, unless they didn’t care. I couldn’t tell.
I didn’t respond to him except to move my next piece. The room was quiet, but the spectators were so far away, I knew they couldn’t hear him.
“Trying to join the club, are you?” he asked, moving his next piece and recording it.
I bristled in my chair but didn’t respond. I moved again.
“I heard this is your first tournament?” he asked. I looked up at him and stared hard. This made him grin at me. “Interesting.”
I cleared my throat.
“You really are a novelty, aren’t you?” he asked, but I was certain he wasn’t looking for an answer. “I take back what I said about your being pretty. I was wrong. You’re quite beautiful, to be honest.” He imperceptibly leaned forward. “Is that how you won all those other rounds? You distracted your opponents?”
I moved my next piece after his.
He smiled again, biting his bottom lip as he did so.
“I bet that’s it,” he needled. “Like lichen on rock, you’re beautiful to look at but don’t really belong.”
I winced because that stung.
“Where do I belong then?” I whispered back as he made his next move.
He stared at the board but lifted his brow when I spoke to him. I’d shocked him by replying, I thought.
“Maybe you belong in my bed,” he commented, still staring at the board. I felt my cheeks flush and he looked at me. “What do you say?” he asked, showing a snake’s smile.
I ignored him and made my next move.
We volleyed back and forth on the board while he played his own game above the board. What he didn’t realize, though, is I had already won. I knew his game, all his games. I knew the moment he’d grown silent he’d noticed his mistake.
“So quiet,” I whispered his direction.
Cold, intense eyes met mine, but I smiled as kindly as I could at him. His face was wiped of all confidence.
He scrambled his pieces in a desperate attempt to salvage his game.
“Aww, wee lamb,” I teased.
When I had him, he sat back in his chair, his hands going to his head in disbelief.
I stood, walked over to him, and leaned down at his ear. “Checkmate,” I whispered.
When I stood back up, he stared at me. I winked at him and his mouth dropped open.
A small but substantial roar began from the crowd and built into a giant one. People jumped up and down and clapped. I turned when I remembered Salinger and saw him standing there, his arms crossed. He was shaking his head back and forth, fighting a giant smile.
I faced Aurek again, laid my arm across his shoulder, and whispered once more in his ear. “I can tell your lack of respect for me is a product of the power women hold over you, so let me let you in on a secret, pawn. Humility. Humility and kindness. Try it on and the good ones will come your way, I promise.” I stood up and smiled at him. “Good game,” I told him. I left him there in his chair with his mouth still agape.
I saw Salinger near the hall doors and started to sprint toward him but stopped short when someone blocked my way.
“Miss Hahn,” Tao Zhang greeted. He was only an inch or so taller than I was, but he was a formidable figure.
“Mr. Zhang,” I greeted in return.
“You know me,” he more stated than asked.
“I do.”
“You played well.”
“Thank you,” I told him.
“I hope to see you at Nationals.”
“Sorry to disappoint, but I won’t be at Nationals.”
He looked shocked. He placed his hands in his pants pockets. “Just as well,” he said, “you’d never win against me anyway.”
I rolled my eyes. Oh my God, what is up with these chess boys?
“Yeah, okay, anyway, if you’ll excuse me?”
He smiled and backed out of my way. I felt his eyes on my back as I walked away then ran straight into Salinger’s arms.
“I won,” I whispered into his neck.
“Told you,” he said, hugging me tight.
He set me down.
“Excuse me, Miss Lily?” I heard behind me.
I turned to discover the two boys from earlier that morning, the ones who’d asked for Salinger’s signature.
“Can I get your autograph?”
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
WHEN WE GOT BACK HOME, I was riding high from my win. I paid the roofer the following Monday the down payment and set up a payment plan with him, just in case I didn’t win or even placed at the Richmond tournament, and they said they’d start work that Friday. Salinger helped me take pictures of what we’d done with the house to show the judge. I took extra pictures of the girls’ room so they could see for themselves how different it looked since they’d last viewed the house’s progress.
Salinger and I got back to our night shift at the market. I guess Salinger had told the night crew I’d won and when we’d shown up for work, they had a little cake there for me to celebrate.
Life went as smoothly as it could possibly go, considering my predicament, and I felt I made giant strides toward getting the girls back.
The next day, the day of my court hearing, I borrowed one of Katie’s church outfits and a pair of heels, and curled my hair. I brought my phone out and texted Katie.
Off to my court hearing. Pray for me.
My phone immediately indicated a text.
Already done. Go see your sisters.
I smiled. I was aching to see my sisters. To show them how much better I was doing, to tell them about my new life’s adventure, to prove to them I could take care of them.
I closed the front door and locked it before sprinting off to my Scout but panicked when I saw I had a flat. All four tires were flat. I bent over and inspected the one closest to the driver’s seat. They weren’t flat, they were slashed. Anger flared in my chest and I kicked one of the tires. I hefted the messenger bag carrying all my paperwork onto my shoulder and brought out my phone again. I dialed Ansen.
“Lily, what’s up?”
“Trace slashed my tires. Can you give me a ride?”
“Son of a bitch. Of course,” he said.
I would have called Salinger, but I was tired of relying on him all the time. To be perfectly honest, I wanted to distance myself from him. I was starting to more than like-like him and needed that to abate. That had to go away. Also, he was always coming to my rescue, and I knew he was sacrificing part of himself to do it. He never got enough sleep and he had to push through his school assignments. I didn’t like being that kind of burden on him. I was grateful to him, though. Eternally grateful to him.
When Ansen showed up, he wanted to look at my tires, but I refused. Sylvia told me to be there an hour early and as it was, I’d only be there half an hour early.
“Do me a favor, though?” I asked him.
“Sure, kid.”
“If I give you my card and keys, will you go buy four tires for me at Henry’s?”
“Yeah, but how will we get the car there?”