A Game of Chess

”You sure you wanna bring that horse up in here all by himself?” Lila turned a piece of tumbled lapis over in her hand and threw a sardonic look across the chessboard at Sam.

The sun glittered over the Atlantic, reflecting back at itself in a spectacular shimmer covering water and sky. Sam had his back to the ocean, his height and broad shoulders blocking most of the glare from blinding Lila’s light blue eyes, shielded by dark sunglasses.

“Leave it to you to talk smack in a chess game.” Sam shook his head and moved a pawn instead of his knight.

Lila took a long sip of her coffee and laughed. “It makes it more fun.” She swept Sam’s pawn off the board with her bishop. “That altar boy wasn’t very smart, coming to the sacristy without bringing a friend to watch his back. Check.”

Sam blocked her bishop’s path with his queen.

“Really? Just because he’s Catholic doesn’t mean he’s scared to take out a grown woman.” She took the queen and placed her bishop on that square. “Check.”

Sam triumphantly took her bishop with his, enjoying a moment of accomplishment until Lila took his queen’s knight with hers. “Remember to keep an eye out for the pony express.”

Sam advanced his king’s knight into play, and Lila countered with a pawn she moved into a threatening position. “Watch out. We marchin’.”

Masie opened the sliding glass door and joined them on the deck. She looked at the board and started laughing. “Y’all stop this nonsense and make a pitcher of Bloody Marys. This isn’t Monty Python, and I do expect the Spanish Inquisition.”