he said. âIâve got a strong attack on your king here. Itâs your move. The first thing youâre going to do is â¦â
There was a tap at the door and the rustle of its movement across the carpet. It wasnât the under-secretary coming to tell Nigel the car was ready. It was the President.
Nigel rose. Taeela rushed across the room, grabbed his hand and started to pull him towards the board.
âCome! See!â she said. âNigel is showing to me how I sacrifice my queen!â
He came and stood, gazing down at the board. Nigelâs throat was taut, his mouth dry. He had to stop his tongue from continually licking his lips.
âYou gave her the black pieces?â
âYes, sir. Uh, she had them already. Uh, Iâd forked her knight and rook â¦â
He stumbled through to the end of his explanation.
âWhy this position?â
âIt was a game Iâd, uh, studied not long ago so I didnât have to think it out.â
Another tap on the door and swish of its opening.
âTell the driver to wait,â said the President without looking round. âVery good, Nigel. Continue the demonstration.â
Nigel managed to take a grip of himself. It was going to be all right. This time, anyway. He turned to the board.
âNow,â he said. âItâs my move. I attack your queen with my bishop. Either youâll have to move her away or use her to take my bishop, but if you do that Iâll take her back with this pawn. What do you do?â
âI move her ⦠but you say no?â
âLook what happens if you move her. Something like this â¦â
Rapidly he shifted the pieces through several moves.
âNow you see, youâve still got your queen but youâve lost more pieces than I have and Iâm pretty sure to beat you soon. But â¦â
He put the pieces back.
âSo I take the bishop, like this, with my queen?â
âAnd I take her with the pawn. Youâve lost her. But look at your rooks.â
It took her a few seconds to see the point. She picked the front rook up and banged it down in his back rank.
âCheck!â she shouted, and a moment later âCheckmate!â
âA queen sacrifice,â said the President quietly. âExtremely satisfying. Except when it happens to you.â
âYou tell me I am your queen,â said Taeela pertly. âOften you say this. So you sacrifice me, because it is satisfying? You tell me, marry the son of the British Ambassador because it will be good for your stupid dam.â
âYou should not tease your guest like this. It is not manners. Besides, Nigel may have views on the matter.â
He turned to Nigel and raised his eyebrows.
âEr ⦠well ⦠of course you wouldnât sacrifice her for anything or anyone,â he said. âChess is only a gameâall youâve got to do is win. And anyway Fohdrahko wouldnât approve.â
âThree excellent answers for the price of one,â said the President. âAll you have to do is win, so you will sacrifice your best pieces to achieve that. As your father my aim is to secure your happiness and well-being. As President my aim is to secure the happiness and well-being of Dirzhan. These two purposes are not part of the same game. May I never need to choose between them.â
All the lightness of his tone was gone. For the first time Nigel felt that he had a glimpse of the man behind the mask of powerâthe man behind the monster behind the mask, if you wanted to look at it that way. Taeela reached up and stroked the back of his hand with her fingertips. He took her hand into his own, squeezed it gently, and let go.
âYou do not choose,â she said. âYou ask me, âWho do I wish I ⦠wish to marry?â Then I choose. Am I right?â
She had dropped her habitual pertness and spoke as if she meant what she said almost as earnestly as her father
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