The Tempest Prologue 23

Prologue 23

"Rook takes Bishop. Check." Paul told the guy seated across the table with the chess board. The guy was a art collector who was supposed to part some good pieces to Paul but he swapped the original for fake. He thought Paul would not be able to tell the difference been a previous dockyard worker. Paul could not do it, but he got another expert in. The Collector pleaded for his life and then leverage on the links of his with the others.

"You do not want to have them breathing down your neck, Mr Miller. Compared to them, you are only a Rook while they are the Kings'." Paul at that time wanted to kill the man but he held back. He offered him a game of chess. They had played to this move.

The Collector moved the King to the next block but Paul had him trapped. He moved his Queen and told the Collector.

"Checkmate." Paul told the Collector. He then shot the guy. He stepped over the dead guy.

"The only King is the one still on the board. Yours' would be taken off in checkmate moves." Paul walked to Alan who sat by the bar.

"Pour me one." Paul told Alan, but the other ignored him. Paul took his own glass and poured it.

"You realized that the guy had good links to some families." Alan told him and poured him another. They all poured their own glass; a tradition of the family.

"I called the families. They had given me their consent. He played one too many fakes in his sales." Paul replied.

"So why the chess game?" Alan asked. "We could just shot him."

"I like to give everyone a chance. " Paul replied. "Okay, of late, maybe I was getting mellow. More to it, I like chess. His King against mine."

"There can only be one King." Paul told him. " If there was another, then we would tussle for the spot. I can only allowed for one King on the board."

"So when can I get to be King?" Alan asked.

"Over my dead body, or if I said you can." Paul smiled. "Shoot me if you can't understand."