Page 50 of Dark Endures

There’s got to be something in this massive room to pull attention from conversation… a television or game station, maybe. What’s the point of having a massive office and not having a single television in it?

Maddox is weird. Sexy, but weird.

Though who needs a television when you have all these amazing snakes everywhere?

Maybe I could just talk shop until his brain goes dead, and he forgets to ask me weird questions.

Ohh. There, in the corner of the room, is a chessboard. More than a simple board, there’s an entire table with the board inlaid. It’s a beautifully crafted piece of art that probably costs more than anything I own, and today it’s going to keep me sane. “Do you play chess?”

Maddox stops filling his plate up. “I do.”

“Want to play a game?” Just be careful not to beat him too badly. Or maybe I should lose on purpose. Beating your boss at a game is never a good idea. Maddox doesn’t seem like the sore loser type.

Has he ever lost at anything? Dressed the way he is and with the way he looks… too smart and powerful for his own good, it’s doubtful.

“Sure.”

The weight of the pieces makes me think they’re hand-carved. They’ve got to be custom. I’ve never seen a snake set. The pattern on the two cobras that act as the king and queen had to have been carved with a microscope.

We settle down into the most comfortable leather armchairs. I could sit here for hours.

The first move tells you so much about a player… unless they don’t really play that well.

“Ladies first.”

Time to see what my boss is made of.

***

I slide my queen over. “Checkmate.”

Maddox’s head bobs and his eyes go wide as he stares at the board. “I lost.”

You sure did. But that wouldn’t be polite to say.

“You beat me at chess.”

Yes. Yes, I did.

“There are very few people who can beat me at chess.”

Should I say sorry even though I’m not?

“And I haven’t lost a game in years.”

It seems like you haven’t been playing against me.

“Where did you get so good at chess?”

He doesn’t need the truth that I learned it from a barback when I was a kid. “I have always enjoyed games of all kinds.” Which is also true.

“What else do you play?”

Everything. There aren’t many games I haven’t tried at least once. “You name it. I’ve played it.”

“We’ll have to play again, then.”

The way he said that makes my entire body tremble.

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