Marriage is Murder

"Anytime," Khaat said.

"I'll get the board," Angus said,glad to see Khaat doing something for fun again for a change. He understood her. She hadn't been deliberately gloomy, but she had faced death again, looking it right in the face. Angus had only looked at death one time, and he hadn't like it much. He never talked about it. Never. Well, he hadn't. And now he obediently stepped back into the butler role and fetched the chess set for her.

"Angus," she said softly, when he brought it back. She offered him a smile. "You wait until Christmas and see what I tuck in your stocking."

"You stop those thoughts right now," he laughed. "I am quite happy with my life as it is." He kissed her forehead affectionately. "I'll go start dinner."

Khaat made an initial move, a rather standard opening move. Robert finished his work in the potions lab and came upstairs in time to see Khaat making an opening move on the chess board. It made him stop and watch and smile, with a sense of fatherly pride. She had given him everything he had ever asked for in a child. He never regretted that he and Kate had never had more. He watched her and all he felt was his love for her.

She was everything he could ever want in a daughter and more. She was beautiful, intelligent, brave, loving, kind, skilled...he hadnt know it then, but he had never had need of another. Brian? Brian was pure boyish blessing. Always had been. He and Kate had never revealed how they had known years before that, that there would be a handsome, blond man that would sweep his daughter off her feet. And she'd had it twice. Rob, and now Brian. But Brian was rock solid, and he was pleased for that. And both times she'd chosen, she'd chosen for love.

He went over and sat down on the arm of her sofa next to her and put his arm around her shoulder, kissing the top of her head.

"Ribs better today?" she asked him.

"I'm managing," he said quietly. "I had my sick time, its time I was back at work." She looked at him frowning.

"You had half a day," she said.

"I had enough." He looked across the board to Cassidy. "Your move. Got any idea what you're doing?"

"No," Robert said, " Not if you want to stay live in the game for more than a few minutes." He put her piece back and chose a very challenging piece to move and put it in place. Khaat looked at the board. It was not the first tie she'd seen him use that move. And he was playing for keeps. But she had some new skill of her own. She saw her mother glancing over the board out of the corner of her eye. Khaat studied the board for a moment and then moved her piece, her own piece stopping to stand up and smash her father's piece. He groaned and then laughed.

"Where'd you learn that?" he laughed.

"Sweet, wasn't it?" she laughed.

"She got 'ya, Robert," Brian laughed.

"The game isn't over, Son," Robert said firmly.

"No," Robert said. "If you stop playing, you stop learning. there are some things in life that we learn best by doing. Chess is one of them. If you want to learn military strategy, this is a great game to master. You see where she's moved? Its a good move. But it can be blocked. We'll leave your move because that won't harm anything at this point. Its not the part of the board she's interested in at the moment."

"And how do you know what I'm interested in?" Khaat asked.

"First, I know you. I know how you play. And second, I know how I would play." He looked at Cassidy. "Just watch and see."

It hadn't been where she was going to move, but rather than the leap on the other side of the board that her father had anticipated, she selected the middle of the board, away from Cassidy's move and away from where her father thought she'd go. He just laughed.

"well, well. Creativity," he laughed. "that's always a good thing. And what shall we do with that, then, Cassidy?"

Khaat watched Cassidy's move. "Much better," Khaat said to her. "Now you're getting it. That's how it goes. Strategie. Forward thinking. And..." she said, looking over the board. "Watching your own ass." She moved a smaller piece and used a pawn to take one of Cassidy's pawns.

"Oh, well done," Robert said. "I almost missed that one." He studied the board and looked at Cassidy. "But...watch this." He glanced at Kate who was grinning from ear to ear. He moved one of Cassidy's pawns and took Khaat's knight. Khaat groaned. She'd missed that one. "Don't give it a second thought," he consoled her. "You're fortunate to be able to play at all today."

"Well, it seems I'm rusty," she said. Her mother went over towards the board.

"Well, we'll just have to make sure they don't beat you," Kate said. "Now the field looks a bit more evened up. One weak player, one new player..."

"And two old farts," Robert laughed.