'I told him, I told my son not to play with that kid... he went ahead and lost again, now he wants more money for his pastry!' the woman had a firm grip on the arm of the child, as she hauled him towards the gate of the park. The young boy, was whining about how close he was to victory this time. Victor sat on a bench nearby and overheard the conversation between the two distraught looking women. 'It isn't just your son, yesterday my husband lost to that boy...' the other one said, shock still oozing from each syllable as she pulled her hand-bag higher up onto her shoulders, redundantly, accentuating how miffed she was... An exclamatory 'check-mate' echoed dramatically, it emphasised their anguish, the women gasped in unison as the birds left the trees...
'I think I need to have a talk with that boy's parents about this gambling.' the mother said as she tugged the boy away. 'Come on, off we go...' Garrett was intrigued, a good game of chess would be an interesting turn of events, a break from the mundane activities that he had embroiled himself in. He got up and stretched, slowly he strolled deeper into that park. As Victor got closer and closer to the boy, he heard a couple more check-mates. The blonde's confidence rattled just a little, the rate at which this boy was going through his challengers, was disconcerting... But the maddening challenge it posed, only served to lured him in faster.
Underneath the knotted climbers, that arched overhead to make a pretty passageway, Victor noticed a man mumbling to himself, lost in thought, Victor had to make a very elaborate sidestep to not get in his way. Finally, this man looked up, his flickering gaze pausing onto Victor's greedy looking face... 'I know that look, don't think for one second you can beat him, that boy is mad I tell you... Mad and a genius, don't say I didn't warn you!' he said as he ambled forth, muttering to himself again.
Finally Victor found the bespectacled boy, perched carefully on a chair that faced a simple stone table, rearranging the board. 'Are you here to lose too?' the kid said smartly. Victor just smiled as he sat across the kid.He watched as the his smaller fingers closed around the pieces methodically, like they were an extension of his body, like he was so intimately familiar with each piece, he could tell one pawn from another, just by feeling it. Once the board was arranged, he pushed his glasses higher up onto his nose and looked at Victor properly for the first time, his eyes were filled with a ferocity... and not the satisfied kind.
'Winning doesn't cut it for you anymore?' the blonde asked curiously, wondering what had got the kid's demeanour in knots... He extended his hand towards the younger one. 'I'm Victor Garrett, care to indulge me?' the blonde asked, waiting to see if the kid took his hand or not.