THE CASE OF THE BI-POLAR CHESS QUEEN: A Short Story
Three days after Marcos rescued Donna from a dangerous domestic situation, he called her and asked her to meet him for drinks or coffee at a classy bar in a downtown hotel. The two more or less "broke the ice" by talking about their favorite activities when they were younger. Marcos found out that Donna liked Scrabble. He told her he had a scrabble set at his cabin in the mountains, Big Bear Lake. He invited her up for a few days.
TAGS FOR THIS IMAGE: FREE-ART SHORT-STORIES LOVE-STORIES ROMANCE FALLING-IN-LOVE PUNISHMENT GLUTTON-FOR-PUNISHMENT BIG-BEAR-LAKE LONELY-CABIN MYSTERY-STORY CHESS SCRABBLE HUFFSTUTTER WATERCOLORS FACES COUPLES SITUATIONS PRETTY-WOMEN YOUNGER-WOMAN-OLDER-MAN LOVE-GROWS UNIFORMS RAILROAD-DETECTIVE GARLIC HEALTH GARLIC-AND-HEALTH GAME-PLAYERS WEEKEND-TOGETHER LOVERS-OR-FRIENDS DIRK ANGRY-MEN
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roberthuffstutter (28 months ago | reply)
THE CASE OF THE BI-POLAR CHESS QUEEN
by Robert L. Huffstutter
CHAPTER ONE
Donna ______was 23 and bi-polar. Marcos___________was 37 and had spent 15 years as a law-enforcement officer in border town in Texas. He had been wounded twice in the line of his duty. He and Donna met when he rescued her from what might have been a very serious domestic problem while she was engaged to a boyfriend.
Donna and her boyfriend had been a couple for several years when she found out that he was wanted in the UK for forging fake Roman coins and selling them through less-than-honorable antique coin sales.
Donna's new freindship with Marcos began as a friendship, not a romance.
According to two of Donna's friends who were willing to supply some of the facts around this narrative, Marcos just wasn't a guy she could get "... excited about."
He constantly ate garlic to keep his blood thin and he had bad teeth. Nevertheless, the two had fun when she visited him at his California mountain cabin on Big Bear Lake.
They read and played Scrabble, one of her favorite games as a young girl. Marcos cooked some great meals. His specialty was Polish sausage boiled with turnips and potatoes with kraut, seasoned with red peppers was a treat like nothing she had ever enjoyed.
"It was my dear mother's favorite meal," he told her in a reverent tone. Marcos and his mother had been close. His father was still listed as MIA from Vietnam. Marcos had been ten when the family received the news about his dad. The day would forever live in his memory as the saddest day in his life.
By the time Marcos was able to join the military, the was was over, so he took a job as a railroad detective. From there, he gravitated toward a more acknowledged law enforcement career. Marcos liked to wear his uniform. It was just something he liked. Maybe it was because of his dad's service. He was also fascinated by guns, especially double-barreled shotguns considered antiques. Marcos had so many interests he sometimes felt like he was on a merry-go-round, and when he thought about merry-go-rounds, he remembered his many trips to carnivals with his dad. They were pleasant memories, but he still avoided carnivals since he was a boy and got the bad news. The sound of merry-go-rounds made him anxious. If he had seen a doctor, the diagnosis would most likely have been serious anxiety. So, Donna was bi-polar and he was suffering anxiety. It was an issue he tried to avoid thinking about.
Their friendship became closer and although there was no real romance, Marcos liked to be around Donna. She was not only a looker, she could flatten him in most Scrabble games. Marcos was a glutton for punishment, one of personality defects he had suffered since childhood. Marcos didn't sense his desire to become a hero had become a burden on his mental and physical self.
Nevertheless, he tried not to be his own "shrink." He hoped the day would come when Donna would fall madly in love with him. He believed in miracles. When he found out that Donna was a championship chess player, he knew it would only be a short time before he would become her king.
Yes, he was a glutton for punishment, but Donna's vanity about chess was on an equal footing. He had challenged her to a weekend of chess at his remote cabin and she thought it sounded great. She had a slight evil streak when it came to winning. The two were perfectly matched for what would happen when they reached his hideaway.
CHAPTER 2
Dirk checked his map. He would be at the cabin in less than 24 hours. He was so glad he had a friend who had been keeping track of Donna. He looked in the backseat and smiled. In less than 24 hours Dirk figured he would be back in Donna's life again.
Marcos and Donna had a great evening. Oh, it could have been more romantic, but the mental exercise they exchanged in a game of chess that lasted until well past two in the morning was almost as exhausting as anything else he might think of having happened. So, he put it out of his mind and stretched out on the couch.
Donna sat down on the floor beside him and fed him some of his favorite ice-cream. She could tell he was getting sleepy. She looked at him, seeing him in a light she had never seen before. The fire was getting ready to burn its last embers. She wished she could be less anxious, more frivolous, more for the moment. She had been that way once. But she had never met a man like Marcos. Why hadn't he been the man who taught her the tender side of love? Marcos opened his eyes and smiled. "You know what I am thinking, don't you, Donna?"
"Probably," she said. "Do you know what I am thinking?" She felt silly at the sound of her question.
"Yes, we should have picked up more ice-cream on the way up here, right?"
She nodded. The two drifted off to sleep. The clock on the mantle chimed three times.
CHAPTER THREE
The sun was bright without any promise of anything but clear weather. Marcos was scrambling eggs, letting Donna sleep in, letting her mind rest from the chess match. She had one great mind, he thought as he salted the eggs. She had a good mind. He wondered if she was telling him all she wanted to tell him about the relationship he had rescued her from. Marcos peered out at the road winding up to his cabin. There was dust clouding behind the truck. Someone was traveling fast, he thought. Suddenly, he remembered the last words that Donna's ex had mouthed the night he police hauled him off.
TO BE CONTINUED
travelhaha (28 months ago | reply)
Seen in Hongkong photos ...Post 1 / Comment Any 1,Please don't be lazy
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www.flickr.com/groups/hongkongphotos/
Best wishes^^
travelhaha (28 months ago | reply)
I saw this Great Photo in Group :
攝影發燒友
Please tag your photo: 攝影發燒友
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roberthuffstutter (28 months ago | reply)
Thank you very much.
edinei montingelli (28 months ago | reply)
DeliCious wOrk!!!
Brian De Souza [deleted] (28 months ago | reply)
~~~ Great Capture ~~~
seen in
Most of disturb minds
Post 1 Award 4 !!! ~~~
KGHofSF (28 months ago | reply)
~~~ Great Capture ~~~
seen in
Most of disturb minds
Post 1 Award 4 !!! ~~~
roberthuffstutter (27 months ago | reply)
thanks for taking time to comment, Robert