Kingmaker

They took their seats around the small, hand-me-down kitchen table. The board had been set up neatly in the center, cards dealt, pieces placed.

Peter sat next to Judy, who stared intently at her hand. “You remember how to play, right?”

“It hasn’t been that long.”

“Alright. Just ask me if you have any questions.”

“The rules are right there.” She quipped tersely.

“Does anybody want something to drink before we start?” Oscar offered, smiling.

“I’ll have some wine,” Brenda piped up quickly.

“Sure, me too.” Peter sorted his cards out in his hand, thinking through his strategy.

Judy sat quietly for a beat, then “Can I get some water?”

“Coming right up!” Oscar headed into the kitchen, returning shortly with drinks and a bowl of Chex Mix.

As he sat next to Brenda, he scooched his chair closer and gave her a peck on the cheek. Quietly they both arranged their cards, moving them left and right across their hands. Every so often Brenda would lean over and whisper questions in Oscar’s ear. A power couple since college, Peter had played many, many games against these two over the years. Finally, though, he had his own partner to play with.

Leaning conspiratorily towards Judy, he whispered, “Be careful - Brenda’s a kingmaker.”

Judy frowned. “A what?”

“A kingmaker - she’ll help Oscar win.” He winked. “But we can offset that.”

“Oh, can we.” Judy’s expression was unreadable. She continued to look at her cards, not saying another word.

“Shall we start?” Oscar asked the table. They all nodded, and their pieces began to play.

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“Hey, Peter, can I trade you for one of your sheep?” Brenda asked, biting her lip as her gaze moved from her hand to the cheatsheet in front of her.

“Sure,” Peter smiled. “What are you offering?”

“I’ll give you a sheep.” Judy suddenly piped up.

Peter frowned. “Brenda asked me first.”

“Brenda doesn’t want to trade with you. She wants to trade with me.” Judy looked over at Brenda. “I’ll give you the one I have in my hand right now, and the next one I get on an upcoming roll.”

“Ooh,” said Brenda, “sounds good. What do you want in return?”

“Don’t trade with Peter anymore.”

The table fell quiet as all eyes focused on Judy. She sat calmly, cards in hand.

“Wait, what?”

“When you trade with Peter it only helps him win. I’ll give you what you want, with extra, but only if you stop trading with Peter.” Judy folded her hands and cards on her lap.

Oscar watched Peter’s jaw drop, and laughed nervously. “That seems a little harsh.”

“No it’s not,” Judy argued. “Peter’s won every game we’ve played so far. I’d like him to lose.”

The table fell quiet again, as Brenda and Oscar exchanged worried looks and Peter stared at Judy like she’d slapped him across the face.

“But why?” Peter protested. “I haven’t done anything to you!”

She shrugged. “I’m tired of watching you win. It’s boring.”

Brenda smiled knowingly. “Alright. I won’t trade with Peter anymore, and I’ll take your sheep and the next sheep you roll.” She handed her card over, and Judy completed the trade as Peter sulked. Once finished, he leaned over to Judy to hiss in her ear.

“She’s just going to trade that extra sheep to Oscar! What are you doing?”

“Stopping you.”

“But how does this help your strategy if they work together?”

“I don’t care who wins, so long as it’s not you.” Judy’s gaze was clear and determined.

An arrow pierced through Peter’s heart. Sullen, he turned away from her and eyed the board, trying to figure out his next move.

“Hey,” Oscar piped up, “If I refuse to trade with Peter can I get some extra cards off you?”

“Sure,” Judy replied smoothly, picking up the dice to roll it.

Peter drummed his fingers, irritated, as she drew her cards and proceed to take her turn.

Betrayer he thought bitterly.

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Judy threw her hand down and howled, “NO!”

Brenda and Oscar, now on their third glasses of wine, sleepily shook their heads as they placed their own cards down on the table. “He won again.” Oscar lamented. “Well, we all tried.”

Judy stared at the board, seething, recounting every token. “But we took longest road! And largest army! How could you still get more victory points before us?”

Exhausted, Peter glared at his so-called partner. “After you denied me any trades whatsoever, blocked my pathway - twice - and put the thief on me I just stuck to the coastlines and made my trades there.” He started the process of clean-up, putting away the cards and the pieces into the box as Judy sank down in defeat.

“I thought we finally had you,” she muttered, dejected. She’d not had a single drop of alcohol all evening. Peter wondered if she’d thought to try and gain an edge as the only sober person at the table. Unluckily for Judy, Peter not only had excellent gaming strategy but a high alcohol tolerance as well.

“Well I’m heading to bed,” he declared, placing the lid on the box and stretching. “If someone’s still willing to go with me?” Daggers pierced Judy’s back, not that she seemed to notice or care.

“Fine,” she sighed. “Maybe we can try again tomorrow.” She rose and took her glass to the sink, as Brenda and Oscar got up and hugged each other before yawning and excusing themselves for the night.

“If you guys need any extra blankets there’s some in the hall closet,” Brenda reminded them as they said goodnight.

Pieces put away, Peter and Judy walked down the hall to the guest room where Peter closed the door behind them. He folded his arms.

“What did I do?”

“Do?”

“Yes - to tick you off.”

Blinking, her expression turned innocent. “Nothing. I just wanted to see someone else win for a change.”

“So you turn the entire table against me?” Peter objected, waving his arms. “Brenda already helps Oscar out any chance she gets - I didn’t need my own girlfriend turning on me too!”

Crossing her own arms, Judy shot him a look. “You still won, right?”

“No thanks to you!”

“Exactly.” Judy smirked. “I made you play harder. Smarter. Where’s the fun in throwing in together?”

Peter stared at her, stupefied. “I thought you hated me.”

“I still love you.” Moving forward she wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a reassuring kiss. “Just not in game. Besides, you don’t want me to make the game easy for you, do you?”

"No, but I thought I'd at least have someone else helping to take Oscar down."

"Why? You managed to take all three of us down on your own. It's actually pretty impressive, even if I'm still mad at you."

Peter held her, searching her dark eyes for signs of deceit. “I suppose it was more of a challenge this time.”

“See? There’s my ruthless strategist.” She gave him another kiss.

“Can you maybe be a bit nicer about it next time though? Like, try not to openly bribe everyone to pick on me?”

She mused, “I suppose I could wait till you make a wine run in the kitchen to secretly conspire against you.”

He slid his arms around her shoulders. “Or you know,” he offered, “I could help you win next time. Try a queenmaker strategy?”

“Oh hell no.” She pushed away, her expression determined again. “You pull that crap, Peter, and I swear I will flip the board.”

Grinning, Peter chuckled and pulled her back towards him. “I love that you hate me in game.”

“I love that I hate you too.” She admitted. "Now, hurry up and crawl in so we can wake up early. We could get another game in tomorrow before we drive home."

"Yes, my queen."

"Boy - I will burn your board."

"Yes, my love."

They turned out the light.