412 Playing Chess

(Judy)

London’s pulse beats with an energy I’ve always found exhilarating. I walk through the busy streets with a sense of ownership of life, bending chaos to my will, whether the people around me realize it or not. Life is mine, a chessboard on which I move my pieces, and today, I’m preparing to play one of my most significant moves.

The queen can move anywhere she wants.

Sliding into the back of my town car, I pull out my phone. The screen lights up with a string of updates from my contacts. Information from Gus’s estate staff flows to me like clockwork.

A constant stream of intel I’ve worked hard to cultivate, weaving my influence so tightly into every corner of Jayden’s world that nothing escapes me. Even the smallest whispers reach my ears.

Jayden, my brilliant but stubborn son, is back in London, and the ripples I set in motion turned into a tsunami. It’s a beautiful thing, really, watching how easily people fracture when you know which strings to pull.

The fight. The accusation