Through the Board

I slipped out of the apartment lobby and ventured into the quiet park down the avenue. Under a shaded stone pergola, several polished stone chess tables stood in a row. On one empty table, an overturned set of wooden checkers was scattered beside a neatly tiered wooden piece rack. My rumbling belly paused as the narrow slots of the rack caught my eye. Gliding onto the slick polished stone, I nudged my snout straight between two upright wooden partition pegs. Each joint clicked softly as I snaked through, discovering a crisp dropped pistachio nut nestled inside the velvet-lined tray. I cracked it happily and coiled along the cool carved board.