James Chen pulled out his phone. "I'm calling the United States Chess Federation. They need to know about her immediately." He looked at Richard. "And if your club won't sponsor her, I'll find one that will."
"Now, see here," Richard said, his pride stung. "The Grand View Club has been the premier chess institution in this city for seventy years. We don't need outsiders telling us how to handle our affairs."
"Then handle them!" James shot back. "You have a potential world champion standing in front of you wearing clothes that haven't been washed in weeks, with nowhere to sleep tonight except whatever doorway she can find. What does that say about your prestigious institution?"
Victoria Peyton, who had been texting furiously on her phone, looked up. "I've just Googled Rose Thompson. There are articles from 1962. She really did exist. There's even a photo." She turned her phone to show a black-and-white image of a young black woman seated at a chessboard, her face bearing a striking resemblance to Maya. "The article says she defeated three masters in unofficial games, but was denied entry to the state championship because of her race."
"My God," Eleanor breathed. "We're witnessing history repeat itself."
"No," Harrison Vale said firmly. "We're not, because we're going to do better. We have to do better." He looked at his fellow members. "I'll personally cover her expenses for the first month: training, accommodation, whatever she needs."
"Harrison," Margaret said, shocked. "You can't be serious."
"I've never been more serious about anything in my life," he replied. "I've played chess for forty years. I've won titles, trophies, prize money. But I've never seen anything like what I saw tonight. If we let her walk out of here, if we fail her like this country failed her grandmother, then we don't deserve to call ourselves chess players."
Theodore Banks, who had returned quietly during James Chen's arrival, stepped forward. His face was still flushed from his earlier humiliation, but his voice was steady. "The girl beat me fairly—more than fairly. She demolished me while I was insulting her. I'm—I'm ashamed of how I behaved." He looked at Maya. "I own several rental properties. I have a furnished apartment vacant right now. She can stay there."
The offer stunned everyone, no one more than Maya herself.
"Ted," Richard said carefully, "are you sure? The legal ramifications—"
"I'll handle the legal aspects," Charles Hoffman said, surprising everyone again. "I may have been hasty in my judgments. If the child is indeed what she appears to be, then she deserves proper representation. Pro bono, of course."
One by one, the members began stepping forward: Victoria offered to buy her a complete wardrobe; Margaret, not to be outdone, offered to cover her food expenses; others volunteered tutoring, chess books, tournament entry fees.
Maya stood in the center of this sudden outpouring, tears finally breaking through her careful composure. These people who had mocked her, dismissed her, treated her as less than human—they were transforming before her eyes, just as a pawn transforms when it reaches the eighth rank.