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222 Opening Traps after 1 e4 Karsten MüLler Digital
Instant Download
Author(s): Karsten Müller, Rainer Knaak
ISBN(s): 9783283010058, 3283010056
File Details: PDF, 9.54 MB
Year: 2008
Language: english
progressin chess

Volume 27 of the ongoing series

Founded and edited by

GM Victor Korchnoi
GM Helmut Pfleger
GM Nigel Short
GM Rudolf Teschner

2008
EDITION OLMS

()
Karsten Muller
Rainer Knaak

222 Opening Traps

after 1. e4

2008
EDITION OLMS

G
THE AUTHORS
Karsten Miller (born 1970) gained the grandmaster title at the age of 27 and has participated in eight German
Championships, finishing third in 1996 and 1997. A Doctor of Mathematics, he has played for the Hamburger
SK team in the German Bundesliga since 1988, and he also has a good reputation as a senior trainer of the
German Chess Federation. A respected endgame expert, he writes the endgame column of the ChessBase
Magazine and the Endgame Corner of ChessCafe.com. He has written many books, including Fundamental
Chess Endings co-authored by Frank Lamprecht, which appeared in 2001 and is already considered a modern
classic,

Rainer Knaak (born 1953) became a grandmaster at the age of 22, and was one of the youngest in the
world at the time. For many years he was one of the leading players of the German Democratic Republic,
and he won the East German Championship five times. After the end of his professional career he began
working for ChessBase, where he has authored the CDs Mating Attack against 0-0 and Trompowsky Attack, At
the chessboard he has a creative attacking style. Knaak currently plays in the German Bundesliga for Werder
Bremen, edits training CDs and is editor-in-chief of the ChessBase Magazine. His first book was Konigsindisch Pro
& Kontra, published in 1992 and co-authored by his grandmaster colleague from Leipzig Lothar Vogt.

City of =
London Libraries

AA

Bibliog
CL 1182910 9
bibliotr

The De ,
Deutsc 794.1 MUL £14.99 \
availak

Copyright © 2008 Edition Olms AG

Willikonerstr. 10 - CH-8618 Oetwil a.S./ZUrich, Switzerland
E-mail: [email protected]
Internet: www.edition-olms.com

All rights reserved. This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade
or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover
other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition
being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

Printed in Germany

Editor: Ken Neat

Translators: Ken Neat and lan Adams
Typesetting and Index by: Art & Satz + Ulrich Dirr, D-80337 Munich
Printed by: Druckerei Friedr. SchmUcker GmbH, D-49624 Loningen
Cover: Eva Konig, D-22769 Hamburg

ISBN 978-3-283-01004-1
 Contents

BO CCN ee it ee rete Nang ati Bic Ms. gc ealedust Haim Gains Gm AG W tabi oecigthey ls 6

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8.1 Typical motifs in the Giuoco Piano and the Two Knights Defence............. 123
8.2 Traps in the Giuoco Piano and Two Knights Defence ..............002se005: eure

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amen rm np ae ne one 137
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 Foreword

The work on this book has been spread over to be fair to all claims on its attention and
several years. It has been a lot of fun. Dis- above all to every opening. After all, it en-
covering a new opening trap into which a compasses the total range of opening theory
dozen people have already fallen (includ- from AOO to E99 in only two volumes. Traps
ing grandmasters) is a pleasure (despite the arising after 1. e4 are covered in this book,
misfortunes of others) and something that and all other traps in the second volume.
expands one’s own chess horizons. Looking As we shall see, the theme tackled in this
into the fringes of chess theory also brought book goes somewhat farther than that which
to light many a new variation or evaluation. can be expected of the usual concept of the
This is no wonder, since lines which have a opening trap. If we had to sum up this theme
bad reputation only occur over the board by in a single sentence, we would say: ‘Some-
chance, and then only between less strong one plays a ‘normal’ looking move, which
players. But previously, opening theory was is then refuted by an unusual variation (or
compiled without the help of computers.
move).
When you consider that most of the Known We would like to thank Raymund Stolze of
opening traps go back to Znosko-Borovsky, Olms, Rainer Woisin of ChessBase and, last
it was time that there was a further collection but not least, Ulrich Dirr, who did a marvel-
of them. Not that this work will find it easy lous job again, for their good cooperation.

Karsten Muller
Rainer Knaak
SS Fe a —

Introduction

The concept of opening traps;

an attempt at a definition

“How much book do I need to know? ...

The bare minimum is: You need to know
the traps that come up in your openings”!
(GM Andrew Soltis in
Grandmaster Secrets: Openings)

The verb ‘to fall’ hints at where we are head- because instead of falling into the trap the
ing — one falls, perhaps into a pit that some- other player has at his disposal a move which
body has dug and then hidden. That is the secures him an advantage.
difference compared with a dangerous situ- So, an opening trap is something which hap-
ation, which you have brought upon yourself, pens in the opening phase of a game. Under
such as climbing up a high tree or heading falling into a trap, we understand a situa-
into unknown territory. What you are doing tion during play in which the victim overlooks
is natural, for example going along a path something when playing an apparently ob-
and then falling into something, such as a vious but nevertheless wrong move (there
pit or a snare, etc. For the person who falls, can also be several wrong moves), which the
it is of no importance whether the situation player setting the trap had hoped for and
was created by someone else or whether it which he now exploits, usually in a tactical
arose naturally, for example an unexpected and unexpected way. This is often an unusual
hole in that place or some prickly plant — the move, but sometimes the evaluation of the
damage he may suffer is exactly the same. position is different from what it appeared to
Therefore there is someone who falls into a be at first sight. It is therefore evident that
trap, and there is also someone — sometimes opening traps, according to how they arise,
— who sets the trap. can be divided into two categories:
Let us apply what we have just said to the A) On one hand there are opening traps in
game of chess. Here we are talking about which the person setting them deliberately
the opening phase. A player makes an ob- chooses a line, in which he hopes that his
vious looking move; it appears normal — at opponent will make a mistake. The player
least at first sight. His move develops a piece setting the trap may well be taking a risk: if
or captures something, or it can be to ward his opponent should make the correct move,
off a threat. It is an apparently natural move, then he himself is caught by the trap, be-
but it turns out to be wrong. The opponent cause he then suffers a disadvantage. The
has perhaps knowingly brought about this risk being incurred can be of varying propor-
situation. Perhaps he has even taken a risk, tions, going down as far as almost no risk at
& Introduction

all. In fact, examples in which real disadvan- is a well-known mistake (cf. Hlousek— Kott,
tages are accepted are rather rare. One such Game 181 p. 125).
example is 1. e4 e5 2. Af3 Ac6 3. &c4 Ad4?!
Traps of type A are very common — you want
(cf. Munster —Dieringer, Game 184 p. 128).
to set the opponent a trap. But the number of
B) But if one simply plays one’s normal lines
such traps is limited. If it is additionally con-
and the opponent is suddenly faced with a
sidered that the level of difficulty can be very
situation in which the ‘normal’ moves are
varied — from elementary to deep positional
met by a (usually) tactical counterstroke, one
traps — then traps of type A are actually ina
can only conditionally call this an opening
minority.
trap. But avoiding such typical mistakes is
just as important and will therefore play a The more general theme is moves that are
large part in this book. An example: 1. e4 e5 ‘normal’, according to the principles of the
2. Af3 Ac 3. &c4 Af6 4. Ag5 d5 5. exd5, game, but which in the given position fail for
and now the natural recapture 5...Axd5? a particular reason.

Risk or no risk?
It is perhaps a myth that there is always an el- square, instead of a recapture there follows
ement of risk in correct opening traps. It may another move, a sacrifice, etc. For example,
be, that when playing for a trap one does not the Noah’s Ark Trap.
always choose those variations which offer
After 1. e4 e5 2. Af3 Ac6 3. &b5 a6 4. 2a4
the best chance of achieving an opening ad-
d6 5. d4 b5 6. &2b3 Axd4 7. Axd4 exd4 the
vantage. But in this database there is a clear
trap is set. After the ‘natural’ 8. &xd4? White
minority of cases in which a player really
not only regains the pawn, but at first sight
gambles and voluntarily assumes the risk of
he also has possible motifs such as &xf7+
a bad position if the trap does not work. We
or YWd5. But Black simply plays 8...c5! and it
sometimes then speak of a ‘genuine trap’.
is obvious that threats against f7 can always
According to the definition given above, there
be parried by ...&e6.
are perhaps two more features which distin-
guish a typical trap: Many people want to learn traps, in order to
a) the mistake, that is to say falling into save themselves the hard work involved in
the trap, happens with a ‘normal’, appar- opening theory. We hope that there is also
ently sound move — continuing development, something here for these people. But it is
castling or capturing a piece. more important to fit a promising trap into
b) the exploitation of the error is something your Own opening repertoire, or even to con-
unexpected — a piece moves to an unusual struct a repertoire around the trap.
 Introduction

Various

Gambits Traps with names

The relationship between gambits and traps Numerous opening traps take their name
in the opening is obvious. Often the gam- from the originator, for example:
bit is itself the trap, sometimes traps occur
Tarrasch trap — Tarrasch-Marco (Game 196
later. We have taken care above all to find
Dales
the sort of example in which ‘normal moves’
are refuted. For example: Leonharat trap — Mijovi¢- Brion (Game 161
p. 112).

Xa oeWeal:
f
Alapin trap —- Neumann-Barz (Game 142

mamialalia ~
p. 100).
Canal trap -— Canal—Johner (Game 190
p. 132), Canal—Becker (Game 179 p. 124).
O'Kelly trap — Roncal—Morales Mendoza
(Game 53 p. 47).
Are traps also appropriate for strong play-
ers?
Of course! On the one hand, you only have to
look through this database to see how many
Position after 5... £f8—b4?! good players have lost quickly as a result
of a typical error or have fallen into a trap.
The surprising reply to this ‘normal’ devel-
On the other, nowadays it is more and more
oping move is 6. Yd4! (cf. Erben-Weiner,
important to surprise one’s opponent at an
Game 39 p. 37).
early stage in the game. In any case, strong
Counter-traps
players will also know what to do when their
This means accepting the offer to go into a
opponent deviates.
trap, but having an ace up your sleeve ... (cf.
Augustin —Vossenkuhl, Game 132 p. 93). Good traps
In this respect the following trap goes one What constitutes a good trap? We can dis-
step further: Nolting—Murthy (Game 109 tinguish two criteria:
Bi fo) a) if, against all expectations, the opponent
Deliberately falling into a trap finds the best move, the damage to yourself
There are some examples in which objective should not be all that great;
analysis shows a completely different picture
b) it should look a likely enough move for
from statistics. This comes about because
your opponent to make. In addition, it should
most players fall into a trap without realis-
have happened several time in practice and
ing it and fail to find the best moves over
be based on the idea that the opponent will
the board, and anyone who knows about the
fall into the trap by making ‘normal moves’.
trap avoids it. But what if you deliberately
fall into it’, but then know the best moves. For example, the O’Kelly trap 1. e4 c5 2. Af3
Let us give you an example of this, which is a6, as now the usual automatic response
well worth considering for Black, if he knows 3. d4?! is a mistake as Black gets a good
what he is doing: Kritz—Hohler (Game 171 version of the Sveshnikov Variation after
p. 118). 3...cxd4 4. Axd4 eS.
 Symbols

Symbol Meaning Symbol Meaning

& king bishop

w queen knight
rook pawn

check mate
captures new move
short castling long castling

unclear position compensation for the material

White has a slight advantage Black has a slight advantage
White has a clear advantage Black has a clear advantage
2PatekWhite has a decisive advantage Black has a decisive advantage
mm ©) Black resigns White resigns
equal position draw
with attack with initiative
with counterplay only move
4
Pet intending better is

interesting move dubious move

good move bad move
brilliant move very bad move

Internet Chess Club ACP Association of Chess Professionals

Professional Chess Association

White to move Black to move

—_—_—
eeEeSSSSSSSSSSSSSSFSFSMMmmmffFeFeFesesesef
ee

10
 Chapter 1

Semi-Open Games - Minor Variations

A hungry bishop 8. Df3!

The refutation. 8. hxg8W+? &xg8 9. Yg4
Game 1 [BOO] &xh1 10. h4 Yes is not completely clear.
Roederer - Nefzer
Lauda 1986 8... Df6
1. e4 b6 2. d4 &b7 3. &d3 £5? 8...&xh1 9. AeS5! (this is even stronger than
9. hxg8W+ &xg8 10. Wd5+ e6 11. Yxa8+—-)
9...We8 (9...2xe5 10. dxe5+—) 10. hxg8W+
Exg8 11. Wf5+ £f6 12. &h6+ Bg7 13. &xg7+
&xg7 14. Wh7+ &f8 15. 8g6+-.
9. Yg6 &xh1
9...2xf3 10. 8g1 Exh7 11. Wg3 2e4 12. 2xe4
Axed 13. WF3+ sg (13... Af6 14. Yxa8+-)
14. Wxe4 Ac6 15. d5+-

10. 2h6 Exh7

10..Ae8 11. AgS &d5 12. Wh+ Af6
13. &xg7+ &xg7 14. Wg6+ &f8 15. Wh6+
This over-optimistic advance can be refuted, e8 16. 896+ &f7 17, &xf7#.
although it occurs no less than 70 times in
Mega 2005. (144 Megatol®) 11. Ag5 &xh6 12. Axh7+ Axh7 13. Yxh6+
4. exf5 &xg2 5. Wh5+ g6 6. fxg6 2g7 &f7 14. Wxh7+ &e6 15. Wh6+ &d5
6...Af6? 7. gxh7+ Axh5 8. £g6#. 16. Ac3+ &xd4 1-0
7. gxh7+ &f8
The Colorado trap

Game 2 [BOO]
Naiditsch (2449) - Déttling (2473)
Dortmund 2000

1. e4 Dc6 2. Af3
White wants to avoid 2. d4 d5.

2p toe
(see next diagram)
& Chapter 1 Semi-Open Games - Minor Variations

12. Wg8 he8 13. &xf4 (13. Aa3 Le6 14. Wg3
Wi6%) 13...Wxf4 14. Dad Leb 15. Wg
£xa3 16. Yxf4 exf4 17. bxa3 Axc2+ 18. &d2
§)xa1 =, Pavasovic— Gross, Bled 1995.
12...2b4+ 13. c3 2g4!

3. exf5 d5 4. Ah4!?
Black will obtain good compensation in the
spirit of the King’s Gambit, but White’s ma-
terial superiority is too great.
4. &£b5 &xf5 5. d4z.
Black’s army on the 4th rank makes a mighty
4...e5 5. Wh5+ g6 6. fxg6 Af6! 7. g7+ impression!
A) 7 Wd1? £c5 8. g7 Bg8—, Rodriguez 13...Ac2+? 14. &d1 Wxf2 15. Wg8+ #e7
Lopez-—Ferencz, Budapest 1998; 16; Wg3a
B) 7 Wg5? &c5 (7...2e7 8. Bb50, Vi- 14. Wg8+
darsson-Ulvin, Gausdal 1988) 8. d4 &xd4 14. &xf4 Ac2+ 15. d2 Wxf2+ 16. &e2
9. 2d3 e4 10. 2e2 Be6wo, Brendel—Gross, (16. &c1? Wel+ 17 &xc2 Wd1#) 16...
Bundesliga 1996. Wxe2+ 17. &cl exf4 18. cxb4 Yxg2=.
7...Axh5 8. gxh8BW Wxh4 9. Yxh7 Ad4 14...8d7 15. Wg7+ Bc6 16. g3
10. YWg6+? 16. Aa3 &xa3 17. g3 (17. cxd4 &b4+ 18. &d2
10. Ac3 Sf5 11. Wxc7 8g7 (11...8c8? &xd2+ 19. &xd2 Wxf2+ 20. &c1 He80)
12. 8b5+ Axb5 13. Wxe5++-) 12. &b5+ 17...Af3+ 18. &d1 &f8 19. Wxf8 Exf8
%f8 13. Wc5+ &g8 14. Wxd5+ &h8 20. gxh4 Ad4+ 21. Sd2 Af3+ 22. &c2 Ae1+
1550-04—, 23. &b1 Afxd30.

10...2d8 11. d3
16... Af3+ 17. &d1 Ad4+ 18. &d2
A) White could play on with 18. f3, but it does
11. g3? Wg4 12. Wxg4 &xg4 13. &d3 e4 not look convincing: 18...&xf8+ 19. &d2
14. c3 Df3+ 15. Kf1 &h3+ 16. we2 Lg2 (19. bet WhS 20. &xf4 &xht 21. g4 Whe
17. Hd1 exd3++, Jahr—Poethig, Bundesliga
22. Yxh8 Exh8 23. &g3) 19... Wh5 20. gxf4
1982.
&xh1;
11...24! B) 18. 862? &xe2+ 19. &d2 Wh3 20. cxb4
11...Axc2+? 12. &d1 Wxf2 (12...Axal? Wf5—+.
13. &8g5++-) 13. 2e2 Af4 14. &xf4 exf4 18... Df3+ 19. &d1
15. Wg5+ &e7 16. Yxd5+ &d7 17. &xc2 19. &c2 Ael+ 20. &b3? Rd14+ 21. &xb4
Wxe2+ 18. Ad2+-. 4fxd3+ 22. &a3 Wad#.
12. W7 19...Ad4+4 2-2
 Game 4 Hagedorn—Schaub QD)

A knight in the jungle

Game 3 [BOO]
Gutman (2455) - Forthoffer
Metz 1985

1. e4 Dc6 2. Df3 d6 3. d4 Af6 4. c3

This move has been played relatively often

(approximately 60 times in the ChessBase
Online database), but the refutation is infre-
quently seen.

5...e5! 6. d5 c6! is the correct continuation.

6. d5! De5 7. c5!

Inviting Black to help himself to the e4-pawn. Actually logical, since the c4-square is
taboo.
4...2xe4?
7...Abd7
4...&g4 is most often played. One possible
trap is 5. d5 Ae5 6. Axe5? &xd1 7. 2b5+ c6 7...Abc4? 8. &xc4 Axc4 9. Wa4+4+—-.
8. dxc6 dxe5 9. c7+ Wd7 10. &xd7+ &xd7 8. £4! DAg6 9. c6! 4\f6
11. &®xd1 Axe4F.
Better is 9...bxc6 10. dxc6 Ab8 11. Yxd8+
5. d5 1-0 coxd8 12. £63!? (12. AFZ Axc6 13. Ag5
And Black resigned because of 5...Ae5 %e8 14. &b5 &d7 15. Ad5 Hc8 16. &£a6
6. Wa4+4+-. Hb8 17 Axc7+ &d8 18. Ad5+) 12...e5
13. O-0-0+ £d6 14. fxe5 Axed 15. Ab5S=.

Hunting the knight 10. cxb7 &xb7 11. 2b5+ Ad7 12. Af3 e6
13. 0-0

Game 4 [BO1] 13. dxe6 fxe6 14. Wb3 with the double

Hagedorn - Schaub threats of &8xd7+ and &xe6+ would win a

Kassel 1995 pawn on the spot.

13...2d6 14. dxe6 fxe6 15. AgS We7

1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Af6 3. d4 Axd5 4. c4 Ab6
16. f5!? 0-0-0
5. Dc3
And now instead of
5. &f3 is considered the main line and is
slightly better for White. 17. We2?

5...0c6? 17. fxg6+-— would have won immediately.

(see next diagram) White went on to win nevertheless.
& Chapter 1 Semi-Open Games - Minor Variations na
RRR
SSLIES LESLIE SSIES DD LILI OTITD SEL LEEDS. ira a

A hot knight’s tango 6...b5!! (Mardczy)

Black now gets a powerful initiative. Pay
Game 5 [BO1] close attention to the numerous miniatures!
Middleton - Lotfy 6...£f5? is met by 7. Aa3 b5 8. Wxbs.
12th Olympiad, Moscow 1956 7. cxb5?
A) 7. Yxb5? Ac2+
41. e4 d5 2. exd5 Of6 3. d4 Axd5 4. c4
4\b4?! 5. Wa4+ a) 8. &d1 £d7 9. Yc5 (9. dxc6 294+
White should know what he is doing be-
10. &xc2 Wd1+ 11. &c3 Yxc1+ 12. &b4
Wxb2+—-+; 9. Wb3 A6d4 10. YWc3 e5 11. Ave2
fore going in for this manoeuvre. 5. a3 is well
&xai ¥) 9...Axal 10. dxc6 294+ 11. et
worth considering, e.g. 5...A4c6 6. Af3 294
“\c2#:
7, £e2 e6 8. 0-0 2e7 9. Ac3£.
b) 8. ed2 £d7 9. dxc6 (9. &xc27? Ad4+)
5...08c6
9...8f5+! 10. YWd5 Ab4 11. Yxd8+ Bxd8+
12. &c3 Ac2 13. £f4 e5 14. 2xe5 2b4+-+
15. &b3 Bb8 16. &xc7 0-0 17. 2xb8 Bxb8
18. a3 &xa3+ 19. &c3 &b4+ 20. &b3 &d2+
21. a4 (21. a2 &c1! a Bxb2#) 21...8b4+
22. a5 Ad4 23. Axd2 Axc6+ 24. vab
&2c8#;
B) 7 Wd1!? &f5 8. Aad Ded 9. AFB
(9. 4d4? Aed3+ 10. &xd3 Axd3+ 11. &f1
e5-+, Uzonyi-Tozser, Hajduboszormeny
1996) 9...Abd3+ 10. &xd3 Axd3+ 11. &f1
(11. e2? e5-+) 11...e5 (11...bxc4!? looks
even better) 12. Axb5 &c5 13. 8e3 &xe3
And now with the immediate 14. fxe3 e4t, Ramirez—Cascales, Once
1993;
6. d5?
C) 7. Wb3? Ad4 8. Wc3 Abc2+ 9. &d1 b4
White falls into the trap, whereas 6. a3! gives
10. Wd2 e5 11. Af3 &g4 12. Re2 &xf3 0-1,
him good prospects:
Breton —Toulzac, Toulouse 1997.
6...Aa6 7. d5 Ac5
7...Ad4
a) 8. Yb5? Black’s trap is based on this.
This is most often played, but 7...2f5! is
8...e5!-+ (8...06? 9. b4 a6 10. Wxc6+ &d7 probably even stronger:
11. YWxa8 Wxa8 12. bxc5 bxc5 13. &8e2+4,
8. Aa3 Yxd5
Nataf-—van Nguyen, Paris 1993) 9. dxc6 b6
10. &e2 (10. 8e3 a6—+; 10. He2 a5 11. b4 a) 9. bxc6 We4+! 10. &d1 Hd8+ 11. &d2
£a6-+) 10...a5, and in view of the threat Bxd2+! 12. &xd2 Wd4+ 13. eet (13. &e2
11...8a6 White resigned in Binh-Soukal, Wxb2+-+) 13...Ad3+ 14. &xd3 Wxa4
Pribram 2002. (10...a6 also wins: 11. Wb4 15. &xf5 Wa5+—-+;
4)d3+ 12. &xd3 &xb4+-+); b) 9. 8e3 We4 10. b3 Ad4 11. 0-0-0 e5
b) 8. Wd1! and White’s space advantage 12. &2xd4 exd4-+, Carrasco Estrella-—Peric,
gives him the edge, since 8...2f5?! is met by Verona 1995.
9. £3 (9. dxc6? Yxd1+ 10. &xd1 0-0-0+ 8. Da3 e5
11. Ad2 Ab3-+) 9...e6 10. b4 WE 11. Ha2. (see next diagram)
 nee a ML
Game 6 Panarin— Dudukin G)
LUD PO TNE
TN a AL DENT RN A TT A A

A) 10. Af8 Ab6 11. Wd1 &g4 12. Re2 Axe2

13. Wxe2 &£d6 14. Wed &xf3 15. Yxf3 0-0F
16. 0-0? &xa3 0-1, Poenisch-—Preuss, Ger-
many 1992;
B) 10. 83? Axc3 11. bxc3 &xa3 12. cxd4
£b2 13. Hd1 &c3+—-+;
C) 10. £c4? &xa3 11. bxa3 Ab6-+;
D) 10. Ac2? Ab6—+.
10...Ab6 11. Wd1 294 12. &c3 Bcd
13. &xd4 exd4 14. Yb3 d3 15. 0-0-0 &xe2
16. 28xe2 Wg5+ 17. &b1 dxe2 18. Hhe1 0-0
19. Hxe2 &xa3 20. bxa3 a6 21. bxa6 Hxa6
9. 28d2 22. Wb4 Ad5 0-1
The best chance to muddy the waters.
A) 9. dxe6 &xe6 10. £63 (10. Ae2?7?? Misguided centralisation
4\d3+ 0-1, Kordis -Sazonov, Halkida 1996;
10. 2d2? Wh4 11. b6+ Bd7 12. Wd Game 6 [BO1]
We4+-+, Redondo Arguelles—Auro Or- Panarin (2372) - Dudukin (2279)
donez, Spain 1997) 10...4%h4 Rybinsk 2001
a) 11. Bd1? Ad3+ 12. 2xd3 Af3+ 13. Axf3
1.e4 d5 2. exd5 Zf6 3. d4 Axd5 4. c4 Ab6
Wxad4 14. b6 Wb4+ 15. 2d2 Yxb6 16. &b5+
5. Af3 &8g4 6. c5 Ad5?
c6 0-1, Anderson-Vann, correspondence
1994; This natural looking move turns out to be a
blunder. 6...@6d7 is the main line.
b) 11. Wd1? O-0-O 12. &xd4 8xd4
7. Yb3!
(12...We4+!?) 13. Wf3 &c5 14. g3 Wg5 0-1,
Kirchdoerfer—Lau, correspondence 1991;

c) 11. b6+ c6 Schroter—Ludwig, correspon-

dence 1932 (11...&d7 12. Y¥d1 Abc6 13. Le2
£xa3 14. bxa3 We4t) 12. b7 Hb8 13. 0-0-0
Ae2+ 14, &d2 Axg1 15. Yxa7 £d6 16. Bxg1
O-Ot;
B) 9. 2e3 Wxd5-+;
C) 9. &2c4 Axd5 10. Wd1 £f5-+.
9...Axd5

After 9...8%h4!? the critical line goes 10. b6+

c6 11. dxc6 Abxc6 12. 2b5 &b7 13. He2,
7...b6?
and it is not clear whether Black has anything
better than the endgame after 13...axb6 This loses practically at once.
14. Yc4 &xa3 15. Axd4 &c5 16. Axc6 Wxc4 A) 7...&c8 saves the material, but White’s
17, &xc4 &xc6. . advantage is overwhelming.
10. De2? B) 7...£xf3 8. Wxb7 Ad7 9. gxf3+.
e'a) Chapter 1 Semi-Open Games — Minor Variations

C)7...Ac6 8. Yxb7 Adb4 9. &b5 2d7 10. d5

(simpler is 10. &2xc6 Axc6 11. a3, and Black’s
bishop pair gives insufficient compensation
for the pawn) 10...Ac2+ (10...&b8 11. dxc6
£94 [11...8£f5 12. &f4+-] 12. 0-0 &xf3
13. gxf3 e5 14. Ac3+) 11. d1 Hb8 12. dxc6!
£f5+ 13. ®e2 Axa 14. Bd1+-.

8. Ded Le6 9. 2b5+ 1-0

The Viking attack

Game 7 [BO1] Because of its aggressive nature, Matthias

Leiva Velasco (1930) - Wahls calls this set-up followed by 0-0-0 the
Munoz Pantoja (2470) ‘Viking centre’. Black already has the upper
Barcelona 2003 hand.
7. £e3 0-0-0 8. h3 £h5 9. g4 2g6 10. Wd2
1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Yxd5 3. Ac3 Wad 4. d4 e5 11. d5?
46 5. &c4 Ac 6. D3? 11. 0-0-0 &b4F.
A typical mistake, not uncommon in practice. 11...2b4! 12. 0-0-0
6. Age2 is better. 12. 0-0 &xc3 13. Yxc3 Wxc3 14. bxc3
6...894 4&\xd5—-+.
(see next diagram) 12...He4 0-1

16
 Chapter 2

Alekhine Defence

A fresh version of 10. &xf7+ &e7 11. 895+ Ld6 12. De4+!
Legall’s mate ®xe5 13. f44+ &d4 14. Bxd1 Yxg5 15. c3+
®e3 16. 0-0!
16. fxg5+—- is simpler.
Game 8 [B02]
16...%c5 17. Bd2?
Pirozhkov —- Remizov (2155)
17. Bf2! Ad4 18. He1+ Ae2+ 19. Hfxe2+
Moscow 1995 &xd3+ 20. Axc5+ &xc5+ 21. &f1 followed
by &d1 mate.
1. e4 Df6 2. Ac3 d5 3. exd5 Axd5 4. &c4
17...0d4 18. @h2 Ye7?
Ab6 5. 2b3 AcE 6. Af3 e5 7. d3 &2g4?!
18...Wd5 is better.
This is imprudent. 19. He1+ &xf4 20. cxd4 Wh4 21. g3+
Wxg3+ 22. Axg3 1-0
8. h3! 2h5?!
A knightmare

Game 9 [BO2]
Maeser - Landenbergue (2385)
Lenk 1990
1. e4 @f6 2. Dc3 d5 3. e5 DAfd7 4. d4c5
5. @xd5?!
A weak move, but one that has often been
played. 5. f4 is better.
5,..cxd4

This position has been seen several times,

but not everyone has found the following
pretty move. 8...£f5 is better.
9. Axe5!!
Reminiscent of Legall’s mate, if a little more
complicated here.

9...2xd1?!
9...%h4 10. Af3 We7+ 11. 2e3+ and White
is a pawn up.

17
& Chapter 2 Alekhine Defence

This occurs 15 times in Mega 2005. It is All that glitters is not gold
amazing how often even strong players do
not spot the loss of a piece at this point. [BO2]
Game 11
A) 6. e6? Ya5+ 7. c3 Yxd5 8. exd7+ &xd7F. Lima (2125) - Rodrigues
B) 6. &b5 is critical and unexplored, e.g. Lisbon 1997
6...a6 7, &xd7+ &xd7 8. Wxd4 &c6 9. c4
e6 10. 2g5 Wd7 11. 0-0-0 exd5 12. cxd5
and White has compensation. More analy- 1. e4 Afé 2. e5 Ad5 3. Df3 dé 4. 2c4 Db
sis and games are needed to separate the
wheat from the chaff.
6...Ab6! 7. £b5+ Ac6 8. c4 e6 9. Bg5 Wd7
The knight on d5 is simply lost, and White
does not get sufficient compensation for it.
10. 0-0-0 exd5 11. We3 d4 12. Yg3 a6
13. &xc6 Wxc6 14. Hxd4 &f5 15. Ae2 &2c5
0-1

A trapped bishop

Game 10 [BO2]
Bopp (1197) - Ramini (1921)
5. &xf7+?
correspondence 2000

1. e4 Af6 2. e5 Dd5 3. d4 e6?! 4. c4 2b4+? This move receives praise in Gelenczei’s

book, and the previous knight move is criti-
cised. If things were so simple, then it would
be a splendid trap. 5. &£b3 is better. .

5...&xf7 6. Ag5+ &g8!

A) 6...8e8? 7. e6+-.

B) 6...&g6? 7. Wf3 We8 8. e6+-.

7. Wf3 We8 8. e6

Threatening 9. Yf7+ Yxf7 10. exf7 mate!

5. &e2! 8...g6!
A surprising motif. White now wins a piece.
In fact a self-evident defence. Now White
In none of the 19 games in Mega 2005 was
simply does not have enough attacking po-
this strong move seen.
tential to compensate for the piece.
5...Ab6 6. c5 Ac4 7. Wb3 Bad 8. Yxc4
d5 9. %c2 0-0 10. Af3 b6 11. Abd2 &a6+ 9. h4 h5 10. Af7 &xe6 11. Axh8 &xh8
12. &d1 b5 13. Ab3 1-0 12. Wxb7 &d5 13. Yxc7 &c6 0-1
 Game 13 Anand -Bilawer Q)
Pawns on the attack My kingdom for a horse

Game 12 [BO3] Game 13 [B04]

Donev (2410) - Regez Anand (2715) - Bilawer
Bad Ragaz 1993 Frankfurt (simultaneous) 1994
1. e4 Df6 2. e5 Add 3. d4 d6 4. c4 Db6
5. exd6 cxd6 6. Ac3 g6 7. a4!? a5 1. e4 Af6 2. e5 Add 3. d4 d6 4. AfF3 dxe5
7...297 8. a5 A6d7 9. Ha3 prepares the fol- 5. Axe5 Ad7?!
lowing trap: 9...A\c6 10. d5 Axa5? 11. b4+. A provocation, which scores well in practice,
8.c5 but is objectively not correct.

AeWekl
h
6. Axf7! &xf7 7 Wh5+ wes
Rie
A AA A ~N

Black has to play very accurately against this

aggressive plan.
8...0A6d7? 8. c4!
8...dxc5 9. 2b5+ A6d7 (9...2d7? 10. dxc5 8. g3 is also strong and scores better for
&xb5 11. YWxd8+ &xd8 12. axb5 Ac4 White in practice, e. g.:
13. Had Aed 14. Hd4+ Aed7 15. Aad
£97 16. Bd1+) 10. £f4 897 11. Ad5 Hab! 8...05 9. a4 c6 10. &h3+! &d6 11. Ac3 b4
(11...0-0? 12. &c7 We8 13. Ab6 Hab a) one example where Black’s trap suc-
14. dxc5 @c6 15. 2xa6 bxa6 16. Ae2+) ceeded was Yemelin-—Popov, St. Peters-
12. &xa6 e5 13. £b5 exf4 14. We2+ &f8 burg 1998: 12. Axd5?! cxd5 13. c4!? Afé
15. Af3&. (13...bxc3?! 14. bxc3%) 14. We5+ &c6
9. cxd6 exd6 10. Af3 We7+?! 15. £g2 Wd6 16. £f4!2 &d7 17. cxd5 &e8
10...Ac6 11. &8g5 Be7 12. BhE AF6 13. h3 18. Bol (18. YWe3!? Wa6 19. d6 &b7 20. &xb7
£f5 14. &b5 2d7 15. We2+ Micic- Wxb7 21. 0-0 Ad5 22. We4o) 18...2b7
Todorovic, Cetinje 1990. 19. Bc6 Wxe5+! (Black defends extremely
11. 8e2 &g7 12. Ad5 Wd8 13. 2g5 Afé6 strongly and White’s initiative gradually pe-
14. Dxf6+ ters out) 20. dxe5 Ah5 21. Hc7?! (21. &d2!?;
14. &b5+!?. 21. £e3) 21...Axf4 22. gxf4 Hb8 23. 0-0
14...2xf6 15. &2h6 Ac6 16. 0-0 Wb6 17. Het (23. f5 g6 24. f6 &d8 25. Hc4 exf6 26. exf6
4\xd4? &d6—+) 23...2d8 24. Hfcl Bc8+ 25. Bxc8+
a17...d5 18. £b5+ &e6 19. Wd2+-. £xc8 26. f5 g6 27. fxg6 hxg6 28. Hc4 297
18. &b5+ &d8 19. 8e3 Axf3+ 20. Wxf3) 29. f4 Bh4!—+ 30. &f1 &£h6 31. Bxb4 Exf4
£d4 21. Wf6+! &xf6 22. 2xb6# 1-0 32. Eb8 &c7 33. Bb5 Exfi1+! 0-1;

19
ee ee Chapiog ee Oe

b) 12. &f4+! Axf4 (12...e5 13. dxe5+ 13. b4!

&c50 14. Axd5 cxd5 15. Bg2+) 13. Ae4+ This makes the black monarch regret leav-
&c7 14. Wa5+! Ab6 15. Wed+ Wd6 ing his kingdom at e8. After 13. 0-0-0? g6
16. Dxd6 exd6 17. Yxf4 &xh3 18. Wt7+ 2d7 White’s queen is in dire straights.
19. 0-0 h5 (Balinov-Posch, Oberwart 2001)
13...%b6
20. C3.
A) 13...66? 14. Bb1 g5 (14...cxb4 15. Exb4
8...05f6 9. d5+ &d6 10. WF7 c5 16. Bb1!! Axf7 17, Aa4+ &d4 18. f8+-
10. c5+?! Axc5 11. &f44+ &d7 12. 2b5+ c6 Bagirov) 15. &g3 £h6 16. bxc5+ bxc5
13. dxc6+ bxc6 14. Yxc5 Wb6 15. Yxb6 17. Bb7! £d7 18. &2d3—+- Sakai.
axb6 F. , B) 132-exb47 14c5+ &xc5 15. Da4+ &d6
16. Ab2 b5 17. Ad3+-— Keres.
10...He5!
C) 13...%c7? 14. 0-0-0! Afg4 15. Le2! &d7
A) 10...A\b6? 11. A\c3 &f5 (11...We8 12. c5+
16. &xg4+ &d8 17. d6+— Votava.
&xc5 13. &8e3+ &b4 14. He4+- what a
move!) 12. 2e3+. 14. bxc5+?
(44, eel!
B) 10...Ac5? 11. b4 (11...Aa4? 12. c5+ wed
[12...&@d7 13. 2b5++-] 13. Aa3—) 11...Aa6 a) 14...g6 (15. We8? Axe8 [15...cxb4?
12. c5+ &d7 13. &xa6 bxa6 14. c6+ &d6 16. c5+ Wxc5 17. Wd8++-; 15...afd7?
15. Ac3 #e5 16. 295 e6 17. 0-0-0-. 16. He4+ &c7 17. bxc5 Wa5+ 18. 2d2+]
16. bxc5+ &d7 17. cxb6 &g7 18. &e2 Ef8F)
C) 10...Ab8? 11. c5+ &d7 (11...2xc5 15. 2d3!?—, Duschek-—Gueting, Germany
12. 8e3+ &d6 13. Aa3 a6 14. Acd+ 2001;
ed7 15. &f44-) 12. &b5+ (12. &f4!7)
b) 14...g5 15. 2g3 h5 (15...8d7 16. &8d3—)
12...c6 13. dxc6+ bxc6 14. 0-0 Wad
(14...We8? 15. Hd1+ &c7 16. &f4+ &b7 16. bxc5+ Wxc5 17. Yg6 Wd4 18. We2! h4
17. Sa6+!4+—-:; 14...6c7 15. £f4+ &b7 19. c5+ &d7 20. Hd1 Af3+ 21. gxf3 1-0,
Sakai—Rebaudo, correspondence 2001;
16. Wb3+-) 15. Be2 Wxc5 16. Bdi+ &c7
17. £f44+ &b7 18. Aa3 Ag4 19. &g3 Ah6 c) 14...Wxb4 15. 2d3 g5 16. &g3 h5 17. 0-0
20. Yb3+ Wb6 21. Wc3+-. h4 18. &xe5+ &xe5 19. f4+ gxf4 20. Ae4
(20...Wb2 21. Axf6 Wd4+ [21...f3 22. Bcet+
D) 10...We87? 11. We6+ cd 12. 263+ &b4
d6 23. Hxf3 Wd4+ 24. &h1 &c7 25. d6+
13. &d2+ &c5 14. b4+ wd4 15. We3#.
®xd6 26. Ae8+ &d7 27. &£g6 &d8 28. Bd3
11. 8f4 c5 12. Ac3 a6 1-0, Sakai—Zednik, correspondence 2001]
22. @h1+) 20...Ah5 21. Bfe1 1-0, Sakai-
Petruzzelli, correspondence 2001.
14...Wxc5 15. 8xe5+
15. Bd1 Wa3! 16. Bd3 Wol+ (—4, Filutowski,
Krzyzanowski) 17. &xc1 Axf7 18. c5+ &c7
19. &f4+ &d8-+ Vetro—Hanison, corre-
spondence 2002.
15...®xe5 16. 8e2 Wa3 17. 0-0 Wxc3
18. Bfe1 &d6 19. c5+ &c7?
19...Wxc5 20. Bact Wa3-+.
20. Haci?

20°
 Game 13 Anand - Bilawer LY)
CPR COSI LEIT St 6 RPS ERE TN 8

20. d6+ &b8 21. dxe7 Wxc5 22. &f3 &xe7 22. cxb7+ &xb7 23. &f37?
23. Hxe7 Ha7 24. Wxg7 He8 25. Wg3+ a8 23. d6 Wxd6 24. 813+ &a7 25. 2xa8+-.
26. Bxe8 Axe8 27. Wf4o.
23...4d6 24. Hc6 Wb4 25. Hec1 2f5?
20...Wa5 21. c6
25...2d7 26. d6 &xc6 27. &xc6+ a7
21. d6+ &b8 22. dxe7 &xe7 23. Wxe7 28. &xa8 &xa8 29. We6 Wxd6 30. Yc8+
Wo7 -+.
a7 31. Hco7+ &b6 32. Bb7+ a5 33. Wc3+
21...east ba4=.
After 21...&b8! White’s attack simply peters 26. d6 £e4 27. 2xe4 Axe4 28. Wd5 A
out. 29. Hc7+ 1-0

at
 Chapter 3

Pirc and Modern Defences

The Achilles’ heel

Game 14 [B06]
Fette —- Senner
Krumbach 1985

1. e4 d6 2. d4 g6
2...Ad7 3. Af3 g6 4. &c4. Often players start
to fianchetto their bishop (in this case with
g6) and continue without thinking. In this
respect, White’s bishop move sets a trap.
Ar cr e
5...Agf6?
KX 2We ADE
AAAAAAZA A) 5...c5?! (13 times in Mega 2005) 6. Ag5!
(6. &xf7+? &xf7 7. Ag5+ Les 8. Aes Wad
9. Axg7+ &f7w) 6...Ah6? (6...e6 7. &xe6!
fxe6 8. Axe6 Wad [8...We7? 9. Ad5!+—-]
9. Axg7+ &f7 10. AMS gxhd5 11. Wxhd5+
g7 12. &f4+) 7. &xf7+! Axf7 8. Ae6 Wb6
9. Axg7+ &f8 10. Ae6+ 1-0, Al Modiahki-
Tin, Yangon 1999.
B) 5...e5? (yet another way of falling into the
This position has occurred quite often trap) 6. Ag5! (6. &xf7+!?) 6...Ah6 7, &xf7+!
in practice. (4...Ab6 is better; 4...Agf6? Axf7 8. Ae6 Wh4 (8...Wf6 9. Ad5! Yxe6
5. &xf7+ &xf7 6. Ags5+ &g8 7 Ae6 10. Axc7+ ®e7 11. Axe6 &xe6+—) 9. Axg7+
We8 8. Axc7+) 5. &xf7+! &f8 (5...8xf7? ®e7 10. Ad5+ &f8 11. Ae6+ &g8 12. Wg4!
6. Ag5+ #e8 [6...2f6? 7. WI3#] 7, De6+-) 1-0, Lachex-— Santiago, USA 1990.
6. Ag5+— Adf6 7. Ac3 Wd7 8. Se6 Wes
5...Ab6 or 5...e6 is called for.
9. &xc8 Wxc8 10. e5 dxed 11. dxe5 Ag4
12. Wf3+ WF5 13. Wxf5+ gxf5 14. f4 c6 15. h3 6. e5!
BANG 16. &e3 #e8 17. 0-0-0 &f8 18. Ae6 6. &xf7+ &xf7 7 Agd5+ &g8 8. Ae6 Wes
Hc8 19. &xa7 Af7 20. 2b6 Bh6 21. Ac7+ 9. Axc7 Wd8 10. Axa8 is good, but the
Exc7 22. &xc7 &xf4+ 23. &b1 &xe5 1-0, game continuation is even better.
Zemgalis — Troger, Augsburg 1946. 6...dxe5 7. dxe5 Ag4 8. &xf7+ 1-0
3. Af3 297 4. Ac3 Ad7 5. &c4 And Black resigned in view of 8...&xf7
(see next diagram) 9. Ag5+ &e8 10. Aes.

22
 Game 16 Willke—Pottberg Ls)

A knight on the rim 5...dxe5

A) 5...A@fd7 6. f4 is the other main line.

Game 15 [BO6]
B) 5...Ag4? 6. h3 £6 (6...Ah6? 7, Yd2+)
Vasiukov (2575) - Razuvaev (2490)
7. exf6 Axf6 8. Af3+.
Rubinstein Memorial Tournament
Polanica Zdrdj 1972 6. dxe5

1. e4 g6 2. d4 &g7 3. c3 d5 4. exd5 Wxd5

5. Df3 c5 6. 2e3 cxd4 7. cxd4

6...Wxd1+?
At first glance obvious, but bad nevertheless
7...Ah6? — White has now constructed an ideal trap.

15 times in Mega 2005. With @f5 Black in- 6...Ag4 7 Wxd8+ &xd8 8. Af3 (8. Bd1+
tends to exert pressure on d4, but he over- £d7 9. e6 fxe6 10. Af3) 8...Axe5 9. O-0-0+
looks a lethal double attack. 7...Af6 is better. 2d7 10. Axe5 &xe5 11. &2c4 and in both
cases White has good compensation for the
8. Yc1 1-0
pawn.
7. Hxd1 Afd7
An endgame as
7...Ag4? 8. h3! (8. Ad5+— Wahls) 8...Axe5
an opening trap 9. Ad5+-.
8. Ad5 &xe5 9. Af3 2d6?
Game 16 [BO7]
Willke (2270) - Pottberg 9...e6 10. Axed exd5 11. Exd5 simply leaves
Germany 1992 White with a pleasant endgame.
10. 8xe7! &f4
1. e4 d6 2. d4 Af6 3. Ac3 g6 4. &Bg5 2g7
5. e5!? 10...8xe7 11. Axc7+ &d8 12. Axa8+-.
Trappy, but without risking much. 11. 8a3 g5 12. g3 c6 13. De7 1-0
 Chapter 4

Caro-Kann Defence

4.1 Typical motifs in the Caro-Kann

Black wants to use the main advantage of the Caro-Kann compared with the French and
develop his light-square bishop outside his central pawn chain. But it can easily come under
pressure there.

Game 17 [B11]
Djurasevié - van Steenis
12th Olympiad, Moscow 1956

1. e4 c6 2. Ac3 d5 3. DAF3!?
Strictly speaking, not a trap but a venomous
sideline.
3...dxe4

3...£94 4. h3

a) 4...&h5 5. exd5 cxd5 6. g4 &g6 7. &b5+

4c6 (7...0d7? 8. Aed+) 8. AeS Wd6 9. d4
{6 10. Axg6 hxg6 11. &e3 (11. WF3 0-0-0 7...4d6
12. £e3 e5 13. 0-0-0 e4 14. Wg2t, Ca-
pablanca-—Bensinger, London 1929) 11...e6 7...&h7? 8. WhS g6 9. Wf3 Af6 (9...f6
(11...0-O-0 12. Wd3 g5 13. 0-0-0 e6 10. &c4 fxe5 11. W7+ &d7 12. We6+
14. De2 Ab4 15. Wb3+, |. Rabinovich- e8 13. Ae4+—; 9...4d5? 10. Yxd5 cxd5
Ebralidze, Tbilisi 1937) 12. Wd2 Wc7 13. &d3 11. &8b5++—-) 10. &c4 (this avoids the com-
7 14. h4t, Boleslavsky —Dubinin, Moscow plications after 10. Wb3 Wd5 11. Wxb7
1940. Wxe5+ 12. Re2 Wad! [12...8g77? 13. Wc8#]
b) 4...2xf3 5. Wxf3 e6=. 13. Wxa8 Wc70 Who has caught whom
here?) 10...e6 11. d4 Abd7 12. &d2+.
4. Axe4 £57! 5. Ag3 &g6
Black sticks in stereotypical fashion to his 8. d4 Ad7 9. Axg6 Wxg6 10. &f4
usual build-up and soon receives an un-
10. 2d3 Wd6 11. c3 e6 (11...Agfé 12. WES e5
pleasant surprise.
13. 0-0 0-0-0 14. dxe5 Wxe5 15. &8f4 Wd5
6. h4! h6 7. Ded! 16. We2 g5 17. &8c4+, Romakin-Butschek,
(see next diagram) Willingen 2003) 12. YWe2 0-0-0 13. £63 Agfé

24
 4.1 Typical motifs in the Caro-Kann * Game 18 Zabala—Ferraro &)
14. 0-0-0 Wc7 15. Wf3£, Cubas Pons-Vilar This extremely slow move occurred no less
Lopez, Spain 1992. than 59 times in Mega 2005. 6...e6 or
10...Agfé 11. 2d3 6...@f6 is called for.

A) 11. c4 e5 12. 2d3 Wg4 13. &8xe5+, Movs- 7. Af4 2h7 8. 2c4 Af6 9. 0-0 e6 10. Het
esian—Dragani¢, Pula 1997.
B) 11. 8e2 Ad5 12. &d2 e6 13. c4 Ab4
14. 0-0 Wo2 15. &xb4 Wxd1 16. Bfxd1 &xb4
17. dSt, Arapovic -Mbambara, Bled 2002.
11...!Wg4 12. Wxg4
12. Wd2 @Ad5 13. &e3 Axe3 14. Wxe3
e5 15. c3+ 0-0-0? 16. &f5 Wf4 (Tate-
Belakovskaya, Parsippany 1999) 17. Wxe5+.
12...axg4 13. 0-0
13. f8 Agf6 14. O-O-O 0-0-0 15. c4 e6
16. De4+t, Konsek—Hauernherm-Thoma,
Forchheim 1993. 10...0d5?
13...e6 14. Hfe1 0-0-0 15. c3 Ab6 This occurs 20 times in Mega 2005. It is an
16. Hadi Ad5 17. &8c1 &d6 18. De4 Bh2+ unavailing attempt to stop the white threats
19. &f1 &c7 20. g3t &b8 21. &g2 b6 against e6.
22. £e2 Agf6 23. &f3 Axe4 24. &xe4 Hd7 A) 10...£e72! 11. &2xe6!? fxe6 12. Axe6 Wd7
25. Hd3 Hhd8 26. Hed1 De7 27. Hf3 f6 13. Axg7+ &d8 14. &xh6t.
28. He1 e5 29. dxe5 &xe5 30. Hfe3 g5
B) 10...2g8 is necessary.
31. hxg5 hxg5 32. &c2 Ad5 33. H3e2 Hg7
34. Hh1 &c7 35. BhS &d6 36. Hel b5 11. Axe6
37. Heh1 a5 38. a4 Db6 39. axb5 cxb5 This should win as well, but 11. &xd5! is
40. Bh7 Hdd7 41. Bh8 Ad5 42. &2f5 Hde7 simpler: 11...cxd5 12. Wh5 g6 13. We5 Hg8
43. Hce8 Dc7 44. Hd1+ &c5 45. 8e3+ &c4 14. Axd5 &g7 15. Wed Ac 16. c3+-.
46. &b6 a4 47. £8a5 He8 48. &xc7 Bxc8
11...fxe6 12. Hxe6+ De7
49. 8xe5 &b3 50. &xf6 Hgc7 51. &xc8
Hxc8 52. Hd2 g4 53. 8e7 Hc7 54. 2a3 1-0 A) 12...2e7 13. Wh5+ ®f8 14. Wf3+ Ate
(14...2f6 15. Ah5+—) 15. &d2 Lg8 16. Bxe7
Wxe7 17. DfS+-.
Even a disruptive sacrifice on e6 is possible,
if Black wastes too much time. B) 12...d7 13. Wg4 g5 14. Ae4 &c7
15. Yg3+ &b6 16. Ac5+-.
Game 18 [B18] 13. Wh5+ &d7 14. &f4 Ag6 15. Yg4 &c8
Zabala (1928) - Ferraro 15...Aaxf4 16. He7+ &xe7 17. Be1+ and
Villa Ballester 2004 mates.

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. DAc3 dxe4 4. Axe4 BF5 16. Bxc6# 1-0

5. Ag3 &g6 6. Ale2
6. Ah3 h6?! 7. Af4 transposes. The bishop can also be hunted in Scandina-
vian style.
6...h6?!
& Chapter 4 Caro-Kann Defence

Game 19 [B17] 11...05° 12. 292 °exd4 13. hd'd3 14- We3
Mecking (2630) - Miles (2565) Wo7 15. hxg6 &xe5 16. g5 Ag4 17. WYxd3
Wijk aan Zee 1978 fxg6, and now in Haba—Burmakin, Pardu-
bice 2003, White should have continued
4.e4c6 2. d4.d5 3. Ac3 dxe4 4. Axe4 DAd7 18. Yb5+ &f7 19. Bh4+-.
5. Af3 12. dxe5+- Wd5 13. Bh3 Axg4 14. Wxg4
The sequence of moves introduced by this Wxe5+ 15. He3 Wad 16. Yg5 Wb6 17. hS
is not very ambitious, but it does contain a £f5 18. He2 0-0 19. 2e3 Wd8 20. Bd2
drop of poison. 5. &c4 is the main line. Wxg5 21. &xg5 f6 22. 2e3 e5 23. 8c4+
@h8 24. h6 gxh6 25. &xh6 Hfes 1-0
5...Agté 6. Axf6+ Axf6 7. Ded !?

Black must constantly watch out for sacri-

fices on f7 or e6.

Game 20 [B17]
Beil - Hausner
Brno 1969
1.e4 c6 2.d4.d5 3. Ac3 dxe4 4. Axe4 Ad7
5. &c4
5. 2d3 Agf6 6. Ag5 e6 7. A1f3 and Black
should avoid 7...h6? 8. Axe6! We7 9. 0-0
fxe6 10. 896+ &d8 11. &f4 with a powerful
7...8f57! initiative.
5...Dgf6 6. as e6 7. YWe2
The fact that White’s trap is not such a
bad one is made clear when you consider
that 7...ad7! is the only move to equalise. i leaWee x:
7...2e6!? is playable, but is reckoned to be
+
As A Aik A
6

8. c3
Threatening “/b3.
8...e6
8...Ad7 9. Axf7! &xf7 10. WF3 e6 11. g4 WG
12. gxf5 Yxf5 13. Wet.
9. g4! 2g6 10. h4 2d6
10...N5 11. g5 Ad5 12. Axg6 fxg6 13. We2 Should this move, which has been played a
7 14. Bh3 Ae7 15. &c4 Af5 16. Rf3 Wd7 hundred times and more, be considered a
17. Bxf5+ gxf5 18. Wxf5+ &e7 19. Wed He8 trap?
20. &f4 &d8 21. We5 Hg8 22. 0-0-0 g6 7...Ab6
23. Hel &g7 24. Wb8+ &e7 25. Bxe6+ 1-0, A) 7...h67? 8. Axf7 &xf7 9. Wxe6+ &g6
Karpov —Hort, Bugojno 1978. 10. &d3+ Bhd 11. Wh3#.
11. We2 &xe5? B) 7...2e77? 8. Axf7 +-.
 4.2 Traps in the Caro-Kann * Game 22 Westphal-Mitscherling GQ
8. 2d3 Wxd4? 9...2b4+
22 times in Mega 2005. This pawn capture After this intermediate check Black hopes to
should be avoided; 8...h6 is quite playable. protect his f-pawn with O-0.
9. A1f3 10. c3! &xc34+ 11. &f1! 1-0
If now the black queen moves, White can Black could play on with three pawns for a
play Hed and the f7-pawn will fall. minor piece, but he preferred to resign.

4.2 Traps in the Caro-Kann

A deadly double attack 8. Yb3+- Abd7 9. &xf7+ Yd8 10. d4 &xf3

11. gxf3 e5 12. 8e3 &d6 13. 0-0-0 Hc8
14. &b1 Hf8 15. De4 Be7 16. Ag5 1-0
Game 21 [B10]
Sihvonen (2149) - Korhonen
Finnish League 1999 Bishops on the same file

1. e4 c6 2. c4 d5d 3. cxd5 cxd5 4. exd5 Game 22 [B10]

Wxd5 5. Ac3 Wad 6. Df3 Af6 7. 2c4 Westphal (2147) - Mitscherling
German League 1998/99

1. e4 c6 2. c4.d5 3. exd5 cxd5 4. cxd5 AT6

5. 8b5+ &8d7 6. 8c4 Wc7

7.1. 2G4?

There is a great desire to develop this bishop,

rather than shut it in by 7...e6 — 8 games 7. Yb3?
in Mega 2005. After 7...Aac6 8. 0-0?! £94
The twin blunder 7. Y%e2? is somewhat rarer.
the same move 9. “&b3? would be mis-
7. do is better.
guided: 9...0-O-0 10. &xf7? £&xf3 11. gxf3
Ad4 12. Yc4+ &b8 F. 7...b5 0-1

27
& Chapter 4 Caro-Kann Defence _ ae

A venomous queen sortie

Game 23 [B11]
Henris (2260) - André (2062)
Charleroi Roulx 2001

1. e4 c6 2. Ac3 d5 3. W3

6...cxb2?
A) 6...cxd2+?! 7. &£xd2 exf6 8. O-0-0 gives
White an excellent game.
B) 6...exf6 7. Y¥xc3, and here, at the least,
he has the long-term advantage of a sound
queenside pawn majority.
7. &xf7+!
A surprise!
A trap, with which White does not take much 7...2d7
of a risk.
7...&xf7 8. fxg7+ &xg7 9. &xb2+4-.
3...d4 8. &xb2 exf6 9. Ae2 Wc7 10. 0-0+ Adé
11. d4 We7 12. &2b3 He8 13. Ag3 g6 14. c4
Instead of this, Black has various solid b6 15. &c3 f5 16. c5 &xg3 17. Yxg3+ &b7
moves, of which the best is probably 18. Hfe1 Wf8 19. Hxe8 Wxe8 20. Yd6 &2d7
3...dxe4. 21. He1 Wd8 22. He7 Wc7 23. Yxc7+ &xc7
A) 3...dxe4 4. Axe4 Ad7 5. d4 Agf6 6. &c4
24. Hxh7 bxc5 25. dxc5 Daé6 26. 8e5+ Bc8
e6 7. £95 £e7 8. 0-0-0 is an interesting vari-
27. &d6 1-0
ation, which can also come about as a result
of a French. The fantasy trap
B) 3...e6 is also playable, of course.
Game 24 [B12]
4. &£c4! Afé V. Ivanov (2411) - Bataev (2227)
Chigorin Memorial Tournament
A) 4...dxc3? 5. &xf7+ &d7 6. dxc3 &c7 St. Petersburg 1999
7, £f4+ &b6 8. a4 a5 9. Bd1 Ad7 10. Re6+-.
1.e4 c6 2. d4 d53. f3 dxe4 4. fxe4 e5 5. AfT3
B) 4...e6 5. Ace2+£. exd4?!

5. e5 dxc3 6. exf6 5...£e6 6. c3 (6. Axe5? Wh4+—) 6...Ad7=.

6. 8c4 &b4+? 7. c3 dxc3?
(see next diagram) (see next diagram)
 4.2 Traps in the Caro-Kann * Game 26 Engelbrecht -—Schlette
eS I a FS BEDALE
PRR TAS ADIT ROE Pe ENEBRIEETBRA SEITE OLE OB

8...Axd4?
8. &xf7+! Bxf7?
The pawn is poisoned. 8...e6 should be
8...%e7! 9. Wb3 (9. Wxd8+!?) 9...cxb2+ played.
10. Yxb4+ &xf7 11. &xb2-. 9. Db5! Wd8 10. Axd4 Wxd4 11. Wa4+!
9. Yxd8 cxb2+ 2&d8
A) 11...8d7 12. &xf7+ &xf7 13. Yxd4+-.
This move wins a great deal of material, but B) 11...!4d7 12. &8b5+-.
it does not help.
12. 8a5+ b6 13. Hd1 Wxd1+ 14. Wxd1+
10. ®e2 bxaiW 11. Ag5+ Lg6 12. Wes8+ £d7 15. 8c3 De8 16. &b5 Ad6 17. 2xd7
1-0 &xd7 18. Af3 f6 19. Ad4 e5 20. Ab5 &c6
21. Wf3+ e4 22. Ad4+ &b7 23. Wg4 Hc8
And Black resigned in view of 12...h6 24. 0-0 g6 25. We6 1-0
(12...2f6 13. Bfi+ &f5 14. Bxf5#) 13. Ae6+
Sd? 14. &xd2+ g5 15. &xg5#. Don’t miss a check!

Game 26 [B15]
Don’t touch that pawn!
Engelbrecht (2270) - Schlette
Budapest 1999
Game 25 [B13] 1. e4 g6 2. d4 c6 3. 4Af3 d5 4. Ac3 &g7
Zier (2200) - Hermann 5. &8f4 dxe4 6. Axe4 Wad5+
German Championship
Bad Neuenahr 1982

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 cxd5 4. c4 f6
5. Ac3 Ac6 6. &g5 Wad 7. 2d2
7 &xf6 exf6 8. cxd5 £b4 9. dxc6 &xc3+
10. bxc3 Wxc3+ 11. &e2 0-0 12. f3 He8+
13. &f2 We3+ 14. &g3 Wg5+ with perpetual
check is another main line. ft

7...dxc4 8. &xc4
(see next diagram)
& Chapter 4 Caro-Kann Defence

This queen check does not make much White controls the h2-square, doesn’t he?
sense if White reacts correctly, but nor is
8...Bxh2! 9. Rxh2 Wa5+!
there much risk of Black ending up in a bad
position. 9...gxh2? 10. &2xh2=.
7. c3? 10. c3
This natural move falls into the trap. 7, YWd2
or 7. £d2 is better. 10. Wd2 gxf2+ 11. &xf2 (11. we2 Yxd2+
12. &xd2 fxgiW—+) 11...Yxd2+—-+.
7... f5!-+
5 times in Mega 2005. An unusual queen 10...4xe5+!! 11. dxe5 gxh2 0-1
move, which White had simply never consid- White resigned, since the courageous pawn
ered. can no longer be stopped.
8. AfgsS Wxf4 9. 8c4 e6 10. g3 We7 11. YF3
@h6 12. h4 Dab 13. Af6+ Ye7 14. Afe4
f6 15. Ah3 Zf5 16. 0-0 b5 17. 2b3 Hes Eyes to the left
18. Hae1 &f8 19. Ahg5d fxg5 20. Axg5 &g8
21. He2 h6 22. Hxe6 &xe6 23. 2xe6+ Hxe6
Game 28 [B15]
24. Axe6 Wd6 25. He1 He8 0-1
Kloostra - Fell
Australian Championship
Every soldier wants to Toowoomba 1986
become a general
1.e4 c6 2.d4d5 3. Ac3 dxe4 4. Axed AE
Game 27 [B15] 5. Axf6+ exf6 6. 2804 We7+
NN - Torre Repetto
Mexico (simultaneous) 1928

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Ac3 dxe4 4. Axe4 D6

5. Ag3 hd 6. £95?!
6. h4 is necessary.
6...h4 7, &xf6?
Better 7. A3e2.
7...hxg3 8. £e5

What does the queen want on the e-file?

7. De2?
7, We2 £e6 8. 8637? (a8. 2d3) 8...%b4+ is
a variation on the same motif.

7...Wb4+ 0-1

The target was reached via a diagonal!

 4.2 Traps in the Caro-Kann * Game 30 Nunn- Georgiev

Lightning from a clear sky An annoying knight

Game 29 [B16] Game 30 [Bis]

Lauk (2410) - Laine (2260) Nunn (2615) - Georgiev (2595)
Tampere 1993 Linares 1988
1.e4 c6 2.d4d5 3. Ad2 dxe4 4. Axe4 Ad7
1. e4 c6 2. d4.d5 3. Dc3 dxe4 4. Axe4 Af6
5. Ag5
5. Dxf6+ gxf6 6. c3 &f5 7. Df3 e6 8. g3
4d7 9. 2g2 £e4
A) 5. £d3 Agf6 6. Ag5S h6? (aé...e6) 7 Ae6!
Wa5+ 8. &8d2 Wb6 9. Af3 fxe6 10. 2g6+
Black would like to exchange his light-square &d8 11. 0-0 c5 12. c4 cxd4 13. Axd4 e5
bishop — but for the bishop on g2. 9...2g7+£. 14. c5 Axc5 15. £a5 exd4 16. Yxd4+ Acd7
10. 0-0 Yc7?! 17. 2xb6+ axb6 18. Bact e5 19. Wc4 &c5
20. Hfd1 Hf8 21. b4 &d4 22. Hxd4 1-0, Tal-
This occurs 13 times in Mega 2005. Black
Oll, Riga 1986.
does not make the correct preparations for
B) 5. We2 is a rather bold attempt. 5...
the expected Hel. One possibility would be
Agté? (a5...Adf6) 6. Ad6# is the dream
10...8e7 11. Bet f50.
line.
11. Hel £5?

5...h6? 6. De6 Wa5+ 7. &8d2 Wh6 8. &d3!

fxe6
Instead of this, Black had to give up the
8...Agf6 9. Af3 (9. AxfB!?) 9...fxe6
bishop pair or lose a tempo by retreating
10. 896+ &d8 11. 0-0 Yxb2 12. c4t.
— neither of which was particularly desirable.
9. Yh5+ &d8 10. 8a5+- Agf6 11. &xb6+
12. Ag5! &xg2 13. Hxe6+! 2e7 axb6 12. We2 g5 13. Af3 &g7 14. 0-0 Add
13...fxe6 14. Wh5++-. 15. g3 b5 16. c3 Hf8 17. Kfe1 &c7 18. &c2
£f6 19. Wed h5 20. Wg6 g4 21. AgS D7b6
14. &xg2 Af6 15. Het 0-0 16. WIZ Wd7
22. &b3 Dc4 23. &xc4 bxc4 24. Wxh5
17. He5 1-0 &b8 25. Axe6 Hg8 26. Wf7 Hh8 27. YWg6
Had 28. Yxg4 Ac7 29. Wf4 &xe6 30. Hxe6
£g5 31. We4 Axe6 32. Wxe6 Hdd 33. b3
cxb3 34. axb3 &f6 35. &g2 Hdh5 36. h4
Hd8 37. Yg4 Ehd5 38. h5 e5 39. He1 exd4
40. Wf4+ H8d6 41. c4 295 42. Wg4 Bcd
1-0

31
 Chapter 5

Sicilian Defence

5.1 Typical motifs in the Sicilian

this,
It would of course be no problem to fill many thick volumes on such a rich theme as
the price
and so we have had to be very selective here. White gains a lead in development,
being the exchange of his central d-pawn for the black c-pawn. He wants to compensa te
for this static disadvantage with dynamics, which often leads to very sharp play with many
tricks and traps. But Black also has some tricky lines up his sleeve, like the Accelerated
Dragon:

Game 31 [B34] 8...2xc3+ 9. bxc3 Yxc3+ 10. 2d2 Wxc4

Losche - Jabbusch 11. Ab4 YWxe4+ 0-1
German League 1994/95
1. e4 c5 2. Af3 AcE 3. d4 cxd4 4. Axd4 g6 The next game also contains many traps and
5. Be3 &g7 6. 2c4 one path to avoid them.

A direct transposition into a normal Dragon

with 6. Ac3 Af6 7. f3 0-0 8. YWd2?! is prob- Game 32 [B35]
lematic in view of 8...d5!. Hofmann - Kratochvilova
Czechoslovakia v. East Germany
6...Wa5+!?
Karlovy Vary 1973

1.e4 c5 2. Af3 DAc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Axd4 g6

5. Ac3 &g7 6. 8e3 Af6 7. 264 Wad

Such tricky early queen sorties are typical of

the Accelerated Dragon.
7. Dc3? a7. c3. 7...4b4! 8. Axc6?
8. Adb5 Wxc4 9. Ac7+ &f8 10. Axa8 &xc3+
11. bxc3 Wxc3+ 12. &d2 WedF.

32.
 5.1 Typical motifs in the Sicilian ¢ Game 33 Da Silva— Cordeiro &)
A) 8. £3? Wb4! 9. &b3 (9. Axc6 bxc6 16. £e3 2d7 17 Bb7 &c8 18. Bb4 Ab6
10. 2b3 &a6 seems to be the lesser evil 19. 0-0 @d7 20. Hfb1 e5 21. c4 d4 22. 2d2
for White.) f5 23. &c2 &e7 24. c5 a5 25. 295+ Lf8
26. &h6+ &e8 27. B4b2 Axc5 28. Ld1 &d7
29. Bc2 0-1, Teie— Bellon Lopez, Groningen
1970.
C) 8. Ab3? (80 times in Mega 2005)
8...4%b4! 9. Ad2 (still the best) 9...Y%xb2.
Now there is a relatively forced line: 10. Ab5
Wed 11. f4 Wb8 12. e5 Axe5S! 13. fxe5 Wxed
14. &f2 (14. WI8? Wxal+ 15. &f2 Wed
16. 2d4 Wg5 17. &e1 0-0-4, Kupreichik-—
Veremeichik, Minsk 1973) 14...a6 15. Ad4
(Zapata—Hoffman, Santos 2001) 15...2h6!
9...Axe4! (10. fxe4!? Axd4 [10...&xd4
16. Af1 &xe3+ 17. Axe3 W4+ 18. %e2 d5
11. &xd4 Wxd4 12. Wf3 is not quite so
19. 2xd5 &g4+ 20. 2f3 Hd8 21. c3 &xf3+
clear.] 11. a8 Wd6 12. 0-0 0-0 13. BF2 Axb3
22. gxf3 e5F.
14. Yxd6 exd6 15. cxb3) 10. Axc6 &xc3+
8...W%b4?
11. bxc3 Wxc3+ 12. &e2 dxc6 13. &d4 e5
a8...0-0.
(Since this stem game [with 8. f8 Yb4] there
9. 2b3 Axe4?
have been numerous others. Mega 2005 has
34 games with 13...e5.) 14. &xc3 Axc3+ Black falls into her own trap; the move can
15. &f2 Axdi+ 16. Haxd1 0-0 17. Hhet be refuted in two ways.
He8 18. f4 £94 19. Hd6 exf4 20. Hf6 Bxet 10. Axc6!
21. ®xe1 He8+ 22. &d2 Le6 23. Exf4 &xb3 10. Axe4!? is not bad either: 10...Axd4
24. axb3 &g7 25. Hd4 He7 26. Bd8 h5 27. c4 11. &xf7+ &xf7 12. AgS5+ &e8 (a12...&g8
c5 28. g3 b6 29. &d3 &f6 30. h3 &g5 13)>ca Yib5 14) cxd4+) 138. co’ Wxb2
31. Hd5+ &f6 32. Hd6+ wed 33. Hd8 &f6 14. &xd4 e5 15. 2xe5 &xe5 16. Hel Hf8
34. Bd6+ &g7 35. Bd8 Hel 36. Ha8 Hg1 17. Bxe5+ &d8 18. Ae6+ #e7 19. Axf8+
37. Bxa7 Hxg3+ 38. &c2 He3 39. Hd7 g5 &xf8 20. Wf3+ 1-0, Mela—Glinz, Buenos
40. Bd5 &g6 41. b4 cxb4 42. Hb5 Hc3+ 0-1, Aires 2001.
Durao-—Pustina, Leipzig 1960. 10...dxc6
10...6xc6 hardly makes any difference.
B) 8. Wd2? White would like to continue
with his usual set-up by castling long, but
11. a3 Axc3 12. WF3! Ae2+ 13. Bh1 Wh4
14. Yxf7+ &d8 15. Yxg7 Bh3 16. Yxh8+
this does not work here. 8...Axe4!. Black is
in a very comfortable position and he even
&c7 17. We5+ 1-0
has a second strong move: 8...W%/b4! (it is
The normal Dragon also contains many typi-
worth noticing that players with higher Elo
cal motifs, which we cannot deal with exten-
ratings prefer this move) 9. Axc6 (9. Axe4
sively here, for example:
Wxd2+ 10. &xd2 @xd4 Black is a pawn up -
the play White has along the two semi-open
central files should not be sufficient compen- Game 33 [B78]
sation) 9...Y¥xc3! 10. YWxc3 &xc3+ 11. bxc3 Da Silva - Cordeiro (2424)
bxc6 (Black is a pawn up; here the bishop correspondence 1998
pair is not sufficient compensation) 12. £h6 »1.e4 5 2. Df3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Axd4 Af6
Bg8 13. Hb1 d5 14. 2d3 Axc3 15. Hb3 Aa4 5. Dc3 g6 6. Be3 &g7 7. £3 Acé6 8. YWd2 0-0

33
 Chapter 5 Sicilian Defence mat 2s SA ARID PLE ELLE POLE DIPPED
LSD.

9. 8c4 £d7 10. 0-0-0 Hc8 11. &2b3 Axd4 This motif would still be present if White had
12. 28xd4 b5 played a little differently, for example 13. g4
(instead of 13. h4).
18. We3 Exd4 19. Exd4 Ag3 20. Ha4 @xh1
21. We1 Wb6 22. Yxh1 Hc8 23. &b1 Hed
24. Yg1 &xb2 0-1

In the structures with d6 and e6 White has

numerous tactical options. Piece sacrifices
on b5, d5, e6 and f5 occur quite frequently,
to open the position for his better mobilised
army. Pawn advances such as e4-e5 and
f4-f5 are often seen as well.

Game 34 [B43]
Thanks to a few games by Topalov, this plan
Velimirovié (2535) - Pavlovié (2505)
has become established theory. But there
Zonal Tournament, Panormo 1998
are a few snares for the unwary player of the
white pieces. 1.e4 c5 2. Af3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Axd4 Wb6
13. h4 5. Ab3 Wc7 6. Ac3 a6 7. 2d3 b5

13. Ad5 Axd5 14. &xg7 &xg7 15. exd5 a5 A frequently reached position, in which White
16. a3 b4 17. axb4 axb4 18. Y&xb4 is the usually continues 8. 0-0 (and then does not
critical line at the moment. play &e3).

13...a5 14. a4? 8. 8e3 &b7 9. f4 AF6 10. 0-0 dé

14. h5 a4 15. &xf6 exf6 16. Wxd6 (16. &d5 10S hos Osea.
a3 17. b3 f500) 16...axb3 17. Wxd7 Wad 11. e5!?
(17...bxa2 18. Axa2 Wad 19. &b10) A trap with no risk attached. | think that
18. hxg6 hxg6 19. Wd5 f5 20. e50. the whole white set-up (after 7...05) is
14...bxa4 15. Axa4 &xa4 16. &xa4 quite good, and Black does not have many
chances to deviate from it either. 11. a3 would
be a solid move.
11...dxe5 12. fxe5

Now the point is revealed:

16...Hc4! 17, &2b3 Axe4!
 s 5.1 Typical motifs in the Sicilian « Game 36 M. Carlsen—Werle 4)
12...Dfd7? After 7. 0-0 @bd7?! the move 8. &xe6 comes
In the four games with 11. e5, this occurred strongly into consideration (cf. Tan— Taylor,
three times. Game 99 on page 72).
A) 12...%xe5?! has never been tried, and 7...b5 8. Wf3 Wc7 9. 2g5 Le7 10. 0-0-0
rightly so. 13. 2f4 Wh5 14. Re2 Wg6 (14... @bd7 11. Bhe1 @c5?
Wh4 15. Wd2 Ac6 16. £95 Wb4 17. We3
This occurs 5 times in Mega 2005. It loses in
We7 18. Hadi+—) 15. &f8 Ac6 16. We2
typical fashion.
£b4 (16...8£e7 17. Axb5 0-0 18. Ad6 &xd6
19. &2xd6+) 17, Axb5 0-0 18. Ac7 Hads al1...0-0.
19. Axa6+. 12. Af5!
B) 12...Ad5 is the strongest. 13. &d4!?
@\xc3 (13...Ab4 14. Wh5 A8Bc6 15. &xb5+)
14. bxc3 A We2, Bf2 and Baf1. We would
much rather have White in this position.
13. Bxf7!
A powerful strike!
13...&xf7 14. Wh5+ g6
14...%g8 is rather more stubborn, but it
should still lose: 15. Bf1 g6
a) 16. Wg4!? Axed 17. Yxe6+ Af7 18. £e4
A@\c6 19. Ad5 Acd8 20. Af6+ &g7 21. &h6+
®xh6 22. Wh3+ 97 (22...%g5 23. We3+
@h4 24. Bf4+ g5 25. 838+ w&h4 26. Bh3#)
12...0-0
23. Ae8+ &g8 24. Axc7 &xe4 25. Axa8
£xa8 26. Ad4+-; 12...exf5 13. &xf6 Axb3+ 14. axb3 gxf6
b) 16. &2xg6 Axed 17. Ae4 Lxe4 18. 2xe4 15. Ad5 Wad 16. exf5 Ha7 17. We3+-.
4\bc6 19. Ad4 Axd4 20. &xd4 &cd 13. Axe7+ Yxe7 14. e5 dxe5 15. Yxa8 &8b7
21. Yg5+ Wa7 22. Yxg7+ &xg7 23. &xcd 16. Wa7 Wc7 17. &xf6 gxf6 18. 4Be4 1-0
Had8 24. 2e7 Ag4 25. 2xd8 Exd8 26. Het
Bd2 27. 2d3+- (Chuchelov). Usually Black does not allow c2-c4, but from
15. 2xg6+!+- hxg6 16. Yxh8 Axe5 time to time such Maréczy bind structures
16...%e8 17. Bf1+-. do arise in the Sicilian. For example, in the
17. Wh7+ &g7 18. &2h6 Wb6+ 19. &h1 Paulsen or Kan Variations, as in the next ex-
&xg2+ 20. &xg2 Yc6+ 21. &g1 Af3+ ample:
22. &f2 1-0
Game 36 [B41]
Here is one example of a typical knight sac- M. Carlsen (2484) - Werle (2407)
rifice: Wijk aan Zee 2004

Game 35 [B87] 1.e4 c5 2. Df3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Axd4 a6

Zambrana (2389) - Vera (2139) With 4...Af6 5. Ac3 Black can avoid Hedge-
La Paz 2002 hog structures (5. e5? runs into 5...Wa5+).
1. e4 c5 2. Df3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Axd4 Af6 5. c4 Af6 6. Ac3 dé 7. g3 Wc7 8. £e3 b6
5. Ac3 a6 6. &c4 e6 7. 2b3 9. &8g2!?

35
& Chapter 5 Sicilian Defence

9. Hct &b7 10. &g2 Abd7 11. Ad5 Wb8 (11... £f8 25. Hc8 Hb8 26. H8c7 He7 27. Hxe7
exd5 12. cxd5 Wb8 13. Ac6 Wc8 14. 0O-Of) f&xe7 28. Hc7 He8 29. Yd7 “d8 30. Wc6
12. 0-0 g6 13. Axf6+ Axf6 14. Wa4+es, £18 31. Ba7 Wc8 32. Wd5 Web 33. Wxe6
Borik— Gheorghiu, Baden-Baden 1981. Hxe6 34. £3 d5 35. Ha8 Hce6 36. exd5 He7
37. 2c3 1-0
9...2.b7
OW xc42) 10.. (acl we2bre e104
11. a3 Wad [11...%xb2 12. Aa4 Yxa3 When playing ...07-b5 to pressurise e4 with
13. &xc8++-] 12. e5+-) 11. Add exd5 _,.&b7 and b4, Black always has to watch
12. Bxc4 dxc4 13. AfS+-. out for a2-a4:

10. 0-O Abd7 [B46]

Game 37
A) 10). xc4? is icl Fressinet (2606) - Moor (2367)
B) 10...Ac6?! 11. Hct &e7? 12. Ad5!4+—-. Zug 2001
11. Hco1 8e7?
1. e4 c5 2. Af3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Axd4 a6
5. Ac3 Ac6 6. 8e3 Age7 7. Ab3 b5?

This occurs 5 times in Mega 2005, but it runs

straight into a typical sacrifice.
The move most often played in this position,
11...8c8! 12. b3 Wb8 with a typical hedge-
but the wrong one. The main lines are 7...d6
hog in Janetschek—- Gheorghiu, Vienna 1980.
or 7...Ag6.
12. Ad5!! exd5 13. cxd5 Wb8
8. a4! b4 9. a5! dé
A) 13...%d8 14. Ac6 &xc6 15. dxc6 Ac5
(15...Ae5? 16. c7 Wd7 17. f4 Aeg4 18. &xb6 9...bxc3? 10. &b6+—.
O-O 19. e5+-) 16. c7 Wxc7 17. e5 dxed 10. Aa4+
18. &xa8 0-0 19. 2g2+.
. and the queenside belongs to White
B) 13...Ac5 14. b4 0-0 15. bxc5 bxc5 (Sommerbauer).
16. Af5+.
10...2b7 11. Ab6 Hb8 12. f4 We7 13. &c4
14. Ac6 &xc6 15. dxc6 Ha7 Ed8 14. We2 Ab8 15. f5 &xe4? 16. fxe6
15...He5 16. c7+. fxe6 17. Ad4 1-0
16. cxd7+ Axd7 17. 2h3+ 0-0 18. &xd7
Exd7 19. Wd5 b5 20. Hc6 Wa8 21. Efct Black himself also has motifs, of course,
Hfd8 22. 2b6 He8 23. WF5 Hb7 24. 8d4 such as the following unpinning:

36
 5.1 Typical motifs in the Sicilian e Game 39 Erben—Weiner a
Game 88 [B95] 7. Yxc3; both give him slightly more than
Denis —- Munoz compensation for the pawn, and thus his
Bogota 1958 situation compared with the position after
move 4 is clearly improved.
1. e4 c5 2. Af3 d6 3. Ac3 a6 4. d4 cxd4
5. Axd4 Af6 6. 295 e6 7. Wd2 h6 7. Yxg7 Wt6

xA2Wee mR
AA

8. £h6!!
8. &h4?
The point. 8. Yxf6? Axf6 should not cause
40 times in Mega 2005. Black any difficulties and was certainly what
a8. &e3. he was expecting.
8...Axe4! 9. Axe4 Wxh4 10. 8d3 Ac6 8...2e7 9. Yxf6 &xf6
11. De2? d5 12. D4g3 &c5 13. c3 Ded 9...Axf6 10. Abdt.
14. 0-0 &d7 15. Hadi Hd8 16. h3 Axd3 10. &f4+
17. Wxd3 0-0 18. @h2 2b5 19. Wd2 e5 The difference compared with the above
20. Af5 Wg5 0-1 variation is not so great, but here Black can
hardly extricate himself from his problems.
A surprising double attack 10...Age7 11. 0-0-0 Ag6 12. 2d6 a6
13. Da4 2d8 14. Be2 b6 15. h4 f6 16. h5
Game 39 [B21] 4\ge5 17. Axe5 Axe5 18. h6 2b7 19. 2h5+
Erben - Weiner (2255) 4\g6 20. Khe1 Hc8+ 21. &b1 2c6 22. Ac3
2nd Bundesliga 1987/88 &c7 23. &xc7 Hxc7 24. Ad5 &xd5 25. exd5
1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3 dxc3 4. Axc3 e6 e5 26. f4 &d8 27. 8xg6 hxg6 28. fxe5 fxe5
29. Hxe5 Hxh6 30. Hde1 Hc5 31. Hg5 Bhs
5. Df3 &b4?!
32. Hxg6 Hhxd5 33. Hxb6 Hd2 34. Hct
92 times in Mega 2005. A normal-looking
Hg5 35. Hxa6 Hb5 36. b3 Hxg2 37. Hc2
move, which however overlooks an unusual
Hg3 38. Hd2 Hb7 39. &b2 He3 40. Hhé
motif.
Hg3 41. Bh7 Hf3 42. Rg7 Bh3 43. Bg6 Be3
6. Wd4! 44. Bgd6 &e7 45. H6d4 Hg3 46. He2+ &d8
Black must give up either his extra pawn or 47. Bed2 He3 48. H4d3 He6 49. a3 Beb6
his bishop pair (ignoring the fact that 6...2f8 50. b4 Bh6 51. Hdd Bh1 52. b5 Hg1 53. a4
is theoretically possible). Hg4 54. &b3 Hg1 55. a5 Hg3+ 56. &b4
6...Ac6?! Hg4+ 57. H5d4 Hg1 58. b6 Hb1+ 59. @c5
After 6...&xc3+ White has a choice between ¢c8 60. Hc4 d5 61. &xd5+ &d8 62. &c6+
the aggressive 7. bxc3 and the more solid ¢c8 63. Hd8+ &xd8 64. &xb7 1-0

37
 Chapter 5 Sicilian Defence

5.2 Traps in the Sicilian

The dangerous Morra Gambit 11. ££4 is also playable: 11...0h5 (11...2b4+
12. &H1 Dh5 13. Le3+) 12. Re3 Ac6 13. Le2
[B21] fb4+ 14. &f1 Af6 15. Bf4 Bd2 16. 2xd2
Game 40
&xe5 17. &b4+.
Fohler — Mudelsee
Lauda-Konigshofen 1986
11...8e7 12. 2e3 Acé6
The move 12...b6 has often been played.
1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3 dxc3 4. Axc3 d6 After 13. 0-0-0 Eb7 14. Ab5 White is clearly
5. Af3 on top, e.g. 14...Ad5 (14...2d7 15. Axd7
5. &£c4 DAf6?! 6. e5 dxe5? is a total catas- Exd7 [15...Axd7 16. &f4 &f6 17 h4+]
trophe, but it occurs no less than 12 times 16. Exd7+ Axd7 17. Axa7 +) 15. &xd5 exd5
in Mega 2005, e.g. Mayers—Stephano, 16. Bxd5 1617 Bets.
Philadelphia 1996 (6...dxe57? 7. &xf7+ &xf7 13. 0-0-0 Ad7?
8. Yxd84+-; 6...Afd7 7. Af3—).
13...Ae4! is what Fritz suggests, e.g.
5...Aac6 6. &c4 Af6 14. Axc6+ bxc6 15. het Hb7 16. Lf4t.
6...e6 is considered safer. 14. Axf7! &xf7 15. 2xe6+ Lg6 16. &2xd7
7.e5 &xd7 17. Bxd7 Hc8 18. &f4
18. Ad5!? Ae5+ 19. Hc7 +.
18...Ab8 19. Hd2 DAa6 20. &b1 Hxc7
21. &xc7 Axc7 22. Hd8 De6 23. Hb8
b6 24. Het h5 25. Hec8 &f7 26. Hb7+
&f6 27. Hxa7 EHh6 28. Hd7 &c5 29. Bd3
Eg6 30. g3 Be5 31. f4+ Led 32. Hd1 h4
33. He1+ @f5 34. He5+ SF6 35. Hc6 hxg3
36. Hexe6+ &f7 37. Bxg6 gxh2 38. Exg7+
&xg7 39. Bh5 &g1 40. f5 SFG 41. Bc2 Ved
42. b4 &f6 43. &d3 we5 44. a4 d5 45. f6+
®e6 46. Eh6 1-0

The Siberian trap

Now Black must react with care; most play-
ers don't.
Game 41 [B21]
7...dxe5?
Tesinszky (2225) -
There are well over a hundred games with Magerramov (2500)
this move in Mega 2005. Even weaker is Budapest 1990
7...Axe5? 8. Axed dxe5 9. &xf7++-.
1.e4c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3 dxc3 4. Axc3 Ac6
Better is 7...Ad7 8. e6 fxe6 9. Ag5So, or
5. Df3 e6 6. &8c4 Wc7 7. 0-0 Afé
7...€Ag4 8. exd6 exd6 9. 0O-Ooo.
The so-called Siberian Defence against the
8. Yxd8+ Axd8
Morra Gambit.
8...&xd8 9. Ags a5 10. &xf7+. 8. We2 Ag4
9. Ab5 Hb8 10. Axe5 e6 11. Ac7+ (see next diagram)

38
 5.2 Traps in the Sicilian ¢ Game 43 Schuck -Gottschlich
SED EES OOE: OSES ES ARE SOO PSE ND AOE EPR SESRI TOONS
a
IAT IT LIT NOTE

In view of his lack of development, Black

simply cannot afford such moves. 7. &2xf7+
&xf7 8. Axe5+ &f6 9. Wd44-.

6. &c4

This trap has been used almost 200 times

(Mega 2005).
9. 2b3?
An even more “popular” way to fall into the
trap is 9. h3? Ad4!. And 9. Hd1?! is none
too bright either: 9...2c5!. The correct and
6...2e7?
most frequently-played move is 9. Ab5 Wb8
10. h3 h5, but Black scores quite well in this This occurs 15 times in Mega 2005. Black
variation. fears 6...Af6 7. Ag5.
9...ad4! 0-1
A) 6...805? 7, &xf7+ &xf7 8. Yd5++.
A cheap trap that backfired B) 6...n6? 7. Wb3+/+-.

Game 42 [B21] C) 6...Af6E? 7. Ags d5 8. Axd5+.

Zilber - Mileika D) 6...d6 7, Ag5 Ahé 8. 0-0 £e7 9. Yh5 0-0
Latvian Championship, Riga 1962 10. hot:
1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. Df3 e5?!
7. Wd5 1-0
This sets a little trap, but it leads to an un-
favourable variation of the Morra Gambit.
Strong grandmasters do not play like this.
An old riddle
4. c3
4. Axe5? Wa5+—-+.
4...dxc3 5. Axc3 Acé Game 43 [B22]
5...d6 6. £c4 h6? Schuck - Gottschlich (2170)
Germany 1995/96

1.e4 5 2. c3 d5 3. exd5 Wxd5 4. d4 cxd4

5. cxd4 Ac6 6. Af3 &g4
This is considered bad, but we cannot agree
with this judgement (and in so doing we are
following analysis by Burgess); the reason is
that the alternative 6...e5 definitely leads to
an advantage for White.
& Chapter 5 Sicilian Defence

7 Ac3 412. Dc7+ Ld7 13. Axa8

With 7. &£e2 White could avoid the forced The evaluation of this variation is not an easy
variation which follows. A possible line is task, and even computers are not of much
7...e6 8. Ac3 Wad 9. 0-0 Af6 10. h3 &h5 help — their evaluation of the pawn formation
11. 863 Re7 12. Wb3 Wb4 13. g4 296 f2, £3 and h3 is much too negative. But from
14. De5 0-0 15. g5 Wxb3 16. axb3 Add White’s point of view these pawns are sim-
17. Axd5 exd5 18. Bfc1 £. ply onlookers, because he wants to become
active on the queenside. The knights on a1
7...2xf3 8. gxf3
and a8 are either both lost or both saved.
8. Axd5?! &xd1 9. Ac7+ is difficult to as-
13...g6
sess, as the fate of the knight at a8 is unclear.
In practice White scores badly, but things are
not so simple, e.g. 9...&d7 10. Axa8 £h5
11. d5 Ad4 12. Lf4 Ac2+ 13. &d2 Axal
14. &8b5+ &d8 15. Exal Af6 16. Ac7 a6
17. &8d3 e6=. More analysis is needed to
shed light on this variation.
8...W4xd4 9. Wxd4 Axd4

14. 2e3
Everybody plays this.
14. 2b5+!? was pointed out by Sveshnikov
in B22, Informator editions 1998. The king is
immediately forced to clarify its intentions,
i.e. head for c8: 14...&c8 (14...2d6? 15. b3!
&g7 16. 8a3+ &e6 17. Ac7+ &F5 18. &c1!
10. Ab5 Ac2+ 4Mf6 19. £d3+ Ved 20. &b2++—-) 15. Re3
&b8 16. &e2 a Bd1. Sveshnikov ends his
10...e5 is also playable, but after 11. Ac7+ analysis with the evaluation +, which is per-
&d7 12. Axa8 &b4+ 13. &d1 Ae7 14. f4
haps a little too optimistic. 16...8g7 17. Ab6
White stands better.
axb6 18. Hxal. As has already been said,
11. &d1 Axat the kingside hardly plays any role at all, but
on the opposite wing White’s superiority is
Burgess suggests 11...&c8 12. Axa7 Bcd
obvious.
13. £63 (13. Hb1 !?; 13. &b5+!?) 13...Axe3+
14. fxe3. We cannot quite share his evalua- 14...2h6 15. 2b5+ &d6
tion of “equal”. White has a slight lead in de- Now the king goes forward.
velopment and he will soon start to become
active, e.g. 14...Af6 15. b4 Hd5+ 16. &c2 16. &8xa7 Af6 17. Ab6 Hd8 18. Se2 Ac2
e5 17. &c4 Bd8 18. Had1! &d6 (18...&xb4? 19. Rd1+ &c7 20. Rxd8
19. Bxd8+ &xd8 20. Hb1) 19. &b3+t. 20. a3 e5 21. Rxd8 &xd8 22. Ac4 Af4=.

40
 5.2 Traps in the Sicilian ¢ Game 45 Kvikstad —Kiselev GQ)
20...&xd8= 21. Ac4 &f4 22. h3 Also played by Csom, Osnos and Guliev.
22, a3 &bB!=. 8...WYxd4 9. &xd4+t.

22...Ab4 23. a3 Abdd 24. 8d4? Ac7 9. Yxc5! 1-0

25. 2b6 Afd5 26. 8a4 Axb6 27. Axb6
And Black threw in the towel because
&c1 28. &£b3 e6 29. a4 &xb2 30. Ac4 Af6
of 9...4%xc5 (9...Axc5 10. Ac7+ ke7
31. Ad6 b6 32. Axf7+ WYe7 33. Ah6 Add
11. Axd5+ Axd5 12. &xc5++—-) 10. &xcd
34. Ag8+ &f7 35. Axf6 &xf6 36. &d3 wed
4\xc5 11. Ac7++-.
37. h4 h5 38. &c4 g5 39. hxg5 h4 40. f4+
2x4 41. &d4 &xg5 42. &e5 h3 43. Ad
A\c3 44. 83 Dxa4 45. &xe6 &f4 0-1
Chess in not checkers

A popular mistake Game 45 [B22]

Kvikstad —- Kiselev (2420)
Game 44 iB22] Vadso 2000
Boros (2453) - Paschall (2396)
Budapest 2005 1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. DAf3 AcE 4. c3 d5
5. exd5 &xd5 6. cxd4 &g4 7. £e2 e6 8. 0-0
1. e4 c5 2. c3 d5 3. exd5 Wxd5 4. d4 e6
46 9. Ac3 Wad 10. Ae5 &xe2
5. Da3!?
Also after 5. Af3 Ac6 6. Aa3 Black can
easily lose his way: 6...cxd4? 7. @b5
Wd8? (7...2d6 8. &c4 We4+ 9. £e3 2b8
10. Abxd4+) 8. £f44-.
5... D6
o5...2£d7 6. Ab5 &xb5 7% &xb5+ Ac6
8. Af8 cxd4 9. &8xc6+ Wxc6 10. Axd4 Wd7!
11. 0-0 Af6 12. Bf4 &e7 13. Be1 Hd8 14. Yb3
0-0O=.
6. Ab5 Da6 7. 2e3 cxd4 8. Yxd4

11. Axc6?

10 times in Mega 2005. White overlooks the

fact that Black is not forced to recapture this
knight.

11. Axe2 Axe5 12. dxe5 Wxed 13. Wad+

b5 14. Ya6%, Mokhova-—Rakitskaya, St. Pe-
tersburg 2001.

11...Y%xc3! 0-1

And White had seen enough in view of

12. bxc3 &xd1 13. Bxd1 bxc6—+.

4
le Chapter 5 Sicilian Defence aan

A surprising refutation B) 8. Yxf3? Wxf3 9. Axf3 cxd4 10. 4\xd4

&®xd4 11. cxd4 Bc8 (11...e6 12. 2b5+ Ad7
[B22] 13. £e3 a6 14. Ba4 Bd6 15. &e2 we7F)
Game 46
12. &b5+ &d8. Wahls: “Intending e6, Ad5
Tseshkovsky (2500) -
and &d6. In spite of the bishop pair, White
Istratescu (2550)
can take little pleasure in his isolated pawn
Niksi¢ 1997 in the endgame.”
1. e4 c5 2. c3 d5 3. exd5 Yxd5 4. d4 Ac6 C) 8. Yb3!
5. Af3 £94 6. Abd2 Af6!? 7. 2c4!?

7A
This sets another venom
(8...Aa5 9. Yb5+ Wd7 10. Axf3 Axc4
11. Yxc4 cxd4 12. Axd4 e5 13. Af3 e4
14. Agd Hc8 15. We2 Wc6 16. f3 &cd
17. Axe4 Axe4 18. Yxe4+ Wxed+ 19. fxe4
White sets a trap which brings him an ad-
0-0 20. &d1 Hfe8 21. He1 &d6 22. g3 Ec4=,
vantage if Black does not know how to refute
Glavina Rossi- Campos Moreno, Pamplona
it.
2002) 9. &xd5 &xd5 10. Yxb7 Axd4 11. Wab
iedxCoeyCo=i(Ganeo lc) &c2+ 12. ®e2 4xal 13. Bd1 and White’s
7...2xf3! 8. Ya4? lead in development has reached dangerous
proportions.
This is the trap; however, the alternatives are
D) 8. &xd5? &xd1 9. &xc6+ bxc6 10. &xd1
not very promising. cxd4 11. cxd4 4d8F. Wahls: “... and White
A) 8. gxf3? Wf5! Wahls: “De Firmian’s new will face a joyless task in the endgame.”
move is the final nail in the coffin of 6. Abd2 8...W%g5?
and, moreover, one of national importance! Black falls into the trap.
Because it did not become deeply embed- A) 8...£d1!!
ded in the collective chess consciousness at
the Olympiad in Yerevan, it earned the Ger-
man team two whole points. The alternatives
8...W/d7 and 8...W%d6 may be all right, but
once you have driven a Ferrari you tend to
turn your nose up at a Porsche ...” 9. Wb3
(9. Ab3 0-0-0 10. Axc5 e5t) Wahis: “This
double attack seems to justify White’s play,
but after 9...0-O-—-0! he is faced with the dif-
ficult decision of whether to decline the sac-
rifice or part with his king’s bishop.” is the refutation:

42
 5.2 Traps in the Sicilian * Game 47 Heimrath—Petersammer DY
ATROPINE aC ER

9. Wxd1 (9. &xd1 Wxg2 10. Hel e6 An open Sicilian through the
11. 2e2 Wd5 12. Ac4 0-0-0-+) 9...Yxg2
back door
10. W3 (10. Bl cxd4 11. cxd4 Axd4
12. Wa4+ Dc6 13. Yb3 “and the safest
continuations are now 13...e6 14. Wb7 Bb8 Game 47 [B23]
or simply 13...0-0-0. (Wahls)) 10...Wxf3 Heimrath (2254) -
11. Axf8 cxd4 12. Axd4 Axd4 13. cxd4 Petersammer (1804)
Hc8 14. &8b5+ &d8 15. &d2 e6 16. 8a5+ b6 Nuremberg 2001
17, Bd2 Ad5 18. Bgl g6 19. Hg3 2d6 20. Hf3
®e7 21. h3 Bb4 22. Hb3 &xd2+ 23. &xd2
1. e4 c5 2. Ac3 Ac6 3. d3
Ehd8 24. £a6 Hc7 25. a4 Af4 26. &e3 Ag2+ The prelude to a subtle trap!
27. e4 Hc2 28. Hf Hd2 29. Bb4 An4 0-1,
3...g6
Degraeve —-Palac, Montpellier 1997.
To avoid the trap, 3...d6 should be played.
B) 8...Wd7? 9. Axf3 cxd4 10. 0-0 (10. cxd4 4. 863 d6 5. d4
e6 11. O-O Se7?! 12. 2b5 &d6 13. Aed5+,
N. Kosintseva—Kosteniuk, Rimavska Sob-
ota 1996) 10...e6 11. 2b5 &d6 12. Axd4+,
Grimal- Gonzalez, Cuba 2000.

9. Axf3 Yxg2 10. &e2! Yxh1

A) 10...0-O-07! 11. Bg1 Wh3 12. &xf7+.

B) 10...Wg4 11. Bg1 Wd7 12. &b5t.

11. d5

11. £a6 forces a draw: 11...Hb8 12. d5

The point!
a) 12...bxa6? 13. dxc6 Hc8 14. Yxa6 Hd8
(14...d8? 15. Wb7 Wg2 16. £f4 Wg4 5...cxd4 6. &xd4 @xd4 7. Yxd4 Af6 8. e5
17. Bd1+ &e8 18. h3 Yxh3 19. Ded WF5 dxe5 9. 8b5+ &d7 10. Yxe5
20. Hd7+—-) 15. Wa4 Wd1+ (15...Aad7 16. c7
Hc8 17. Yxa7 Yg2 18. Wb7 Ab6 19. Yxb6+)
16. Wxd1 Exd1 17. &xd1 Ad5 18. c4 Ab6
19. ee2+:

b) 12...Axd5 13. &xb7 Bxb7 14. Wxc6+ Bd7

15. Yc8+ Hd8 16. Wc6+=.

11...8c8?

11...e5 12. dxc6 b5 had to be tried.

12. dxc6 bxc6 13. Wa6 He7 14. &f4 Yxa1

15. &xc7 Wxb2+ 16. &f1 &d7 17. Yxa7 °
@Ad5 18. &£g3+ Be6 19. Wc7 1-0 10...2g7?
& Chapter 5 Sicilian Defence

It should be mentioned that even strong play- 7...e6?

ers have not found the correct continuation This obvious move has occurred more than
here over the board. 100 times.
A) 10...a6! is the strongest. After, for exam-
ple, 11. &xd7+ (11. Ad5? Axd5 12. 2xd7+ A) 7...@f6 is worth considering: 8. Ab5 0-0
Wxd7 13. Yxh8 We6+#) 11...Yxd7 12. AF3 9. Axd4 Ag4 10. Ae6 fxe6 11. Yxg4oo.
&g7 13. 0-0 0-0 Black should be somewhat B) However, 7...Ah6 is considered the best
better on account of his strong bishop on g7 move.
— so White’s 5th move would turn out to be
8. Ab5 d6
dubious.
Therefore after 10...a6! 11. &xd7+ Wxd7 A) 8...&e5 9. c3 dxc3 10. d4t.
White must play more energetically, e.g. B) 8...Wb6 9. Wf4+-.
12. Age2 &g7 13. Hd1, (A Ac3-d5)
13... W512? 14. Wxf5 gxf5, although there can C) 8...d5!? 9. exd5 a6 10. dxe6 fxe6 11. Aas
be no question of an advantage for him. 46 12. 0-0 0-0 offers some compensation
B) 10...2c6 11. Bd1 Wb8 12. Wc5 Wc7 for the pawn.
ISeaits= 9. Wa3 2f8
C) 10...&xb5? 11. Axb5+-.
9...8e5 10. 0O-O+.
11. 0O-O-0+ 0-0 12. &xd7 @xd7 13. Yb5
Wb6 14. Rxd7 Wxf2 15. Age2 Wxg2 10. Axd4 d5 11. 28b5+ 2d7 12. Wd3 a6
16. Wd5 Wf2 17. h4 e6 18. Wd3 h5 19. Ag3 13. 2xd7+ Yxd7 14. Af3
Wi4+ 20. &b1 b5 21. Age4 b4 22. Ad1 a5 White is simply a pawn up; Black has nothing
23. AgS Wed 24. Axf7 Exf7 25. Hxf7 &xf7 in return.
26. Yf3+ 1-0
14...8g97 15. exd5 exd5 16. 0-0 De7
A queen on wheels 17. Ye2 0-0 18. d4 Hfe8 19. c3 b5 20. 2d2
45 21. Yd3 Ad6 22. Haet De4 23. &ct
Game 48 [B23] Whb7 24. Ad2 Axd2 25. &xd2 a5 26. Hxe8+
Exe8 27. He1 Hxe1+ 28. 2xe1 Wc6 29. 8d2
luldachev (2550) -
a4 30. h4 h5 31. b3 &f6 32. g3 axb3
Deepan Chakkravarthy (2360)
33. axb3 &g7 34. &f4 We6 35. Yxb5 We1+
Lucknow 2004
36. &g2 Wxc3 37. Yxd5 &xd4 38. We4
1.e4 5 2. Ac3 Ac6 3. 2b5 Ad4 4. &8c4 g6 Wb2 39. 8e3 &xe3 40. Wxe3 f6 41. We7+
5. Df3 &g7 6. Axd4 cxd4 7. Wf3 @h6 42. b4 g5 43. We4 g7 44. We4 Wat
45. hxg5 fxg5 46. b5 Wb1 47. c7+ &f6
48. Wc6+ @f5 49. b6 h4 50. g4+ 1-0

The Grand Prix Attack

Game 49 [B23]
Lam King Wai - Lokanata
Macao 1996

1.e4 c5 2. Ac3 AcE 3. f4

44
 5.2 Traps in the Sicilian © Game 51 Palacios —Montecatine Rios 4)

The Grand Prix Attack remains popular and

produces a series of rapid victories.
3...96 4. Af3 2g7 5. Bc4 dé 6. 0-0 e6 7. f5
exf5 8. d3 Age7 9. Wel 0-0?
a9...h6 10. &h1 &e6.
10. Wh4+

The bishop on b3 is in great danger and

creating a retreat square by moving the a-
pawn would leave a positional weakness
after Axb3.

10. De2?

This position has occurred very frequently, White has various ways of falling into the
almost 200 times in Mega 2005. White’s plus trap: 10. &2d2 Aec6 11. Ad1? c4 12. &a4
score is phenomenal. Does
10...0a5
10...dxe4 11. dxe4 c4 12. 8d2 Dec6
10..Ae5 11. &g5 He8 12. Axed dxed
13. 8a4 b5! 0-1
13. Ad5+-.
11. 295 He8 12. Ad5 Dac6 13. Af6+ &xf6
14. &2xf6 h5 15. YWg5 1-0
March of the f-pawn
Taming the Grand Prix Attack
Game 51 B25)
Game 50 [B23] Palacios - Montecatine Rios (2300)
Benasque 1990
Zvara (2355) - Mochalov (2465)
Pardubice 1996

1.e4 c5 2. Ac3 AcE 3. f4 g6 4. Af3 2g7 1. e4 65 2. Ac3 AcE 3. g3 g6 4. Rg2 &2g7

5. &c4 e6 6. 0-0 Age7 7. d3 0-0 8. Wet d5 5. d3 e5 6. f4 d6 7. Ah3 Dge7 8. 0-0 0-0
9. £5! gxf5?!
Black has this managed this advance in one
move instead of two, as is so often the case 9...f6 is safer, but after 10. g4 Black faces a
in the Grand Prix Attack. In this move order thankless defensive task.
White should perhaps vary earlier with, say,
7.e5!?. 10. exf5 &xf5 11. Bxf5! Axf5 12. 2e4
9. 28b3 Dad
(see next diagram) (see next diagram)
Exploring the Variety of Random
Documents with Different Content
because my landlord’s called on me and he’s perfectly awful when he
starts.”
“What a beast!” rather hazy, nevertheless, as to what it was the
landlord started. Possibly the poor kid was behind-hand with the
rent, and he was trying to cart away her furniture. “I say, is Deb
here?”
“No, but I daresay if she told you to meet her here, she’ll turn up
presently, so you might as well wait. I’ve often wondered what you
were like ...” with a serious intimate scrutiny from under drawn
brows, which she always found “went” well with under seventeen
and over sixty. “Come into the sitting-room. You’ll excuse these
clothes, but I was just dressing for to-night when he came”—with a
nod towards the room—“and you won’t believe me, but I’ve had to
be perfectly horrid to him ...to counteract the effect of my hair
down, you know. I suppose he has the kind of wife who keeps hers
always in iron curlers—shouldn’t you think he has? So, poor man,
one would expect a little agitation. But there are limits, aren’t there?
I mean from one’s landlord. So you really are a godsend ...a sort of
guardian angel. Isn’t it curious, but I’ve always, even when I was a
kiddie, wanted to see my Guardian Angel in the flesh—at least in his
clothes—you know what I mean? Because I was always quite sure
he was a man—it didn’t seem right that he shouldn’t be, somehow.”
“Bet you could have made a man of him, anyway,” said Richard in
blind admiration. And he was right; Zoe could be relied on to rouse
the sex element from any substance in her vicinity, even a guardian
angel.
Delighted with his tribute, and still gabbling, she preceded him
into the sitting-room, and prettily introduced him to the landlord, a
very low man, but genial, and obviously with no evil intentions on
the furniture. The difficult point at issue seemed to be that he
desired to pay for the new carpet; and Zoe, wriggling coyly on the
edge of temptation, would yet not quite yield to it. “Though if
spitting on a carpet makes it yours, I’m sure I’ve no more claims at
all, Mr Wright!” with a look of coquetry that mellowed her
unexpectedly frank rebuke.
Richard was enjoying it—enjoying her immensely. There was no
real cause for alarm about Deb; only the family were fussing. And he
was flattered by Zoe’s skill in making him feel essential to her being,
while dimly recognizing that the flattery was somewhat impaired by
its too even distribution between himself and the landlord. Zoe was
not in the least Richard’s ideal. But Zoe was—well, rather a rag! And
she bespoke applause by the zest and candour with which she
demanded it, retailed it, invented it ...her existence might present a
surface appearance of muddle, but perhaps more than other girls
she could hail herself as a success. Zoe knew how to unwind
unlimited quantities of what makes you happy, and how to be made
happy by a material of which unlimited quantities exist for the
unwinding.
“I’m going to be taken out this evening by a Cavalry giant who
clanks and jangles the whole way up the stairs, and calls me ‘You
dear little thing! fancy livin’ all alone with no one to look after you—
it’s a shame!’—and brings me presents. He’s about forty and thinks
I’m not quite seventeen; and when I perch winsomely on his knee
and turn his pockets inside-out to find what he’s got for me, he’s just
as pleased as a little child. Really he is! And then I spread out all my
presents on the table to make them look more, and dance round
them and skip and clap my hands with glee. Oh, he loves it when I
clap my hands with glee. You shall both see me do it if you wait long
enough. Isn’t it funny what things please some men? Sometimes I
say ‘What have you brought me?’ and he says ‘nothing at all’ to
tease me, and I pout—like this—look—look, Mr Marcus!—and he
can’t bear to see me so disappointed and pulls an enormous painted
chocolate-box from behind his back! That sort of treatment is
wonderfully rejuvenating, you wouldn’t believe it; tons better than
massage. There he is, and I’m not dressed yet!” She scuttled into
her room as a door banged down on the street level; then popped
her head in again to say: “You’ll keep him entertained, won’t you, till
I’m ready? He’s quite easy!”
 “Would he rather have me or Mr Wright to perch on his knee?”
laughed Richard.
“Ef it’s fur turnin’ aht ’is pawkits, it’ull be me!” the landlord
remarked with a facetious wink.
As the footsteps were heard, though without any of the
perceptible clank and jangle foretold, Zoe again appeared, with
comb tugging at her curls.
“I wonder if the sight of you two would upset him.... I’ve told him
that I had no friends in the world except him and one old lady who’s
kind to the lonely little girl”—she eyed the landlord dubiously—“Oh,
you could pretend to be the broker,” with a quick spurt of inspiration.
“Will you, Mr Wright? It might make him feel generous, mightn’t it?
And you”—even in the extremity of haste and peril she checked
herself from a tactless decision that maybe Richard was too young to
matter much—“You—behind the curtain. No—your boots will show.
Get into the cupboard—Quick!” She banged the door on him, and
banged her bedroom door, just as the front-door of the flat, left
open at Richard’s entrance, banged shakily behind the entering
newcomer.
“Like a bally old farce,” Richard reflected; he did not know that
people ever really hid in cupboards. Though in Zoe’s flat such
behaviour seemed not only free from eccentricity, but rhythmically
correct.
He knew the flat quite well.... Richard’s imagination was not the
choked-up affair of a year ago. This was the flat where comic
misunderstandings took place, and false identities, where an
incriminating glove was left in the corner, and where screens fell
down at the wrong moment; it was the flat for runaway wives; the
flat where the husband is made to look a fool. It was jolly, now,
actually to be in such a flat, actually to be the Man in the Cupboard;
Richard chuckled silently ... then grew impatient, till, after seemingly
endless waiting in muffled darkness the fourth wall against which he
pressed his weight gave way, and he stumbled forward into a room
full of people.... “Fancy, I forgot you for the moment,” laughed Zoe,
who had released him. “Why didn’t you bang or shout? Here’s
Antonia come to find Deb. I’m sure I don’t know why all London is
running here this evening to enquire after that sister of yours. Isn’t it
funny—she and Monsieur le Caporal met on the stairs, and he
thought she was Petite Sœur, didn’t you?—just like I took Mr Marcus
for Seul au Monde!”
A young man in uniform, with round red cheeks and a tassel
dangling from his cap, stood adoring Zoe with an embarrassed smile,
obviously not understanding a word of her harangue. There are two
types of Belgian soldier—the stolid peasant who is shy, and the
dapper townsman who is bold. Zoe unfortunately had hooked one of
the former species. Undaunted, she turned her welcome into French
with morsels of pidgin English inserted for the benefit of Mr Sam
Wright, that he might not feel left out of the conversation; Richard
over by the window, was explaining to Antonia about Deb.
It was Mr Wright who discovered that the Belgian had had nothing
to eat for fourteen hours. “’Old on, Missy—the young chap’s guts is
fair yawning for a bit o’ something solid. This is my treat—see—and
you go an’ cook a steak for ’im. Veev la Belgium!” and the Corporal,
understanding, stood at attention—and then bowed gratefully to Mr
Wright, to Antonia, and Richard, and Zoe, in turn, while the tassel
from his cap bobbed absurdly....
Zoe, interrupted in a rapid résumé of her own intimate history,
calculated to set the intruder at his ease, took up the threads again
while she ran in and out of the kitchen, laying the table and grilling
the steak.
“Isn’t it a good thing I’ve still got some wine in the house—this is
the last bottle, but I expect more to-morrow—it’s a present. Oh, not
from Captain Braithwaite—I wonder why he’s so late, by the way?—
but there’s an Italian wine-and-macaroni shop just round the corner,
and the owner is simply crazy about me ... an atrocious old man
with black teeth, but he does stock good wines, and so cheap.... His
wife caught him out ogling me over the counter one day, and now
she won’t leave the shop, so the old demon comes round here, and
brings me Chianti on the sly, hoping to melt me. There’s not the
slightest chance that I shall be melted, but you don’t think it’s wrong
of me to accept the wine, do you? I mean he takes the risk of losing
all and gaining nothing, doesn’t he?... Of course I daren’t let him
into the flat, besides, I wouldn’t do such a thing! No, I wouldn’t,
because I don’t honestly think it’s right, if his wife feels like that
about me, do you, Mr Wright? So I half open the door and tell him
to leave the bottles outside and go away quietly for both our sakes!
He supposes I’ve got a jealous husband—the Italian bandit kind,
with ribbons and daggers all the way up their legs.... And just fancy,
once he had the cheek to come round without any wine at all, and
said—well, I didn’t know men were like that, did you, Antonia? But I
sent him home to fetch some pretty quick. Wouldn’t you have?”
appealing to the Caporal, who murmured “Mais oui, certainement!”
and sat down to his steak as to a serious business. He shovelled up
the food strangely, and thought how beautiful was Zoe, in her white
frilly dressing-jacket, clouded with yellow curls....
“Why not go round to La llorraine?—Deb might be there,” Antonia
suggested. And reluctantly Richard stood up. Deb was a nuisance—
of course she was all right. He disliked La llorraine and Manon; but
Zoe and her doors and her landlord and her Belgian and her spaniel
and her lovers and her stories, had a unique flavour of attraction.
Any further developments, comic or ridiculous, might occur at any
moment, in this atmosphere.... Sure enough, a door banged four
flights of stairs away ... scuffle of many feet approaching—and:
“Why, it’s Captain Braithwaite,” cried Zoe, in a clear, childish treble
of astonishment. “And did you find little Becky and Mark and Joey on
the stairs? What’s the matter, Becky? broken your scooter? ... never
mind, let me give you a ginger-snap—two ginger-snaps are better
than one scooter, aren’t they? What a pretty drawing of a
thermometer, Joey? Is it for me? Now that is sweet of you.”
“Mother thayth I’m to athk you to ’ave a look at me thore throat,
Mith!” The children of the Second Jewish Tailor, whom the good-
natured Cavalry officer had gathered and brought in from the
landing, were grouping themselves round Zoe’s Barrie-like
representation of the lonely little mother to whom all the children
bring their troubles, as spontaneously and efficiently as though they
had been rehearsed for weeks. Zoe really had been very good to
them in different ways at different times, and their present adhesion
round her knees, in full view of a beaming Captain Braithwaite, was
her reward.
Antonia, in an aside to Richard, anxiously questioned her own
grotesque fancy that yet another set of doors had just banged, and
yet more footsteps were scuffling and clattering up the stairs: “This
flat is haunted by a delusion of banging doors—listen!”
“Listen!” echoed Zoe, smashed into sudden silence—“It’s Pinto!”
she whispered, all her gay resourcefulness paralysed.
“She hears it too,” Antonia sighed with relief; “I don’t mind so
much if we’re all raving together!” And indeed it was obviously
incredible that the corpulent whiskered person who was projected
squealing into the sitting-room, by an image of bony yellow ferocity,
could be otherwise than chimera. The wine-bottles which the
pursued swung in impotent arabesques from either hand, erased the
last touch of credibility.
“Face—like—an—orang-outang—temper—Patagonian savage ...”
were the only words distinguishable from the yapping, snapping
medley of limbs and bottles and vituperation.
There was a crash of splintered glass, and ruddy liquid poured into
pools on the carpet, and Zoe cried out to Captain Braithwaite, who
flung his big form on top of the belligerents and wrenched them
apart. The ensuing sequence of events was rather too nimble for
disentanglement. The Italian wine-and-macaroni merchant from
round the corner collapsed panting—then rallied his faculties and
bolted for the door. Zoe darted in his wake, and returned
triumphant, a few seconds afterwards, carrying the second and
undamaged flask of Chianti. Meanwhile Pinto had vented his spleen
upon the Cavalry officer, the landlord, the round-eyed Belgian, and
Richard, on whom each in turn he fastened his saga of “face like an
orang-outang—tempaire of a P-P-Patagonian savage!”... The return
of Zoe he greeted by a violent and uncomprehensible outbreak of
what was certainly bad language and probably Portuguese; informed
her that he knew all about it, and was done with her for ever ...
caught up a chair and wrenched it into fragments ... glared viciously
at the innocent amazement of Monsieur le Caporal; jabbed an
accusing finger at him—“You—yes, it is you—you may have her—she
is worth nothing, I tell you—stop eating and take her—take her—
take her!” lifting the remains of the steak from the plate and flinging
it across to the window, where it narrowly missed Antonia—“Here—
just you stop that!” Richard ejaculated, doubling his fists truculently.
“Leave ’im alone, Sonny—’e dunno wot ’e’s doing!”
The finger travelled instantly round to the pacifist—“Whose is this
house, you——?”
“Mine!” the landlord retorted, putting up his boots on the sofa as a
sign of ownership. “Nah shut up, do—ladies present!”
“It is then you with the face and the temper?”
“Face and temper yourself!” from Mr Sam Wright, which retort,
though merely made in the way of casual repartee, was, had the
assembled company only known it, the full explanation of the scene
so astounding them.
But Pinto’s suspicions made a last leap at Captain Raymond
Braithwaite. “Take her”—flourishing with both arms in Zoe’s
direction. “She is ungrateful, unloyal. True affection is not to be
found in her nature. She lies and thieves; she is untidy in her
clothing; she has betrayed me and will betray you. Take her—
perhaps your temper like a Patagonian savage will keep her in order.
Take her and beat her if you please. Who am I to have a claim?...”
He recapitulated the entire list of Zoe’s crimes, linked to the benefits
his easy-going generosity had showered upon her; shed tears at the
recollection of his own innocent confiding trust and little tender
ways; surpassed himself in an ebullition of Portuguese and English
blended into one final expanding monstrous, wall-cracking, hair-
stiffening execration, anathema, and blight——
Antonia stepped forward, and laid her hand on his arm.
“You’re not behaving at all nicely, and we’re tired of you,” she said
gently but distinctly.
Pinto, checked in his onrush of epithet, rolled round at her a pair
of livid, yellow eyeballs; spluttered; made a few inarticulate sounds
in his throat—and departed.
No one could deny that his visit, though short, had been full of
lively colour.
“Ma foi!” said the Belgian poilu, still gaping stupidly after his steak.
Richard burst into a shout of laughter, and went on laughing
boyishly, irresistibly. It was infectious ... presently Sam Wright joined
in, and Captain Braithwaite, and Antonia, and even the Belgian. Zoe,
on the verge of tears, was the last to succumb.... “At least, we’ve
got some wine now,” she gurgled, divided between sobs and
hysterical mirth. “And we’d better drink it—it’s g-good wine and so
cheap! I’m glad I remembered just in time to nip it.” She darted
away for glasses—“But honestly, I haven’t the faintest idea what
Pinto was so cross and unkind about, have any of you?”
“He did seem a bit annoyed: what?” guffawed Captain Braithwaite.
“Here’s to his good recovery!” They all drank Pinto’s health in
excellent Chianti.... A bell tinkled from below.
“Oh dear! he must have jammed the downstairs front door in
going out, and now people can’t push it open. I do think he ought to
control himself a little bit better than that, don’t you? I mean, it’s so
horrid when one has visitors.” The bell tinkled again impatiently.
“Will one of you go down?”

IV
 Deb dawdled along the street, painfully carrying a suit-case. La
llorraine had insisted on keeping her to supper, but the Countess
was occupying the only vacant room in the house ... anyway, you
could always rely on a bed at Zoe’s whenever you turned up—time
enough to-morrow to think things over....
Somebody was already on the doorstep pealing at the bell: “The
door usually stands open, but it must have got jammed.... Do you
want tailor Moses, tailor Jacob, or tailor Isaac?”
“I don’t want a tailor at all, thanks. Not to-night, anyhow. I want
Zoe Dene-Cresswell? I wonder if she’s in.”
Again Gillian tugged at the bell. “You look as if you ought to be
Deb Marcus.”
“I am.”
“I’m Gillian Sherwood. Put down your suit-case and shake hands.
I’ll carry it up for you, if ever they admit us.”
Gillian at last! Deb was first conscious of triumph—followed by a
quick pang of guilt. She had not sought out this meeting; it was
purely accidental—but what would Antonia say?
Antonia opened the door to them.
PART III
 CHAPTER I
I

Deb was living with La llorraine. She indignantly refused to return

home on the understanding that she was to be partially forgiven for
an offence she had never committed; on the other hand, her
affection for Ferdie caused her a pang of acute misery when she saw
how the belief in her sins had stripped him of a certain chubby
contentment which even the war and its complications had hitherto
left unimpaired. For of course her swift dramatic rupture with her
family toppled to an anti-climax. Richard took home the tidings of
her whereabouts; and a day after her flight, Aunt Stella appeared at
Zoe’s for a parley. The tolerance of the period did not permit an
erring daughter to be blasted with a parent’s curse and left to
suicide—or worse—in the dark cold streets of London. The tolerance
of the period sanctioned some natural anxiety over the said
daughter’s material welfare, tentative negotiations, and a return
home to a great deal of nagging and an atmosphere of reproachful
discomfort. Perhaps Deb foresaw the final inevitable item; perhaps
also, her passionate self-persuasion that she could not bear
continual witnessing of Ferdie’s sighs and worried forehead, was the
outcome of a guilty suspicion that it was more by haphazard than by
virtue that she was able to mount her pedestal and stand aggrieved
upon it.
“It’s the fault of my very lax upbringing,” she argued with the
guilty suspicion.
“Yes, but——”
“It’s lucky that I have a certain fundamental standpoint of moral
decency,” with crushing pomposity.
“Yes, but——”
The yes-buts had it.
 “I can’t live at home with Aunt Stella hating me like this,” weakly.
And here she was right. Even Ferdie recognized that his sister and
his daughter were henceforth not likely to dwell together in a state
of affectionate harmony. Stella had been queer about Deb ever since
discovery that Deb was—initiated. What was to be done? And then
La llorraine appeared at Montagu House, an emissary from Deb.
“My dee-urr—leave it to me.”
La llorraine was magnificent, she was Miladi, she was Josephine
Beauhamais, and Madame de Maintenon and Louise de Querouaille,
Duchess of Portsmouth, and every other intriguante of foreign
history, entrusted with dispatches and a cardinal’s secret, a go-
between from one royal court to another. She wore filmy black, and
a huge black hat cast a mysterious shadow over her eyes; she wore
all her sables, and Parma violets; and fingered them meaningly with
her long thin white hands as though they were a symbol of a lost
cause. She flattered, cajoled and hinted, and laid down her cards
and picked them up again; and her speech was worldly and witty
and wise, and her smile was maternal, or suggestive, or discreet,
and she overwhelmed Ferdie Marcus with dupery and diplomacy, and
left him quite dazed, but convinced that the arrangement made was
the only one possible in view of the subtleties involved; and that
moreover it had emanated straight from him.
“So, my dee-urr, you join us in our humble little appartement, and
your father will put you in possession of your own income. Have I
done well?”
“—Turned out of home plus a cheque-book?—that’s what I call an
éviction de luxe,” laughed Antonia, when Deb told her of the new
arrangement, while re-packing her suit-case to quit Zoe’s flat five
days after her weary arrival. Zoe was out at rehearsal.
“What are you going to pay La llorraine per week for board and
lodging?”
“My-dee-urr,” Deb imitated the grand manner and the large
gesture by which her future landlady had dismissed the question
—“Zat—between us? it shall arrange itself——”
Antonia looked enigmatic, and warned Deb that the first time she
arrived at the appartement, and found her breakfasting at eleven
o’clock in a dirty wrapper and curl-papers, in the Venetian drawing-
room, on stale mayonnaise, with La llorraine practising scales, and
Manon being demure with the fishmonger because the canaille
wanted to be paid, she would immediately haul her off to an
environment less pictorial but more hygienic.
“Fishmonger, indeed!” Deb turned Quelle Vie out of the suit-case,
“when we want fish, La llorraine, pale and haughty, kisses Manon on
the brow and goes out to pawn the Crown Jewels; then she brings
home the fish and chips in a piece of newspaper, and we sit down to
enjoy it while she tells us sniggering anecdotes of fifth-rate music
halls.”
“Look here,” demanded Cliffe, striding into the room, “I’ve been
interviewing your brother, Deb, and he says that little bit of mange
who calls himself Otto Redbury is responsible for our good name
dragged in the mud. He says that verminous Dutchman called on
your father full of a ‘brivate peesiness’ just before the row. What I
want to know is, who told him? And a rumour has got about that
you committed suicide last Friday night. That’s not exactly funny, is
it? We’ve got to track those scandals to their sources. You don’t
seem to realize how serious it is. Our honour is at stake!”
“It’s so good of you to include mine,” Deb said meekly. “Sit down,
Cliffe, and don’t rave. I suppose I started them myself!” And she
related her dramatic confession to Samson Phillips. And Cliffe
listened, frowning.
“But this is all hypothesis. You mentioned no names to Phillips.
You didn’t actually specify that night at Seaview. I’m not reproaching
you for the lie itself, Deb—that was merely silly; feminine boasting.
But Otto must have got his definite facts from someone else, and
I’ve written him an imperative letter on the subject. It begins: ‘Sir’”
 “That’s not highly striking or original in itself, Cliffe. Why not
‘Honey?’”
Antonia laughed. “Tell us Otto’s answer when you get it, Cliffe. I
respect you for taking a strong line!” But Cliffe did not show them
the reply he received from Otto; he studied it in solitude and
bewildered indignation. What could the man mean by reminding him
of a certain conversation in the Tube? He recalled, with an effort,
having once travelled in Otto’s company, and having talked a great
deal of fantastic rubbish for Otto’s benefit, but he was quite sure
that not the veriest scavenger could have picked Deb’s name from
among the rubbish-heap—“I’ve always been very careful over
names....”

II

Deb, taking her present emancipation as a vantage-point for a

survey of her past, as a whole and in segments and phases, arrived
at a conclusion that the general inadequacy on the amorous side
was due to foolish compromise. She made up her mind, therefore, to
reform, and be bad—thoroughly bad. In the episode with Samson
she had proved to herself that she was no longer fit for the
conventional extreme of respectful love and sheltered marriage. Her
dilatory sense of daring must therefore be flogged to that other far
extreme—“I hate betwixts and betweens!”
A little balm of self-deception had to be applied. Hitherto she had
been more or less under home supervision; not stringent supervison,
certainly; but a background of loving trust was a hindrance in itself.
Now the trust had been withdrawn—and the background. Now she
was on her own—free—disillusioned—slightly embittered—(Deb
prodded the embitterment anxiously—yes, it was still there....) Now
she was twenty-five and at the cross-roads——
Deb did not realize the truism that even as every woman’s life
holds material for one novel, so that generic novel may generically
and with perfect application bear the title: “Cross-roads.”
 She had been on the look out for the hero to her heroine, and he
had failed in the appointment. Now she was in search for the villain
to her adventuress, and it seemed at first as though he would prove
equally elusive. A series of minor experiments left her seriously
convinced that in choice of a villain, a young girl cannot be too
careful.... “He must make it worth while——” Perhaps after all she
was still on the same old quest translated into different terms.
Meanwhile, the winter passed; and early spring woke her slightly
bilious soul to fretfulness. Her habits had slackened to harmony with
her environment of cosmopolitan bohemianism; but whereas a bed
erected in the Venetian drawing-room and covered by day with a
priceless piece of embroidery, seemed to La llorraine all that was
necessary in the way of a tiring-room—“My dee-urr, you can use
Manon’s mirror as your own—it goes without saying——” yet Deb
was not quite happy at the general sloppiness of tea-gowns and
mysterious foreigners and rich meals at all hours—or at no hours—
Carmen for breakfast, Tosca for supper, and out-of-season dishes in
between—music-hall managers strolling in to slap “my good
llorraine” familiarly between the shoulders, and look avariciously at
Manon, who, however, a child of mummers and motley, was
interrogated with a strictness which Deb, daughter of strictest Israel,
would never for a moment have suffered. But La llorraine knew more
of her world and was wiser in education than Ferdinand Marcus; La
llorraine, who sometimes put on enormous horn spectacles and sat
knitting by the fire; and sometimes rose up like a prophetess and
tossed a pair of desperate arms to Heaven, in denunciation of that
war which prevented return to a beloved continent which knew
something of good music; La llorraine was equally genuine and
lovable in either mood; and Deb grew to be sincerely fond of her.
But Manon was another matter; Manon, at eighteen, held to her
pose of exiled princess, a slender figure in the vast loneliness of the
drawing-room—a lonely little heart mysteriously unsoiled by contact
with aforesaid mummers and motley. She listened charmingly when
Deb scattered ethics of rebellion; she appeared slightly shocked
when decorum demanded that she should be shocked—and yet—
and yet—for all the demureness of reproving eyelash and “Oh, but,
Deb——” in the pretty lisping accent, Deb could not be rid of an
impression that when it came to it, Manon would go further and fare
a great deal better than herself. Manon had hitched her wagon to a
fixed star, whereas it looked as though Deb had hitched hers to a
travelling circus.
“We’ve had enough of this,” exclaimed Antonia, an unexpected
visitor after a tour in the car which had lasted the whole of February
—“Not dressed yet? and it’s nearly twelve o’clock; sluggish appetite?
—no wonder, if you smoke scented cigarettes with your coffee and
eggs. Even as I prophesied!”
“Don’t be hard on me,” Deb pleaded; “I’m not entirely dead to
better things—really, Antonia. I feel the call of Spring urging me out
and out.... Let’s go to a cinema, shall we?”
“On the contrary, we shall gird up our loins and do war-work, my
child,” grimly. “We shall speak to our mothers and ask them what
particular niche is vacant for one willing but ignorant daughter of
pleasure, and we shall send word of the result by this evening latest.
And meanwhile, we will withdraw our plaits that writhe like blue-
black serpents among the exquisite but macabre foliage of last
year’s tablecloth, and put away the dregs of green chartreuse, and
sit up and comb ourselves out, and try to be a credit to a nation at
war.”
Deb laughed and said she was quite willing to do war-work, and
had meant to enrol herself since some time, but had thought it too
late....
“Oh, I think the war may be trusted to last another month or two.”
“I meant,” in fractious explanation, “that it always seems to me
too late to do something afterwards which one hasn’t done before.”
“Lazy little Oriental.... You will visit my mother at 6 p.m. precisely
this evening and receive your instructions,” with which Antonia
departed.
 “Blair Stevenson is said to be coming back to the Foreign Office”
was the sub-conscious wriggle of motive underlying her sincere
belief that Deb would be the better for a more strenuous existence.
For Blair Stevenson, in the Diplomatic Service, was Gillian’s friend;
Antonia liked him, appreciating to the full his supple wit and
undeniably perfect breeding; his pursuit of her was ardent enough
for her to enjoy keenly the sensation of flying ... he never drew near,
and presently the pursuit slackened; he was sent abroad—British
Resident of some West African province; and when he returned, fell
easily into place as one of her group—an excellent occasional.
Antonia was aware that he was still on good terms with Gillian ...
and that if accidentally he met Deb there—“What does it matter?”
But the fierce desire persisted to keep the child ... pure.
The eventful climax of the meeting between Gillian and Deb on
Zoe’s doorstep, Antonia accepted quietly and almost with relief. It
had happened, and there was no more to be done—by her at least.
A week afterwards she was forced to leave London—her Major-
General was perpetually touring and inspecting and dashing hither
and thither. Deb in her letters had spoken no further word of Gillian
(Deb was afraid, as a matter of fact, knowing Antonia’s probable
state of mind), but Gillian, in divine unconsciousness, dashed off a
hasty postcard on which “dear Deb,” struck out, was replaced by
“dear Antonia.” It was probably the only card Gillian could find
amongst the frenzied litter on a desk which Winifred ought to have
kept tidy ... but it told Antonia all she wanted to know—all that she
did not want to know: Deb and Gillian were getting on nicely....
And now Blair was returning. For all her liking of Blair’s society,
she infinitely preferred him in Greece, where he was at least safe
from the result of Cliffe’s parties or Gillian’s introductions.... Antonia
could not be for ever vigilant ... the Major-General was beckoning
once more——
And then came that sunny letter from Cliffe Kennedy informing her
of a marvellous studio party he had arranged. “I borrowed your
studio as usual, and you can have Seaview in the summer whenever
you want it. These are little eddies of communal brotherhood that
one day will unite to a surging river that will sweep away, etc.——”
Antonia skipped a page or two till the names she sought, dreading
to find, sure to find, sprang at her from the page—“Blair Stevenson
—Deb....”
... “I had a sort of presentiment that something was bound to
happen if I brought those two together.... And again, Antonia, my
experimental nerve had twitched to some purpose. Bet you a copy of
the Omar Khayyam (I’ve got seventy-two) that this fusion of
personalities will have Results—dramatic or beautiful or horrid.... Do
come home and join the audience—I’m so excited.”

III

Deb, entirely absorbed in her canteen work, had given up

scanning the horizon for the villain of the piece; so that it was with a
shock that she looked up and found him standing quite close to her,
waiting for his cue.... Almost she hoped that he would prove not
worth while.... Those nights under the gaunt station roof, watching
the restless watchers for the leave train, watching the grimy
burdened soldiers tumble with dazed eyes out of their compartments
on to the platform ... till roused to the necessity for rapid mechanical
dole of coffee and sandwiches—wash up—start afresh—hour after
hour.... These nights had become more real than the arrangement
and re-arrangement of her own temperament.
But Blair was so definitely worth while that Deb dared not refuse
him as a prospective—what? The old dream was dead, of course ...
dream of the big thing—husband who knew of all her past idiocies,
and called her a goose and laughed at her, and understood; small
sturdy boy in a dark blue jersey and rumpled hair several shades too
light for such a brown skin.... “You are being not only sentimental,
but also futile!” she informed herself. “Next there will be pretty
fancies all about a dream-garden”—and straightway there was the
garden, at the magical hour of after-tea when the grass looks as
though it had been freshly painted, and the canterbury bells are
adrip from recent watering....
Sternly Deb removed husband, child and garden by the dream-
scruff of their dream-necks,—she sought for some delicate means to
enlighten Blair Stevenson of her willingness to—to——
Self-communion slurred over the verbal expression of good—or
bad—intent. For it refused to present itself with more elegance than
“to go the whole hog”—and such blatant slang did not associate
itself readily with Blair’s personality.
“To fulfil my womanhood,”—but that sounded priggish. “To tread
the primrose path” was affectation. “To take a lover” was the final
selection—but still imperfect. She chose it for the sake of the word
“lover” which still hummed to her on that deep sonorous note of
wind along the wires ... “lover.”
Meanwhile, her watchfulness lay in ambush for that splendid flare
of passion which was to be her impetus and justification. She had a
passionate temperament.... How could it be otherwise, with those
eyelids and that mouth? Men and women alike had accused her of
hot Eastern blood; insisted upon it; warned her, laughing or in envy,
of the penalties. She accepted this established version of herself in
an unquestioning spirit.
“Child, you’d lead a man to hell!” a victim had once foretold. Now
she waited for a man to lead her to hell. She could at least be
assured that Blair Stevenson would instinctively and unostentatiously
choose quite the least travelled and the most refined and expensive
route thither. He was that kind of man; with a reputation, but not a
vulgar one, for success with women. Deb, seeking to express crudely
the sense he aroused of having dipped to her class from that elusive
class which lies midway between the upper middle-class and the
aristocracy, told herself in confidence that he made her feel not
unlike a housemaid being took notice of by one of the quality.
Hitherto, most of the men with whom she had come in contact,
could be tabulated as solid business or professional—like Samson or
her own father; or else urged by the prevalent rebellion to type, into
the artist or vagabond pose—like Cliffe Kennedy.
Blair Stevenson was of such excellent family that he never
mentioned his family; probably most of it was extinct, and the rest
knew better than to encircle him save at a distance. He had travelled
extensively both in cities and in the wilds, so that he combined
cosmopolitan ease with the British knack of being able to cope with
emergencies. Although he was not much more than thirty-five, the
Foreign Office had already recognized his perfect tact and suavity,
combined with knowledge of languages, to be extremely useful to
them; so that he was accounted one of those mysterious beings “in
the know”; “behind the scenes”; one of the men who “pulled
strings.”... He had been entrusted with a rather tricky mission to the
Balkans, prior to his present leave. His natural appendages and
equipments one would assume to be a faithful valet in his town
chambers, a faithful maître d’hotel in every capital, and a faithful
mistress no one knows where; because Stevenson, though ardent,
was discreet where women were concerned; but certainly the
carriage of her head proclaimed her exquisite breeding, and she cost
him a great deal of money....
And all this about him, speculative and positive, did not quite
convey why Deb was not always sure (metaphorically) how to use
her knives and forks in his presence. Easy to make mistakes—tiny,
silly mistakes of conduct or subtlety—and read in his eyes a dawning
recognition that she was not quite “it” after all, or his amusement
perhaps at her quaint lapses from sophistication: “Am I an amateur
compared with what he’s accustomed to?” Then angrily: “Oh, he
swanks, and I’m a snob!” which was inaccurate. He took “form” for
granted, and she was shaky about it. Blair Stevenson could be relied
on for good manners; not so much the surface good manners
connected with the graceful opening of doors for the lady’s exit, but
the more fundamental good manners which broke a heart as a heart
would most wish to be broken.

IV
 “I’ve waited long enough,” said Deb.
It suddenly frightened her that again she was hesitating too long;
that decision was wearing thin and threadbare with the days....
Perhaps Blair had not realized ... it must be puzzling for a man
nowadays to differentiate between the merely good; the frankly bad;
the good trying to be bad; and the bad resolved to be good.
“I suppose he needs what Aunt Trudchen used to call ‘a little
encouragement,’” Deb reflected.
Then by what sign could she convey to him that her intentions
were dishonourable? They had, of course, dispassionately talked of
sex, which is the weather-subject of to-day’s men and girls.... Deb
was afraid, standing on tiptoe to the clubman and the cosmopolitan,
that she might have given an excessive impression of sophistication;
and that he was inwardly astonished, now, that she delayed to pass
him some customary code-word or countersign necessary to his
advancement. She had not the faintest idea what was expected of
her, so she essayed a semi-confidence in La llorraine.
That royal veteran of a more clear-headed period, when
courtesans were expected to know their alphabet, could not fail to
be good-humouredly contemptuous at the spectacle of these
children playing their variations of an old game with such quaint and
ponderous seriousness; and getting so very little out of it in the way
of genuine passion, genuine fun, and ermine cloaks.
Out of the question, certainly, that Manon should join these
games. But Deb was six years older and had “made a muff from her
chances,” as Manon would never be permitted to do. Moreover, Deb
was not La llorraine’s own daughter.... So La llorraine shrugged her
shoulders, and gave her the necessary tip.

Deb was on her way to call upon Blair Stevenson unexpectedly at

his rooms in Jermyn Street. It was a quarter past ten in the evening,
and because she had just been relieved from duty at Victoria
Station, she was wearing a long disguising cloak over silk garments
that slip on the skin with a suggestion of suave fingers. Blair was at
home—she had telephoned during the day, and, preserving an
incognito, had asked the valet what would be the best time to
telephone again? The valet said: “I believe that ten o’clock to-night
will be most likely to find Mr Stevenson.”... Blair would realize the
significance of her visit; and—and once lifted to response, her fatal
temperament could be relied upon to do the rest.
“I’ve waited long enough. Oh, suppose I waited till nobody wanted
me any more, and then I wanted it more than anything else....”
She leant against the door for a pause of short, quick breathing.
The neighbourhood, the steps and passages, the windows, were all
discreet good form, world of the clubman, the cosmopolitan, the
man who knows ... utterly alien world to the forlorn little virgin, who
stands, suddenly erect and stiff and pearly-white; thumb pressed
firmly on the bell-button of No. 141b.

“It’s now....”
Queer—never before had she realized the present so vividly; “it
has been a minute ago,” “it will be the day after to-morrow” ... but
“It’s now,” as Blair, with a smile and a subtle look, threw away his
half-smoked cigar, took the half-finished cup of coffee from her
hands.
“Now—now——”
She was one pulse that beat for initiation. Her cheap artist fancy
had always decorated the temple of initiation so heavily with incense
and tiger-skins and divans and rose-leaves, all the crude stock and
properties of rapture, that the reality of this ordinary room, big
leather arm-chairs and a few prints on the plain dark walls, and a
bookcase, and several ash-trays scattered about, this so essentially a
man-room, left her disappointed. Had she relied too much upon the
trappings? ... but—Blair had taken her in his arms, now....
And still no response from that—that most damnably sluggish
temperament.
Very precisely and dispassionately she noticed for the first time
that one of his lids lay over the eye with a heavier slouch than the
other. She was pleased with the behaviour of his face under stress of
emotion ... it did not grow hot nor red nor damp; the veins did not
bulge; his breath was under control. She had been right in her
selection of Blair Stevenson—but—but——
The ungrateful temperament, which she had provided with the
best advantages, was failing her utterly....
She kissed his exacting lips with as much of faked ecstasy as she
could coax to her aid, and then wondered, supposing she laughed,—
the word ecstasy always made her want to laugh—if that indecorum
could be passed off as further ecstasy?
And all this time she did Stevenson the injustice of believing him
imperceptive.
“Deb ... my dear....”
He had from the beginning philosophically summed her up as
incapable of extremes. But it was not as though he were
dependent.... He did not love Deb; he was a little bit in love with
her; and she was elfish, delicate, captivating, freshly surprising at
each encounter, like in June the first strawberry whose
unremembered flavour one has taken for granted through the winter
months. Yes, she was charming. And he was wrong in his estimate
of her. After all, she had come to him——
One tiny gesture of his—and Deb’s histrionics lay shattered like a
wave into foam....
“No ... no ... no—not now.... Oh, please!”
 A moment later, and Blair said, from the other end of the room:
“There was no need for that ‘please,’ dear. The first ‘no’ would have
been enough.”
She lay angrily sobbing, hair not even disordered, her drapings of
pale ninon shamefully untumbled. The desperate encounter had
yielded her one scrap of self-knowledge—nothing else: That she was
not in the least passionate by nature, and that only love could raise
her nature to passion; that she had been misled all her life by a
mere illusion deduced by herself and others from her face and her
way of moving, and her recklessness of speech and her Jewish
pliability.... To her mother who was a Gentile, was due this slight
chilliness, blown like a hoar-frost over what might otherwise have
been an exotic blossoming.
And the man by the window murmured: “‘To play at half a love
with half a lover,’ ... is that what you wanted, child, and couldn’t
express? I didn’t understand. Well——”
He crossed again to the couch and stood looking down upon her,
hands clasped behind his back, mouth bent to a whimsical smile
—“Well—It’s not too late, is it?”
For that explanation both solved the enigma of her visit, and
coincided with his former conception of her. The surprise had been
her acquiescence, not her rebuff.
She looked up at him pitifully, and shook her head.... His mouth
grew hard: if not mistress, nor demi-maid, then what did she expect
he would make of her? Surely she could not be hoping.... Blair
Stevenson’s wife, if ever materialized from wraithdom, would not be
the sort of girl who came to his rooms alone at 10.15 p.m. Nor
would his mistress—she not at all a wraith—plead to leave them
again after a futile half-hour of compromise. No, Deb (and he still
thought her charming) was qualified not for chastity nor for fierce
desire.... What did she want of him?
Her intuition leapt to what was passing in his mind; and in stinging
agony that he should behold in her a huntress for a likely husband,
she said quickly—“I did—I did want to play—only to play. But—you
frightened me....”
“Forget that. I’m getting old and dense. And all men try ... once,
you know. But it’s all right, Deb....”
It was all right—now; at the demi-price of her demi-virtue, she
had saved at least that tattered beggar-maid she still called her
pride. “I believe you thought I had come with a matrimonial lasso
coiled up in my hand,” she taunted him.
And Blair was deceived, for all his penetration. How was he to
know, indeed, that daringly as she had repudiated his suspicion, in a
little backwater of thought trembled still an eddy from old times and
old traditions: “It—would—have—been—rather nice ... to marry
him....” But you have just proved you are not in love with him. “Oh—
that kind of thing—wouldn’t matter. I believe it would grow of itself
... if he were looking after me.” Her set smile curved into real
merriment as it struck her how Samson would approve of these
sentiments. Perhaps she and Samson were kindred souls, after all!
But Samson would most certainly not have approved of her
present abandonment to a demi-lover. She lay with an apathetic
hand straying over his hair and eyebrows, wondering a little at the
hard cheek pressed close to hers, wondering a little ... how soon she
could say it was time to go, whether there were any letters waiting
for her at home, if that pale young lance-corporal who had fainted
as she put the coffee-cup into his hands, had recovered yet;
wondering a little, as Blair shifted their positions, and drew her head
down to where his shirt opened on to his heart—Did Blair really
enjoy this? ought she not to say she was uncomfortable and had a
crick in her neck? Whether she were now what is called a sinner?—
pêcheresse in French ... or was it pécheuse? one of them meant the
“fisherman’s wife”—she remembered that from school—yes,
pêcheuse, surely—they were taught to tell the difference by the
resemblance of the circumflex to the roof of the fisherman’s hut. The
other has an accent aigü—but Deb had never been quite able to
disentangle a vague notion that a fisherman’s wife was also a sinner.
Pêcheuse—pécheresse....
She wondered anew if that monstrosity on the wall opposite were
a Hogarth? if her watch would be mended by to-morrow, as the man
at the shop had faithfully promised?...
“Are you happy, you small white Deb?”
She sighed “Yes....”
“You must come to me often now we understand each other....”
And again: “Yes ... often....”
 CHAPTER II
I

Antonia stood in the empty room in Bayswater, reading a scrawl of

explanation which Gillian had left behind for her on the dusty
mantelpiece. The floor was littered with bits of straw and string, a
broken teacup, some torn-up MSS., an old stocking and a tin of
Bluebell polish ... her foot struck against the latter, and it rolled
towards the tin fender and stopped with a forlorn clank....
“My dear—I’ve decided to go and live with Theo—why not? You’ll
find me here if you come this afternoon, 54 Middle Inn Gardens. I’m
leaving behind a bottle of Elliman’s Embrocation, because I haven’t
room for it. Bring it along, and anything else you see lying about.
Yours, Jill.”
“So she’s done it at last.” Slowly Antonia left the house, came back
for the Embrocation, could not find it, and went on to Middle Inn
Square with the Bluebell polish as a substitute. With an air more
than ever slim and defiant and passion-free, she swung into Gillian’s
presence——
“Jill!”
“It was—this—or sharing him with fifty others,” the culprit
explained coolly. She did not look in the least like the famous
bacteriologist, as she sat astride a wooden packing-case, tugging
with giant pincers at a refractory nail; hair rakish from the frequent
tumbling of her fingers; eyes two greenish slits of roguery; cigarette
tilted well upwards from the corner of her mouth. She did not look
like a heroine of passion either.... Her blouse was open and her
sleeves rolled up, and her short navy-blue skirt was smeared with
white where she had leant against some wet paint.
“You can help me unpack while you disapprove. That lazy little cat
Winnie has gone off to spend the day with Camellia.”
 “Winnie? She’s still with you?”
“My dear, what was I to do with her? I couldn’t send her home
again just because of a whim of mine. It wouldn’t be fair. She isn’t
happy at home——”
Antonia sat down helplessly. “A year ago Deb gets turned out of
home, plus an income. Now you elope, plus Winifred Potter. You’re a
pair to make any friend of yours hysterical....”
“A little more, and I’d have despatched Winifred labelled right-
side-up as a farewell present to you,” Gillian retorted grimly. “But
she’ll do for Theo to flirt with in his lighter moments.”
“Theo’s are mostly lighter moments, aren’t they? Jill, I wouldn’t
have minded the sacrifice; I wouldn’t have said a single word ... if
he’d been worthy.” She was ice-white with the conviction of his
unworthiness.
Gillian said nothing for a minute or two. She still sat bent over the
packing-case, one leg on either side of it, wrenching at the wood.
Then: “Much need for sacrifice with a man who’s worthy!”
“Then you admit he isn’t?” Antonia sprang up. “Oh, Gillian, if you
must try a theory——”
“Theory? Good Lord! Nothing of that sort. It’s just that Theo isn’t
big enough or good enough, if you like, to remain faithful and
decent and honourable to a woman who’s only his spiritual love.
Why pretend?—we all know what Theo is!” she shrugged her thin
shoulders and flashed a wide smile up at her friend—“He’s clever—
with a sort of malicious destructive cleverness. Otherwise just an
amorous gutter-snipe, who can’t resist anything of the other sex—a
Zoe in male. His reputation is a joke—I’ve heard scores of people
chuckling over the latest Theo Pandos story.”
“You know this—and still——”
“I know it—and because. He won’t do without the others—but he
can’t do without me. Look here, you blooming Artemis, I justify
myself to you just this once and never again. Understand this. That
little rotter is my ... completion, if you like; the answer to my special
quantity of X. It’s a pity, I’m sure, that it didn’t happen to be
someone grand and distinguished and austere, who’d spend all day
long renouncing me, and all night long being nobly glad that he did
so. Can you see Theo being glad he’s renounced anyone, ever?”
again the swift joyous grin.... Antonia could not help returning it.
“Theo’s got a wife, I believe?”
“Oh, curse her, yes. A Spanish Catholic who won’t divorce him. A
dark flashing thing who looks all passion and Carmen and castanets.
She’s no earthly use to him.”
“Gillian, you’re a thoroughly immoral creature!”
“I’m not going to be one of a crowd. ’Tisn’t good for the self-
respect. And it isn’t good for Theo—Oh, I’ve no illusions about my
young man.... It amounts to this—I’m fed up with the type of
woman who can’t sling sex out of her mind. The mind isn’t the
proper place for sex. I want my mind for my work. Enforced virginity,
not chosen, mind you, but enforced, is unbalancing; it hangs about
and takes up more room than it ought to.... My work has got to
come to fruition sooner or later ... and all this has got to be cleared
out of the way, somehow, first. Theo is thoroughly unsuitable, he’s
younger than I am, he’s married, he’s fast and horrid ... granted!—
but Theo is a factor that can’t be slung out. So he’s got to stay—with
as little fuss as possible. I thought about it all hard, and when last
night I’d decided, I packed, and I came. Poor old Theo ...” and she
chuckled softly as at some memory of the preceding evening—but
her brows were contracted with pain.
“Wasn’t he terrifically glad, at least?”
“Oh—glad enough. But just last night ... it was—awkward. I ought
to have ’phoned him beforehand—See? Antonia, you’re shrinking like
bad material in the wash!”
“Bad material perhaps—but not in the wash ... at the present
moment!”
 “Cue for a wince from the fallen woman! Frankly, are my affairs as
unsavoury as all that?”
“Not you, Jill. Never you, but Theo. He’s your demon.”
“Not much demon about him when he hung from the left foot on
to the right at his front door last night, and I sat demurely on my
trunk outside.... If the Bacteriological Society could have seen me—
I’m lecturing there next week! I’m what Theo had been waiting and
longing for since three and a half years, and coming just then—for
once even he wasn’t able to carry it off. Zoe would have chucked the
incubus through a door, or into a cupboard, or under the bed, and
turned up smiling—Theo just stood staring at me with the tears
streaming down his face.... My beloved little cad!... So I went home
again, and returned this morning—Antonia, you’re not to look like
that!” in a spasm of fury. “Didn’t I know he’d get rid of her not ten
minutes after I left....”
“Oh, I suppose he said he had,” scornfully.
Gillian raged more. “You’d have sheered off and never looked at
him again. ‘For better, for worse’ ... Without the marriage service
read over me, I can keep to it as well as any of you. It’s Theo as he
is—not Theo transformed by Maskelyne and Devant into a young
bride’s dream. We shall live together quite openly; of course, without
any blaze of trumpets—but concealment means a flurry again, and a
furtive askew-over-your-shoulder look that I don’t approve of. Thank
goodness, my private life, as I choose to hack it out, can’t interfere
with my especial career. If I’d been a doctor, as I intended——”
“Then you would have had to give up Theo.”
“I’ve just spent twenty minutes patiently explaining—I s’pose you
weren’t listening—that if I gave up Theo, he’d take up far too much
of my time and thought and vitality and saneness. To live with him is
the only way of getting rid of him—mentally.”
“It’s such a twisted, new-fashioned way of arguing.”