EMOTION MARKET: the Tailor of Hearts - A gripping psychological thriller

by Dimitris Chasapis

  A woman in her 40s in the next chair seemed emboldened by the speaker’s final statement. She seemed relaxed and positive that good would triumph. She introduced herself to Taylor with a broad smile and a warm handshake.

  “I do not remember you… Is this your first time in a meeting of the Movement here?”

  “Yes. It’s my first time in this part of town. I usually go to the Blackwood Theatre on Mondays.”, replied Taylor pleased with himself for bothering to check beforehand the Movement’s regular meeting spot.

  “We always come here because we live nearby. We like it better here.”

  “We…?”

  “I am here with my husband and my mother-in-law,” she smiled pointing at her husband who noticed the gesture and smiled back. She also introduced her mother-in-law who was a couple of chairs away on the right. The spouses were about the same age. They were both too young to…

  Taylor avoided the conversation she eagerly tried to draw him into. She said how much she valued the exchange of views on the matter and wished Nicky Fallows would do great at the interview with Mary Ann as there was little hope of help from anywhere else. He said he had urgent business and unfortunately he would have to go. He renewed the appointment for next Wednesday in the basement of Lion’s Gate and as he was getting up he was given another piece of advice. “Don’t lose heart, comrade! The times are hard and you mustn’t lose faith. Help is on the way. There are allies everywhere!” Taylor left the basement feeling unfulfilled. He had wanted to hear serious arguments against the idea and he was not satisfied. Nicky Fallows must stand out in this crowd. Nicky was the man he had to see. He would attend some other meeting of the organization again. If only Nicky was there, too!

  CHAPTER 16

  VALET’S GARDEN

  Washington, DC

  “There’s no end to this horrible wind!” said Jane after shutting the living room window that overlooked the west side of the city.

  “Come on, hurry up, we’ll be late. The taxi is waiting,” she stressed to Caroline.

  Jane had almost demanded this dinner with her daughter. It had been a long time since the two of them had gone out to a fancy dinner. Jane hadn’t yet decided if she would mention to Caroline the incident that had upset her earlier in the parish church of St. She wouldn’t know where to start. Jane was afraid that if she told her she would spoil their evening.

  Caroline was quite pleased with herself lately. She had been a quiet and studious child. Her modesty and brilliance in neurology research had ultimately made her excel. The whole world had acknowledged her work and the Nobel Prize she had won was the ultimate recognition there was. If only her father had lived to witness all that. He would have been so very proud of her!

  People applauding at the Stockholm City Hall (Stockholms Stadshus) during the Nobel Prize award ceremony and the banquet, with the King and Queen of Sweden present… and journalists waiting in line after the ceremony for a quick interview with her little Caroline. Jane Emerson would never have guessed her own daughter could achieve all that! She was worthy of it all!

  But then again there were all these people who protested against Caroline’s invention and the women in St.the way they looked at her during this Sunday’s service, the things they whispered while Father made his indoctrination. Their rage was addressed to her, for being the mother of the celebrated doctor. Her sweet Caroline had to know that her work didn’t quite have the approval that she had hoped for when accepting the Nobel Prize. Part of the acknowledgement and splendor had already been forgotten. A big portion of the society was outraged and offended by the very idea of Emotion Markets!

  “This wasn’t God's will! It is the work of the Devil!” Jane emitted quietly, quoting the words of the women in St. Onorio’s Church.

  “What was that, Mother?” asked Caroline.

  “Nothing dear,” replied Jane seriously.

  The taxi driver gave them a puzzled look through the mirror. Jane explained quickly that she was just recalling a part of that Sunday’s sermon from Pastor Philippe. She regretted that very often she thought out loud. It brought her nothing but trouble…

  Valet’s Garden restaurant was truly an extraordinary place to dine. It was exactly like Caroline had described it. Its imposing white marble entrance was breathtaking and a pleasant, awfully handsome young man asked for the name under which the reservation had been made. Romantic lighting and flowers everywhere… The dining tables were far apart from each other with flowers and shrubs creating natural fences between them. It was a fairly private place to dine. Only now that Jane saw the place could she really comprehend why one should have booked months in advance in order to get a reservation at Valet’s Garden. Caroline hadn’t made an early booking. It was pure luck! The booking was from a friend whose plans to dine there had changed due to something unexpected. Jane Emerson was very happy indeed that this was the case.

  A waiter led them to their table. It was inside a π shaped fence of hyacinths, lilies and jasmine! How nice! Jane thought. Them being there was a great sample of the good life she craved for, but she hesitated to state the obvious because her daughter knew her all too well and she disapproved or rather didn’t really care for all that. The scent coming from the countless flowers flooded the courtyard of Valet’s Garden. Depending on the direction of the summer breeze, different scents of flowers came up their nostrils. Beautiful memories from their old house in Lavender came to her mind. She had a big garden there, flowers of many kinds… Jane enjoyed the apartment she was now staying at, but it was quite different. It was such a pity she and her daughter had decided to sell the house in Lavender Hill immediately after the death of her husband.

  Caroline, who was now ending her third consecutive call, looked at her mother only to meet her critical gaze.

  “I don’t imagine we’ve come here for you to make calls, my dear! You’re missing out on all this beauty, my child...”

  Yes, you’re right. Sorry about that, Mom. It was Hans again. I don’t know what I’d do if it weren’t for him. It was very considerate of Mary Ann to send him over!”

  “Well, surely she has her reasons for being so considerate. Don’t be a fool, child! Nothing in life comes for free.”

  “What a pessimistic thing to say, Mother! A whole new life comes for free in my Foundation. Remember that?”

  “Oh, yes, well we’ll just have to wait and see about that, won’t we? Come on now, let’s concentrate on actually living while we’re here instead of pretending to live through a cell phone,” said Jane with a smile and she added,

  “We should order... I’m thinking we should get something from Today’s Menu; what do you fancy eating?”

  Their waiter was standing nearby and responded immediately. Today’s Menu featured many exotic choices, but Jane ordered linguini with Mediterranean scallops and Caroline settled for a beef fillet with papaya For a starter, they ordered the famous chef’s signature sushi Kim Sin Kun was a celebrated Korean chef whose reputation preceded that of Valet’s Garden Restaurant. The combination of the two had boosted the reputation of Valet’s Garden regarding their aesthetics and flavors.

  Two glasses of champagne arrived at the table and Caroline started to talk about the PATOTTM annual conference and what her speech there should be about. She knew all too well what she would say, but nevertheless she thought that engaging her mother on this issue would make her feel good. Jane advised her to keep it short in order not to bore the audience. Short and accurate! She also stressed that Caroline should rehearse her speech adequately. “You must try to give color to your every word. You must be a sensation, dear. The whole world will be watching!”

  “True Mother! The whole world…”

  “Mind you that every single word can potentially have importance as well as a hidden meaning, depending on the intonation one uses,” Jane said pompously and went on raving about how she had come to know so much about the use of the language through the acting courses she had attended in her youth, and then
there was Seymour Jones, of course, who undoubtedly had a crash on her, though she never encouraged it, but a magnificent man he was…

  Caroline never stopped her mother from telling this exact same story. Nor did she complain. Although the times that her mother liked to mention it were countless, Caroline pretended to hear it with genuine interest. This story made her mother feel important. Her mother was exceptionally good at speeches, when talking to other people that is, and had a rather classy motion when she walked. She wished she had inherited either of the two but unfortunately that was not the case.

  “It seems to me you are rather dissatisfied about your acting career ending abruptly, Mother.”

  “Nah, I don’t think so. I realized early enough that such a career wasn’t for me. I was really talented, you know… But then I got pregnant with you and couldn’t find a way to combine the two. Motherhood had to be and became my number one priority.”

  “You could try having an invasive procedure in an Emotion Market, you know. It’ll be my treat! For all that you’ve lost because of me…”

  “You’re a funny child, dear Caroline! I haven’t missed out on anything. You are my everything!”

  “I know that, Mommy, and I love you for saying it! But still you could boost your self-respect or get rid of your regret about things,” said Caroline reluctantly.

  “Thanks but I’ll pass, child. I think I'm quite old now to start modifying my emotions. It’s not that important for me, you know.”

  “An emotional invasive procedure can help in ways you can’t imagine, Mother. Regretting your decision to give it all up in the past may have affected your personality.”

  “I hope your speech at the PATOTTM conference will be for more important things. People want to hear so much more from you about your discovery. They don’t want to hear about the regret one might have for youthful dreams that never came true.”

  “I don’t agree with you. I mean surely that won’t be the main topic of my speech, but I can tell you this. Nobody can predict with certainty the effects that a repressed emotion might have in one’s life. Many emotions, perhaps all, correlate with others. Even a small modification of one’s emotional self could be life-changing.”

  “Well if this is true, I find it rather scary and intimidating! And this is probably the reason for such a strong opposition against the whole concept of Emotion Markets! It seems like you have no confidence in humanity.”

  Their discussion was interrupted by the waiter. He held a bottle of Cristal that they never ordered.

  “This is from an admirer, Dr. Emerson. He doesn’t wish to impose, he says.”

  “Where is this person?” Caroline asked.

  “He is at the table with the daisies and chrysanthemums. He didn’t wish to disturb you but gave me this for you,” said the waiter as he placed a small white envelope right next to the bottle of champagne.

  It was an expensive treat, especially at Valet’s Garden. She opened the envelope and read the note inside.

  “Thank you, Caroline! You really helped. I hope we meet again soon.

  E. Parsons

  Caroline was thrilled to receive the card from this specific man. She was into him the first time she saw him at the park. She wondered what it was that she had helped him with. It could be a vague meaning of help… Her mother gave her a disapproving look for accepting such an expensive treat from a stranger.

  “He is no stranger, Mom. He is Ethan Parsons.”

  “You’ve never mentioned any Ethan Parsons to me.”

  “Well, it’s because I’ve only met him like two weeks ago. He is quite nice.”

  “And what did he write on this note that made you blush, child?”

  “Nothing really, it’s a thank you note… quite mysterious actually.”

  “Back in my day, we called that gesture flirting! And from the looks of you, I’d say that this still stands.”

  “No, it’s nothing of the sort. He’s married… to Susan Parsons, the famous congresswoman who is always on TV… surely you know her.”

  “Of course I do! Oh dear Lord, Caroline, what have you gotten yourself into? Is this man flirting with you?”

  “No mother! Could we please leave it at that?”

  “We certainly cannot! I’m your mother and I’ve asked you a question! I trust you know better than to get involved romantically with a married man, child! Good God!”

  “Keep your voice down, Mother. We’re in a public space and you keep referring to God!” whispered Caroline.

  “Don’t patronize me… I couldn’t care less about this stupid Dubai Treaty that you’re so fond of! Let them fine me for quoting God!”

  Jane Emerson, slightly calmer now, continued.

  “This man is under oath in the eyes of God! You can’t encourage such behavior.”

  “All right, Mother… point taken. Can we go on with our dinner now please!”

  Only men would do such gimmicks!” Jane said critically, pointing out that the incident had disturbed her greatly.

  “I won’t comment on that.” replied Caroline unable to erase the long smile from her face.

  At that moment the waiter brought the food they had ordered and Caroline commented on the stunning appearance of her Mediterranean linguini in order to change the subject. She knew all too well that her mother was very sensitive in matters relating to adultery. Caroline herself didn’t approve of it either. Getting a divorce was very simple in most cases and she just couldn’t see the reason why some couples persisted in being married even when they had lost the desire to truly belong to each other, emotion-wise.

  They both started to eat without any further arguments. Although Jane Emerson was genuinely upset, she made an effort not to spoil their dinner any further. Caroline’s thoughts were travelling in the future. Her future with Ethan Parsons… He was flirting with her with this thank you note of his. He was flirting with her that day at the park too. It was a subtle flirt that could only be detected from the way he looked at her. But it was enough to make her aware of it. Now that she recalled their meeting at the park, she sort of flirted back in a way. She didn’t realize it at the time, but now it was clear.

  What a mess… she thought and tried one of the chef’s signature sushi rolls. The crab on the roll was so beautifully cooked and so tasty that she actually started to drool.

  A few minutes later, Caroline got a glimpse of Ethan heading for the restroom. She felt her heartbeat rising while he turned and looked at her for a split second. Thankfully her mother was sitting with her back turned on him and she didn’t see him. Although this look he gave her couldn’t be mistaken for a prompt to follow him, she felt the urge to do so. Had she been with anyone else there, she would have simply invited him to join her company for a while. But Mother was unpredictable and Caroline didn’t feel like taking chances. She just wanted to say hello and thank you to him in person.

  She quickly excused herself from her mother after drinking a large sip of champagne. To her surprise, Ethan was actually waiting for her at the corridor before the restroom.

  “Hello you!” said Ethan with a disarming smile.

  “Hello Ethan! I didn’t see you coming here. I meant to come over at your table to thank you.”

  “It’s actually best that you didn’t! I’m at dinner with some partners from work. Quite boring, I assure you. Also I wouldn’t want you to have to abandon the woman you’re with. Is she your mother?”

  “She is. She already asked several questions regarding the sender of the champagne and the note.”

  “I hope I haven’t created any problems…”

  “No, no it’s quite all right! I can manage my mother,” said Caroline with an expression that showed she doubted her last statement.

  “I can’t stay and nor can you… People will start to talk.”

  “I didn’t realize we’ve got something to hide!”

  “Caroline…”

  “Yes?”

  “I want to see more of you… I�
� I’ve thought of you ever since we met at the park.”

  Caroline smiled back. She didn’t see this coming. That man actually liked her a lot. He was shy and blushed while pronouncing his last words. His words made her very happy, but she refrained from saying anything else.

  “Here’s my cell… You’ve got some explaining to do,” said Caroline as she passed him a note with her number on it. She then gave him a kiss on the cheek and exited to the main hall of Valet’s Garden.

  Her mother was finishing her linguini and seemed very happy about dining in such a luxurious environment. Caroline started to mumble happily about PATOTTM’s last year’s actions like she was one of the representatives of the organization. All she really wanted was to make sure that Mom couldn’t hear her heart that was beating so fast! She hadn’t felt like that for a man in a very long time. Could this be love?

  CHAPTER 17

  ON THE RED PHONE

  Boston

  Oscar Johnson was a rather typical psychiatrist. He belonged to those who hadn’t warmly greeted the discovery of EMs. He even had published a detailed article in Scientific American magazine which numbered the complications that the use of EM tech could result in. A whole year had passed since Dr. Caroline Emerson had won the Nobel Prize in medicine and in the meantime he had a change of heart. At 50, Dr. Oscar Johnson no longer hoped to achieve an award for his practice. The proposal that had heard some months ago by the EM Company was extremely tempting. The salary was very satisfactory and the job relatively simple. Making use of the saying "Keep your friends close and your enemies even closer," the EM Company had proposed to make him head psychiatrist at the Boston EM. All he had to do to get the job was to write a new article about EMs, clarifying the very reasons that attributed to this change of heart. This diversion of opinion was the first step for a big breakthrough in his career. It had given him prospects for development and a large sum of money... Money that would normally take him a lifetime to earn.