four years ago. I didn’t ever like him, in fact I wanted to drop his course, but I couldn’t because I needed it to graduate. My degree is in psychology. Anyway, he wanted to see me, like a date or something. I told him off, that’s all, and then I left, well, very quickly.”
“Why?”
“What do you mean?”
“Why did you leave very quickly? You’d told him off, what else was there to do? Why did you have to run away?”
“I didn’t want him to see that I was afraid of him. No! I didn’t mean that exactly—He’s a jerk and a pompous, arrogant creep. Maybe I should have punched his ticket.”
“So why didn’t you?”
“I wanted to be reasonable, to stand up to him, to handle him like an adult should.”
“Were you alone?”
“Oh, no. It was in the Columbia library. There were tons of students around.”
“You weren’t alone and you also know karate. I bet you could take him with one arm. You wouldn’t even need any help. Why are you afraid of him?”
“It’s not that—it’s his mind, the way he thinks, what he’s found out, what he now knows, what he threatens with his words.”
That was about as clear as a fog bank, Taylor thought.
Lindsay was appalled at what had come out of her mouth, all because of Taylor and the way he was and that he’d showed up here before she could get a good hold on herself again. She smiled now, a social smile, all bland and empty. “It’s the middle of the day. Why are you here? Don’t you have people to guard and computers to fix?”
“Yeah,” he said easily, sitting back. “Actually I was on my way downtown to Wall Street to a brokerage house. They’ve got screws loose in their computer brain and called me to fix it. I thought about you and that’s why I came.”
Truth be told, he’d gotten this feeling that something was wrong. It wasn’t unusual; he wasn’t psychic, for God’s sake, but sometimes, rarely, he’d just get these feelings, nibbling feelings, that wouldn’t go away. When he was much younger, he’d forced himself to ignore them. But not after an old woman had gotten mugged on his very street corner. He listened now, and even if the feeling turned out to be nothing at all, he still listened and still acted. This time his feeling had been right on the button. It was just that Eden wasn’t going to say anything more. She didn’t trust him. Well, it hadn’t been all that long. It would take time. With her, he was fully prepared to be patient. But he could also be cunning as hell.
“Well, I’m fine now, really. Thank you, Taylor. This professor—”
“No problem.”
“Thank you for making the tea. It’s wonderful.”
“I’m glad you like it. I don’t like any sugar in mine either. Just real hot and strong. No bark shavings. What’s his name?”
“Gruska—no, no, that is, no, forget it, all right?”
“Sure, no problem. I’ve got to go now. Are we still on for tonight?”
She nodded, feeling like a fool, but he seemed not to notice that she’d spit out the name. Still, after Taylor had left, she fastened all the locks on her front door.
Taylor left the Wayfarer Insurance Company on Water Street at four o’clock, the problem diagnosed and fixed. The problem wasn’t uncommon, but it was still a pain in the butt. The mail server was incorrectly configured on the insurance company’s end. Since in this case the clients’ end was also misconfigured, all the e-mail was being sent out into the ether. He’d gotten it straightened out in record time—lucky for both him and the insurance company. Taylor had come off as a genius, which was a nice feeling. He was good, but luck was never to be discounted. It was a good thing too that over the past four years he’d developed a network of computer friends across the country, and when each discovered something not run across before, the information was duly shared.
Mr. Phiffe, vice-president of operations, at least seventy, white-haired, an aristocrat of insurance, was appalled when Taylor presented his bill.
“Five thousand dollars! But you fixed the problem in ten minutes, Jackson told me so.”
“Yes. I also told Jackson what my fixed charge would be up front, regardless of the time I spent here.”
“But he didn’t think it would take just ten minutes.”
Taylor smiled. “Mr. Phiffe, you hired me to fix your problem. You are back in business, and in record time, I might add.”
Phiffe smiled slowly. “You’re right, of course. It was just a shock. One gets what one pays for, eh? I pay for expertise and I get it. Time isn’t the issue.” He buzzed his secretary. Taylor shook hands with him and picked up his check on the way out.
Taylor’s next stop was Columbia. Dr. Gruska was a professor of psychology and he was in the Adams Building, second floor, room 223. He asked the woman in administration what Dr. Gruska’s psychological roots were, so to speak. “Give him a chandelier and he’d swing by his Oedipus complex,” she’d said, and laughed. “The thing is, though, he hasn’t got a mother. Just this old curmudgeon father who’s run his life. Funny how moms always get blamed, isn’t it?”
Taylor agreed that it was.
The day was blistering cold. It was very nearly dark now and getting colder by the minute. He really wasn’t expecting Gruska to be in his office and it was with some surprise that his knock was answered with a full-voiced call.
“Come!”
He went in, gently closed the door behind him, and surveyed the man who terrified Eden. Harmless-looking gent, tweedy, smoked a pipe, slender, long narrow face, and had a long nose that was now twitching at the sight of him, a complete stranger, fifties, rather pallid complexion, out-of-shape. Yeah, Eden could have taken him to the floor with only one arm.
“What can I do for you? It’s late. I was just getting ready to leave.”
“Just a minute of your time, Dr. Gruska.” Taylor stuck out his gloved hand. “My name’s Oliver Winston, Dr. Winston, psychoanalyst. I’ve heard a lot about you and wanted to meet you. I’m in town visiting friends and family. A Dr. Graham in my hometown of Columbus said to look you up if I had a chance. He said you were the tops.”
Dr. Gruska glowed. Taylor was motioned quickly to a chair facing the good doctor.
“Ah, Dr. Graham. Er, which Dr. Graham?”
“Joseph Graham of Columbus.”
“Ah, yes, Joe. Nice, solid fellow. Good background. How is he?”
“The arthritis is getting worse, but otherwise he’s fine. As I said, he speaks of you with high praise.”
“I assume that you are embroiled in our very survival, Dr. Winston?”
Taylor had no idea what he was talking about, but he knew enough from Gruska’s body language and voice tone to nod with great sincerity. “Yes, indeed. I don’t know what to do about it.”
Taylor watched, fascinated, the myriad shifting expressions on Gruska’s face. Rage, surprise, pleasure, more rage, more pleasure, conspiracy. He sat forward, his hands clasped in front of him. His pipe sent up lazy smoke into the air, its scent pleasant, like a pine forest.
Gruska’s voice was warm, low, intense. “Ah, my dear fellow, then you’re suffering as I am suffering, as all of us are suffering. The idea of boiling everything down to chemicals! It’s preposterous! Certainly those ridiculous MD’s who pretend to understand the human mind can, in a very few cases, administer their drugs and make the patient function.”
Taylor made an assenting noise and fanned his hands in despair.
“No doubt your friend sent you to see me because he knew I’d understand and sympathize. I will remain a psychoanalyst despite all the opposition, all the absurdities that abound and proliferate now, for what we have is the truth, and this truth explains what makes all of humanity behave in the ways we behave.”
Again Taylor looked struck by Gruska’s fluency, his tone and manner. He said slowly, feeling his way, “I have found that women in particular are so well-explained by Freud.”
