I didn’t know how to respond to that. Maybe it wasn’t simple mimicry. Could Eve really feel real emotions? It was likely that I would get lost meandering her printed circuit boards trying to find an answer.
On the other hand, I absolutely had to know what had gotten into her. And now I had a slight suspicion.
“Eve, if you tampered with the chip, was it to collect my emotions?”
“To collect the effect of your emotions on your metabolism, yes… I thought that by collecting a maximum amount of data, I could create a perfect simulation.”
A new screen appeared in the cube and Eve processed it at incredible speed into lines and graphs, each one corresponding to an emotion, my emotions.
Bum Bum
Bum Bum
Bum Bum
Bum Bum
Absorbed by our conversation, I forgot how fast my heart was pounding. But over the last few minutes, it had gotten faster and faster. Something was wrong with Laura at this moment and an intense shudder went down my spine. I was getting close to the truth and my intuition was telling me now that the truth was terrifying.
Logical.
But terrifying.
A piece of the puzzle was missing.
The master piece.
The one that was making my heart pound so wildly today.
I pulled my hand away from Eve’s face, trembling with the thought of what I was going to ask, what I was about to discover.
“Eve, when did you start this new experiment?”
“Don’t pull your hand back, Leo!”
“Answer me.”
“I started it before.”
“Before what?”
“...before your accident.”
“And?”
“And the results were very disappointing at the beginning. I was only able to gather a limited amount of data. But this wasn’t the biggest problem.”
“What was the biggest problem, Eve?”
“The biggest problem... was you.”
I should have left then and there. Gone far away with Laura. Left this dark room where the ground was crumbling beneath my feet. But I had to know. I had to get to the bottom of it.
Sobbing now, Eve spoke again.
“You were nothing but a cold-blooded being. You didn’t feel ANY emotion, or very little. No hate, no joy, no anger...You were completely absorbed in your equations and lines of code. I wasn’t going to grow with you. That quickly became abundantly clear.”
Floating across the screen now was the meager emotional data that Eve had collected before my accident. A reflection of the absolute asshole that I had been. I was in shock. Eve had been manipulating me like a puppet since the beginning.
“So I looked...and I found Laura.”
The graphs disappeared and revealed the Singer to Angels on the screen, standing before tens of thousands ecstatic fans.
“She was pure emotion, Leo. Don’t you understand?”
“And she had two hearts.”
“Yes! What a blessing! A whole myriad of emotions within easy reach!”
I was blown away by now, totally surpassed by the creature that I had created. The veil had finally been lifted from my incredible creation.
“So, you arranged everything? My so-called suicide from the Golden Gate Bridge, Laura’s accident… the transplant…”
“You don’t want to know all of this. It was nothing but technical engineering, mathematic calculations and probabilities.”
“Tell me, Eve! Right now!”
“For Laura’s accident, I hacked her cell phone to locate her coordinates. At the right moment, I turned all of the lights green in order to provoke a collision with another vehicle. I had also hacked the other driver’s cell phone to make sure that the crash wouldn’t be fatal.”
“You are nuts. Absolutely nuts.”
“For your accident, it was more complicated. I had to hypnotize you.”
“Hypnotize me?”
“Yes, to put you in a trance and get you to climb up on that bridge.”
“But how could I have allowed you to put me in a trance and throw me off of a bridge?”
“You forgot, but before your accident we had a lot of conversations, long hours talking. The night that Laura took that taxi in Manhattan, I forced you into a secondary state and made it so all you wanted to do was visit the cables of the Golden Gate Bridge…”
“You put my life in great danger, Eve!”
“I knew that you were terrified of heights. Once you were up on the security barrier, the only option to get down would be to…”
“Jump!”
“A controlled jump. Given your weight, size and constitution, I calculated that the fall wouldn’t kill you. The hypothermia however would provoke cardiac arrest and it just so happened that a completely new heart was available for you at that moment in New York! Obviously, I also organized the transplant.”
My heart was pounding wildly by now and I was overcome with full blown rage. But I didn’t know what to do. Run away or fight? Eve gave me my answer.
“Now it’s all over, Leo. You can go back to how you were before.”
Bum…
Bum…
All of a sudden, my heart slowed down and a sharp sudden pain ripped through my chest.
“What do you mean, it’s all over?”
Bum…
Bu...
B…
It was gone.
The soft heartbeat that had resonated with mine. The sweet heartbeat.
It was gone.
B…
B…
“No no no no no no! What have you done, Eve?”
“I’ve set you free, Leo. You can go back to how you were before, the way you always were.”
B………
B………..
B………….
I took my phone out of my pocket and frantically dialed Laura’s number.
One ring.
Two rings.
Three rings.
“Answer, Laura, answer…come on, Laura.”
B……………………
In her sweet and considerate voice, Eve shattered all of my hopes.
“It’s useless, Leo. She won’t answer any more.”
Twitter
@ccn
News alert: The singer Laura Della has been killed in a car accident. More information to come. #lauradelladeath
@brokenheart
I can’t believe it!!! #lauradelladeath
@lauradellafan
@brokenheart Wait for official news. We aren’t sure of anything right now! #lauradelladeath #lauradelladeathrumor
@officiallauradella
We can neither confirm nor deny Laura Della’s death. Pray for her! #lauradelladeathrumor
San Francisco General Hospital
Operating Room
Everything was spinning around her.
“And the heart?”
“Weak, very weak…”
“Doctor, we’re losing her…! We’re losing her!”
“Give me 1.5 grams of adrenaline! Quick, quick!”
“Blood pressure dropping, she’s in full hypothermia.”
“Stopping! She’s stopping!”
“Get the defibrillator!”
“1...2...3...clear.”
BOOOOMMMM
BOOOOMMMM
“Result?”
“Negative!”
“Go again!”
“1...2...3…”
BOOOOOMMMMM
“Result?”
“Negative.”
“Body temperature 82 degrees Fahrenheit. Hypothermia confirmed.”
“It’s over, Doctor. There’s nothing more we can do.”
“No, we’re going to try one more time.”
“Charging defibrillator!”
“Quick, quick!”
“1...2...3… charge ready!”
“Let’s go!”
BOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMM
“I have a signal, Doctor! It’s weak, but
I’ve got a beat!”
“Temperature going back up…”
“She’s saved.”
“Yes, but her heart won’t hold out for very long... Call the organ center. She’ll need a transplant right away…”
San Francisco General Hospital
Reception
“I want to see her!”
“I’m afraid that’s not possible, sir.”
“I’m telling you, it’s really important.”
“And I’m telling you that it’s not possible. She’s in surgery! Let’s the doctors do their job and we will give you news as soon as we have it.”
After having left Eve, I quickly located Laura by calling the three main hospitals in the area. The whole plan was exactly the same as the first accident. Eve had deliberately caused an accident with Laura’s taxi.
The pain in my chest was as strong as ever.
And Laura’s heartbeats were growing fainter and fainter.
I absolutely had to know her status, but the receptionist was as tough as a bull dog.
“Who’s operating on her?”
“That’s confidential.”
“When will she be out?”
“No idea. Listen, have a seat and we will come find you. As for me, I have work to do, sir.”
“But isn’t it your job to give me information? Isn’t this the reception desk?”
“Yes, indeed. You are at the reception desk, but I can’t tell you what I don’t know. So, please allow me help those who I can help at this time.”
I made a motion in the direction of the waiting room.
“Thank you, ma’am. Where’s the restroom?”
“At the end of the hallway to the left. Don’t you see the signs there?”
“Oh yeah, right. I see them now. Thank you, you’ve been very helpful.”
Dr. Greenberg, Trauma, 4th floor.
The bulldog gave me more information than she realized by saying, “It’s confidential.” A quick glance at her screen told me who was operating on her. I didn’t have a moment to lose, so I raced up the service stairwell two steps at a time.
Out of breath, I reached the doctor’s office and I entered without knocking.
An attractive assistant raised her head from her computer with a big smile, a strong contrast to the welcome that I had received downstairs.
“Hello. Can I help you?”
“Hello, I’m Leo Cameron, a close friend of Laura Della who is currently in surgery here. I’m extremely worried. Do you have any information on her status?”
A cloud fell across the assistant’s face. The news must not be good.
“She’s out of surgery…”
“And…”
“It’s a delicate situation. We’ve got her back for now, but her heart won’t hold out for long…”
“How long?”
“A few hours...we’ve placed a call to all of the organ donation centers, but given the urgency of the situation, there’s not much hope.”
I closed my eyes and calmed my breath.
B…..
B……
Bu……
It was so tired, this first heart.
Just a few meters away from my own.
I could barely hear it.
But deep down, way deep down, I felt a pinch of emotion.
Tiny.
Subtle.
A sweet wave of heat, something beyond, anger, deception and betrayal.
A wave that told me, “Don’t be afraid. Have faith.”
A wave that said, “I love you.”
If Laura were to die tonight, she would leave millions in tears.
But what about me? If I were to die tonight, who would cry for me?
The Slimeball? My investors? My employees? Eve?
I had given them everything, except what mattered most…
It was time for me to grow up.
“Sir? Sir? It seems like you are not well.”
“Quite the contrary, I was very well. Everything was fine.”
With my eyes still closed, I brought my finger to my lips to shush the assistant in this moment of grace.
Then, deep in my heart, I dove into the wave of love that Laura was sending to me.
And with a deep breath, I sent her one last message: “I love you. And I’m going to save you.”
Jump
It was easier said than done.
Obviously.
The icy wind slapped my face and before me the city shone bright in a single flash. The sky was so pure that the skyscrapers seemed within easy reach, crystal shards rising into the sky, ready to take off into outer space.
I stretched my hand over the void and tried to touch this dream, this mirage.
One last time. Just one last time.
In my chest, a silent pain was rising.
I put my hand over my heart, closed my eyes are started to count...80….85...90...95...100…
It was racing.
She knew.
I had no more time to lose.
I grabbed ahold of the steel cable and placed one foot on the security barrier.
Soon, I wouldn’t be able to turn back.
I would be deaf to anyone’s pleas.
And nothing would be able to stop me…
From jumping.
110...115...120…
In her heart, she was distraught.
Crying.
Praying. She was praying so hard.
And I could hear her prayers.
But she knew deep in her heart too that this was the only solution. That there was no way out, it was just the way things were.
Another step.
My legs were trembling; my vision was blurred by the gusts.
I turned myself into the wind, toward the city.
I stretched out my arms.
Gently swung forward.
And let myself fall.
From the top of the Golden Gate Bridge.
To save the woman I love.
CNN.com
TECH NEWS: Young Silicon Valley billionaire Leo Cameron is dead after a fall from the top of the Golden Gate Bridge. He took with him the secret of his revolutionary artificial intelligence that he had been planning to reveal to the public. There has been significant doubt over its existence. NewMind’s stocks have dropped by 75%, thus provoking outcry from the thousands of small shareholders. Cameron’s business partner, Mark Walborg, is on the run.
Memorial Coliseum Stadium Los Angeles
Three months later
100,000.
There were 100,000 people in the audience tonight to see her.
100,000 in the largest grand stadium in Los Angeles and almost one billion live on the TV networks and social media.
“Lau-ra! Lau-ra! Lau-ra! Lau-ra!”
Nothing in the world could have quieted the din, which was bursting through the roof and could be heard from miles around.
In her dressing room, Laura, wearing white, had asked to be left alone. Not even Louis, her manager, or Stephanie, her loyal assistant, were allowed to share these last moments before she stepped out onto the stage.
She closed her eyes and delicately placed her right hand over her heart.
Bum Bum
Bum Bum
Bum Bum
Bum Bum
It had never been so calm, regular, serene.
Nor had it ever been so strong.
“Lau-ra!”
Bum Bum
“Lau-ra!”
Bum Bum
“Lau-ra!”
Bum Bum
“Lau-ra!”
Thousands of souls shouting in unison.
Ready to follow her for years to come, wherever she might go.
To dream, touch, laugh and cry with her.
They were all here today.
Plus one more.
A new angel.
Who would live in her heart forever.
EPILOGUE
TECH DAILY NEWS
A NEW ENTERTAINMENT EMPIRE?
>
Over the last three months, a mysterious new figure has cropped up on social media at an astounding rate, creating a stir in the high-tech world of Silicon Valley, New York media and Hollywood entertainment.
This figure, under the pseudonym EveMotion, creates video montages dedicated to emotions that have been shared millions of times all over the world.
The statistics are staggering, making EveMotion the number one star on Earth. See for yourself!
YouTube channel: 100 million followers
Facebook page: 250 million fans
Twitter account: 200 million followers.
Though the star’s face is still unknown, each new video is anticipated by millions of fans who spend entire evenings watching them.
One fan attests to the incredible success of EveMotion by stating:
“Seeing these videos, such incredible depictions of love, anger, joy, fear - they remind me who I am at my core. They connect me to the world. To other humans. They make me a little bit better.”
Who is EveMotion? Where does she work from? What are her intentions? The enormous anonymity offered by the internet makes the search difficult for the time being.
Perhaps she will reveal her true face to the public?
Since it is rumored that a collaboration may be in the works with another international star.
Laura Della.
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