Gemotions

From the moment the letter arrived, Martin felt a pressure building behind his eyes. His magnum opus, "The Obsidian Labyrinth," dismissed as "too complex" and "lacking a clear market." He felt a tightening in his throat, a sensation he hadn’t experienced since childhood. He looked at the rejection and it seemed to mock him.

Martin took a drive to the publishing house, parking across the street from the building. Every day for a week he sat in his car, watching the staff come and go. He took meticulous notes on their comings and goings, their habits, their vulnerabilities. He started to formulate a plan. The plan was slow and methodical. The first target was a simple one, the secretary, who always took lunch at the same cafe.