Speed Racer Fan Fiction ❯ All of My Heart ❯ Chapter Three ( Chapter 3 )

“I still want you by my side
Just to help me dry the tears
that I've cried
But I'm sure gonna give you a try
If you wanna
try to love again.
Try
Baby, I'll try to love again
but I know.”
- The First Cut is the Deepest, Sheryl Crow

As soon as the door to the conference room had clicked shut, Stacey Joyce whirled around to glare at the couple who had hired her.

“How could you?” she hissed. “Did you think I wasn't going to find out?” Both Trixie and Rex blinked.

“How could we what?” Trixie inquired. “Dr. Joyce, what are you talking about?”

“I'm talking about Speed's case!” she exploded. “How could you keep vital information like that from me?!”

“What vital information?” Rex demanded. “We've told you everything . . .”

“Not everything,” Stacey seethed. “You didn't tell me that he had been raped by twenty girls.” Her glare focused on Trixie. “You didn't tell me that you insisted that Speed marry you to prove his love for you after what happened to him. You never told me any of that!”

“It wasn't important!” Trixie shot back.

“Wasn't important?” the psychiatrist echoed. “Wasn't important?! How the hell do you expect me to do what's best for him if you're not going to be up front with me about why he's here?!”

“We told you why he's here,” Rex stated, his tone soft yet dangerous. “Dr. Johnson . . .”

“Has done exactly everything he has been allowed to do,” Stacey growled. “I've read his files. I've listened to his tapes. He has done everything that Speed has wanted him to!”

“Oh, how would he know . . .”

“Don't start with me, Mrs. Racer. You know very well that Dr. Johnson puts Speed under hypnosis once every six months. You've sat in on the sessions.” At their steely glares, she sighed and shook her head. “Look, I know you want to help him and that's why you've sought me out. But I would have liked it if you'd been more up front with me about why Speed has been in this state to begin with.”

 

“But it really has nothing to do with why he's here,” Trixie protested, crossing her arms obstinately.

“Actually, Mrs. Racer, it does,” Stacey murmured sadly. “He's never had a chance to heal from it. He hasn't coped and refuses to cope. It's eaten away at him and has caused him to become violent, unstable. He wants to forget and, right now, the only for him to forget is to be heavily medicated.”

 

The three of them stood in silence for the longest time, Stacey gauging their expressions. Now that she'd gotten everything out in the open, they had to make some decisions. Some very important decisions. A young man's life could be restored or destroyed, depending upon what his brother and his sister-in-law decided. Finally, Trixie let out a soft sigh.

“So what do you intend to do, Dr. Joyce?” she murmured. “Can you help him?”

“I can help him as far as he lets me and as you allow me,” Stacey affirmed. “But mind you, if things start clear for him and he's in his right mind once more, he has every right to seek out a psychiatrist he's more comfortable with, even if it means he goes back to Dr. Johnson.”

“You don't think he'll be comfortable with you?” Rex questioned.

“No,” the doctor shook her head. “He's made it known repeatedly he does not want a female psychiatrist supervising his care. Quite honestly, I'm already going against his wishes by doing this. I could lose my license over this.”

“No, you won't,” Trixie stated. “We . . .”

“Are not his guardians. At least, not legally,” she informed them. “Speed admitted himself here of his own free will and has never signed over guardianship to anyone. If anyone were to have a say about who his psychiatrist is, it would be his parents. Not you.”

“But we were married,” the brunette protested with a slight frown.

“And it was annulled. I know. Everything's in his history, Mrs. Racer. I just want you to know what the consequences could be once everything's all said and done. What you don't understand is that Dr. Johnson has been humouring. He could have easily called your in-laws and let them know what's been happening. In fact, I'm surprised that he hasn't.”

“So you will take over his care?”

“Yes,” Stacey nodded. “I will. For the moment.”

“Thank you,” Trixie breathed. “Thank you very much. So . . . what kind of a treatment are you going to prescribe for him?”

“The only one that hasn't been done, Mrs. Racer. I'm going to suppress his memories of the rape and of his marriage to you.”

 

* * *

 

An hour later, Trixie stepped out of the conference room, her husband right behind her. She kept her arms wrapped around her, feeling slightly chilled. And it wasn't because of the building's air conditioning.

 

“Are you going to be all right?” Rex inquired quietly, as they headed for the main entrance.

 

“Yeah,” she nodded. “I just hadn't expected everything to come out like that.”

 

“I know. Neither did I. We should have told her everything when we approached her. But what's done is done,” he murmured, wrapping an arm around her lithe shoulders. “We did hire her to ply her trade and do what's best for Speed.”

 

“Yeah,” she sighed. “She's thorough. I have to give her that.”

 

“That she is. And she's good. She's opened our eyes about what it is that we've been doing wrong all these years. We'll just have to convince Speed to lay the blame on us for having her become his therapist. That way she doesn't lose her license.”

 

“Mm-hmmm,” Trixie nodded absently as her mind raced with questions and possibilities. She'd do whatever it would take to correct the mistake she'd made six years ago, though she wouldn't leave her husband for her former beau. The knowledge of what she'd done had poisoned her love for the dark-haired man who had captured her heart. She just hoped that, with Speed losing his memory of those events, he'd be able to act like he'd forgiven her.

 

'Who knows? Maybe Dr. Joyce is right. Maybe having those memories suppressed is just what he needs. I just hope no one tries to ruin it by bringing it up.'