CARBO FAN FICTION-Déjà Vu CHAPTER 24

On their third day in Chichén Itza, Professor Moore took Bo aside and asked him accompany him to the house of a friend of his. Curious, Bo left Carly with Soledad, following the older man down a rough trail. ‘Who’s  this guy you want me to meet?’
‘Someone Soledad and I think just might be able to help Carly get her memory back.’



‘A psychiatrist?’
‘Well, he has a medical degree but isn’t exactly an orthodox psychiatrist. He specialises in Holistic Hypnotherapy.’
 Bo quickened his pace. ‘For real?’
‘Like I said Bo, just might help her. I don’t know if his type of hypnotherapy treats Retrograde Amnesia. From what you told me, Carly’s condition was caused by a severe trauma. It’s a long shot but still... he could be the answer.’
‘I’m open to anything that can help her, Hank.’
‘Well then, let’s hope we’re heading towards to the solution.’
Dr. Diego Montalvo was in his late sixties, with white flowing hair and a trimmed beard. The shrewd black eyes behind his thick glasses gave Bo further reassurance of his competence. After offering his guests a drink, Moore told him why they’d come, leaving Bo to tell the whole story in detail. Dr. Montalvo sat back in his armchair, listening intently.
‘So first dreams... and then she experienced a flash of memory at the Ball Court?’ he said at last.
‘Yes. Is that normal?’
‘Given the severity of her condition, I would describe it as more rare than normal. Rare but not quite unheard of. She experienced it because it was a happy event in her past, you see. A marriage proposal, on that very spot... yes, a very happy event. Returning to the place it happened, it would certainly trigger the memory of it. I must ask though, did your lady ever experience dreams of her past before she returned to Salem?’
‘No. She told me the dreams started the night she got shot in my house.’
‘Well it’s definitely significant. Like I said, not many patients with such a severe form of amnesia will immediately respond to familiar surroundings... or a close person from their past. These things take quite some time. I won’t take her back to that fateful night on her husband’s yacht. That will simply traumatise her. What I can actually do for is let her mind be more susceptible to more flashes of memory. You should do your part after that. Take her to familiar places, talk about things you both usually did, make some allusions. But mind, not all at once. You must deal with this with patience and diligence, Mr. Brady.’
‘Please, call me Bo.’
‘Very well, Bo. Bring Clarice over tomorrow morning.  I will do what I can with her. In the meantime, tell me more of your history together.’  He brought out a notepad and pen to take notes.
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For Ciara’s and appearances’ sake, Hope did her best to keep her bitterness to a minimum. She clearly recalled how angry and hurt Bo was when she chose to take Ciara on vacation without him, accusing him of so many things. If only she hadn’t been so bull headed and taken things too far. But it was too late for ‘what ifs’. Their marriage was over.
 Ciara, luckily, has managed to adjust to the changes in her life; she still had her Dad after all. But for Hope, it has always been Bo. And Bo taking a trip, with another woman, further reminded her how foolish she had been to push Bo away instead of healing from the trauma with him.
Entering The Java, she ordered some coffee. As she watched a few couples at other tables, a pang of loneliness weighed heavily on her. She didn’t notice a pair of blue eyes was watching her intently. Her coffee arrived and just went she took a sip of it, she heard, ‘You shouldn’t have such a look on your face. It may grow on you.’
Hope turned to look at the speaker. He was tall, with blond hair and an amused, engaging smile. And Hope couldn’t help but notice he spoke in an European accent she couldn’t place.  For a second she felt like freezing him off with a cold word. coffee arrived and as she took a sip of it, she heard, 'You shouldn't have such a look on your face. It may grow on you.'

Hope turned to look at the speaker. He was tall, with blond hair and an amused, engaging smile. And Hope couldn't help but notice he spoke in an European accent she couldn't place. For a second she felt like freezing him off with a cold word. But then, it would be rude and she was in a coffee house all by herself. 'I'll try not to let it,' she replied drily.

'May I join you?'

At her nod, he took a cup from the counter and walked over to her table, sitting opposite her. 'You're not from around here, obviously.'

'My accent always seems to give me away,' the stranger replied, smiling. 'My father was English. But I was raised in Monaco.' He stretched out a hand. 'Elliot Sanders.'

'Hope Brady.' She shook it. 'What brings you to Salem then?'

'A well earned holiday. I write articles for anyone who would pay for them. Last month I was absolutely swarmed with clients' demands. Soon as I met the last deadline, I said to myself "I don't want to see my computer until I get my sanity back.'' '

Hope found herself chuckling, something she hadn't done in a while. Justin had taken her out on a few dates but failed to cheer her up. Elliot's natural warmth was soothing.

'And what does Hope Brady do when she's not attracting some lonely man's attention with those dark eyes?'

Hope felt a warmth on her cheeks. Surely, surely she wasn't...

'Ah, now the lady is blushing.'

Hope felt like a callow teenage girl all over again and it made her uncomfortable. But at the same time, she couldn't bring herself to appear rude to Elliot, who seemed genuinely friendly. Eyeing him for a few seconds she replied with a faint smile, 'I'm in Law enforcement.'

'A lawyer then?'

'A cop.'

'No!' his eyes widened. 'You're pulling my leg, you are.'

'I am, believe it or not. Or are you one of those guys who think women in the police force should look all burly and scowling?'

'Of course not. But well... it would've been my last guess I have to admit.' He glanced down at the silver dainty ring on a finger of her right hand and at her ringless left hand.

'No, I'm not married.' Hope said, a trace of bitterness back in her voice. 'Actually, I got divorced several months ago.'

'I'm very sorry to hear that.' Elliot said quietly. 'Was it an acrimonious divorce?'

Hope felt herself on a verge of tears and a sudden desire to be alone. 'Look Elliot, it was nice meeting you,' she grabbed her purse from the table and got to her feet. 'But I have to get back to the station.'

'Oh dear, now I've  upset you.' Elliot rose too, staring at her with concern.

'No, no... It's not you. Really it isn't. It's just... well, some things are hard to talk about.'

'I'm in town for a week or so. I would like to see you again. Please.' He pulled out a card and pressed it into Hope's hand. 'Give me a call. We can have dinner or something.'

Hope had no intention of ever calling him. But she took the card and gruffly thanked him.

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Bo watched as Clarice was hypnotised. There were candles, burning sage in the room and New Age music playing from a stereo at the corner. After explaining to her what he was going to do, she was willing to undergo it; more than anxious to regain her memory. Diego urged her to relax, massaging her temples and speaking to her in a low, calm voice, instructing her to take several deep breaths.

'What is your name?'

'Katerina Von Leuschner,' was the answer. 'I mean... that is my birth name.'

'What name are you using now?'

'Carly Manning.'

'Carly, it's November 1991. You and Bo are in a very special place. The sun is on your hair, he's standing in front of you. He's now kneeling in front of you. He's asking you to marry him and you are thrilled, because it's a question you've longed waited for. It's the happiest moment of your life with him. He's the love of your life... you feel safe with him.'

'Yes,' Clarice replied, a smile on her face. 'I always do.'

'You have several happy memories with him. The best one, your symbolic Mayan wedding on top of El Castillo. You pledged your love for each other, strengthening the bond you already have between you. There are many more memories with Bo but you must try to unlock them. And you will. Be less anxious, relax your mind. Turn to him when you are troubled.' He went on with the session, while Bo stayed quietly in the background.

Finally he said, 'I'm going to count to five and snap my fingers. When you wake up, you are not going to remember anything I said. But from now on, you will probably be getting more flashes of memory, which will eventually lead to your recovery. One, two, three, four, five.'

At the snap of his fingers, Clarice's eyes opened and she sat up from the chaise lounge she had been lying on. 'How do you feel, Clarice?'

'Relaxed.' She replied as Bo walked over to her. 'More relaxed than I've ever been before.

'Good, we will do 3 more sessions of this. Have some of this before you go.' He poured something from a kettle into a small wooden cup and gave it to her. 'It's a special herbal tea.'

Clarice thanked him and drank it. 'The results of this therapy won't be instantaneous. But it will yield positive results in due time.'

'Thank you, Dr. Montalvo.' Clarice said, hoping he was right.

Walking back to Hank and Soledad's house hand in hand, Clarice looked pensive but when she turned to look at Bo, she was smiling.

'This was a good idea. All of a sudden I feel more positive.'

Bo pulled her closer, slipping his arm round her waist. 'Like Montalvo said, in due time you'll remember more.' Clarice had asked Bo to give her a few more details about herself and he had.

'Yeah but...' she now frowned. 'I'm still trying to get over the fact that Nicholas is my son, a son I still don't remember. Or... that I actually left you.'

'Hey, hey...' stopping, Bo held her face between his palms. 'We're together now and we're going to stay together. After all these years we found each other... that's what you should focus on. No more negative thoughts, okay?'

Clarice nodded. 'Okay.'

Pressing a kiss on her mouth, he led them up the path, wondering how she would react to the surprise he had in store for her that night.

The rest of the day was spent walking around the ancient Ball Court and then the village where they bought some novelties Ciara and the rest of the family might like.

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'Where are we going?' Clarice said yet again as Bo led her through a thicket that evening.

'You'll see in a minute princess, we're almost there.'

Clarice kept a tight grip of his hand, feeling excited. From his whispered conversation with Hank and Soledad, she had a feeling he was planning a surprise and to her chagrin, failed to get a single hint from him.

'Now we're here.' Bo pulled her forward and removed the blindfold covering her eyes, watching the astounded look on her face. They were in a clearing in the woods, lit by two flaming torches. There was a checked blanket on the ground, with a basket.

'Oh my... what's this then?' she asked in wonder. 'Did... did we do this years ago?'

'Yeah, the night before our symbolic wedding.' Bo nodded. 'In ancient times, it was a Mayan ritual a betrothed couple observed the night before their wedding. They take torches,' he took one and handed to her before taking the other. 'And light a fire.' He added, indicating the pile of sticks set up for a bonfire.

Clarice was enchanted by the whole setup. 'What is the significance of the lighting the fire?'

Bo smiled at her. 'They light a fire because the flames represent strength and warmth. They stand in its glow and feel their own strength and warmth from another flame. A fire lit by the couple symbolises the strength and warmth between them. The glow never goes out. Like ours, princess.'

'That's so beautiful.' Clarice whispered.

'Shall we?'

'Of course.'

Simultaneously, they lit the fire and the flames slowly licked their way through the sticks, evolving to a glowing blaze.

Bo placed the torches safely back on the stand, before going back to Clarice. Taking her hand, he pulled her down on the blanket. 'First,' he said, producing a bouquet of multicoloured flowers from the basket, presenting it to her.

'They're beautiful, thank you.' Clarice said, pressing a kiss on Bo's cheek before sniffing them. Pleased, Bo burrowed into the basket again, bringing out a bottle and two glasses. Clarice watched as he filled one with golden liquid and gave it to her, pouring some for himself.

'This is delicious, what's it called?' she asked, after taking a sip.

'Xtabentún.'

She repeated the name, nodding in approval after taking another sip. 'It sort tastes like mead, only stronger.'

'Fermented honey and anise seed. Not to mention nectar from the Xtabentún plant, that's how it got its name. We had this that night too. You like?'

Carly would have replied 'I love,' but Clarice smiled wider and nodded again. 'The drink, the setting and my boyfriend... him especially.'

Bo smiled back at her, before bringing out the snacks Soledad prepared for them from the basket.

After their meal, Bo filled their glasses again. 'What was I like back then?'

'Far more stubborn than you are now.' Clarice made a face at him and he laughed. 'You did ask, princess. But you were also selfless and kind, a really dedicated doctor and you cared a lot about saving the environment.'

'And you?'

Bo grimaced as he thought about their not so good first start. 'I had a terrible temper. I know, I still got it but I wasn't so good at keeping it back then. At the beginning, when we were first getting to know each other, we fought half the time.'

Clarice's eyes widened and he went on, 'I was still hurting over Hope's death, supposed death. And suddenly there you were, so beautiful and smart. I didn't want you getting attached to me and I didn't want to fall in love with you. I was afraid of my feelings, afraid if I let you into my heart, it would end up getting broken all over again, if anything happened to you too.'
 Reaching out, he took her hand, squeezing it. 'I made mistakes of my own, princess. Our symbolic wedding would've been legal if only I'd done the right thing instead of leaving you vulnerable to my own father.'

Clarice shuddered at the idea of being married to Victor, still unable to believe she'd been that naive. 'I'm so sorry...'

'No, I'm sorry. I didn't take the chance when I should've.  if I had, that marriage wouldn't have happened.'

'But we got together in the end.'

'We sure did.' Letting go of her hand, he touched her face, running his thumb across her lower lip. 'While we were here, toasting to the future and letting go of the past, I suddenly wondered if maybe we should wait after the annulment and make it legal.'

'I said "no" right? Not after all that time apart.'

Bo nodded again, smiling.


'I love you,' Carly told him earnestly. ' I want to marry you now, and not next month or next year or even next week. NOW.'

'You're sure?'

'Yes, I'm sure! I don't need a piece of paper to tell me it's real, I know it's real. I love you so much, and I want to be with you forever. I want the whole world to know it.'


Clarice blinked back her tears as Bo told her what she'd said to him. 'Thank you for this. For bringing me back here, for everything. I want to remember our past, so badly.'

'You will, I know you will in due time. But for now, we've got the rest of the night. Let's just enjoy being together, okay?'

'Yes, you're right. So... did we do anything else here that night?'

Bo was relieved to see that the pensive look on her face was replaced by a glint in her eyes. 'Why do you ask?'

Setting her glass down, she moved closer to cradle his face between her palms. 'I figure that if we did, then we should re-enact it, right?' She began kissing him, hands already busy with the buttons on his shirt.

'Actually,' Bo whispered against her lips, hands moving up her breasts, 'we decided to wait after the wedding.'

'Are you kidding?' the shirt slid down his shoulders.

'Trust me, it was more than worth it.' Impatient, the blouse ripped under his hands and was flung away; heated chests moulded as they drew in a tight embrace, exchanging caresses and passionate kisses. Lowering her on the blanket, the rest of their clothes gotten rid of; Bo took Clarice urgently, bringing her to new heights of passion.