Case File No. 2738

Part 3

Week 43:

(Personal comment: I am starting to think that, whether Mr. Grayson’s who he claims to be true or not, this might become something I should explore with more depth.)

Mr. Grayson arrived early, explaining he had to get in and out as he had to drive to Gotham for his father’s birthday. As I had the time free, I agreed. He said he was looking forward to the party that was planned as he expected to be seeing several old friends. When pressed, he admitted that one of the people there would be a woman he was once engaged to, though the engagement was broken off. He said that while they weren’t in touch, he hoped to reestablish some part of their relationship this evening, or—at the least—to reestablish some kind of contact.

I asked if he believed the woman might be open to seeing him again and he was unsure but seemed determined to try. He appeared to me to have what might be an unhealthy obsession with this woman who, he admitted, could be both cold and self-centered, often dismissing his needs and desires. He reluctantly elaborated y saying she would often ‘run hot and cold’ with him, would refuse to commit and would often ridicule him. He admitted that she would often use belittling pet names and nicknames which she knew to be an annoyance to him. He also admitted that she was uninterested in having relations with him, using a physical handicap as an excuse to refuse him.

When I said that this might not be a healthy or nourishing relationship for either of them he became defensive and denied my suggestions.

He became agitated and left the appointment.

Week 44:

Mr. Grayson declined to discuss how the birthday party went last week, only saying it was ‘fine’ and refusing to in any way say what happened with the woman he’d hoped to reconnect with. I presume that it did not go as planed as his demeanor was subdued.

He did say that the party itself went well, though he is clearly disappointed by his interactions with his former girlfriend. He also said she had his ring with her and returned it to him at the end of the evening.

He also, when asked, said that his father seemed pleased with how it had gone and wanted to make a point of spending some time with Mr. Grayson and the other youngster who is living in the family circle. Mr. Grayson mentioned that he might be away for a few weeks while they ‘go off to bond’.

Judging from his demeanor when he said that, I believe that this is something which doesn’t happen often in this family and something which Mr. Grayson both misses and needs.

There is a clear lack of warmth between these people and I believe that Mr. Grayson has often felt the lack while he was being raised in a relatively cold atmosphere where he was expected to act and behave far beyond his age. While he is remarkably self possessed and self-reliant, I feel he has become so, in part, as a way to gain approval from his foster father.

Week 45:

To my surprise I received a letter from the legal department of Wayne Enterprises today. In essence, it made clear that if I were to ever, in any way, compromise the confidentiality assured between myself and Mr. Grayson—and possibly, by extension, Mr. Wayne, there would be immediate and firm legal repercussions.

I debated about whether to involve Mr. Grayson in this and decided that it would accomplish nothing to shield him from the heavy-handed threat from his father.

He was angry when shown the letter, saying he would speak to Mr. Wayne that day and left early to do so.

He called me later that day, saying Mr. Wayne is very concerned about possible ‘security breaches’ and would like to speak with me himself. I agreed and a meeting was set up for next week, with Mr. Grayson present.

While I concede that Mr. Wayne (and his son) have reason to be concerned regarding personal safety in an age of corporate terrorism, I see a real sense of paranoia in both men and should be addressed.

Week 46:

This session began with my asking Mr. Grayson if he had discussed last week’s letter with Mr. Wayne and he replied that he had. He stated that Mr. Wayne had no knowledge of the letter, insisted that he had nothing to do with it’s being drafted or sent and would launch an investigation about how it had been written and sent. When I asked Mr. Grayson if he believed this he laughed and shook his head.

I then asked him if Mr. Wayne was in the habit of intruding in confidential and highly personal areas of his family members. The patient said that Mr. Wayne had his own ways of doing things and that he was basically harmless. He further stated that anyone who had ever met Bruce Wayne would know that he didn’t have the wherewithal to plan or enact such a thing, even if it did occur to him to do so. Patient stated that Mr. Wayne’s main interests involved ‘playing golf, going to parties and getting laid’.

He further suggested that it was likely that one of his father’s underlings had written the letter in an effort to forestall any possible tell-alls or leaks to the press and to garner
‘brownie points’.

Mr. Grayson seemed remarkably unconcerned about this serious breach of doctor/patient confidentiality and I asked if this was normal for him.

He responded that ‘Bruce sort of lives in his own world; people try to protect him and he pays very well to be protected. Sometimes it gets a little carried away. He told me it wouldn’t happen again, though so ‘don’t worry about it.’

I strongly suspect that Mr. Grayson is, at best, dissembling the truth and likely knows significantly more about how this letter was written than he is willing to admit. I also suspect that he is used to having his privacy blatantly violated.

It’s clear to me that Mr. Grayson enables Mr. Wayne to wallow in his paranoia and fantasy world of spies and danger.

Week 47:

Mr. Grayson cancelled.

Week 48:

A man identifying himself as a Mr. Pennyworth called; saying the Master Grayson had asked him to cancel his appointment.

Week 49:

Mr. Pennyworth canceled for Mr. Grayson.

Week 50:

No-show.

Week 51:

No-show.

Week 51:

Mr. Grayson appeared for this week’s appointment. He appeared thinner than usual, was obviously tired and had several bruises visible below his short sleeves and in the ‘v’ of his shirt. Despite this he was agitated and angry when he sat down. He was anxious to unburden himself and began straight away.

I asked him what had caused the bruises and he deflected the question. I asked why he’d canceled five appointments and he said he’d ‘been busy’. He then said that he’d been forced to help the Justice League in a major fight against Deathstroke, that Batman had been ‘kicked out of the fucking League’ and that he had been ‘strong-armed into leading them because none of them could get their shit together—as if that’s unusual’.

After several months of virtually no mention of his superhero alternate life-style, I was somewhat surprised to have it back with such force. I asked Mr. Grayson why Batman had been expelled and he replied ‘they found out he’d made files detailing how to take the members down in case it became necessary and they kind of flipped out’. He added that ‘Arsenal and Flash had gone along with the damn vote’ and seemed to take it as a personal betrayal.

When asked why he said they’d been friends since they were eleven years old, had all founded the Teen Titans together and he’d expected more from them.

He continued in this vein for the entire session, going over by twenty minutes. He was somewhat less agitated when he left but is clearly extremely upset.

I’m still undecided if this truly is a fantasy or may have some basis in reality. The hero role playing delusion is so common it seems the only possible explanation but the detail Mr. Grayson has, along with the level of certainty and the vastness of his personal resources and abilities makes me doubt the obvious diagnosis.

Without a definite diagnosis after a year, I can’t help man.

Week 52:

Mr. Grayson is still upset about Batman’s shoddy treatment by the JLA.

He spoke for almost the entire session about the shortcomings of the various members, with only Superman not being brought under Mr. Grayson’s intense and seemingly astute analysis as to why the information on how to stop the superpowered members, should it be needed, is vital.

He talked at great length about the common sense of the back up plan—insisting that’s all it is and I have to admit his logic seems sound.

Finally, in both an effort to change the subject and to address a new situation, I asked Mr. Grayson about the more salacious rumors involving Batman and Robin the new Kitty Kelly book, released this week. I specifically asked if the rumor regarding Wonder Girl aborting Robin’s baby had any truth to them.

He asked me ‘why the fuck I’d waste time with crap like that’ and I replied that it would give me insight into his relationships with women. He was annoyed by the question, stated that WG was merely a close friend, they’d never dated, let along had relations and while he hadn’t read the latest book, he would likely have his lawyers go over it for possible lawsuits. He then added that WG had been through enough and didn’t need this right now. He explained that she’d recently been divorced and then lost her ex husband, her step-daughter and their son in a car accident and was still trying to come to grips with her losses.

Week: 53:

Last evening Batman appeared in my office—I say appeared because one moment I was alone and the next I wasn’t.

He is frightening in the extreme and I was immediately defensive and feared both for my life and my mental health as he is, indeed, horrifying to be accosted by.

He made it clear that he’s aware that Nightwing is seeing me, has been seeing for a year now and that the young man is breaking every code of security and safety they’ve lived by in his visits to me. He added that he’s fully aware of what we’d discussed and that I was making full notes on every session. He told me that should any of that information eve—and he stressed that—he would personally make sure I was made to understand the gravity of that breach and the degree of danger I’d be subjecting people to. The he added ‘Not just people—my friends and my family and that would be unacceptable to me’.

He then disappeared as quickly and mysteriously as he arrived, leaving me shaken and, frankly, terrified.

I started Mr. Grayson’s session this week with a recounting of the encounter and his reaction was unexpected. He calmly nodded and said ‘That sounds like something he’d do’. When asked if he considered this type of intimidation acceptable he responded that he didn’t, but knew that was fairly standard for ‘The Bat’ and he wasn’t surprised that I’d been visited.

He then asked if he would be more comfortable if he changed to another therapist. In all honesty, I am no longer comfortable treating Mr. Grayson but am coming to believe that he is, indeed, who he claims to be and, as such, is in obvious need of someone to give him perspective and an unbiased viewpoint regarding his activities and his life.

As a professional it’s my job to help this young man as long as he wants and needs my help.

However, for my own protection, I am making copies of these tapes and will continue to do so every week. I’ll leave the copies in a secure location with instructions that they be published should any threats continue against me by members of Mr. Grayson’s family or should anything happen to me.

I informed Mr. Grayson of my decision and his reaction was to tell me that I was making a serious mistake.

I didn’t press the issue, though I’m quite sure that these files have been compromised and are being read, probably by ‘The Bat’ as Mr. Grayson refers to him, though the patient has said he will speak to his adoptive father regarding this gross invasion of his privacy.

Clearly, this is unacceptable on both a personal and a professional level and can’t be tolerated. Furthermore, it is compromising my treatment of my patient and is a distraction to everyone concerned.


4/6/08
 

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