Disclaimer: All recognisable characters belong to Pixar. All OCs belong to me.

Chapter 10

January 1991

Lightning was out of control. Again. He'd turned three years old only a week ago, and although some wild behaviour was to be expected, this clearly was not normal behaviour for a toddler. Gracie sighed with frustration as she watched her little charge careering all around the house, crashing helplessly into the walls and furniture. Mr Hood was also watching the scene with wide, concerned eyes.

Thank goodness Mr and Mrs McQueen aren't home to see this, Gracie thought. Then again, I wish they were… Perhaps then Mrs McQueen will believe me when I tell her that there is something wrong with Lightning.

"Lightning! Please, stop!" Gracie begged as he dashed past her once again. But then she noticed something. Lightning was hyperventilating and he looked terrified.

He can't stop! she realised with despair.

"What should we do?" Mr Hood wondered.

"Let him wear himself out. But this is the worst he's ever been. I'm not sure if or when he'll stop."

"I'll phone Dr Wheel," Mr Hood decided.

Gracie nodded her approval. Lightning raced past her again. Clearly, he wasn't about to slow down anytime soon.

Mr Hood returned to the hallway. "Dr Wheel is on his way. He should be here in about half an hour."

"Thank you. Lightning…" Gracie sighed when she saw the young car collide head-on with the lift doors. She turned to Mr Hood. "He is completely out of control!"

"Let's try and grab him," Mr Hood suggested.

Gracie hesitated. "Someone could get hurt…"

"Who? Him or us? Come on. If we can't stop him by grabbing him, we'll let him go."

"Okay."

"Here he comes…"

Mr Hood and Gracie both made a dive for Lightning as he raced towards them. They tried to grab him with their forklift arms. For a brief moment, they managed to pin him down, but then, with a pained squeal, he wriggled free. Tears streamed down his hood as he drove back down the hallway. Gracie held up her arms.

"I am NOT doing that again! I don't want to hurt him."

Mr Hood had to agree. "Maybe we should ask the chef for help…"

The phone rang before Gracie could reply. Mr Hood answered it. After a moment, he hung up and turned to Gracie. "Dr Wheel is on his way up."

Sure enough, Dr Wheel emerged from the lift a few minutes later, only to be almost run over by Lightning as he raced past.

"Whoa!" the elderly white Land Rover exclaimed. "What was that?"

Gracie and Mr Hood drove over to him.

"That was Lightning," Gracie sighed.

"I see. And how long has he been like this?"

"Too long!"

"About forty-five minutes," Mr Hood answered, ignoring Gracie's response. "He's just completely out of control, and we can't stop him."

Dr Wheel nodded thoughtfully. Lightning raced between them again. He was still hyperventilating and he looked very distressed.

"Is this the first time he's done this?"

"No," Gracie replied. "He first started losing control of himself over a year ago. These episodes have been getting progressively worse and more frequent. This is the worst he's ever been."

"Right. Well, our priority right now is stopping him safely."

"We've tried, but we don't want to hurt him," Gracie said.

Dr Wheel looked thoughtful. "Let's try cornering him."

With the help of the chef, the four of them managed to herd Lightning into a corner in the lounge room. It was clear that Lightning had finally started to tire, but he still had plenty of pent-up energy left.

"Shh… It's okay Lightning," Gracie soothed. She was holding his favourite red blanket in her arms. "We need you to try and stop moving. Please."

Lightning was panting heavily. He could see the adults closing in on him. His eyes darted left and right as he looked for a way to escape. But there wasn't one. He started sobbing and revving his engine in distress. His engine was telling him to keep moving, but the rest of him was exhausted. Not knowing what to do, he turned towards the wall, trying to hide. He vaguely felt the blanket being draped over him.

"There now…" Gracie said gently. "Turn your engine off, please."

Whimpering, Lightning tried to. With a loud grid and a shudder, Lightning's engine finally fell silent. Breathing a heavy sigh of relief, Lightning collapsed onto his chassis.

Gracie scooped the exhausted toddler into her arms. He snuggled down against her body. Tears pricked Gracie's eyes as she looked up at Dr Wheel.

"What do you think is wrong with him?" she asked anxiously.

Dr Wheel looked equally as anxious as he looked down at lightning. "I'm not sure… I've never come across anything like this before. What about Mr and Mrs McQueen? Do they know about this?"

"In part," Gracie replied. "Mrs McQueen doesn't believe there's anything wrong with him, but Mr McQueen does at least listen to me when I express my concerns."

"Okay. I'll talk to them, personally. What time are they due home?"

"Mrs McQueen will be out until late," Mr Hood answered. "Mr McQueen should be back at about five-thirty – in half an hour."

Dr Wheel nodded. "I'll wait. Let's get Lightning comfortable for now. Poor kid."

Everyone looked down at Lightning, who was finally drifting off to sleep.

…

Half an hour later, Blaze returned home. He was surprised to find Dr Wheel waiting for him, and like any father would, he immediately panicked, believing that something terrible had happened to his only child.

"Where is he?" he growled, turning on Gracie.

"H-he's asleep in his room, sir," Gracie whispered. "Please don't wake him!"

"I seriously doubt even a hurricane would wake him after what's happened," Mr Hood muttered as Blaze hurried into Lightning's bedroom.

Blaze breathed a sigh of relief when he saw his young son sleeping contently in his cot. He turned on Dr Wheel.

"What is going on?"

"I think we should talk inside your study," Dr Wheel told him gravely.

Once Blaze and Dr Wheel were alone inside the study, the doctor slipped a card across the polished floor to Blaze. Frowning curiously, Blaze looked at it.

"Dr Spark…" he said, reading the name on the card.

"Dr Spark is THE best paediatrician in the country, if not the world," Dr Wheel explained. "He's a specialist in many infantile diseases and conditions, and unlike other paediatricians, he often keeps tabs on his patients well into adulthood. That helps him develop new treatments for even the rarest of illnesses. Fortunately, he's based right here in New York City."

"What's he got to do with Lightning?" Blaze wondered.

"Everything. I referring Lightning to him."

"Why?"

"Mr McQueen," Dr Wheel said in that firm listen-to-me-or-else tone that doctors often use. "Your son has a condition that is seriously affecting his behaviour. I know you're hardly ever here to see it, but your staff are, and they're very concerned. And having seen Lightning having one of his fit this evening, I can assure you that they aren't exaggerating. For the sake of your son's health, I'm ordering you to take him to see Dr Spark."

Blaze sighed heavily. "All right. I'll make an appointment." He dialled the number on the card. After a moment, someone on the other end answered. "Hello?" Blaze said. "Is that Dr Spark's office? Oh, good. I'd like to make an appointment for my son, Lightning McQueen. He's had a referral from his GP. How soon can you fit him in? Friday next week? At nine-thirty a.m.? Yes, that'll be fine. Thank you." He hung up the phone. "Happy now?"

"Yes. And I know you will be too once Lightning gets the specialist treatment he needs." Dr Wheel turned to leave.

"Dr Wheel?"

The doctor turned back around to face Blaze. "Yes?"

"What do you think is wrong with my son?"

"From what I've seen, he seems to have no control over his engine. That's all I'll say for now. Goodnight."

Dr Wheel left, closing the door behind him. Blaze sank down lower on his tyres, and he began to cry softly. All he'd ever wanted was a healthy son. Now, all his dreams were being shattered, and he had no control over it.

Please review! As I've said before I've really been struggling with the plot for the story, but I think I'm back on track at last. Please, let me know what you think.