Gentle Knock - Part 19
Title: A Gentle Knock at the Door, Part 19
Author: zeppomarx
Characters: House (of course - duh), Wilson, Cuddy, Chase and Foreman, and new folks.
Warnings and So On: NC-17 for concepts. H/W friendship (perhaps slash if you wear slash goggles)
Summary: A sequel to Priority's Exigencies, which is a sequel to DIY Sheep's The Contract, which has now spawned an incredible number of offshoots. The short version: House is a physical and emotional mess, having been wrongly imprisoned and tortured and all sorts of nasty stuff. It's about what happens next, and how House deals with it.
Timeline: Set nearly a year after the beginning of Exigencies.
Earlier parts here: Part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 , 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18
Comments: Be gentle. Flamers begone. Thanks to AW, GM and my medical guru TD, who tells me the medicine is okay, but the procedure is all messed up. Drama trumps medicine, or so I've heard.
Oh, Yeah, the Disclaimer: I certainly don't own House or any of the characters therein, although it would be nice if I did. They belong to David Shore & company. It's just that they waltzed into my head and wouldn't leave until I told their story.
TEASER: While Wilson sleeps...
___________________________________________
A Gentle Knock at the Door
Part 19
Naveen Ajunta tracked Wilson down in the observation room. Laying a hand on his colleague’s shoulder, he said, “You need to sleep.”
“I know,” said Wilson, who was bone tired. “I just have to know he’s all right.”
“Go to your office and lie down for a while,” Ajunta ordered. “I’ll come get you as soon as he’s out of surgery.”
Wilson nodded. He wasn’t sure he had enough energy even to get to the elevator.
* * * *
In the Diagnostics conference room, House’s department was absorbing the shocking news.
Despite his mixed feelings about House, Foreman was angry. Angry that somehow the man hadn’t been protected. He looked at Chase. He knew they were both wondering how House could possibly recover from this new blow. House hadn’t been in great shape to begin with-stubborn as all hell, yes, but physically devastated. And now, who knew if he was even going to survive? Yes, Foreman was angry.
Devi, who knew House the least, was the most overtly affected. “How could this happen?” she asked randomly. “How could anyone who called himself a doctor willfully jeopardize a patient and brutally attack someone in House’s condition?”
Chase shook his head and rubbed his forehead with both hands. “I don’t know, Devi. I don’t know. Pevey was a lazy guy, and always had a bit of a temper, but he’s never been quite right since his marriage broke up. You weren’t here then, but, oh lordy, it was ugly. The poor bloke had an affair, and House told his wife about it. He came home that night to find all of his stuff in the yard. He kind of dived off the deep end after that and never really swam out again.”
Devi looked startled. She hadn’t been around when House’s manipulations had that kind of mean edge to them, and so had trouble reconciling what she was hearing with the man she’d come to know.
“He couldn’t… Why would he do that?”
Foreman jumped in. “Because House is an ass. Pevey wouldn’t operate on one of House’s patients, so he blackmailed Pevey and threatened to go to his wife about the affair. Pevey did the surgery, and House, for whatever reason, told his wife anyway. Like I said, he’s an ass.”
Even though Foreman might not have noticed it-probably because he had such strong preconceived opinions of House-Chase had become aware that over the last few months, since he’d returned to work, House was considerably less manic and a lot less downright nasty than before. It hadn’t stopped him from being manipulative and occasionally infuriating, but now his intrigues seemed a lot more benign. An ass, yes, but an ass who had saved his life. And Foreman’s too-a fact Foreman seemed loathe to acknowledge.
“Sure,” said Chase, trying to present the other side, “he can be a total jerk, but no one deserves what’s happened to him. And to have it happen again… it’s unbelievable.”
* * * *
Two hours later, Ajunta knocked on Wilson’s door. Wilson woke with a start.
Peeking his head in, Ajunta said, “He’s out.”
Groggily shaking his head, Wilson stood up and trudged after Ajunta to the recovery room.
* * * *
PRINCETON, N.J. (AP) - Dr. Gregory House, the eminent diagnostician wrongfully imprisoned for murder more than six years ago, was attacked in his home last night. House, who was tortured both before and during his imprisonment as part of a vendetta by the late millionaire businessman Robert Thompson, is in critical condition at Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital (PPTH).
Agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation have arrested Dr. Alan Pevey for the crime. Pevey, a former colleague of House who had been fired by the hospital earlier in the week for endangering the lives of two patients, was scheduled to face charges of unethical conduct by the American Medical Association next month.
The FBI had been at PPTH earlier in the day, looking into some disturbances concerning another patient, Maureen Adler, a former New York Times reporter who had also been falsely imprisoned and tortured in connection with Thompson’s vendetta against House. House, whose conviction was overturned nearly two years ago and who returned to his job at PPTH several months back, is the lead physician on Adler’s medical team.
According to FBI agent Joseph Roberts, Pevey conspired with two local television reporters from Channel 2-Princeton to create a staged video of Adler in the hospital with the intention of casting doubt both on the hospital’s ability to care for Adler and on House’s capabilities as her physician.
“This was one seriously disgruntled former employee,” said Roberts. “He wanted to discredit the hospital that had fired him and, in particular, Dr. House, whom he blamed for getting him fired.”
“We dismissed Dr. Pevey immediately after his actions directly compromised the health and wellbeing of two patients, one of whom was a patient of Dr. House,” said Dean of Medicine Dr. Lisa Cuddy, the hospital administrator. “Dr. House had nothing to do with the decision to fire Dr. Pevey. His dismissal was a unanimous decision by the board of directors.”
Allegedly, Pevey and some unnamed associates inside the hospital broke into Adler’s room late Wednesday night, moved her to another room, injuring her in the process, and staged a false television report from there. Hospital security video backs up these allegations. Charges are pending against the reporters and the station as well as the associates, former hospital employees, who had been paid by the station to cooperate.
Adler remains at the hospital in critical condition. She is currently under FBI protection, as is House.
Three federal agents, including Roberts, interrupted Pevey’s attack on House, Robert said. “Dr. House, who still suffers serious physical damage from his imprisonment and the trauma connected with it, was virtually defenseless during the assault,” said Roberts. “This is an incredibly brave man-one I’m proud to know-but there was nothing he could do to protect himself.”
Roberts said that House, who walks with crutches as a result of his previous injuries, was knocked down by Pevey and attacked with one of his own crutches. The full extent of his latest injuries is not known at this time. House is considered by many to be one of the greatest medical minds alive today.
Roberts asks that anyone with information pertaining either to the conspiracy against PPTH or the assault on Gregory House to contact the FBI’s Princeton office.
* * * *
When the real press-not the tabloid variety-got hold of the information that an insane old bastard of a doctor had colluded with Channel 2 to shoot trumped-up video of a seriously ill patient, had injured her, and had violently assaulted the now-infamous Dr. Gregory House, leaving him in critical condition, it was game, set, match.
As the news hit the wire services, even Channel 2’s less-than-ethical owner couldn’t ignore the legal implications of what her staff had done. Sally Juniper and Neal Hutchins were promptly fired, before the competition had a chance to report their part in this breaking story. As they left the station, they were arrested.
PPTH and House had won the PR war without firing a shot. Roberts had been right.
Rainie’s New York Times colleague Evan Schuster woke up late that morning. Grabbing a cereal bar, he ran for the subway, barely getting to the Times by 10 a.m. Making his way to the third-floor newsroom, he plopped himself down at his desk and, as he always did, started scanning the wire service headlines.
I’ve got to stop taking time out to sleep, he thought, astonished at what he was reading. There’s some bat-shit crazy people out there. And they all seemed to have it in for Gregory House.
* * * *
Cautiously, Rainie opened her eyes. Her doctor, the one who looked so familiar, the one with the deep soft voice, the blue eyes and the hands, wasn’t there. Again.
In his chair was the other one, the small, attractive Asian woman. Rainie searched the room. He wasn’t anywhere.
“Rainie,” said the woman. “Good morning. I don’t know if you remember me-I’m Dr. Liu.”
She looked at the woman with a mixture of anxiety and distrust.
Dr. Liu reached her hand out slowly toward Rainie, who pulled away in fear and began to shiver. Jacey removed her hand.
“It’s okay, Rainie. I won’t hurt you,” she said.
Rainie thought about it. So far, this woman hadn’t hurt her… but how could she be sure she wouldn’t? Where was her doctor?
“Where?” she asked.
“Where what?” replied Jacey.
“Where is my doctor?” she asked slowly.
Dr. Liu paused. “I’m your doctor,” she answered.
Rainie didn’t like this answer. She began to hyperventilate.
“It’s okay, Rainie. It’s okay.”
“No! My doctor. Where is my doctor?”
Jacey realized she was going to have to deal with House’s absence somehow.
“I’m sorry, Rainie. He isn’t here,” she said, accidentally echoing the same phrase House used when Rainie had asked about her daughter.
The hyperventilating got worse.
“Can you bring him to me?”
Again, Jacey stumbled onto the phrasing that had prefaced Rainie’s learning of her daughter’s death. “I can’t, Rainie. I really can’t.”
Suddenly, Rainie tumbled into the throes of a full-fledged panic attack. She couldn’t catch her breath, her heart was racing and she began to sweat. She looked around the room frantically, crying out for the doctor who, at that moment, couldn’t help her. He couldn’t even help himself.
Stay tuned...
Author: zeppomarx
Characters: House (of course - duh), Wilson, Cuddy, Chase and Foreman, and new folks.
Warnings and So On: NC-17 for concepts. H/W friendship (perhaps slash if you wear slash goggles)
Summary: A sequel to Priority's Exigencies, which is a sequel to DIY Sheep's The Contract, which has now spawned an incredible number of offshoots. The short version: House is a physical and emotional mess, having been wrongly imprisoned and tortured and all sorts of nasty stuff. It's about what happens next, and how House deals with it.
Timeline: Set nearly a year after the beginning of Exigencies.
Earlier parts here: Part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 , 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18
Comments: Be gentle. Flamers begone. Thanks to AW, GM and my medical guru TD, who tells me the medicine is okay, but the procedure is all messed up. Drama trumps medicine, or so I've heard.
Oh, Yeah, the Disclaimer: I certainly don't own House or any of the characters therein, although it would be nice if I did. They belong to David Shore & company. It's just that they waltzed into my head and wouldn't leave until I told their story.
TEASER: While Wilson sleeps...
___________________________________________
A Gentle Knock at the Door
Part 19
Naveen Ajunta tracked Wilson down in the observation room. Laying a hand on his colleague’s shoulder, he said, “You need to sleep.”
“I know,” said Wilson, who was bone tired. “I just have to know he’s all right.”
“Go to your office and lie down for a while,” Ajunta ordered. “I’ll come get you as soon as he’s out of surgery.”
Wilson nodded. He wasn’t sure he had enough energy even to get to the elevator.
* * * *
In the Diagnostics conference room, House’s department was absorbing the shocking news.
Despite his mixed feelings about House, Foreman was angry. Angry that somehow the man hadn’t been protected. He looked at Chase. He knew they were both wondering how House could possibly recover from this new blow. House hadn’t been in great shape to begin with-stubborn as all hell, yes, but physically devastated. And now, who knew if he was even going to survive? Yes, Foreman was angry.
Devi, who knew House the least, was the most overtly affected. “How could this happen?” she asked randomly. “How could anyone who called himself a doctor willfully jeopardize a patient and brutally attack someone in House’s condition?”
Chase shook his head and rubbed his forehead with both hands. “I don’t know, Devi. I don’t know. Pevey was a lazy guy, and always had a bit of a temper, but he’s never been quite right since his marriage broke up. You weren’t here then, but, oh lordy, it was ugly. The poor bloke had an affair, and House told his wife about it. He came home that night to find all of his stuff in the yard. He kind of dived off the deep end after that and never really swam out again.”
Devi looked startled. She hadn’t been around when House’s manipulations had that kind of mean edge to them, and so had trouble reconciling what she was hearing with the man she’d come to know.
“He couldn’t… Why would he do that?”
Foreman jumped in. “Because House is an ass. Pevey wouldn’t operate on one of House’s patients, so he blackmailed Pevey and threatened to go to his wife about the affair. Pevey did the surgery, and House, for whatever reason, told his wife anyway. Like I said, he’s an ass.”
Even though Foreman might not have noticed it-probably because he had such strong preconceived opinions of House-Chase had become aware that over the last few months, since he’d returned to work, House was considerably less manic and a lot less downright nasty than before. It hadn’t stopped him from being manipulative and occasionally infuriating, but now his intrigues seemed a lot more benign. An ass, yes, but an ass who had saved his life. And Foreman’s too-a fact Foreman seemed loathe to acknowledge.
“Sure,” said Chase, trying to present the other side, “he can be a total jerk, but no one deserves what’s happened to him. And to have it happen again… it’s unbelievable.”
* * * *
Two hours later, Ajunta knocked on Wilson’s door. Wilson woke with a start.
Peeking his head in, Ajunta said, “He’s out.”
Groggily shaking his head, Wilson stood up and trudged after Ajunta to the recovery room.
* * * *
PRINCETON, N.J. (AP) - Dr. Gregory House, the eminent diagnostician wrongfully imprisoned for murder more than six years ago, was attacked in his home last night. House, who was tortured both before and during his imprisonment as part of a vendetta by the late millionaire businessman Robert Thompson, is in critical condition at Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital (PPTH).
Agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation have arrested Dr. Alan Pevey for the crime. Pevey, a former colleague of House who had been fired by the hospital earlier in the week for endangering the lives of two patients, was scheduled to face charges of unethical conduct by the American Medical Association next month.
The FBI had been at PPTH earlier in the day, looking into some disturbances concerning another patient, Maureen Adler, a former New York Times reporter who had also been falsely imprisoned and tortured in connection with Thompson’s vendetta against House. House, whose conviction was overturned nearly two years ago and who returned to his job at PPTH several months back, is the lead physician on Adler’s medical team.
According to FBI agent Joseph Roberts, Pevey conspired with two local television reporters from Channel 2-Princeton to create a staged video of Adler in the hospital with the intention of casting doubt both on the hospital’s ability to care for Adler and on House’s capabilities as her physician.
“This was one seriously disgruntled former employee,” said Roberts. “He wanted to discredit the hospital that had fired him and, in particular, Dr. House, whom he blamed for getting him fired.”
“We dismissed Dr. Pevey immediately after his actions directly compromised the health and wellbeing of two patients, one of whom was a patient of Dr. House,” said Dean of Medicine Dr. Lisa Cuddy, the hospital administrator. “Dr. House had nothing to do with the decision to fire Dr. Pevey. His dismissal was a unanimous decision by the board of directors.”
Allegedly, Pevey and some unnamed associates inside the hospital broke into Adler’s room late Wednesday night, moved her to another room, injuring her in the process, and staged a false television report from there. Hospital security video backs up these allegations. Charges are pending against the reporters and the station as well as the associates, former hospital employees, who had been paid by the station to cooperate.
Adler remains at the hospital in critical condition. She is currently under FBI protection, as is House.
Three federal agents, including Roberts, interrupted Pevey’s attack on House, Robert said. “Dr. House, who still suffers serious physical damage from his imprisonment and the trauma connected with it, was virtually defenseless during the assault,” said Roberts. “This is an incredibly brave man-one I’m proud to know-but there was nothing he could do to protect himself.”
Roberts said that House, who walks with crutches as a result of his previous injuries, was knocked down by Pevey and attacked with one of his own crutches. The full extent of his latest injuries is not known at this time. House is considered by many to be one of the greatest medical minds alive today.
Roberts asks that anyone with information pertaining either to the conspiracy against PPTH or the assault on Gregory House to contact the FBI’s Princeton office.
* * * *
When the real press-not the tabloid variety-got hold of the information that an insane old bastard of a doctor had colluded with Channel 2 to shoot trumped-up video of a seriously ill patient, had injured her, and had violently assaulted the now-infamous Dr. Gregory House, leaving him in critical condition, it was game, set, match.
As the news hit the wire services, even Channel 2’s less-than-ethical owner couldn’t ignore the legal implications of what her staff had done. Sally Juniper and Neal Hutchins were promptly fired, before the competition had a chance to report their part in this breaking story. As they left the station, they were arrested.
PPTH and House had won the PR war without firing a shot. Roberts had been right.
Rainie’s New York Times colleague Evan Schuster woke up late that morning. Grabbing a cereal bar, he ran for the subway, barely getting to the Times by 10 a.m. Making his way to the third-floor newsroom, he plopped himself down at his desk and, as he always did, started scanning the wire service headlines.
I’ve got to stop taking time out to sleep, he thought, astonished at what he was reading. There’s some bat-shit crazy people out there. And they all seemed to have it in for Gregory House.
* * * *
Cautiously, Rainie opened her eyes. Her doctor, the one who looked so familiar, the one with the deep soft voice, the blue eyes and the hands, wasn’t there. Again.
In his chair was the other one, the small, attractive Asian woman. Rainie searched the room. He wasn’t anywhere.
“Rainie,” said the woman. “Good morning. I don’t know if you remember me-I’m Dr. Liu.”
She looked at the woman with a mixture of anxiety and distrust.
Dr. Liu reached her hand out slowly toward Rainie, who pulled away in fear and began to shiver. Jacey removed her hand.
“It’s okay, Rainie. I won’t hurt you,” she said.
Rainie thought about it. So far, this woman hadn’t hurt her… but how could she be sure she wouldn’t? Where was her doctor?
“Where?” she asked.
“Where what?” replied Jacey.
“Where is my doctor?” she asked slowly.
Dr. Liu paused. “I’m your doctor,” she answered.
Rainie didn’t like this answer. She began to hyperventilate.
“It’s okay, Rainie. It’s okay.”
“No! My doctor. Where is my doctor?”
Jacey realized she was going to have to deal with House’s absence somehow.
“I’m sorry, Rainie. He isn’t here,” she said, accidentally echoing the same phrase House used when Rainie had asked about her daughter.
The hyperventilating got worse.
“Can you bring him to me?”
Again, Jacey stumbled onto the phrasing that had prefaced Rainie’s learning of her daughter’s death. “I can’t, Rainie. I really can’t.”
Suddenly, Rainie tumbled into the throes of a full-fledged panic attack. She couldn’t catch her breath, her heart was racing and she began to sweat. She looked around the room frantically, crying out for the doctor who, at that moment, couldn’t help her. He couldn’t even help himself.
Stay tuned...