A/N: Another short chapter. I've pretty much finished this story so now I'm revising it a bit. Thanks as always to Hughville for helping me with this :) Any mistakes are my own.

Chapter Ten

"Oh my God, that was actually fun," she laughed as they drove back to the hotel.

"A little close for comfort but really, if they caught us, what's the worst that could happen? You signed the paperwork so it's technically your house. If they looked it up or called Karen she'd verify it."

"I know, it just would've been embarrassing. The neighbors would be all "like, oh-my-god, it's our new neighbor and she's totally getting arrested. We should shun her so she'll leave. We can't like, have people like that living in this neighborhood."

House laughed at her Valley girl-type accent. "Okay I think you're overthinking things way too much."

"Probably. Anyway, I'll call Karen in the morning and see if I can get the seller's number from her. I can't just sit back and wait."

"They'll find him."

"Not if we find him first," she said as she glanced over at him. Her face was serious.

"What do you mean we? You got a mouse in your pocket over there? You going to look for him now?"

"Got a better idea? He may be alive now, but for how long?"

"You should just call the cops," House told her.

"Right. They haven't found him yet, what good are they going to be? Not to mention, they're going to want to know how I know all that about him and will probably think I was behind it somehow."

"That's a load of crap, Gin. When the kid is found alive they're not going to give a shit how you found him, just that you did."

She glanced over at him and saw that he was rubbing his thigh as he talked. "Your leg okay?"

"Yeah, I think I just landed wrong when I hopped the fence. Twisted my knee a bit."

"You're not massaging your knee though," she pointed out. "You've been massaging your thigh since we got in the car. Tomorrow I want you to go get it looked at."

He groaned but the look on her face told him she wasn't messing around. "I'll make the appointment and drag you there myself if I have to but you're going."

"Yes, Mother," he said with a groan and a roll of his eyes.

"I'm not your mother."

"You got that right."

"And don't roll your eyes at me, either, Gregory."

He laughed. "Ohh, now I know I'm in trouble. You're certainly acting like my mother, calling me Gregory, and all that."

"Would your mother do this?" she asked as she leaned over and began rubbing him through his pants.

"Jesus, Gin. Do you ever stop being horny?"

"Do you?"

He gave her a wicked smirk. "Touche."

Gin tossed and turned. Unable to get the visions and feelings of the boy out of her head. After realizing that sleep wasn't going to come, she got up and went into the other room to examine the items she brought back from the house with her.

She closed her eyes and touched the boy's picture with one hand, and the golden earring with the other. The images and sounds that came to her mind were instant. She saw a building, pipes, what looked like a basement, and a cot with someone lying on it. She knew it was the boy, however she didn't know what the building was or where it would be.

He was still alive, and she was damn well going to make sure he stayed that way. Reaching for the phone, she called the local police.

"Maricopa County Sheriff's office."

"Hi, I have some information about a missing teen."

Two days later, while Gin slept House watched TV while eating his breakfast.

"We have some breaking news. Missing local boy Marty Balfour has been found alive and is now with his family," the news anchor announced.

House's eyes went wide as he watched the live coverage of the boy, the same boy in the picture Gin took from the house, being reunited with his parents.

"Gin! Get in here!"

"It's eight A.M!" she called out from the bedroom.

"You're gonna want to see this!"

She groaned as she climbed out of bed and trudged into the living area. "What?"

"Look," he said, pointing to the TV.

She turned to the TV and watched with wide eyes. "Wow. I can't believe it."

"You called the police, didn't you?"

She sighed and sat down. "I had to. It was driving me crazy not doing anything. I gave them as much info as I could. Turns out they're not a bunch of idiots after all. They had nothing, and I gave them something. Apparently it was enough for them to go on and find him. So I'm glad."

"I'm glad too," he nodded as he looked at her. She seemed happy and at peace. She also looked amazingly tempting in her flimsy tank top and shorts.

She glanced at him and then smiled, somewhat impishly, at him. "Care to come back to bed with me, Dr. House?"

"Aren't you hungry? Breakfast will be over soon."

"I have another kind of morning sausage in mind," she said and then walked toward the bedroom, giving him a sultry smile over her shoulder.

House took his cereal bowl and spoon and dumped it in the sink as he followed her.

House's cell phone rang early the next morning and he answered it before it could wake up Gin. She'd be getting up soon for work and he wanted to let her sleep.

"House," he whispered as he quietly left the room.

"It's me," Wilson said. "Why are you whispering?"

"It's six o'clock in the morning, you idiot."

"Oh, yeah. Sorry."

"Yeah, yeah, what do you want?"

"You need to come back. Cuddy and the director of the Board want to talk to you."

"I told you, I have no interest in working in their clinic."

"Maybe not but if you made it as a department head you wouldn't have to."

Wilson let that sink in and the silence told him that House was contemplating his words. "Fine. I'll come back. But if I don't like what they're offering, I'm getting back on the plane and going back to Phoenix."

"Fine."

"Fine."

House ended the call and climbed back into bed with Gin, who was slowly beginning to stir.

"Who was that?" she asked sleepily.

"Wilson. I have to go."

She opened her eyes. "Back to Princeton?"

"Yeah. Wilson said there was an offer on the table so I might as well go and check it out."

"Yes you should," she said as she sat up.

House frowned. "Just like that, huh? You don't want me to stay?"

Gin rolled her eyes. "Of course I want you to stay, but your home is in Princeton. You should at least hear them out. And if it's not what you want, then come back." She leaned over and softly kissed him. "You've always got a home here."

"Good to know," he whispered against her lips and lowered her back against the pillows.

"Greg...not now," she sighed as she placed her hands on his chest to fight him off, but her attempt was weak at best. "I have to get ready for work."

"You have some time. And I might be gone when you get home tonight."

"Mhm, so you want a send-off?"

"That's the plan, yeah."

"I think I can accommodate you."

"Ahh, Agent Wolfe. You finally decided to grace us with your presence this morning."

Gin turned around to face her supervisor, Agent David Jones. He was a few years older than she was, and the same height, but with a stocky build and a baby face.

"My shift starts in ten minutes, sir."

"Yes I know, so since you're here you can start now. It's been a very busy morning. I would've thought, given your special talents, you'd know this."

Gin cocked her head to one side. "What special talents would those be, sir?"

"Don't be coy with me, agent Wolfe. Your former supervisor tells me you have something of a sixth sense about people. And I heard that you found that missing boy."

"I didn't find him, the police did. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to take care of something before my shift starts in ten minutes."

She brushed past him and shuddered when she got to the locker room. He was nice enough, but he was a keener, new to his position and he wanted everything done his way, even if it wasn't convenient or necessary.

After a long shift, she came back to an empty hotel room and sighed. House had clearly left, however there was a note on the table with a flower he'd clearly picked from outside.

Gin,

I'll call you when I get in. Good luck with the move into the new place and behave yourself.

Greg

She read the letter again in his somewhat legible writing and placed it on the table beside the bed. The hotel room seemed quiet. Too quiet. She had gotten used to House watching TV in the other room late at night. Now there was only silence, save for the low hum of the air conditioning unit. She stretched out and hugged his pillow to her as she slowly drifted off to sleep, thinking about all the things she had to do.