I guess this is in honor of the primaries in New Hampshire

Chapter 86.

Gaspar's was a small French restaurant four streets away from House's new office. Anna and Pamela had obviously been there before, because the maitre d' greeted them by name. Soft music created an elegant atmosphere, helped by the small white tablecloth-covered table, chairs with plush seats, low lights, and sparkling crystal of the glasses and chandeliers.

The three women were seated near the front of the room and handed gilt-edged menus. Cameron stared at the prices and calculated she and House would rarely eat there. "What's good?" she asked Anna and Pamela.

"Oh, everything." Anna smiled at her over her menu. "My favorite is…"

But she never had a chance to say what it was. A woman at the next table clutched her throat as she rose from her seat. Her gagging sound was loud against the music.

Cameron rushed to her side. Her arms encircled the woman as she immediately started the Heimlich maneuver.

The man seated at that table shouted, "What do you think you're doing?"

"I'm a doctor." Cameron glared at him. "What did she eat?" The maneuver hadn't brought anything up.

He glanced at her plate. "She had the fish."

Cameron nodded. "There may be a bone stuck in her throat." She pulled out her penlight and forced the woman's mouth open, but couldn't see anything. "Call 9-1-1. We need to get her to the hospital quickly."

Anna and Pamela held back as Cameron tended to the woman, but after the paramedics arrived and took the woman away, Anna said, "I've had your lunch packed to-go. We'll talk more after the polls close and the votes are counted. There's a gathering planned at Pamela's to celebrate your victory and Will's, you know. We'll see you and House there."

"Thank you." Cameron didn't know what else to say.

"We'll drive you back to the clinic and return to the high school polling place."

House's morning was busy. After voting, he treated twelve new patients and two returning ones. Most had minor complaints, but three were more serious.

A middle-aged woman he'd never seen before had a viral infection he, unfortunately, had seen. "I can't treat this here," he told her. "We'll have to send you to a hospital in Baltimore. They're the only ones equipped to treat this." Twenty-five years earlier at Johns Hopkins the first patients with the particular virus were treated. "I'll call to let them know you're on your way." He also called an ambulance to transport her, telling the paramedics what her condition was and how serious.

A teenage boy came in wheezing. He was unaccompanied and didn't want House to call his parents, but since he didn't have a card to prove he had medical insurance to cover his treatment, House was unable to comply with his request.

His mother arrived promptly with her card, but refused to believe it when House told her the kid had been vaping and needed respiratory treatment at Snow Hill Mercy.

Another patient was having chest pains. After his lab guy, Jeff Mortimer ran a few tests, House ruled out a heart attack and sent the patient home with samples of Prilosec for acid reflux.

He looked forward to a meal and his usual lunchtime companions, but when he reached the diner, their booth was empty. He shrugged himself into his seat and stared. They all had important things to do, and all he'd done was push pills and send patients off to the hospital for treatment.

He ordered the special, meatloaf and mashed potatoes, and ate in silence when it came. His gaze kept straying to the door, but the only one who ever showed up was Jessica at twelve thirty, and she couldn't stay long.

"Got a late start because I had to go to the police station to complete paperwork, and never caught up." She looked at the empty seats. "Where is everyone?"

"No idea." He sipped his Coke.

No one else showed up but it gave Jess a chance to ask House, "Do you know whether any of the properties near you are for sale?"

"Thinking of buying land?" He wondered why Wilson never mentioned it.

"I hoped I could convince Jim to have a house built the way you and Cameron did." She bit her lip." I mean, with a dog and all, we could use a place for him to run."

"You could buy one in town." He couldn't believe they'd leave the Hanbury house.

"True."

"I think they're building out near the harbor, but that's mostly condos."

"Even a condo would work if there's a yard," she said.

"There's a yard at the Hanbury house."

She smirked. "And if we move out, you'll have to find new tenants who you can't control the way you do Jim."

"I control Wilson? He's a free man. He's always done what he wanted to do."

"Or what you've convince him he wanted." She stopped. "Sorry. I don't think you'd ever do anything to hurt him."

"He's my BFF."

"Right." There was a bitterness in her voice he'd never noticed before.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

She closed her eyes and shook her head. "Don't mind me. This business with Carruthers has all of my hostility coming out. I shouldn't aim it at you. You've always been nice to me." She smiled at him, a warm smile that softened all she'd said. "Truly, we love it at the Hanbury house."

House let it drop, at least temporarily, but was convinced there was more to her sudden desire for a house of their own.

They finished their lunches and went their separate ways.

Cameron's clinic was busy that afternoon. Here and there, she found the time to take a few bites of her food, but it was cold before she was halfway through it.

The hospital called to inform her they'd gotten the fish bone out of the woman's throat without further incident.

She completely forgot about the election until she received a call from Will, who needed reassurance they'd both win.

"I don't know about me," she said. "But you're sure to win. And when you do, you'll be terrific. Cosgrove never did anything to improve the town. He didn't have the vision you do."

"Thanks, that's good to hear. Guess I'm just nervous."

"That makes two of us. You heard about the party your mother-in-law is planning?"

"Yeah, and I hope she's prepared for the results to be different from what she expects."

"I was told to meet at the town hall where they're counting the ballots."

"See you there." Will sounded calmer than when the conversation started.

Anita filed the paperwork Jess had filled out, but her mind was on Steve. Where the hell was he? He wouldn't be so stupid as to come back to the motel in Shelby, would he? She vowed to look for his car and check with Zach when she had lunch at the diner.

But the criminals in Shelby had decided this was the day to act, and the calls she had to investigate kept her from having a lunch hour altogether. Somewhere along the line, one of the other officers handed her a sandwich. She wasn't sure what was in it, just ate it automatically as she drove all of town, catching one thief in the act, chasing another out toward the bay, breaking up a case of domestic violence and investigating a suspicious death. She'd also had to follow-up on the robbery at the sporting goods place. The last took the most time, because it had been a couple of days since the incident, and it was the only one she hadn't completely solved when she finished. A few of the items the store owner said were taken were later found in his storeroom while long after his first report, he came up with additional missing merchandise.

After each case was completed, she had to type up what she'd done and why before she forgot. By the time she was finished with the paperwork for all the cases, it was almost dinner time. She finally headed to the diner.

Steve's car wasn't in the parking lot. She was too hungry to stop and talk to Zach, though. The booth was full. She was the last to arrive.

"Good," House said. "After everyone stood me up lunchtime, I was beginning to think you didn't love me anymore."

"I was here," Jess said.

He frowned at her. "Yeah." He didn't elaborate, but obviously they'd argued.

"Still no sign of Steve?" Wilson was eager to change the subject.

Anita shook her head. "His car's gone. He wasn't at the hospital last night."

"Well, he was," Hadley said, "but he was gone by the time we showed up."

She was right. "I wish I knew where to look." Anita scanned the diner. He wasn't hiding in plain sight, much as the adage dictated.

"He's not here," House said. "I mean the motel as well as the diner."

"Yeah, I didn't see his car." Anita glanced at what was on everyone else's plates. It all looked good and gave a better indication than any menu about what she should order. Many had been there long enough to have almost finished their meals.

Linda came by to find out what she wanted and if anyone else wanted dessert.

"Nothing more for me," Cameron said. "I'm afraid I have to leave soon. Pamela wants me to be there when the votes are counted."

"Want us to come with you?" Jessica asked.

"I can join you after I eat," Anita said. "But the rest of you can go with Cameron."

"I'll stay." Hadley settled in while the others played musical seats so Wilson, Jessica and House could go with Cameron. Jacobs was almost finished and Simpson and Magnani elected to wait with her.

Anita dug into her spaghetti the second it was placed in front of her.

Jacobs finished hers and the team left.

"And then there were two," Hadley said.

Anita rolled her eyes. "Never say that to a cop."

"What are you planning?"

"For what?" Anita's eyes narrowed.

"As a way to find Steve."

Anita closed her eyes for a few seconds then opened them. "I really don't know what to do." She started eating again, chewing on the problem as much as her spaghetti. Swallowed. Slowly shook her head. Ate more.

Hadley knew her well enough that she didn't speak while Anita was thinking.

Anita waved her fork up and down once. "There may be a way to trace his steps. If he's still using the Bureau-issued cellphone, we can locate that." She put the fork down, looked surprised she'd finished her meal and said, "I'll make a call and see what I can find out."

She scrolled through her contacts and selected one to call. "Albert will know." She frowned when the call went to voicemail. "Albert, this is Anita Morrow." She rattled off her number and explained what she wanted to know. "To make sure he gets the message, I'll also send him a text." She keyed in an abbreviated version. "Guess that's all I can do for the now."

"Then, let's go home and watch the local news to see how much Cameron won by."

It was a madhouse at the town hall. No one was allowed in the room where they were counting ballots, so everyone congregated in the lobby of the building.

"Nervous?" Will asked Cameron.

She nodded. "You?"

"Totally."

Sharon stood next to her husband. She smiled. "My mother said there was a record turnout at the polling place."

"But, is that good or is that bad for us?" Will scanned the assembled crowd. "A number of people have already congratulated me. I just hope their applause isn't premature."

Cameron chuckled. "Will, you have nothing to worry about. You're a shoe-in. I, on the other hand, will have to wait and see."

Pamela entered the room and asked for quiet. The din died down. "We've tabulated all of your votes. First, our new councilor is Dr. Allison Cameron."

A cheer started on one side of the lobby and spread across it. Pamela had to shout, "Hush, now. There's more. Our new mayor, who will also sit on the town council, is William Davis." She beamed at him.

The cheer grew again, louder than before.

Cameron and Will looked at each other and grinned. In twos and threes, people came over to talk. Cameron thought she'd never shaken so many hands in such a short period of time. The crowd thinned. Exhausted, she looked around for House.

He was talking with Wilson and Jessica. Once again she wondered what had happened between House and Jess earlier in the day. Would he tell her?

She strode to them. Wilson smiled and held out his hand. She smiled back, knowing that she didn't have to say anything to him as she had to everyone else.

"I knew you'd win," Jessica said. She high-fived her, no sign of the tension that had been palpable during dinner.

"There wasn't much choice," House said.

She rolled her eyes at him. "Right now, I just want to go home, curl up with a glass of wine, and watch an inane movie or TV show."

But it wasn't to be. Pamela rushed to them. "You're coming to the victory celebration at my house."

"Only if I can duck out after a short time," Cameron said. "I'm beat."