Disclaimer: House MD is property of David Shore and Fox TV only the plot is mine.

Haunted

Chapter 14: Silent Night

Hour 32

The latest blood work revealed no change in her condition which could be considered both good and bad. It was good because she wasn't getting any worse but it was bad because there was nothing new to work with. New symptoms were always a good thing. That was one lesson he had always stressed to his team, new is good even if it is bad.

Going by the same theory it was bad that Cameron had no change with this new treatment. The team hoped it was just taking longer because of how far advanced the condition was. They couldn't know for sure if it was in fact the Marburg virus until the test came back but that wouldn't be for several hours. For now the best coarse of action would be to leave her on the treatment and hope for the best while looking for more answers.

To answer something you must understand its meaning. Whatever the meaning of this disease it alluded Dr. House. No amount of General Hospital, Game Boy, or yo yo could make him understand this or why Cameron had done this to herself knowing full well the consequences of her actions. 'If only the great Dr. Sebastian was here they could be martyrs together.' House thought with a scoff. This case reminded him of Dr. Sebastian Charles. He had refused treatment for TB just to prove a point.

House swiveled his chair back and forth as he stared up into the darkness. The only light in his office came from the computer screen. The sun had already set for the evening and most of the staff had gone home. House himself should have left four hours ago but unfortunately for him his middle duckling had decided to use herself as a human lab rat requiring him to put in a few extra hours.

He winced, closing his eyes as the light suddenly came to life over head as Wilson stepped inside. "I'm sorry did I wake you?" He said in a not so apologetic voice as he sat down across from House placing a take out trey in front of the older doctor and one in front of himself.

"What is that?" He pointed to the trey in front of the oncologist before opening his own.

"That is mine." Wilson said as he smacked House's wrist as he reached to steal some fries from him. "Eat your own food. Or do I have to make train noises?" House mumbled something inaudible under his breath as he took a bite of his rueben and stuck his tongue out at the oncologist. "Now, thats mature."

"Where are the kids?" House asked as he succeeded in swiping a few fries with a victorious grin on his face.

"Ah, Foreman is getting a shower and Chase is in the lab." He covered his mouth politely as he spoke with a full mouth.

"And Mommy Dearest?"

"She's busy keeping the CDC off our backs while we figure out whats wrong." He paused for a moment to swallow before continuing on. "Apparently one of the lab techs snitched us out for not telling them about this."

Hour 33

The room slowly began to come into focus as Cameron opened her eyes. She blinked a few times trying to clear her vision. After a few moments she felt a sharp pain in her ribs. She couldn't move to see what it was but she knew it had to be a chest tube. The last thing she remembered was a severe tightening in her chest and she couldn't breath. Cameron gave a sigh as she realized that her lungs must have collapsed.

From where she lay she couldn't see the clock so she didn't know how long she had been out. Depending on the amount of sedatives given she could have been out for hours. Had House come up with anything new? Someone would eventually come in and she would ask them but for now she was alone.

Chase's face was hidden under a veil of blonde hair, his nose planted firmly in Cameron's file as he walked out of the lab. He needed more blood for tests so he was off draw some more. Rounding the corner he slammed into Foreman, the younger man fell to the ground with a thud dropping the file. "Sorry." He picked his self up and grabbed the file off the floor.

"You need to watch where you're going." Foreman stated as he readjusted his tie and followed the intensivist. "Where are you going?"

"I need some more blood for testing." He said as he pushed the button for the elevator.

"Has the Marburg test results come back yet?" He asked as the elevator doors slid open, both men stepped inside. Chase pressed the button instructing the elevator to take them to the ICU before he answered.

"No, they should be back with in the hour though." The rest of the ride was in silence. The silence was broken when they stepped out of the elevator. Screams of pain came from down the hall as they neared they discovered that they were coming from Cameron's room.

They rushed in just as their pagers went off. Quickly silencing them they turned to their friend. Tears were streaming down her face as she fought to keep from screaming though it was a battle she could not win.

"Up her morphine!" Chase called to the nurse standing at the side of her bed as he put the stethoscope to his ears to check if her chest tube had been dislodged. Luckily it was fine. But her heart rate had him worried. "Epinephrine!" He called. Foreman placed the syringe in his hand immediately. The dosage put her heart rate back to normal but did nothing for the screaming pain that plagued her. They could do nothing but wait for the morphine to kick in.

After a full minute it finally began to work. Cameron was no longer screaming but it was obvious she was still in a lot of pain. Now the only question was what had caused it. The nurses stood back out of the way and awaited orders from the doctors. Chase pushed past Foreman and puled the blankets down. As he opened her gown he saw the the lesions were at her neck. He sighed and was about to close her gown but he noticed two large bleeding soars rimmed with black at the base of each thigh.

Hour 34

Apoptosis is programmed cell death which makes necrosis unprogrammed cell death. During necrosis the phagocytes of the immune system attacks healthy cells and engulfs them thinking that they are dying cells. The lack of signaling makes it hard for the immune system to recycle the dead cells caused by the necrosis.

The conference room was silent save for the persistent thumping of House's cane. As if on cue the lab had called and informed them of a negative result for Marburg. The necrosis had begun. Time seemed to be slipping away to fast.

"We'll have to put her in a chemically induced coma." Wilson broke the silence at long last as he gave a heavy sigh from his perch in the corner. "The pain alone will kill her as it eats away the nerves under her skin." Everyone in the room new that it had to be done but they all feared that if she went under there was a good chance she wouldn't wake up again.

The soars were moving fast. Within the hour they were already covering both of Cameron's thighs. The morphine was only barely taking the edge off. Chase, Foreman, Wilson, and House all stood around her bedside. House held the syringe in his hand waiting for everyone to say their piece before he put her under. Tears welled up in her eyes both from the pain and the fear of her death as Wilson began to speak.

"Hey, Allison." He smiled warmly at her as he took her hand. "Don't worry we'll have you better in know time. We're just putting you under so that you won't feel the pain. You're gonna be fine." He was trying to believe those words but his faith in them was wanting. Foreman stepped up as Wilson moved out of the way.

"I still gotta even the score." He smiled at her as he wiped away a tear. "You saved my life, now its my turn to save yours. I'll be right here waiting when you come to. Promise." She smiled weakly at him and gave his hand a small squeeze before he moved to let Chase speak to her.

He was quiet for a moment as he held her hand. He wasn't quite sure what to say. But he had to say something and what if this was his last chance? No. He wouldn't let himself think that. House would find the answer. House always found the answer. "I... You've got nothing to worry about." He gave a glance up to House and then turned his attention back to Cameron. "House is the best there is. You'll be awake and arguing with him again in no time. Stay strong." He wanted to say more but he didn't want to say good bye so he gave her a bright smile and rejoined the rest of the group at the end of the bed.

"You're lucky." House said as he looked down at her. "I usually get in trouble for sleeping on the job. I think Cuddy likes you more then she likes me." The realness of the situation was starting to weigh itself in House's mind as he rolled the syringe around in his hand. "My mail is starting to stack up. You'll have a lot of work to do once we get you out of this." The rest of the team was silent. In House's own way he had just expressed that he liked having her around and that he was sorry for all the pain she was going through.

As more tears fell he slid the syringe into the IV. They all waited until she was under before solemnly walking out the door.