Author's note: Only two more chapters to go! I think…

Disclaimer:I do not own House

Nor do I own that mouse (rat)

I do not own them, then or now

I do not own them anyhow

I do not own the show House M.D.

And since I don't, it sucks to be me

CHAPTER 30

Robert and Eric crept into the house, trailing far behind David, Ruth, and the other agent, Agent Dexter. Neither of them had guns, of course, but Robert was carrying the tire iron from the trunk and Eric had a hammer. They tried to be as quiet as possible, but Eric was having trouble walking stealthily. He was still in a lot of pain and trying to avoid pulling his stitches. He knew Donna would give him hell if he came back to the hospital in worse condition than when he left it, and, quite frankly, she scared him more than the serial killer. So, when Robert gestured for him to get down, he only partially complied, bending over until he felt the tug of his stitches.

Both men lost sight of the agents in front of them. They were standing in what appeared to be the living room of a fairly large house. Robert had no idea what Dumas would need with such a large place, and was beginning to feel certain that House and Mitch were actually headed towards the correct house. He was about to suggest to Eric that they head to the other address when a hand suddenly clamped down on his shoulder.

Sera shook off her moment of stupor as Dumas straightened his sword and mockingly saluted her with it. That one action sparked a long-ago memory for her. She had been getting tennis lessons from Jamal and one Saturday, the two of them met up with Dave to play. She had gotten pretty good and Jamal assured her that she was good enough to beat Dave. But she had been losing that day…badly. As she leaned over, resting her hands on her thighs while she got her breath, David had cockily saluted her with his racket. Jamal had gently taunted her from the sidelines. "You aren't gonna let that punk beat you, are you?" She had gone on to kick David's butt in that and every other game of tennis she ever played against him, because she couldn't bear the thought of losing.

Sera focused on Winston, who had an arrogant smirk on his face as he watched her regroup. Although she knew, as a psychologist, that there was something inherently wrong with her need to always win, she still let the echo of Jamal's taunt ring in her head: "You aren't gonna let that punk beat you, are you?" "No.", she thought to herself, then repeated out loud, "NO!" Winston looked at her, confused. "No, what?" Sera simply smiled at him. "You'll see."

Sera took the chain around her hand and flung it out at Winston, who raised his sword to block it, as she knew he would. She gave a quick jerk and Winston, who was holding tightly to the sword so he wouldn't lose it, stumbled slightly off balance. She pulled sharply downward with the chain, pulling the sword down towards the floor, then released the chain, while at the same time unleashing a roundhouse kick to the back of Winston's head, sending him staggering to the opposite side of the room. He recovered quickly, but his stumble gave her the second she needed to rush to the blade wall and grab the first thing she could reach, which happened to be the pair of sai.

She turned around just in time to block the sword that was trying to take off her head. With a quick series of movements, she blocked Winston's assault and even got in a few strikes of her own. She smirked when she managed to inflict a small cut across Winston's chest. It wasn't much, just a flesh wound, but it was still satisfying to see. Winston jumped back and snarled at her. "Who do you think you are, Elektra Natchios?"

Sera felt anger burn inside of her. The movie Elektra was the last one she and Jamal had seen before he was killed, and her then-fiancé had indeed teased her about her own fighting skills. At the time, she had just reached a level of proficiency with the sai, so, despite a not-so-great plot, she totally enjoyed the movie because of the fight scenes. In fact, she had planned on having a special outfit made for their honeymoon that resembled Elektra's ensemble. She had a feeling Winston knew exactly what memories he was stirring up, since he had been trailing her during the period leading up to her first abduction and Jamal's subsequent murder. This certainty that he was baiting her made her literally see red and she flew at him with a fury she'd never shown before.

Mitch put his lock pick back into his pocket and slowly entered the house, his gun drawn. House was close behind him, moving with surprising stealth. The two men walked through the foyer and into the family room. Mitch stopped suddenly and held up his hand. He quietly laid a finger on his lips and gestured up towards the ceiling. House listened and heard what had caught Mitch's attention. House frowned and whispered, "Sounds like metal striking metal." Mitch nodded his agreement and silently, both men crept towards the staircase. House tried to ignore how sweaty his hands were as he gripped his cane tighter.

Robert and Eric barely refrained from yelling when the hand on Robert's shoulder swung him around. Both men relaxed marginally when they saw it was Dave. The agent shook his head at the two men. "You two are about as quiet as a couple of bull elephants, you know that?", he whispered. Robert nodded and whispered back, "Look, mate, I don't think there's anyone here. I think the action is at the other house. Maybe we should…" He stopped as Eric gestured abruptly for him to get quiet. The neurologist's eyes widened and he pointed up towards the ceiling. The other two soon heard what he heard – some thumps and grunts and another noise, not so easily identified. David tilted his head to the side. "It sounds like something hitting against metal." The three men looked at each other and Dave said, "You two stay here." Both Eric and Robert gave him "Yeah, right!" looks and the agent sighed and drew his weapon. "Right. Then stay behind me…and stay close. And for God's sake, don't accidentally hit me with your 'weapons', okay?" Both doctors gave the patented "Foreman eye roll" before following the agent up the stairs towards the sounds.

Sera and Winston's battle was furious and grim. Neither of them wasted time on trash talk or taunts. Both realized that only one of them was leaving the room alive and they were both focused on their purpose. Sera began to feel a kind of desperation as she fought to find an opening. She did exactly what she told Robert she wouldn't do. She underestimated her enemy. She didn't expect to actually have to fight Winston. She assumed the only way he could get a drop on her was with one of his noxious potions. She never dreamed he was at her level of expertise. Actually, she thought that in hand-to-hand combat, she could actually best him, but with weapons, which she only started learning over the past 6 years, he was equal to her. "No", she thought dismally, "Not equal…superior."

Dumas was getting the best of her in the fight. If she wasn't wearing protective gear, she probably would have been seriously bleeding by this time. He had figured out quickly that her catsuit protected her, so he no longer tried to throw blades at her body. He was now aiming all of his strikes at her neck and head. He had scratched her cheek and nicked the side of her neck, fortunately missing any major arteries. But she was getting tired. She had not completely shaken off the effects of the anesthesia and that combined with the extra weight of the shackles and the fact that she hadn't slept in nearly 24 hours were working to her disadvantage. Her reflexes were off…just a hair, but that was all Dumas needed to make his final move.

Dumas surprised her by ducking under her strike with her left hand and aiming the sword straight for her heart. She knew that a direct thrust from this range would definitely go through her protective suit. She quickly brought the sai and trapped the sword's blade in the two projections (tsuba) on the sides of the handle. She looked into Winston's eyes, wanting to see his concession to her victory as she prepared to wrench the sword away from him. She never saw his left hand holding the dagger until he had embedded it to the hilt just above her breast.

Sera took a step back from him, looking down at the dagger hilt in shock. She could see the Chinese symbols etched in the handle. "Faith and Serenity", she thought numbly. She could feel the liquid bubbling up in her chest and she coughed, dismayed to see the blood spray from her mouth. She went to grab the handle, but somewhere inside her stunned brain, the doctor's voice was yelling, "Don't pull it out, Serenity!" She dropped her hands, both sai slipping from her grip.

Dumas shook the sai off of his sword and raised it, vertically in front of his face, in a traditional fencing salute. He looked sad as he drew back his sword in preparation for the final blow. "Goodbye, Serenity. Believe it or not, I deeply regret this…but, it has to be you or it has to be me." Sera watched in disbelief as the sword swung towards her neck. She wanted to move her shackle-clad wrist to block it, but for some reason her limbs wouldn't move. She could only close her eyes and say a prayer. She opened them quickly when she heard a masculine voice say from the doorway, "I choose you, you son of a btch!" The bullet ripped through Winston's torso, sending him flying backwards, the sword clattering to the floor.

Sera felt a buzzing in her head as she watched the sword fall. Her eyes moved over to where Winston lay. She swayed on her feet as she watched the blood well up from the wound in the middle of his chest and thought randomly, "Sure hope there's a doctor in the house" before collapsing backwards into a pair of strong arms.