A/N: Thanks for Labellebeaucoup and Multipleshadesofpurple for all their help and support.

You're a dirty, ooh you're a dirty man
You do me dirty for so many years, yes u did
You're a dirty, dirty man, yes u are
And Im tired of you and your woman and your dog too
You're a dirty man
You're a dirty man
Now get outta my house
Dont u never, never, never come back again
Dont u never
You're a dirty, dirty man

And Im done with your dirty ways

(Joss Stone – Dirty Man)

Chapter 15: The Past that Haunts

A week passed for the residents of Princeton and so many things occurred. David Silverman did place people to watch the group. He was updating and checking in on the group more and more but unfortunately they have yet to update House and Cameron over what has happened over their time away. Wilson, Rachel, Cuddy, Lucas, The Silvermans, Hadley, Foreman, Chase, The Taubs, Blythe, Jen, and Joyce were all sitting around the dining room of the absent couple's home. They were discussing more of what they have heard from the recording. Silverman added a hidden video to Stacy's office and began updating the group over the things he had seen.

"You mean to tell me she was snorting cocaine in her office and having sex with Tyler?" asked Cuddy.

"Yep. It was pretty graphic and I cannot make the images go away." He cringed. "I mean give me a break. She seemed to be a smart woman but where did it all go wrong?"

"The messages about drugs, we heard when we were kids really do make sense now that I think about it. I mean I used to think the mandatory DARE stuff was pretty lame but damn…" Lucas Douglas commented. "I mean really, I am in a room full of doctors and I just can't get over how bad she has gotten because of her obsession. It is just a shame."

"I know and I'm worried about her. She is still my friend even with this addiction of hers but I am lost for words." Cuddy replied back to her husband.

"Well, I spoke to Mark and he is coming next week. He couldn't come this week because it would be too suspicious and he is tying up loose ends in Boston. He asked if there was a way we could help her get into the mandatory rehab he is placing her in."

"Of course I would help her, James. She's my friend." Lucas nodded but the rest of the group was hesitant.

"I'm just not sure, Lisa. I am just too involved here and I can't be biased. I mean after everything she has been doing or trying to do to my sister, I do not know how to act. I am trying to be open-minded because I know how much Stacy is not herself but I won't stand for her trying to harm my sister. She's been through enough." The group nodded at Rachel's comment.

"I agree with Rachel, Lisa but I am helping her because she is your friend. Ally is family so you know where I will side if I have to choose. Our family has done enough damage to her and it needs to stop."

"I know you wouldn't, Luke. I just do not like seeing her this way and I do not understand why. I mean if she was having so much trouble why couldn't she call and talk to me? She and I used to be closer and then we allowed things to drift between us. I owe it to her." Tears came down to her eyes as the words came out. "I mean I think she feels lost and alone and in a way she is. This is why she is doing all of this. She can't grasp all of this. I'm worried."

"Was she ever this way?" asked Jen

"She was always determined and career driven but no."

"You know I used to hope that she would get what was coming to her after what she did to Greg but not this. No one should deserve this. I mean Tyler is taking advantage of her. It is not right." The group nodded in agreement.

"This is what I mean. I mean I had a hand in what happened to Greg because I did manipulate her to make a decision too so I get why he was distrustful to both of us. What I do not think is that she deserved this. No one should be used this way."

"What no one seems to wonder if Tyler is clean? Like STI clean? I mean those two are sleeping together but Tyler is not a typical monogamist." Chase brought up the topic. "I mean House used to have sex with hookers but we all knew the man wore condoms." The group nodded. "With Stacy, I just do not know."

"We really need to figure out how to get her out of there. I mean it just doesn't seem like she knows the reality from the delusions anymore." Rachel piped in.

"But what should we do to help her?" Jimmy asked.

"Sadly, I think what we need is both House and Mark at the same time. I do not think it is House she really wants but stability. I think she feels so out of balance that she went back to a place she thought she was happy." Rachel commented. "I am just not sure why she picked that time frame."

"It is because that was when she peaked. She was successful and she had a good life then. Although, personally her relationship did not work out, her professional life flourished. I think personally she flourished with Mark but I think the reason why she picked this time is when she had people around her: You and Greg. People who wanted to be her because she was doing good in her life but now she has neither of that. Mark said they started having trouble after they came back. She started working more and so did he. They started to have problems because of their lack of communication and ignoring the problem."

"Honey, I think you have been spending too much time with me." Rachel joked at her boyfriend. The group laughed.

"Well, what can I say? My girlfriend is awesome." He gave her a peck and Rachel smiled.

"I see it actually. I mean when I remembered her back then she walked taller and braver and now she is different. Her light is gone. I am not sure where it went but when I look in her eyes, they are empty. It is why I am worried about her."

"She might be reluctant and refuse to see reason. I mean she must want to get help but if she doesn't it would be a moot point when she goes in there. She might come out of it wanting to do it again. I think she needs proper motivation." Rachel emphasized to her group.

"Maybe the main point of this is for her to actually start caring about herself and make her see that there are people who care about her. She's self-destructive because she seems to just have given up." Cuddy replied back to Rachel. "I mean now that I have thought about it besides that one dinner time I have not been there for her at all. What kind of friend was I?"

"Lisa, you have so much on your plate and that's the thing about life. We are so preoccupied with our own lives that some of us forget things. It doesn't make us bad people, it just makes us human. You care for her and that is a good thing. I mean sometimes we need to step back and say you know what let me reevaluate myself. That is what she needs to do." Wilson told his friend. He turned further to face her. "I have made so many wrong decisions so I understand and sympathize with her. The thing is I never turned myself to drugs per say. My drug was bad relationships to cope with how I was living. I couldn't see past the shit that was covering it all. The underlying problem that I needed to find who I really am. For a while I lost it but now because of all of you I can honestly say I am better. It is what Stacy needs: love and support from people around her."

"Well legally, it is really Tyler who is pulling the strings but the thing is it will be harder to get the puppet from the puppeteer." David Silverman commented. "The problem is all that stuff she is taking is messing her up and Cummings is really using it against her. I bet he will probably sell her if he could or pin all of his crimes on her."

"I agree but so far we have yet to really see what he is up to." Jen agreed with Silverman. "I am worried of what else he could be hiding as well."

Cuddy shifted on her seat and looked down. She fidgeted and bit her nails trying to calm herself down. The stress of all this was slowly coming down on her poor body as signs of sleep deprivation showed under her eyes. Her usually composed face was now filled with exhaustion and fear. She looked down and she felt tears falling down her eyes onto her fisted hands.

"Lisa, you need to stop blaming yourself for all of this. You didn't know and frankly you are not responsible for her life. She is living it. Not you." Lucas Douglas grabbed his wife's hands as he looked towards her. "I know you care for her but you have to realize you are the only one who controls your life. No one else. She chose to do what she did and unfortunately her actions will have bigger consequences if she doesn't stop soon."

"I am just so worried about her. I don't like how Tyler's influence is making it worse."

"I know you are and we'll figure out how to help her." The group nodded.

"I looked into Cummings's history and it was weird. I mean until Hal Cummings's sentencing there was nothing out of the ordinary. I mean the guy was going to Yale and all of a sudden things changed and his behavior became shady." David Silverman informed the group.

"Tyler always wanted to be a doctor and he was such a great kid. He was kind and sweet. He was smart and polite. Ally and I adored him when he was younger but after what happened we do not speak to them unless we have to. I mean after everything it was better to just stay away. I felt bad about Tyler because he was an innocent party but what I do not get is what happened. What did our family do to that boy to make him this way? I mean he was an innocent boy and now he's…" Her hands flared about as if trying to figure out how to describe her cousin.

"Sometimes when bad things happen we cope with it differently. I mean he was young when all of this happened. It must have not been easy for him to deal with all of this especially since he looked up to both of you." Jen commented.

"I know but I just don't know what to do about him and I don't know if I can help him. I fear that he is too far gone."

"Rach, sometimes we can't do anything because you know as much as anyone that if they do not want to be helped then it won't do much to help them."

"I know that Jen but what would you do if he was your family member? What am I saying he is a part of our family." The group realized how much intertwined the members of the group had become and would be forever. The moment Cameron said I do, it bonded them. They smiled but then remembered about Tyler. ""I just do not know what to do. I'm worried and I'm scared about all of this." The group nodded.

"Now you see what I mean. I do not like that we know more than we should and we cannot do anything to stop it. What is worse is the fact that all of this uncertainty affects all of us and it is not just physically."

"What can we do?"

"Like I said we might not be able to help Tyler, Rach. He's in deep and really bad." Silverman reminded her. "I mean I just do not know." They continued to talk about Tyler and Stacy as they tried to figure out how to solve this problem.

Tyler Cummings was sleeping when the sound of the phone woke him up. He picked it up to see another message about how he was going to pay for his debt. He got up and went to the bathroom. He came out minutes later and paced in front of the bedroom. The sleazy motel that he was staying in was all that he could afford. He missed home and he missed how things used to be. He sat down and looked up to see his reflection from the mirror in the bathroom. He no longer recognized who the man in the mirror was. How did things get so out of control and how did it become this bad?

He recollected his childhood and his innocence but now it was gone. Both were gone soon after he witnessed what he saw. He was watching past his office when he saw what his father did. He had his hand under his cousin's shirt as he was trying to unclasp her bra. He saw him try to pull it off of her while his cousin tried to get away. He saw fear from her but did not know what to do. She tried to get away but he yanked her back trying to pull her back into the couch. His father saw him and then closed the door to his office. It was then he realized what his family was. It was then his innocence was ripped out of him and that his childhood evaporated. He knew what his father did to his cousin and he believed her but his loyalty to his family overruled it. He grew to hate her because of all the bad things that his family spoke about his poor cousin. She did not deserve it but he was stuck. He grew up too fast and his perspective on things changed. He still went to college but soon found he no longer had the same dreams as before. It was tarnished because of what he saw and what his family allowed him to think. It was tarnished because of all the lies they told him and it made his feelings and thoughts hazy. He wondered if he could ever truly escape his family. They had a toxic relationship but unfortunately the only reason that he stayed was because of his sister. She was young and innocent. He wanted to protect what he could not reclaim. It was the only thing he could do. It was the only right thing he could do because of his family.

The debt he inherited from his father. Somehow, his father became a dealer to keep afloat of their lifestyle. How their church members did not realize that before his sentencing was beyond him and how this twisted man became a leader of the church was also beyond him. He just wanted to be free and he wanted to take his sister, Elizabeth away. He looked down at his phone and saw a picture of his father beaten in prison because he failed to pay their debt. Because of his family, he had to quit school because of all the calls his sister made. He was worried and his grades declined because of it. What made him sick was that Liz told him what his father was trying to do. He was trying to do what he did to Cameron. It was why he grew angry. It was not that he was angry with his cousin but it was because he transferred all his anger to her because he could not with his family. He held his head with his hands and cried. He did not know what to do or how to get out of this situation. He wished he could turn back time to when he was a kid before everything was ripped out of him with one look and with one vision that he could not erase. No matter how much he drank or how many drugs he did; he could not forget. He could not erase what he saw. He once contemplated death and he even bought a gun to do it but he remembered his sister. He just could not leave her with those people he called family.

Another text message chimed to reveal that if he did not act quickly, his sister was next. He did not know what to do but he had to protect her at all costs. After everything, he realized that he just did not care about the rest of his family members. He just did not want his sister to be some whore because they could not pay. He picked up the phone and dialed a number. He hoped that he could get help because he was tired of dealing with things that were not even his mess.

Tyler regretted what he did to Stacy, it was the only way to do what needed to be done, but now it was too much. He needed to figure out an out and fast. He just hoped that there might be some forgiveness and redemption after all of this. The call led him to a voicemail and soon after he got a text message to tell him where to meet. He quickly got dressed and left his motel room.

Stacy Warner sat on her living room sofa while sipping her red wine. She stared into the blank wall in front of her. She did not say a word as she continued to stare in the blank space. Every once and a while she would only stop to take a drink out of her wine. She thought for a while about how her life turned upside down and realized that it began years ago soon after she left Princeton the first time. She realized that her first mistake was leaving House the way she did. He hated her and did not even acknowledge her presence. They were not even friends. She thought that moving back to Princeton would help ease her pain but Stacy realized that it only increased it. She had no one here. Tyler was just using her for sex and so was she. He was also her dealer for a habit she no longer had any control over.

She realized then, just like her habit, her life was not in her control. She wondered if it would ever be. She wondered about Mark and knew he was part of the problem. She knew she loved him but she did not know if it was enough. She knew a part of her loved House but she wasn't sure why or how much. It did not look like she would ever find out as he was always tied to the hip with Doctor Allison Cameron or rather Dr. House now as he married her. The young doctor was someone she would never be and maybe that was the problem. She was lost and alone. It was obvious no one wanted her, not even Lisa Cuddy. Stacy once thought that Cuddy was her friend but she was not sure anymore. She had hoped she would come to have her on her corner but it was not the case. She was alone. She wondered if she should just leave and go back home but to what? She was estranged with her family and there was no future for her there. Would Mark want her back? Would her previous firm?

She knew she would need to do what they asked of her but she was not sure if she could do it. They found out about her addiction but they did not know why she lost control. Her personal life died when she lost her baby. She did not even get to tell her husband as he was never home. She faced all of it alone as she kept it all hidden but inside she was dying. She wanted her baby and she did not want it to die. She wanted it alive and she wanted it to grow but instead she lost it and she was alone. A part of her died when she lost her baby and she knew she would never get it back even if she wanted to. Stacy knew that she would have to tell Mark all of this but would he still want her? She feared that one day she would and he would leave her just like her baby did. She feared that he would be another person in her life estranged and she would be forever alone. It was why she left him before he could. She felt tears came down her eyes and down her cheeks as they continued to cascade down her face. They fell freely and uninhabited as her body shook uncontrollably. The wine left forgotten as she wrapped her arms around herself wanting nothing but to be where she was or to feel how she was feeling.

A/N: How did I do?