Posting this a little early since I'm taking off for the weekend to a place with a twitchy Internet connection. As usual, don't own House.
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House lifted his head from the computer when he heard the screen door slam shut. Rob crossed into the living room on his crutches, a thunderous expression on his face.
"Sorry son of a bitch." Rob muttered angrily as he made his way down the hallway. "I'll kill him."
House pushed himself out of the chair and followed, finding Rob in the bathroom dragging out his med kit. "What's going on?"
Rob glanced over, seeming to notice House for the first time. "Kevin did somethin' to Caroline. Her clothes are all torn up, and she looks like he beat the shit out of her."
"Why the hell didn't you say something?" House snarled. He quickly turned and went into the bedroom to drag the blanket off the bed, running into Rob in the hallway. "I'm bringing her in here."
Rob nodded curtly and followed House. House continued out the door, rage building up in him. He tapped lightly on the truck window with his cane.
Caroline's head snapped up, a frightened look taking over her delicate features as she quickly covered herself as best she could. House could already see the bruising starting to form, and he hoped like hell he wouldn't find bruising elsewhere. Somehow he already knew he would.
"Open up." House told her. "Let's get you inside."
Caroline slowly opened the door, wincing slightly. Upon closer examination, House could see other bruises and bite marks, and it was all he could do to keep his fury under control as he held up the blanket for her.
She gingerly climbed down from the truck and into the waiting blanket, and House gently wrapped it around her. The young woman nearly collapsed against him, her slight body shaking as she fell apart in his arms.
They stood in the driveway for a long moment, not saying a word as Caroline's emotional storm quietly raged on. Finally she took in a shaky sigh, leaning back to look up at House.
"I'm sorry." Her voice was still shaking. "I shouldn't have come here. He'll probably start lookin' for me. I just didn't know where else to go."
"You should go to the hospital." House told her firmly.
"I know." Caroline nodded. "I just…couldn't. Not like this."
House huffed and stroked her hair. "Come on. We'll patch you up and go from there."
Rob had opened his med kit and started setting up when House guided Caroline into the house and down the hall. He dug out a t-shirt and a pair of sleep pants, handing them to Caroline. "Get changed, but don't clean up."
Caroline nodded in mute agreement and closed the bedroom door. House made his way back to the living room and sat down heavily in the armchair, thumping his cane against the floor.
Rob glanced over at him. "I called the sheriff's office. They're sending a female deputy out here to talk to Caroline."
"Good." House nodded. He had a deep seated urge to hunt Kevin down and do something drastic to him with his cane. "Wonder where we could find Kevin."
Rob let out a dark chuckle. "If he's got any sense, he'll leave town."
"Well, he should be pretty easy to find, then." House answered lightly. "Feel like shooting some pool later?"
"Got a hot date, remember?" A worried expression crossed Rob's features. "Wonder if she knows about Kevin."
"I ain't had a chance to call anyone." Caroline slowly walked out into the living room and sat down on the couch. "I just came straight here."
"Don't worry about it." Rob assured her. "I'll make the calls." He nodded toward House. "Everythin' you need should be right there. Holler if you need somethin'."
House nodded absentmindedly and moved to the couch. Something in him clenched at the sight of the petite brunette practically swimming in his t-shirt and sleep pants.
He shook off the thought and proceeded to examine Caroline. "Lift up the shirt."
She seemed reticent, and House huffed irritably. "I've been a doctor for twenty years. There's not a lot I haven't seen. Now lift the shirt."
Finally she pulled up the t-shirt, and it was all House could do to keep from expressing his thoughts on her condition. There were several bite marks on her chest, a red mark in the shape of a hand over her breast, and a bruise over her ribs.
He gently pressed his hand over her ribs, and she let out a short gasp of pain. "You probably have at least a couple of broken ribs." He moved to examine her face, pressing over the bruising gently with his fingers. Caroline winced slightly, but otherwise didn't respond, steadily looking at him with soft blue eyes.
He pulled back, gently placing his palm against her cheek. "I don't think anything else is broken. After you talk to the sheriff's deputy, you'll need to go to the hospital for a rape kit."
Caroline's eyes went wide. "But nothin' happened. Why would I need that?"
House glared at her. "Don't lie to me."
The tears started to well up in her eyes. "He didn't rape me."
House stared at her intently. "Did you want to have sex with him?"
Caroline looked down at her hands and shook her head. House sighed and stroked her cheek with his thumb. He wasn't surprised when she jerked back away from him. "I tried to fight him, but it didn't work out so well."
"He's a big guy." House replied quietly.
Caroline squeezed her eyes shut in an attempt to hold back her tears. She angrily wiped at the few that ran down her face. "God, I'm so stupid. So, so…stupid. I'll never be right for anybody. I'll bet he don't even want me right now."
"Jesus, you're not stupid." House huffed angrily.
"Yes, I am." She insisted. "I shoulda left him long before now. Now we've got a kid together, and…there might be another one comin'."
House's heart sank. "So he did rape you."
"Don't you get it?" Caroline's voice rose to near hysteria. "Ain't nobody gonna want me now. Just look at me!" She started to break down again. "Just look at me…"
"I am looking at you." House shoved aside the med kit and moved to sit on the coffee table. "Now you look at me."
Caroline lifted her head, not quite looking House in the eye. House reached out and tucked an errant piece of hair behind Caroline's ear before resting his palm against her cheek. She looked so vulnerable, so hurt, and House thought he would have done damn near anything to take that away.
The thought caught him by surprise, and he nearly pulled away. How the hell could he take care of someone else's pain when he could barely take care of his own?
The sound of voices snapped him out of his thoughts, and the sheriff's deputy entered, followed by Rob. The deputy was a short, thick woman with a no-nonsense attitude, and she sat down on the couch next to Caroline.
"Deputy Linda Thomas." She introduced herself to Caroline before turning to House. "I need you to leave, sir."
House nodded firmly and pushed himself off the coffee table, meeting up with Rob and heading outside. The two men stood in silence until Rob broke it.
"Son of a bitch."
"Yeah." House was still considering his options. "I'll take her to the hospital when she's done talking to the deputy."
"You sure?"
"Yep." House glanced over at Rob. "Didn't you say you had a hot date?"
"Don't really feel like goin' now." Rob answered quietly.
Silence fell between them again, and the wheels kept turning in House's mind. "Go. Have a good time."
A slow smile crept over Rob's face. "Thanks, Dad. I'll make sure to bring her home before curfew."
House huffed and rolled his eyes, evoking a short chuckle from Rob. The screen door opened and closed behind them, revealing Deputy Thomas. She nodded to both men. "Got all I needed. I'll file a report, and we'll track him down and pick him up. Now she just needs to get to a hospital for a rape kit and treatment."
"I planned on taking her." House spoke up.
"Good." She glanced at both men. "Y'all did good. Think she's gonna be okay. Take care."
Both men murmured closing greetings, and House turned to go inside. Caroline was still sitting on the couch, her hands twisted in her lap, a stunned expression on her face.
"Hey." House eased himself down on the couch.
Caroline glanced up at him. "Hey."
"Let's get going." House told her. "The sooner we get you taken care of, the better."
Caroline nodded mutely, slowly rising from the couch. House followed, carefully guiding her toward the door and outside.
Rob reached out and lightly squeezed Caroline's arm while passing House the keys to his truck. "Tow truck's comin' to impound your truck for evidence."
Caroline's face threatened to crumble. "They can keep it. I don't want it."
House guided Caroline down the steps, past the dogs, and into Rob's truck. After making sure she was settled in, he climbed in and fired it up, quickly shoving it into gear and heading down the road.
It was a quiet ride to the hospital, and House pulled in to the small parking lot, climbing down to help Caroline down out of the truck. They made their way to the waiting area to check in.
Caroline shook like a leaf as she explained the situation, and House couldn't help but keep a hand between her shoulder blades in an effort to keep her calm. To her credit, the receptionist was quick and efficient, soon checking Caroline in and directing her to a nearby seat.
She seemed to be keeping her distance from House, and House wasn't sure what to do. He wanted to put an arm around her and pull her close, but House wasn't so sure she would welcome that right now.
He slid an arm along the back of her chair, and Caroline glanced over at him, almost as if she were asking for permission. House nodded slightly, and Caroline leaned against him, placing her head against his chest while he wrapped his arm around her.
"We have to quit meeting like this." House murmured. "People will talk."
Caroline giggled softly, and House breathed a small sigh of relief. They both relaxed a little after that, talking quietly about nothing while they waited.
Finally her name was called, and Caroline slowly rose, House not far behind her to guide her to the exam area. The nurse stopped him just short of the entrance. "Family only. Sorry."
House considered arguing the point, but decided against it. Getting Caroline taken care of should be the primary focus, not his stupid ego. He gestured to Caroline. "Go. I'll be right out here waiting."
Caroline disappeared behind the door, and House took a nearby seat, thumping his cane against the floor, deep in thought.
"Greg!" A female voice snapped him out of his barely formed thoughts, and he lifted his head to see Celia and Marge running over, Kieran in Celia's arms. "Where is she?"
"They just took her in." House gestured toward the door.
Both women nodded, and Marge immediately rushed in, leaving Celia looking unsure. House sighed heavily, a sense of déjà vu going through him.
"Park him here." House told her. "Go see her."
Celia threw House a grateful expression as she set Kieran down, and the young child immediately climbed up onto the chair next to House. He gazed at House with a curious look. "Hi."
House nodded at him. "Hi."
Kieran was silent for a moment, looking as if he was processing important information. "Mama's hurt."
"I know."
"Daddy was mean to her." Kieran continued, swinging his legs in the chair.
"Yeah, I know that, too."
Kieran looked up at him. "You're not mean to Mama."
House took a deep breath. "I like your mom. You're not supposed to be mean to someone you like."
Kieran climbed onto House's lap before House could stop him, hooking his little arms around House's neck. "I don't like Daddy. He's mean."
House was silent. He didn't want to put any ideas into the child's head. Instead he simply wrapped an arm around him, holding him close. A thought occurred to him. "You want to watch something?"
Kieran's eyes went wide as he nodded. House dug into his pocket for his PSP Go, flipping it open and searching through the PlayStation Store for something kid-appropriate. He found an episode of 'Spongebob Squarepants' and downloaded it.
Soon the episode loaded, and House handed the device to Kieran, who watched with rapt interest, and they were both chuckling over Spongebob's antics.
By the time the episode ended, Marge and Celia both emerged, relieved expressions on their faces. Marge bent down to take Kieran, who eagerly abandoned the PSP in favor of his grandmother.
"She's gonna be fine." Celia told him. "They want to keep her overnight, just to make sure."
"Kind of figured." House nodded.
Marge smiled warmly at House. "Thanks for keeping the little man occupied. You sure were a big help." She nudged him with an elbow. "Caroline talked a blue streak about you. Somethin' goin' on I should know about?"
"No." House didn't want to feed the town gossip mill, not if there was a possibility that Kevin was still out there.
"Mm-hm." Marge gave him a skeptical look. "See you around, Greg."
Marge left the hospital, and Celia immediately burst into giggles. House was puzzled at her odd behavior. "What's so funny?"
"Mom." Celia caught her breath so she could explain things. "Caroline ain't even divorced that sorry piece of shit, and she's already tryin' to fix her up with someone."
House thumped his cane against the floor. "I can't say I'm much better. Besides, I'm leaving as soon as my bike's fixed. Still have things to take care of back home."
"Of course." Celia nodded, her slight smile fading. "She should be goin' up to her room soon. You should go see her."
House rolled his eyes. "You too?"
"No, but…" Celia looked thoughtful. "She likes you, and from what I hear, you kind of like her, too."
House twisted his mouth. "Doesn't do me any good with her psycho husband running around."
Celia placed a hand on his arm. "Might do more good than you think."
With that Celia was gone, leaving House alone in the waiting room. Later. He'd go see Caroline later. She probably wouldn't want him hovering anyway.
Yes, this was the most logical course of action. It had nothing to do with the fact that the thought of seeing Caroline again twisted him into knots. Nothing at all.
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Time for you to do your thing. Read and review.
