Eclipsical Dilemmas
Introduction
A few months after William and Julia were married there was a total lunar eclipse (October 16, 1902). William, particularly, was very excited to see it. He and his wife went to Toronto Island that evening to avoid the light pollution in the city. They lay together on a picnic blanket, under the full Moon, sharing a quilt to stay warm in the crisp, clear midnight hours, talking and kissing until the event began to become visible as the edge of Earth's shadow covered a sliver of the Moon. Awestruck, William whispered to Julia, "Thousands of years ago, people could look up at this and see the curve of the planet we live on. They would have been able to know then the nature of their home." He leaned in closer to her and pointed to the rounded shadow's outline across the Moon and continued, "The people who live right along this edge here on Earth are experiencing sunset right now." Then he stood up and walked a few steps away from her to stand in front of her and turned sideways. Lifting his hands out to his right side, he placed his two palms together and extended his thumbs upward, and clapped silently while staring at the Moon – looking to see the "shadow barking dog" he was trying to make appear 370,000 km away. Disappointedly he said, "I guess my arms aren't long enough to make it to the edge where the sunset is from here." Julia's laughter was surrounded by the warm glow of her love for him. She was amazed how much one had to know in order to get his sense of humor. She truly had never known anyone like him. She basked in the joy.
After the shadow had grown to cover about half of the Moon, Julia whispered in William's ear, "Mr. Murdoch, I believe you have a choice to make. We could stay here to see the rest of the eclipse, or … we could take advantage of the fact that I am at a point in my cycle that renders it safe for us to make love without using a prophylactic … perhaps you would prefer to head home before …" The urge William instantly felt in his trousers in response to her warm, breathy words made his choice quite clear. He was up offering her his hand before she had even had a chance to finish her sentence.
Julia waited naked in their bed while William finished brushing his teeth in the adjacent bathroom. The candle she had lit on the night table was the only light, save for the bathroom light – a sure sign that romance was in the air. William, himself already naked, switched off the light and approached the bed. Julia admired how beautiful he looked in the candlelight – his big, dark eyes, handsome face, and athletic physique seemingly intensified and deepened in the yellowish glow. William leaned over to blow out the candle, but hesitated as Julia's husky, firm voice instructed him, "Leave the flame, Mr. Murdoch … Come here." He slid in next to his wife. They touched, caressed, kissed, sucked, licked, nibbled, and pressed on each other until their desires reached the edge of desperation.
William pulled away from Julia and with a boyish, playful grin he gave her a quick kiss and jumped out of bed. "I bet it'll work now," he said as he lined his body up between the candle and the wall, creating a shadow that rested a few feet away from the corner. He extended his hands out, put his palms together with connected thumbs sticking up to be ears, and once again made a clapping motion to craft a "shadow barking dog" on the wall.
Sounding annoyed, Julia shifted herself to sit on the edge of their bed and said, "Yes, I see – Amazing the difference a few hundred thousand kilometers can make." Julia got up and walked over to his shadow. She gestured, pointing out a peninsula-shaped bump extending out from the pelvis area of William's shadow and teased, "And, Mr. Murdoch, what is this … extension I see here?"
William's shadow seemed to stand up taller as he answered, "Well, Mrs. Murdoch, it seems that … swelling … happens when I allow my attention to dwell just a little too long on you."
"Oh, I see," Julia said, her voice sounding both stunned and aroused. "I do think I would like to investigate the heavenly body that is the source of the shadow," she said, her eyes locked on his as she pressed her back into the wall and slid around the corner and along the wall to rest directly in front of him. They both turned to see the resulting shadow, candlelight burning between them to create the sensuous shapes on the opposite wall. Julia felt her insides flip over with lust as William leaned into her, pushing her deeper into the wall, and melding their shadows into one.
Still inside of her as their hearts and breathing slowed, he asked, lips brushing against her ear, "What did you think of that eclipse, Mrs. Murdoch?"
Julia's breathing still a bit hurried, she swallowed and worked to find words in her swirling head, "Delightful," seemed to be all she could find. The Murdoch's slid back into bed, blew out the candle and slept happily for the few hours left before they each had to get up and head to work in the morning.
Science:
An eclipse requires the perfect alignment of three or more celestial bodies and brings to light observations that would not otherwise be possible. For example, during a solar eclipse, the Sun, Earth, and Moon line up perfectly - allowing an observer from Earth to see the Moon block the light from the Sun. It is only during such an eclipse that the corona (gaseous envelope) of the Sun can be seen. Alternatively, during a lunar eclipse, the same three celestial bodies line up, but in this case the shadow created by the Earth passing in between the Sun and the Moon allows an observer from Earth to see the curved shape of our planet on the Moon as it revolves into the darkness of our shadow. Due to the patterns of motion of the heavens, it is not uncommon for the same celestial bodies to line up once again in the future, if you wait long enough.
Life:
Eclipsical dilemmas are choices to be made that are just as rare as celestial eclipses. They require the perfect alignment of at least three people and important factors, and they allow for awareness about the people involved that would not otherwise have been likely. Due to the patterns dictated by fate, it is not uncommon for the same people to be involved in an eclipsical dilemma again in the future, if you wait long enough.
William and Julia had experienced quite a few eclipsical dilemmas.
William & Julia Part (1896)
The first eclipsical dilemma involved William, Julia, and Dr. Isaac Tash in 1896. During this rare alignment, each of these people had to make a challenging choice between possible actions to take. Dr. Tash had to decide whether to admit to Detective Murdoch that he performed abortions or allow him to endanger Julia's career, and possibly more. William had to decide whether to report Dr. Tash for performing abortions (as well as Julia for compromising a case) or to bend his own understanding of what is right and what is wrong. Julia had to decide whether to tell William about her own abortion, and its resulting sterility, or to remain in a relationship with him based on deception.
Further, each of them revealed something new about themselves. William demonstrated that he was tenacious in pursuit of the truth – something Julia had previously observed and admired, but had never seen from the point of view of being the one being hunted down before. He also demonstrated that he was capable of deep, personal change – by uncharacteristically letting the prey go. His motivation for doing so may have been due to a new moral understanding - or might it have been solely because of the power of his love for Julia? Julia revealed that she would rather have an honest, lonely life than live within an insincere relationship. Although, she still withheld from William that the abortion rendered her sterile – Was this because she still held out hope for their relationship and didn't want to take the chance that this information would irreversibly sever any possible love between them? Dr. Tash showed a loyalty to Julia, and likely to the truth as well, that had never before been tested to such a degree.
William & Julia Get Back Together (And Julia leaves for Buffalo and Julia accepts Darcy's Proposal)
Consider when William had to decide whether or not to jump into the hot air balloon – renew his relationship – with Julia. Was this an eclipsical dilemma? Julia also had a decision to make – take him back or not. Although there were important decisions to be made, and it could be argued that the individuals involved did reveal new things about themselves, this cannot be an eclipsical dilemma because there were not three or more people involved. For the same reason, Julia's leaving for Buffalo, and her accepting Darcy's proposal, cannot be considered eclipsical dilemmas.
Julia & Darcy Wed
How about the marriage of Julia and Darcy – Was this an eclipsical dilemma? There were ultimately many more than three people involved; Julia, Darcy, William, Ruby, Eva Moon (also known as Constance Gardner), Inspector Giles, and Inspector Brackenreid. Darcy decided to believe William when he said the relationship between himself and Julia was "dead and buried." Ruby had to decide whether to stir things up – constantly in this case. Eva Moon decided to commit the murder and frame William for it. Inspector Giles decided to keep Julia from visiting William in jail. Julia decided to leave William a note telling him she preferred his love to Darcy's – but he had to tell her in time. William decided to set Eva Moon free (allowing him to continue his life with self-respect) rather than stop the wedding of Julia to another – even though he knew that she would have preferred him, potentially losing her forever. And Inspector Brackenreid decided to lie for Detective Murdoch.
Much was revealed about the character of these individuals. Julia revealed her true love for William – at least to him. (Remember this tends to happen during eclipses - The viewpoint from particular bodies affects what is ultimately seen by each body – not everybody sees the same thing). Unfortunately, from Julia's viewpoint it probably looked like William did not still love her – from her perspective, she could not see the pressures he was responding to when he made his choice not to stop her wedding. William was able to learn something about himself (much like Earthlings learning their planet is round from a lunar eclipse). He found that living with his moral decisions was essential, it was basically non-negotiable – Self-respect was the default. He was surprised to find that it trumped his love for his soul mate. Although the decision he made would not lead to his happiness, it did lead to his ability to survive in whole. As his decision was between two things that both had extremely serious negative consequences, this situation is a strong example of an eclipsical dilemma.
Policemen's Ball (1999): William & Julia Start Their "Affair"
Julia and William re-unite at the Policemen's Ball. Does this classify as an eclipsical dilemma? There were three people involved; Darcy, Julia and William. Darcy chose to let Julia go and, "be with whom she likes," for the turn of the century. Why would he do this? It can be argued that feeling like you are holding onto someone who doesn't want to be with you feels bad. He chose to let her go to free himself from feeling like her imprisoner – his self-respect required it. Once set free, Julia decided to go. In the words of Caroline Hill she, "took a chance on love." Scandals aside – she went to her soul mate. William decided to take her back. (George Crabtree might also be aligned in this eclipsical dilemma, because if it weren't for him William might not have been at the ball when Julia arrived).
Darcy showed Julia that he too found their relationship to be intolerable. Julia showed her love for William mattered more to her than living within society's norms. William showed that he learned from past hesitations – he wasn't going to miss his second chance.
Making Their Parting Official: Julia's Getting Free from Darcy
Part I: Attempting to legally free Julia from Darcy
The "bodies" involved are Julia and Darcy, and it could be argued that William got officially involved when he confronted Darcy. As a matter of fact, it was when William did have his altercation with Darcy that the intensity of the situation seemed to reach its maximum – resulting in one of the most heated arguments between Julia and William to date. William chose to approach Darcy, and this revealed that he felt that he should not be left out of the discussion. He also showed that, when it comes to Julia, he can lose control. Darcy originally agreed to an annulment. However, Julia chose not to lie during the proceedings – revealing that she valued the truth, and peoples' opinions of Darcy, more so than being free of him and able to marry William in the Catholic Church. She probably believed that Darcy would allow for a divorce, so the cost of not lying for the annulment would be that William would have to accept marriage outside of his faith. William ultimately did decide to do so, revealing his priority was Julia over his faith. Darcy's decision not to grant Julia a divorce in the end revealed that his value of society's opinion of him overshadowed his desire to be free of a harmful, toxic relationship.
Part II: Dealing with Julia's Freedom from Darcy via Being Widowed
James Gillies' path re-aligned with that of William and Julia once again as he framed Julia for the murder of her husband. It was actually the third time their bodies had eclipsed in such a way. The first time, Julia had attended the public humiliation of Mr. Gillies when Detective Murdoch tricked his friend, Mr. Perry, into confessing and naming Gillies' in the planning of a professor's murder. The second was when Gillies had buried Julia alive as part of a game to match wits with the detective. During this third eclipsical dilemma significant decisions were made. Julia decided to testify to her innocence, foregoing a defense plea. This showed her utter belief that the truth holds the key to the meaning of life – choosing to die with honor over living, albeit in prison, with having compromised what she knew was right. William showed that he would give his life for Julia, but to be honest, everybody involved probably knew that already. Many others were aligned with William and Julia during this eclipsical dilemma – loyalty being shown by the Inspector and George being most notable. It is worth noting that during the very public trial William and Julia proclaimed their love for each other – as this was a favorite story for the newspapers, their love for each other became common knowledge.
William's First Proposal
The first time William proposed marriage to Julia, she decided to say no. Of course, she did so because Leslie Garland had led her to believe James Gillies was still alive and watching them, and that he would kill William if she married him, and her too if she told William. At first it appeared that her fear of losing William to death and her fear of Gillies were stronger than her desire to marry William and her faith in their ability to outwit Gillies. She decided to keep the secret from William. However, in the end she made the other choice, telling William of the threat – her ambivalence demonstrating the severity of this dilemma for her. Ultimately she showed that her need for, and faith in, William was stronger than her fear of his or her own death and Gillies. William revealed that he could survive Julia's refusal to marry him. Leslie Garland revealed that his anger at Julia, and William to a lesser degree, was significant.
The Murdoch's Procreate: Birth of William Jr. (December, 1903)
This event classifies as an eclipsical dilemma because of the decision to try to carry the pregnancy to term rather than abort the child. Dr. Tash was integral in this decision, providing Julia and William with news of the innovative new way to perform Cesarean sections, leading to the greatly raised odds of the mother surviving the procedure. Dr. Tash had to decide whether or not to work with Murdoch after he had so nearly reported him for performing abortions – which ironically Murdoch himself was now asking Dr. Tash to perform on his own wife to abort his own child, at least at first. William and Julia had to decide whether to risk Julia's life for the hopeful outcome of having a child of their own. They decided to keep the pregnancy and risk the odds – hope and trust in science winning out over fear.
Life dealt them a curve though, creating a severe snowstorm, trapping William and Julia alone in their home as she went into labor. Only they could have squeaked through this one with such a positive outcome, as Julia was a trained doctor, with medical supplies in her home, and William was a quick study with lots of experience dealing with pressure. Julia taught William how to perform the surgery in between her contractions and before he used chloroform to render her unconscious. William performed the surgery – cutting his son's arm in the process, but enabling the survival of both his wife and child. The newspapers had a field day with this story, especially so close to Christmas. The Murdoch's were already one of, if not the most, famous couples in Toronto. It was this story that made them very popular with the average citizen.
Adoption of Murdoch Daughters and Total Lunar Eclipse of 1906
Julia awoke to find William's side of the bed empty. She pictured him downstairs struggling with his demons – She knew the pressures of this unexpected pregnancy were taking a toll on both of them. Wrapping her naked body in her robe, she talked herself through the situation up to this point as she headed downstairs to look for him. They had not been using any means of birth control for nearly a year now, figuring that her Cesarean section had left enough scar tissue in her uterus to render implantation of a fertilized egg impossible. Once again, they were wrong, and she had woken up nauseous for the past few mornings. William figured it out almost as quickly as she had. They were both worried because the only possible way for Julia to survive another childbirth required another Cesarean section, and the second was likely more risky than the first. Julia had already gone to Dr. Tash for a pregnancy test. They had not yet officially been told that she was pregnant. They both planned to go to her appointment with him tomorrow to get the results and hear about their options. She had made it clear to William that she was excited about the pregnancy – that she wanted to have another child with him. William seemed much more ambivalent – probably explaining his current problems with sleeping.
Noticing that there were no lights on downstairs, Julia entered the kitchen, expecting to find William in the dark. He wasn't there so she checked in the parlor, which was also empty. A sick feeling of concern began to grow in her belly. Back in the foyer, she noticed that William's coat was missing. Perhaps he had thought of something relative to a case – He had left in the middle of the night a few times like that in the past. Maybe she was wrong about his restlessness being a result of his thoughts dwelling on her pregnancy. Whatever the reason for his absence, she was definitely worried. Then she noticed that the door was not locked. William would never have left their home in the middle of the night without locking the door behind him. Concern exploded into dread.
Julia opened the front door and leaned out to take a look. There was William (What a relief!) sitting on their porch bench. Her relief was quickly overshadowed by worry as she noticed that their decanter of whisky was resting on the arm of the bench, and in William's hand was a glass of whisky. He had heard the door open and turned to catch her eyes as she peeked out.
William couldn't read her expression – a mixture of relief and worry, compassion and fear?
Julia stepped back into the house to get her coat and joined him on the bench. Silence filled the air between them for a while. Finally Julia spoke, "My grandmother called liquor, "liquid courage."
William wrinkled up the right side of his face, considering the implications and said, "The last time I drank some was before the first time I proposed to you. I had some of the Inspector's scotch – pumped myself up … It didn't turn out so well." William downed his glass.
"Well, not immediately, but it turned out pretty well in the long run, don't you agree?" she asked. (William nodded yes). "Pour me one?" Julia said as she tried to work up the courage to ask him what was wrong. William poured her a glass of whisky from the decanter and she downed it in one big swig. He raised an eyebrow at her and she giggled. Her expression changed and she asked, "So William, why do we find ourselves out on the porch in our pajamas and barefoot at one AM on this beautiful February night?" Julia wrapped William's arm around her and nestled against him. Her psychiatry training told her it would be easier for him to disclose if she wasn't looking directly at him.
"I had a bad dream – I didn't want to go back to sleep afterwards," he said. William poured himself another glass of whisky.
Trying to keep the mood a little light, Julia pushed him to tell more, "Mr. Murdoch, you do know how very much your psychiatrist wife loves to analyze dreams – particularly yours. Do tell."
William frowned slightly and said, "There's not really much to analyze about this one. I think its meaning is pretty clear."
Julia gave him a little squeeze, "Share it with me, William," she said.
William swallowed his drink and told her the story of his dream. They were on a family outing with their 2 ½ year-old son, William Jr., walking along a stream. William decided to try to teach the boy how to skip rocks across the surface of the water. He demonstrated how to pick a good flat rock, how to hold it, and how to flick your wrist to get it to skip. Julia picked up a rock and sailed it towards the water, creating five or six rippling circles across the water. William was very impressed and turned to her, saying, "You never cease to amaze me Julia," and then taking her in a delicious kiss. William explained that in the dream he was holding Julia's hips and he could feel her skirt move as he heard the voice of a child – not William Jr. – say, "Mommy," and tug on her dress. Julia turned to attend to the child. At that moment, a beautiful blue butterfly fluttered into view and landed on William's hand. Marveling at it, and at his pleasant reaction to it, he turned back towards Julia to tell her that he no longer felt "uneasy" about butterflies. But Julia was nowhere in sight. Immediately panic set in. He called out for her, frantically panning the area. He saw William Jr. standing in the stream – now much older than three, crying and angry at William. His son yelled at him, "You were supposed to hold on to her! Why did you let her go?!" William dreamt that he fell to his knees in front of his son in the water and sobbed as he held him tight. The sobbing was what woke him up.
Time passed. Julia was the first to speak, "Well, it does seem to clearly express your worry over losing me as a result of trying to have this child, I'll grant you that." William held her eyes and nodded. She continued, "And the butterfly indicates that your unconscious is making a connection between the death of your mother and my … death. What age would you say William Jr. was at the end of your dream?
Nodding his head yes, William replied, "8 years old – like I was when I found my mother's body in the stream."
"Do you think William Jr. would blame you for my loss like you blamed your father?" she asked.
"I don't know … Maybe, I guess," he said. William fiddled with his wedding ring, building up the nerve to ask Julia directly whether she wanted to go through with the pregnancy – already knowing her answer, but hoping he was wrong.
Julia sighed, "William, I must admit that I do so want this baby. I would like to try to have it. It seems that you want me to have an abortion instead?"
William opened up his heart and let his thoughts pour out. He told Julia that he felt he could not live without her. He said he did not want to take the risk of losing her. He reminded her of how frightened they both were in the hours before he performed the Cesarean section on her to deliver William Jr. He explained that even though he too wanted this baby, he wanted her more, and he did not want to take the risk. He added William Jr.'s loss of his mother to his fears. He went so far as to say that if he had it to do over again with her first pregnancy, he believed the wiser decision would have been to have chosen for her to have an abortion – although he was very, very glad they had not actually chosen that path.
Julia's heart was pounding. She was scared now. She wanted to keep her pregnancy and she decided to try to push William past his concerns. She argued that the real danger in the case of their son's birth was that there had been a large snowstorm that trapped them in their home when she went into labor. This baby would be due in the early fall. She would be able to have the surgery done by Isaac – in the hospital. It was much safer this time.
William's head was spinning with dread. He felt cold, like he was going into shock. All he could think of was that he was losing her right there and then. He reached to pour himself another drink.
Julia reached across him to place her hand on his arm as he lifted the decanter of whisky and said, "Please don't William." He finished pouring the drink and put the decanter down. He left the glass where it sat on the bench. Julia could see him clench his jaw. He was holding his breath. She could not catch his eye. She brought her hand back to her lap and asked, "Did that make you angry?"
"Yes," William said, "I don't like being told what to do."
"I wasn't telling you, I was asking you," she said.
With that William lifted the glass and swallowed the whisky down. He turned to face her and asked, "So, even knowing how I feel, you still want to try to have the baby?"
Julia sighed. "Yes … I do." Julia shifted, sitting up straighter, not under his arm anymore. "William, this is my body. It is me who has to go through the pregnancy and the surgery."
William was overwhelmed with fear. He felt his stomach wrench. He bent over, hugging his sides and rocking himself for a few moments before nausea sprung him forward and he bolted to lean over their porch fence and vomit in the bushes. So quickly after the panic, he felt the anger move in. "How dare she claim control over this decision!" he thought. She had no right to leave him out of it. His hands were locked into fists. He could see why some men lost control – the fury was nearly overwhelming. He needed to get away from her before he did or said something he would regret later.
Julia wanted to take back her remark about it being "her body" immediately. She knew it was wrong to suggest he had no part in it – no control over the outcome. She was herself frozen with fear for a moment at how severely William had reacted to her words – or was it just too much alcohol? William was already down the steps headed down their path to the street before she could get herself to move. She ran, placing her body in front of him, trying to hold him back from leaving. "Please William, don't go. I was wrong to imply that it's solely up to me. It's just that the laws give men all the power – and it's so unfair that men can decide what women can do with their own bodies. I know you agree with me that this is wrong … Please William." William steamed past her, opening the gate and walking out onto the sidewalk, barefoot, in his pajama bottoms and his coat.
Yielding to the urge to cry, Julia tried to reassure herself that he would be back. She went into the house and got a glass of water, reasoning that when William returned it would help his body better cope with his overconsumption of alcohol. She sat on the porch steps, naked except for her robe and coat, waiting for him. After a time, her tears had stopped and she found herself looking down at her bare feet, wondering if she was as crazy as the sight suggested – even though it was relatively warm, it was February after all.
She hadn't heard the gate. She saw William's feet in front of hers. Relief and love exploded through her. She heard the "thump" of their coated bodies slapping together when she jumped off of the bottom step and into his arms. She could smell the scent of him mixed with the cold. It felt like she would never ever let go. "I'm so glad you came back. Please don't leave me William," she said into his shoulder.
"I just needed a walk to cool off. I will never leave you Julia, never," he said.
He took a seat on the steps and Julia sat down next to him. She offered him the glass of water, "Here, this will help your body with the alcohol."
He raised an eyebrow at her and said, "Telling me what to do again?"
"Doctor's orders," she said, "That's different."
William drank the glass of water, even though he had argued that he'd thrown up most of the liquor anyway. He reflected on the irony of their situation. A decade or so ago they had broken up because he judged her as behaving immorally for having aborted another man's child, and here he was now begging her to abort his own.
Julia reached over and turned his face to hers. "William, I'm willing to have an abortion if that truly is what we decide together is best. You matter more to me than this baby. But we don't have to decide right now. Let's see what Isaac has to say. Let's see if you feel differently in a few days," she said, lovingly caressing his face in her hands. William agreed.
They sat, Julia under his arm, and as they both breathed in a sigh of relief – albeit temporary, they looked up to the sky and, low and behold, right there in front of them, the Moon could be seen inching out from beneath the Earth's shadow. Julia's voice, filled with awe, said, "It's like the rest of the eclipse from so many years ago."
He had been so distracted that he had forgotten about tonight's eclipse. "It makes such a difference – perspective, I mean," he pondered, pushing himself to try to remember to see things from more than one point of view as much as possible. "I mean to keep that in mind – to remember that life's struggles, and even joys, are multi-dimensional, and that pushing oneself to see things from as many points of view as possible leads to a better and more complete understanding – of oneself and of others as well," he explained.
Julia leaned heavier against him and said, "That seems wise." She signaled a change of subject by wrapping her arm in his, "Husband, I am grappling with a dilemma – As a doctor I know we should head inside as I am quite concerned we may end up with frostbitten feet, but as your wife I believe that, after spending so much time out on our porch on such a romantic night, we should share at least a kiss…"
William turned to face her, "I do believe the best choice would be to share a kiss, as I have noticed a correlation between kissing you and an increase in circulation – and better blood-flow would ward off frostbite, would it not?"
Julia held eye contact with him while she brought herself to kneel on the step in front of him, spreading his thighs apart and pressing herself closer to him. She reached up to hold his face in her hands and moved her face to hover over his. "Winsome logic as usual, Mr. Murdoch," she remarked in a tone that seduced every cell in his body to change its orientation and focus on her. Softly, slowly, she touched her lips to his.
William was surprised by the intensity of his longing for such a tender touch from her. Controlling his desire to passionately dive into her, he forced himself to match her speed, align with her gentler mood. He opened his lips to her, giving in to the urge to moan when her velvety tongue slid into his mouth. His hands found their way to her hips, where they lusciously explored the curves of her body. Only moments later, he had his way with her, lifting her bottom up onto the side table in their foyer. Circulation was definitely increased; frostbite clearly thwarted.
The next day, Isaac surprised himself during their meeting. He normally did not make recommendations as to the choices couples should make – just gave them the facts and left it to them to decide. Possibly it was his loyalty to Julia, or his intense history with this particular couple, but Isaac argued for taking the risk of carrying the pregnancy to term. William and Julia decided to try to have the baby. Four months later, Julia miscarried, losing the little girl. She was far enough along in the pregnancy that they still needed to perform a Cesarean section to save Julia's life. After the miscarriage, William was greatly saddened, but Julia was devastated. The couple decided to adopt a daughter soon after that. Six months later they adopted sisters, Katie and Chelsea.
