William looked at his wife as she danced with their son. They were attending the 1920 Policemen ball. Even though they could have went to a grander event; Julia did belong to one of the most prestigious Toronto family after all; they never missed the New Year's policemen ball. It held fond memories for them. Tonight they had brought their two children with them.
Though she was well into her fifties, Julia was still one of the most beautiful women he knew. David, only nineteen, towered over his mother. A bright young man, William and Julia had been terrified the wretched war would last so long that their son would have to go over. Luckily for them, it had ended before the young man turned eighteen. As he watched them dance, William's thoughts drifted to the day he first met his son.
William was staring at his board trying to figure out an annoying detail regarding his latest case. George barged into the room without bothering to knock. William ignored him as he continued to stare at his board. George tried to get his attention: "Sir."
When William did not show any sign of having heard him, George tried again: "Sir!"
William finally looked up: "Yes George."
"Ah Sir. Dr. Ogden, I mean Dr. Murdoch." Even now, a year after William and Julia had married; George still had difficulty calling Julia, Dr. Murdoch.
George went for the simpler solution: "…your wife Sir. She called and left a message. She would like you to meet her at the pauper's clinic."
William looked pensive for a while. While Julia had persevered in her chosen specialty of psychiatry, she still volunteered at a clinic for the city's poor once a week. William did not like it. The clinic was situated in a rough part of town and exposed her to dangerous characters. They had argued about it of course, with Julia accusing him of being overprotective while he claimed she was not cautious enough. He could not help himself. He had come too close to loosing her too often. Finally, William had hired a young man to guard her. Julia had not fought him on it.
William looked at the clock. He was getting nowhere here. He might as well quit for the day. George had one more piece of news to share with the Detective. He hesitated as he knew that he would end up on the receiving end of the detective's bad mood once George told him.
"Eh Sir… She is sending the carriage for you." He was already out of the room before he even finished the sentence.
William's face closed up. No matter how much he tried, he could not get used to the idea of living off Julia's money. Owning a carriage was well outside of his means, but not Julia's. She was used to its convenience and could not understand why he objected to it. They had reached a consensus. Julia used it when she wished and William had continued to either walk or cycle. Occasionally, she would send it over like this, without consulting him, and that would absolutely drive William mad. Today was no different. He fumed as rode to the clinic in the blasted carriage. He stepped out and angrily walked up the steps to the run down building. The big room was empty, but the young man he had hired to look over Julia gestured towards a small room in the back. William took a long breath. This time, he would be very direct in his argument. He would not back down. She simply would have to stop doing this kind of thing. He opened the door to the small room and came to a complete stop at the sight in front of him.
Julia was sitting on a rocking chair giving a bottle to a small baby; a very small baby. She looked up to him with a beautiful smile. She looked so right, so natural that all his anger immediately melted. He gently closed the door and walked over. He crouched beside her.
"Julia?" he asked.
The baby moved in her arms, distracting her for a second. She took a moment to settle him down again and then looked at to him.
"He was left by the door. When I arrived this morning I found him in a box. There was a short note: "Please take care of my David." He is newborn William, no more than a few days old"
Julia took the bottle away and put the small baby on her shoulder and started tapping his back. William silently watched his wife; mesmerized by the beautiful picture she made with the child. Finally she looked up to him. There was a silent request on her face. William understood.
"You want us to keep him."
Julia looked at the small baby before answering.
"He is a fine boy William. I checked him over. He's healthy. There is nothing wrong with him." She paused and looked at him directly in the eyes. "He just needs parents, a family."
William gently put his hand on the baby's head. He left it there for a second then moved it to Julia's cheek. She closed her eyes and leaned into his caress. They stayed like that for a moment. William spoke first.
"We should leave now then. The shops are still open. With the carriage we should have time to stop and pick up a few things for the baby… for David."
Tears of joy came to Julia's eyes. "Thank you William. Thank you." She then had a moment's hesitation: "Do you want this also William? We both have to be ready for this to work."
William put his arms around his small family: "Oh I am ready Julia. I have been ready for a while. I was waiting for you."
They took David home that night. Mother and son bonded immediately. Looking at them together now, it was easy to forget that Julia had not borne him. William was distracted from the contemplation of his son and wife by a loud noise followed by laughter. He looked over to see his daughter surrounded by several constables. One young man had fallen and Lizzie was helping him up. He immediately looked over to his wife's face and saw it close up in anger. William took a long breath. He will have to play referee again tonight.