Hi everyone I am so sorry about not updating on the weekend all of my exams have been very bunched up recently and it has been very hard to find the time to keep writing. But the good news is that my exams finished today and I've gotten straight back into writing this. I'm going to put this chapter up first and hopefully I can finish the next one later today or early tomorrow so you can have two chapters in one day. Hope you enjoy it.

'It's okay Jack, don't worry I'll look after you.' Reassured Casey trying to keep the small boy calm.

'Does mommy not love me anymore?' asked Jack his wide sapphire eyes clouded with tears.

Matt looked down on the young boy in his arms, clutching him closer as the child sobbed. 'I'm sure she loves you very much Jack, it's just sometimes everything gets a bit too much and she probably just needed to take a break, okay?'

Jack nodded in reply and nestled himself into Casey's chest his little hands clutching the fire-fighters shirt.

'I'm sorry Jack, it's going to be okay.' Said Matt comfortingly. 'Chief, child services can pick him up from the fire station can't they, I don't want to see this kid going into foster care tonight.'

The chief nodded in reply, agreeing with what Matt was suggesting.

'Hey, Jack. Do you want to come back to the fire house with me for tonight?' asked Matt, the young boy growing on him by the second.

Jack nodded profusely cracking a gap toothed smile.

Matt lifted up Jack and sat him in his lap in the truck as they made their way back to the firehouse after putting out the rest of the fire.

The next morning Jack's new social worker arrived at the firehouse looking for her charge.

'Hi, I was wondering if you could help, my name is Mary Jane Scott.' Said the woman who appeared to be in her late sixties with grey, curly hair and bright blue eyes. 'I am a social worker, I'm here to meet Jackson James. I was told he was brought over here last night for some reason, after the fire at his house.'

'Hi, I'm Christopher Hermann, I'll get Casey to bring him down here.' Said Hermann making his way to Matt's office, smiling when he saw the scene before him. 'Hey Matt, Jack's social worker is here, she wants you guys to come down.'

'Okay, we're coming now.' Replied Matt looking up from his spot on the floor, he was sitting on the ground playing with Jack with some toy fire trucks he had found in his desk that he had hung onto from when he was a kid. 'Come on Jack,' said Casey lifting up Jack and tucking him under his arm, still carrying the toy trucks. 'Let's go meet your social worker, make sure you remember what we talked about last night.'

As Matt entered the room, the young boy still giggling in his grasp, he was shocked by the woman before him.

'Matthew Casey.' Said Mary pulling him into a hug as he put Jack down on the floor. 'I never thought I'd see you again.'

'Wait,' asked Kelly 'How do you two know each other?'

'She was my social worker when I was a kid, she tried to get me out of Callum's custody so many times.' Replied Casey.

'So this is Jack, I'm guessing.' Said Mary 'I see you gave him those old fire trucks that you had.'

'You weren't joking when you said you had always wanted to be a fire-fighter were you?' said Kelly.

'No, he wasn't. The first time I met him he was wandering around with that very same fire truck toy, told me you wanted to be a fire fighter when you were five years old.' Replied Mary, laughing at the memory. 'I guess you finally did it kid, you finally got away from Callum I'm assuming.'

'I did, I ran away the day after I finished high school. But he found me again,' explained Matt, his voice cracking as he did. 'Callum turned up here yesterday out of nowhere. It brought everything back up.'

'Oh Matthew honey I'm so sorry, you didn't deserve that, any of that.' Replied Mary, 'You were always such a sweet boy.'

'It's fine, let's talk about Jack here now instead though.' Said Casey pulling Jack back up onto his lap and ruffling the boy's hair.

'Well, I've checked his background and there are no other family members to take him in so we're looking at adoption, which is probably unlikely for his age, or the more likely option of foster care until he's eighteen.' Explained Mary sadly.

'Mary,' asked Matt quietly, 'Do you think that maybe I could adopt him? I'd have to get Boden to agree about working hours and stuff but I don't want to see him get lost in the system and end up like I did. He already trusts me and I know I could take care of him.'

'Okay Matt, you can stop there. I agree with you. I'd love to let you take him on but we've got to check with Boden and go through all the right channels.' Clarified Mary with a smile on her face, happy to see one of her old kids taking on a new charge of hers.

'I think you should go for it Matt.' Said Boden from his place in the corner of the room where he had listened to the whole conversation unnoticed. 'I'll be happy to make sure that you have shifts that mean you can take care of Jack.'

'Thanks chief,' said Casey looking down as the sleeping boy leaning on his chest 'I appreciate that.'

'I'll see what I can do about getting the papers through the system quickly it should take about two weeks to get you approved but until then I can leave him with you as an emergency foster placement.' Explained Mary still smiling.

By the next week Jack had settled into life with Matt, he had been settled into a neighborhood daycare when Matt was on shift and life seemed to be almost perfect again. Casey had gotten in touch with Antonio and together they had begun building a case against the currently elusive Callum for everything he had done to Matt as a young boy.

Kelly and Casey were hanging out in the chief's office with Boden discussing their decision on getting a new candidate into the house.

Meanwhile down on the apparatus floor the engine team had just finished running drills when a drunken Callum stormed in through the station door.