CHAPTER 22:

Eventually, a few days passed, and Julia and William were discharged from the hospital, and each returned to their own lives. They felt very alone. They had become so used to each other's presence that returning to their empty apartments seemed absurd to them.

When William finally returned to Station 4, he was greeted with loud ovations and a small party. He had smiled. He had missed his colleagues, despite everything. Inspector Brackenreid clapped him on the shoulder. Thomas easily realized that his best detective did not have the same face as usual. He seemed off and… frightened. Like he was on guard.

"How did you find Detective Murdoch on today's investigation?" Thomas asked, glass in hand, sitting in his desk chair.

George winced as he looked at his superior.

"I found him in very bad shape actually… I had the impression that he was not feeling very well."

"And you Higgins?"

"Same as George."

Brackenreid rolled his eyes at his other officer's minimal response.

"Are you thinking of anything?" George asked shyly.

"Not at the moment…" he sighed. "Not at the moment…"

Later that day, Detective Brackenreid walked over to William's office, whom he had not seen all day. He had to admit that he was worried about him. Besides, discovering that he was courting a woman, Doctor Ogden, had surprised him so much. He had never heard or seen that the young man was courting anyone. And that they both came out of the attack alive was a miracle.

When he opened the door to William's office, without knocking, he froze. He found the young man, his head on his desk, asleep.

Brackenreid looked down. Detective Murdoch had not once been found twiddling his thumbs or sleeping on the job since he was hired. He was a workaholic.

Thomas quietly closed the door and returned to his office. He sat down in his chair and sighed. He put his head in his hands and thought. What could he do to help his friend?

"Didn't you invite them both?"

"Isn't that strange?" Thomas asked suddenly. "We don't know Dr. Ogden. She'll find it sordid if I show up at the hospital and ask her if she wants to come and have dinner with us."

"Well… You just must go see her and tell her that we invite her because it was you who was on the case… Anyway… And you see if she accepts or not…"

Thomas looked at his wife who was busy in the kitchen.

"This plan really doesn't smell good..." Thomas muttered suddenly.

"I hope you're not talking about my cooking."

The Chief Inspector suddenly raised his head.

"No, of course not dear…" he laughed and kissed Margaret's cheek.

"It's just…" he mused.

It had been several days since William Murdoch had returned to work and he was worried about him. He was… extinct. He was doing his job, that was undeniable, but you could feel he was dragging himself. He did not want to be at the Station. He was here, but he was elsewhere. Sometimes he caught him sleeping in his office. He had also seen him do nothing before. He remained seated somewhere, his eyes completely blank.

"I couldn't talk to him. He remains silent. He doesn't want to talk about what happened to anyone."

"But it's normal Thomas… What happened to him… Well, what happened to them both was horrible. You can't expect William to behave like before."

"I know… But Murdoch… Well, I like him… In the sense that…"

"I know you consider him a bit like your son." she smiled at him. "He is your friend beyond being your employee."

Thomas nodded as his wife put her arms around his neck. She was right. The detective was very important to him, and he wanted to help him. With his wife, they had had an idea. He was thinking of inviting William to dinner and asking Doctor Ogden to join them. He wanted to see if the problem was here. Was William unable to rebuild himself because he needed Julia for that? After all, they had been put in the same room in the hospital. The psychiatrists had explained that they needed the other to heal.

If he was having this dinner and saw a change in William's behavior, he would consider something. It might sound crazy, but his wife had suggested he hire Dr. Ogden as a coroner at the Station. Perhaps she would accept to be closer to her lover?

"I'm going to see her at the hospital and I'm going to see what condition she is in too..."

"She and William haven't had a chance to see each other since they got out of the hospital, have they?" asked Margaret.

"No… Murdoch has had a lot of work lately and I think the doctor too…"

"And what are you going to do if she accepts the position of coroner? You already have a medical examiner."

"He wanted to retire for a while. I know he doesn't dare leave because we can't find anyone to replace him."

Margaret nodded. "Okay…well go for it now." she smiled at him.

Note: Well! Things are gradually falling into place. Thank you very much for the last comment! It was super nice! I'm glad to see that you feel what I wanted to convey :)