Chapter 19:

"Julia… I have something to tell you." William said as he dined with Julia at home.

"What is happening?" asked the young woman.

"I spoke with Inspector Brackenreid. We've run out of a coroner at Station 4. He wants to hire you for that job."

Julia looked at William with a frozen face. She watched him without understanding.

"What are you talking about after all?"

The young man stood up and knelt beside the young woman, smiling at her.

"You are hired for this position, Julia."

Julia's face lit up, she knelt in turn and hugged William.

"But how… I don't understand…"

The young man then told her about the long discussions he had had with his superior and the reason why the inspector had agreed to hire her. He informed her that she was starting in two days and that she was on probation.

"Two days! But William… I would have to review all my classes… it's been 17 years since I practiced."

"It's like cycling... you can't forget it."

"Nonsense..." Julia laughed, shaking her head.

"You know, that also means… You're going to have to get out of my house." William said sadly.

The young woman looked at him sadly, understanding exactly what he was talking about.

"I didn't go out so that no one would see me and understand that I live with you. But now that I'm going to have to go out every day... I'm going to have to go somewhere else."

"Yes..." The detective gently stroked Julia's cheek, still kneeling in front of her. "Where will you go?"

"Surely at the hotel."

William nodded sadly. "It also means that we won't see each other as much as before."

"Well… We'll see each other at work. And then, it will be necessary to wait for my divorce to be able to see each other normally."

"It's going to be hard…"

Julia nodded, then caressed her lover's cheek before kissing him lovingly. They quietly made their way to the bedroom that had been theirs for a few days and made love for the last time before what they knew would be a long time.

When Julia landed at Station 4 on Monday morning, every officer looked at her as if she were an alien. They had been warned by Inspector Brackenreid, but it was still a shock to them to know that she would be their new coroner. She knocked on the door of Inspector Brackenreid's office, led by Agent Crabtree, and entered.

The inspector had been very courteous to her. He had not let slip any clues that he knew about her relationship with his best detective, and she was grateful. She had feared it would be embarrassing.

Finally, the chief inspector had taken her to the morgue, which was in an annex building, near the Station. When she saw the inside of the morgue and realized that this was all HER place, she thought she would burst into tears. She could not believe the happiness that besieged her right now. She only missed her daughters, and she would be happy. In the meantime, she missed them so much. But they were smart, and she knew that Rosemary and Emily would not think for a second that she would not come back for them.

The chief inspector explained to her that there were some unfinished businesses that he needed her to deal with as a matter of priority. The bodies were lying in the morgue. He had explained to her that she would be called in the event of the discovery of a body and that she could move to the scene if she wished. Otherwise, she could wait for the body at the morgue.

"And… you'll be working closely with Detective Murdoch who handles criminal cases…" Thomas gave Julia a pointed look, who did not flinch.

"Understood. Thanks inspector."

"Hmm."

Julia watched the one who had now become her superior slip away and let out the breath she felt like she had been holding since entering the Station. She looked around in wonder, then began to familiarize herself with the morgue.

She thought back to her night with William two days ago and smiled dreamily as she inspected her medical instruments. It had been so wonderful that she still had chills. Knowing that they would certainly not have this opportunity for a long time, their antics had been special...

Julia had to pack her bags the next morning and had left William's very late, in the middle of the night, so that no one would see her. She had gone directly to a hotel in the city and had taken a room for an indefinite time. She had felt very lonely without William, whose presence she had grown accustomed to. But, to cheer herself up, she kept thinking that now they would both work in the same place.

Note: William and Julia had to make a compromise… Thanks to those who are still reading my story. It always makes me very happy!