A month later
William withdrawal exhausted that night. He had worked on a difficult case all week, he spent the last weekend at the place of their future home, Julia and Roland accompanying. Julia had help him when Roland was asleep in his pram a little further. He loved these moments spent with them more than anything in the world, but he was exhausted. It's been a month that he was working very hard, one month he spent hours in the station to peel missing children cases. Even if he had not told Julia he feared that the same thing, that Roland could be removed to them. While he always reassuring, it happened that he wakes up at night took a horrible nightmare, he was not speaking to Julia. He was content to hold her for reassurance and glancing at Roland.
When he returned in later that night, Roland was already asleep for a long time. He found Julia in the living-room on the sofa with her robe, reading a book in the meantime. He put his hat in the hall, his jacket and unbuttoned his vest before leaning over to kiss his wife tenderly.
-Still a lot of work? Julia asked softly as he walked away. I thought the station was calm now.
-It Is, but I have to classify old cases, William lied, I'll take a bath.
-Do not you want to eat before?
-I'm not hungry, William muttered away to join the bedroom and not noticing the look of incomprehension that Julia sent him.
She saw him look at the cradle of Roland to stroke tenderly his head a few times before to go to the bathroom without looking back.
William stood for several minutes in warm water, eyes closed, trying to relax and out of his mind the conviction that he had to lie to his wife when he heard a tissue slide to the ground a little more far. He opened his eyes to see Julia naked next to the tub, hands in front of her and smiling shyly.
-Can I join you? She asked shyly.
-Of course, said William smiling, but do not you already done your toilet?
-Yes but...
She did not finish her sentence and William smiled fondly at the timidity which his wife was not usual at. He reached out to stroke his fingertips her thigh and took her hand to draw her to the tub.
-Come, he whispered.
She smiled and grabbed a silver pin which she placed in her hair to hold the bun so they do not get wet, then she went into the bath, lying between William's legs , propping her back against his chest and sighed welfare when he placed his arms around her and he kissed her shoulder.
-William, Julia whispered eyes closed, feeling her husband file another kiss on her neck, you'll tell me if something was wrong, is not it?
He walked away a bit of her and she turned her head to look at him, plunging his eyes into hers.
-You're so concerned right now, Julia went on, I feel you hiding something from me.
-I ... William muttered.
-You can tell me, Julia continued stroking his cheek.
He inhaled deeply, Julia's gaze was so worried he had a broken heart to know that he was the cause. He put one of her blond curl behind her ear, a gesture he had always when he wanted to talk to her about something important, something that touched him.
-Do you remember this Sunday we spent at the lake there is a month, the day that I took photos of you and Roland? You had told me about a woman whose friend's son was kidnapped.
At these words Julia tensed and he immediately stroked her cheek to reassure her, seeing the fear in her eyes.
-Roland is not this child. I investigated because I wanted to be sure and I discovered that it's not him.
-But?
-I asked George to bring me complaints from children of age or younger than Roland, who disappeared. There are many Julia. ... And we have no evidence that Roland's parents are his parents.
Julia's breath hitched.
-So, she began lump in her throat, he can have a family, relatives somewhere who seeks? He can have a mother ...
-You're his mother.
-No, William, we both know I'm not his mother. His real mother.
-I continue to seek the truth, I want to have a proof that no one will take us Roland.
-Do not do that, whispered Julia, I beg you to stop. I do not want to know, I do not want that because of your desire to seek the truth we can lose our child.
-Julia, if Roland has a family, it is our duty to ...
-I will not give back this child William, Julia snapped away from him, I love him as my son. I do not want him to know his story, I do not want to knowfrom where he comes from, growing up he will only remember us. There will be no other parents for him. And if you persist at all costs to know the truth, we will lose him forever. We love him and he loves us too, the rest does not matter.
She shot him a glare and with a jump, she left the tub to get dressed and leave the room. William sighed deeply, he knew he had made a mistake by talking to her, but he was forced, he would have no secrets from her, even if it was going to hurt her and that he would feel worse -comfortable. Even more tense than when he entered. He sighed deeply and left the bath too. He tied a towel around his waist and he turned on the water. He turned off the light and left the room. He found Julia considered the cradle of Roland and looking tenderly. William approached her and kissed under her ear.
-I'm doing this for you and Roland, Julia, he whispered in her ear before removing the pin that she still had in her hair that fell cascading over her shoulders, because I love you, William added kissing in the hair of his wife, and I do not want to lose him.
He walked away from her and walked around the bed to take his pajamas. He removed the towel and dressed, then he lay down between the sheets. Julia looked at him in silence, always next to Roland cradle and then remove her robe, join the bed and turn off the light. She stayed a while lying on her side with her back to William, before sighing deeply and turn around. She saw the back of William and slowly, she approached him. She pressed against him, putting her arms around his waist and failing her mouth below his ear.
-Me too William, she whispered quietly, I do it because I love you and I can not bear to lose this child, our child.
William did not answer, but he put his hand on Julia's and closed his eyes, feeling the breath of his wife in his neck and her breasts pressed against his back. She may be right, maybe the truth is not always good to know.
When William arrived at the police station the next morning, he looked at the stack of folders on his desk. He had made a decision. With a sigh, he took it and placed it on the desk of Higgins who looked up to him immediately.
-Put these files where they were Henry.
He turned and went to his desk without a word. He sat down and opened the drawer. A huge smile was born on his lips when he took the photograph that was there. Julia sat on the sand, water caressing her legs. She was wearing her swimsuit, but she had withdrawn her long black stockings, a straw hat to protect from the sun and she laughed uproariously, Roland sat between her legs, both looking at the camera. They were happy and William remembered being happy also taking this photograph. He did not want to spoil this happiness, not this time.
It was when he was leaving the police station that George came into his office with a folder in hand. He met his eyes and the young man handed him.
-I think I found it Sir, shyly murmured George, I think ... I think this is Roland.
William's heart skipped a beat and he took it back, frowning. He opened it to see the view of the disappearance of the young woman and her baby, to recognize the look of the child barely six months old.
-They're matches and I showed Miss Perly photography. She is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Collman, two architects of the suburbs of Montreal. She changed her name several times to commit theft. Roland is their grandson sir.
William had stopped breathing, his heart was pounding in his chest. He read the words on the paper, he heard the words of George and yet he could not help to hear in the back of his head Julia's laughter mingled with that of Roland. He could not get out of his mind their image, playing in the water.
-De ... Destroy that file, he murmured, looking at George again, burn it George.
-But, sir...
-Do it, please, William muttered under his breath, no one should know.
He spent a few seconds in total silence. George saw fear in the eyes of his superior, he knew he was making a mistake, but he also knew he had great misfortunes in his life and today he was happy. He knew that lose Roland would be a devastating event for Dr. Ogden. George knew what it was to lose a child he considered his own son.
He just nodded and smiled to William.
-Thank you, he sighed before taking his hat and leave as quickly as possible.
He pedaled quickly to the hotel, he needed to blow off steam and it was out of breath when he found himself at the door of the suite. It took a minute to calm down, to try to forget what George had said and what he had done. Then, after a deep breath, he entered the room. He saw Julia holding Roland by hand and gently move around the room. He met the gaze of his wife and he grinned her. She did the same.
-I think it will not take long time for him to start walking, threw Julia, soon he will run throughout the suite.
-I do not expect less of my son, retorted William arriving next to them, it is not that Master Murdoch?
Roland reached out to William that lifted him into the air to swirl and make him laugh out loud. Then he took him in his arms and drew Julia against him to kiss her languorously. She was first surprise, but soon, she kissed him back and they parted after a few seconds of breath.
-Forgive me, he whispered on her lips.
She smiled tenderly stroking the knot of his tie.
-Kiss me again and it will be forgotten Detective.
He smiled and he did so with joy, sure to give her the softest and most sensual of the kiss, smiling inwardly when he heard a groan of pleasure. He dropped another chaste kiss on the tip of her nose to give her a huge smile on her face before walking away from her.
-And what if now we do like last time Roland? He said, turning to the little boy. Go for the big flight, said William holding Roland at the end of arms above him.
Julia looked smiling. She never tired of seeing William playing with their son to see him and told him all the stories he had lived, and she was delighted to see that the little boy especially liked the one where William showed him what it was to be in a plane, hugging the furniture and subsequently crashing gently on the chest of his father lying on the sofa.
to be continued...