Chapter 1: So, Back to Plan A

The excitement was palpable, so much so that neither of them had been able to sleep. Lovemaking this morning had solidified their already significant bond. Now the couple rushed about dressing for work, running late as usual. Because William had already placed the bags in the foyer, they headed down the stairs to breakfast with bundles of last-minute items piled in their arms.

"I'll put the milk bottles in the cooling bag you made right before we take the carriage to the train tonight," Julia planned aloud to her spouse. "You're sure we can get some ice in Halifax?" she worried, again.

"I'm sure," came his patient answer.

William Jr. trailed behind his parents on the staircase. He, too, had his four-year-old hands full. Hopeful that his favorite toy firetruck would fit in the suitcase, he also carried a, rather beat-up – albeit with love – stuffed rabbit. "I decided I wanna give my Blanco to my sister after all," he proudly declared.

Their son's decision halted them both in their tracks. William turned back to the tiny boy, finding him at eyelevel a few steps back. "Now my little man, that is very generous of you," he exclaimed with a bow.

"I'm sure it will help her feel welcomed," the youngster's mother piped in sharing the glow on her face. Julia paused to appreciate the velvety white rabbit. It had lost an eye, and, even though they had washed it multiple times in William's laundry cupboard, it was stained. And Julia couldn't help but think it must be the luckiest stuffed toy in the world to have been so very much loved, almost loved to rags, by such a warm, wonderful boy as William Jr. Still, there was a slight tweak of worry in her gut at imagining the looks on the nun's faces as her lovely son handed off such a gift to his new sister. She shoved her chin proudly in the air. "Chelsea is quite fortunate to have such a kindhearted older brother as you," she declared.

William's eyes stalled on the large toy truck underneath the old wilted rabbit. Torn between the practical man he was, and the compassionate father he had found himself to be, he decided not to comment yet. Still, a sigh escaped his chest as he turned to look at Julia.

"Do you think we can make room for it?" she asked with a wrinkle in her face suggesting both doubt and a request. He marveled at their communication, certain she was not referring to the little, plush rabbit.

Little William Jr. was bright (no surprise knowing his parents) and knew exactly what was going on between them… knew his firetruck was in jeaopardy. "Please Daddy," his beautiful, young, voice called out, "Please!" ultimately deciding his father's internal debate and causing the grownup to start envisioning the current content of the three suitcases at the foot of the stairs… and the myriad of contents now in their arms, in various configurations inside the bags.

"I'm sure we can find a way to make it all fit," William offered. He imagined his son playing with the truck on the long, twenty-hour, train ride to Nova Scotia, and then he imagined the four-year-old asleep in Julia's arms, as they all continued down the stairs. William told himself that his little man would do both of these things, and much more, on this adventure to adopt his younger sister.

They had been trying to adopt a little infant girl since Julia had returned home from the hospital after her Cesarean section, defeated and depressed at the loss of their tiny daughter, already named Susana, whom had been miscarried at nearly five-months. The setback had been devastating for both parents, but eventually they healed and decided that there was a little girl out there in the world who desperately needed a good home, and so, they would go back to the original plan – Plan A – and adopt a child, a baby to be William Jr.'s little sister.

Julia wanted an infant girl, and they both admitted they wanted a daughter who looked like Julia, so they searched for a blond, blue-eyed infant girl. They had no idea how difficult it would be to find such a child, particularly, they had discovered, because Julia was a workingmother – despite their relative wealth, and both of them were so deeply involved with the dreaded criminal element, and to top it all off, they were Catholic.

Nearly a year after their undertaking had started, they had finally found a little girl at an orphanage that would accept them as parents, St. Joseph's Orphanage in Halifax Nova Scotia. They would meet at home right after Julia finished lecturing her Forensics class at the University, eat a quick dinner, pack up their final things – placing many of the last-minute items in the "cooler" William had invented – and catch the 8 PM train. They would not arrive in Halifax until 9 PM the next night. Then, the first thing in the morning after that, they were off to get their little girl – Chelsea!

) (

The bounce in William's step seemed contagious as he crossed the bullpen for his office, prompting George to begin whistling once he had made his greetings and buried his nose back in the files he was re-organizing. On William's worktable rested a 30" X 18" box. It was double-lined wood, with an odd, gooey, and somewhat puffy, now-hardened, material stuffed in between the layers. The detective checked the texture of the stuffing, punching a triumphant fist quietly in the air with his satisfaction with the results. Now he would line the rubber strip along the top edge, about an inch deep so that the matching rubber strip in the lid would drop in place tight above it.

William glanced up at his blackboard to admire the plans for the device. Admittedly, it looked complicated. There was the design of the box, not very elaborate, but he believed it best to keep things simple when possible. But the making of the German polymer, that was another story. He had drawn out with the white chalk the long chains of styrene molecules in the sweetgum tree resin, as he imagined them hardened from the oily substance after a few days. He had planned every detail, temperature, humidity of environment, calculated the amount of expansion with the chemical reaction… all before ordering the gumtree resin over ten days ago – all so he could bring his baby daughter back on that long train ride with milk to drink. "Well done," he congratulated himself. He pictured the baby bottles full of white, creamy milk, and even some of the other items they would bring along, like cheese and carrots, packed in the cold, ice-packed "cooler." Anxiety lingered however, he noticed, just below the surface. My God, he hoped they were up to the task of being the best parents they could possibly be for this little girl. He reassured himself… They had done quite well with William Jr. He was a fine lad, a fine lad indeed!

William clapped his hands together to change the subject. "Lots to get done," he coached himself, "Best get to it."

) (

This lecture, as with most of her others, inspired her. Julia packed up feeling high – confident – powerful and optimistic. "These young students are so bright," she marveled. At first, she remembered, she had worried about teaching young men, but now she found it absolutely thrilling. Even her male colleagues seemed to treat her with respect. After a lecture like the one she just gave, she wholeheartedly believed she deserved it. Still, she wondered as she stepped out into the prestigious University hallway, how far would she have come along this path without William. He had always inspired her so. Pushed her to be better… And she him. Julia was unaware of the huge smile on her face.

Professor Carruthers, also having just finished lecturing, stepped out into the hall in front of her. "Dr. Ogden," he greeted, "Don't you look lovely tonight. I trust it went well."

"Oh yes, Professor…" Julia started to say, recognizing his friendly disapproval, prompting her to change his title of address, "John," she said with a nod. "The students found using dentition to identify the body quite exhilarating this evening," she explained. Spontaneously bursting into a giggle, she shared, with a secluded hush in her body language, "They even each had others examining their teeth!"

Professor Carruthers chuckled loudly in response. "Must've been quite a sight," he said, then added a bit more seriously, "Do you think they could identify each other by their teeth?"

"Perhaps," Julia gave somewhat skeptically. They walked side-by-side to the stairs and then down them, continuing their conversation. "I had told the class that the male canine is a fraction longer, relative to the neighboring teeth, than that of the female, and they were reaching into each other's mouths and measuring each other's teeth with a ruler. It was quite a sight. Gathered some supporting data for the theory, I'd say," Julia confided.

"Sounds like you have your next paper started then, Julia," the professor said cheerfully. He added, "Good luck," just as they parted.

) (

Later that evening on the train, William Jr. had been so well-behaved up until this point, but now, he was cranky and wailing that angry cry that was impossible not to grate on the nerves of every passenger in the, thankfully nearly empty, Pullman green sleeping car. The little boy had begged incessantly to be allowed to play with his toy firetruck on the aisle floor, and then having been given permission, had proceeded to roll the siren-blaring (sound-effects annoyingly provided by the truck owner) vehicle down the entire aisle.

Admittedly having had lost his patience with his son's 'rudeness,' his use of the word earning him an eye-roll from Julia, topping off his mood, William had hurried down the aisle, scooped up both the boy and the truck, deposited the screaming child in his wife's lap and stuffed the truck back in the suitcase in the overhead storage section a few rows back. He then sat down next to them with a huff. Embarrassment quickly gurgled and perked inside of him… Almost immediately, he regretted his behavior.

Julia's voice next to him, perfect in the tone of its calmness and its strength, comforted and reassured. William closed his eyes and imagined her soft lips so close to the boy's thick, wavy black hair. "Take a deep breath, little one," she seemed to sing. "It's alright. You're just very, very tired, hmm?" she asked. William imagined his son nodding, wiping his runny nose. "We are on such an exciting adventure and you so want to see it all, don't you? Don't want to miss a thing, hmm? Afraid you would miss something important, if you fell asleep…"

William noticed his own body softening with her soothing. He took her advice, as did his son, he could tell because the crying had stopped. He took a deep breath. My God he loved her.

"Sorry," William said, his voice cracking with its dryness, his head still tilted back against the seat, his eyes still closed. He sighed and shifted his position to turn and face the little four-year-old in Julia's lap. "I'm sorry little man," he repeated, firmer this time. He reached out and rubbed his son's back. "Your Mommy's right. I should have thought of that… That you were tired." He leaned closer and said quietly, "I promise I'll wake you up if anything exciting happens, O.K? Do you think you can try to go to sleep?"

"O.K. Daddy," he replied.

Julia tucked him closer into her breasts…

William wondered at the perfection of the natural pillow…

And she gently stroked the boy's head. A tradition between them, she repeated her son's words admiringly back to his father, "O.K. Daddy." The couple shared a loving look.

"I love you," William mouthed to her, evoking a big smile.

"Daddy," William Jr.'s voice called from within his mother's bosom, "Can I have my rabbit?"

William Jr. reveled in the feeling of being temporarily sandwiched between his parents as his father leaned down over him and whispered in his ear, "Sure thing, little man." He moved to stand up and go get Blanco back in the suitcase, lifting an eyebrow at Julia. She responded with a silent giggle. He knew what she was thinking… "He's only four." Somehow such a reminder from her always managed to put things in perspective for him.

Before he stood, he leaned back over and whispered in her ear, "I know. I know. He's only four. But it seems our son is back to Plan A. I don't think that old, ratty, Blanco is getting a new Mommy tomorrow." Finding her irresistible, William kissed his wife's ear and whispered, "Though our little Chelsea is, and she's getting herself quite a good one at that," before he went and got his son his stuffed rabbit.

He adjusted Julia's seat so she could lie down with William Jr. and then he crawled up into the overhead sleeping compartment above her. William untied the curtain, enveloping the family together in their own sectioned-off unit. Not long after, it seemed that all of the Murdoch's trusted that they wouldn't miss anything too important. The Murdoch's – minus one – slept on the train till the morning sun announced the new day through the misty windows.

) (…

I've just picked up the chalk on this one. Hope you can come along for the ride.

Romantic Nerd