He was standing in the window of the upstairs parlour, unseeingly watching the world go by on the rain-streaked street below.

He rubbed his face as if he was trying to wake up, but he had not been asleep, and this was no dream. He knew, from experience, what shell-shock was like, and for him, this was a return to the state of mind that accompanied the physical symptoms. He wasn't really seeing anything around him, wasn't really hearing the drum of rain on the iron roof, or the crackle of the fire behind him, nor feeling its heat.

He felt… numb… disoriented… bone-tired... A dull pain radiated through him, but it had not been caused by any injury or sickness, just his own feeling that perhaps, this time, doing the right thing had been the wrong thing.

He couldn't believe that it had only been a little over three weeks ago that this had all started.

It had been just another day at the station, when Collins had knocked and informed him that a gentleman and a lady from the Welfare Department were here to see him. He had vaguely wondered whether he ought to know why they were there, but it was hardly unusual; as a police officer he frequently had cause to liaise with Welfare over children who were suspects, the children of suspects, the children of murder victims, and homeless children found dead.

In fact, they had come to interview him about Jane.

It had surprised him, but the questions had started innocuously enough.

He had originally recommended that Jane Ross be placed with Miss Fisher – to the best of his knowledge was she happy? Well looked after? Doing well at school?

Of course he had answered in the affirmative to those questions, and more, however things had soon taken a more personal bent. He spent a lot of time at Miss Fisher residence? Why? Did she interact with other police officers in this way? They had heard that there might be something more than a professional relationship between himself and Miss Fisher – what did he have to say about that? What did he know of her involvement with other gentlemen?

He had dismissed his two interrogators feeling angry and out-of-sorts. What the hell was going on? Why were they asking these questions?

He had telephoned Phryne's house, and Mr Butler had advised him that Miss Fisher was currently unable to take his call. When Jack had said that he would come to the house, Mr Butler had not told him not to, which had been telling.

He had arrived to find Phryne and Dot clutching hands and sobbing openly in the parlour, and as neither was in a fit state to explain to him, it was left to Mr B to fill him in.

It seemed that someone had gone to Welfare with allegations about Miss Fisher's own unconventional lifestyle, and also the people she associated with. The Department had acted in great haste, and only today the two Officers had been to Jane's school and interviewed her without anyone else present, spoken to her teachers, and her friends. They had ambushed Mrs Stanley during morning tea with friends, and had presented themselves to the unsuspecting Miss Fisher, before their visit to the Inspector.

Who knew where else they had been, and what had been said to them, but they had made it quite clear that they believed that the girl was in moral danger, and that Miss Fisher was unfit to care for her. They had told her that a final decision would not be made until they had all the facts, but at this stage it seemed most likely that Jane would be removed.

Jack had turned at Phryne's plaintive cry of grief. The only time he had seen her in such a state had been as he had stood behind her as she knelt over the muddy fragments what had once been her sister. In fact, this was worse. Jane was a living, breathing girl who was going to be torn from the woman who had come to love her as a daughter, and who protected her as fiercely as a lioness would her cub.

She had been inconsolable that afternoon, but he had sat beside the two women and tried valiantly to hold back his own tears in the face of such sorrow. He had put an arm around Phryne's shoulder and promised her that he would do anything in his power to see that Jane remained where she belonged.

The next day he had returned, and found her angry, hurting, and desperately sad.

Aunt P had been on the warpath, but it seemed that even her intervention would not improve the outcome.

Phryne had answered the Welfare Officers' questions truthfully the previous day, before she had really become aware of their intentions; if she had known from the start she would have lied. She had given Jack a sad laugh; the only thing that she had been able to deny was that she and he were having 'unmarried relations'.

Any day now Welfare were going to take Jane away from her, because she was a single woman and they could see no reason why she would not continue to lead an immoral lifestyle. Never mind that without her Jane would probably be out on the street again, dirty, unfed, uneducated, and at *real* danger of abuse, of more than one sort.

She had snorted. They had actually suggested that making a donation to charity might make her feel better. As if she meant nothing more to Jane than a meal ticket. As if Jane were just her philanthropic project.

The next day Jack had taken himself to the Welfare Department, and had argued until he was blue in the face. Then he had presented them with an idea that had occurred to him right there in that building, as he had butted his head against their walls of bureaucratic hypocrisy.

He had made his way to Phryne's door that night with a proposal – quite literally.

"Marry me."

"… Pardon?..."

He had explained the discussions that he had had with the Department, and what they had tentatively agreed to consider.

She had been absolutely incredulous.

He had agreed with her that it was ridiculous that the Welfare Officers believed that the moral danger they saw in Phryne could be magically conjured away by her marrying; but he would take it. Without future proof of adultery, it could only be assumed by the Department, and in turn those who had made the complaints, that she would be living a 'normal' lifestyle. As the male, her husband would become Jane's primary legal guardian, and they felt that the discipline that a man would bring to Jane's life would be to her advantage. Furthermore, Phryne's unusual friendships could be disregarded on the understanding that a husband would hold much more influence over her.

If it were Jack, they would even overlook the fact that he had been divorced, as long as he could provide the court documents that showed that it had been amicable – and that he wasn't a wife-beating alcoholic adulterer. Jack had given Phryne a wry smile, and she had not been able to help smiling back.

Of course, he had explained to her, it didn't have to be him; but the advantage to it being him would be that she wouldn't have to change.

She had looked at him quizzically.

He wasn't exactly sure how it might work, but apart from the fact that they would be legally bound, he would not presume to consider her beholden to him in any way. He might need to stay with her for a while, in order to present a nice domesticated picture, but he would not interfere in her life, and (he hated himself for saying it), although she would have to be *very* careful, he would not stand in the way of her finding 'companionship' elsewhere.

He had almost been able to see the cogs turning in her head as she had considered his offer, and for the first time had seen a glimmer of hope in her eyes.

If she decided that this is what she wanted to do, then the Department would hold off on taking Jane away, but the matter would have to be resolved fairly quickly; a decision would have to be made and action would need to be taken as soon as possible.

"I think that they might give you a day or two leeway before they come for her, but if you think that this is something that you want to do, they should probably be notified as soon as possible."

She had asked him whether it was really something that *he* wanted to do, and he had assured her that he had given it a lot of thought. He hadn't lied when he said that he would do anything to help, and he couldn't bear to see Jane removed from Phryne, who had taken her in, against his own advice, and loved her unconditionally.

It was all that he could do to ensure she remained where she was safe and cared for.

tbc