Work Text:
Hugh Collins looked through the crowd of black crepe, most surrounding the widow, others milling about until he spied the four pale, stunned, tear-stained faces sitting on a settee in the corner. Not one of them could be older than nine or ten and the youngest, a little girl, was barely three. He knelt down in front of them and spoke softly.
“Hi, my name’s Hugh.”
The eldest, a boy, looked at Hugh and in a dull voice blunted with pain and anger said, “I’m Michael. These are my sisters, Brigit, Margaret, and the baby is Frances.”
Hugh smiled sadly and nodded as he acknowledged each child, with baby Frances reaching out her baby fat fingers to him. He gently took the child’s and gave it a squeeze.
“I wanted to come talk to you. I’m a constable and I worked with your dad at City South. He was a good man, a real good man. I know that right now everything hurts and nothing makes sense, but if you remember nothing else, remember that your father loved you and that if he could have stayed, he would have.
There will come a time, not now, not tomorrow, but one day, you will be able to think of your dad and not be sad. You’ll want to remember the happy times. Michael, Brigit, as you are the oldest, you’ll need to do the remembering for Margaret and Frances so that they have happy memories of your dad, even if they are borrowed ones. And someday, I hope your mother will bring you into the station so that those of us that knew him can tell you stories about him.
Even if you just need to talk to someone, you come to the station and ask for me, OK?”
“Why do you want to help?” Michael asked defensively.
“Because when I was your age, I was the policeman’s son sitting at the wake.”
The boy’s eyes broke with hot tears as he nodded. Hugh gave each of them a hug and went to join Dot, Phryne, and Jack as they started to leave.
Jack placed his hand on his constable’s back as he asked, “How are they doing?”
“As well as could be expected.”
“What did you tell them?”
Hugh looked his mentor straight in the face and said with unshed tears.
“The same thing you told me and my sisters.”