by: Marty Chrisman

Lynn had just put a pot of coffee on when there was a knock on the back door. Smiling, she walked over and opened the door assuming it was Luke. “It’s about ti….” she started to say with a warm smile on her face. That smile faded when she saw the man standing on the porch. A man she had hoped she would never have to see again.

Roger Malone smiled and gave Lynn a quick kiss on the cheek before she pulled away, her eyes flashing with anger. He was a handsome man with brown hair and blue eyes who bore a slight resemblance to Luke. “What the hell are you doing here?” Lynn snapped, glaring at him.

“Looking for you, darling.” Roger said ignoring the fire in her eyes and the anger in her voice. He pushed past her and stepped into the house. “I must say it wasn’t easy to find you. This place is really in the middle of nowhere.”

“Get out of my house.” Lynn demanded “And stay out of my life! I told you it was over!”

“And I told you it was over when I said it was over!” Roger growled grabbing Lynn by the arm and holding her tightly. “You don’t really think I’d let you get away that easily do ya?”

“Go to hell!” Lynn yelled, trying to pull away from his grip on her arm. He’d been drinking, she could smell it on his breath and she knew from experience that when he was drunk he could get violent. Lynn saw a movement out of the corner of her eye, and then Luke was there, grabbing Roger from behind. Startled, he let go of Lynn’s arm and spun around unprepared for Luke’s unexpected attack.

“Luke, look out!” Lynn yelled. She saw the gun in Roger’s hand just seconds before Luke did. Before Luke had time to react, Roger had raised the gun and hit Luke viciously on the side of the head. Lynn screamed as Luke slumped to the floor, unconscious, his head bleeding from a deep gash over his left eye.

“I’ll be back, you lying bitch!” Roger snarled at Lynn as he turned and ran out of the house. Lynn immediately ran to Luke’s side and knelt down beside him, gently cradling his head in her lap as she felt the side of his neck for a pulse. She cried out in relief when she felt a strong steady beat. But she knew he was hurt, she just didn’t know how badly. She left his side only long enough to get to the phone so she could call Rosco for help. He told her that he was on his way and promised to send an ambulance. Lynn hung up and ran back to Luke’s side, tears streaming down her face as she held him in her arms and waited for help to arrive.

Rosco, Enos and the ambulance all arrived at the same time. Enos gently took Lynn by the arm and helped her to her feet so that the ambulance attendants could take care of Luke and access his condition.

“What happened here?” Rosco asked

“A guy I used to know in Savannah showed up here. We were arguing when Luke showed up and he tried to protect me….and Roger hit him with a gun.” Lynn said, her eyes were still filled with tears and her voice was strong and steady. She was determined to see that Roger pay for this.

“What’s his name?

“Roger Malone. Brown hair, blue eyes about Luke’s age, height and weight.” Lynn said

“Did you happen to see what he was driving?”

Lynn shook her head and turned her attention back to Luke. The ambulance attendants had him on a stretcher and they were preparing to put him into the ambulance. “I’m going with him.” Lynn said

“I’m sorry, ma’am” one of the attendants said “But that’s against the rules”

“Try and stop me.” Lynn said in a fiercely determined voice that left no room for arguments. The two attendants glanced at one another and shrugged. The rules weren’t all that important. It was obvious that it would be easier to give in on this one than to try to enforce the rules. “Can one of you call Uncle Jesse and let him know what’s going on?” Lynn asked the two Hazzard County police officers.

“I’ll go over there right now.” Enos told her reassuringly. Satisfied that Jesse would be notified, Lynn hurried out of the house to go to the hospital with Luke. Enos and Rosco left too. Enos went to the Duke farm to let the family know about Luke, while Rosco went back to headquarters to write up the report on what had happened and to put out an APB on Roger Malone.

As soon as Enos told them what had happened, Daisy, Bo and Jesse all headed for the hospital, arriving shortly after the ambulance. They found Lynn pacing the floor in the waiting room. One side of her shirt was stained with blood, Luke’s blood. Jesse noticed that other people in the waiting room kept giving her anxious, nervous looks probably wondering whose blood it was. When she saw Jesse, Lynn burst into tears and let the Duke patriarch gather her into his arms, holding her gently and comforting her.

“Hush, girl….” Jesse said gently “It’s alright…..how’s Luke?”

“The doctor is still in there with him.” She said “They think he’s probably got a concussion.”  The three Dukes and Lynn sat down to wait for news on Luke’s condition.

It was almost two hours before a doctor finally came into the waiting room and walked over to where they were sitting. “Are you the Duke family?” he asked

“Yes, I’m Jesse Duke” Jesse said rising to his feet “How’s my nephew.”

“He’s a lucky man. He has a concussion but other that he seems to be alright. We’d like to keep him overnight for observation.”

“Can we see him?” Bo asked

“Yes, but just for a few minutes. He needs to rest. He is awake but he’s still rather groggy. He’s in room 119, just down the hall to your left.”

“Thank you.” Jesse said. The Dukes and Lynn hurried down the hall to see Luke. When they entered the room, Luke opened his eyes and looked at them with a faint smile. There was a large bandage over his eye and they could see that the left side of his face was bruised. “Hey…” he said softly as they gathered around his bedside.

“Hey,” Lynn said, taking his hand and holding it tightly “How are you feeling?”

“Like I got kicked in the head by Maudine.” Luke told her with a lopsided grin

“Lucky you got a hard head, cuz.” Bo said in a teasing tone.

“The doctor wants to keep you overnight.” Jesse told him knowing that Luke wouldn’t like that idea, which he didn’t.

“I’m fine…I don’t need to stay here.” Luke argued

“You’re staying overnight.” Jesse said firmly making it clear that there would be no arguing about it.

Luke turned his attention back to Lynn. “Who was that guy?”

“Just some jerk I knew in Savannah.” She told him. “He asked me out a couple of times but there was something about him that gave me the creeps. But he wouldn’t take no for an answer. He kept calling me, following me, coming to my apartment. I finally had to file a restraining order against him.” Lynn sighed “I never thought he’d try following me here.”

“Is that one of the reasons you came back to Hazzard?” Daisy asked

“Kinda. I thought he’d never find me here. I guess I was wrong.”

“Well, that settles it.” Jesse said “You’re staying with us until they catch this guy.”

“Uncle Jesse’s right,” Luke said, squeezing her hand gently “That way you won’t be alone in case he shows up again.”

“I can take care of myself…” Lynn started to protest but Jesse cut her off.

“Nonsense.” He said firmly “This man could be dangerous…you’re staying with us.”

“You can share my room.” Daisy told her with a smile “It’ll be just like old times.”

“Alright…” Lynn said, giving in. She knew she couldn’t win when it came to arguing with the entire Duke clan at one time. Jesse, Daisy and Bo told Lynn they would wait for her in the waiting room, leaving her and Luke alone for a few minutes to say goodbye. She smiled at Luke and gently bent down to kiss his forehead “I’m so sorry.” She said

“It’s not your fault.” Luke reassured her “You didn’t ask this guy to follow you from Savannah.”

“I still feel like it’s my fault that you got hurt.”

“I’m fine…and it’s not your fault.” Luke said. He reached up and gently put one hand on the back of her neck, pulling her down to him for a real kiss. “Now go on home with Uncle Jesse and get some rest. I’ll see you tomorrow.”