by: Kristy Duke

I awaken to pain swarming throughout my stiff and aching body as I hear the guard’s sharp and threatening voice ring out besides me. I sigh tiredly as my mind races through me of the long amount of time I have been locked within these horrid walls. Anger flows through me like a raging river as I think of my boys back now, I was certain that they’d have at least attempted to come to my rescue. Way over a year now and no sign of them or no hearing of them trying to break in to save me. What could be taking them so long? Do they no longer care for their Uncle? Mind them, the uncle that had taken care of them since they were babies. What could be taking them so long? Perhaps they all have enjoyed their freedom over the farm they chose to forget me.

“Damn you,” I mutter toward myself in anger at myself for allowing myself to fall into paranoia over my nephews and nieces in knowledge they would never do t hat to me, they do care for me. But where are they? Why aren’t they trying to save me? Did they kill them throughout the year? No, please no, not them. Silently I stare at the old dusty wooden wall as I pray for my family that lies in the freedom of these ugly walls that I stare at day in and day out.

Suddenly a loud cry rings out on the opposite side of the room followed by harsh wheezing. “Hey…give…me that!” opposes the wheezy breathing person across the room. But who? My thoughts rush to my youngest nephew who suffers greatly from asthma. “That’s mi. . .mine!”

“Not any more it isn’t!” I hear the guard laughs before a loud slap echos off the thin walls.

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by: Kim

When Jesse arrived back at the farm, Daisy had come home from visiting a friend in Capital City the last couple of days. When she saw the barn she asked, “What happen to the barn, Uncle Jesse?” Jesse replied, “There was a fire that burned down the barn and your cousin Bo was in the hayloft and it burned his hands and the right side of his face and neck.” Daisy cried, “Oh no, Uncle Jesse how is Bo doing.” He answered Daisy’s question,” He is better, but he has several surgeries and skin grafts to go.” Then Luke arrived home as they entered the farmhouse, talked and later went to bed.

Over the next several days, Luke and Daisy went to school and after school was over, they drove home to the farm to begin their chores. Jesse came out and told them to get their chores done and if there is some time they would go see Bo. Daisy said,” I have my job and I can’t miss work since it’s going to be a busy night.” Luke answered,” I was planning to go see Bo Uncle Jesse if there are no other chores to be completed.” Jesse replied, “Sure Luke you can go, I would like to, but I have other things to do before I could visit him.” After Luke finished his chores, he took the pickup truck and drove to Tri- County Hospital. Once he arrived at the hospital, Luke could not face Bo and walked to the same hidden area to smoke. He stayed there till visiting hours ended and drove back to the farm. He felt that he could not face his cousin because he thought he had caused the fire. He would do this for the rest of the week knowing he was lying to his uncle about visiting his cousin. He thought he would not know the truth since his uncle was too busy with the farm to visit Bo and not realizing that his uncle will find out the truth soon.

When Luke arrived back the farm at about 10pm from his suppose trip to the hospital to visit Bo, he walked into the farmhouse and was surprised to see his uncle was still awake siting in a chair in the family room. Luke said, “I thought you would be asleep by now.” His uncle replied,” I know that you did not go to visit your cousin. Where have you been, BOY AND DON’T LIE TO ME?” Luke became pale by the sound of his uncle’s voice and answered,” I am not lying to you Uncle Jesse.” Jesse started to get very angry at Luke and said, ” I KNOW THAT YOU DID NOT SEE YOUR COUSIN BECAUSE I WENT THERE EARLIER TODAY TO VISIT YOUR COUSIN AND BO SAID YOU HAVE NOT GONE TO VISIT HIM SINCE THE DAY THE ACCIDENT OCCURRED. HOW CAN YOU BE SO STUPID AND CARELESS TO NOT TO VISIT FOR YOUR COUSIN? HE KEEPS ASKING ME WHERE ARE YOU AND WHEN I TOLD HIM I DON’T KNOW, HE WOULD END UP CRYING ON MY SHOULDER. HOW DOES HE FEEL THAT HIS COUSIN DOESN’T WANT TO SEE HIM? ” Then Jesse went over to the chair and grabs the wide strap that was on the floor next to the chair in the family room. When Luke saw the strap he knew that the only time his uncle had it was when either boy was going to get a whipping. Jesse said,” BOY, GO OVER AND PULL ONE OF THOSE CHAIRS FROM THE KITCHEN TABLE AND BEND OVER IT.” Luke knew what was going to happen next because he knew that he would get at least 10 to 15 lashes with the strap, but seeing how angry his uncle was he could only guess. Jesse grabbed Luke by his shoulder and with the strap in his other hand, he began to swing the strap and striking his bottom very hard. Luke began to cry and he began to lose track of the lashes after Jesse strike him for the twentieth time. When Jesse felt that thirty lashes with the strap was enough, he told Luke to go to his room. Uncle Jesse asks Luke to promise him that he would go visit his cousin tomorrow. Luke just shock his head and says,” I will Uncle Jesse.” He did not say anything else to his uncle, knowing it could cause him another whipping; he quietly went to his room.

by: Kim

After arriving at the hospital, Luke and Cooter found Jesse in the waiting room. They asked how Bo was and he said that they have not come out yet to tell them the news. So they all took a seat and waited for someone to tell them what was happening. Two hours later, a doctor entered the waiting room, he asked, “Are you the family of Bo Duke, Sir.” Jesse answered, “Yes, I am Bo’s uncle, what is the news on my nephew.” The doctor replied, ” Your nephew has second degree burns to his right side of his cheek and neck as well as his hands. I was told that a friend had saved his hands by putting them in a bucket of water and it saved his hands in what could have been a crippling burn.” Jesse asked if they could see Bo and the doctor said they could but one at a time and they would need to wear the paper robs and hand gloves to protect Bo from any infections. Luke said, ” Uncle Jesse, you should be the first one to see him.” “I will wait till you come back out and besides I am going to get some air.”

After Luke sees his uncle leave towards Bo’s room, he goes outside to smoke and he remember he had left another pack in the pocket of his jacket when he grabbed them from his locker earlier that day and realized they were still there. He found a quiet place that was hidden by part of the building and began to smoke for an hour. When Jesse came back to the waiting room an hour later, Cooter told him that Luke hasn’t come back yet. This made Jesse mad because Bo was asking for Luke and wanted to see his cousin. How would he tell Bo that his cousin might have left without seeing him? When Jesse came back he told Bo that Luke went out to get some fresh air and they still couldn’t find him. This made Bo sad and he began to cry and said that Luke probably does not want to see him because he looks like some freak. Uncle Jesse said, ” Bo that ain’t true and Cooter and I will go look for him. As Jesse left Bo there crying, he went back out and still saw that Luke wasn’t there still and he asked Cooter to help him look for Luke.

Cooter and Jesse begin to look for Luke again when Cooter said it might be better to spit up and each go a different direction to find Luke. Jesse said okay and walked towards the left side of the hospital. Cooter went to the right side of the hospital grounds. He walked up the sidewalk to an area that is blocked by the building. Luke had put away his cigarettes and lighter that five minutes later he hears Cooter yell to him, “Luke, where have you been. Luke replied,” I have been here the whole time, why.” Cooter answered, “Luke, your uncle and I have been looking for you because right now Bo believes that you left the hospital and didn’t care enough to be there for him. During the fire, he was trapped in the hayloft and not knowing if he was going to live or die.” Then Cooter told him what had happen at the farm. Luke answer, ” That ain’t true, I care for Bo very much, all I needed was to get some fresh air and I didn’t realize what time it was.” Then Luke walked away from Cooter and reenter the hospital where he walked right into his uncle who was walking up to the same entrance. Jesse yelled at Luke,” Where have you been I have been looking all over the place for you because your cousin is crying in his bed thinking that you left him and didn’t want to see him. ” He also believes that you don’t want to see him is that he looks like a freak.” Luke replied to his uncle’s response,” That ain’t true, I care for Bo very much. Cooter found me and told me what had happened at the farm. I am going to see my cousin now Uncle Jesse and I didn’t realize how long I was outside.” Jesse answer, ” Okay, I believe you. Why don’t you go do that now because he has been asking for you for a long time.”

Luke began to walk down the hall to the door that leads into the room where Bo was staying, he began to think of what to say to his cousin and the thought of Bo thinking he had left had upset him very much. He enters the room and sees that Bo is asleep due to the medication. Then he notices that Bo’s hands were rapped in gauze and were very red. A nurse was putting rest of the gauze around his other hand from having the surgery for the skin grafts. She told Luke that his cousin is doing better and he is tired because they had finished the surgery on his hands and face. It had tired him out. Luke said, “Well I am here to visit my cousin and is the visiting hours over.” The nurse replied, “No, you have one hour left, you should spend some time with him because he has gone through so much today.” Luke answered,” Thanks,” As the nurse left, Luke grab the chair that was next to Bo’s bed and sat down after he had put on the paper rob and gloves so he wouldn’t cause Bo to get an infection.

Luke then carefully holds Bo’s hand in his left hand while brushing his blond hair away from his eyes with his other hand. Suddenly Bo started to feel someone touching his hair and slowly opened his eyes to see his cousin sitting next to his bed. Bo asked Luke,” Why are you here, I thought you left without seeing me.” Luke replied, ” I had been here, but I was outside getting some air and I did not realize what time it was. I do care and love you very much.” Then Luke stood up to carefully pull his cousin up to give him a hug and Bo began to cry on Luke’s shoulder. He continued crying all his fears that occurred during the fire in the barn. Bo said, ” I th….th….thought I was going to d..d…die. The flames had d…d…de..destroyed the ladder and I had no way of getting out. The hayloft fell to the ground and now my hands, face and neck are burned. Now I look like some freak.” Luke replied,” Bo, you don’t look like a freak, I will help you get well.” All of a sudden, Luke felt a slow movement of Bo’s chest rising up and down and Luke to realize Bo had cried himself to sleep. He gently put Bo back down onto the bed and covered him with the blanket. He slowly left the room thinking that he could have caused the barn to burn and he could never tell his uncle or cousins about it. He felt that if he told his family, he would lose the only family he ever had.

by: Marty Chrisman

Jesse and Daisy had just finished supper when there was a knock at the back door. Jesse opened the door to find Roscoe standing there. The Hazzard County Sheriff had dark circles under his eyes and looked had he hadn’t been sleeping very well.

“Hello, Jesse.” He said “Can I come in for a spell?”

“Of course. Come on in, Roscoe.” Jesse told him “Would you like some coffee?”

“I’d sure appreciate that, Jesse.” Roscoe told him. Jesse poured two cups of coffee and the two men sat down at the kitchen table. Daisy excused herself and went to her room so they could talk privately.

“I just came by to see how your boys was doing.” Roscoe said

“Bo’s doing better.” Jesse told him “He might be coming home next week. Luke ain’t doing so good…”

“I’m real sorry to hear that, Jesse. Real sorry.”

“I know you are, Roscoe.”

“I might have chased the boys around and stuff but I….well…I kinda like ‘em and I sure never wanted to see either of ‘em get hurt like that.”

“Well, I know that, Roscoe. And the boys knew it too.”

“I was chasing ‘em that day, Jesse….I saw it happen.”

“I know”

“I feel so bad….like it’s my fault.”

“Now, Roscoe, you know better than that. It was an accident plain and simple. Ain’t nobody’s fault.”

“But if I wasn’t a-chasin’ ‘em, Bo wouldn’t have been going so fast.”

“Roscoe, them boys go fast even if you ain’t chasin’ ‘em. It could have happened even if you hadn’t been chasing ‘em.”

“I’ve been praying for ‘em, Jesse.”

“I appreciate that, Roscoe. And I know the boys do too.”

“Everybody in Hazzard is really concerned about your boys.” Roscoe said “Even Boss.”

“J.D. Hogg?” Jesse said in a mildly surprised voice “Concerned about my boys?”

“Yes, Boss.” Roscoe said somewhat defensively “I ain’t suppose to tell ya this….but Boss told them hospitals where the boys are to send their bills to him.”

“He did what?” Jesse exclaimed genuinely surprised this time.

“He’s paying their hospital bills.” Roscoe said “He said he owed you from the old days.”

“What’s J.D. up to?” Jesse asked suspiciously

“Nothing, Jesse.” Roscoe said “I swear he ain’t. Not this time. Boss might be a lot of things…..but he knows how much you love them boys…everybody knows how much them boys mean to you.”

“Well, if J.D. is really doing this for my boys….then you tell him I appreciate it.”

“Oh, I couldn’t tell him that, Jesse. He don’t want nobody to know he’s paying the bills. He don’t even want you to know. You can’t let him know I done told you.”

“Alright, Roscoe. I won’t tell him I know.”

“Thank you, Jesse. You know Boss does a lot of good things that people don’t know about.”

“Uh uh…” Jesse said in an unconvinced voice.

“Well, I best git back to town. Thanks for the coffee.” Roscoe said, rising to his feet and letting himself out of the house.

Jesse sat there with a frown on his face. He couldn’t imagine Boss Hogg paying the hospital bills for the boys, especially Luke’s bills which could end up in the thousands of dollars. Shaking his head in disbelief, Jesse finished his coffee and headed of for bed.