Many thanks to everyone who's been such faithful readers of the 'Treasure' series! My beta reader is getting caught up on reading 'Treasure,' and as soon as we can, we'll start working on "Seeds Of Doubt."
In the meantime, here's a quick one-shot. I have wanted to do this ever since ImASupernaturalCSI did the 'Shuck 'n Jive Shuffle.' Just let your iPod run, and let the story take shape in your mind! It's a different take on a creative writing technique called 'freewriting,' and it's great for generating ideas. Rather than write until the song ended, I'd listen to the song and let an idea form in my mind, and I ran with it until it fizzled out.
Most of these involve my 'Treasure' character Darla Verdes, but not all of them. In the ones that do, you may find some interesting insights into my future stories for the "Treasure" series. Either way, enjoy!
"Good Morning Beautiful" by Steve Holy
Bo awoke slowly, a little at a time. He felt completely relaxed; his muscles were extremely reluctant to move. He hadn't opened his eyes, but as he gained a little more awareness, he realized something wasn't quite right. The bed felt different. It was too firm, and as he stretched out, he realized it was also too long; his feet weren't hanging off the edge. He breathed deeply, and caught a whiff of coconut and jasmine.
Darla.
He opened his eyes. She was on her side, facing away from him. Her fiery auburn hair, the source of the fragrance, was rumpled from sleep, but still bore the remainder of the corkscrew curls Daisy and Cora had done for her. Memories from the day before came back to him. The way the breath caught in his throat when he first saw her on Uncle Jesse's arm. The way her smile lit up her face as she joined him at the altar. The way tears had flooded her dark hazel and gold eyes as she said the words that would forever keep her with him.
He pulled himself closer, pressing his body to hers. She breathed in deeply, rolled over and slung her arm across his chest. "G'morning," she mumbled sleepily, burying her head in his shoulder.
Bo chuckled low in his throat. "Mornin', missus Duke," he murmured, and felt her smile.
"Bonfire" by Craig Morgan
The flames rose high into the sky, illuminating the entire farmyard. Everyone the Dukes knew, which was just about everyone in Hazzard County, was gathered in the yard, offering their congratulations to Bo and Darla. Since Darla was taking one of Hazzard's two Most Eligible Bachelors off the market, there were several girls shooting daggars at her with their eyes. Others were waiting to get their chance to bend her ear with stories of Bo's not-so-innocent escapades with them. But for the most part, people were happy to see the wilder of the two Duke boys so in love and willing to settle down.
Boss was conspicuously absent, but no one was surprised when two squad cars pulled up. Fortunately, the Dukes already had a plan in place to head off Enos and Rosco before they could start citing anyone holding a mason jar.
"Enos! Rosco! We're so glad you could make it!" said Jesse, before the sheriff could say a word.
"Yeah, we were afraid Boss wouldn't let you guys off work to come and join us!" Luke chimed in.
"Enos!" Daisy exclaimed, running up and kissing his cheek. "C'mon, ya better get to the food before Cooter eats it all!" she joked. Enos smiled at her, but Rosco was still trying to get a word in.
"Rosco, there's still some of that barbequed pulled pork you love so well," said Daisy quickly, "and, I even saved a couple of sausages for Flash!" Rosco's expression softened a little at that. Who knows, he thought, maybe that Darla gal will keep that Duke boy in line.
"Gimme Three Steps" by Lynyrd Skynyrd
Cooter pulled up to the Boar's Nest and saw the General Lee was already there. As he walked up to the door, he heard shouting and crashing from inside; it sounded like the fighting was starting early. Suddenly Bo burst through the door. "Hey Cooter!" he yelled, not bothering to stop as he jumped into the General. Cooter's eyes widened in surprise as a man who closely resembled a grizzly bear came barreling through the door. He could hear a girl screaming inside before the door closed. The man let out an angry bellow as he saw the General pulling away. "Whoah!" Cooter yelled, as the man pointed a shotgun at the General's back end. HE quickly reached out and forced the gun to the sky as the man pulled the trigger. "Run for it, buddy-roe!" he shouted at the General's rapidly disappearing taillights.
"He Gets That From Me" by Reba
Jesse watched the three kids playing together in the yard. It gave him a myriad of different emotions. In some ways, watching them was like watching the ghosts of his late siblings.
Daisy was the most obvious; she was the image of her mother, in looks and in actions. Her long brown pigtails were an exact replica of her mother's long waves. Her easy smile and bubbly laugh were an echo of the sounds Jesse grew up with. It was only in the eyes where they differed. The striking olive color was exactly like her father's.
By contrast, little Bo was the image of his father. Bo's daddy had been the crazy risk-taker of the elder generation of Dukes, and that trait was plainly evident in his son. Bo was the one that most often had to be bailed out of something. The unruly blond hair, the gangly appearance in his arms and legs that hinted at how tall he was going to be someday, and the easy smile were all from his father. Again, it was only in the eyes where they differed. The blue eyes, dark like sapphires, were a gift from his mother. In a way, they differed in their spirits too. Bo had his father's reckless nature, but he also had his mother's gentle sweetness and big heart.
Luke was the only one who seemed to get an equal amount from both parents. The dark curls, high cheekbones and bright blue eyes were from his mother. The things he smiled at were the same things that would have made his mother smile, but the way he smiled, that was more like his dad. He had his father's build, he moved like his father, and whenever he clenched his jaw in frustration at his younger cousins-Jesse had seen the same look on his brother's face many times.
"Ya give up yet?" he heard Luke tease.
"Give up? Never!" Daisy yelled back.
"Yeah!" Bo chimed in, "'Cause Dukes never give up, not never!"
Jesse was shocked. That phrase hadn't come from any of their parents. That was something he'd always said to them.
"The House That Built Me" by Miranda Lambert
For a moment, she just stood there and looked at it. From a distance, it blended in with the barns, but she had so many more memories from this place. The dark red of the cedar wood, the white trim, the fading paint of the porch.
For a moment, her vision blurred. How many jacks had she lost through the cracks in that porch? How many games of tag and pickle had she played? How many times, in the middle of their games, had she and Jonas been scolded out of the kitchen, or her father's study, or her mother's dressing room? She looked at the upper right window. How many nights had she looked out over that porch into the moonlit fields from her room?
She heard footsteps behind her, and gentle hands on her shoulders. "How you doin', sugar?" Daisy asked. For a moment, Darla didn't answer. She would have preferred it if it had been Bo's voice, but she was grateful for Daisy's presence. She took a shaky breath. "This house was my whole life," she said hoarsely. She made no effort to stop the tears. "I feel like so much of it is gone now," she whispered.
"I know, sugar," said Daisy, "But you know, you still have a lot of happy memories from this place, and they'll always be happy, no matter what."
Just then, the front door opened. "Darla!" came a man's voice. He was burly and red-faced, with a huge smile. His hair was red like Darla's, but his eyes were a bright green in contrast to Darla's hazel.
Darla smiled through her tears. "Connor," she choked. The tears came faster as her cousin embraced her. "Welcome home, Darla," he murmured. "Welcome home."
"Sideways" by Dierks Bentley
"Line Dancing," they called it. All the kids were doing it these days, and it was working its way into the Boar's Nest. Seemed like every weekend, the young folks were out in the middle of the floor, showing off whatever new dance they'd learned. The last few folks that had been unlucky enough to get caught in the Celebrity Speed Trap, had been greeted by fewer tables at the Boar's Nest, and more empty space in the middle of the floor for the young people to move to the music.
Bo and Luke certainly didn't object to it. Come to think of it, they couldn't come up with one red-blooded boy in Hazzard County that object when the girls took to the floor for a dance. The way some of them moved was more than enough to keep both of them interested. Bo wondered where a few of them were learning their dance moves; they certainly weren't learning them in ballet class.
"Dark Horse" by Amanda Marshall
He just wasn't the type who could settle down. It wasn't that he didn't want to; he was just too wild and too easily distracted. Many women had tried, but all of them had moved on after a while.
But, Cora was different. Something about her made him feel a little more rock-steady. He didn't exactly need taming; he had a little less of a wild streak in him than his blond-haired cousin. That was what made Darla perfect for Bo; she'd spent much of her life taming stallions, and understood how to work with their spirit without bending or breaking it.
But it still took a strong woman to bear with Luke's intensity. Cora had that strength. She also had a brilliant mind; keeping up with her was a challenge sometimes. And, she had the dark hair and soft features that he found so appealing. He felt drawn to her, in ways that he hadn't before.
No one believed either Duke boy would ever get tied down; now it was one down, one to go, in the minds of most Hazzardites. He didn't know if he had what it took, but he was willing to take this ride for as far as it went.
"Homewrecker" by Gretchen Wilson
"So, you're the one who's strappin' the ball an' chain on to Bo Duke," the tall blond said, sitting at the bar.
Behind the bar, Darla turned around in surprise. "Excuse me?"
"I'm surprised," the blond-haired girl said. "They said you were a shrimp; I didn't know you were this small. Bo tends to like a lot more woman than that."
Darla's eyebrows shot up. "Well, sometimes the best things on Earth come in the smallest packages. And, you are—?"
"Someone who probably knows Bo Duke a helluva lot better than you do," said the blond in a sneering voice. "I've known Bo a very long time, in every sense of the word."
Darla's eyes narrowed. She really didn't feel like rising to the bait, but she supposed it had to happen sometime. "So," she said, walking around the end of the bar, "You've known Bo for years, and yet you couldn't satisfy him enough to keep him around. And yet, I've been in town for all of a few months, and he's ready to spend the rest of his life with me. So what does that say about you?" Darla's eyes narrowed steadily as she spoke, while the blond's widened in outrage.
Bo, Luke and Cooter entered the Boar's Nest at that moment, to see a tall blond trading barbs with the tiny redhead tending the bar. "Oh, no, not Susie Lynn!" Bo moaned. He'd been hoping to break the storm that was Susie Lynn Peterson gently to Darla.
"Now, hold on there, Buddy-roe," said Cooter, as Bo started to move toward the bar. "Let's just give Darla a little space."
"Are you outta your mind?" said Bo.
"She put Ernie Ledbetter on the floor," said Cooter, grinning as he watched Susie Lynn point a finger at Darla. "I wanna she what she does here!"
"You're not enough for him," Susie Lynn hissed. "He'll be back playin' the field in no time, you mark my words. Someone like him can't help but keep lookin', and he'll always be lookin' at me. No little shrimp like you's gonna stop that."
The next few seconds were a blur. There was a quick motion, a crash of breaking glass, and suddenly Susie Lynn was on the floor, covered in glass and whiskey.
The boys moved quickly, but not quickly enough. Susie Lynn shouted in pain as the point of Darla's shoe found her jaw.
"Darla! That's enough!" Bo shouted. He quickly wrapped an arm around her waist and jerked her back as Luke and Cooter grabbed Susie Lynn off the floor.
"BITCH!" Susie Lynn yelled, clutching her face.
Rosco came out of Boss's office. "Awright, just what's goin' on here, you D—" He stopped when he realized the Dukes were the ones holding the fighters apart, not the ones fighting.
Darla was still holding the broken bottleneck. "You think you or any of your friends can get into Bo's pants again, bring it on," she snarled. "'Cause I got a lot more whiskey bottles where that came from!"
"C'mon, that's enough!" Bo said again, lifting Darla off her feet as she lunged for Susie Lynn. Luke had his hands full holding Susie Lynn back.
"An' here you was worried 'bout what Susie Lynn was gonna do ta Darla!" said Cooter. He couldn'thelp it, he was laughing.
"Alyssa Lies" by Jason Michael Carroll
"Luke?" Bo's voice carried softly through the darkness.
Luke groaned inwardly; he was almost asleep. "Yeah, Bo, what is it?" he mumbled.
"Is it okay to keep secrets?"
Luke snorted. "Sure, but you can't do it. You can't keep your mouth shut about anything."
Bo didn't answer. "Okay, Bo, what's the secret?" Luke sighed.
Bo didn't answer right away. "There's a new girl in my classroom," he finally said. "Her name's Alyssa."
"That ain't exactly a secret, Bo," said Luke. The state had re-drawn the school's boundary lines, and there were several new kids in their school that year. "Is she that mousy little thing I saw you talkin' to at recess today? She your girlfriend now or somethin'?" He teased.
Luke expected Bo to insist that he didn't like girls. Instead, he said, "She's my friend."
Luke finally sat up and turned the small dresser lamp on. "C'mon, Bo, it's late. Help me out here, will ya? Did she tell ya a secret?"
Bo looked genuinely troubled. "She said someone wouldn't let her be my friend anymore if I told," he said.
Luke frowned; that sounded strange. "Did she tell ya a secret 'bout someone else?"
Bo shook his head. "Bo," said Luke, getting concerned, "C'mon, what is it?"
Bo sniffed. Luke could tell he was trying to work out what to say. "You remember when I got in a fight with Billy Mason?" he finally asked.
Luke snorted. "Wasn't much of a fight, from what I remember. An' you didn't wanna take a bath that night, 'cause of all the bruises—" Luke stopped suddenly. Something had just clicked.
"Wait a second, Bo," said Luke. "What're you sayin'? Are you sayin' somebody's been beatin' up on Alyssa? Who?"
Bo's eyes welled up with tears. "She said I couldn't say, Luke," he whispered. "She said she'd get in big trouble again, if I told."
Luke got up. "C'mon," he said, and extended his hand.
Bo took it and sat up. "Where're we goin'?"
"To talk ta Uncle Jesse."
"No! Luke, I can't! She made me promise, Luke!" Bo protested.
"Bo," said Luke, "If somebody beat Daisy up, and she asked you not to tell, you'd still tell Uncle Jesse, wouldn't ya? 'Cause you'd know, that'd be the right thing ta do. Bo, Daisy can take care of herself in a fight. What if Alyssa can't?" Luke saw his cousin's expression. "Bo, if she's your friend, then ya can't let anybody hurt her."
"Thank God I'm a Country Boy" by John Denver (Billy Dean's arrangement)
There wasn't much that could be better than this. Bo, Daisy and Luke had their guitars across their knees. Uncle Jesse joined in with an old moonshine jug. His low-pitched notes blended with the percussion of Bo's and Luke's boots hitting the old boards of the front porch.
Darla recognized the song after the first round of chords, and put her violin to her chin. She couldn't exactly fiddle—she'd had too many violin lessons—but she could double-string, and she played along during the bridges, and sometimes joined in the singing.
They'd all had a long day. Daisy had worked a long shift at the Boar's Nest. Darla had been working with a new client and their young stallion. And Bo, Luke and Jesse had all been working in the south forty. But, they still had the energy to sit together as the sun went down, pass a mason jar and sing a few songs. The nearby hills echoed with their music, and their laughter.