A/N I'm not gonna bore y'all with my ramblings this time, so... Enjoy!

2.

That night, silence reigned the Dukefarm.
Bo and Luke had decided not to inform Jesse and Daisy of their current predicament, something they were not used to. So instead of animated talking during diner, silence ruled the diner table.

Ya know, them Dukes can never keep a secret from one another, so either them boys tell Jesse, or I will…

Daisy looked up from her crawdad bisque, only to find Bo and Luke facing their plates, playing with their food. Turning towards their uncle, Daisy noticed his firm gaze on the boys.

But y'all haven't forgotten Uncle Jesse is as sharp as an angered rattlesnake when it comes to them boys don't ya?

Clearing his throat, Jesse firmly put his fork down on the table, causing the two boys to flinch. He noticed the look they gave each other, but chose to jump in anyway.

"You boys gonna keep watchin' yur food or are a ya waitin for it ta walk off of yur plates?" Jesse asked good-naturedly. He knew something was bothering them, but he also knew they were most likely to talk when he buttered them up a bit.

Finally two heads popped up, and Jesse could see a tinge of fear in Bo's baby blue eyes, while Luke's sapphire blue eyes where darkened as if he was worrying about something. Those looks could only mean one thing… Trouble.

"Now you boys gonna tell me what's wrong, or do ya want me ta pull it out of ya?" Jesse asked softly, no anger in his words, just love.

Daisy watched the scene unfold. It was kind of familiar for her now, since the boys had had this little routing with their uncle for years. Something would happen, sometimes their own faults, sometimes something they had no control over, but it was always something bad. So they would decide to keep it from her and Uncle Jesse. But they would always find out, always.

Luke looked at Bo, and nodded slightly, Jesse and Daisy had to know. So Bo started to talk and told their uncle and cousin the entire story, including their plan for tomorrow.

Uncle Jesse let it all sink in and nodded once while Bo and Luke sat their, waiting for their uncle's wrath. He did not appreciate being left in the dark…

"Well, you boys 'll need a good night sleep then… Yur excused," he said finally, getting strange looks from his nephews.

"Ehhh, uncle Jesse," Luke said, "Are ya sure? Maybe we should keep watch or somethin, that Harry fella might try somethin' tanight…"

Jesse shook his head, standing up from the table and walking over to his shotgun. Grabbing it he walked towards the screen door. He turned for a minute, looking lovingly at his family.

"He won't be tryin' anythin' tanight, cause I'll be waitin' for im. So you boys go to sleep, rest, and take care of that lowlife tamorrow," he said, seeing the understanding in his nephews eyes again.

Sighing he walked to the front porch, taking a seat, planning on keeping watch all night. Letting his thoughts drift to those boys of his, he smiled. He would do anything for them, and they knew it. But they would do it in return to, and he felt proud of them. They would always try to protect their family, but now, it was time for Jesse to protect them for once.

Jesse knew who Hardware Harry was, he had had the displeasure of meeting him one time. During his shine-runnin days, Harry was just a little thief with a knack for guns and selling them. But Jesse knew the dark side behind him. The mean and uncaring side. When Jesse met him, on a shine run, his eyes were dark, no lights in them, just darkness. And it had scared Jesse. As a God fearing man, he had seen the depths of hell in those evil grey orbs.

So now, he was gonna sit here and keep his boys safe. Cause now, he could still do something. Tomorrow, they were on their own, but Jesse knew, that whatever happened, he would be there for his boys, always…

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

In the meantime, Bo and Luke were undressing in their bedroom. Pulling his shirt over his head, Luke looked outside with a small smile on his face.

"Hey Bo?" he asked with a slightly melancholic tone to his voice.

Bo, who was in the middle of pulling of his shirt could be hear mumbling, "Yeah?"

"Remember when Uncle Jesse whooped us for drinkin' some of his shine when we was little?"

Smiling a little Bo nodded, "I sure remember that Luke, we couldn't sit for a week… Why do ya ask?"

Shaking his head as he saw his uncle sitting outside, shotgun ready for use if somebody would enter their property, Luke just smiled.

"No reason, jus' realizin' how he's always taken care of us, even when we didn't always think he did."

Bo nodded, as he flung himself onto his bed, "Yeah he sure did a good job, an' ya know what? He's still doin it…"

"Yeah, cause we still need it," Luke chuckled as he threw his covers back, stepping into his bed a little more careful then Bo did.

Both Dukes fell into silence as they pondered their relationship with their Uncle, their caregiver, their father figure as well as the day that lay ahead of them.

"Hey Luke?" Bo asked, after a while.

"Yeah?" Luke answered, just like Bo had just minutes before.

"Ya think things 'll work out tamorrow?"

The silence that followed that question hung heavily in the air, and Bo couldn't help but feel a shiver run up his spine. After five minutes he heard Luke sigh as he turned towards Bo.

"I honestly don't know Bo, but I do know we's gonna do our very best ta get that fella, so we can stay in one piece…"

Now it was Bo's turn to be silent for a few minutes. And when Luke thought Bo had already fallen asleep, he hear the small whisper coming from the bed next to him.

"Thanks for bein honest cuz…"

And those were the final words being said on the Dukefarm that night. Sleep filled the small farm, while Jesse kept watch on the small porch.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

The early morning sun peaked through the small window, caressing the faces of the two sleeping figures. One of them twitched as the light reached his eyes, turning around to seek comfort in the soft pillow he was holding.

The other figure slowly opened his eyes, stretching refreshed limbs as he threw his covers off of him. He shuddered when his bare feet touched the cold hardwood floor and a small yawn escaped his mouth.

Trudging over to the other bed, the early riser knew what to do…

"Bo, wake up, it's time ta git ready," Luke said, talking as loud as he could, without waking Daisy or Jesse.

When Bo just snuggled in deeper, while mumbling something about the middle of the night, Luke chuckled. This called for desperate measures.

With one swift movement Luke pulled off Bo's covers, letting the cold morning air do the rest.

So after reaching blindly for covers that weren't there, Bo Duke cracked open one eye. A few seconds later, the other followed, immediately forming a scowl on his face.

"Luke Duke, ya had ta wake me like that?" he asked sleepily.

"Well it was this or the bucket of water standin' outside…" Luke answered, quickly ducking away from the flying pillow which was aimed towards him.

Turning around again his facial expression had sobered.

"We've got ta git ready Bo."

Hearing Luke's serious tone of voice, Bo remembered what they were going tot do today. They were about to take on Hardware Harry…

Sitting up quickly, Bo's scowl was now replaced by fear.

"What are we doin' Luke? We's talkin' bout one of the biggest crimelords of the country, an' we wanna take him on? What were we thinkin…"

Shaking his blonde curls, the panic started to rise, and Luke knew he had to put a stop to it right here and now. Grabbing his cousins shoulders, Luke looked him straight in his baby-blue eyes and spoke with a firm voice.

"Bo, listen ta me, we've done things like this before. This 'll jus' be the same ole thing, an' you know it."

Seeing the fear fade away from Bo's eyes Luke knew he had gotten through to him. And even though he was kinda nervous himself, he made sure he seemed calm from the outside.

Clapping Bo on the back, he urged him to get up.

"Come on, let's git dressed an' see if uncle Jesse got some sleep."

Both Dukes got dressed and washed up quickly, and by the time they entered the kitchen, Daisy was already making breakfast and uncle Jesse was sitting at the kitchen table.

Both boys ate their breakfast, not really tasting it, just eating so they could get on their way.
And after doing their chores and checking Daisy's camera, they were about to be on their way.

As usual, Jesse and Daisy hugged them, telling them to be careful. And as if he felt the tension in his boys, Jesse held the boys just a second longer, gruffly telling them to get back to him in one piece, cause when it came to it, they should be more afraid of him than of Harry Black…

And with those loving goodbyes, the boys were on their way. The words of their kin still ringing in their ears, giving them a boost of confidence, which caused them to relax enough to chatter along during the short ride.

As Bo drove the General into some shrubs, hiding it from plain view, the waiting started.

"Ya think they'll be on time?" Bo asked Luke, who was watching through the binoculars, trying to see if the escort was coming yet.

Nodding slowly he put the binoculars away, "Knowin' Roscoe an' Enos, they'll probably be right on time. An' if I'm right, Harry and his men will be waitin' for them on Millerroad. It's the road furthest from civilization, so if they wanna try somethin' they 'd do it there."

Bo absorbed the information again. His stomach felt queasy, like always when him and Luke where in a tough spot. Yet, this time, his queasiness felt worse, pulling on his insides, making him quiver.

But as Bo heard the rumbling in the distance, he forgot all about his nervous feelings, like always. Grabbing the binoculars, he watched the two patrol cars following the dark blue van, which most likely contained Bullet Benny.

Turning to Luke, Bo spoke, "They're here…"

"Well let's go then!" Luke said with more bravery than he actually felt at the time.

Bo pulled out of the shrubbery, staying as far behind the escort as possible. It didn't take long before the escort jerked to a stop, causing Bo to jump on the brakes of the General.

"Phew, that was close," he breathed, as Luke silenced him with one finger.

"Let's git out, and take a closer look, if we wanna take some pictures, we hafta be closer…"

Both Dukes climbed out of the General, Luke taking Daisy's camera, while they slowly made their way towards the halted escort.

Raising his hand, Luke stopped them and they squatted down behind some bushes, a few yards away from the escort.

Another car had stopped in front of the van, smoke filling the area, making it hard to see.

Bo was nervously peeking through the branches, while Luke snapped pictures of the men coming out of the grey sedan.

Seeing the fire arms the three men were holding made Bo swallow, hard. It wasn't until the fourth stepped out, that he finally realized what they were doing, and who they were spying on.

The man, completely dressed in black, a hat on his dark hair and sunglasses hiding his eyes, scanned the surroundings before turning towards the van, which was now being opened by the third goon. The other two were making their way over to the two police cars, keeping Roscoe and Enos in their seats. The guards from the van were already subdued, cuffed to the doors of their own van.

Sitting in those bushes, Bo looked at his cousin, snapping pictures of Harry and Benny as if he was capturing a day at the park. But when he looked closer, he saw the beads of sweat rolling from Luke's forehead, dripping down very slowly, until they reached his chin and fell from his face onto the ground below them.

Mesmerized by the dripping he was startled when all hell broke loose before their very eyes. It all happened so fast, Bo would never be able to tell what exactly happened. He could only watch as the scene unfolded itself.

All of a sudden Roscoe stepped out of his car, ignoring the demands of the thugs, who had ordered him to stay there. The sudden move spooked the three men holding guns, as they spun around, guns drawn.

"You! Stay there, and don't move unless we say so!" the thug closest to Roscoe yelled, looking rather nervous.

Roscoe looked plain scared, his eyes nervously going from one bad guy to the other. They rested on the man in the black suit, who was softly talking to the former prisoner.

Roscoe's eyes continued their journey, trying to find something he could use to stop these fellas. When he saw a mop of blond hair behind one particular bush, he slowly focused…

There it was! One blond head, and a brown one… And just as it all clicked in the sheriff's mind, their eyes met.

The warning glare from Bo and Luke turned to fear when they clearly heard Roscoe yell out, "Dukes!" in a surprised voice.

Immediately two men went over to Roscoe, cuffing him to his car.

"Shut up, ya stupid hick!"

A sigh of relief escaped the two mouths hiding behind the bushes as Luke hurriedly took the film out of the camera and stuffed it in his pocket. The relief, however, was short-lived, because in a sudden change of atmosphere, they felt eyes rest on them. And it didn't feel like the sheriff's. These eyes brought chills to their spines.

Dropping the small camera, both Bo and Luke slowly lifted their heads, only to look in the coldest grey eyes they had ever see. The eyes of…

Hardware Harry.