This story has been appearing and disappearing from the site the last few days with no rhyme or reason that I can figure. Hopefully this chapter will post without problems and stay there once it does. Chapter Four

Intrusion

Laura Dawson cautiously climbed the steps to the back porch of the Duke house. She knew no one was home, having watched Jesse and Daisy and then Bo and Luke drive off. She had kept a safe distance, making sure no one saw her as she took photographs of the farm and house. Once everyone had left she ventured closer to the house until she found herself on the back porch. She had been hoping to catch Luke alone but every time she saw him, he was with one Duke or another, especially Bo. It seemed Luke never went anywhere without Bo, as if Bo were his keeper. They never let him out of their sight. She understood that, having recently escaped the tight hold of her parents. She knew his family just as tightly controlled Luke. She recognized all the signs. They were keeping her away from him. They were keeping him away from her.

Laura turned the knob of the kitchen door, surprised that it was unlocked. She supposed that unlocked doors were typical of country life although she had always lived behind high walls and securely locked doors. She hadn't planned on going inside but she couldn't resist. She cautiously opened the door and, to be sure, called, "Is anyone home?"

When there was no response, Laura entered and closed the door behind her. She pulled out her small camera from the large tote bag she was carrying and started taking pictures of the kitchen. She examined every part of the room. When she was finished she moved into the living room, wondering if Luke had a favorite chair. She couldn't tell but she imagined it might be the couch. She was sure that the large, comfortable chair would belong to Luke's uncle. She sat in one corner of the coach and lovingly ran her hand across the arm before taking more pictures.

Laura made her way to the other rooms. The first room she looked in obviously belonged to a woman judging by the décor. It was Daisy's room without a doubt. She continued down the hall and looked into another bedroom. This one had a large bed. Inside she saw a pair of overalls on a chair. She came to the conclusion that the room must be Luke's uncle.

Back in the hall, Laura looked in the open bathroom door. She went inside to take more pictures. She saw hairbrushes on the shelf and picked up one. She pulled a long brown hair from it that had to belong to Daisy. The second brush contained some blonde hairs. The third brush was the prize. She found a few short brown hairs that she knew were Luke's. She put the brush in her bag and went back into the hallway.

There was only one room left. She carefully pushed open the half closed door. She saw two single beds in a very masculine room. She realized that Luke must share this room with his cousin, probably so Bo could watch Luke's every move. She stood by the first bed wondering if it belonged to Luke. She carefully pulled back the blanket to reveal the pillows. She searched the pillows and bedding until she found what she was looking for—another brown hair. She picked up one of the two-feathered pillows and hugged it tightly to her chest before placing it at the foot of the bed.

Laura looked at the two dressers opposite the beds. She hoped the dresser closer to Luke's bed was his. There wasn't much on the top but she was drawn to a framed picture of a beautiful young woman. Laura glared at the face smiling back at her. She wondered who she was. She hoped the dresser belonged to Bo and it was a picture of his girlfriend. She pulled open the top drawer and gently touched the neatly folded t-shirts and boxer shorts but she wasn't sure they belonged to Luke. She opened the bottom draw and pulled out a pair of jeans. They looked like the right size. To be sure, she checked the other dresser and pulled out another pair of jeans. They were definitely longer and had to be Bo's who had a good three inches on Luke.

Satisfied that the first dresser did indeed belong to Luke, she neatly folded the jeans and put them in her tote bag. As she did, the photograph caught her attention again. The woman was connected to Luke. It was his dresser. It was his photograph. Laura felt the first pangs of jealousy as she picked up the frame to study the young woman with blue eyes and long, wavy brown hair. As Laura continued to examine the picture, her anger grew. The woman had no business smiling like that.

Laura placed the picture back on the dresser with trembling hands. Who was she and why did she mean so much to Luke that he kept her picture on display? She reached for the picture again and slammed it face down on the dresser top. Her mood changed the moment the glass shattered.

Laura smiled as she opened the top drawer again. She gently removed a pair of boxer shorts and placed them in her bag. When she looked around the room again, she noticed the partially open closet door. Carefully moving each hangar, she examined the neatly pressed shirts. She saw the light blue and gray plaid shirt that Luke had been wearing the day he came into the bank and flirted with her—the day he let her know that he loved her. She removed the shirt from the hangar and put it in her bag. Once again, she took out her camera and took pictures of every corner of the room.

The hand-made quilt at the foot of Luke's bed caught Laura's attention. It was worn from use but the deep blue and brown tones in the bear's paw pattern were still rich. She imagined Luke sleeping with it wrapped around him. She lovingly folded it and tucked it under her arm along with the pillow.

Taking one last look around, she gathered her treasures and headed for the kitchen. She went out the back door and closed it securely behind her. She quickly ran to her car and drove away.

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When Bo and Luke arrived home from their long day of work, they were tired. The smell of fried chicken enticed them into the house. Jesse was washing his hands at the sink while Daisy was standing over the stove placing the last pieces of chicken on a platter. She said, "You boys best hurry and get washed up. Supper's ready."

Bo pushed in front of Luke and took Jesse's place at the sink, not wanting to be far from the food. Luke shook his head and laughed. "Far be it from me to come between a hungry man and his fried chicken. I'll go upstairs and wash up."

Jesse laughed. "You better hurry, Luke, before it's all gone. Bo looks mighty hungry."

Without answering, Luke bounded up the stairs. He quickly pulled on his shirt releasing the snaps. He took off the dirty shirt tossing it on his bed as he passed his bedroom on the way to the bathroom. As he stood in front of the sink washing his hands, he saw his hair was wild from the afternoon in the wind. He reached for his brush, surprised that it wasn't on the shelf. He looked on the other shelves and then on the floor. Finally giving up the search, he wet his hands and attempted to smooth his unruly hair without much success.

Luke looked around the bathroom for his brush one last time before going to his bedroom to get a clean shirt. As soon as he entered the room, he had an uneasy feeling that something wasn't quite right. It took a moment to realize that it was the scent of lilacs that put him on his guard. He quickly looked around the room half expecting to see her in the shadows.

Satisfied that no one was in the room with him, Luke looked around more closely. The blanket on his bed was pulled back from the pillows. He knew he had made the bed out of habit before he left in the morning. On closer examination, he saw that only one pillow was on the bed. He looked on the floor for the other one and even under the bed when he couldn't find it. And the comfortable old quilt that his aunt had made for him was no longer at the foot of the bed.

Luke scanned the room again, stopping when he saw the dresser. The top drawer was slightly open and he was pretty sure that he wouldn't have left it like that. He went over to close it and was surprised to see the clothes inside jumbled in disarray. He knew he didn't leave it that way. Daisy sometimes put his laundry away but the clothes were always neatly folded. She would never have left his clothes in this state. He quickly opened the other drawers but everything appeared to be in place.

Luke closed the drawers trying to form a plausible explanation other than the obvious that he didn't want to consider, but the faint scent of lilacs was definitely in the room. He heard something crunch under his boot and stepped back, surprised to see a piece of broken glass. He carefully picked it up wondering where it came from. When he saw the framed photograph face down and surrounded by more broken glass, his chest tightened. He carefully picked up the frame and turned it over. He examined it closely, relieved to see that the photograph itself didn't appear to be damaged. The smiling face of his mother gazed back at him. He could see a little bit of himself in this photo and that gave him a sense of continuity and peace—something to hold on to. It was one of his treasures.

"Hey, Luke. What're you doing up there?" Bo yelled from the foot of the stairs. "We're waiting for you to say grace."

Bo's voice startled Luke and brought him back to the present. He yelled, "I'm coming." He quickly put on a clean shirt, picked up the photo and headed downstairs.

Luke joined his family in the kitchen and sat in his chair opposite Bo and Daisy while Jesse said grace. Daisy noticed the troubled expression on her cousin's face and asked with concern, "Something wrong, sugar?"

Jesse noticed the frame in Luke's hand and asked, "What've you got there, Luke?"

Luke handed the frame to his uncle. Jesse looked at his nephew sympathetically. "Did you drop it?"

Luke shook his head. "No. It was on the dresser where it's supposed to be lying face down and broken."

"Maybe you didn't realize you knocked it over or maybe the wind blew it over," Daisy offered.

"I didn't knock it over and there ain't no wind up there," Luke answered.

Jesse examined the photo more closely. "The glass is shattered but the picture don't look damaged."

Jesse knew how much Luke loved this photo and he could see that Luke was upset. He tried to reassure him. "It's okay, Luke. We can get a new piece of glass and fix it good as new."

"She was here, Uncle Jesse," Luke said bluntly.

"Who was here?" Jesse asked.

"Her," Luke said. "My secret admirer. I'm sure I smelled lilacs in my bedroom and it looks like someone went through my things."

"What do you mean?" Bo asked.

"The blanket is pulled back and I know I made my bed this morning. I can't find one of my pillows and the quilt Aunt Martha made me. I can't find my brush either."

Bo laughed. "Well, that's obvious. It sounds like 'someone's been sleeping in my bed.' You think Goldilocks was here?"

"It ain't funny, Bo," Luke said sharply. "It wasn't Goldilocks. It was her. Somebody's been going through my things. The bed is messed up and the dresser drawers are open. The picture is broken."

"Did you find another note or gift?" Jesse asked.

"I didn't see none. But I did smell lilacs. It was real faint but I'm sure I smelled it. I'm sure it had to be her."

"That'd make sense," Jesse answered. "You need to think really hard about who this might be before it gets too far out of hand."

"I've been racking my brain, Uncle Jesse, but I just can't figure out who it is," Luke said with frustration.

"Well you keep trying, Luke. You'll figure it out." Jesse patted Luke's arm. "I sure don't like the idea of someone coming into our house and going through your things."

Jesse surveyed the upset expressions on his three kids. He said, "All right now. If she was here, and it's likely she was, we can't do nothing about it at the moment. Now, Daisy here has made us a fine meal so let's just enjoy it. After we eat, we'll try to figure out what to do about this. So pass the fried chicken, Daisy girl."

If Luke had any doubts, he knew for sure that this secret admirer was not a good, romantic thing. It was an intrusion into his home and life. He was more determined than ever to figure out who it was and stop it.