Chapter 3

It had been 6 and a haft months since Bo and Linda-Ann had left Hazzard for good. Linda-Ann's tummy was now swollen. She had that glow around her. Bo had never seen any one so lovely before. He did his best for her. He had gotten a job working at a factory. It was hard work and long hours. He was saving as much money as he could for the baby and at the same time trying to pay the bills too. It seemed like everything was going good until one morning before work, Bo heard Linda-Ann scream in the bathroom. He went running to her and found her holding her stomach. She was crying and the look on her face showed that she was in deep pain.

"Linny are you alright?" asked Bo.

"Oh God!" Linda-Ann cried. "Bo… Something's wrong with the baby. Ahhhh!!"

Bo picked up Linda-Ann and got her to the hospital as fast as he could. When they got there she was admitted right away and within the hours she had given birth to a 1lb 10oz. baby girl. Right away the doctors got the baby into the NICU. Linda-Ann was moved to a room and Bo went there with her to wait for news on their baby. The room was silent the whole time. Linda-Ann just stared out the window and Bo rested his arm on her bed. An hour later the doctor came into the room to give them the news.

"Hum-m. Um. Ms Hogg? Mr. Duke?"

Bo looked at the doctor, but Linda-Ann just kept looking out the window.

"How is the baby doc? Is she going to be okay?" asked Bo

The doctor looked at Bo and then to Linda-Ann-who was still looking out the window. The doctor dropped his head and then began to speak:

"I'm afraid not Mr. Duke." He paused for a minute. " The baby has a low plus rate and her breathing is shallow. We have her on a ventulater to help her breath but." He took a deep breath. "I'm sorry Mr. Duke, Ms. Hogg... but we don't expect her to last the night. With the help of the meachines she might last the end of the week. I'm sorry."

Bo just sat back in his chair shocked at what the doctor had said. When the doctor started to talk about the baby not lasting the week Linda-Ann stopped looking out the window and looked at the doctor now. Just as the doctor turned to leave she spoke up.

"Um… doctor?"

The doctor stopped and looked around at her.

"Yes Ms Hogg?"

"Um… How much longer do I have left here?"

The doctor raised an eyebrow to the question. Then he looked at her chart.

"Um. Your chart looks fine. I'd say you could probably go um… in a couple of days."

With that the doctor left the room and Bo and Linda-Ann sat there in silence.

For the next couple of days Bo would be going between work, the apartment, and the hospital. He would stop in to check up and Linda-Ann and then go and see the baby. No matter how many times Bo asked Linda-Ann if she wanted to go and see her baby, she would always say "No." Bo though that maybe it was because she didn't want to get attached to the baby if she-the baby-was going to die.

Bo would go down to the NICU and watch his little girl sleep. She was so tiny and what little hair she had was blonde. Her little wrinkled body was red but that was normal for a baby of her size and age. Bo would always smile when he seen her little right foot give a twitch. He new then and if she made it, she'd have a led foot much like him. That was for sure. If she made it…that though would always grab him by the throat. Of all the things that Bo has seen and heard-which included stories from Vietnam-having to wait for his little girl to die was the hardest thing. He'd had yet to hold her or do anything for her, heck they had yet to give her a name! And still he felt like when that day came it would be like the end of his world.

Bo made a mental note to talk to Linda-Ann about giving the baby a name. He'd do that in the morning. Bo stopped by Linda-Ann's room to update her on the baby. He kissed her good night and told her that he'd be late getting in tomorrow. She gave him a weak smile and said goodbye.

Bo went home, packed a lunch, and then went to work. He worked on into the night and got off that morning at 7 a.m. He went home and took an hour's nap. When he got up he got a shower and ate something to fill his empty stomach. He then got ready and drove down town. He stopped in front of an office building. Bo hadn't told Linda-Ann about this but he had been looking into a new job out at a mill in a small town called "Greensville". The man who ran the mill also owned other mill across Georgia, so he kept his office there in Atlanta. Lucky for Bo the owner was a family man and loved kids. So when he asked Bo why he wanted the job, Bo just told him that he and his girlfriend were expecting and he wanted a safe place to raise a kid. The Owner loved the idea and hired Bo right there. He told Bo that he could start in three weeks. That was two weeks from now and Bo felt that he needed to tell the guy about the baby and that he might not get out there next week, and if the baby did die then he wouldn't take the job.

After explaining everything that was happening, the owner of the mill understood completely. He told Bo that when they were ready, the job would be there waiting for him and that his hopes and prayers would be with the baby. Bo thanked him and headed out to the hospital. When Bo got there he went right to Linda-Ann's room like always, but this time the room was empty. Bo figured that she had finally gone down to see the baby. Bo walked down to the NICU only to find that Linda-Ann wasn't there either. Bo looked through the glass to see the baby sleeping just find. Getting worried about Linda-Ann Bo went back to her room. When he got there, he asked a nurse if she knew where Linda-Ann was.

"Ms Hogg?" asked the nurse. "Why she checked herself out early this morning."

"What?" replied Bo.

"Yeah. Oh! She left this note behind for you."

The nurse passed Bo a envelope with his name on it. Bo opened it and started to read:

Dear Bo.

I know this is going to come to a shock to you but what more can I say…

Bo. I don't know if you see this the way that I do. The baby dying is a blessing for us. You know that both of us aren't ready to be parents. And we both know that us have a kid together was not meant to be. You're a Duke and I'm a Hogg. That just can't mix. All I can say now is let time take it course. When the baby dies do what you want with the body and move on with your life. Where or what that will be or with who…I don't care. All I know is that Hazzard and our love is in the pass. It's something we can't go back to. I hope you understand.

Linda-Ann