A/N It took me a while, but it's here! School has taken up so much time, writing was far from my mind. But hey, what are weekends for right? So here it is, the latest chapter, but I'll just stop blabbing now and let ya read. Enjoy!

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10

"How are they?"

Doctor Ramirez saw the strain in both of the men, the one old and grey, the other young, dark haired and with piercing blue eyes. He remembered when that young man had been the one lying in the hospital bed, and he had seen the bond this family had with each other. He knew he had to be fair.

"Mister Duke, Luke, we've got them stabilized for now, but I'm keeping them on ICU for at least one night."

Seeing the confusion in their eyes, he decided to elaborate on the injuries of his patients

"They were both pretty banged up when they were brought in. Daisy has lots of bruising and scrapes, but they're all superficial. She does have one nasty head wound though, an' we will have to wait until she wakes up, so we can see if there was any brain damage…"

Seeing the worried looks on the two faces before him, he knew this was only going to be harder. So he continued…

"With Bo, well we had a little more trouble stabilizing him. He had some internal bleeding from the debris which had fallen on him, and his organs and spine are very bruised right now. Further more, his arm is fractured badly and a serious concussion may threaten his brain right now. We are keeping a close eye on the swelling which will appear in the next few hours, and if it's necessary we will put in a drain to release the pressure the swelling will cause."

Luke bowed his head, shame filling his entire body. Shame for not being there for his cousins, shame for thinking of himself, and shame for leaving them like he had.

The tight grip his uncle had on his arm alleviated that shame a bit. He knew his uncle did not blame him for not being there, but somehow, somewhere a tiny voice inside of him, told him it was all his fault.

With tears smothering his voice, Jesse asked the doctor if they could see their family. And with a slight nod, dr. Ramirez showed them to the room both Dukes were lying in.

Seeing room 285 dooming up in front of him, Luke hesitated.

"You go in Uncle Jesse, I'll wait here."

Jesse, to lost in his own worries for his niece and nephew to notice the tightness of Luke's voice, just nodded slowly, before going in.

That boy's beatin himself up over somethin he had no control over… I bet ya when he realizes that, he'll go after the one who really was responsible for all o this.

Sitting down on the uncomfortable chair outside the room, Luke felt like he was drowning in emotions. Not too long ago he had been carefree as he bantered with his cousins and worked on the farm.
Now, he had just forgiven his parents for leaving him alone, as they drowned themselves in their love for each other. He had even managed to bring up some understanding for his Uncle's betrayal, and along the way, he had discovered that Jesse knew about his time in a war camp in 'Nam.

And now, he could almost be saying goodbye to one of his beloved cousins, if not both of them. The very thought of that scenario made him feel sick to his stomach and he had to make a beeline for the nearest bathroom where he threw up, loosing his meager lunch in the hospital toilet.

After dry heaving for a while, he rinsed his mouth before returning to the hall where Jesse just got out of room 285, pale as a sheet while he heavily sat down on the chair Luke had vacated not so long ago.

Looking up at his eldest nephew, he grabbed Luke's hand tightly, seeing how this was effecting him too.

"Son, you've got to go in… Let 'em know you're here," he said, giving Luke a small shove towards the room.

Luke's hand felt heavy as it rested on the cool doorknob, and he hesitated a bit before turning it.

"You can do it Luke, jus' talk to 'em, let 'em know you're here, that's all," the older man spoke softly, giving Luke the strength to actually turn the knob.

The sight which met him was almost enough to make him turn around again. But uncle Jesse's words rang through his head, 'Let them know you're here now…'

He couldn't let them down again. And as he walked into the room, he silently swore to himself he would find the person who was responsible for this. Responsible for the two silent figures lying in beds which seemed to big for them. Responsible for the thick bandage covering Daisy's head, as well as Bo's. Responsible for the beeping of too many machines, attached with wires which curled out of marred skin like rattlesnakes posing to strike.

Taking the seat in between the two beds, Luke could keep an eye on both of his cousins, like he had always done. He was the one who had to be responsible, and take care of the younger two. And even though he had not done a good job preventing all of this, he was going to make sure he was here now.

Grabbing Daisy's limp, but warm hand, he rubbed it softly while he put his other hand on Bo's free and unharmed arm. Feeling the colder and clammier touch of the youngest cousin, he frowned, sending up a prayer for both of them.

And so he sat there. Holding on to his two cousins, the entire night, sometimes with his uncle, and sometimes without. But he stayed there.

He stayed until Daisy started to make a sound…

A sound, which was like music to his ears, even though it was just a slight mumble. Scooting over to her, he motioned to Jesse, who had been dozing in one of the chairs near the window.

"Uncle Jesse, she's wakin up," he whispered, not even knowing why he was whispering.

Together they bent over her, holding her hand as they guided her back to the land of the conscious.

Luke had never felt so relieved, when he saw those beautiful eyes opening ever so slowly. At first, they were cloudy, trying to focus on the faces before her. A second later fear showed in the blue eyes, but Luke quickly squeezed her hand.

"Daisy? It's okay girl, ya can wake up now, everythin is alright," Jesse soothed.

Immediately the fear started to disappear, only leaving questions in her eyes as she tried to speak.

"Wh- what happened," Daisy scratched, her throat feeling as dry as the land on a hot summer day.

"Shh," Jesse murmured, "it's okay… There was an explosion in the Boars Nest, but yur alright. Jus' rest now baby."

Luke couldn't speak, the lump in his throat too big right now. He just squeezed Daisy's hand and stroked her auburn hair.

When her tired eyes met his, a small smile covered her cracked lips, as she whispered his name in reverie, "Luke… Ya came back…"

Nodding slowly Luke returned the smile, although a bit watery, "Yeah, I'm back, now go ta sleep, I ain't goin nowhere…" he whispered.

And with those words, Daisy closed her eyes again, giving over to her exhaustion.

As Luke kept sitting there, rubbing his cousin's hand, Jesse got out of the room and called the doctor, who ushered them out of the room, so he could examine Daisy.

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Silence reigned the waiting room with Luke pacing and Jesse reading a magazine.

"Stop makin' me dizzy son, yur wearin out the carpet," Jesse said, his voice a little lighter then it had been before.

"What's takin them so long uncle Jesse?" Luke asked, not seeing the look his uncle got when he called him uncle Jesse again.

Jesse's response was cut of when the door opened and doctor Ramirez came out, wearing a frown on his handsome face.

Luke was with him in a second, "What's wrong?" he asked, sensing something was wrong by the look on the doc's face.

Looking up from the chart he was holding Dr. Ramirez motioned for a nurse, while turning towards Luke and Jesse.

"Well, Daisy seems to be alright. From what I can tell there's no permanent damage from the concussion. She's asleep now, and will be sore for a few weeks, but she'll probably be able to go home in a few days."

Jesse and Luke both sighed from the relief they were feeling now, but something was nagging at Luke's mind.

"It's Bo, right?"

Nodding slightly the doc gave the chart to the nurse, telling her to take care of it.

"The swelling to Bo's brain is worryin us, so we're gonna insert a tube to drain it, hoping this will prevent brain damage."

Luke swallowed hard as his uncle's hand clenched and unclenched around Luke's arm.

"Can, uh… Can we see him before ya…" Luke murmured, not knowing what to say at this awkward moment.

Knowing he was gonna let the entire Duke family down, the doctor shook his head.

"I'm sorry Luke, Jesse, but we have ta do it right now. They are already prepping him and a nurse is on her way to take him to surgery."

Stubbornly, Luke shook his head, already making his way to the door, before being stopped by a strong arm.

"Ya gotta listen to the doc Luke. I know how bad ya want ta see him, but if they don't put that drain in now…" Jesse let the sentence linger on, knowing Luke understood what he meant.

At that moment the door opened, and Luke and Jesse had to stand there and watch Bo being wheeled by, the pale complexion of his skin in stark contrast to the angry red marks on his face and neck.

Stopping for a second, the nurse gave the Dukes one moment with Bo.

Jesse bend over the bed, whispering something in his nephew's ear before kissing his forehead.

Luke just stood there, overwhelmed by the powerless feeling he was getting by seeing his vibrant cousin, so lifeless. Grabbing the cold and motionless hand lying on the bed, he sent up another prayer, while a decision formed in his jumbled mind. Mumbling against Bo's hand he made a vow, a vow he would keep, he was not about to let his cousin down again.

"I'll get the guy that did this to y'all Bo. I'll get him, an' make sure he pays. An' then I can be there for ya cuz… Always…"

Jesse hadn't noticed Luke's determined look, and was shocked when he saw Luke jump up after Bo was wheeled through the hall. Calling after the disappearing form of his eldest, he already knew what he was doing…

"Luke! Where ya goin!" he called.

Turning around, mid-stride, Luke's voice carried through the halls as he kept walking.

"I'm gonna catch me some scum…"

Letting himself fall into the nearest chair, Jesse frowned deeply. Praying to the good Lord above, all his youngins would be alright and in one piece. And silently, he also wished Luke was successful and would catch the lowdown fella that caused all of this mess…

"You jus' get back here son, you jus' get back here soon…"

Friends an' neighbors, if ya think things can only look up from here, I've got me some ocean front property in Tennessee ta sell ya…