"When did this happen?" Jesse asked flat out, standing back up to face Bo.
"Last night." Bo replied before gritting his teeth as his arm throbbed from the fresh movement.
"And how?"
When Bo didn't immediately answer him, Jesse's worry caused him to fly into a rage. "Bo I asked you a question and I don't take kindly to being made to wait around for an answer! Now what is it?!"
"Uncle Jesse, please…." Bo trailed off, a hint of tears coming to his eyes.
"Please what?! Please do as you and Luke said and don't come around for a few days? Please go home without finding out what happened to ya?! Please leave and don't worry about making sure you get some help for that arm?!" Jesse continued with his worried tirade.
"Please don't yell at me." Bo sniffed, looking at Jesse. "I really don't think I can take any more."
And before Jesse's eyes, Bo broke down. His knees hit the floor and he bent over onto the seat of one of the chairs, burying his face in his good arm as he began to sob.
Jesse knew his boys. They rolled with the punches and, in most instances, to say they could successfully 'tough it out' was a hard fact. Those closest to Bo and Luke knew it took dire circumstances for either of them to show vulnerable emotions. All things considered, the fact that his nephew was not just crying, but heaving with sobs, presented a very worrisome situation.
Jesse immediately went over to Bo and picked up by his good arm, causing him to raise to his knees. In response, Bo wrapped that same arm around Jesse's waist and continued to cry. The elderly Duke was determined to stand there and hold him for as long as he needed him to.
But all too soon….maybe 20 seconds into it…Bo pulled away. "I'm sorry, Uncle Jesse! I'm sorry!" He stated, using his sleeve to wipe his tears.
"Sorry? What you sorry for?"
"For breaking down like this. I… I didn't mean to burden you and cause you to worry more than you already are." Bo responded, making a clear effort to bring himself under control.
Jesse raised Bo's chin up. "Don't you dare worry about burdenin' me about nothin'. Now I want to know what's eatin' you alive….and don't you lie or hold anything else from me. I'm smart enough to realize that it would take more than need of food or a shower or even help with that arm of yours for you to be acting like this." He announced, handing Bo the handkerchief from his pocket.
The tears came again, erasing Bo's inhibitions as his emotions poured out freely. "Me and Luke made an agreement that we didn't want you to come by because we didn't want you to worry but I gotta tell you, I'm scared…I'm scared to death. Uncle Jesse...I'm afraid Luke's about to die."
"What?" Jesse asked, his eyes bugging out.
Bo sniffed. "I lied to you a few minutes ago when you asked if Luke's okay. He's not okay, Jesse, he's about as far away from okay as a person can get. Bein' asleep's not the reason he didn't come out here. He couldn't come out because he's delirious with fever. My fever ain't nothin' compared to his. The whole day he's been talkin' to me like we's kids again, askin' where his momma is…crazy stuff like that! And no amount of begging and nothin' I've said has convinced Claiborne or Marcus to lift a finger to help him!"
Jesse swallowed. "How long's he been like that, and why?"
"His leg, Uncle Jesse." Bo replied. "His leg's broke and swelled up somethin' awful…and I dunno, it looks like maybe it's even startin' to turn blue."
Jesse shook his head, still bewildered. "How is it both of ya ended up with broke bones?"
Bo wiped his eyes and took a deep breath, but still, he cried. "Marcus….he did it, on Claiborne's orders! That's why we asked you not to come by for a while. You remember when he burned those release papers that that courier brought? Before you showed up he stood in that room as he was handcuffing me and Luke to those rings and told us the only way we's gettin' out anytime soon would be under the condition that you agreed to make shine for him. Well we argued, you know? We told him that there was no way a Duke was gonna go back on his word for him or anybody else. And he told us that if he couldn't convince you to do it that he would arrange for us to convince you, by breaking one of our bones every day until you changed your mind."
Jesse's eyes widened as he took it all in. He stepped away from Bo and looked at the rings on the wall where he'd found them handcuffed, as if he were envisioning the scenario Bo had described.
Bo paused to wipe his face again and to blow his nose. "He thought he broke my finger but after a while it was obvious he hadn't. Guess knowing that put him in a rampage, apparently made him think he'd do the job right next time." Bo then shuddered. "I can still see it, Uncle Jesse. I'll never forget that moment when they tied Luke to that pole…when Claiborne held Luke's leg in place and Marcus, with that sledgehammer…and me not able to do anything about it 'cause I's tied up too."
"Cassius, that low down….." Jesse continued, using a couple of words that were rarely a part of the elder Duke's vocabulary. "So he's left Luke with a broke leg goin' on two days?"
"Yes sir." Bo replied, finally calming down enough to talk without crying. "Yesterday he's hurtin' somethin' awful but other than the break, there wasn't nothin' wrong with him, not 'till we's made to go to Claiborne's office and that no account Marcus knocked us out." Bo continued. "Apparently when they went and hid us they aggravated the break, because it wasn't until after we both woke up that Luke started gettin' real feverish and we could see that the leg was swelling. Then, a little while later, they came back with that sledgehammer….." Bo shuddered, clutching the shoulder of his bad arm as the memory came back to him.
As Jesse closed his eyes to let it all sink in, Bo continued. "Uncle Jesse, I wish I didn't have to worry you, and if Luke had the sense to know that I broke our agreement not to tell you what Claiborne said….what he's doing….then I'm sure he'd be mad. But I just can't stand to watch him go down no more…..I can't stand feeling this helpless. If you could just say something' to Claiborne to get some medicine out here, somethin' that would keep Luke comfortable 'till you could figure out what to do to get us out, we can hang tough. With the medicine, we'll get by."
After a few moments, Jesse turned and walked back over to Bo. "Get by? I'm gonna do you better than that." He replied, hugging his nephew.
"What do you mean, Uncle Jesse?" Bo asked as Jesse walked away.
Jesse knocked on the door. "Marcus!" He called out.
"No, Uncle Jesse, you're not thinking what I hope you're not thinking, are you?" Bo asked, walking toward him as the deputy opened the door.
"It'll be alright." Jesse replied, leaving the room before Bo could reach him.
As Jesse walked the path back to Claiborne's office with Marcus behind him, he tried to ignore the distant sound of Bo beating on the door and yelling out for him 'not to do it' and to 'come back.'
"Why Jesse, back so soon?" Claiborne smiled a moment later when Jesse made a not so subtle entrance into his office.
"I oughta call that FBI agent and tell him to come back to this jail right now!" Jesse snarled.
"After he was here yesterday and found nothing? I'm sure his supervisor will be anxious to allow him to just drop everything and rush right back up here." Claiborne continued, shaking his head. "Don't think that the threat that your little deputy threw out about calling them scared us. We know a thing or two about priorities and the FBI, and wasting half a day to check on an empty jail doesn't rank very high on their list. So, Jesse, unless you've come in here to say something useful, I'd thank you to dismiss yourself and let me get on with other matters."
When Jesse stood saying nothing for a long time, Claiborne shooed him away. "We're done here. Skedaddle!"
Jesse then muttered something that was incomprehensible.
"What was that?" Claiborne was prompted to ask.
Jesse groaned and then spat out, "I said I'll make your precious shine."
Claiborne paused for only a moment before he let out a long, hearty laugh. "Jesse Duke, you are one tough cookie to crumble, but my persistence paid off!"
Jesse ignored his celebration. "I do have a condition. I'm not lifting one finger to do anything until I know for sure that those boys have got some medical help."
Claiborne's mouth dropped open. "Surely you don't think I'm going to approve a trip for them to the hospital?"
"With your track record, no." Jesse replied bluntly. "But that shouldn't stop you from seein' that they got some other kind of assistance."
"I'll tell you what….." Claiborne began, lacing his fingers together and scooting forward in his chair. "Whatever you yourself can do for them, I'll let you do. Then after you have them on the road to recovery, we'll talk about the your little job."
"And how am I supposed to make sure they stay on that recovery road and work on this batch you want?"
"I'm sure you'll figure out something." Claiborne replied. "And as a condition of my generosity, I also have a request."
"What?" Jesse simply replied.
"I don't want to see that useless Hazzard deputy around this property anymore."
Jesse would have been willing to argue, but considering Luke's dire condition, he didn't have the time. He then turned and left the office, intent on finding help for the boys.
I don't know what kind of help ole' Jesse can be, but I sure hope Luke can hang on while he comes up with a plan.