Deliver Us From Evil

Chapter Fourteen: Piece of the Puzzle

Balladeer: Not knowin' who else to go to for help, Bo an' Luke paid a visit to Rosco's sister Lulu, hopin' that maybe she had some idea where he might be. She hadn't been at work lately, not since her late-night visitor she had that other night, so she was cooped up in her house, which is where the boys found her.

"Miss Lulu, I don't think you understand," Luke told her as the three sat in the Hogg's living room. "Rosco's missin' an' we think that whoever's been causin' the trouble around here has him!"

She looked nervous as she continued with her cross-stitching. "Don't be ridiculous, he's just wandered off. He'll show up shortly."

"But we don't know that," Bo said, not understanding why Lulu was acting this way. Normally, she went into hysterics when her baby brother was supposedly in danger.

Lulu accidentally poked herself with her needle, shaking as bad as she was. She flinched and kept on going. Luke noticed that she was being a little peculiar and fidgety, so he asked, "You feelin' all right, Miss Lulu?"

"Who me?" she chuckled nervously. "Of course I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be? Everything's fine an' dandy here." Her face fell and she started to cry. The boys didn't know what in the world to think of it. "Oh, I can't lie to you boys! I wish I'd said somethin' to begin with an' maybe my baby brother would still be here!"

"Calm down, Miss Lulu, take it easy," Luke said gently. "What is it ya need to tell us?"

"It's Jefferson!" she cried. "Jefferson came here the other night, mumblin' somethin' about how he wouldn't hurt me 'cause I didn't do anything to hurt him, an' I asked him about the 'accidents' that had been goin' on but he didn't answer me! He broke out of prison an' I think he's responsible for the murders—I'm so sorry!"

Luke felt rather irate that she hadn't indeed mentioned this before but he didn't feel like yelling at the poor woman, not in the state she was in.

"Of course, why didn't we think of it?" Bo asked his cousin, himself trying to hide his anger at this hidden information. "Boss is gettin' revenge for goin' prison!"

"Do ya have any idea where he might be hidin' out?" Luke asked Lulu, who was still sobbing. "Miss Lulu, I know you're upset but this is important! Rosco could be near death out wherever he is, if he's not already an' Boss might be comin' after one of us next!"

"You don't understand!" Lulu exclaimed. "I can't do that to Jefferson! He's still my husband, I can't let—"

"Rosco's your brother," Bo pressed. "Miss Lulu, our uncle, my wife, an' Luke's baby are dead because of your husband, an' I'd rightly appreciate it if you'd cooperate a little."

"I don't know where he is! He didn't tell me!" she insisted. "I don't know what else to tell you!"

"Come on, Bo, think!" Luke instructed. "Where could Boss be hidin' out in Hazzard where he wouldn't come into contact with nobody?"

Bo snapped his fingers. "Hazzard Swamp!"

Balladeer: At last we're gettin' somewhere. The boys packed up the General with their bows an' arrows, heading out to Hazzard Swamp. Now the swamp is a purdy big place, easy to get lost out there. Neither boy knew exactly where to start lookin' for Boss (or Rosco for that matter) so they decided to split up and go their separate ways.

Meanwhile, over at Aunt Liza's house, the girls were feelin' withdrawal symptoms an' homesickness. Ali had been curled up in the room given to her and Eve the entire time, having felt sick and depressed from all that had happened. Chelsea would whine about her parents not bein' around, an' Eve would pace the floor constantly worryin' about her husband.

Aunt Liza was trying her best to feed the troublesome baby, who was intent on not eating anything by this stranger. She was screaming at the top of her lungs, "Moh-mee! Moh-mee!" Ali was still in bed and Eve was in the next room trying to watch Wheel of Fortune to get her mind off of the dangers that were back home. But it didn't work, she hadn't talked to Rosco all day an' she was goin' to go stark-crazy if she didn't hear his voice soon.

She got up off the couch and headed for the phone, getting the operator to connect her to her home, although she was sure that he wouldn't be there. After more than enough rings flew by, she tried the courthouse. Surely he'd be there. But he wasn't. Getting a few butterflies in her stomach, she practically called up every business in Hazzard including the Boar's Nest if anyone knew where Rosco was. Nobody knew.

She hung up the phone, her heart ramming in her chest. It was starting to rain, thunder was heard in the distance, coming from the direction of Hazzard County. Rosco hated storms—he wouldn't be out driving around if it were going to be raining soon if it hadn't already. Something was wrong—very wrong.

"But the minute I hear you're in trouble, I'm comin' straight back here an' gettin' you out of it,"she had told him. "That's a promise."

She hadn't heard that he was in trouble, not yet anyway, but her woman's intuition told her that something was dreadfully wrong. Not able to stand around any longer, she grabbed her purse and keys and marched to the front door. Aunt Liza noticed that she was leaving and shouted from the kitchen,

"Evie, it's gonna rain soon. Where ya goin'?"

"Home," she replied simply as she opened the door. "Somethin's wrong."

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Luke had his bow and arrow out in front of him, the bowstring tensed and ready to shoot at the first sign of danger. A crack of thunder was heard overhead and the trees swayed with the wind as it picked up some speed. The cold waters of the swamp came up to his knees, making it somewhat hard to walk.

He didn't know how far away Bo was, but they had been separated for more than twenty minutes. When he heard the movement of water behind him however, he knew that it couldn't have been his cousin. Luke turned around to face nothing but an endless maze of trees, logs, dangling moss, and swirling water.

Starting to get the shivers out here, Luke turned back to look forward and kept on moving. All of a sudden he felt a terrible pain in his lower left leg and the sound of gunshot. He fell face-forward into the murky water, losing his bow and arrow in the process. He was completely submerged for a while until he jerked his head back up for air. Then he felt somebody whack the back of his head and all went dark . . .

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Bo heard the shot from where he was. It had come from the direction that Luke had gone in. Panicked, Bo raced as fast as he could, shouting his cousin's name as he did so. About ten minutes later, he eventually came across a bow and arrow floating in the water—Luke's. Bo bent down to pick them up and tears ran down his face. He glanced around and shouted Luke's name again but he didn't get a response.

He heard someone behind him and he jerked around, his bow and arrow in position and fired, his projectile piercing that "someone's" chest. His eyes widened as he saw who he had shot.

"Boss?" he asked, as the elder man fell backwards into the water from the shock of being shot, his handgun falling down beneath the surface. Bo's eyes flashed with anger as he grabbed Boss by the collar. "Boss Hogg, what have you done with Luke an' Rosco? Answer me now or I'll shoot you again!"

Boss was gasping for breath, the arrow having pierced his left lung. He still managed a small smile and chuckle lightly. "Bo Duke—you're aim's still dead-on."

"I'm not in the mood for games, Boss," Bo growled, tightening his grip on Boss's collar. "You killed my Uncle Jesse, my wife—you ain't gonna get away with killin' my cousin too."

Boss simply laughed the best he could. "You'll never find him . . . not in this swamp . . . it plays tricks on your mind, boy . . . get confused real easy."

"Dang it, you tell me where he is!"

Boss shuddered and gasped his last breath before falling silent forever, lying motionless in the swamp with Bo still hanging onto him. Not knowing what to do, Bo started crying and punching the dead man in the face before he managed to control himself. Rising from the water, his jeans now soaked, he called out Luke's name one last time.