Hey y'all - well they say that misery loves company, and I suppose that's why I chose to do this to poor Luke. At least I didn't give him a firm deadline. It's that "d" word that's got me putting this out here now, while I can. From here until the end of the year, there's plenty of "d" coming my way. Perhaps, as Luke suggests in the canon, I am in the wrong lane.
Thanks to everyone who has stuck with this all along. Not only did it wind up being longer I than planned, it also took a few twists that even I didn't foresee. I appreciate that you all came along for this unusual ride.
I don't own them, and as always, it's hard to let them go...
Chapter 35 – Bring it On!
"Well, Luke my boy, have fun," Jesse advised, laying the thick envelope containing a sheaf of forms on the kitchen table. "Mr. Green says you can call him if you have any questions."
The oldest Duke cousin was bound and determined to get this over with as quickly and quietly as possible. So although it was already late afternoon, and the rest of the family wasn't due to start sowing the new crop until morning, Luke knew his homework would start right after dinner.
"Hey, cuz, it's the last night before plantin'. Come on," Bo complained, when he saw the brunette sitting back down at the kitchen table, pulling the heavy ream of papers out of the envelope. It was a Duke boy tradition to spend their last "free" evening at the Boar's Nest.
"Go on without me, Bo. You'll have a better chance of findin' a girl if I ain't there to distract them from you." If he wasn't looking forward to an evening spent writing a stupid grant, at least the older boy could get in a few decent shots against his cousin.
Bo had been about to beg, but decided against it. Instead, he got in a parting shot of his own. "Shoot, Luke, I'd tell 'em all you said 'hi,' but they'd just stare at me and ask 'Luke who?'" The blonde ducked out the front door before the pencil in Luke's hand could be lobbed in his general direction. "Temper, temper!" the older boy heard, coming from the far side of the door.
With a snicker and a headshake, the brunette settled down to work. By the time Bo came home a few hours later, Luke was thinking maybe this wouldn't be so bad. He was pretty sure he'd have it licked in half the time Jesse had allotted him.
Come day two he was really sure he was getting there, but day three was a setback. Trying to show the history of the revenue on a farm that had long grown corn for the purpose of manufacturing and selling illegal whiskey was a trick all in itself. When he joined his kin in the fields that afternoon with a moan of complaint about his predicament, Jesse reminded him that of the entire family, he was the best conniver. Luke simply needed to use those skills very carefully right now, because he couldn't lie, but he couldn't tell the truth.
"If there's anyone can do that, it's you, cousin," Bo said, his smile much too cheerful for Luke's tastes. "Remember that time you had to explain to Mr. Grainge why we was bringin' the twins back so late?"
Luke gave his cousin a meaningful look.
"What's that, Bo?" Jesse, ever alert, asked him.
"Nothin', he's just ramblin'," Luke said.
"Aw, it ain't that bad," the blonde began to explain, beaming at the memory. "You see, ol' Luke there…"
"Bo, you been out in the sun too much," Luke interrupted. "Maybe you need to go back to the house and take yourself a break. You could work on that grant for awhile," the older boy suggested.
"Never mind, Uncle Jesse. I don't rightly remember the story," Bo said, quickly.
Jesse made a point of looking hard at both of his nephews, but he already knew the tale. Luke had gotten the boys out of a jam that time, using a few clever words to tell the truth and lie at the same time. There wasn't a move that his boys made that Jesse didn't know. It was just that most of the time, as long as they could get themselves out of it without having to call on him, he'd let them believe that he hadn't heard about it already.
"Yeah," the old man said with a wink. "Use the same tactic you used on Elias Grainge."
The boys looked at each other with raised eyebrows and wisely said no more.
Day four found Luke pulling Jesse aside before breakfast.
"Daisy looks awfully tired, Jesse," he said quietly. "Seems like maybe she ought to stay here today and I should go help you out there," the young man suggested, gesturing to the fields in an abrupt manner that made it clear that they were far from the house, at least in Luke's current estimation.
The old man chuckled. "She's fine Luke, and you know it. She ain't doin' half the work she does at harvest, and she probably ain't workin' as hard out there as she would if she was back here, tryin' to keep the house up around you." He placed his hands on Luke's shoulders. "Son, there's lots of ways of helpin' your family. Sometimes it ain't as simple as bustin' your back workin' a farm -- or a still," he paused, searching the striking blue of Luke's eyes for understanding. "Sometimes it comes from using your head for some good, honest thinkin', not just trying to come up with the quickest fix you can."
The brunette sighed, nodded, and went back to the incredibly uninteresting task at hand.
Day five brought the kind of heavy rain to the farm that was very good for the newly planted seed, but not for continuing to sow. The family was stuck in the house with Luke, and none of them was enjoying it. Daisy, at least, chose to escape by grabbing an umbrella and heading into town to do some window shopping, since she had no money for the real kind. Jesse, meantime, slipped off to the barn to tend to the livestock. There was no reason he couldn't have sent Bo to do it, but he chose not to. Sometimes the moments he got to spend alone, just running his quandaries past Maudine, were the most peaceful part of the day. The mule didn't answer back; it was one of Jesse's favorite traits in the beast.
Bo was hovering around, trying desperately to find a way to distract Luke from his writing duty so that he could join the younger boy in something, anything, that would keep him occupied.
The brunette was sorely tempted, but he knew that the minute Jesse walked in, any reprieve would be over.
"Come here, Bo," Luke called. He'd been about to send the boy out to play in traffic, but suddenly he had a better idea. "The sooner I can get this done, the happier we'll both be. So here's some stuff that's got to be accounted for, like how many chickens we got and how many goats… you start fillin' out that part an' I'll be done faster."
"This ain't exactly how I planned to spend my day, Luke," the blonde complained.
"This ain't exactly how I planned to spend my week," Luke retorted. "Come on, cuz," the brunette pleaded quietly, honestly. "I miss workin' with you."
Bo rewarded his cousin's rare openness -- which he suddenly realized was not so rare anymore -- with one of his brightest smiles. "I'd rather be working the fields beside you, but if this is what you're stuck doin', well, I might as well do it, too," the youngster said, reaching out a hand and giving Luke's shoulder a squeeze.
When Jesse came in to see his two boys quietly working side-by-side, he was too touched by the scene to break it up.
The middle-aged man had come through the door expecting to chastise Bo and Luke for being late with their afternoon chores. He knew they were young yet, but they needed to learn the priorities of farm life. When he came strutting into the house, though, he was surprised by the scene that met him. The boys were sprawled on the living room floor, much as he'd assumed, but they weren't playing with toy cars. Instead, they were on their bellies in front of a textbook, Bo with the end of his pencil between his teeth, listening as Luke carefully explained the meaning behind a word problem.
"But I don't care which train will get to St. Louis first, cousin," the blonde grumbled.
"No one cares, Bo, except the teacher. Thing is, if you can't figure out a way to give her the answer she wants…"
"She's gonna give me a bad grade, an' I'm gonna have a sore behind for a week. Okay. So what time does the first train leave Chicago again?"
Smiling gently, the boys' uncle tiptoed away, never letting on that he'd seen them there working together like that.
And like he had done all those years ago, Jesse left his boys to their task.
Day six brought Luke to the end of his struggles. Heading out to the fields that Saturday afternoon, he was finally able to announce that he'd made his way through everything and was ready to turn the paperwork over to Emery Potter, so the comptroller could add a budget to the grant application. After that, Luke's semi-neat block lettering would be typed in by the secretary in Emery's office, and the forms could be sent to Mr. Green. If the Dukes got funded, Luke's words would be used over and over for the other farms in the area.
Bo grinned widely. He was getting his cousin back. Without thought, he jumped on Luke, letting the older boy catch him. Jesse just grinned and said, "I'm proud of you, boy."
Unfortunately for the oldest Duke cousin, the next day was Sunday, which meant more sitting still. Church had always been a mixed blessing to the Duke boys. It was a place where they had to sit quietly and be on their best behavior, which was something that had been a real challenge when they were little. They were only slightly better at it now. But it was always a refuge, as well. The pastor had seen them through so much, not the least of which had been the death of their aunt. And he'd always assured them, with a gentle hand, that they were forgiven for their sins. Their paths had strayed so often that knowing they were forgiven was a tremendous relief to those two. This week, however, Luke would have been happier if there had been no Sunday. He was ready to get outside and do some physical work.
But there was noontime meal to be eaten first, and it was a pretty joyous affair. Jesse was happy for the true maturity he'd seen in his oldest this past week, even if the state funding didn't come through. Luke was glad to be free, and Bo was thrilled to have his cousin back. Daisy was enjoying the idea of getting the house to herself for an afternoon. It had been too long that Luke had been slowly turning it into a man-mess.
Leaving Bo behind to help his female cousin with the dishes, Luke and Jesse headed out to the barn together.
"I got a chance to read your work last night, Luke. You done a real fine job," Jesse informed him.
"Thanks," his oldest said, modestly. "Don't mean we're gonna get the money, though."
"No, it don't, but even sowing these here crops don't mean we're going to get any money. You know that," the wise old man reminded him. "The point is, Luke, that you used your brains to the top of their ability this time. Whether you get results, we'll have to wait and see, but you done me proud."
His oldest turned away to climb on the tractor. "Thanks Jesse," he mumbled, red-faced, as he started the machine and steered it out towards the fields.
"Where is that cousin of yours?" Jesse stormed, nearly a half an hour later. "It don't take that long to get some dishes done!"
Luke smirked. "I'll go get him, Jesse. I got a good idea where to find him."
"You just do that, young man. And I expect both of you back here and already hard at work in exactly twenty minutes, and not a second more, you hear me?"
"Yes, sir," Luke agreed. A third of an hour was generous, especially if the blonde was where Luke thought he might be.
Within five of the allotted twenty minutes, Luke was leaning on a tree, taking a quick moment to assess his little cousin. The boy was sitting exactly where Luke expected to find him, on "their" boulder, overlooking "their" pond. More sun glinted off of the water than would have a year ago, thanks to the thinned tree line. But the spot was just as beautiful as it had ever been.
"Bo Duke, you'd better stop mooning and get yourself out there to those fields, or Jesse's gonna tan both our hides. He gave me twenty minutes to find you and get you back there," Luke announced himself, but his tone was light. He moved to sit beside his cousin. "What're you doing out here anyways?"
"Just thinkin' about how happy everyone was at lunch," the blonde admitted, a little sheepishly. "And Luke? I know you done a great job, I ain't questioning that. But it seems to me that whether we get this 'mitigation fund' or not is totally out of our hands. I mean, the government ain't ever really been our friend, or nothin'. So why are we so happy? What if it don't work out? Will you be takin' off again?"
"Ah, Bo. I ain't goin' nowheres, we been over this," Luke answered. Slinging a gentle arm around his younger cousin, he reminded him, "You're the one that said I should think less. How come you're thinkin' so hard? Either we'll get the money or we won't. An' like my little cousin taught me, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it."
"I taught you somethin', huh?" Bo teased. "Can I have that in writing?"
"Sure: My pesty little cousin said one smart thing in twenty years. How's that?" Luke answered, his right arm scrawling across the air in front of them.
"It's a start," Bo said, grinning like the good-natured young man that he had grown to be. After years of being picked on by his older cousin, Bo smiled far more often than he fought. "Tell you somethin' else. Mostly I been sittin' out here so's you'd actually have to do some honest work for a change. I got tired of havin' to come out to the fields and break my back while you was in there loungin' around all day."
"Oh, really," Luke answered, grabbing his cousin in a half-nelson.
"Yeah," the blonde giggled, using Luke's grip against him and rolling them both to the ground.
"Broke a sweat, did you?" Luke grunted, trying not to show the fact that his younger cousin was causing him to break into one right now.
"You been sitting around too long, cuz. You've gone soft." The boys were both prone in the dirt now, each trying all the wrestling moves they could remember in an attempt to get the upper hand. They were pretty evenly matched.
"Not as soft as your head," the older boy said, stifling the urge to pant. There was no real reason for him to hide his efforts, though. The younger boy was working just as hard to keep from being pinned.
Suddenly, Luke's motives changed. Scrambling around even as he vied for position over his cousin, the brunette eventually found the footing he sought. Both boots planted firmly on the boulder that he'd found Bo sitting on just a few minutes earlier, Luke's legs gave a good, firm shove.
Bo couldn't have been more surprised when he felt himself, still firmly attached to Luke, spinning downhill and hitting the cold water of their rain-swollen pond. Luke's footing had been good, and his strong legs had managed to propel them both right out to the deepest part of the water, where even Bo couldn't touch bottom. Coming up to the surface and shoving his wet hair back from his eyes, Bo was amused to find his equally submerged cousin treading water a few feet away and staring back at him through wet tendrils of dark hair, brilliant blue eyes full of mischief. Jesse wanted them back in twenty minutes, most of which must have passed by now. They wouldn't have time to get back to the house and change. The boys would have to report back for work, dripping just as much as they were right now. It wouldn't make Jesse any happier, and they'd be plenty miserable throughout the rest of the day themselves, working in wet jeans. It wasn't exactly summer yet, either. But if Luke didn't care, Bo didn't either. Of course, it wouldn't do to let on…
"You're a dead man, Lukas!" Bo threatened with a grin, starting to splash his way towards the older boy.
"Oh, bring it on, cousin!" the wet brunette taunted, though he knew a good dunking was coming at him, and he knew he deserved it. Luke Duke was enjoying this day for all it was worth.
I won't say "the end," as life has a habit of being cyclical...