A Different World
Chapter 2:
The day had started like any other on the Ponderosa. Once again, Little Joe Cartwright found himself ushered off to school while his older brothers stayed back at the ranch working. "Dang it all. I'll be glad when Pa let's me quit. Don't know why I gotta go to school no how." The fifteen-year old mumbled. As he rounded the curve in the road, Joe pulled Cochise to a halt and stared at the body that lay there. "Come on boy, looks like someone's hurt." Joe dismounted and let his pony's reins dangle trusting him not to wander off. Walking over to where the man lay, he carefully rolled him onto his back. "Cooch, it's a boy. Shoot, he can't be much older than I am." Grabbing his canteen off the saddle, Joe poured a little of the water onto his neckerchief and wiped the boy's face.
Bo could feel the coolness of the water and wondered for a minute if Luke was playing a gag on him. 'Luke?… No, he'd just dump the whole dang thing on me.' Slowly he opened his eyes, dazed as to where he was. The first thing that caught his attention was the face of Cochise as the horse leaned down sniffing him. "What the… where am I?"
"Welcome back, friend. You're on the Ponderosa." Joe smiled.
"The Ponda…what?" Bo asked as he sat up rubbing his head.
"The Ponderosa. It's my home."
Laughing, Bo said. "Yeah right, and I guess that'd make you Little Joe Cartwright, huh?"
"How'd ya know my name? Don't recall seein' ya around these parts before." Joe asked.
"Look fella, quite shuckin' and jivin' me. The only place ya gonna find the Cartwrights is on TV once a week."
"I ain't sure just what the heck ya talkin' 'bout, with all the shuckin' and jivin' and TV stuff. I think the best thing I can do is to take ya back to the house. My Pa'll know what to do." Joe said figuring the boy had really banged his head good.
"Luke put ya up to this?" Bo asked as he stood. He thought it was odd that the boy did look a lot like the man on TV. But Luke was good at putting together a plan. 'Fine, I'll just go along with it. Shoot anythin' is better than gettin' a switchin' from Uncle Jesse.'
"Don't know nobody named Luke." Joe said as he vaulted onto his horse. "Come on, Cooch can carry the both of us."
Bo mounted behind Little Joe and settled himself. "Say, where's my car?"
Turning in the saddle, Joe looked at Bo. "You're what?"
"My car… the General Lee?"
"Don't know what the heck ya talkin' 'bout. Where ya from?" Joe asked as he nudged Cochise into a steady walk.
"Hazzard County, Georgia." Bo said looking around at the landscape. He didn't remember there being mountains this close to home. 'Luke musta had someone take me up close to Tennessee. There are some mountains there.'
"Georgia? Long way from home. How did ya end up here in Nevada?" Joe asked.
"NEVADA!"
'Yeah, I know. Betcha wasn't expectin' to hear from me. Bein' Bonanza and all, but shoot someone hadda follow ole Bo out here. That boy'd find trouble at a church picnic. Ya'll hang on, cause I got the feelin' things are about to get as crazy as a coon chasin' a hound up a tree.'
Ben Cartwright was sitting at his desk going over the months accounts when he heard the sound of hooves on the hard packed dirt outside. Wondering which of the boys had forgotten something he stood and walked over to the door. Opening it, his anger rose at the sight of his youngest entering the yard. "Joseph, why aren't you in school, young man?"
"Now pa, I can explain. Ya see, I found this boy back on the road, out cold." Joe said, moving so his father could see Bo sitting behind him. "I couldn't just leave him there."
"Of course you couldn't, son. Why don't you bring him inside."
Bo slid off Cochise and stood in awe of the massive ranch house in front of him. "It's just like on
TV."
"Sorry son, what did you say?" Ben asked, placing his hand on Bo's shoulder.
"Pa, I think he hit his head. He's been talkin' bout some really strange things."
"Like what son?" Ben asked, concerned.
"Somethin' bout a TV, a car, and ah…" Joe paused. Then snapping his fingers he said, "Oh yeah, shuckin' and jivin'. Maybe he's tetched."
"Joseph, that is enough."
"Sorry Pa."
"Boy, Luke sure did go to a heap o'trouble doin' this." Bo laughed.
"Who's Luke?" Ben asked.
"My cousin. And I bet he got Cooter to help him."
"I'm sorry son, I don't know a Luke or Cooper." Ben said.
"Not Cooper, Cooter. Cooper is the newspaper guy back home." Bo said walking toward the house.
"Cooter… Cooter?" Ben asked looking at Joe, who just shrugged his shoulders and followed his Pa and the strange boy inside.
Entering the house, Bo was amazed at the size of it. He smiled to himself as he took in the scene he'd watched every week on TV. "Danged if this don't beat all. It looks just the same." Bo smiled as he turned to look at Ben and Joe.
"Son, can you tell me what happened to you?" Ben asked taking Bo's arm and leading him to the settee.
"Ah… sure. I think so anyhow." Bo answered sitting down. He waited until Ben was sat in his red chair and Joe on the coffee table. "Well, ya see. I got up before the others on accounta I got in trouble last night and hadda go to bed early. So that made me wake up earlier then them…"
"Them? Who? By the way what is your name?" Ben asked.
"Oh sorry. Bo Duke's my name, and the others are my Uncle Jesse, and Luke and Daisy. They're my cousins. We all live on my uncle's farm in Hazzard."
"That's in Georgia, Pa." Little Joe said winking at his father, convinced the boy had lost his mind.
"Georgia?"
"Yes sir. Well anyways, it was rainin' hard enough to make the ducks grab their boots. Now ole Luke had told me that I could use the General to go to school if'n it wasn't rainin' but seein' as how they were asleep, I sorta took him anyways. Boy, ole Luke's agonna be madder than a hound dog what done lost his possum." Bo laughed before continuing, "On the way to school, I decided to take the long way and jump the crick, seein' as how I was alone. Figured I was already in trouble anyhow so why the heck not. Well, when I landed, we started rollin' and that's the last I knew til I woke up here."
"Where is your horse now, son?" Ben asked, hoping the animal had come to no harm in the accident.
"Horse?" Bo asked.
"Yes, I believe you called him General."
Laughing, Bo shook his head. "Oh no sir. The General ain't a horse. That's me and Luke's race car."
"Car?" Ben questioned.
"See Pa. What did I tell ya. He's tetched." Joe insisted.
"Joseph, one more time and you'll be touched… by me." Ben stated firmly.
"Ah… yes sir. Sorry Pa." Joe said biting his bottom lip.
"Now, let me get this straight. You are telling me that you snuck away from home in a… car? Then you jump a creek and flipped it… in Georgia… this morning?" Ben carefully asked. 'I think Little Joe is right, this kid is tetched.' He thought to himself. Standing, Ben motioned for Bo to stand. "I think it'd be a good idea for you to go and lay down for a little while. You can use the guest bedroom. It's over…"
"Don't bother yourself, sir. Ya lookin' a little pale and besides, I know where it is." Bo smiled as he walked over to the room that sat off the dinning area.
Joe noticed that his Pa stood looking at the door Bo had walked through with his mouth hung open. Tapping the older man on the shoulder, Joe asked. "Doc Martin, Pa?"
"Yes and make it fast, Joseph. That boy must have hit his head… and hard."
'Did I hear the man call The General, a horse? Now wouldn't that put a clod in the buttermilk? An orange horse sportin' the rebel flag. Then again, it mighta come in handy when the Yanks took Atlanta.'
"So that's his story." Ben concluded. He looked at the stunned faces of his older sons, Adam and Hoss, and Dr. Martin.
"Well, it's obvious the boy is just lying. He's probably run away from home." Adam stated.
"Maybe the boy jist has a wild imagination like little brother here." Hoss added.
"I think he's tetched." Joe said, looking over at his father.
"Well that is the reason I'm the doctor and the three of you aren't." Paul said, standing and retrieving his medical bag. "Ben, let me check…" He stopped when the door to the bedroom opened and out walked the boy in questioned.
Bo smiled as he joined them. Sticking out his hand to the older man he said. "You must be Doc. Martin. Nice to meet ya." 'Boy Luke really outdid himself.'
Taking the offered hand, Paul smiled. "That's right, and you are Bo?"
"Yes sir." Looking over the doctor's shoulders, he spotted the other men. "Howdy, ya'll must be Adam and Hoss."
"I'm Hoss. Good to meet ya, Bo." Hoss smiled. "How'd ya know my name?"
"Why heck, everybody knows Hoss Cartwright." He answered, causing the big man to blush and drop his head.
"So, how old are you kid?" Adam asked, crossing his arms across his chest.
"Fifteen, just a little tall fer my age."
"I'll say. Little brother here is fifteen too, and ya a good four inches taller than him." Hoss laughed.
"Bo, could you tell me if you hit your head in the accident?" Paul asked, motioning for the boy to sit.
"Don't rightly 'member. Good chance of it though, what with the steerin' wheel and the roll bar."
"Excuse me?" Paul begged.
"I said there was a good chance I coulda hit my head on the steerin' wheel or the roll bar."
"I heard what you said, but I don't understand what those items are."
"Ya gotta be kiddin' me. A steerin' wheel. Ya know the round thing you use to turn the wheels on the car?" Bo said lookin' around. Seeing the doubt in their eyes, he continued. "A roll bar? The metal bar that runs across the top of the car to keep it from cavin' in if ya flip?
Adam was the first to come back to reality, shaking his head, "Look kid, enough of this. Where ya parents?"
"They're dead. I live with my Uncle Jesse. Have since I was bout two." Bo said quietly. "Danged if this guy ain't as bossy as the real Adam Cartwright. Luke done his homework on this one."
"I'm sorry about your folks, son." Ben said shooting Adam a warning glare. "Now, if you'll just tell us where to wire your uncle. We'll get you home."
"Well shoot, just point me toward the phone and I'll give 'em a call. Luke's probably somewhere watchin' anyhow." Bo stated.
"The what?" Joe asked.
"The phone. Don't tell me ya ain't got one." Taking in the look on their faces, he sighed. "Ya pick up the receiver and put it to ya ear. Dial the number and then talk to the person on the other end?"
Leaning over toward Hoss, Joe whispered. "Told ya, he's tetched." Hoss nodded.
"Paul, I want you to give this young man a good check over. I want to know if he's hurt or if he's just making up stories." Ben stated firmly. "And for your sake young man, if you aren't hurt then you had better stop all this nonsense before you end up in the barn with me."
"But it ain't nonsense. I'm tellin' the truth." Bo declared standing. "And I don't need a doctor."
Ben looked down at the boy in front of him, "You will go in that room and let the doctor check you out on your own or Hoss will carry you in there, and sit on you if need be."
Joe reached out and touched Bo on the shoulder. "He means it, ya might as well just go on. Ya don't want this big ox sittin' on ya."
'I don't know 'bout you folks, but I think ole Bo here would be better off movin' to town. Less barns around.'
Meanwhile back in Hazzard; Jesse, Luke and Daisy all took turns sitting by Bo's hospital bed. It had been almost twenty-four hours since the accident, and still Bo hadn't woke up.
"Uncle Jesse, why don't ya head home for the night. I'll stay with 'em." Luke said patting the older man on the shoulder.
"Naw, but I will go lay down on the other bed for awhile. Ya wake me if he comes around." Jesse sat on the side of bed and looked at his nephew. "Luke, did ya find out what happened?"
"Ah… yeah… Seems Bo here decided to make the jump over the crick, and landed wrong."
"JUMPED OVER THE CRICK!" Jesse hollered.
"Now Jesse, don't go gettin' yaself riled. What's done is done. We all know how hard headed the kid is."
"Ya and look what it got him. I just wish he'd wake up."
"He will, don't worry. There is another problem though."
"What is it, Luke. Talk plain, boy." Jesse stated.
"Well, Enos tole me that Boss Hogg was havin' Bo charged with drivin' underage, speedin' and reckless drivin' when he wakes up." Luke explained.
"WHAT? Why that fat, marshmallow. Wait'll I get my hands on 'em."
"Stop and think on it for just a minute, Jesse. Bo was doin' all those things, but the only one he can prove is underage drivin'. Ain't no proof he jumped the crick, or was speedin'."
"But ya just said…"
"Yeah, and he was, but that's just cause I know my little cuz here. He'd done asked me about doin' it and I told him no."
"Don't ya come near me ya big ox…" Luke and Jesse looked at each other before rushing to Bo's side.
"Did ya hear that?" Luke asked.
"Yeah, I think he's comin' around. Who was he
callin' a big ox?"
"Dunno, but it looks like he's slipped back under. It's bound to be a good sign. I'll get the doctor."
"Maybe ole Luke and Jesse don't know who the big ox is, but me and you do, don't we? This plot's gettin' thicker than Jesse's crawdad bisque. Ya'll stick around to find out what happens next, ya hear."