I think I should have put a disclaimer in the first chapter: "No animals or Dukes were (permanently) damaged in the making of this story." ;) Thanks again to everyone who has left comments! I'm glad you're enjoying it. And apparently I can't count…I discovered the other day that I have ten chapters, not nine. :P They're on the way!

- Flynne :)

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- Chapter Eight -

"Spider-Man"

Bo heard Luke call his name as he went over the wall. His hand shot out by pure instinct as he fell, catching hold of the top of the wall just long enough to twist himself around. He grunted painfully as his chest and stomach smacked into the concrete face of the dam, but his headlong fall had been turned into a rapid feet-first skid. He felt a burst of terror as he slid, grabbing uselessly at the smooth stone face that burned his hands as he slipped down the sloping side.

Then the rushing water caught his legs like a gigantic icy fist and yanked him down.

I'm a dead man.

The thought had barely seared its way across his brain when his right arm suddenly caught on something solid. The water was nearly blinding him with its spray and making everything slippery, but with strength born of desperation, Bo held on. A thick, dark tree trunk—shattered by lightning and rotten with age—had sunk beneath the surface of the lake months ago, been caught by the current, and become lodged in the outflow opening in the dam. A few of the thick branches hung out over the lip of the opening like groping arms as the lake water rushed by them and plummeted to the riverbed below.

Bo felt the waterlogged limb flex beneath his weight, but he stubbornly refused to think of what would happen if it broke. Through sheer force of will, he dragged himself over and wrapped his arms around the branch. There he was, hanging a hundred feet above the churning white foam below.

xxxxx

No…oh, God, no… Luke felt as if his feet were cemented to the ground. He couldn't believe that he'd just seen his best friend fall to his death. A tearing sense of loss ripped through his chest. He couldn't breathe. Dimly, he saw Hacker and Morgan bringing their weapons to bear once more.

"Luke, get down!" Jud tackled his brother and knocked him to the ground as the bullets whizzed overhead. Luke snapped out of his trance as he hit the dirt, rolling away from Jud as he bounded to his feet. Not caring about the gunfire, he charged forward and rammed his solid shoulder into Hacker's midsection. Jud and Cooter were at his heels. His brother disarmed Morgan with a skilled blow to the gunman's right hand, following it up with a hard left hook that sent the older man reeling.

Hacker lost his gun when Luke tackled him. Growling angrily, he clasped his hands together and brought them smashing against the side of Luke's head. Ears ringing, Luke fell away—but Cooter was right behind him. The stocky mechanic threw himself on top of Hacker, trading blows with the dark-haired man until Luke shook himself off and jumped to his feet. He grabbed Hacker by the back of his jacket and hauled him off of Cooter, spinning the crook around to face him. He drew back and threw all his weight and fury behind his fist. Hacker crumbled to the ground and lay there unmoving.

Moments later, Jud dropped Morgan with an iron-hard left hook. He spat on the ground where the older man fell. "That's why they call me 'Killer Cane'," he said coldly.

Breathing hard, Luke stumbled to the wall at the edge of the dam, terrified to look down. Dread filled his stomach like hot lead as he placed his trembling hands on the concrete wall and leaned over the edge. He nearly choked on the ragged gasp that burned his chest. Hardly daring to believe it, he blinked and looked again. Just below the spot where the water curved over the face of the dam he could see a red t-shirt beneath the current, and a dripping blond head lifted just above the surface of the water. A burst of hope suddenly took hold of his heart.

"I can see him!" Luke sputtered. "Jud! Cooter! He's alive!"

xxxxx

Bo was cold. At that moment, it seemed to him that he had never been so cold in his life. The green and white water was tearing past him, pulling constantly on his body, bleeding his strength away with every passing second. His arms were burning fiercely and his chest ached as he struggled to breathe. The chill of the water hit him like a kick to the chest, and it was getting harder and harder for him to hold his head above the racing torrent. I can't do this much longer… Fear wrapped his pounding heart in a grip even tighter and colder than the water that tumbled over him.

"Bo!"

The voice seemed to come from far away.

"Bo!"

"L-L-Luke?" With great effort, Bo lifted his head and saw his cousin looking down at him.

Luke looked frantically at Cooter and Jud. "He ain't gonna be able to hold on forever." He leaned over the wall again and gauged the distance—Bo was more than four meters down. "There's no way we can get him from here." The words were bitter in his mouth.

Jud grabbed his arm. "Yes we can! Luke, I keep a rope in the trunk of my car with my jumper cables! Wait right here—I'll go get it!" He spun on his heel and sprinted back the way they had come. Cooter stared after him, but Luke stayed near the edge of the dam where he could see Bo, praying hard that his cousin would be able to hold on just one more minute…one more minute…

Jud came pounding back across the dam, carrying a long coil of rope. "How do we wanna do this?" he asked breathlessly. "Just toss it to him and have him grab on?"

"I guess we'll have to," Cooter said. "Between the three of us, we can pull him up no problem." They dropped the line over the edge of the dam. Luke watched anxiously as they steered its path right next to where Bo was.

Bo saw the rope coming through the spray. He shook the water from his ears and swallowed hard, blue eyes fixed on the wet hemp as it dangled next to him. In his mind's eye, he could see himself letting go of the branch to reach for the rope—but when he started to move his hand, his tired and aching muscles cramped. He gasped as he felt himself slipping, nearly choking on the mouthful of water he got when his head dipped below the surface. He came up coughing, clinging tighter than ever to the tree limb. His numbed hands were just barely keeping their grip on the rough bark. There was no way he could hold on to the rope. And then he knew that he was really and truly stuck. He gave one last despairing glance at the rope before turning his eyes to the top of the dam again.

Luke felt a sudden surge of dread as he saw and understood the hopeless look on Bo's face. "He can't grab the rope. He's too tired. If he lets go, he'll fall."

"What do we do, Luke?" Cooter asked.

A determined look settled on Luke's face. "You guys'll have to lower me down."

"Do what?" Jud exclaimed.

"Don't argue with me, Jud. We don't have time!"

"If you're sure," Jud said. He quickly pulled the rope back up.

"Yes he is," Cooter agreed firmly. "And so am I. And we're gonna do what he says." He looped the rope around Luke's chest under his arms, and tied a quick but secure knot before taking hold of the other end of the rope and bracing himself.

Jud stepped up behind him and wrapped his hands around the rope. "Good luck, brother. You can do this." Luke nodded once, took a deep breath, and leaned over the edge of the dam. He gripped the top of the wall with his hands and eased himself over, sliding down the face of the dam as Cooter and Jud kept him from falling into the thundering depths. The slope was nearly vertical, so steep that Luke kept thinking he would pitch backward and fall, but the hands holding the rope were steady.

It was slow going as he crawled steadily downwards, and he felt constant fear that each second that passed would be one second longer than Bo could endure. He gasped as he first slipped into the swift-flowing water, left breathless by the sudden cold, but he managed to keep his wits about him and push off the surface of the dam with his hands to keep his head out of the water.

Bo's blue eyes were wide with fear as he saw the risk his cousin was taking, but he gritted his chattering teeth and held on even more tenaciously. Just a little longer…a little longer…

Luke had immediately started to shiver in the cold torrent. He felt a rush of relief as he finally came alongside Bo and felt his cousin's hands beneath his chilled fingers. He reached out and slid his hands under Bo's arms. "Bo, you're gonna—gonna have to let go!" he said. Bo squeezed his eyes closed and didn't answer. "Bo, come on!" Luke urged. "I gotcha…grab onto me, put your arms around my neck." In a sudden moment of fear, Luke thought that Bo might be too frightened—or too far gone—to listen.

Bo was frightened. The cold water had left him weakened and numb, and his mind felt sluggish. He could barely feel Luke's arms around him. If he budged an inch, he knew he'd fall. How could Luke possibly hold him up? But his cousin was telling him to let go, and Bo trusted him implicitly. With a sudden burst of strength, he tore his left arm away from the branch and flung it over Luke's shoulder.

For one terrifying instant, Luke was afraid that he couldn't hold on to him, but Cooter and Jud lowered him down a few more inches and he was able to slide his hands all the way beneath Bo's arms and behind his back. He clasped his hands together, locking his cousin in the strong circle of his arms.

"That's it, Bo," Luke said encouragingly. "One more, you can do it." Bo didn't hesitate this time. He let go of the tree entirely and wrapped his other arm around Luke's neck. Luke felt the strain in his water-chilled muscles as he bore Bo's full weight around his shoulders, but he clenched his jaw and held onto his cousin like grim death.

"He's got 'im, Jud!" Cooter crowed. "Pull 'em up, quick!" The two men backed away, dragging their heavy burden up as quickly as they dared. Luke could feel Bo's shuddering, rasping breaths as he held onto him. The rope around his chest was tight and made it hard to breathe and the concrete scraped at his skin through the back of his soaked shirt, but there wasn't a chance in hell that he was going to let go.

When the two cousins were almost completely back from the edge, Cooter let go and darted forward. He reached a sturdy arm over the wall and hooked his fingers onto the waistband of Bo's jeans. Jud let go of the rope and grabbed onto his brother's arms, hauling him completely over the wall to safety. Another pull, another moment, and Bo came scrambling over the edge of the dam, collapsing in a heap against the concrete wall.

Cooter knelt by his friend's side instantly and lifted him off the ground to prop his back against the wall. "Dang, Bo…you okay?" Bo's eyes were closed and he was gasping for breath, but he managed a weak nod. The stocky mechanic quickly shed his jacket and draped it over Bo's trembling shoulders.

With Jud's help, Luke pushed himself up from where he had been sprawled on the pavement and hastily untangled himself from the rope. He scooted over next to Bo, nudging the young man's shoulder. "You in there, cuz?"

This time Bo opened his eyes. "Thanks to you," he forced out, voice shaking with fatigue.

Cooter laughed in relief and mussed the sopping blond curls. "Yep, he's gonna be okay," he told Jud cheerfully. He cast a critical eye at the older Duke cousin. "How're you feelin' Lucas?"

Luke was shivering in the cool April breeze, still out of breath from the cold water, but a relieved smile was on his face. "Not bad. Not bad at all." He draped an arm around Bo and squeezed his shoulder. "Buddy, I tell you—your guardian angel must've been pullin' double overtime today. You realize there wasn't nothin' to stop you from fallin' except that one tree?"

Bo nodded once, blowing out a long breath. "Yeah…I know."

Jud bent to pick up the weapons that Clayton's henchmen had dropped and nudged Hacker's prone body with the tip of his boot. "These guys are gonna start coming around soon," he said. We'd better get outta here."

Luke frowned darkly. "They're comin' with us," he said firmly. "I ain't gonna let them run free after what they done. No matter what Clayton said about you, the law's got to do somethin' with 'em now."

"I tell you what we'll do, Luke," Cooter said, readjusting his baseball cap. "We can't all fit in one car, so me'n Jud will take these two dirtbags in their car an' then you and Bo can take Jud's."

Luke nodded. "Sounds like a plan to me." He looked at Bo, huddled against the wall inside Cooter's jacket. "You ready to go?" he asked.

"Yeah." Bo swiped a shaking hand over his face to brush away the trickles of water running down from his hair. "You'll have to help me up, though. I don't th-think I can move."

Jud gave Luke a hand up, and then he and Cooter each took hold of one of Bo's arms and lifted him to his feet. The exhausted young man was shaky and could barely manage to stay standing. Luke stepped over and put an arm around his shoulders, partly to steady him, partly to warm him up.

Cooter shook his head. "You two look like a couple of drowned rats. You're a mess."

One side of Bo's mouth lifted in a shadow of a smile. "Ain't we always?"

Luke laughed, relieved to see that Bo had enough of his wits about him to crack a joke. "Come on, let's get outta here." He led the way to Jud's car and opened the door for Bo.

Bo dropped onto the seat and dragged his long legs into the car, letting his head fall back against the headrest. "Boy, Luke…I was—was all numb there for a wh—while and now I got p-pins and needles all over." Luke gave Bo's shoulder a sympathetic pat and closed the door, jogging around to the other side. He started the car and immediately turned on the heat. Bo scrunched down in the corner and made himself as small as possible, pulling Cooter's jacket closer around his shaking shoulders.

Luke glanced over at his cousin as he pulled out onto the road in front of Cooter and Jud. "There's a lotta room on the seat here," he said. "I don't mind if you lean on me." Bo immediately scooted over, pressing his shoulder up against Luke's. It meant that Luke's right arm was effectively pinned to his side, but that didn't matter. He had long ago mastered the art of driving one-handed.

"Don't help much, but at least one side of me is warm," Bo commented.

"Good to hear." Luke could feel that Bo was still trembling as he leaned against him. "You sure you're okay?"

"Yeah. I'm f-freezin' but I ain't hurt. Just my hands a little," he said, uncurling his fists to look at them. His palms were scraped and reddened from the concrete and from holding on to the rough bark for so long.

Luke's face grew solemn and he cleared his throat. "I tell ya, Bo…I thought we lost you there for a minute."

Bo sighed heavily. "Me too. It ain't very often I get that scared." He gave Luke's shoulder a nudge. "But when I saw you comin', I knew you'd fish me out."

"Yeah, well…" Luke smirked. "Treat me nice or next time I go fishin' I may throw you back. For a skinny guy, you're heavy." Bo chuckled. It was the best sound Luke had heard all day.