Chapter 3: Escape With a Capital E

Luke was doing some ducking and dodging of his own, trading blows with the man called Sonny. The other five didn't seem to have noticed their battle yet, focused as they were on the blond Duke on the hill. As it was, Luke had taken a few good hits, and was watching for his chance to break for the trees. Daisy'd had plenty of time to put some distance between her and this bad scene, and he was in no hurry to take on this murderous crew one at a time.

Luke's chance came a moment later, when her heard the engine of the General Lee roaring over the top of the hill. Bo headed straight for his five pursuers, scattering them like tenpins. Luke took one last swing at Sonny, knocking him back on his tail, before charging to meet Bo on the dirt track. His cousin hardly slowed the car as Luke dived through the window, and they took off down the track. The General's horn called 'Dixie' as Bo beeped for Daisy, who appeared out of the trees a few hundred feet down the track. Daisy climbed in beside Luke, and Bo floored the gas pedal, tearing off and leaving six angry, murderous villains behind them.

Bo, Luke, and Daisy were all gasping for breath as the General reached the main road, but the youngest Duke cousin didn't slow down one bit. Luke hugged Daisy close, mentally thanking God that she was alright while she cried into his shirt.

"Oh God, oh God, did you see..? They…they…they killed them! They killed them, and they would have killed you! Luke, I was so scared, when I heard Bo and I saw him up there and they were shooting and I thought they would shoot me…" she sobbed as her cousin did his best to comfort her. After a few minutes her shock seemed to wear off, and she looked up and wiped the tears from her eyes. "Uncle Jesse sent me after you…" she began to explain.

"Uncle Jesse!" Luke exclaimed. He'd clean forgotten how late he and Bo had been out, and immediately felt guilty - he hadn't even thought about whether Helen and Ann got home safely. He turned and picked up the CB, only to realize he'd shut it off earlier that night. Switching it on, he keyed the mike. "Lost Sheep to Shepard, you got your ears on?"

"Luke! Where on earth have you been!" Jesse scolded with a mixture of anger and relief.

"Uncle Jesse, I'll explain as soon as we get home. I need you to call the Samuels and find out if Helen and Ann got home okay," he asked, figuring the truck's CB was probably turned off too, "and call Rosco, get him to meet us at the farmhouse."

"Now! Are you alright? Is Daisy with you?" Jesse asked worriedly.

"Yes, now. We've got Daisy, and we're all…fine…" Luke released Daisy to turn and look at Bo, who hadn't said a word since leaving the lake. The elder Duke paled, releasing the CB mike. Bo was still breathing hard, intently focused on the road, trembling with the effort of holding the steering wheel steady. The cloth of his shirt was torn at the right shoulder, black and soaking wet with blood.

Uh-oh. Looks like those men were better shots than usual. Luke better get him to a doctor, and fast.