A/n: Hi again! Thanks to Sparkle731, T.S. Blue, and HazzardHusker for your kind remarks and for some things to think about. I'll try to live up to your expectations. Feel free to give me a good, swift kick every now and then; they're very motivating. Still not mine, except for Celeste.
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From within the confines of his office, Boss Hogg cut his clandestine meeting short when the sound of shattering glass reached his ears.
"Rosco," he said to his ever-present sheriff, "go out there and check on what all that ruckus is about, while I wrap up the rest of my business in here."
"But, Boss—"
"Go, you peabrain!" Boss ordered, practically pushing Rosco out the door. He turned back to the two men in the room that he was conducting his "business" with, saying, "Now, where were we?"
Rosco stumbled out of the office, taking care not to allow anyone to see inside, not that it mattered. Out in the barroom, the people were too busy participating, or trying not to participate, in one of the bigger brawls the Boars Nest had played host to. And at the heart of it were two people Rosco was very anxious to apprehend.
"Alllllllllllll right, let's break it up!" When no one complied, or even indicated that they'd heard, Rosco pulled his gun, pointing it straight up. "I said, break it up!"
The report of the pearl-handled pistol in the sheriff's hand startled everyone still, some in mid-swing. Above Rosco, the ceiling bled chunks of building material onto his head, riling the sheriff further, since Boss would insist he pay for it. But he did get his point across, in no uncertain terms.
While Rosco was givin' the Boars Nest a new skylight, Luke was pickin' himself off the floorboards. And as he was headed back over to check on Daisy and the other girl, Boss come out of his office to see who'd fired the first shot in this war.
"Rosco!" he shouted angrily. "Look what you done to my ceiling! This is gonna come outta your cut of the—I mean, outta your regular pay!"
"It ain't my fault!" Rosco sputtered in protest. "It's uh, gotta be Luke Duke's fault! He was there right in the thick of it, an' I wouldn't be surprised if he started the whole dang thing!" Behind him Daisy's face expressed the shock and anger she felt over Rosco's accusation.
"Well then, don't just stand there!" Boss said over Daisy's growing outrage. "Arrest him!"
"Boss, no!" Daisy cried, placing a hand on the shoulder of her aching cousin. "Luke was just tryin' to teach these fellas the right way to treat a lady!"
"That's right," came a timid voice behind her, surprising all those involved. Peeking behind Daisy Duke's shoulder was the anxious face of a young woman that looked vaguely familiar to Boss Hogg.
"And who might you be?" Boss demanded, rounding the shapely human shield that separated the two until he stood face to face with the girl.
"Celeste. Celeste…Hadley," she said reluctantly, hoping no connections would be made.
"Hadley…Hadley…" Boss scrutinized the face of the woman in front of him, trying to place name and face with information he already possessed in his memory. "Say, are you related to that Hadley that owns all them businesses out of Atlanta?"
"I'm—his daughter," she whispered in defeat.
"Oh, my oh my!" Boss's tone immediately changed, becoming more syrupy than a sugar maple in springtime. "And Luke Duke came to this dear young lady's rescue! Well, now! Oh, Rosco," he turned to his confused sheriff, "you can let our young friend Luke go free."
"Well then, who'm I gonna arrest?" Rosco demanded hotly. "I gotta arrest somebody, don't I?"
"How about them three fellas that started this whole mess?" Luke offered with a nod toward the men who had attacked Daisy and Celeste initially, two of whom were still nursing bruises from Daisy's spiked heels and waitressing tray.
For once willing to accommodate a Duke, Boss Hogg said, "You heard the boy, arrest them!"
"Well, yeah I heard Luke," Rosco conceded, "but I ain't sure I heard you right, Boss. Why are ya sidin' with the Dukes? You feelin' okay?"
"Oh, of course I'm feelin' okay! Just do your duty, knucklehead!" Boss turned back to Celeste, honey again creeping into his voice. "Pay no mind to my nitwit sheriff, honeychild. That plaster musta hit his head too hard. Now," she shrank back as he placed an arm around her shoulder and he continued, "maybe we can discuss a reward for Luke Duke comin' to your rescue? I know personally that Luke is too modest to accept one on his own behalf, but I'd be more than happy to accept it for him, maybe for one of my charitable enterprises…?"
Y'all ever notice how Boss Hogg can steal your money an' make it sound like he's doin' you a favor?
As Boss Hogg did his very best to convince Miss Hadley to direct some of her daddy's money into his own fat pockets, he failed to notice how agitated the girl was growing. Like a cornered animal, she kept backing away until she couldn't take it anymore.
"Don't do this to me…don't do this to me!" she suddenly shrieked, startling everyone in the Boars Nest, including herself, with her intensity. As Boss Hogg recovered and tried to reach for her hand to comfort her, she pulled away from him and fled from the room in tears.
Ain't it nice to see ol' Boss still has a way with the ladies?
As Boss stared after her, wondering what had gotten into the girl, Daisy advanced on him angrily.
"Boss! How could you!" she cried, hands firmly planted on her hips. "You saw how upset she was!"
"I don't know what you're talkin' about," Boss said defensively. "I just made a little business proposal. All she had to do was refuse."
"It ain't like you're in the habit of taking 'no' for an answer," Luke observed. His temper was more controlled than his cousin's, but he was just as angry as Daisy at Boss Hogg's disregard for Celeste's feelings and just as worried over the girl after her outburst. Daisy made a move to head out after her but Luke stopped her in mid-stride. "Now Daisy, you still got the rest of your shift to get through. I'll go find her and see if she's calmed down some."
Daisy nodded. "Okay. Good luck, cousin."
Sure hope Luke's better at talkin' to the lady than Boss was, or she's just liable to disappear without leavin' a glass shoe behind.
