Author's notes: Here's chapter 10. Depending on what Tropical Storm/Hurricane Ernesto does, this might be my last update for a little while. These things usually take out power for at least a week, and internet connectivity for even longer.

Disclaimer: I don't own the Dukes or any of the main characters, and I'm not making any money from this. Andy's name belongs to Warner Brothers, and his charming personality is all mine. Don't believe a single thing I wrote about car chases. If you follow my "instructions" you'll have a heap of rubble in no time.

Chapter 10 – If You're Goin', I'm Goin'

The Duke patriarch finally got home well after three o'clock in the morning. He wanted to go directly to bed, knowing there was no way around the first chores of the morning. Some things could be allowed to slide, but making sure the animals were fed was not one of them. Normal feeding time was barely three hours away, and Jesse was not as young as he used to be. He needed some sleep.

Which was why, as he parked the big, old Chevy Nova that Cooter had lent him in the farmyard, he was disappointed to see a light on in the kitchen. Daisy was still up. Jesse dragged his tired bones into the old house.

"You better get to bed, Daisy. We got a lot to do tomorrow."

"I know and I will, but Uncle Jesse? I've got to tell you something," Daisy said, not meeting his eyes.

There were times when it seemed to their uncle that Daisy and Bo were cut from the same cloth. They both spoke their minds almost without thought, though Daisy's way of doing it was much sweeter and led to far fewer bloody noses. Each could be quite sensitive and easily hurt. And Jesse had a feeling that both were feeling guilty right now for something that was not at all their fault.

"Daisy-girl, now I know you did your best out there tonight, and the boys do, too. They wouldn't want you feeling bad like this."

"I know, Uncle Jesse, and that's not what I need to say."

"All right, then, what's on your mind?"

"Uncle Jesse," Daisy swallowed, and faced the man who had raised her. She wanted just one last look at those understanding blue eyes before they turned disappointed. "Uncle Jesse, I wasn't getting rides home from Enos during that time that the boys were borrowing my car."

"No?" Jesse didn't see why this conversation had to take place in the middle of the night, but if Daisy was this upset, it was best to let her get whatever she was trying to tell him off her chest so they both could sleep.

"No. It was Andy Roach that was bringing me home. And the reason he was bringing me home was that we were dating."

Jesse didn't yell, but the look on his face frightened Daisy more than if he'd let her have it. The shock on his elderly visage was so powerful that the young woman thought her uncle might lose consciousness right there at the kitchen table. Finally, he exhaled.

"You knew he was a revenuer?"

"Yes, sir. Though we never talked about that."

"Well, what in tarnation did you talk about?"

"Love…" Daisy said, beginning to cry in spite of herself.

"Love. Oh Daisy-girl, I'm sorry."

"You're sorry?"

"Yes, I'm sorry that boy used you that way. He's got a job to do, and I can forgive him for doin' it. But there's better ways to do it than to break someone else's heart."

"Oh, Uncle Jesse, I don't know if he used me. I can't be sure. But even if he did, I knew better. I shouldn'ta fallen for him."

"Well, you can't stop yourself from fallin', but once you've fell you don't gotta stay down. That part's up to you. So I hope you've got up from that fall by now?"

"I don't know, Uncle Jesse."

"Well, you have exactly three hours to un-fall, you got me? We got a lot of work to do tomorrow, er, later today. So you just go in there and get to bed and when you get up in those three hours, I want you to start fresh, as if you'd never talked about love with a revenuer. You got me?"

"Yes sir." Daisy rose to do as she was told.

"Daisy."

"Yes sir?"

"You come here now." Jesse stood and took the only surviving female Duke into his arms, holding her tight. They could not afford to be angry at one another. He and Daisy would be spending the next few days, and possibly the next few years, with only each other for company.

"How's your head, Bo?"

"It's okay. It don't hurt as bad as it did for awhile there. But I still don't feel too good."

"Yeah, you're not gonna. Why don't you try to sleep?"

"I don't wanna. Luke," Bo hated to admit this next part, even to his cousin, who'd known him all his life. He was a man now, wasn't he? He shouldn't be feeling this way. "I'm kinda scared."

"Of course you are, Bo, so am I. You're gonna need some rest though."

"Well, I'm too scared to sleep, I guess."

"There's no such thing. When you're tired enough, you'll sleep, no matter how scared you are, no matter how hard the ground is, no matter how little you've had to eat."

"How did you sleep in Vietnam?"

"Ah, cuz, you just did. Not a lot, but you did. I guess one thing that helped was fire watch. Did I ever tell you about that?"

"No." Bo chose not to remind Luke that he'd heard almost nothing about any part of his older cousin's time overseas.

"Well, fire watch was something you'd do whenever you wasn't at your base camp. So if you was out on a mission, if you got captured, if some of you got separated from the group, whatever, you did fire watch. When you could, you built a fire and that's what it's named for. But even if you didn't have a fire, you'd do fire watch. All it really means is someone stays up and keeps watch while the others sleep. An' you take turns, so's everyone gets a little shuteye. So how about if I take the first shift and you get some rest?"

Bo giggled. "You gonna build a fire? I wanna see what Rosco does when he comes back in the mornin' and you got a bonfire goin' in here."

"He'll have to bring his own marshmallows," Luke laughed. Rosco wasn't a bad guy. He was just on the wrong side of a stupid law that said you couldn't make and sell your own alcohol products. "Now lay down."

Luke slid to one end of the single cot and pulled Bo down so that his head rested in the older cousin's lap.

"Luke, I am sorry we got caught."

"I know you are, me too. But remember what I said? I'd rather get five years than have you really hurt or killed. So I'm kinda glad to get caught if it means that you're okay. I just wish you didn't have to go to prison with me."

"Stop saying stuff like that. If you're goin' I'm goin' too."

"Bo, listen to me. You was too young and too upset to understand this when I tried to explain it the first time. When I got my orders to go to Vietnam, do you remember how mad you was? You wouldn't talk to me, you took off."

Bo was embarrassed to remember it, but it was true. "Yeah, I know I did. I feel real bad about that, Luke."

"It's okay, Bo. I understood. I wasn't mad then, and I ain't mad now. But when I finally found you by the creek, do you remember what I said?"

"Not all of it, no."

"I told you that if me going to Vietnam right then meant you wouldn't get drafted four years later, it was worth it to me. I couldn't stand the idea of you being over there, maybe getting hurt or killed. And even if you did come back in one piece, you would have changed so much… that would have been the worst."

"You did change after you was over there."

"I know, Bo. And if you go away to prison for five years, you're gonna change, too. It ain't gonna be like it is here. We'll be in different cells, different wings, maybe even different prisons. You're gonna have to watch your back and make sure that no one gets the upper hand on you. You're gonna have to be tough, and mean, and scary enough to keep some of the worst ones away from you."

Both boys were quiet, imagining prison, both as Luke had described it and from what they'd seen in movies.

Luke spoke first. "Bo, if it comes down to it, let me take the rap. If we both swear that you didn't know what was in the car, they'll let you off easy, maybe just probation."

"If you're goin', I'm goin'."

"Don't be so stubborn, Bo!" Luke snapped.

Bo sat up and looked his cousin square in the eye. "I ain't fifteen anymore, Lukas. You gotta stop treatin' me like a kid."

"I don't mean to treat you like a kid, cousin. It's just," how many times was he going to have to say this tonight? "I love you Bo, just the way you are. I don't want you to change."

"Yeah, well, I loved you when you was eighteen, too, and I didn't want you to change. But the next year you had to go to Vietnam, and you did change. An' you came back all different and I still love you. You gotta let me grow up. An' you have to trust me that I can handle whatever happens, okay?"

Luke sighed. He'd given his family a similar argument before being shipped out. "I'll try, cuz. Starting tomorrow. Right now, you're going to sleep." He pulled Bo back into his lap, and the boy did not resist. A short time later Bo was snoring.

Deputy Strate was tired. He'd spent the night in the squad room, close enough to hear if the Dukes called for him, but far enough away to give them their privacy. And also far enough away that he wouldn't have to face them.

Enos had a pretty good idea of how the boys felt. He'd never been caught when he'd run moonshine, but he'd been plenty scared at times. All the 'shine runners used the rule of thumb that getting caught meant five years in prison, but there were no guarantees that the boys wouldn't get more, especially considering they had not only Agent Roach testifying against them, but also Sheriff Coltrane, Boss Hogg, and if it came down to it, Enos himself. If he was called, he'd have to testify that he'd seen the evidence in the boys' car. And, if asked, he'd have to admit that this was not the boys' first offense, just the first time they'd gotten caught. He knew of other 'shine runs that at least Luke had made, if not Bo.

The deputy had stayed away from the boys all night, but now he had no choice. It was time to feed the prisoners their breakfast, and as the lowest man on the totem pole, the task fell to him. He'd already gone next door to Ruby Lee's Café to pick up the standard meal of grits and soft boiled eggs with coffee. Enos realized that it would be nowhere near as hearty as what they would have had at the farm, but it was more than he, himself, would be getting. He'd be lucky to just have some coffee before heading back out on patrol in a few minutes.

As he approached the cell, the deputy once again found himself envying the way the Duke boys relied on each other. Despite the fact that there was just the one tiny cot, both boys were sprawled out on their backs across it, Luke with his head at the top and his torso twisted so that his legs were up on the wall, and Bo with his head on Luke's chest, his legs splayed out and feet on the floor. There was no question they'd both be pretty stiff this morning, but they had somehow managed to actually sleep in those positions.

"Bo, Luke, wake up, now. Breakfast time," Enos called softly, not wanting to startle them.

"Mornin', Enos," Luke said, rubbing his hands across his face, then carefully disengaging himself from Bo. The younger boy would wake up all by himself when he smelled breakfast, and there was no reason for Luke to rush him that morning. "What you got there?"

"Just the usual," Enos said as he approached the cell to begin passing Luke the meal. Protocol dictated that the cell only be opened when there were two lawmen present, so that the prisoners could not overpower a single officer and escape. However, there were almost never two men free at the same time, so normally Enos would simply have opened the door and given the boys their food on a tray. This time, though, because Agent Roach seemed to want everything done by the book, Enos had asked Miss Ruby to pack the food in containers that would fit between the bars.

Luke found himself the recipient of two cardboard containers filled with grits, two Styrofoam cups with coffee, and two more cups of boiled eggs. There was nothing to do but laugh.

"Mm, Enos, looks great."

Much as Luke expected, Bo awoke the minute that the food came to their side of the bars.

"Mornin'. What's for breakfast?" Bo asked.

"Some cups and a box. Enjoy, cuz," Luke said, handing Bo his share of the food. Ignoring his older cousin's words, Bo just opened his container and began to wolf down the contents.

"Bo, Luke, now I'm real sorry about last night," Enos began.

"What about last night?" Bo asked around his mouthful, but in earnest.

"You feelin' all right, Bo? You do remember last night, don't you?" The deputy studied his friend carefully.

"Yeah, I remember it. What are you sorry for, though?"

"I didn't know it was you we's chasin'."

"Would it have mattered?" Luke asked.

"No, you was breakin' the law and I had to do my best to catch you. But I still don't want to see y'all goin' to prison."

"We don't want to see us goin' to prison neither," Bo said. "But if we do, it ain't your fault. You was just doin' your job, and we was just doin' ours. Last night you did yours better'n us is all."

"I guess," Enos replied, not really convinced, but at least somewhat comforted that his friends were not angry with him.

"Besides, we'll get our revenge." Both Luke and Enos looked at Bo, wondering how he could possibly be planning to get back at Enos from behind bars. "We're still gonna be beatin' you on the dirt track, buddy."

"Hello, Agent Higgins. This is Andy Roach up in Hazzard."

"Howdy, Roach. How's business up there in the sticks?" Joe Higgins was a little concerned about the serious tone to Andy's voice. He'd trained the kid and knew him to have a cutting sense of humor, which he employed almost all the time. If Roach was this serious, something was wrong.

"I caught the Dukes."

"Whoa, congratulations, boy. Well done."

"Thanks. But Joe, catching them is one thing. Sending them away is something else. They're not a bad family, just one that hasn't changed with the times," Andy said.

Agent Higgins had to chuckle. He'd done his time in Hazzard, too, and had grown to really care for the people of the county. They had so much going against them: rugged land that was difficult to farm, taciturn weather that could lead to floods or droughts, crooked government, and they were some of the poorest people Higgins had ever known. But the residents of the Appalachian county had an incredible spirit, and they had grown on him, just as they had on Roach. There was more than one reason that the Dukes had never been caught.

"Goin' soft already?"

Andy squirmed. He really liked his superior, and wanted to impress him. But while he'd enjoyed the chase, he was now struggling with the thought of the Duke boys in prison. They were so young and their family needed them. "I guess. Is there anything we can do to maybe get them a light sentence or something?"

"Let me work on that, Roach, and I'll get back to you in an hour or so. And Andy? You're turning out to be a fine agent. You caught the people no one else could, and your heart is in the right place. It's the whiskey trade that is the problem, not the people who make their living from it."

"Uncle Jesse, why do we need two cars if we can't even drive down to the Hatchapee Mines in the first place?" Cooter asked.

"I ain't your Uncle Jesse," the patriarch said absently, causing Cooter to smile for the first time that day. "How did you and the boys get out there yesterday?"

It was hard to believe it had only been a day since the three of them had last made this trip, but according to the clock it was only 24 hours, even if it did seem like years.

"We hiked over Snake Hill," the mechanic answered.

"Amateurs. Just give Daisy that other car and you ride with me. You'll see how it works."

After Enos had gone, the boys had nothing to do but sit together and think about the future. The next several years looked mighty bleak. Bo tried to focus on a time that was a little more distant.

"Luke? What I was sayin' to Enos about the dirt track… do you think we could race some day?"

"Sure, cousin, I guess. You definitely got the skill for it."

"We'd need a car."

"Bo, you got a talent for statin' the obvious."

The boy rolled his eyes. "What I'm sayin' is, you think we could soup up one of our own?"

Luke chuckled. "Shoot, cousin, I could build it from the ground up. With my eyes closed and left handed."

"Then let's," Bo called Luke's bluff. The Duke boys were known for being pretty sure of themselves, but it was only because they challenged each other to back up their words with action.

The older cousin let out a dry laugh. "Right Bo, in five years, we'll do that."

"No, cuz," Bo, ever the optimist, corrected. "As soon as we get outta here we'll do that. It's not gonna be five years."

Enos was startled to see Daisy Duke walking alone on the Hatchapee Mine Road. This was a pretty remote stretch of land, and a fairly unreasonable place to be going for a stroll. The deputy pulled his car out of the thicket to approach her.

"Enos, am I glad to see you," Daisy said, barely choking back a sob.

"What's the matter, Daisy?"

"Well, with Bo and Luke in jail, I got no one to help me. The car Cooter loaned me just up and quit about a mile down the road and I'm out here all alone…"

"Aw, that's okay, Daisy, I'll CB the garage for you, and they'll send someone out."

"No, Enos, I'm sure it's real simple to fix. I just need a man like you to come take a look at it."

The deputy hesitated to leave his assigned duty, but remembered that Rosco had pulled him away from the area occasionally to answer a call. Besides, there was nothing happening out here on this old road, but there was something important he'd be doing if he left: helping civilian Daisy Duke. Motioning for Daisy to get in, Enos decided to do what was right.

From the trees in which their car was stashed, Cooter smiled at Jesse Duke. "Pretty slick, old-timer."

Jesse glared at the young man. "That was nothin'. And you mind your manners."

The mechanic chuckled, undaunted, and pulled the car out from the tree cover to drive it down into the road. Having been out this same way just yesterday, Cooter had a good idea of how close to the mines they could get before they'd run the risk of being spotted. In just a few minutes, he'd pulled the car off the road where it was at least partially concealed in some shrubs.

"Don't signal until you're really ready for me," Jesse instructed as he slid over into the driver's seat. "Because the second you do I'm coming in an awful rush to get you."

Cooter took the camera Jesse handed him and headed towards the old warehouse. They'd both hoped Boss Hogg might be there, but it looked as though he was not. The mechanic would have to proceed with Plan B. Not bothering to hide in the trees, Cooter made his way towards the chop shop, taking some photos of the exterior of the building and the three cars parked in front as he went. Slipping the camera's strap around his neck and attaching the flash, Cooter prepared for the trickiest part of this operation.

"Hi, fellas… smile!" the mechanic hollered from the front of the warehouse. It was clear that the men involved with this operation did not expect unwanted company, because for the second day in a row, the front doors were wide open. Cooter had even taken a moment to assess the situation before announcing his presence. Seeing exactly who he was dealing with, where they were, and what they were doing, theDukes' frienddecided he could get in about three photos before he'd have to give the signal.

After snapping only two shots, Cooter changed his plan and took off at his highest speed in the general direction of where he'd left Jesse. Trying to whistle and run at the same time wasn't working so well, though; about the only noise he was making was a sort of a half-raspberry. Finally he gave up and simply hollered, "Help!"

Jesse'd been watching pretty carefully anyway, and was already on his way by the time Cooter panicked. He cut cross-country to where the boys' friend was, slammed on the brakes and flung open the door. The mechanic fell, more than jumped, into the vehicle, and Jesse pulled away, allowing the momentum of the car to close the door before Cooter could even think of doing so.

"Dang it Cooter, will you get off my stick shift!" Jesse grumbled.

"Sorry, Uncle Jesse," Cooter answered, trying to do as he was asked. The way the Duke patriarch drove, there was no way the young man could get his balance, much less move out of the way. Out of desperation, Jesse shoved the mechanic upright and shifted gears. That boy sure meant well, but he wasn't nearly so athletic or agile as Jesse's nephews.

The three men that had been chasing Cooter on foot now turned back to head for their cars, but it turned out they didn't have to run far. The other two men that had been a part of the impromptu photo shoot had already gotten into the cars and begun to chase after the loaner Chevy. One car stopped to pick up the three who'd chased Cooter on foot, but the other was relentless in its pursuit.

Jesse Duke didn't bother with the road. Cutting a path through the trees, he bounced over stones and splashed across a stream.

"Hey, this ain't Tilly. She's not gonna hold up to you beatin' her up too much."

"Quit worryin', son. You're the best mechanic in these parts. You can fix anything I might break."

Cooter smiled, until he suddenly realized just where the Duke boys got their silver tongues from. Now he understood how they had talked him into so many strange schemes over the years.

"'Sides, you can relax," Jesse said as he came out the other side of the trees onto a reasonably clear path that would lead back to the main road. "I already lost 'em."

"You're right, Uncle Jesse. Compared to you, Bo and Luke are amateurs."

Eyeballing Cooter, Jesse commented, "They ain't the only ones I was referring to."

Daisy's work was not done. Having successfully distracted Enos, and sent him on his way, she waited for word from her uncle. As soon as she got it, she moved on to her next task, the thing she dreaded, but knew was probably the most important part of Jesse's plan.

The young woman pulled her rearview mirror to an angle that allowed her to check her makeup. The last thing she wanted was to look as miserable as she actually felt about all of this. Satisfied that she looked about as good as she could under the circumstances, Daisy got out of her car and headed towards the county building.

A clearly startled Andy Roach looked up from his desk when she entered the office. He looked far worse than she had when she'd checked her reflection moments ago. There were circles under his red-rimmed eyes, and Daisy thought that he'd probably gotten even less sleep than she had, if he'd slept at all.

"Hey, Daisy," he said, hoping that his gentle tone of voice could convey how little he wanted to fight with her right now.

"Andy," she answered, and while no trace of her anger from last night was evident, neither was there any sign of the affection that she still felt for the man. "We need to talk."

"I'm sorry," Andy began, intending to launch into some kind of an explanation of his actions, but Daisy stopped him.

"We don't have time to talk about how sorry you are. We need to talk about more important things."

"Such as?"

"Last night, while I was out for a nice little drive, I ran into Boss Hogg." Andy started to snicker at Daisy's way of putting things, but one stern look stopped him.

"All right, how is that important?" Andy asked carefully.

"Because I think he sent you out on a chase last night. And I think he's behind a lot of what happened. And right now, my Uncle Jesse has got evidence that Boss, himself, is involved in illegal activities."

"He does? Daisy, that's great. What about Coltrane?" When Daisy's only response was a confused sound, the agent tried again. "Listen, sweetheart," they both winced at the word that had slipped from his lips, "I talked to Joe Higgins this morning. We're ready to make a deal that could make things a lot easier on your cousins. The catch is that the local government, which means Boss Hogg, and the local law, meaning Sheriff Coltrane, have to sign off on it. So have you got anything on the sheriff?"

"Not exactly, but I'll bet Uncle Jesse can shuck and jive Rosco into signing it if Boss does."

Andy looked away for a second, then met Daisy's eyes again. "Daisy, there's one more catch to the deal. Before we do anything, I need to meet with your uncle. Can you set that up?"

"You bet, sugar." That last word slipped out before Daisy could stop it.

"Rosco…" Hogg said as he hung up the phone, his eyes wide.

"Gyu, yes Boss?" The sheriff had seen his brother-in-law in many different moods, but he'd never been witness to such shock on the man's face before.

"Someone was out at the Hatchapee Mines."

"Well, of course someone was. You've had those same guys workin' out there for a month now." Rosco was still alarmed at the commissioner's pallor, but he certainly didn't understand the man's distress.

"No, you jackass, someone else was out there."

"Oh, no Boss, that couldn't be, because you see, I got Enos out there keepin' an eye on that road. Ain't nobody supposed to get past him."

"Well then you better do something about that no-good deputy of yours, because someone did get out there. And they was takin' pictures."

"Oh, that's nice, it is awful purty out there…" Looking at Boss Hogg's face, Rosco had a sudden insight. "Oh, you mean takin' pictures. Well, Boss, what do you think it means?"

"I don't know, Rosco, but you better hope they was just sight-seein'. 'Cause otherwise, you ain't gonna have a prayer of being sheriff after next month's election."

"Gyu."