Disclaimer: I don't own the Dukes of Hazzard, not making any money, just cheap thrills.
Warnings: Angst
Rating: K+
Italics and/or indicates thoughts
Trouble On The Horizon
Chapter 4
When she heard the pick-up pull into the yard, Martha rushed outside, followed closely by Daisy and Luke. Grabbing the two older children, she held them back until Jesse had parked the truck and turned off the motor. The moment the motor died, Martha hurried to the passenger side and pulled open the door. "Bo," she whispered. Martha reached forward to caress the sleeping child's cheek, almost as though she were afraid he would disappear if she blinked.
"Martha, let me get him," Jesse said, coming to stand behind her.
Moving aside, she let Jesse pick the boy up from the seat and carry him inside. "Daisy, run into the boys' bedroom and pull down Bo's covers, would you dear?" Martha asked, knowing that both of the older children needed to feel as though they were helping right now. "Luke, would you go wet a washcloth with warm water and bring it to your room?"
"Yes ma'am," the two children replied, before running off to do as she asked.
"What did the doctor say?" Martha quietly asked, as she walked beside Jesse.
"He's fine physically, just scratches and bruises. He ain't talking though, hasn't said a word since I found him," Jesse replied.
"Not talking? Does the doctor know why?" Martha asked, finding it hard to imagine a silent Bo.
"He figures it's the shock and trauma. The doctor said he'll probably snap out of it, but if he doesn't after a few days we should take him to Dr. Appleby," Jesse answered.
"You're sure that's all he said, ya aren't hiding anything from me are you?"
"No sweetheart, I told you on the phone about the crib, well I didn't tell you that we also found wolf tracks around the crib. Now between the tornado, a wolf and being out there all night alone in the dark, I'd say the boy's got good reason for being in shock."
"A wolf? Oh my Lord, you poor baby," Martha quietly murmurred, gently laying a hand against soft blond curls.
Moving ahead of Jesse, Martha led the way down the hall into the boy's bedroom. Smiling softly, she took in the rumpled blankets from Daisy's attempt at turning back the covers. Moving to the bed she surreptiously straightened them as she spoke, "Thank you Daisy, this was a help."
"You welcome Aunt Martha," Daisy replied from where she sat on Luke's bed.
Laying Bo down on the bed, Jesse stepped back, allowing Martha to tend to the boy. Moving back he nearly collided with Luke as he came running into the room. "Whoa there boy, slow down a bit. You okay?"
"Yeah Uncle Jesse, sorry," Luke said. "I just wanted to get this to Aunt Martha," he explained, holding out the wet washcloth to show his uncle.
"It's alright Luke, but you got to be careful too. We don't want you to hurt yourself, okay?"
"Yes sir," Luke replied. "Here Aunt Martha," he said, holding out the washcloth to her.
"Thank you Luke," Martha said, taking the cloth and beginning to gently wipe the dirt from Bo's body, careful not to wake him. It didn't take long to clean the boy up, though she knew he would still need a real bath when he woke up. "I suppose we should leave Bo to rest now," Martha said, though she made no effort to move away from the bed.
"I think you're probably right sweetheart," Jesse agreed, gently taking her arm and pulling her to her feet. "Come on kids," he softly called to Luke and Daisy.
"Uncle Jesse, could we please stay here with Bo. We won't make any noise, we promise, don't we Daisy?"
"Uh-huh," Daisy agreed. "Please Uncle Jesse," she begged, looking up at her uncle with pleading eyes.
"Jesse, it might be a good idea. Bo could get scared if he wakes up alone," Martha pointed out, laying a hand on his arm.
Nodding his agreement, Jesse reminded the two older children to let Bo rest and left the room with his wife.
"Jesse, you said Bo only has scratches and bruises, did the doctor say anything about him being dehydrated or anything like that?" Martha asked, when they were back in the living room.
"I'm not sure, I don't remember him saying anything about that, but I was so worried about Bo not talking I might have missed it. I'm sorry dear," Jesse apologized, kicking himself for not listening more closely to the doctor's words.
"It's alright Jesse, I'm not sure I would've done any better," Martha assured him. "Well we both know that he's probably dehydrated and hasn't had anything to eat since sometime yesterday. So we'll just make sure he gets plenty of water for the next couple of days. Oh, and let me make sure I have some saltines in the kitchen," Martha said, moving to the other room to check. "Good, I do have crackers, that should be a good start on an empty stomach. Besides the salt will make it easier to get him to drink the extra water," she said, forgetting in her worry that Jesse already knew all of this.
"That's a good idea Martha," Jesse agreed, coming up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist.
"Oh Jesse, we could've lost them," Martha cried, turning in his embrace and laying her head against his chest.
"Shhh, it's alright sweetheart. They're all safe, and not a serious injury among them," Jesse reminded her, as he gently patted her back.
"I know, don't know why I'm crying."
"Probably just the stress and the relief, you go on and let it out now, you'll feel better once you do." Jesse murmurred into her hair, gently stroking his hands up and down her back as he spoke.
"Luke, is Bo okay?" Daisy whispered, leaning against her older cousin, but never taking her eyes from the baby of the family.
"Yeah Daisy, he's just sleeping," Luke assured her. He hoped she didn't notice him watching Bo's chest as it moved up and down. A small moan a few minutes later, had him jumping down from his bed and rushing to Bo's side. "Shhh Bo, it's okay," Luke soothed, brushing his hand across Bo's hair as he'd often seen Aunt Martha do. "Hi cousin," Luke smiled at the small boy when he slowly opened his eyes. The smile faded when Bo didn't respond, didn't even seem to know Luke was there. "Daisy, would you go tell Uncle Jesse that Bo's awake?" Luke asked, his voice shaking slightly with fear.
"Okay," Daisy agreed, running from the room to look for Uncle Jesse.
"Uncle Jesse, Bo's awake," Daisy told her uncle when she saw him in the kitchen hugging Aunt Martha.
"Thank you Daisy," Jesse replied, without turning around.
Hurriedly wiping at her eyes, Martha pulled out of Jesse's embrace and nudged him towards the bedroom. "Daisy, you stay out her with me and help me fix a little snack for your cousin," Martha gently instructed.
"Okay Aunt Martha," Daisy happily agreed, glad to be able to help.
"Luke, Daisy said Bo's awake?" Jesse asked, stepping into the bedroom and moving to the bed. "Well and so ya are," he spoke lightly, keeping his voice as carefree as possible. Sitting down on the edge of the bed, he was disappointed to see that Bo was still staring silently at nothing.
"Uncle Jesse, why's he just staring like that?" Luke asked, obviously worried for his cousin.
"He's been through a lot Luke, the doctor said he'll snap out of it in the next few days," Jesse carefully explained.
"Does he know we're here?"
"I don't know son," Jesse softly replied, wrapping one arm around Luke and giving him a small hug.
"Isn't there anything we can do to help him?" Luke asked, desperately trying not to cry like a baby.
"Just talk to him, let him know he's home and safe."
"I can do that," Luke replied, his voice firm with determination. Pulling from his uncle's embrace, he moved onto the bed and laid down beside Bo, wrapping his arms around him. "It's okay Bo, you're home and safe," Luke whispered into his cousin's ear.
Smiling at the two boys, Jesse was grateful for the close relationship Luke had with both his cousins. He couldn't imagine how much harder this nightmare would've been if the oldest bullied or ignored the younger ones, as so many children seemed to do. Turning towards a noise behind him, he saw Martha coming into the room carrying a saucer of crackers, Daisy behind her with a glass of water.
"Any change?" Martha asked quietly.
"No, he's still not talking," Jesse replied. "It don't seem natural to see him so still."
"No it doesn't," Martha agreed. Sitting down on the edge of the bed, she sat the crackers on the night stand. She smiled at Daisy when the little girl placed the water next to the crackers and went to join Luke on the bed. "I brought you some crackers and water Bo," Martha said, reaching down to pick the small boy up and sit him in her lap. Handing Bo a cracker, she fought to keep the smile on her face as the boy mechanically nibbled at the bit of food. "Jesse, does he seem lighter to you?"
"Yeah, of course after a night with no food or water I suppose it's to be expected. I wouldn't worry though Martha, I don't think he lost more than a couple of pounds. We'll get him back to his normal weight in no time at all," Jesse assured her. "What's the matter youngin? You're head hurting?" Jesse asked, noticing the way Bo's little face seemed pinched.
"I think you may be right Jesse," Martha agreed, returning her attention to Bo. "I hate to give him an asprin on a nearly empty stomach. Luke why don't you go get a hot washcloth? Get it as hot as you can stand it," Martha suggested, knowing it would lose heat between the two rooms.
"Aunt Martha, didn't you already wash Bo?" Daisy asked, tugging on her sleeve.
"Yes sweetie, this is for his headache. I'm going to lay it on his forehead, it should make him feel a little better," Martha explained. As she spoke to Daisy, she continued to hand crackers to Bo, stopping after each cracker to help him drink some water.
"Oh, okay," Daisy said, satisfied with the explanation.
"Here Aunt Martha," Luke said, handing the hot cloth to her.
"Thank you Luke," Martha said. Gently laying the cloth across Bo's forehead, she lay him back in the bed. She was relieved to see that he had eaten half the crackers and had emptied the glass of water. "Luke if you could stay in here with Bo, your uncle and I will take care of the chores."
"Okay Aunt Martha," Luke said, laying down again next to Bo.
"Me too," Daisy cried, moving to lay behind Luke, who turned slightly and wrapped one arm around her.
Looking at the kitchen clock, Martha was surprised to see it was already five-thirty, "My land, I had no idea it was that late."
"Guess I better go take care of chores," Jesse said, moving to the back door and squeezing Martha's waist as he passed her.
By the time supper was ready and chores were done, Bo had fallen back asleep. Deciding that he probably needed the rest, Martha left him in his bed when she went to get the children for supper.
"But shouldn't Bo eat?" Luke asked, concerned for his baby cousin.
"He'll be alright Luke, he couldn't eat much anyway right now," Martha told him.
"Why not, ain't he hungry?"
"Probably, but he's gone more than a day with only those few crackers he had earlier. That's going to make his stomach a little queasy, so he can't have much to eat or he'll get sick."
"Oh," Luke replied, finally climbing from the bed and going to wash up for supper.
After a short grace in which Jesse thanked God again for Bo's safe return, they began their evening meal. Tonight's meal was filled with smiles and laughter, replacing the fear and tears of last night's supper. When supper was finished, Jesse and Luke moved into the living room for their nightly game of checkers, while Daisy and Martha cleaned the kitchen.
The sudden, terror filled scream startled them all. Dropping the plate she'd been washing, Martha barely noticed the sound of breaking glass as she ran towards the boy's bedroom. Just as she opened the door, Luke ran in before her and jumped onto the bed with his screaming cousin.
"Bo it's okay, it's okay Bo," Luke yelled, wrapping his arms around Bo.
"Dark! No, dark!" Bo screamed, struggling against his cousin's hold. Suddenly light flooded the room and Bo collapsed against Luke, sobbing in fear.
"It's okay Bo, see it's not dark anymore," Martha soothed, joining the boys on the bed and running one hand through Bo's hair. "I'm sorry baby, I forgot to turn a light on," she apologized. She felt terrible, it might have been light when she left the room earlier, but that was no excuse. I can't believe I did that. After all he's been through and I make it worse. Martha berated herself, the sounds of Bo's sobs breaking her heart.
"Luke?" Bo whispered.
"Yeah Bo?" Luke asked, not noticing that his cousin was once again talking.
"Scared," the little boy cried, clutching tightly to his older cousin.
"I know Bo bear," Luke soothed, using his special name for his cousin. "What ya scared of?"
"Scared," Bo repeated, shrugging his shoulders and burrowing against Luke's chest as though he were trying to climb inside the older boy.
" Ya don't have to be scared. I'm here, and so is Uncle Jesse and Aunt Martha and Daisy. We won't none of us let ya get hurt, promise." Suddenly Luke's eyes widened, "Uncle Jesse he's talking!"
" He sure is," Jesse agreed. "Luke's right Bo, there's nothing more to be afraid of," Jesse added his own assurances to his nephew's words. "Do you hurt anywhere baby?"
Bo placed one small hand on his head, moving it a second later to his throat, never moving away from Luke's arms.
"Okay, I'll get ya something for your throat," Jesse told him. Patting Martha's shoulder, he turned away and left the room. Returning a few minutes later, he carried a small glass of water, a jar of honey and a spoon. Handing the spoon and honey to Martha, he waited for her to feed a spoonful of the sweet stuff to Bo, knowing it would be soothing to the boy's throat. A moment later, he took the spoon and honey, handing the water to his wife as he did so. "You want to get up for a little while?"
A small nod was his only answer before Bo, with Luke's help, began to climb down from the bed. Staying close to his cousin's side, Bo slowly moved to the living room.
Jesse and Martha watched as Luke settled Bo on the couch. None of them were ready for the crash of a small body into the coffee table, as the small boy hurtled himself at his older cousin when he stepped away.
"Bo!" Martha and Luke cried out at the same time. Martha rushed forward and picked up the crying child from the floor, not noticing Luke hanging back until he spoke.
"I'm sorry, Aunt Martha I'm sorry, I didn't mean for him..."
"It's okay Luke, it's not your fault," Martha soothed, interrupting him.
"You sure?"
"I'm sure, now Bo why did you do that?" Martha gently asked.
"Lu...Luke leave me," Bo sobbed.
"I wasn't leaving Bo, I was just gonna get a book to read you," Luke explained.
"You goed away and the bad doggie tried to eat me," Bo accused.
"I'm sorry, I tried to hold on! I didn't mean to let go!" Luke screamed, suddenly realizing that Bo was talking about yesterday.
"We know ya didn't Luke," Jesse assured him, laying a gentle hand on the small shoulder, he knelt beside him and wrapped him in his arms.
"He don't," Luke sobbed, thinking that Bo hated him now.
"He's scared and confused Luke, he doesn't really understand what all happened. I promise you, he'll get over this, but he's gonna need your help."
"What can I do?" Luke asked, eager to help in any way he could.
"Just be there for him, help him feel safe," Jesse explained.
"I can do that," Luke agreed. Pulling away from his uncle, he picked up the story book about the little engine that could and moved back to the couch. Climbing up on the couch, he waited for Aunt Martha to put Bo beside him.
"Bo, you want to sit beside Luke?"
Nodding his head, Bo happily settled next to Luke, sighing in contentment when his cousin's arm wrapped around him.
"You want to hear it too Daisy?" Luke offered to his other cousin, who stood next to Aunt Martha's rocker.
"Thanks Luke," Daisy replied climbing up to sit on Bo's other side and settling in for the story.
Opening the book, Luke carefully held it so that both of his cousins could see it and began, "Once upon a time..."
TBC.
A/N: I want to thank Elenhin for her help in figuring out the aftereffects Bo would be suffering from. Her help was invaluable, Thank you my friend.
Okay y'all let me know what ya think please and I'll try to update soon.