Hey ya'll! Thanks to everyone who's stuck with me through this story so far, I really appreciate all the great reviews! This chapter and the next one will have a tissue warning issued.
On to the story! Enjoy!
Friends 'Til the End
Chapter 8: A cousin's plea
Luke had been sitting on the couch with Katie, watching a movie on TV. The movie had just started to get good when the phone rang. Sighing, Luke got up to answer it. He picked up the receiver on the third ring.
"Hello, Duke Farm, Luke Duke speaking." Luke greeted.
"Luke, it's Cooter." Cooter said.
"Oh, hey Cooter, what can I do for ya?"
"Turn yer TV to channel 10 and you'll see why I called."
"Um, ok." Luke said as he sat the receiver down and went over to the TV. He turned the channel to channel 10 and saw the biggest headline of the day. Going back to the phone, Luke picked up the receiver.
"Dang, that's a bad accident." He said.
"Take a close look at the car on its roof." Cooter instructed. Luke looked at the car on its roof and paled when he saw the glimmer of orange paint and the edge of something black and white.
"Oh God, Bo." Luke gasped. "Thanks for tellin' me Cooter."
"No problem Lukas. I just got the call to get the cars. I was watching the news and that's what I saw."
"Alright, thanks again Cooter." Luke said hanging up. Forgetting about Katie and the TV, Luke picked up the CB mic that was in the house.
"Lost Sheep to Shepard, Lost Sheep to Shepard, you got yer ears on, come back? Shepard, this is an emergency." Luke said into the mic. After a second Jesse's voice came over the air.
"This is Shepard. What's the emergency?"
"Uncle Jesse, there's been an accident. Bo was drivin' the General and he got into an accident, a bad one." Luke said. Jesse's face paled at the news.
"Alright, I'll be there to get'cha soon."
"Alright, please hurry." Luke said. He put the mic down and returned to the living room. Katie, who didn't realize Luke came back, was laughing at the news. Looking over, Luke saw her laughing.
"What's so funny?" Luke asked.
"Nothing's funny, you just look so cute when your worried." Katie replied with a grin.
"There's nothing funny about anything right now. My cousin was just in an accident." Luke said. Katie just smiled and giggled.
"Serves him right for being stubborn and so hotheaded." Luke frowned and stood up.
"Don't be saying that. No matter how stubborn or hotheaded he is, he's still my cousin and I still love him." Luke said.
"Oh really? Then why'd you say you hope he never came back?"
"I don't have to stand here and listen to you. If you can't respect my cousin, then we're through. I want you out of here now." Luke said firmly.
"Oh Lukey, don't say that."
"Don't call me Lukey. Now I said get out, and I mean, get out!" Luke said, raising his voice.
"Fine, I'll go. And just so ya know, I hope your cousin doesn't come back home, alive at least." Even though Luke had been raised to never hit a girl, what Katie said angered him enough to forget that lesson. He raised his hand and backhanded her across the face, sending her to the ground. Katie sat on the ground, stunned. After her stupor passed, she looked up at Luke with hate filled eyes.
"Luke Duke, you just made a grave mistake. I'll see that you pay for that." Katie growled as she stood up. She glared at Luke for a minute before she stormed out of the small farm house. Luke watched her leave, getting a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach.
"C'mon Uncle Jesse, where are ya?" Luke asked himself. No more then ten minutes after Katie left, Jesse pulled up to the house. Without even bothering to turn off the truck, he got out and ran inside. Luke was sitting at the kitchen table, lost in thought, when Jesse came in. Standing up quickly, Luke met his uncle.
"What in blazes is going on?" Jesse asked wanting answers.
"We gotta get going to the hospital, I'll tell ya on the way." Luke said as he ran outside, Jesse hot on his heels. Luke got in the driver's seat and waited for Jesse to get in before flooring the gas and speeding off for Tri County General. It was silent for the first five minutes of the thirty minute drive. Jesse was the first one to break the tense silence that had settled in the old pickup.
"Now will you please tell me what in blue blazes is goin' on?" Jesse asked impatiently. He was not only wanting to get answers, he feared for his youngest nephew's safety. Luke waited a minute before clearing his throat and answering.
"Cooter called, said that there was an accident. He told me to turn on the television and watch the news. I didn't think anything of it at first, but then I saw the General Lee flipped over on its roof. That's when I called you." Luke explained, leaving out the bit about what happened with Katie.
"Good Lord." Jesse mumbled. He rested his face in his hands as Luke continued to drive as fast as the old pickup would go.
It took about twenty minutes for them to reach the hospital. After parking the truck, Luke and Jesse jumped out and ran inside. They both headed straight for the reception desk.
"Excuse me, ma'am." Jesse said to the young brunette sitting behind the desk. "My nephew, Bo Duke, was brought in earlier." Jesse finished.
"Alright, just one moment. I need to see if we have any patients here by that name." The young woman said. She got up and went over to a filing cabinet and started looking through different files. After a minute she pulled out a folder and walked back over to the desk. She sat down and opened the folder, holding it so she was the only one looking at it. Jesse and Luke were starting to grow impatient. Luke was about to say something when the young woman spoke.
"Yes, we have a patient named Beauregard Duke. He was involved in an accident involving a drunk driver. The doctor's are still working on him as far as I know. As soon as they get him taken care of, a doctor will be out to talk with you." The young woman said. Jesse and Luke both sighed.
"Alright, thank ya ma'am." Jesse said as he turned around. "C'mon Luke, let's go sit down." Luke reluctantly followed his uncle over to two empty chairs. Luke sat down with a sigh and started fidgeting with the chair arm. He was too nervous and anxious to sit still, so he took up pacing instead. Jesse watched his oldest pace back and forth. He didn't say anything, knowing how much Luke was worried about Bo. What Jesse didn't know was, not only was Luke worried, he also felt guilty.
'Why did I have to tell him never to come back? I didn't mean it. God, if he doesn't pull through this, I'll never forgive myself.' Luke thought to himself as he continued pacing. Luke kept his pacing up for nearly two hours straight. Finally Jesse got tired of watching him go back and forth.
"Luke, sit down 'fore you wear a hole in the floor." Jesse ordered. Luke looked over at his uncle and sighed as he walked over to a chair and sat down. No sooner had Luke sat down, an elderly doctor with graying black hair and tan skin came out and walked over to them.
"Mr. Duke?" The doctor asked looking at Jesse. Jesse stood up and shook the doctor's hand as he said, "Yes, that'd be me. How's my nephew?" the doctor sighed.
"He's doing as well as can be expected. From what I understand, the impact of the other car had hit the driver's side door, causing his car to flip, throwing him out in the process. And to be quiet honest, I'm surprised he's even alive. The other man involved in the accident was pronounced dead on the scene and his injuries were nowhere near as bad as your nephew's." The doctor said sympathetically. Jesse's legs seemed to give out and he would've fallen on the floor if Luke hadn't been there to catch him. "We have him on life support right now. While we were working on him, we did loose him once, but were able to bring him back, however he stopped breathing on his own. To tell you the truth, his chances of recovery aren't looking very good right now." The doctor finished. He watched the two Duke men carefully. After a minute, Jesse finally collected himself and looked at the doctor.
"Can…can we see him?" He asked.
"Yes you may, but only one at a time. He is in the ICU, room number 16." The doctor said. Jesse nodded and looked at Luke.
"You can go first." Luke said quietly. Jesse nodded and stood up again and followed the doctor to Bo's room.
Luke sat and watched the clock. Ten minutes later, Jesse came out, tears streaking his face. Luke patted his uncle's back before standing up and following the doctor to Bo's room. Luke walked quietly down the hall and stopped in front of room 16. Since the rooms to the ICU didn't have doors, Luke pushed back the curtain and walked forward. He stopped in his tracks when he saw his baby cousin lying still, hooked up to several machines that were beeping and humming. His skin was deathly pale, and a breathing tube was sticking out of his mouth, held in place by several pieces of medical tape. The bruises on Bo's face and arms stuck out like a sore thumb against his pale skin. Bo's left arm was in a cast, clearly indicating it was broken, and there were several bandages covering numerous cuts on his face. To Luke, Bo looked like he was death warmed over.
Luke crossed over to Bo's bed and carefully picked up his hand. Luke shivered when he felt how cold it was.
"C'mon cousin, ya gotta pull through this." Luke said as he brushed a strand of blonde hair out of Bo's eyes. Just like he'd expected, the only response Luke got was the steady hum and beeps of the machines he knew were keeping his cousin alive. Luke pulled a chair up and sat down. Even though Luke was never one to show his emotions, seeing his cousin, his best friend, lying so helpless and still, Luke couldn't keep the tears from falling.
"Damn it Bo, please wake up." Luke said in between sobs. Just like before, the only sound in the room was from the machines.
The ten minutes Luke was allowed to visit, seemed to go by to quickly. The doctor returned and escorted Luke out of the room and back to the waiting room with Jesse. Jesse was sitting in the same chair as before, but had gotten up to call Daisy after Luke went back, and told her what happened. Luke sat down next to Jesse and hid his face in his hands. Jesse put a supportive hand on his oldest charge's shoulder. Both men remained silent the rest of the time they were there.
I hope Bo gets better. Stay tuned, ya hear?
Ok, now Iggy's hungry again. His appitite is never satisfied. Reviews will help satisfy him though, so review and feed the Iggy :)