A/N Howdy y'all! Goshdarnit, I'm glad ta be back... No internet, tv or radio for 5 days can really crack up the muse for ya. And that's why it took me a while to get this up. But thanks to the new Season 6 Dukesdvd I found me some inspiration! Yeehaw!
I now have a slight idea where this story is going, and where it's gonna end. I just don't know who's gonna live through it... Just kidding, I've been reading to many death stories lately, so don't freak out when I'll write one of those in the next couple of weeks.
School is about to begin again on Monday, but I hope I'll have time to update regularly.
Anyways, I hope you'll like this chapter, cause it's probably the chapter where everything changes, feelings are coming out and harsh words are being said. But in the end... Well let's not ruin it for ya okay? Just enjoy!

9

Tri-county hospital stood cold and high in the harsh midday light. To Luke's weary nerves it seemed distant and depressing.

He had driven like a madman, pushing the General to its limits. Luckily, no patrol cars had crossed his path as he had flown over Hazzards back roads.

After stopping the orange stockcar in front of the hospital he had just stood there for a moment. Rubbing his hand over his eyes, he let every possible scenario cross his minds eye.

Bo and Daisy were dead. His best friends in the entire world were laying in a cold room with blankets covering their bodies and they had only brought them here so Jesse could identify them.

They were hurt. His cousins were lying in a hospital bed, clinging to life as doctors worked hard to save them.

Maybe they were alright? A bump in the head? A few scrapes and bruises?

Shaking his head he banned every thought from his mind. There was only one. He had to get to his family. All of them.

And just as he was about to enter the waiting room, a white headed figure with a blue overall caught his attention, and he froze…

I have a feelin there's gonna be a confrontation between them two. An' I sure hope both Dukes 'll get outta this in one piece. Cause there's two other Dukes who need their family right about now…

o – o – o – o – o – o – o – o – o – o – o - o

Uncle Jesse had reached the hospital in record time. Only to be told that the doctors were still working on both his nephew and his niece. He had already bumped into Roscoe and Enos, who had been on their way out, trying to track down the lowlife that caused this entire mess. They had explained what had happened, and Jesse's heart had fluttered at the thought of Bo and Daisy underneath the rubble and remains of the Boars Nest.

Turning around to pace some more, his eye caught the form with slumped shoulders standing in front of the glass door. A brooding but sad expression was etched on his tanned face. Immediately Jesse's heart went out to the obviously distraught man. The boy had been through a lot. Discovering the things about his parents, and the betrayal by his closest family…

Stopping his own train of thoughts, Jesse decided on his plan of action. His other youngins were hurt. And the most important thing now, was that they would be alright. He just hoped that the silent figure behind the glass door would feel the same way.

And as if Luke had heard his thoughts, he slowly opened the door. Avoiding any eye contact with his uncle, he made his way to the older man.

"Ehh…" Luke hesitated a second, his shame fighting with the feeling of betrayal. "How are they Jesse? What happened?"

Jesse frowned a little. Luke's tone had been soft. No uncle…

"I don't know Luke, they haven't told me anything. I jus' know they was in the Boarsnest when there was an explosion."

Luke could hear the frustration in his uncle's voice. Thinking it was partly because of him, he ducked his head in shame, but stubbornly sat down. Not saying anything.

They spent the next hour like that. Luke sitting down, staring into space, standing, sitting… And Jesse just kept pacing the hospital hall. They were there together, but both of them felt alone, with their thoughts to keep them company.

By the time Luke sighed for the umpteenth time, Jesse couldn't take the silence anymore and he turned around suddenly.

"Now you listen ta me boy," he started, causing Luke's head to shoot up, flinching back a bit from the tone of his uncle's voice.

Jesse saw the boy flinch. 'Darnit, that wasn't what I meant…' Softening his roughened voice he continued.

"I know you feel like I betrayed ya son. I even understand why ya needed ta leave. But yur family needs ya now Luke, all of them…"

He let the sentence linger for a while, seeing the conflicting emotions surge through his nephew's eyes. Looking at his feet, Jesse decided to give it one last try, the only way he knew.

"Yur still mad about our lyin' to ya, right?" he asked his eldest nephew.

Luke avoided his uncle's eyes at all cost. He felt ashamed, but he had to hang on to the anger…. If he didn't have his anger, he would be overwhelmed by emotions he didn't want to feel right now.

A slight shifting of the eyes, told Jesse Luke had heard him.

"I didn't want ta do this, but yur givin me no other choice…"

This time Jesse caught Luke's eyes, and held them firmly as he continued.

Yur angry at me for lyin to ya for years. Well, if that's the case, I have ta be angry at you too."

Luke gave his uncle a confused look. When had he ever lied to his uncle? And what could be compared to the lying his uncle had done for years?

Jesse saw the confused look, and he knew he had him. He continued slowly.

"I kept something for ya. And ya know I did for yur own good. I didn't want ya ta get hurt-"

"But-…" Luke started, until he was stopped by the look on his uncles face. It was filled with some sort of grief, but there was also accusation in there, and Luke had no idea where that came from.

"Now can you tell me you have never kept anything for us? Somethin' that would 've hurt us if we knew?"

When he saw the comprehension in Luke's eyes, he also saw he hit a nerve. Confusion was the second thing he saw in the sapphire blue eyes of his eldest nephew.

"How… I mean, I never told… Bo?"

Shaking his head Jesse continued.

"I figured you'd tell him eventually… But I already knew. Wanna know how?" He asked, seeing Luke's eyes glaze over a bit, as the memories seemed to take over his mind.

"One day… One day after you returned from 'Nam, Miss Tizdale came ta me. She didn't know you was back yet, and she looked like her world jus' ended. She handed me an official lookin letter. Said it had been lost in the mail for weeks. That she was so sorry…" Jesse paused for a second, recollecting his thoughts. He had been scared in those four years Luke was with the Marines. But he was never allowed to show it. He had to be there for Bo and Daisy, they had been too distraught already. Scared that their cousin wouldn't return. And that was the exact same fear Jesse had had all those years. So when Luke had returned, Jesse had been overwhelmed with a joyful feeling, even though he could see the trauma in Luke's clouded blue eyes. But when Emma Tizdale had given him the letter, he had been clueless. What could be wrong?

Luke saw how his uncle remembered those faithful years. Years where he had fought to survive, and somehow he knew. He knew his uncle had found out about what had happened in Vietnam. But he said nothing, just waited for Jesse to continue.

Coughing a little, Jesse continued, "She jus' gave me the letter an' left. By that time I was mighty curious, cause I had no idea what could be so bad. I had my boys with me as well as my beautiful niece, and they was all fine an' in one piece. But I was wrong wasn't I? You wasn't well… I'd noticed the limp Luke. I saw it, but thought it wasn't serious. After reading that letter, findin out ya'd been MIA for weeks, and were probably a POW, I knew."

Seeing the pain in Luke's face, he was almost sorry for letting it get so far. But he had started, and now he knew he had to finish it, let Luke know he wasn't angry, just concerned.

Putting a calloused hand on Luke's shoulder he was shocked by the shaking he felt. Looking at his nephew's face, he saw the barely controlled mask he was trying to keep in place.

"It's alright Luke, I know why ya didn't want ta tell me, or anyone for that matter. At first I was angry, angry at you, for not trustin us ta tell somethin so important. Angry at the Marines, for sendin ya to a place that was probably more like Hell then Paradise. But most of all I was angry at myself, for lettin ya go.

So when I saw ya sleepin with the lights on, I never said anything. I even let Bo take care of ya when ya had a nightmare, cause I knew…"

After he said that, he was surprised to hear a slight chuckle out of the boy standing next to him.

"What's so funny?" Jesse asked, flabbergasted by the contradicting emotions of his nephew.

"I always thought I was so smart, that no one would find out bout what happened, an' how scared I was those first weeks back home. But both you an' Bo knew somethin was wrong…"

Giving Luke a slight grin, Jesse understood what he meant.

"I'm sorry for not tellin' ya uncle Jesse. Like ya said, I did it ta keep y'all from getting hurt. I didn't want ya ta worry bout me…"

"Well that's just plain dumb," Jesse growled, "cause by now ya should know I always worry bout all of my youngins."

Luke's grin fell when Jesse mentioned his other cousins, as if he just remembered why they were here. And with his feet back on the ground, all the emotions he had tried to bury these past few hours were starting to let themselves know.

Rubbing Luke's shoulder Jesse sighed.

"I know son, I know. We jus' hafta pray they's gonna be alright."

This seemed ta hit a nerve with Luke, who had just let go of the anger he had felt towards his uncle. The whirlwind of emotions swirled inside of him, making his stomach feel like lead, and his heart like it was being crushed right then and there.

Turning towards his uncle, he let himself feel, everything. With glassy eyes filled with shame he grabbed the old man's shoulders, as if he was his lifeline.

"I'm sorry uncle Jesse… I'm so sorry…"

Jesse, who had seen it coming but was surprised by the intensity of Luke's usually controlled emotions, didn't waste a minute and took his nephew in a tight embrace. Stroking the dark curls, he hoped to calm Luke down a bit.

"I shoulda been there. I wasn't there… I shoulda been… I…"

The guilt which came free overwhelmed Jesse as he felt like someone dropped a blanket of grief over him. That boy was taking it all on shoulders that didn't need those kind of burdens. Knowing he couldn't make it go away, he started to sooth his nephew like he had done when he was just a little tike.

"Shh, there ain't nothing, we could 've done…"

Shaking his head, which was still buried in his uncle's shoulder, Luke continued with a muffled voice,

"I wasn't there. I shoulda protected them, but I was too busy with myself… What kinda person am I?" he finished as sobs took over his body again, not able to keep them back anymore.

Still stroking Luke's hair, Jesse sighed. This ran deep…

"You're a Duke," he said as he grasped Luke's shoulders so he could look him in the eyes, "An' Dukes are there for each other. Maybe not always, sometimes we need ta take care of ourselves first, so we can be there for each other later. An' yur here now, that's what counts. Ya hafta remember ya can't always be there for Bo or Daisy. They have their own lives, an' in them lives things like this can happen…" Jesse ended, not trusting his own voice. Not until he knew more about his family.

Sniffing a bit, Luke wiped away the moisture on his cheeks, feelin slightly ashamed, but a big part of him was a little relieved to have let it out. Oh, he still felt guilty about not being there for Bo and Daisy, but he was able to handle it now.

And as his thoughts quieted down a bit, one question kept coming back.

"What happened exactly uncle Jesse?" he asked, needing to know what had happened in those final seconds in the Boars Nest.

Letting his hands drop to his sides, Jesse looked up and Luke could almost feel the anger seep into his uncle's veins.

"From what Roscoe an' Enos told me, it seemed that some thug had a fight with Boss an' decided ta blow the place up. Boss an' Roscoe could barely get out before there was an explosion…" seeing the anger starting to build op in Luke again, he continued a little slower, "They had nothing ta do with it Luke. They didn't know Daisy an' Bo were still there. An' when they found out, they went back in an' got em out. They saved em Luke."

"Yeah, after they got them into trouble…" Luke whispered, letting go of the anger for the moment. He made a silent vow though, to catch whoever was behind all of this and bring them to justice. If it was his own justice or County jail, that was to be decided. And that decision laid with his cousins…

As if on cue good ole Doc. Appleby came through the double doors, followed by an old acquaintance, doctor Ramirez.

Both Jesse and Luke stood to greet the two men, but silence and furrowed brows surrounded them when Jesse asked the dreaded question.

"How are they?"

Don't y'all hate them silent moments? Ya know the doc's gonna say somethin, the trouble is, it can be good or bad… Y'all know on which one I place my bet… Them Dukes can get into trouble, but they always get out of it right?