Hey guys, an update. Uh, just so you know, there were places where I was supposed to put ruler lines to separate the scenes, but the document manager wouldn't let me put them there. I tried just putting a few squiggly lines instead, but when I pushed the save button, those went away too. So now since it's late at night, I gave up and hoped that you guys will just figure it out on your own.

Chapter 3

This time, Jude rode with Daisy in Dixie and Jesse rode with Bo in the General. They had no idea where to start, so they used Bo's hide and seek tactic. The first place they were to check was in that one spot in Utchee Swamp.

Bo, although distracted, drove the General expertly through back roads. The ride was relatively silent for a while. As they were approaching the main road, Jesse finally broke the thick silence.

"Don't worry Bo," he assured. "This'll all work out fine, I know it will."

Bo nodded. "I know it will, too. As long as we come up with somethin' like Luke woulda come up with. His plans usually work."

"It'll be okay Bo." Jesse reached over to squeeze his nephew's shoulder.

Bo gave a small smile. "Yer right Uncle Jesse. I'm just a little nervous, ya know." It didn't matter what Bo said; to Jesse there was no mistaking the glimmer of unshed tears in his youngest's eyes.

Cooter whistled to himself as he maneuvered his tow truck towards Cottontail Road. His intention was to tow Jesse's truck back to the farm. He pulled the truck to a stop when the white vehicle emerged into his sight.

After hooking the pickup to his vehicle, Cooter once again sped off down the street. Soon, he noticed sirens blowing and red lights flashing everywhere behind him.

"Aw, shoot, Rosco!" Cooter exclaimed. "Can't ya see I'm busy?"

The CB crackled to life. "Cooter Davenport, this is Sheriff Rosssscoooo P. Coooooltrane an' I order you ta FREEZE!"

"I ain't doin' nuthin' till I know what for," Cooter answered.

"You know whatcha done! Yer carryin' contraband whiskey! Now that's a Federal offense. Pull it over, I'm serious, now!"

"Rosco, I unnerstand this summer's been unusually hot, but I didn't think it would git ta yer head like this. I ain't got the slightest idea whatcher talkin' about."

Suddenly, Rosco's car stopped. He screamed something into the CB about being out of gas. Cooter burst out laughing.

The Dukes and Jude came to a stop near Snake's hiding place. The cars in front confirmed their suspicions. It was decided they would come up with a good plan instead of barging in right then.

Daisy and Jesse stayed, hidden from the building, to see if Luke was all right. Bo and Jude took Dixie back to the farm to get Jesse's truck, since one could easily recognize passengers in Dixie.

That could be good, considerin' all the moonshine sittin' in Dixie.

"So what do we do once we get back there?" Bo asked of Jude. "Well, the way I figger it, ol' Snakes 'spectin' us, sooner or later," Jude explained. "But I wanna really catch 'em off guard. Let's come up with somethin' when we get there. I want Jesse's and Daisy's input, too."

Bo nodded. He felt much better now that they knew where Luke was being held. "Well, let's get goin, then."

Meanwhile, Jesse and Daisy perched themselves out of sight near the window. They listened to a conversation between Snake and Luke.

"Well, Duke, it's only a matter of time before someone in yer family finds that truck you's drivin', an' that nice surprise Patch left," Snake speculated. "Hopefully it's that blonde cousin a yers. He nearly got me killed last time, when I almost had ta ride in a car with Patch drivin'. That woulda done me in."

Daisy and Jesse exchanged horrified glances. What was this "surprise" Snake wanted Bo to find? They didn't dare turn on the CB and heed a warning; although cut out of sight, the General was parked within earshot.

Luke asked the big question. "What's the surprise?"

Snake grinned an snickered maniacally. "Remember ya'll's 'test' from last time?" was all Snake had to say for Luke to understand.

"Ya mean Patch tossed a rattlesnake inta the truck?" Luke asked. Snake nodded, evilly satisfied. Luke sighed, remembering how scared his youngest cousin had been that instance when he had nearly wound up with a snakebite. He only hoped that Bo and anyone else would look before they sat.

Daisy mouthed the word "snake" to her uncle, suddenly terrified for her cousin who was about to see a repeat from his last encounter with the Snake Harmon gang. From what she and Jesse knew, he had been scared enough last time, and their protective oldest cousin had been there. This time, Luke was somewhere else, so she could only imagine the horror Bo was about to experience.

Well, ya'll, I don't think it's Luke we need ta worry about.

Cooter's good mood was short lived. Once he had dropped the pickup off and was heading down Old Mill Road, he noticed Enos's car right behind him.

"Now what is goin' on?" Cooter wondered to himself. "I ain't carryin' moonshine! Why'm I bein' set up? I ain't a Duke!" Realization hit him suddenly. The Dukes were probably in trouble, too. He picked up his CB.

"Breaker one, breaker one, I may be crazy but I ain't dumb, Craaaaazy Cooter comin' atcha, any Dukes out there on the Hazzard Net, come on."

Quickly he received a response. "Ya got Lost Sheep Two here, Crazy C, what's happenin'?" came Bo's voice.

"Well, Bo, there's a real flaw in the slaw somewhere, buddy-roe. I've been chased all afternoon by Rosco an' Enos. They says I'm runnin' shine, but I ain't. I bet they'll be on you next."

Bo looked behind him to the floor. "That's cause they musta planted the shine there. We got some in Dixie."

"I know there ain't none in Jesse's truck, but ya'll better check the General," Cooter said. "Well, I'm gone. Over 'n' out."

"We're gone too," Bo said. "Jude, can you toss that shine out?"

Jude nodded and reached back for the shine jugs. "Ya'll ain't any less crazy than ya were six years ago when I was here."

Bo grinned his response.

Half an hour later, Bo and Jude were cruising down Jessup Road towards Utchee Swamp. They had yet to notice the snake resting at Bo's feet. That didn't last too long, however. As soon as Bo carelessly sped over a bump , the distinct sound of a rattle could be heard.

Only Jude heard it, however. He looked down at the floor, confirming his fear. "Aw, not again," he blurted out.

"What d'ya mean?" Bo asked innocently.

"I mean, don't move, but look down," Jude told Bo. The blonde man stole a glance downwards and tensed up.

"Aw, shoot," Bo said. "Now what? It's really hot, so we ain't got no long sleeve shirts ta bundle it up in." Fear raced through his body as he attempted to come up with a sufficient solution. His pulse quickened, as did his breathing.

Jude looked around. "There's a blanket coverin' the back of this seat, we could use that," he suggested.

Bo nodded, turning his eyes to the road. Jude carefully pulled a re-enactment of what Luke had done with the snake six years before. Once at the window, he dropped the snake out of it without dropping the blanket.

Bo had to stop the car for a minute to catch his breath before he could continue to drive again.

Well ya'll, somethin' tells me this ain't gonna be as easy as we think. Don't make tracks now, it's only gonna git more interestin'.