There's no point in delaying it - all stories must end. I'm sad to see this one go, though, and not only because it was a personal favorite, but because I just don't see any Dukes stories in my future. Of course, this could turn out to be like a Barbra Streisand farewell tour - the first of many. But as of now, I don't have anything else on any of the burners ( front or back) for Dukes.
Mining is obviously a dangerous profession, and strip mining does horrible things to the land. I never meant any harm to those who earn their living through mining coal, and if anything I've said here causes anyone harm, I am truly sorry. If you take anything from this story, let it be that miners work awfully hard, and in great danger, for little pay or recognition. Next time you read about a mining disaster, imagine Bo Duke in the middle of it, and I imagine it'll pull at your heartstrings a little bit.
Again, in this chapter, I get a little anachronistic. Some of the long-term health effects of strip mining were not really known or named by 1976.
Thanks to so many of you for sticking with me all the way through this story. Your encouragement helped me in not only completing the final chapters (which grew from one or two to five, even as I wrote), but provided me with the courage to post some of the ones I was more concerned about. And since this may just be my swan song, I have to mention HazzardHusker, who not only helped me post my first story, but whose friendship actually kind of made this last story possible.
I still don't own the Dukes. Nor Hazzard. And although some real events were incorporated into the plot, none of the characters are based on real people, living or dead. I've earned nothing but sleepless nights from having borrowed the boys. And now, finally, I give them back.
Chapter 25 – A Whole Lot of Colors in One Place
Spring and summer passed by almost before the small family knew what had happened. Now that the boys no longer needed to hide their car, they drove it as often as their schedule around the farm allowed. They'd upgraded the safety devices, which Luke had deemed top priority, with Jesse's blessing. But the boys agreed that there would be no cosmetic improvements until the cotton crop had actually sold. Though they had every reason to believe the mill would survive into the fall, the events of the past spring had made the family cautious. Besides, the wait gave Bo time to work on a name for the vehicle that they'd simply been calling "him" up until now. Luke watched his cousin as he devoted himself to finding a name, almost as diligently as he'd worked on building the car itself. It struck him funny, but he stayed clear of Bo on that one. Luke genuinely believed that the younger boy understood the car better than he ever would.
Daisy, too, was excited that the boys' car was fully functional. It meant that the yellow Plymouth was hers now, and while that part was nice, it wasn't the thing that made the only remaining female Duke the happiest. What meant the most to Daisy was that, for the first time, both she and the boys had powerful cars, and they could race against one another. Bo and Luke were great drivers, but Daisy wasn't any slouch behind the wheel herself. And there was no one in the entire county that was her match, except her two cousins. She finally had reasonable competition.
Besides, it was a game that involved all three of the Duke kids, and Daisy hadn't been able to enjoy one of those since they were all much younger. For once, the boys didn't have to go out of their way to include their female cousin. There was no one in the county that they would rather race against.
Along with tending to the production cycle of the cotton he was growing, Jesse was well engaged by his duties as board member at the cotton mill. He'd been elected Chair of the board, for a term of one year. He'd agreed to take the position on the condition that it only lasted twelve months, and that all the other members were willing to be active. So far it seemed that he'd built an excellent coalition, because they'd all banded together to inform the county commissioner that they'd be repaying the loan in full, and that their current fiscal plan did not anticipate the need for further monies from Boss Hogg's bank. The rotund man in white had been less than pleased, but seeing a united front that consisted of twelve men, he'd simply accepted the payment and cancelled the debt.
Luke continued to correspond with Sarah. The Scotia Mine had been closed for good, now, and the town of Oven Fork had lost population as a result. Sarah stayed on the land that she'd inherited, and developed what appeared to be bronchitis, but was not responsive to antibiotics. This did not stop her from making daily trips to the neighboring town of Eolia, and caring for the town's children. There seemed to be an epidemic of illness amongst kids there, which, for lack of a proper medical name, was called "blue baby syndrome." Though the children were not actually turning blue, they were experiencing an awful lot of cancerous symptoms. Nothing could be proven, but Sarah believed it was the result tainted drinking water. Sediments, uprooted by the strip mining that had become the primary means of digging out the coal in the county, had contaminated a lot of the local creeks and the river, all of which fed the reservoirs.
Luke had suggested that Sarah's own symptoms were possibly the result of something similar, like airborne particles. He'd gone so far as to propose that she should consider leaving the area, adding that his family would be glad to help her settle in Hazzard, if she liked. He'd received a curt response that informed him that she was born and would die on her family's property. The oldest Duke cousin understood, and sent his friend an apologetic letter. Correspondence continued, but Luke realized that some day he would likely cease to hear from her, when she became too ill to communicate any more.
As summer became fall, the family had to give up racing and board meetings for the harvest. It was grueling work, and since it was a crop the Dukes had not grown before, they hadn't yet determined the most efficient way to harvest it. They worked from the earliest rays of the sun until they could no longer see at night, week after week. Once they'd returned to the house for the evening, they'd have a meal and go quickly off to sleep. During the first week they'd learned the hard way not to sit or lay down anywhere other than a bed, because they were so exhausted they'd fall asleep wherever they landed. A night on the couch or in Jesse's old chair meant a stiff back in the morning, which certainly didn't get better through the long day of picking cotton.
The days grew shorter, until one day in mid-October, the harvest was done, and the Dukes successfully sold the cotton to Ridge Owens for processing. The family celebrated with a meal of Jesse's famous crawdad bisque and an afternoon lounging on the soft grass under the perfect blue autumn skies; the boys tossing a football back and forth. As evening fell, they headed back toward the farmhouse where Jesse surprised them all by pulling Tilly out of the barn and challenging his kids to a night race. Since there was no real course and no rules, no one ever knew who won, but the four of them had the most fun they'd had since before Luke had joined the service.
One day, when the cooler weather had stripped most of the leaves from the trees, the family got a call from the Haines patriarch, announcing the birth of his first grandchild. Hazzard's small town etiquette required a visit from the Duke family to the Haines house, bearing small gifts for the child. This was certainly not a burden to any member of the family, all of whom were ready to see some happiness in the Haines household.
Steve Haines showed the Dukes into his house, where his older brother was holding his younger bother's child. The four of them were awed to see such a charming scene. Katie Jane smiled sweetly at Bo, and beckoned him to come and see her son. The other Dukes followed at a distance.
"Bo, I want you to meet Robert Beauregard Haines," Katie Jane introduced.
"Robert Beauregard," Bo echoed somberly, looking into the eyes of the young woman that he'd spent so much time with in the earliest stages of her pregnancy. "Hi, little Rob," he added, turning his attention to the infant. "You shouldn'ta given him Beauregard for a middle name, though. He'll never live it down."
"Beauregard is a fine name, Bo," Katie Jane admonished him. She'd seen the youngest Duke, year after year, insisting that teachers call him Bo, and not Beauregard. But she'd always thought his full given name fit him, despite his protests to the contrary. "And we wanted him to be named for the two bravest men I know, who would go so far and do so much to try to help their families."
Hiding his embarrassment by focusing on the baby, the blonde reached out as if to touch the little one. Bo was surprised at how tiny little Robert Beauregard was. His own hand seemed dangerously large in comparison to the infant's body. The blonde began to draw back, frightened of hurting the child, but Katie Jane took his hand and placed it gently on the baby's arm.
"You won't break him, Bo," she said with a grin. "Maybe you'd like to hold him?"
"Uh, oh, Daisy… she would," the teen stammered.
Katie Jane stood, laughing. "Ken, let me have him," she quietly asked her husband. Then, moving close to Bo, she carefully transferred the baby into his long, work tanned arms. "I know you're scared, Bo, but little Rob there, he don't bite."
"Right," Bo answered, swallowing hard. He looked up to find Ken almost laughing at his nervousness, but when he turned to his own family, he saw only love and support.
"He likes you," Luke informed him. "Look at the way he's looking at you." And the child did indeed seem to be fascinated by Bo.
"He's never seen such yellow hair before," Katie Jane teased.
"He's never seen anything this handsome before," Bo said, grinning at Ken.
The Haines boy took the bait. "Well, at least we know this one's going to be beating Dukes on the football field, just like his daddy used to." Whereas normally a loud discussion would have broken out about who exactly had beaten whom, and who'd thrown which interception that lost which game, instead, the group remained somber, as Bo returned the baby to its mother.
Once his hands were free, Bo offered his right to Ken, "Congratulations, buddy."
"Thanks," the oldest Haines boy answered.
Bo stepped aside to let Daisy congratulate Ken, then watched her take the baby from its mother and settle on the couch. The teen stood back with Luke and watched the little domestic scene in front of them.
"Daisy's gonna want a baby soon," he observed quietly.
"What about you?" Luke asked, with more seriousness than Bo expected. Looking at his cousin, Bo confirmed what he'd heard. Luke wasn't teasing him.
"Not any time soon; don't you worry," the blonde answered with a smile, casually draping an arm across the other boy's shoulders. "Nah, I'll still be at the Boar's Nest, standing next to you, so at least one or two of the girls will look at you after I've had my pick."
Luke was about to provide Bo with a dissertation on how the older boy had taught him everything he knew about picking up women, when a gentle nudge and headshake from his uncle stopped him. They were here to welcome a new child into the community, not prove which of them was a hotter commodity in Hazzard County's only roadhouse. The boys turned their attention back to their hosts.
After the visit, cruising around in their brilliant orange car, Bo was quiet. The boys had chosen not to go straight back home, and now they were wandering idly through the dusty back roads of Hazzard.
"Something on your mind, cousin?" Luke asked, noticing that the blonde was neither driving recklessly nor talking, a truly unusual occurrence. If anything, the younger boy seemed to be just coasting aimlessly, and below the speed limit. This worried Luke.
"I was just thinkin', maybe we should name the car the General Lee, what do you think?"
Luke thought it was a mouthful, but at least it was rhythmic. Some of the other thoughts he'd seen his cousin jot down over the last month or so were a lot harder to imagine.
"I think it sounds kinda right," Luke said. "Of course, it means you're gonna have to be a gentleman whenever you're in the car. You gotta live up to his name, after all."
Bo grinned. "Now we ain't changin' my name, cousin. We're just christening the car, is all." After a moment, the teen turned serious again. "An' I think it's only fitting that since his full name will be General Robert E. Lee, it'd remind me of Robby some, too."
"I guess," Luke answered. "How does it feel to have a namesake, anyways?"
"That poor kid," Bo laughed. "At least they made it his middle name, not his first. It's kinda flattering, but kinda crazy, too, you know? I ain't that brave."
Luke chuckled. "Brave. Bo, you don't gotta do somethin' crazy like dodging bullets to be brave. Leavin' home to try to earn for your family when they're in trouble is brave. And goin' into them mines every day, even after you knew what the risks were, that was brave, too," Luke said, patting Bo's shoulder. "You ever do it again, and I'll beat the tar out of you, though."
Bo laughed, just a little. "Thanks, Luke."
Even as he helped his younger cousin and the town's mechanic put the finishing touches on the General Lee, Luke couldn't help but be honest.
"That's a whole lot of colors in one place."
"It looks great, though, don't it?"
Glancing at Cooter, Luke knew he was outnumbered. Besides, now that he could see it for real, and not just imagine it, he was coming to think that this was, in fact, a good looking car.
"Well, I'll tell you what. As soon as he's dry, we'll take him out and see what Rosco thinks," Luke said with a wink.
The late afternoon sun picked out the boys' car long before it got into the farmyard, and Jesse could hear the engine roar as it got closer. He could rest; he knew his boys would be home and safe for another night.
Rest was not in the white haired man's immediate future, however. Those boys of his galloped into the house, giggling. And sprinted straight out the back door, heading for the tree line. Within a few minutes, sirens told him that the Hazzard law had arrived; then the loud banging on his door confirmed it.
It put old Jesse in mind of a time when Enos used to come calling as a child. "Hi, Mr. Uncle Jesse, can Bo and Luke come out to play?"
"Them boys ain't here Rosco," Jesse announced even before opening the door.
"Ijit! That's a fine story, Jesse Duke, but I can see their car right there. Heck, they can see that car clean over in Chickasaw, khee khee!" Rosco stood on the porch alone, dispelling the older man's memories of his kids at a younger age. Besides, he mentally corrected himself, had it been Enos, that boy would have been asking after Daisy, not Bo and Luke.
"Their car is here," Jesse admitted, "But they ain't. You're welcome to look," the boys' uncle offered, stepping back from the door.
"Now, Jesse, I know you wouldn't be offerin' if they was actually in there," Rosco said, drawing upon his very rusty detective skills.
"Don't be so sure, Rosco. I don't know what they done to you, but they been actin' like kids lately an' it might not be bad for them boys to spend the night in jail. Why are you lookin' for 'em, anyways?"
Looking madder than a wet hen and stammering to beat the band, Rosco pointed to his patrol car. Sandwiched between so many nonsense utterances that it almost sounded as though the sheriff was suffering with a terrible case of rapid-fire hiccups, Jesse got something of an answer.
"Gij! I mean, ijit, just look at it! Giji-goo! I just – I just –"
"What, Rosco? It looks a little dirty is all."
"Dirty? Why, it's filthy, gyu, is what it is! I just had it cleaned, and them boys of yours, they just, ijit! I was just sittin' you know, on the side of the road monitoring traffic, and they done went flyin' past, kickin' up mud, ijit! And then, on purpose, ol' Bo there, he swerves to hit a big old puddle, and it just, gyu, it just went all over my car, gijit!"
"Got your car dirty, did they?" Jesse responded, trying to stay serious. "Well, now, I thought you was talkin' about somethin' more important, like missin' chores or bein' late for dinner or somethin'. Sorry, Rosco, I was of a mind to let you have them for the night, but it seems like I got a bigger infraction here at home than you do. So just be on your way."
"But, Gij!"
"Have a good night now, Rosco," Jesse advised him, closing the door.
As soon as he was sure the sputtering lawman was gone, Jesse called out the back for his boys. He assumed they hadn't gone any further than the trees behind the house, since they would have wanted to hear the exchange between him and Rosco. After a few calls and no response, the white-haired man decided to go looking for his kids. Normally he'd wait for them to come home on their own, but in these last days before winter, the opportunity to spend some time outdoors was just too appealing.
The Duke patriarch wandered for some time, simply exploring the Duke acreage for the first time in a while. He used to take this walk more often, but over the past couple of years, he had slowed down some. He didn't really know when it had happened, but the results were obvious. Whereas he'd once been in the same kind of shape that his nephews were, now his gut had expanded so much that he could no longer see his own toes. He missed those little buggers down there. He'd have to get out for this kind of a walk more often.
Finally, Jesse Duke located his boys. They'd come to a wooded portion of the property, where the soil had never been tilled nor crops planted. Under the shade of these old maples and oaks, many of the Duke ancestors had been laid to rest. Zoning laws now prohibited burying the dead anywhere other than the Hazzard Cemetery, but until the 1940's the Dukes had used this family gravesite. Bo, Luke and Daisy's parents were not buried here, and neither was their Aunt Lavinia. The children had never really had cause to spend time at this old burial ground. But Bo and Luke were here now. Jesse approached quietly.
Bo was kneeling, clearing away the high grass in front of a simple marker. Luke squatted slightly behind, one hand on his younger cousin's shoulder.
"He was only seventeen, Luke. You didn't tell me that."
"I hadn't really done the math, but yeah, Carleton was a couple of years younger than you, I guess," the older boy answered giving Bo's shoulder a squeeze.
"It don't seem fair that he never got to do stuff like gettin' married or havin' kids. At least Robby got the chance to get married, even if he never saw his kid."
"Yeah," Luke answered quietly. "You know, when I was lookin' for you in Kentucky, and I read about that first blast," the older boy paused, and unexpectedly shivered.
"What, Lukas?" Bo turned to look at his cousin. Had those boys of his not been so focused on each other, they would have noticed Jesse, standing just outside the remains of the rail fence that surrounded the small cemetery.
"Well, one of the first things I thought was that if you was one of those fifteen… I realized that I'd always figured our kids would grow up together, just like we did. And I thought if you was gone, well, you wouldn't have any. I've always wanted to see your kids, Bo. And even more, I've wanted to see how you'd raise 'em."
"Shoot, Luke, don't rush me." The boys chuckled quietly. "Did you ever wonder how Jesse felt, losing all his brothers like that?" Bo asked.
"I never used to, but yeah, now I do. I can't imagine how you'd go on, after that."
The old man announced his presence by coming closer and intentionally rustling some leaves with his feet.
"It wasn't easy," Jesse answered. "But I had your Aunt Lavinia. An' then later, I had you boys and Daisy. And I really wish your daddies had lived to see you grow up," his voice cracked, though it didn't stop him from speaking. "But I wouldn't have traded a minute with you kids for anything."
Luke stood and offered his cousin a hand up. Each approached their uncle and gave him a hug. With a smile, Jesse slung his arms around his boys, and headed them towards the farmhouse.
"Now, let me tell you about the time that me and Isaac and Carleton got chased by J.D.'s momma for sneakin' a pie off'n her windowsill. She had this old shotgun you see…"