To Keep A Promise

Disclaimer: I don't own the Dukes of Hazzard, not making any money, just cheap thrills


Warnings: Angst, Disturbing Themes


Rating: FRT


To Keep A Promise
Chapter 13


A day and a half after arriving at the doctor's house, the breathing tube was finally removed from Bo's throat, allowing him to go home. Leaning tiredly against his cousin, Bo wasn't paying attention to where they were going at first. "Uncle Jesse, why are we here?" he asked in a raspy, fear filled voice as he looked up at the courthouse.


"Rosco needs to talk to you Bo..."


"Am I going to jail?"


"Jail? Why would you be going to jail?" Jesse asked, surprised by the question.


"Cause I lied about Mr. Wyndham," came the shameful reply.


"No you didn't Bo, don't you remember? Rosco even has a tape of what Wyndham did," Jesse reminded him.


"But he said...and I signed..." he trailed off, looking between his cousin and uncle in confusion.


"Bo," Jesse began, "Dale was desperate to blame somebody for what happened to his sister. I don't know why he decided that you were to blame, but he was wrong. You ain't done nothing wrong, no matter what he said," Jesse firmly told him.


"Dale? No it was Mr. Wyndham...wasn't it?" he asked, looking at Luke for confirmation.


"No Bo it wasn't, it was Dale Richardson," Luke quietly told him, confirming Jesse's words.


"Do I have to talk to the sheriff?"


"I'm afraid you do son," Jesse answered.


Sighing in resignation, he agreed, climbing out of the truck after Luke. Standing on the sidewalk, he looked up at the courthouse, his eyes filled with anxiety.


"It'll be alright Bo," Luke softly told him, wrapping one arm around his waist.


Leaning into the embrace, Bo found himself relaxing slightly, "Stay with me?"


"You got it," Luke quickly agreed. "Come on now," he encouraged, nudging him towards the door.


Walking like a man on his way to his execution, Bo slowly made his way up the steps of the courthouse.


Jesse watched with sad eyes as Luke comforted Bo, kicking himself for not warning the boy about this. His intentions had been good, he'd honestly believed that if Bo knew ahead of time he'd be panicked long before they got here. "Guess that proves the saying true, the road to hell really is paved with good intentions," he mumbled to himself. Following behind the boys, he stepped past them at the top of the stairs and held the door open for them.


Rosco looked up from the filing cabinet when the door opened, surprised to see who was standing there. Quickly recovering from his surprise, he closed the file drawer and hurried towards them. "I didn't expect to see you today Bo, how are you feeling?"


"Okay," he replied, refusing to meet the sheriff's eyes.


"That's good," Rosco said, feeling awkward.


"Bo's here to make his statement Rosco," Jesse explained.


"Oh, of course," Rosco acknowledged, leading the way to his desk. "If you'll just have a seat Bo we can get started," he kindly instructed.


Sitting down, Bo took a deep breath as he waited for the sheriff to start questioning him.


Luke immediately took up position behind his cousin, placing a supportive hand on the younger boy's shoulder and squeezing gently. "You'll do fine," he told Bo when he nervously glanced up at him.


Nodding his head, Bo laid his hand over the one on his shoulder, taking comfort from his cousin's support.


"You ready Bo?" Rosco quietly asked.


"Yes sir."


"Okay, could you tell me how you ended up in Jonas Wyndham's house?"


"I don't know...I remember the dance and then I was at the house."


"You don't remember anything, a noise or a voice..."


"No."


"Alright, well then what did Dale say to you when you woke up?"


"Not Dale, Mr. Wyndham."


"Bo, Wyndham is dead, how could it have been him?" Luke gently asked.


"It was, I heard him," Bo insisted.


"What did he say?" Rosco asked.


"Said I lied about him, that it was my fault they were all dead," Bo miserably replied.


"They?"


"Him, Sarah and their baby."


"But you didn't lie about him," Rosco pointed out.


"He said I did, and then he hurt me."


"Hurt you how?" Rosco asked, hoping now they'd get some answers.


"Ain't sure, just know it hurt, like getting shocked only a lot worse."


"Why did he hurt you?"


"Cause I wouldn't admit I lied."


"Did he ever stop hurting you?"


"Yeah."


"When?"


"After I said I lied," Bo whispered.


"What happened after that?"


"I signed something..." Bo said, rubbing at his forehead as he tried to make sense of the memories. "A confession...then he untied me and I saw Luke, then I couldn't breathe."


Luke could feel his cousin trembling beneath his hand, as he relived the horrible experience he'd just endured. Giving his shoulder another squeeze, he offered him the only comfort he could.


"Who untied you Bo?"


"Mr. Wyndham."


"Are you sure it wasn't Dale Richardson?"


"I...he was there I think, but it was Mr. Wyndham that hurt me," Bo insisted.


"Okay Bo, thank you for coming in and talking to me."


"Can I go home now?"


"Yeah son, you can go home," Rosco sadly replied. "Luke why don't you take your cousin outside while I talk to your Uncle Jesse," he suggested.


"Yes sir," Luke agreed, quickly leading Bo from the building.


"What is it Rosco?" Jesse asked as soon as the boys were gone.


"I ain't no lawyer Jesse, but this could make it harder to prove that Dale is guilty."


"Well even if Bo can't say for sure it was Dale, you saw him there didn't ya?"


"Yeah I did, so did Luke and Cooter, I just hope that'll be enough."


"Well why shouldn't it be?" Jesse gruffly demanded.


"I ain't saying it won't Jesse, I just want you to know that it may not be."


"Is that all then?"


"Yes it is," Rosco confirmed.


"Thank you for the warning Rosco."


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"Bo, you're home," Daisy excitedly called as she ran up to them, wrapping her younger cousin in a warm embrace.


"Hey Daisy," Bo dully greeted her.


"You okay sugar?" she asked, reaching up to caress his cheek.


"Tired."


"Well why don't you go lay down for a while, I'll call ya when lunch is ready."


"Okay," Bo quickly agreed.


"What took y'all so long?" Daisy asked her uncle as they stood watching Bo walk inside.


"We had to go to the sheriff's office first so Bo could make a statement."


"Oh, no wonder he's tired," she said sympathetically.


"Uncle Jesse, what'd Rosco want?" Luke asked.


Swallowing hard, Jesse braced himself for Luke's reaction. "He wanted to warn me that with Bo not able to say it was Dale that hurt him it might make it harder to prove the boy is guilty."


"What?" Luke yelled. "Hell even if Bo can't say for sure, I can, there ain't no mistaking what Dale planned to do. He looked right at me Uncle Jesse, told me I was too late and pulled the chair out from under Bo's feet."


"I know Luke," Jesse said. "Rosco ain't saying he thinks the boy is innocent, just that it might be a little harder to prove now. He was trying to be helpful son, he didn't want us taken by surprise if things go wrong."


"Alright, sorry I yelled," Luke apologized.


"It's okay son, I know it's been a hard couple of days for you too. In fact, I think you should probably go lay down and have a nap yourself."


"Yes sir," Luke agreed.


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Harry Winston examined the documents before him, planning his strategy in defending his client. As he read the police reports and victim statement a smile spread across his face. "Sally," he said over the intercom, "call Mr. and Mrs. Richardson, ask them if they could come to the office as soon as possible."


"Yes sir."


A short time later Carl and Sandra Richardson arrived at the lawyer's office. They were quickly ushered into the back by Sally, both of them wondering what was so urgent.


"Carl, Sandra, please have a seat...thank you Sally that'll be all," he said to his secretary, dismissing her.


"Mr. Winston, Sally said you needed to see us," Carl said.


"Yes sir, I have some good news for you," Harry said with a smile.


"Good news?"


"I've been going over the police reports and the statement from the victim, it seems that the only real evidence against your son is the fact that he was in the house where Bo Duke was found."


"I don't understand, the sheriff said that Dale tortured Bo and tried to kill him," Carl said.


"There's no actual proof of that, the victim himself says it was his former teacher Jonas Wyndham."


"So what are you saying exactly Mr. Winston?" Sandra asked.


"I'm saying that the only real evidence is the statements by Luke Duke and Cooter Davenport regarding Dale's actions when they arrived. I intend to argue that they misunderstood, that Dale wasn't trying to kill Bo, that he was in fact trying to help his friend."


"Help him? Do you really expect anybody to believe that Dale pulled that chair away accidently?" Carl asked incredulously.


"No sir, I intend to claim that Dale pulled the chair away on purpose, but that it was a misguided attempt to help his friend to end his life, as per his wishes."


"No!" Sandra said, her voice rising in anger.


"Excuse me?" Mr. Winston asked, startled by her anger. "I thought you'd be pleased," he began, confused by her reaction.


"Pleased? Why would we be pleased that you want to help our son go free instead of getting the help he needs? What do you suppose will happen if Dale is allowed to go free without receiving help?" Sandra asked.


"Mrs. Richardson...Sandra, it's my job to prepare the best defense for my client that I can, it isn't my job to worry about what happens once he gains his freedom."


"So you don't care that if you get him freed with this defense he'll most likely go after Bo Duke again, that he might succeed in killing him this time," Sandra asked, outraged by Harry's callousness.


"It doesn't matter if I care Mrs. Richardson, I have to do what is best for my client."


"What's best for my son is that he be given the help he needs," Sandra responded.


"My wife is right Mr. Winston, we don't want you to use that defense for Dale," Carl added.


"Well luckily for Dale, it doesn't matter what you want, he's my client and I will do what's best for him. Good day," Harry coldly dismissed them, amazed and offended by their reactions.


"Dale may be your client, but I'm paying for your services," Carl informed him. "As of this moment, consider yourself fired," he firmly told Harry. Taking his wife by the arm, he led her from the lawyer's office, intent on finding a lawyer who understood what was truly best for Dale.


TBC


I know I keep saying this, but I really am sorry for the delay in the update. I seem to have too many fires and not enough irons, I will try to make the next update quicker. Please feed the muse with reviews. Thank you.