To Keep A Promise

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


Warnings: Angst, Violence, Disturbing Themes, Character Death


Rating: FRT


italics and/or * indicates thoughts


To Keep A Promise
Chapter 8


"Bo, um, how did he die?" Luke asked, not entirely sure he wanted to know.


"It was my fault, if I hadn't told then he'd be alive," Bo miserably answered.


"Did you kill him?"


"Might as well have," Bo replied, looking away from his cousin.


"Bo unless you actually killed him it ain't your fault." Luke waited for Bo to respond. When the silence continued, he reached over and taking a hold of Bo's chin, turned his face towards him. "Please look at me Bo," he softly said, when he saw his cousin's eyes were closed.


Bo shook his head, refusing to look at his cousin as he told the rest of his story. "You're wrong Luke, once you hear the rest of it, you'll know how wrong ya are."


"I can't convince you that it's not your fault until I know the rest, can I?" Luke asked. He hated that his baby cousin was having to relive a nightmare, but he knew that it had to be done. "Tell me Bo," he softly ordered.


Turning onto his side, Bo opened his eyes, staring at a space on the wall as the memories started to flow. "After Rosco left, Uncle Jesse took me to Dr. Appleby's office, even though I didn't want to go..."


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March


Bo climbed into the truck in a daze, not really aware of where he was until they passed the turnoff to the farm. "Uncle Jesse...are you sending me away? Please don't, I didn't mean to let him..."


Slamming on the brakes, Jesse pulled the truck to the side of the road and turned to his quickly panicing nephew. "No! Bo, son I would never send you away and I sure wouldn't for something that ain't your fault."


"Then...where are we going?" Bo asked.


"We're going to see the doctor, you need to be...looked over," Jesse softly explained.


"No, no, no, please don't make me go...I can't, don't want anybody to touch me, please Uncle Jesse," Bo begged.


Shifting in the seat, Jesse reached over and laid a comforting hand on Bo's shoulder. "I can't imagine what you're going through right now sprout, but if you don't let the doctor take care of you and get the evidence Rosco needs, then all of this was for nothing."


"I...ain't got any choice do I? Just like I didn't have any choice back there," Bo said, glancing in the direction they'd come from.


"Bo I'm not going to make you see the doctor if you don't want to, but if you don't, then Wyndham could get away with what he did." Jesse pointed out, hating that his boy was having to go through this.


"Okay, I'll ddddo it, you'll be there with me, wwwwon't you?" Bo nervously asked.


"As long as you want me there, I'll be there," Jesse assured him.


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"You're doing fine Bo, I'm almost done," Amos Appleby soothed as he worked to complete his exam of the teenager.


"How bad is it Amos?"


"The physical injuries aren't bad at all Jesse, just some bruises and there's a couple of scratches on his rectum," Amos softly answered. "Bo," Amos began, coming around to the front of the exam bed and facing the boy, "I need to take a few pictures now, okay?"


"Okkkay," Bo stuttered his acceptance.


Grabbing his instant camera, Amos took the necessary pictures as quickly as possible. Laying the pictures on a table that was hidden behind a curtain, he put the camera away before turning back to his patient. "All done Bo, I'm just going to talk to you uncle while you get dressed. Come to my office when you're ready," he instructed. Opening the door, he led Jesse down the hall to his office.


"Is he really gonna be okay?" Jesse asked, even before he took a seat.


"Physically yes, but Jesse the boy has been through a horrific ordeal, it's going to take time for him to recover."


"What can we do to help him?"


"Be there for him, listen to him when he wants to talk, but don't force him to. Keep telling him that it's not his fault whenever he starts thinking it is. You're going to need a lot of patience Jesse, I'll tell you that right now. There's not much I can do for him as a doctor, I will however give you a light sedative for him, but I only want him to take it when necessary. The last thing he needs is a dependence on pills," Amos said, writing out a prescription as he spoke.


"Can I come in?" Bo asked, peeking his head around the door.


"Of course Bo, come on in and have a seat," the doctor invited. "Do you have any questions son?"


"No," Bo whispered.


"Well I've finished talking to your uncle, so I suppose you're free to go then."


"Thank you Amos, for everything," Jesse said, shaking the doctor's hand.


"You're welcome Jesse."


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By lunch the next day, everybody in school knew that Mr. Wyndham had been arrested and the rumors about why were flying. It wasn't until two days later that Bo's name was being whispered in connection with the teacher's arrest. Rosco had done his best to keep the charges quiet, and when that failed, he tried to keep the name of the victim from becoming known. Hazzard was a small town though, and it didn't take long for everybody to know what the man had done and who his victim had been.


"Bo, um, well I just wanted to say...I'm really sorry you had to go through that and if you ever want to talk," Lori Beth offered, as she stood next to Bo's locker.


"Thhhanks," Bo stuttered, flushing with shame as yet another person reminded him of the assault. Grabbing his books he hurried outside to his pick-up. Flinging open the door, he started to shake when he saw what was lying on the seat. Tossing his books into the passenger seat, he carefully picked up the note. *Shut your mouth about Jonas Wyndham faggot or we will* Crumpling the note up, he tossed it into the floorboard and slid behind the wheel.


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Pretty, green-eyed Sara Richardson held her head high as she marched into the county jail. "Sheriff, I'd like to see Jonas Wyndham please," she requested.


Looking up from his paperwork, Rosco was surprised to see the Richardson girl standing in front of him. "Now Miss Sara why would you want to see him?"


"That would be my business, wouldn't it Sheriff?" she coldly asked.


"Yes ma'am, I suppose it would. Right this way," he said, leading her downstairs to the cells. "I'll be right upstairs, you holler if ya need anything," Rosco told her, not sure he should leave her alone.


"I'm sure I'll be fine Sheriff, thank you." Waiting until the sheriff had left, Sara studied the man she'd thought she knew.


"Sara honey I can explain," Jonas began the moment Rosco left.


"Did you do what they say?"


"It's not like they're making it sound..."Jonas protested, coming to his feet and grabbing the bars.


"So you didn't tell a student he would fail if he didn't have...if he wasn't intimate with you?"


"Of course not! He came to me Sara, said that if I didn't pass him he'd tell everybody that I tried to blackmail him into my bed," Jonas smoothly lied.


"Really? I've spoken to the prosecutor Jonas, he told me they have tape recordings."


Paling, Jonas sat back on the cot; he hadn't expected her to know that. "It's not my fault, he...he flaunted himself in front of me, how was I supposed to resist?"


"You disgust me Jonas Wyndham! I know Bo Duke, there is no way that he tempted you into doing what you did. I can't believe I've been dating you all these months, helped you to get a job at the high school and then you do something like this. How could you do that to that poor kid? Oh God!" she cried out as a thought occured to her. "My brother Dale, he's only a year older than Bo...did you ever try anything with him?"


"No! I would never do anything to hurt you Sara, please believe me," Jonas begged.


"I can't believe I let a monster like you ever touch me. I found out something when I was in Atlanta Jonas, I'm...going to have a baby, your baby."


"A baby? That's wonderful Sara..."


"Wonderful? I thought so too, until I came home and heard the news. I thought we'd get married Jonas, and that this baby would be the first of many, but it was all just a dream. I can't change the fact that I let you touch me, but I can free myself of being reminded of it. I'm leaving Hazzard for Atlanta this afternoon Jonas, and the first thing I'm doing when I get there is to make arrangements to give the baby up, just as soon as it's born. Good-bye Jonas." Turning on her heel, Sara stalked up the stairs, her head still held high as the tears streamed down her face.


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"It's a shame about the Richardson girl, Sheriff Little said there wasn't any indication about the cause of the accident," Rosco's voice floated down to the cells.


"Did he say if she suffered?" Boss asked, making a mental note to have flowers sent to the family.


"Can't be sure, but he said she was unconscious when he found her and she never woke up. This has been a terrible week Boss, first that teacher attacking a student and now that poor girl killed. You know she was here earlier to see him," Rosco said.


"Why would she want to see him?"


"I ain't real sure Boss, but she was crying when she came upstairs."


"I don't want you telling nobody about that Rosco, that lovely girl shouldn't have her name associated with the likes of him," J.D. ordered.


An hour later Rosco started down the stairs with a supper tray for the prisoner. "Jumpin Jehosphat!" Rosco cried out. Dropping the tray on the floor, he fumbled for the keys, unlocking the cell door as quickly as he could. The moment he could see Wyndham's face, he knew it was too late, his tongue was already swollen and his face was turning dark. Going upstairs, Rosco called for the coroner and grabbed an instant camera. Bracing himself, he climbed down the stairs again, knowing he would need pictures for the investigation. He had just finished with the pictures, when the county coroner came down the stairs with his assistant.


"Sheriff," he greeted as he entered the cell. Looking at the corpse, he saw that he had knotted a bedsheet around the bars of his cell near the ceiling. The other end had been wrapped around the neck of the prisoner, tied in such a way that only the victim himself could've tied it. "Suicide, what a waste," he mumbled to himself. "Did you already take pictures?"


"Yes sir, here they are," Rosco replied, handing him the pictures.


Looking through them Mark Lewis was satisfied that the requirements of the state had been met. "Alright, time of death...six-ten p.m.," he told his assistant. "Sheriff, could you support the body while I cut him down?"


"Yes sir."


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"Bo?" Jesse called, knocking on his nephew's door.


"Come in."


"I need to talk to you son," Jesse began, sitting down on Luke's bed.


"Did I do something wrong?" Bo asked.


"No, nothing like that. Rosco called...Wyndham...he's gone son, hung himself in his cell."


"What?! I...Uncle Jesse I never meant for something like that to happen."


"Bo it's not your fault," Jesse quickly assured, moving to the other bed and wrapping Bo in his arms.


"He'd be alive if I hadn't said anything," Bo protested.


"So you think you should've just let him get away with what he did to you? How many other boys would've gone through the same thing if you'd kept quiet?"


"But Uncle Jesse he shouldn't have to die for that."


"Bo it was his choice to take the coward's way out, not your's, please don't blame yourself, nobody else does."


"Are you sure it ain't my fault?"


"I'm sure sprout, and I ain't never lied to you, have I?"


"No, you've never lied. Thanks Uncle Jesse," Bo said, obviously relieved.


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Dale Richardson wasn't in school until the following week. The moment he arrived, he searched out his friends, talking to them about his sister's death. He made his first move in the locker room as they changed for gym class. Coming up behind Bo, he shoved the younger boy against the locker, hissing threats in his ear. "She's dead cause of you Duke, they both are and I'm gonna make you pay!"


Struggling to turn around, Bo shoved Dale away from him. "What are you talking about Dale? I didn't have anything to do with your sister's death," Bo protested.


"She was dating Wyndham! When she found out about your lies she was upset..."


"I didn't lie!"


"Yes you did, there ain't no way my sister could've been with a man like that. You lied about him and she was so upset that she wrecked her car. Look at what your lies did Bo, my sister is dead and Jonas killed himself cause of her. I'm gonna make you pay Bo, if it's the last thing I do!" Dale yelled, curling his hand into a fist and drawing back.


"Mr. Richardson! What is the meaning of this?" Coach Jackson demanded, grabbing the boy's fist in mid-swing.


"He caused my sister and Jonas Wyndham to die and I'm gonna make him pay," Dale snarled.


"I know you're upset son, but Bo didn't do anything wrong."


"Yes he did, and I'm gonna make sure everybody knows it too!" Jerking his hand free, Dale grabbed his gym bag and ran from the locker room.


TBC


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