A/N: Welcome to Saving The Circle M! A very "BIG THANK YOU" to all the readers who have stuck with me through the last story. I hope to make this exciting as all of the DOH characters get involved! Return to Rafter G Ranch is being re-written to improve the quality and flow. You will get the most out of this story if you read the previous two, so I will strive to get RRG back online quickly. Links and more information on the "Diaries" series can be found on my profile page! I appreciate all who read and/or review! ENJOY!

****Mild Language / Violence****

Chapter 1 – Prologue

There is no pillow so soft
as a clear conscience.

~French Proverb

After attempting to move Boss's couch back to his office, Cletus and Rosco managed to wedge the awkward piece of furniture in the doorway. Cletus had given up and left for the day. Boss needed to have a discussion with Rosco before he left the building so the two men retreated down the stairs to the basement. The cement and iron bars of the jail cells only echoed their voices, making a private conversation rather difficult.

Boss spoke in hushed tones, "Rosco, you numbskull! Try and keep up with what I'm saying here! I'm tryin' to tell you to bring me that thing that you don't have that ain't in the trunk of your patrol car!"

"Oh, you mean that gu-"

"DAT! Rosco!" Boss stepped closer and whispered urgently. "That dipstick is just upstairs! You gotta keep your voice down! If you two idiots hadn't blocked off my office we wouldn't be down here! How did Cletus manage to wedge my couch in my office doorway like that anyhow?"

Rosco described the scene with his hands, "See Cletus had one end and I had the other, but when we got the thing halfway through the door he went one way and I went-"

"Oh forget it! I should have known that even together the two of you ain't got half the brain of a goat! Since we can't go to my office you gotta watch what comes outta your mouth or you're gonna cost me a ton of simoleons!"

"Sorry little fat buddy," he replied quietly. "Why do you want that thing that I don't have that ain't in the trunk of my patrol car? I was supposed to hold onto it until Enos signs over the ranch, right?"

"Wrong." Boss replied.

"Wrong?"

"That's right." The flustered commissioner continued to explain. "You bring me that there item in question tomorrow and be sure there ain't nobody around. I'm gonna hang on to it for safekeeping."

Rosco plastered a feigned smile on his face and replied, "Whatever ya' say Boss! I'll have that thing that I ain't got for ya' tomorrow. I'm worn out like last year's laundry and I'm going home to get some sleep. That storm last night was just horrendous!"

For a moment, Rosco had considered trying to talk Boss Hogg out of implementing his latest scheme. However, his prior conversations on the subject had been in vain, only serving to upset and anger his brother-in-law. He feared Boss would demand the gun on the spot and that would ruin everything. Now that Boss wanted the gun tomorrow, he had no choice but to move ahead with the plan.

Boss slapped him on the back, "Now you just go right ahead and get some sleep, Rosco! I'll handle everything with that thing, including the conversation with Agent Patterson on Monday."

"P-Patterson?" Rosco crinkled his forehead. "But I thought we were going to talk more about that? Boss, I'm tellin' ya' I just don't trust that guy. I'm bein' serious, Travis is dangerous."

Footsteps could be heard coming down the stairs, "J.D.? Rosco? Are ya' down there?"

"Hush Rosco, it's Lulu!" Boss called to her, "Down here my little angel food cake!" As she came into view the commissioner revealed his softer side, the only part of him that was truly sincere. "Well, there's my darlin' little marshmallow! My, my don't you look pretty today! What brings ya' over here to see me sugarplum puddin'?"

Lulu came through the entryway with her bag in one hand and a stack of flyers in the other. "Oh, J.D.! Ain't ya' just so sweet?! I'm here about the fundraiser! How's my darling porkchop? MWAH!" she gave Boss a peck on the cheek then handed a flyer to Rosco. "Here, take a look at this! I've been so busy today but it's gonna be worth it! We're going to raise so much money!"

"What's this here?" Rosco glanced at the paper and his eyes locked on to the two words near the top.

Hazzard Orphanage Fundraiser
and Annual Fall Carnival
"Bachelor Auction"
Games - Craft Booths - Food
and much more!

At first he was stunned, then he bristled and finally defended his precarious position. "Ghit ghit! OH! No way Jose! Now Lulu, a man's gotta have his dignity!"

Lulu scowled and whined, "But Rosco, all the other women in this county got their single brothers to volunteer for the Bachelor Auction on Saturday. How is it gonna look when the head of the Orphanage Planning Committee can't even get her baby brother to help!?"

Rosco looked at his sister and bellowed, "It's gonna look like the Sheriff of this here county is too doggone busy to be bid on like some sow! I AIN'T doin' it! At my age it's plum embarassin'!"

She turned to Boss with a pout, "J.D.? What am I gonna do? So far we got Bo and Luke Duke, Darcy Kincaid, Cletus, Sam and Jim Tucker from the Circle M Ranch, plus Enos said that Jaxon MacFarland would volunteer. If his brother is out of the hospital by then I bet he's gonna volunteer, too! But just think about how I'm gonna look in front of the committee if my brother-"

"I ain't got a clue and I don't care!" Rosco snapped.

Lulu gasped as her jaw dropped, "OH! This is horrible! How am I gonna look in front of Enos's new wife? She just happens to be the wealthiest woman in Hazzard now! J.D.! I'm gonna look like a fool because my own brother ain't willin' to help out those poor children!"

When Lulu was finished her face was almost as purple as her dress from the frustration. Both men had shrunk down sheepishly and backed up against the bars of the cells.

Boss put a compassionate hand on his wife's arm, "Now, now my little marshmallow, Rosco's gonna do it as a special favor just for you, ain't ya' Rosco!"

Rosco jumped, "No! What? I am?"

"Yes, you are," he turned back to Lulu with a syrupy smile. "Because if he don't I'm gonna double his ticket quota!"

"Oh Rosco, do ya' mean it? You're gonna do it for your big sister?" Lulu gave him the same pleading look she had given all the other bachelors this morning.

"Oh good grief! All right," he grumbled. "I'll do it but if I get called away in the line of duty it ain't my fault! Now I gotta go, I gotta get some sleep."

Rosco left the room and as he walked upstairs he could hear Lulu chatting away about how she needed Boss's help to convince Jesse Duke to participate. As he reached the top of the stairs he found himself face to face with his deputy. The guilt hit him again like a two by four across the forehead.

"Hey Sheriff!" Enos said cheerfully. "Did ya' see Miss Lulu? She came in lookin' for ya'."

"Ghit ghit!" he clenched his fist. "Of course I saw Miss Lulu you dipstick! How can ya not see Miss Lulu! I'm goin' home and goin' to bed!" he continued on his course to the door.

Enos waved after him and said gleefully, "Bye now, Sheriff! Don't let th' bed bugs bite!"

Doggone it, why does he have to be so happy? "ENOS! Just because ya' done ran off and got yourself hitched, don't think it's gonna get ya' no extra time off! Ya' best be on time in the morning! Ya' ain't got no excuse for sleepin' in!"

Enos blushed, "Yes sir, Sheriff. I'll be here at 7:00!"

"Gyu gyu gyu…" Rosco muttered and headed out the door.

As he walked to the patrol car he felt the weight of the world pulling him down. He was exhausted. A vicious storm the night before had battered Hazzard County and as a result, the Sheriff was terribly sleep deprived. But instead of going home to bed, he was forced to take the first step of his plan. Climbing in the patrol car he drove out Highway 20 then headed south to Sweetwater. A short while later, Rosco approached the Finchburg County Line. Thanks to Boss and Miss Lulu, he had less than thirty minutes to reach the 1st Bank of Sweetwater before it closed for the day.

After overhearing Boss's conversation with FBI Agent Travis Patterson this morning, he knew that it was up to him to secure the evidence in a safe location. Rosco would be the only one to know where Steven Cunningham's gun was hidden. It was safest this way.

Boss had gone too far this time and was in over his head with Wallace Monroe. To get out from under the man's thumb, he came up with a crazy idea. Of all the schemes, greedy little plans and set-ups J.D. Hogg had come up with, this was by far one of the worst. Rosco couldn't stomach looking into the eyes of his deputy and it was wearing him down little by little each day.

The image of that girl behind bars sent a chill down his spine but strengthened his resolve. If Rosco was lucky he could keep her out of prison and still hold on to his badge and pathetically small retirement. Once the gun was safely hidden at the bank, Rosco would try again to reason with Boss before Agent Patterson returned to Hazzard on Monday.

He hoped that Boss would come to his senses but wondered if his brother-in-law was beginning to lose his marbles.

Boss made the plan sound so simple! He wanted to get his hands on the Circle M Ranch … the land left to Enos by the late Elizabeth O'Connell. But the manner of acquiring the ranch had forced Rosco into some serious soul searching.

This idea came up after the Kittredge Mine incident. To be successful, Boss needed to manipulate certain pieces of evidence that surrounded the double kidnapping. It would also mean exploiting Agent Patterson's bitterness towards one of the victims of the crime. In doing so he hoped to convince the Agent to charge Enos's new bride with murder … a case of "vigilante justice" as Boss called it.

Rosco sighed heavily as he thought of the second part of Boss Hogg's plan. Once charges against Jenny were imminent, Boss planned to send one of his thugs to Enos with a message:

"Sign over the Circle M Ranch in exchange for the evidence that will exonerate your wife."

Once Boss had control of the ranch, through a malleable third party of course, he would go after the resources and share the profit with Wallace Monroe. Monroe would be forever off of Boss Hogg's back; he was already out of Monroe's crosshairs for coming up with the plan. When it was all over, Boss would be rich beyond his dreams and the girl Enos loved with all his heart would go free. No real harm would be done and the deputy would simply have to find a new place to live with his wife.

"Humpf, ain't no way that's gonna work!"

Rosco knew better and Boss's plan was far from simple. It was downright reckless! Travis hated the MacFarland siblings and if he got the gun it would vanish forever. Monroe had already tried to kill Daisy Duke twice and the MacFarland siblings were still in danger from the man. If Jenny went to jail, or prison, she would be a sitting duck for Monroe! Why couldn't Boss see that far ahead?

Arriving at his destination, Rosco went to the back of the patrol car and opened the trunk. Pulling back the mat he picked up the shoebox and peeked inside. The gun was still in the bag marked "EVIDENCE" and it was considered missing from the Kittredge Mine incident. Rosco was alone when he found the gun that day. After the coroner removed Steven Cunningham's body, he discovered it had been underneath the man, buried in the leaves. He rubbed the back of his neck as he thought about what happened to his deputy that morning on the hill above the mine.

According to Enos's statement, Cunningham had fired on the deputy and missed. When he appeared out of the fog, he held Jenny at gunpoint as he choked her. Then he threatened to take her and leave. The two men were in a standoff with their weapons drawn. Without warning, Cunningham dropped the girl and lunged at Enos. During the struggle, the deputy lost his gun before the two men rolled off the trail and into the brush. The fight continued for control of Cunningham's weapon and in the scuffle, Enos was thrown violently to the ground. Cunningham then stood over him and aimed his gun … the same gun now in Rosco's possession.

Fortunately for Enos, despite the fact that Jenny was seriously injured, she managed to pull her .38 special from her boot, then shot and killed Cunningham before he fired his gun at Enos. After shooting the man, Jenny collapsed from her injuries.

The gun now in the shoebox had Cunningham's fingerprints on it and was the only piece of evidence to collaborate Enos's statement.

He closed the old shoebox and tucked it under his arm as he headed up the majestic looking stairs. Once inside the bank, Rosco crossed the tile floor and filled out the appropriate paperwork. A middle-aged woman walked with him into the vault where rows of brushed chrome doors of various sizes filled each wall. Walking to box 8236, he slipped his key in the lock as the teller slipped her key in the other.

Retrieving the safety deposit box, the woman looked at him over her glasses, "Will you need some privacy, sir?"

"Yes ma'am. I'd sure appreciate that."

"Right this way."

He followed the woman to a room where he was left alone to handle his business. Wiping the sweat from his forehead he ignored the thumping in his chest. Rosco quickly opened the metal box, emptied the contents and put the gun in the bottom, still sealed in the bag.

This is th' only way. I ain't got no choice.

Again wiping the sweat on his sleeve, he covered the gun with his personal papers then froze when he saw the small photo. He picked up the faded image and traced it with his finger. Instead of putting it in the box, he slipped it into his wallet then promptly put the memory out of his mind. Rosco closed the box, tossed the shoebox in the trash and breathed a sigh of relief. He left to find the teller and returned the box to the vault.

He walked out of the bank and into the late afternoon sun, instantly feeling better about being Rosco.

An hour later, Rosco was in the comfort of his bedroom. After changing into his pajamas, he retrieved the gold key labeled 8236. He pulled the old Bible off the shelf and blew off the years of dust as he chuckled to himself.

No one would look here.

Rosco opened the book to a random page. Psalm 82. A few verses seemed to jump off the page. He thought "do justice to the afflicted" and "rid them out of the hand of the wicked" eerily stood out. He put the key between the pages and returned the Bible to the shelf.

He fell into bed and put his head on the pillow, exhausted but relieved. At least he had done all he could and perhaps he would be able to protect Enos's happily-ever-after. He wondered exactly what had gotten into him lately.

Drake's wreck had hit him particularly hard, as did Daisy's reaction. As he stood in the storm and watch her sob, it reminded him that most people in this world had somebody … most people. Rosco glanced sadly at the empty pillow beside him and recalled the photo that was now tucked away in his wallet. His fairy tale with the happily-ever-after left this life a very long time ago.

Rosco found he thought way too often these days. Perhaps he was just getting old. He had served this county for how long? He stopped counting at thirty-five years. Now he was considering retirement. Most people didn't even remember when he was young. He hadn't even kissed a girl since…

Shoving the memories behind his facade of bitter indifference, he gladly closed his eyes and drifted to sleep. How ironic to find respite from his loneliness here ... unaccompanied in his room and deep in his slumber.

In his dreams, his happily-ever-after still lived on ... forever sweet and forever nineteen.

Special Agent Travis Patterson lay in his bed staring at the ceiling of his Atlanta apartment. His clock on the night table read 12:15AM. The sounds of the city would normally lull him to sleep, but instead they did nothing but exaggerate his feelings of loneliness. He crawled out of bed, pulled on his robe and went in search of his favorite beverage.

The lights from the city illuminated the room as he walked to the bar and poured a glass of scotch. Picking up the small pill bottle he retrieved two painkillers, popping them in his mouth and chasing them with the alcohol. He had undergone the simple surgery to repair the damage to his broken nose and tonight his face felt ten times its normal size.

"Watch your ass, Jaxon. I'm not done with you."

After swallowing the pills he took his drink and had a seat out on the balcony as he swirled the scotch in the crystal glass. He had never felt so old. Leaning back in his chair he stared out into the city below and thought about Bridgette MacFarland. He could still recall the day Beth O'Connell introduced her to him. Looking back he thought perhaps he loved her from the moment he saw her.

"Twelve years, baby. How could you just vanish?"

Gidget had walked away from their long-term relationship without any explanation. Travis knew her better than anyone and had pieced together the puzzle of her broken heart. After a fifteen-year separation, a series of unlikely circumstances converged, temporarily reuniting her with her surviving three children. Gidget's children rejected her and shattered her spirit, causing her to run from anything or anyone that reminded her of the past … including him.

Travis swore under his breath and raised the drink to his lips. He was painfully aware that Gidget had abandoned her three children at a very young age, but they could have at least tried to understand! In his opinion, when they were reunited with their mother, the three MacFarland siblings didn't seem to care about her sacrifices.

During three years of undercover work within Monroe's organization, Gidget eventually provided the FBI with enough evidence to put Wallace Monroe in prison … if they could find him. Gidget found proof that Monroe was behind the killing of a very high profile investment broker while in the Witness Protection Program. She even found evidence that Monroe ordered the hit on the MacFarland siblings … Gidget's children.

Gidget continued to work from inside Monroe's organization to protect the MacFarland siblings. She would pass Travis information through Cynthia. In turn, Travis would take the information and spoon-feed it to Jaxon, Jenny's twin brother. They did this for months to keep them alive.

"Ungrateful brats."

Then this past June, she learned of a scheduled hit to kill Daisy Duke, Enos Strate and Commissioner J.D. Hogg in Hazzard. The MacFarland siblings intervened and saved their lives, but were unaware that their mother was risking her life to keep them safe. Travis had a long list of people with which he had a bone to pick over Gidget. Jenny was first on that list. There was also room for the others: her brothers Jaxon and Drake, Cynthia Alcott, Enos Strate, Luke Duke and even the Rafferty couple.

He swore again as he recalled the response of each child to Gidget's return. It was her daughter who dealt the harshest blow. At their reunion, Jenny refused to speak or even look at her mother. When she finally opened her foul mouth, with a few short words she revealed an unknown truth to Gidget that broke her heart and turned her two sons against her forever. So what? The brat was under the bed. She was only ten and probably heard and saw things incorrectly! What about Gidget's pain?

Travis was bitter, a shadow of the just lawman he had been only a few weeks ago. He once thought of Jaxon as a son. He guffawed at the absurdity of that thought and swallowed another gulp of alcohol. When Jaxon broke his nose and accused him of "whoring out" Gidget, which was the final act that caused her to run, Jaxon was scratched off what Travis called his "give a damn" list.

After twelve years of waiting, ending up alone and angry was not the plan.

While he held all Gidget's children responsible for his misery, Jenny had hurt Gidget the deepest. She had re-connected with her sons only to have Jenny rip them away … with no thought of what her mother had suffered at the hands of their father, Ian MacFarland.

A snarl escaped as he thought about Jenny and he emptied his glass in one last gulp. Now Jenny was living happily-ever-after, married to Deputy Enos Strate. That was FAR from fair.

A telephone call early this morning had him considering actions he wouldn't normally pursue. It had been a call from Commissioner Hogg, requesting further investigation on the Kittredge Mine incident, citing conspiracy and foul play.

With a heavy groan he got up and refilled his glass. Turning it up he swallowed the entire contents before refilling it again. He then staggered to his office where he read over the faxed statements sent by the County Commissioner. He sat his drink on the desk and pulled out a pad of paper and a pen. What had REALLY happened on the hill above the Kittredge Mine that morning?

He began to list the facts as he went over them in his mind and tried to prove the commissioner's claim.

Fact: Steven Cunningham, Monroe's right hand man, kidnapped two women, Daisy Duke and Jenny MacFarland. He demanded Deputy Strate turn over the Circle M Ranch to Abernathy Minerals.

Fact: Abernathy Minerals denies any knowledge or involvement and withdrew their offer to purchase the ranch.

Fact: The women were found at the Kittredge Mine in separate locations.

Fact: The search party had removed Daisy Duke from the hillside leaving Deputy Strate alone.

Fact: It was while Deputy Strate was alone that Cunningham appeared with Jenny. In the fight that followed, Strate's gun was dropped and was now in evidence.

Unconfirmed: Cunningham gained the upper hand in the fight and stood pointing his gun at the deputy.

Fact: Cunningham's gun has NOT been found.

Fact: Jenny admits that despite a serious head injury, she managed to pull her .38 special from her boot and shoot the man dead…

Unconfirmed: …in self-defense.

Fact: Jenny's .38 special was also NOT in evidence.

Travis looked at the list before him and began to add the additional information provided by Commissioner Hogg.

Cletus Hogg's statement was very helpful. A few sentences in Deputy Strate's statement could be taken another way and be incriminating as well. Travis put everything together, the unconfirmed facts, the statements; the missing guns, the sudden marriage and all that he needed to build a viable case was a motive. He picked up his pen and continued to write.

Fact: Cunningham murdered Jenny's eldest brother fifteen years ago, leading to her mother's abandonment, her father's obsessive behavior over their skills and training. Eighteen months ago, Cunningham was the one who murdered her father's partner (under Monroe's orders), threatening the three siblings. They separated and while now together, they were technically still on the run from Wallace Monroe.

MOTIVE: REVENGE.

There it was. Travis had a potential case of vigilante justice. He scoffed and tossed his pen aside then walked to the bar to pour the remaining scotch in his glass. The pills were kicking in and he was feeling warm and toasty, he wanted to keep that feeling going as long as he could. The heartache would still be there in the morning.

Eight years he had been on the Monroe case. Hogg had been under Monroe's thumb and was probably up to something more. He did nothing without profit attached. Perhaps Travis could also have his cake and eat it, too.

Maybe he could even get the deputy charged as an accessory. He had some serious thinking to do.

He threw back the last of his drink and returned to stare at the ceiling above his bed. Glancing over at the empty pillow beside him he again thought of Gidget. She should be here with him. They were supposed to be the ones who were married. They were supposed to enjoy being a newlywed couple.

Instead, it was Jenny and Enos who got the fairy tale.

Travis looked away from the pillow and hissed. "Tales can be re-written, Jennifer. Don't get too comfortable with your husband. If I can make it happen, you won't be with Enos long."

A/N: Enos is back...next chapter!