~Hook Man~

_____________________________

"Your half-caff venti vanilla latte's getting cold over here, Francis." Dean told Sam who just got off the pay phone and was coming over to him and August.

"Bite me." Sam said.

Dean chuckled and looked to August who was standing in his lap, Dean was holding her up.

"So, anything?" Dean asked.

"I had them check the FBI's missing-persons databank. No John Does fitting dad's description. I even ran his plates for traffic violations." Sam stated.

"Sam, I'm telling you, I don't think Dad wants to be found." Dean said to his brother.

August babbled, leaning back against Deans chest.

"Check this out." Dean turned Sam's laptop to him. "News item out of plains courier, Ankeny, Iowa. It's only about 100 miles from here." Dean said.

"Mutilated body was found near the victims car parked on 9 mile road." Sam read the article.

"Keep reading." Dean said, taking a sip of his soda.

August reached for his cup.

"Authorities are unable to provide a realistic description of the killer. The sole eyewitness, whose name has been withheld, is quoted as saying the attacker was invisible." Sam finished reading.

"Could be something interesting." Dean stated, putting his cup to Augusts lips and slightly tilting it forwards, giving her a tiny sip.

"It could be nothing at all. One freaked out witness who didn't see anything doesn't mean it's the invisible man." Sam stated.

"But what if it is? Dad would check it out." Dean stated, gently running his fingers through Augusts hair.

Sam sighed.

~~~

Dean pulled the impala to a stop, and cut the engine. The brothers got out, and Dean got his daughter out and they met each other in front of the car.

"One more time. Why are we here?" Sam questioned his brother.

"Victim lived here." Dean stated.

The brothers walked over to some of the boys. A boy rolled out from under a van with a wrench in his hand.

"Nice wheels." Dean said. "We're your fraternity brothers from Ohio. We're new in town— transfers. Looking for a place to stay." He told them.

The boys eyed the baby and Dean noticed.

Dean raised his brows at them, silently asking if they had a problem.

They looked away.

~~~

Sam, Dean, and August came into a room and saw a boy painting himself purple.

"Who are you?" The boy asked after hearing them knock.

"We're your new roommates." Dean stated.

"Do me a favor? Get my back." The man said, holding the paintbrush out to Dean. "Big game today."

"He's the artist." Dean pointed his thumb in Sam's direction. "Things he can do with a brush..."

Sam gave his big brother a look, which Dean returned a smirk.

Sam reluctantly took the paintbrush while Dean took August and sat down on the couch.

"So..." Dean started. "Murph, is it true?"

"What?" The boy asked.

"We heard one of the guys here got killed last week." Dean stated, gently bouncing august on his leg.

The boy looked back at him.

"Yeah." He said.

"What happened?" Sam asked him.

"They're saying some psycho with a knife,  maybe a drifter passing through. Rich was a good guy." He stated.

"Rich was with somebody?" Sam questioned.

"No just somebody— Lori Sorensen." Murph stated.

"Who's Lori Sorensen?" Dean asked. "You missed a spot down on the back." Dean pointed at a spot to Sam.

Sam glared at him.

"Lori'a a freshman. She's a local. Super hot. And get this— she's a reverend's daughter."

"You wouldn't happen to know which church, would you?" Dean leaned forward, August looked up at him.

~~~

Sam and Dean walked into the church, August in Sam's arms.

Sam accidentally let the door slam behind them, and everyone turned to look at them.

Dean raised his hands at his brother.

The reverend continued talking.

Sam and Dean walked over to the seats, and sat down, Sam sat August down in his lap.

"The loss of a young person is particularly tragic." The reverend stated. "A life unlived is the saddest of passings. So, please, let us pray for peace, for guidance, and for the power to protect our children."

Everyone bowed their heads but Dean, until Sam elbowed him. Dean looked over at him, then bowed his head.

August looked up at Sam.

~~~

August babbled in Deans arms as he bounced her in his arms, nodding his head and humming at everything she said.

"Are you Lori?" Sam asked as they walked up to a girl.

"Yeah." She said after turning to look at them.

"My name is Sam. This is my brother, Dean, this is his daughter, August." Sam introduced them.

Dean gave a small smile.

"We just transferred here to the university." Sam told her.

"I saw you inside." Lori nodded.

"We don't want to bother you. We heard about what happened." Sam said.

"We wanted to say how sorry we were." Dean said.

"I kind of know what you're going through. I— I saw someone get hurt once. It's something you don't forget." Sam told her.

Dean looked at his brother, then down at his baby just before the Reverend came over to his daughter.

"Dad, this is Sam and Dean. They're new students. This is August, Deans baby." Lori told her father, introducing the Winchesters to him.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Sir." Dean held his hand out to the man. "I must say that was an inspiring sermon." He said after the reverend shook his hand.

"Thank you very much. It's so nice to find young people who are open to the lords message." The rev smiled.

"Listen, we're new in town, actually," Dean started as he led the reverend off, leaving Sam and Lori by themselves. "And we're looking for a...church group." He said.

~~~

"So you believe her?" Dean questioned his brother as they walked through the library

"I do." Sam confirmed. "There's just something in her eyes. And listen to this. She heard scratching on the roof and found the bloody body suspended upside down over the car." Sam explained.

"Bloody body suspended? That sounds like—"

"The hook man legend." Sam cut his brother off.

"That's one of the most famous urban legends ever. You don't think they we're dealing with the hook man." Dean said gently patting Augusts stomach as she babbled.

"Every urban legend has a source, a place where it all began." Sam stated.

"What about the phantom scratches and the tire punctures and the invisible killer?" Dean questioned.

"Maybe the hook man isn't a man at all. What if it's some kind of spirit?" Sam said.

Dean furrowed his brows slightly, glancing down at his baby who was still babbling against his chest.

~~~

"Here you go." The woman sat a box down at the brothers' table. "Arrest records going back to 1851." She set another box on their table.

Dean blew some dust off the top of one of the boxes and let out a small cough.

"Thanks." He smiled at the lady.

The woman smiled back and walked off.

"This is how you spent four good years of your life, huh?" Dean questioned his little brother.

"Welcome to higher education." Sam said as they opened the boxes.

August looked up at Sam from sitting in his lap, she reached up towards the box, trying to peek inside, but Sam gently pulled her back down earning a small whine from her.

"Hey, calm down, you're not interested in this." Sam told her. "Trust me." He ruffled her hair.

Dean chuckled a little.

~~~

"Hey, check this out." Sam finally spoke up after about an hour or so of looking.

"1862– a preacher named Jacob Karns was arrested for murder." Sam told his brother who had gotten up and come over to him and August. "He was so angry over the red-light district in town that one night he killed 13 prostitutes." Sam said. "Some of the deceased were found in their beds, sheets soaked with blood, others suspended upside down from the limbs of trees as a warning against sins of the flesh." He read.

"Get this— the murder weapon?" Dean started. "Looks like the preacher lost his hand in an accident, had it replaced with a silver hook." He said.

"Look where all this happened." Sam said.

"9 mile road."

"Same place where the frat boy was killed." Sam stated.

"Nice job, Dr. Venkman." Dean smirked. "Let's check it out." He said just before his eyes landed on August who was asleep in Sam's arms, her cheek pressed against his shoulder.

Dean smiled and chuckled.

"Somebody's down for her nap." Dean stated making Sam look at him, then slightly turn his head to look at August.

Sam couldn't help but smile.

"Alright, here, you take her." Sam said, gently starting to give the baby to her father.

"Why? She seems pretty satisfied with you, Uncle Sammy." Dean stated.

Sam chuckled again, and nodded.

Dean was right, August did take up a big liking to Sam, which was strange because she was never like that with anyone else.

August never really warmed up to anyone other than Dean, so it surprised him when she warmed up to Sam just like that.

Sam closed the file and handed it to Dean, then they started heading out of the library.

~~~

Dean pulled the impala to a stop, and he and Sam got out. They left August asleep in the car, because surely they wouldn't long.

Sam and Dean walked to the trunk and opened it, Dean grabbed a shotgun and handed it to his brother.

"If it's a spirit, buckshot won't do much good." Sam said.

"Yeah. Rock salt." Dean said, handing his brother bullets filled with rock salt.

"Hmm. Salt being a spirit deterrent." Sam said.

"Yeah." Dean hummed. "It won't kill 'em, but it'll slow 'em down." Dean stated, closing the trunk.

"That's pretty good. You and Dad think of this?" Sam asked.

"I told you, you don't have to be a college graduate to be a genius." Dean stated as they walked towards the woods.

They stopped when they heard rustling in the woods. Sam raised his shotgun towards the noise.

"Over there, over there." Dean said quietly.

Sam pointed the shotgun in that direction.

"Put the gun down now! Now!" An officer ran out of the woods, aiming his gun at the brothers. "Hands behind your head!"

Sam and Dean both immediately raised their hands.

"Wait, wait, wait! Okay, okay." Dean said, dropping the duffel bag from his shoulder.

"Get down on your knees! Come on, do it!" The man yelled at them, and they did it, their hands still raised.

"Get down on your bellies. Come on, do it." The officer told them.

Both brothers got down on their stomachs.

"He had the gun." Dean whined.

~~~

Dean carried August out of the sheriffs department.

"Saved your ass." Dean told his brother. "Talked the sheriff down to a fine, Dude. I'm Matlock."

"But how?" Sam questioned him.

"I told him you were a dumb-ass pledge and that we were hazing you." Dean chuckled, August smiling at him.

"What about the shotgun?" Sam asked.

"I said that you were hunting ghosts and that spirits are repelled by rock salt. You know, typical hell week prank." Dean shrugged.

"And he believed you?" Sam questioned.

"Well, you look like a dumb-ass pledge." Dean stated.

They walked to the car, and just then, a bunch of officers came running out of the building.

Sam and Dean watched them, and Dean opened Augusts door as the officers drove by in their police cars.

Sam and Dean looked at each other.

~~~

Dean parked the impala on the side of the road, behind the house where Lori's friend had been murdered.

Dean got August out of the car, and gave her her pink pacifier before heading up towards the house, Sam followed close behind.

They snuck around to the side of the house.

"Why would the hook man have come here?" Sam questioned, keeping his voice down. "This is a long way from 9 mile road."

"Maybe he's not haunting the scene of his crime. Maybe it's about something else." Dean stated.

Just then, two girls came out of the house, Dean cursed under his breath as they got against the wall.

Dean watched them for a moment before turning and seeing Sam climbing up the side of the house.

He used one of his hands to push Sam's foot up, holding August in his other arm.

Sam climbed up, then turned back to Dean and August, he held his hands down to his brother who passed August to him.

Sam pulled August to his chest, and crouched down, making his way to the other side of the roof while Dean climbed up.

Sam noticed a window, and he went over to it, Dean following. The younger brother lifted the window, surprised it was unlocked.

He gave August back to Dean, then climbed into the house through the window. Dean passed August through the window to Sam again, then climbed through himself.

Dean landed on his face on the floor with a grunt.

"Hey, be quiet, will you?" Sam told him.

"Me be quiet? You be quiet." Dean argued, still keeping his voice down.

August let out a tiny giggle, and both brothers smiled at her. Dean closed the window back, and Sam made his way to the slightly cracked door.

He peaked through it and saw a cop walking through the bedroom where the bloody crime scene was.

The officer left the room, and Sam pushed the door open. It creaked, and Sam and Dean both pulled back, but the officer never came back into the room.

The brothers made their way into the bedroom, Sam gently pushed Augusts head into his chest to keep her from seeing all the blood.

They stopped when they saw something carved into the wall in blood.

"Aren't you glad you didn't turn on the light?" Sam read. "That's right out of the legend." He stated.

"Yeah, that's classic hook man, alright." Dean said. "It's definitely a spirit." He tapped his nose.

"Yeah. I've never smelled ozone this strong before." Sam nodded.

Dean walked over to the window and peaked through the blinds seeing an officer walking by an ambulance.

"Hey, come here." Sam spoke up again making Dean look back at him, then come over to him and his daughter.

"Does that look familiar to you?" Sam asked, pointing at a symbol carved into the wall below the sentence.

Dean looked at it closely, then hummed.

~~~

"It's the same symbol." Sam stated as they looked at a picture of Jacob Karns' hook.

The same symbol that was carved into the wall, was carved into the side of the hook.

"Seems like it is the spirit of Jacob Karns." Sam said.

"Alright, let's find the dudes grave, salt and burn the bones, and put him down." Dean said, letting August smack the palms of his hands with her own.

"After execution, Jacob Karns was laid to rest in old north cemetery in an unmarked grave." Sam read off the paper.

Dean sighed.

"Super." He said sarcastically, leaning off the hood of the impala, holding August in his arms.

"Okay, so, we know it's Jacob Karns, but we still don't know where he'll manifest next. Or why." Sam said.

Dean furrowed his brows as he noticed a note behind his windshield wipers. He picked it up and looked at it.

"I'll take a wild guess about why." Dean said. "I think your friend Lori has something to do with this." He stated, opening the back door, and putting August in her car seat that was in the middle seat.

Sam slightly furrowed his brows.

~~~

Dean walked through the room full of people dancing and drinking.

"Man, you've been holding out on me." He stated to his little brother. "This college thing is awesome!" He said.

"This wasn't really my experience." Sam stated as he bounced August in his arms.

"Let me guess— library, studying, straight A's." Dean said.

Sam made a face and nodded.

"What a geek." Dean shook his head, leaning down to August. "Your uncle Sammys a geek!" He said to her in his baby voice making her smile. "Yes, he is!"

Sam rolled his eyes at his brother, and smacked him in the head.

August laughed, clapping her hands, Dean chuckled at her.

"Did you do your homework?" He asked Sam.

"Yeah, it was bugging me. So, how is the hook man tied with Lori? I think I came up with something." Sam said as they started walking through the crowd.

He handed Dean a paper, dean took it and started reading it aloud.

"1932– clergyman arrested for murder." Dean read, and flipped the page. "1967– Seminarian held in hippie rampage." He read.

"There's a pattern here." Sam stated. "In both cases, the suspect was a man of religion who openly preached against immorality and then found himself wanted for killings he claimed were the work of an invisible force, killings carried out— get this— with a sharp instrument." He told Dean.

"Whats the connection to Lori?" The older brother questioned.

"A man of religion who openly preaches against immortality." Sam stated.

Dean nodded in realization.

"Except, maybe this time instead of saving the whole town, he's trying to save his only daughter." Sam said.

"Reverend Sorenson." Dean stated. "Do you think he's summoning the spirit?"

"Maybe." Sam shrugged. "Or you know how a poltergeist can haunt a person instead of a place?"

"Yeah. The spirit latches onto the Reverends repressed emotions, feeds off them. Yeah, okay." Dean nodded.

"Without the Reverend ever even knowing it." Sam said.

"Either way, you should keep an eye on Lori tonight." Dean told him.

"What about you?" Sam asked.

"I'm gonna go see if I can find that unmarked grave. I'll take Auggie with me." Dean said, holding his hands out towards his baby.

Sam gave the girl to him, she smiled and reached up towards Deans face. Dean chuckled and kissed her nose making her laugh.

"Alright, say bye bye, uncle Sammy!" Dean gently took Augusts hand, waving it in Sams direction.

"Bye bye, Auggie." Sam chuckled.

Dean chuckled just before he carried August past his brother.

Sam lightly chuckled as they walked by him.

~~~

Dean walked through the cemetery carrying a flashlight, a duffel bag, a shovel, Augusts diaper bag, and Augusts carrier where the baby laid.

Dean had a lot on his hands. Literally. But he had learned over the time of being a father that he could carry more than he thought he could at one time.

He also learned that if you thought for a second that you were going to be longer than fifteen minutes with a baby, then you better take the diaper bag with you.

Augusts diaper bag contained of diapers, obviously, baby food, extra clothes, baby wipes, yogurt bites, extra hearing aid batteries, Augusts sippy cup, both of Augusts pacifiers, the pink one, and the purple one with butterflies on it, and a lot more stuff Dean kept in it just to be prepared for whatever else fatherhood threw at him.

To say the least, fatherhood had chucked its fair share of bricks at Dean.

Dean stopped walking as he heard rustling in the bushes. His grip on the baby carrier tightened as he looked around.

He then continued walking, being very aware of his surroundings. He stopped at the top of a small hill, and he shined his flashlight down at the bottom of it, his eyes landing on the grave he had been looking for.

"Here we go." Dean said, walking down to it. "Alright, August Jude, you ready for this?" He asked the baby, as if she would respond to him.

Instead, she smile at him, which was good enough for Dean.

~~~

August kicked her legs making her carrier rock back and forth a little while Dean dug the grave.

He had already shed his jacket, and was still sweating like crazy, he was out of breath, and finally stopped, looking to August who was grinning, entertaining herself by rocking her seat.

"Well, I'm glad one of us is having fun." Dean sighed, then went back to digging up the last bit dirt, grunting as he did so.

He finally got to the wooden coffin, and easily broke through it with the shovel.

"Hello, preacher." Dean said, sticking his shovel into the higher ground before climbing up out of the hole.

He got into the duffel bag, pulling out salt and gasoline. Dean got up, pouring both all over the bones of Jacob Karns. Once he did that, he picked up Augusts carrier, moving her further away from the grave, along with her diaper bag.

He then got out a box of matches, and lit one.

"Goodbye, Preacher." He said, then tossed the match in, the bones immediately catching fire.

~~~

Dean walked towards Sam who was at the end of a hallway, two cops stepped in front of Dean, stopping him from going through.

"Oh no, it's okay, that's my brother." Dean told them. "Hey, brother." He raised his free arm, waving Sam down.

August babbled quietly against Deans chest, his amulet tight in her grasp.

The officer Sam was talking with, turned to look at them.

"Let him through." The officer said to the two who had their hands on Dean.

"Thanks." Dean smiled and went through as soon as the officers released him.

Dean slightly rolled his eyes when he knew the officers couldn't see his face.

"Go ahead." The officer told Sam, who nodded and quickly went to his brother and niece.

"You okay?" Dean asked his little brother.

"Yeah." Sam nodded.

"What the hell happened?" Dean asked.

"Hook man."

"You saw him?"

"Damn right." Sam stated. "Why didn't you torch the bones?"

"What are you talking about? I did. Are you sure it's the spirit of Jacob Karns?" Dean questioned, gently bouncing August in his arms.

"Sure as hell looked like him. And that's not all. I don't think the spirit is latching onto the Reverend." Sam stated.

"Yeah, the guy wouldn't send the hook man after himself." Dean stated.

"I think it's latching onto Lori." Sam told him. "Last night she found out that her father is having an affair with a married woman."

"So what?" Dean asked.

"So, she's upset about it." Sam stated. "She's upset about the immorality of it. She told me she was raised to believe that if you do something wrong, you get punished." He said.

"Okay, so she's conflicted, and the spirit of Preacher Karns is latching onto her repressed emotions and maybe he's doing the punishing for her." Dean said.

"Right." Sam nodded. "Rich comes on too strong. Taylor tries to make her into a party girl. Dad has an affair."

"Remind me not to piss this girl off." Dean looked down at August who was dozing ever so slightly. "But I burned those bones. I buried them in salt. Why didn't they stop him?" He questioned his brother.

"You must've missed something."

"No, I burned everything in that coffin."

"Did you get the hook?" Sam asked.

"The hook?" Dean looked over at him.

"It was the murder weapon, and in a way it was part of him." Sam stated.

"So, like the bones, the hook is a source of his power." Dean said.

"So, if we find the hook..." Sam trailed off.

"We stop the hook man." The brothers spoke in unison.

~~~

"Here's something, I think." Dean spoke up as he took his pen out of his mouth. "Logbook, Iowa state penitentiary. Karns, Jacob— personal affects, disposition thereof." He read.

"Does it mention the hook?" Sam questioned, gently stroking Augusts hair as she sat in his lap.

"Upon execution, all earthly items shall be remanded to the prisoners house of worship, St. Barnabas church." Dean read from the book.

"Isn't that where Lori's father preaches?" Sam questioned.

"Yeah." Dean nodded.

"Where Lori lives?" Sam questioned.

"Maybe that's why the hook man's been haunting Reverends and Reverends' daughters for the past 200 years." Dean stated.

"Yeah, but if the hook were at the church or Lori's house, don't you think someone might've seen it? I mean, a blood-stained, silver-handled hook?" Sam questioned.

"Check the church records." Dean said, getting up from his chair.

~~~

"St. Barnabas donations, 1862." Sam started. "Received— silver-handled hook from state penitentiary. Reforged." He read.

Dean looked up at his brother from his own book, his hand rested against Augusts chest to keep her from falling forwards off his lap.

"They melted it down, made it into something else." Sam stated.

Dean closed his book.

~~~

The impala rolled to a stop just before Dean put it in park, and cut the engine.

Both brothers got out, and Sam got out Augusts carrier where she laid asleep, her pacifier in her mouth.

"Alright, we can't take any chances. Anything silver goes in the fire." Dean stated.

"I agree." Sam nodded. "Lori's still at the hospital. We'll have to break in."

"Alright, take your pick." Dean told him.

"I'll take the house." Sam said.

"Okay." Dean nodded, then smirked at his brother.

Sam brushed past him, starting towards the house.

"Hey." Dean spoke up again making Sam turn back to him. "Stay out of her underwear drawer." He turned and started towards the church with August.

Sam rolled his eyes.

~~~

Dean threw some salt into the fire, August babbled to him as she was now awake.

"Yeah?" Dean asked as he tossed an item into the fire. "Tell me all about it, August Jude." He looked over and smiled at her before throwing more things into the fire.

Dean froze and looked up as he heard the door creak, he looked up and saw his brother coming down the stairs with a bag full of things from Lori's house.

"I got everything that even looks silver." Sam told his brother.

"Better safe than sorry." Dean stated.

August laughed, reaching towards her uncle.

"Hey, Auggie." Sam smiled at her, tossing the bag down onto the floor.

Dean kept throwing things into the fire, just before they heard footsteps creaking upstairs.

"Move, move." Dean told his brother. "We'll be right back, August." He told his baby just before he and Sam rushed upstairs.

Dean already had his gun out and pointed as they opened the door and stepped out.

They saw Lori sitting in one of the pews, praying.

Dean lowered his gun, and Sam stepped further out. The brothers looked at each other, and Dean nodded for Sam to go and talk to the girl.

Sam started towards Lori, and Dean went back down into the basement to continue burning everything.

Dean walked back down the stairs and August smiled widely at him, giggling.

"Told you I'd be right back." Dean chuckled at her, going to the bag.

After a few minutes, Dean heard fighting upstairs. He grabbed his gun, and rushed back upstairs.

He ran through the halls until he saw his brother, Lori, and the Hook man.

"Sam, drop!" Dean yelled at him.

Sam got down and Dean shot the hook man, making him disappear.

"I thought we got all the silver." Sam stated.

"So did I." Dean said.

"Why is he still here?" Sam questioned.

"Maybe we missed something." Dean stated, looking around.

Sam looked back at Lori, seeing she had on a necklace.

"Lori, where did you get that chain?" He questioned her.

"My father gave it to me." She said.

"Where'd your dad get it?" Dean asked.

"He said it was a church heirloom. He gave it to me." Lori told them.

"Is it silver?" Sam asked her.

"Yes." She stated.

Sam took it and pulled it off from around her neck. He tossed it to Dean.

They looked up as they heard a long scratching noise. They watched the scratches appearing on the walls.

"Sam." Dean said, tossing him the gun while Sam tossed him the necklace.

Sam stood up and raised the gun towards the scratches on the wall, he shot at it, then he crouched down to Lori.

Dean ran down the stairs, breathing fast and heavy. August was whining.

Dean opened the furnace, and threw the necklace into the fire.

The necklace started burning and melting, Dean looked up towards the stairs. He grabbed Augusts carrier and rushed up the stairs, taking her with him.

He ran through the halls, and to Sam and Lori who were in the ground, but no Hook man in sight.

Dean smirked a little, putting his hand in Augusts grasp to calm her down.

~~~

"And you saw him, too, the man with the hook?" The sheriff questioned Dean who lightly bounced August in his arms.

"Yes, I told you. We all saw him. We fought him off, and then he ran." Dean told him.

"And that's all?" The sheriff asked.

"Yeah, that's all." Dean looked down at his baby.

"Listen, you and your brother—"

"Oh, don't worry. We're leaving town." Dean cut him off, going towards the parked impala.

Dean opened the back door, and put August in her car seat.

She grinned at him and her smiled back at her.

"Daddy loves you." Dean told her, kissing her head.

August giggled, reaching up towards his face as he buckled her in.

He closed her door as he leaned out, and he got into the drivers seat. He looked into his side mirror and saw Lori and Sam talking to each other.

He watched them for a moment, then Sam started walking towards the impala. Dean bit his lip, feeling somewhat guilty they had to leave.

Sam opened the passenger side door and slid into the seat, closing the door back. Dean looked over at him.

"We could stay." He said.

Sam just shook his head.

Dean sighed and glanced at Lori in the side mirror, he started up the impala, put it in drive, and started down the road, leaving the small town behind.

Thank you so much for reading!