Tim watched the train leave and returned to the depot’s shade, surprised to find Norbert Hollister still there. He told Norbert to go, and after a brief exchange—marked by Norbert’s sarcasm and Tim’s firm insistence—Norbert left. Tim noted that Norbert rarely ventured far from his motel office, making his lingering presence unusual.

Tim went inside to find Orphan Annie in Mr. Jackson’s outer office, where Annie was riffling through Jackson’s paperwork and joking about a topless café punch card. Tim cautioned her to leave the office materials alone and asked about Luke.

Annie confirmed that Doc Roper was with Luke and that she had stopped the bleeding from Luke’s injured ear, which would now be permanently misshapen. She then delivered a grave warning: Luke’s parents had been murdered and Luke had been kidnapped by a conspiracy, the kind that arrives in black cars.

Tim referenced their ongoing talks about conspiracies and said he would discuss the matter with Sheriff John. Annie pressed the urgency, saying the conspirators would come “locked and loaded,” and cited the disappearance of a town in Maine, Jerusalem’s Lot, as a cautionary tale she said George Allman often mentioned.

At the door, Annie acknowledged Tim’s likely disbelief but insisted both she and Luke knew the truth. She told Tim to remember her warning: the men would come in black cars. Tim let her go, having heard and noted her concerns despite his skepticism.