Michael was speechless. What he had just seen was an image that he would never be able to get out of his head. It would have been awful enough if the one responsible hadn't been his own father. Tears leaked from his eyes. What had happened to the daddy he used to know?

He and Chloe were taking Dottie back to Propwash Junction. Dusty's body was with the spies for investigation, and they said that they would return it to Propwash as soon as they were finished. The ride back to Propwash was much different from the ride leaving it. No one slept. No one spoke. No one hoped.

There was no more tension. No more fear. And no more life. Only grief.

Dottie was whimpering under Michael's wing, still clutching the piece of Dusty's tail that she had found. Michael wished that there were something he could do for her. He felt guilty for not figuring out the situation earlier, even though he had done all that he could do.

Dottie did not want to go back to Propwash, as she knew that she would have to tell her friends about what happened. No one wants to be the bringer of bad news. Michael didn't want to go home either. His dad would probably be there already, wondering where he was. After what he had just seen, he had no desire to see his dad again. Fortunately, they had decided it wasn't safe to go back home anyway, so he was going to stay in Propwash Junction.

Eventually, the tiny town came into sight. The citizens were just doing their everyday activities, oblivious to the horrible tragedy that had just happened. Those who weren't oblivious wished that they were. The only thing worse than not knowing was knowing.

Chloe finally touched down, and for a long moment, everything was still and silent. Then her door opened.

"Well, time to say goodbye…" she said. Her usually bright and cheerful voice was now lifeless and dull. Both Dottie and Michael rolled out sadly.

No one said much before she departed. Just then, a red car with green eyes drove up to them.

"Hey," she said, "are you Ripslinger's son?"

"Uh, yeah?" Michael replied.

"Propellerless-slinger, right?" Michael resisted the urge to hit her.

"Well, yes, and no. That's not what I prefer—"

"I don't care what name you prefer!" she interrupted. "I just want to know why you're in Propwash!" Michael jolted back in surprise. What was up with this lady?

"Well, it's kind of a long story, and it's none of your business anyway," he said, then began to turn and drive away. But the car just sped in front of him and blocked his path.

"Yes it is. Tell me!" she yelled. This disturbed Dottie; she did not recognize this car from anywhere.

"Okay, who even are you, and why are you harassing him? You don't live here either!" Dottie said. The car turned to her.

"I'm Katherine, and I'm an agent. I need to know what's going on!" Then Dottie remembered Chug talking about another agent named Katherine.

"Oh! Okay, then why didn't you just say so? Okay, here's what's going on. His dad teamed up with a group of criminals and kidnapped Dusty. He managed to figure everything out and brought a rescue team together. We found Dusty, but unfortunately he's dead now. Case closed. Goodbye."

They rolled away. Katherine didn't follow them; she seemed satisfied with the information she had just received.

Soon, Skipper and Chug noticed them and rushed up anxiously.

"Dottie!" Chug said. "What happened? Did you find Dusty? Is he okay?"

"What are you holding?" Skipper asked, looking at the orange object clutched tightly in her arms. Dottie sniffled; then she dropped the piece of metal and started bawling. This answered all of their questions. Both Chug and Skipper widened their eyes in horror and immediately started crying with her.

"Oh my God…" Skipper murmured. It was like he was having a nightmare about the worst-case scenario, but couldn't escape from it. It wasn't fair. The kid had merely been sleeping in his own hangar in a town that hadn't seen a murder case in twenty-three years when he was kidnapped and killed. The chances of that happening to anyone were very slim. And he did not even live to be twenty.

All because of Ripslinger. Skipper clenched his teeth. That son of a bitch will never get away with this.

However, Ripslinger and his friends weren't exactly happy either, and were targeting the small town a second time…