A full week had passed and still was no sign of T.K. The milk carton pics and flyers weren't any use, nor was the town search. It would be inevitable that the Loud kids would stop their search permanently. It was midday as the kids walked past their doorway in hopelessness. "Ugh, there is no sign of T.K. anywhere in this town!" Lynn complained, throwing down the pack of flyers in frustration.

Luna nodded as she walked into the living room, "You said it, luv. That lil' bugger is more slippery than a greased seal."

"You ain't lying, Luna. Our friends, neighbors, and townspeople hadn't been any help either," Lola agreed.

"Although, a greased seal does sound mighty slippery," Lana informed, clearly off subject.

Lori rolled her eyes, "We should just give up. The little squirt could be in another city by now."

"Don't say that. Lori! We've just need to keep our heads up. We'll find him soon, I promise," Lincoln reassured.

Lori wasn't buying it, "Oh yeah? Get real, Lincoln! Like I said, he could be in another city, or worst case scenario, he could be literally dead!"

The others gasped at the outburst and they wasted no time calling her out on her display of honesty.

"Lori! What the heck?!" Lynn cried.

"Yeah!" Luan added

"Seriously, Lori? How could you say that?" Leni asked.

Lori shook her head, "Seriously, guys, I said worst case scenario. It isn't like that I meant it."

"But Lori you shouldn't say stuff like that," Lincoln informed.

"Whatever," Lori brushed off.

"GUYS, COME QUICK! THERE'S SOMETHING ON THE NEWS ABOUT T.K.!" Luna called out, waving the others over to her. The others rushed into the living room, where Luna was pointing to the T.V. "The news crew just got intel about T.K.'s location," Luna explained.

Leni tilted her head, "What's intel?"

"Intel. Intelligence. The information about T.K.'s whereabouts," Lisa defined.

Lana put both of her hands onto to their mouths, "Shush. I'm tryin' to hear!"

On the T.V., it showed a newswoman and her cameraman at the bus depot. The newswoman, Tori Wayne, was interviewing the same bus driver that escorted T.K. about a week ago.

"On afternoon news, there's an update on the recently missing child, Terrence Kelli Mutombo. Next to me is the bus driver who unwittingly drove the boy out of town," Tori explained.

The bus driver groaned, "Hey in my defense, it was on my last hour of the night. I was dead tired."

"Blah, blah, blah. When is she going to tell us about T.K.?" Lynn asked.

"Anyway, one does have the vital question; where is Terrence Mutombo? Sir, do you remember where you took the boy?" Tori pried, placing the microphone close to the bus driver's face.

The bus driver held his chin in thought, "Well he didn't say a specific location. All he said was, "Get me outta this town," So, I took him to Barkley, which is eight miles from here."

"There you have it folks. There's still hope for the child. Do you know where he went afterwards, sir?" Tori asked

The bus driver shook his head, "Nope, that was the last I saw of him."

"Thank you, sir. Well all of you heard it right here folks. Mutombo's in Barkley, but with no further answers, this is still a low percentage of finding him. This is Tori Wayne, signing off on Channel Six News. Have a good day!" Tori exclaimed.

"Wow, Barkley! That farther than you ran, Lori," Luna compared.

Lori put her hands on her hips, "Hey, just as you know, beyond the town limits is far for me. I just got hungry and came home."

"I guess the news team really BUS-ted this case wide open," Luan joked.

Lincoln put on a determined face, "Well that settles it! We're going to Barkley!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. What makes you sure that we can go to Barkley, Lincoln?" Lori interjected.

"Well, one: Mom and Dad are gone on a week long cruise, and two, the longer he's out there, the more likely he's going to get hurt. Or in your case, killed! So who's with me?" Lincoln called, standing on the table for dramatic effect.

"We are!" The others but Lori answered.

Lori rolled her eyes, "Ugh, fine. We'll leave in the morning because I'm literally too tired from driving all day."

Author's Notes: The search is back on! Hope you've enjoy this chapter. I'll see you on the next one. Review, favorite, and all that good mess.

Tha Numbah One Stunna, Out!