Dawn broke, signaling the start of another day.
Although they had said their goodbyes yesterday, Dennis and his wife still came to Mike's manor early this morning to see him off in person.
"Brat, take good care of yourself over there. If anything happens, remember to call us…"
After a day of adjustment, Dennis had reverted to "parental" mode. At this moment, he was holding Mike, giving him advice on living away from home.
"I know," Mike replied, then looked Dennis up and down and said, "You should also take care of your health and try to have a baby with Aunt Kelly soon…"
"Hmm?…" Dennis, who had been outmaneuvered, awkwardly rubbed his increasingly bulging beer belly and retorted stubbornly, "Brat, that's not something you should be concerned about. You just need to take care of yourself."
Saying that, he reached out to ruffle Mike's hair, as if to maintain his adult dignity.
As the saying goes, a man's head and a woman's waist are both off-limits for touching.
Mike, naturally, also didn't have the habit of letting a middle-aged man touch his head.
So, the two chased and dodged each other, circling the pickup truck.
Beside them, Ms. Kelly watched the two play with a smile on her face.
Behind the Dodge Pickup, Kenya was with his son, Kili, loading goods into the back of the truck.
Besides two large wooden barrels, each containing fifty kilograms of homemade red wine, the rest were vegetables and fruits grown on the farm.
They were considered local specialties.
"Young Master Quinn, everything is loaded," Uncle Kenya, who had finished loading, called out to Mike.
"Alright, thank you both for your trouble," Mike stopped and looked at the back of the truck, which was full of ingredients, and said.
"This is what we should do…" Kenya smiled and said, "Wishing Young Master a smooth journey!"
At this moment, Dennis, who had caught up from behind, put away his playful expression and sincerely said, "Kid, be careful on the road and take care of yourself."
"I know, Uncle Dennis. But you also need to strengthen your exercise…" Mike looked at Dennis, who was already sweating after only a few laps, then glanced at Kelly, and said with a hidden meaning.
It's inevitable for people in middle age to feel a lack of strength.
Seeing Dennis about to get angry after being hit where it hurt, Mike quickly jumped into the pickup truck, rolled down the window, and waved, "Uncle Dennis and Uncle Kenya, I'll leave the farm to you from now on."
"Goodbye—!"
As his voice fell, the Dodge Pickup launched forward, pulling out a puff of white smoke in the morning sun as it left the farm.
"This kid, he seems to have grown a lot over the past year. It seems we don't need to look after him anymore…"
Behind, Dennis held his wife's hand, watching the car drive away, a warm expression still on his face.
As evening arrived, Mike, who had been driving intermittently, returned to the forest path at the Texas border.
Driven by curiosity, he drove down a fork in the road to the cannibal's former lair.
"It seems the cannibal's matter has also been intentionally suppressed…"
The dense array of abandoned vehicles in the clearing had all disappeared. Even the cannibal's burnt-down cabin had been specially covered with earth.
No one would be able to tell that various terrible things had once happened here.
After another two hours, Mike, under the moonlight, arrived at the end of the forest path, at the small inn he had visited before.
By the moonlight, Mike saw that the traces of the small inn around the bend had also been cleaned up.
"What Jessie and they said before was true…" Mike, back in the pickup truck, breathed a sigh of relief.
The day before, he had received a call from Jessie and the other two.
During the call, the three stated that the local police had no intention of investigating the cannibal incident further.
Therefore, the three had also successfully left the town yesterday.
This method of handling was not necessarily bad news for Mike now.
Fighting and killing were still too dangerous for a sixteen-year-old boy.
Why not enjoy a peaceful and beautiful life?
Next, adhering to the principle of not causing trouble, Mike drove into Texas overnight, found a legitimate inn along the way, and checked in to rest.
The next day, after sleeping until noon, he had lunch at the inn before leisurely returning to Medford.
"Hi, Mike. How do you like my car?" Outside the Cooper family yard, Georgie was wiping down a white RV.
"Did you buy this car?" Mike looked at the RV, which appeared to be sixty to seventy percent new, with a surprised expression.
RVs are large vehicles, unlike regular commuter cars, and can meet people's living and resting needs inside.
Some luxuriously equipped RVs are even more comfortable than some residential houses.
Therefore, the prices of RVs are generally not low; even a used RV should cost tens of thousands.
"How is it? This car is pretty good, right—"
Seeing Mike's surprised expression, Georgie's desire to show off was satisfied. Then, he continued with a hint of pride, "This is a special offer car I bought through connections, and it cost a full three thousand five hundred dollars…"
"Want to go up and try it?"
Three thousand five hundred dollars should be all the money Georgie had, but this amount was not enough to buy an RV, unless there was something wrong with the car.
Conservatively estimated, Georgie was most likely scammed.
Having reached this conclusion, Mike was about to go and check it for him.
However, before he could climb into the RV, he was called by Connie, who had heard the commotion and come out.
"Mike, what's all this in your car?" Connie circled the pickup truck, then pulled Mike aside and whispered, "Don't bother with Georgie's broken car, he's having a conflict with the family because of it."
After giving Mike a knowing look, Connie deliberately pointed at the two large wooden barrels in the pickup truck and exclaimed in surprise, "These aren't filled with red wine, are they!"
It was during Connie's interruption that the rest of the Cooper family and little Paige all came out.
Missy even jumped into Mike's arms with a cheer.
"These are all local specialties I brought back from the farm, and those two barrels contain homemade red wine…" After comforting the little girl in his arms, Mike explained to the curious crowd.
"Everyone, try the fruit, it's home-grown…"
Next, Mike shared the fruits he had brought with everyone.
Connie, biting into a sweet apple, still had her eyes on the wooden barrels of red wine and suggested, "How about we have a dinner party tonight? I happen to have some excellent beef, and we can have steak platters with red wine…"
This suggestion was instantly approved by everyone. Afterwards, Connie pulled Mary aside to discuss the dinner menu.
There was still some time until dinner, but if they were preparing a big meal, starting now would be just right.
"Georgie, come help move the ingredients—"
Seeing that Georgie, after finishing his fruit, was about to go wipe his RV again, George loudly called out to him.
They had plenty of ingredients, and people to share the food with.
This leisurely afternoon, the Cooper family home was filled with a joyful atmosphere.