Lou Carmody/Season 2

### Bad Mother

Gunbarrel, Colorado. 8 years have passed, and Lou has settled into a trailer home with Vic and their son, Wayne. They’ve set up a bike shop, where Vic works on design. Lou and Wayne return home with a new video game: 2K20. Lou wonders how he got so lucky, and Vic tells him that she’s only with him for his comic collection. Wayne then tells his father that he’s too old to play the game with him. Completely unaware of his mother’s past, Wayne asks who Charlie Manx is after seeing a news report of his death. He supposedly died in his hospital bed after spending the last 8 years in a coma. Vic insists that she’s fine, though she takes the truck, claiming that she has to clear her mind.

Vic returns home with the Triumph from Sam's. She tells Lou that it’s her new Knife, and it’ll allow her to travel the Shorter Way. She believes that she conjured the bike, which excites Lou. He compares them to Han and Leia and Rey and Finn. Vic wants to use the bike to find Charlie Manx. Lou reminds Vic that he’s dead and asks if she’s been drinking. Because every Christmas, she nearly drinks herself to death and starts to hear phones and voices. Vic insists that this isn’t like Christmas, however, she is determined to find out if Manx is dead. Lou tells Vic that now that they’re free of Charlie Manx, they can finally start to consider making things legal, between themselves and with Wayne. She assures him that this is what she wants as well and kisses Lou. As Lou heads out for work, she tells him that she’ll pick Wayne up from school, as she works on the bike. Lou suggests a family name, trying out "Team Carqueen" , "Team McCarmody," and "Team Carqueemody."

Lou confronts Vic and reminds her that she was supposed to pick Wayne up from school. He tells her that the other moms were there and asks if she’s coming to his game. She promises him she’ll be there. Lou then asks Vic to talk about whatever is bothering her. She claims she merely lost track of time. While Lou doesn’t know what it is that Vic was hoping to find, he was hoping that he and Wayne would be enough for her.

Vic lies awake in bed. She kisses Lou awake and they have sex. Afterward, she apologizes for her actions yesterday. She tells him that he and Wayne are enough. They’re much more than she deserves, in fact. Lou tells Vic that she deserves so much more than shacking up with him. While Vic has made a lot of mistakes in her life, Lou isn’t one. She then tells him that it’s "Team McCarmody" forever. Vic tells Lou to get ready for work and she’ll take Wayne to school.

Lou returns home to find out that Vic has unintentionally set their home on fire. He sits near an ambulance with Wayne as Vic arrives. She greets Wayne with a hug, though Lou doesn’t acknowledge her. Vic, Lou, and Wayne are forced to spend the night in a motel. After putting Wayne to bed, Vic apologies for her recent actions, though Lou is beyond upset. He accuses Vic of always having one foot out the door. Both he and Wayne can see it. He can’t believe that she got drunk in front of Wayne and set the house on fire. He questions why she needed to know that Manx was alive so badly. Vic recalls Maggie telling her that every gift comes with a cost, and Vic believes that she’s now paying that cost at the expense of using her Bridge. Lou believes that Vic needs professional help. He’s even prepared to sell the bikes to pay for it. He promises her that they’ll figure it all out in the morning.

### The Night Road

As Wayne goes out front to play basketball, Lou warns him against taking off on his bike, like he did yesterday. Lou then gets a call from Linda, though he presumes it’s Vic and ignores her call. The lights begin to flicker outside of the garage as Bing pulls up to Carmody's Car Carma. Wayne informs him that a customer has arrived. Lou greets Bing, who claims that his bike isn’t working and is looking for assistance. Lou invites Bing inside his office to talk further.

Lou hands Bing back his ID, who has been living under the guise Ethan Anderson for the last eight years. As Lou heads outside to investigate Bing’s bike, he discovers that Wayne is missing and calls out to him. Bing offers to take his bike elsewhere if Lou doesn’t have time for him. Lou insists that won’t be necessary and hops on the back of the truck, where he sees Bing’s gas equipment in his backseat. Lou claims that he’s calling his supplier but in actuality calls Vic, but she doesn’t answer. Lou leaves her a coded message, telling Vic to check on a "1048 Fairbanks." He then asks Bing to help loosen the straps on the bike and hits hit him across the face with the strap, knocking him to the ground. Lou jumps off the back of the truck and falls to the ground as Bing grabs his leg. Lou kicks Bing in the face and runs off, calling out to Wayne. He then finds Wayne running through the woods.

Lou talks to the police following his encounter with Manx. Lou gets a call from Vic, who informs him that she’s talked to Tabitha Hutter, who has pulled some strings and arranged for two FBI agents to escort them to the airport. Tabitha will be there to pick them up and take them to her house. However, Vic intends to go after Manx. Lou worries that Manx will kill Vic. He wants her to join them, but Vic is determined to stop Manx, which angers Lou. He tells her that her actions aren’t heroic and that Wayne needs his mother. Vic goes after Manx nevertheless.

Lou and Wayne are taken to Tabitha's. Vic arrives soon thereafter. Neither of whom are happy with her. He asks if she’s visiting or staying. Vic announces that she has come to stay.

### The Lake House

Lou and Vic ask Wayne about his sleepwalking. However, he’s more concerned about when they’re going home. Vic tells him that they’re about to leave for his grandpa’s lake house. Lou compares it to the bat cave. Vic then tells Wayne that they can’t mention Manx to grandpa or anyone else they meet. Wayne explains that he already knows. Lou then gifts Wayne a brand new phone and tells him to get dressed. Vic and Lou go into the hallway, where Vic expresses her concern for Wayne. He’s never sleep walked before. Lou chalks it up to the fact that they’re on the run.

They arrive at Chris’ lake house. He greets Maggie and Lou, meeting them both for the first time.

As Lou pumps air into a blowup mattress, Vic brings him donuts. She tells him that her father is on board with the ANFO. Lou reveals that he wants to adopt Wayne officially. He fears that he’ll lose Wayne should something happen to Vic. She agrees that this is the right call. Lou explains that Wayne needs stability, which they can’t count on Vic for. Lou understands that she is traumatized from her previous encounters with Manx, but she can’t continue to use it as an excuse. He wants them to work, but if Vic can’t work out her problems, he fears the worst.

Lou, Wayne, and Chris go fishing in the lake. Wayne is reluctant to stab the worm to use as bait and so Chris offers an alternative.

Lou goes looking for Wayne after he wakes up and continues sleepwalking. Vic approaches Wayne, who while still asleep, whispers that "sometimes mom doesn’t like us." Lou takes Wayne back to bed, and Vic walks away disheartened.

Vic takes off her shoes and joins Lou and Wayne in the lake, splashing them both with water and enjoying time together as a family.

Vic thanks Lou. She recalls the time that she broke her ankle at the reservoir. Wayne was only two years old. The shop was busy, and Vic was laid up for weeks, but Lou kept everything under control. He and Wayne even dressed up as Madam Neutron and the Eternal Assassin, just to make Vic laugh. And no matter the mess she made, he’d always been kind and thoughtful She just doesn’t want to lose him. He wonders if she had chosen him if they had met randomly instead of her escaping from Sleigh House. She’s not sure, but she’s glad she did and she'd do it again. She then tells Lou that she wants to quit drinking and be the person that he and Wayne deserve.

Lou, Vic, and Chris bury the bombs at the driveway. They notice the agents headed their way, and so Chris tells the two of them to leave while he finishes up, giving Lou and Vic the detonator. They look over at the dock and notice Wayne sleepwalking towards the lake. As Vic recovers Wayne and takes him back inside, he reveals to Manx that he’s at Lake Passamaquoddy. Wayne then starts humming again, causing Vic to notice the candy cane in his hand.

Maggie leaves Tabitha another message, begging her to call back. Maggie reveals to Vic and Lou that she hasn't heard from Tabitha since she left the house. Both she and Vic know what happens to cops who cross Charlie Manx. She refuses to let Tabitha die and looks to her Tiles for answers. The lights flicker, as Maggie asks her Tiles if Tabitha is okay, much to Lou’s amazement. She spells out "HOUSE OF SLEEP." Vic realizes that Bing has Tabitha, just before Maggie has a seizure. Maggie recovers and reveals that she and Tabitha looked for the House of Sleep for years but could never find it. However, Vic can. Lou encourages her to go, and Maggie joins her. Vic gives Lou the detonator and kisses him goodbye.

As Lou stands by the window with the detonator, Wayne wakes up from his sleep and reveals that he told Charlie Manx where to find them. Lou then calls Vic and informs her.

### Bruce Wayne McQueen

After informing Vic that Wayne has been talking to Manx and informing him of their location, Lou assures Wayne that he did nothing wrong and that he’ll protect Wayne until Vic arrives. Chris tells Lou to stay inside with Wayne as he goes to tell the agents that they’ve been compromised. Lou tries to convince Chris to stay inside with them. ANFO is their only line of defense against Bing and Manx, who they reveal is still alive despite the reports of his death. Wayne insists that Manx is real, but Chris writes it off as a bad dream even as Lou explains that Manx is very much alive and coming to take Wayne. He then explains that the only way to stop Manx is by blowing up the Wraith. Still, Chris isn’t convinced and exits the house.

Outside, as Chris is approaching the agents, Ash and Chen open fire, shooting Chris in the leg, forcing him to take cover behind his truck, as he tries to explain that he’s the homeowner. Lou tells Wayne to get down, as he barricades the door, but Wayne watches from the window instead. Lou joins Wayne by the window and assures him that they’ll be okay. Lou and Wayne start to hear a hissing sound coming from within the house. Wayne remarks that it smells like cookies and giggles. However, Lou realizes that gas is being pumped inside the house and tells Wayne to hold his breath as they exit. However, they don’t get far, as Bing ambushes Lou, knocking him out with the gingerbread smoke.

Vic comes by and finds Lou on the ground. He’s weak, but he tells her that Bing has Wayne and hands her the detonator. Lou eventually gets to his feet and hits the Wraith window with an axe. He strikes the back window but doesn’t leave so much as a scratch. However, he does manage to crack the driver side window before Manx sneaks up from behind and strikes Lou over the head with the hammer. He then smashes Lou’s head into the window repeatedly. After Manx flees with Wayne, Lou is taken to the hospital.

### The Hourglass

Vic sits at Lou’s bedside. He wakes up, and she tells him that he had a heart attack. Lou asks about Wayne, and Vic informs him that the FBI lost Wayne’s phone signal. Lou questions how much time they have before Manx gets away. He tells her that together, they’ll fix her Triumph and save Wayne. Lou compares them to Han and Leia. And Vic’s bike to the Millennium Falcon.

Lou and Chris bring in Vic’s bike piece by piece. She can’t believe this is all that’s left of her Triumph. Vic is losing faith that they’ll repair the bike in time to save Wayne. She asks Lou if he remembers the kid in the back of the Wraith when they crossed paths with Manx outside of Sam’s. Lou remembers. Vic fears that by the time she finds Wayne, he’ll be like Bradley. However, Lou assures her that Wayne is strong and that they’ll find him.

That night, as Vic, Lou, and Chris work on the bike. Vic gets a call from Wayne, who reveals he’s stuck in the back of the Wraith, in a junkyard. It’s too dark for Wayne to see exactly where he’s at. He begs Vic to rescue him. Vic tells Wayne to keep fighting and that she’ll be there before he knows it.

### Chris McQueen

With Chris and Lou’s help, Vic manages to get the Triumph up and running again, though only momentarily before it shuts back off. The bike appears to be having electrical problems. Lou gives it a look and tells Vic to try again. She revs the bike up and after a few tries, it starts. Vic and Chris pack their bags with explosives and prepare to find Wayne. But before she leaves, she kisses Lou goodbye.

Lou, Vic, Maggie, Chris, and Linda sit in the waiting room of the police station. Tabitha tells Vic that Bing has confessed to several crimes, including kidnapping Wayne. Unfortunately, he refuses to give up any more information of Wayne’s whereabouts until he speaks with Vic. Chris and Linda advise her against it, but Lou tells her to do whatever feels right. And so Vic decides to speak with Bing.

Vic, Maggie, and Lou gaze upon the trees, each one with dozens of ornaments hanging from them, each representing a kid. Vic suddenly hears kids singing, but only she can hear them and goes to investigate. Lou tells Maggie that he likes being a dad. More than that, he likes being Wayne’s dad. Maggie assures him that he still is. She then pulls out her Tiles and asks if there’s a way to get the other kids back. Lou asks Maggie if she needs medicine given the amount of times she has burned herself, but she assures him she’ll fix it later. After asking if there was a way to save the Christmasland kids, Maggie’s Tiles spell out "WHEN SOULS FALL." Vic joins them and informs Maggie and Lou that Manx is on his way and that they need to hide.

Lou finds Wayne in the woods and hugs him. And for that moment, Wayne appears to be human again. He then bites Lou in the shoulder and runs off laughing.

### Welcome to Christmasland

Lou covers Chris’ body with his jacket before taking another look at the Triumph. He tells Vic he can fix the bike, but the rest will be up to her, indicating towards the bite mark on his shoulder from Wayne. Vic intends to ride her bike to Christmasland. Lou doesn’t want Vic to ride alone, but she insists it’s too dangerous. She tells Lou that he’s the best man she’s ever known and that she’ll bring Wayne back. They share a single kiss and then Vic tells Lou to call Tabitha and ensure that she has backup ready on her command. Before parting ways, Vic tells Lou that she loves him.

Lou and Tabitha are held up in a car, eating fast food, waiting for Vic to return. Lou remarks that he’s been waiting for Vic to return from fighting Manx for eight years. Tabitha hasn’t had a burger in a decade. She told herself that all the agents had to be "lean and mean." Lou jokes that he should probably quit as well given his heart stem. He promises he will when Vic and Wayne return. Tabitha agreed to help because of Maggie. When she saw the burns on Maggie’s arm, she told herself that she was done, and yet, she can’t turn away. Lou can relate, given that Vic burned the house down, and he stayed at her side. Though, he questions if that was out of genuine love for Vic or if he was scared of being alone. Nevertheless, Tabitha assures Lou that Vic will return with Wayne and Maggie.

### Bats

Vic returns from Christmasland with Wayne and gives him to Lou. Despite being brought back home, Wayne is still very much a monster, lunging at Tabitha.

Lou restrains Wayne. Tabitha then starts to hear children screaming. Wayne says that it’s Christmasland and runs off. They find him humming Christmas carols and staring at his ornament. Tabitha informs Lou that some people believe that souls can get trapped inside an object. Lou recalls Maggie’s Tiles saying "WHEN SOULS FALL." It must’ve been referring to the ornaments. Lou grabs Wayne while Tabitha smashes his ornament, which appears to cause him pain initially.

Lou comforts Wayne as he pukes uncontrollably whilst Tabitha breaks the remaining ornaments. Lou tells her to stop as he fears that she’s hurting Wayne, but Tabitha believes this to be the only way to save him.

Vic later returns with Maggie after destroying Manx and Christmasland. One month later, Vic, Lou, and Wayne have moved back into their home in Colorado. Vic catches Wayne trying to hide his food in his sleeve and says to him that he needs to eat. He tells her to let him go while holding a fork in his hand threateningly. Lou says that it’s alright and tells Wayne to clear his plate. Vic remarks that Wayne hasn’t eaten a normal meal in weeks. Lou asks how long it took for her to get over Manx. He reminds Vic that they’re all safe now.

Vic is having trouble sleeping, so she turns to her sketchpad. She draws a hero robot to protect Wayne and help find him when he’s lost. Lou reminds Vic that she found Wayne and tells her not to stay up too late.

After discovering that Manx’s body turned up in the lake along with the Wraith, Vic, Maggie, Lou, Wayne, Tabitha, and Linda, gathered at the scrapyard to watch the Wraith get compacted after Manx was cremated. Vic surmised that Manx and the Wraith were dumped in Haverhill because it’s where the Shorter Way originated, before her father helped destroy it when she was a kid.

Wayne draws a picture of himself and Millie at Christmasland. Lou and Vic enter his room, and he hides the picture under his pillow. Wayne asks when they are going home. Lou informs him that they’ll be in Haverhill for a while. Wayne claims to miss his friends, but Vic knows that he misses Christmasland. Admittedly, she used to miss Charlie Manx. She thought that chasing him was fun. She then notices the picture under the pillow. He reluctantly agrees to allow her to see the picture of him and Millie. Wayne believes that there’s something wrong with him. Vic tells him that it’s okay to feel that way. She knows the feeling. Vic makes a promise that they won’t run away anymore and that they won’t pretend to feel okay when they don't.