CALHOUN, GA. - The television was on and one-third of a cup of beer sat near his open laptop when he left his temporary home at the Royal Inn Motel.
Police say Paul Buchannon, 36, left the motel, located off Georgia Highway 53, around 6 p.m. Thursday. From there, police say he drove about four miles to the home of Christy McKnight, 40, a woman he was romantically involved with who lived on U.S. Highway 41.
At her house, he reportedly shot her teenage son and nephew and abducted her, driving away in a black Camaro.
One of the wounded teens hobbled two blocks from the house to the Gordon County Sheriff's Office and flagged down a deputy, said Chief Deputy Robert Paris.
Police found the Camaro parked and abandoned near railroad tracks off Highway 41 Thursday night. Mc-Knight's body was sprawled across the tracks with a bullet in her head.
Buchannon now faces charges of murder, kidnapping, aggravated assault and firearms violations.
"This act of violence is tragic," Sheriff Mitch Ralston said.
McKnight's son, Dustin Henderson, 17, and nephew, Cody Adams, 19, are in the hospital, Ralston said, but he wouldn't comment on their status.
Police are still trying to figure out a motive for Buchannon's reported outburst of violence. Ralston said the man had a previous domestic violence charge from another county but wouldn't confirm if it involved McKnight.
Dozens of armed law officers, including deputies from Whitfield County, several state and local agencies and a helicopter from the Georgia Aviation Authority, spent most of Thursday night searching for Buchannon, reports show.
A police dog tracked him to the woods near the Hill City crossroads, Ralston said. When officers tried to stop him, Buchannon pointed a weapon in their direction and was shot several times, Ralston said.
Buchannon was airlifted to Erlanger hospital and reported to be in surgery Friday, according to Georgia Bureau of Investigation spokesman John Bankhead.
Ralston said two Whitfield County officers were guarding his room.
GBI is providing help at all three crime scenes - the house, the railroad tracks and the woods - as well as investigating the Georgia Department of Corrections officer and the Whitfield County sheriff's deputy involved in the shooting, Bankhead said. He said it's against policy to release the names of the officers involved.
Buchannon had lived at the Royal Motel for four months. Neighbors said they were shocked to hear the reports early Friday morning.
"He was quiet, stayed to himself," said Jason Barron, who is staying three rooms down from Buchannon.
Motel manager Jayesh Patel said he hired Buchannon to do work in the rooms and Buchannon also worked down the road at Ryan's.
"My kids knew him," Patel said. "He was a friendly guy."