Joe was quite pleased with himself. He felt a bit out of place without his letterman's sweater, but Iola had talked up a storm about his hair, and the expression on Frank's face when he saw him was priceless. Joe shuddered to think of what his mother would say if she ever saw him dressed this way.
After school, Joe and the guys rode to the hospital in Adam Bigg's monster of a car. It was a bizarre hybrid of different cars, and looked a mess, but it was, according to all three boys, "the fastest machine on the eastern seaboard."
They visited Elijah first, who was sitting up and quite cheerful. "Really, it's a good thing," he said about his injury, "it made my Ma so worried about me, she forgot all about the mess I made with her good china. She just left, actually."
"What did you do with her good china?" Joe asked, curious.
Eli grinned sheepishly. "I set them all up on the backyard fence, and shot every single piece with my old man's six-shooter. They were both furious, but mostly Ma. Not anymore!" He proclaimed.
The guys laughed, and Joe chuckled, though he was confused at Eli's actions. Then again, he struggled to understand any of the grease boys.
Eli further explained that he should be let out of the hospital that afternoon, with just a sling to keep the wound still. The boys congratulated him, and set off to find Danny's room.
Paul was napping in the chair and snoring loudly. Danny was in a very messy state. He was clearly a strong teenager, but covered in bruises and tubes as he was, the mood among them grew solemn very fast.
"Poor Danny," Ron said with his hands shoved into his jacket pockets. "He better wake up soon. I'm going to murder the mug what did this."
Joe shook his head. "Ronnie, that ain't the right way to deal with this." (Joe heard himself. "Aint?" He was clearly losing his grip on proper grammar. He was spending too much time with these guys.)
"I think Paul would want you to deal with this the proper way." Joe proposed.
At the mention of his name, Paul started and awoke. "Oh. Hello boys, he spoke with a gruff but soft voice. "Have you visited Eli yet?"
They nodded, and Adam said, "He should be released this afternoon. With the meds, he's not in any pain or nothing."
"Good, good…" Paul trailed off, clearly deep in thought, staring at Danny.
"I'm sorry I ever put any of you boys in danger. If I just knew who was doing this, maybe I could stop them-"
Ron shook his head, "It's okay Paul. We're still kickin', and our man Joey here" (he clapped his hand on Joe's back), "is gonna solve this."
Joe nodded. "My Dad and Frank should be finding the car the shooter drove right now. The thing is, sir, we're going to need to know about your past. Why did you change your name? What happened in prison? Do you know of anyone who would wish you ill?"
Paul was a leathery man with heavy eyebrows and jowls that would make a hound dog jealous. He always looked sad and concerned, but the effect was heightened when he actually was. He glanced at the boys around him, and said in a low tone, "Well I don't know if I have any enemies per say, but I did know some folks on the wrong side of the law."
Paul stood up and dusted off his trousers. "I reckon we'd better head someplace more private. Mine is a long tale, and it sure ain't a happy one."