Lynda had practically raced down with Tex after the race.

She needed to see Strip after his crash, to see that he was alright or that he was going to be.

She did get to talk to him quickly once Lightning finished pushing him off the track and before the medics took over. Once she was confident her husband was coherent and would live, which by what he was saying he was, she moved out of the way for the medics.

Lightning was out of his car when she went over to thank him. He had his helmet off and looked a little shaken from Strip's crash.

"Lightning, I just want to thank you for what you've done, it means a lot." She gave him a kiss on the cheek, not expecting him to understand everything that thank you meant.

"He's going to be alright, is he?"

"He's gonna be just fine."

Tex started walking over after checking on Strip himself, she knew he was going to want to talk to Lightning, so she left the young man and went to see her uncle and the folks from Radiator Springs. Mater saw her first.

"There's Miss Lynda! Hi Lyn."

"Hi Mater, its been awhile." They hugged, everyone greeted her with enthusiasm and asking if Strip was alright, she told them he was as alright as he could be after a crash like that.

Then there was her uncle.

"Hello Lyn, shouldn't you be over with your husband?" He nodded over to Strip's location.

"Aren't I allowed to come over and say hi to my uncle who's come out of hiding?"

"Well your husband was just in a pretty serious crash."

"And right now the paramedics are looking him over and loading him onto a stretcher to go into the ambulance, I don't want to be in the way. I'm not going to be over here long, I just wanted to see you, since you're here." She put a hand on her hip to make her point.

"Here I am, now why don't you go back over there and phone me once you know just what has happened to him."

"Uncle Jesse!"

"I know, I know, come here." He wrapped his arms around her and she buried her head into his shoulder. "Better?"

"Much, thank you daddy."

"Come now Lyn, dry those eyes," he wiped her tears away. "He's gunna be just fine. There's a lot more protection in those cars now then there was for me."

"I know, and I was talking to him, he says hi by the way and that he promises he didn't try to go out in style."

"Is that what he calls it? I'd keep that classification, secret. Now, go be with your husband. Once you know what hospital they're taking him to, and he gets checked out you can phone and get all caught up."

"Good because I want to know what happened this past week, with how the kid got you to do something mom never could."

He gave her a gentle push towards her husband. "Go, Lyn, we'll catch up in a different setting than beside the track."

"Okay, I'm going but I'm holding you to that."

"I wouldn't expect anything else."

"What was Lynda Weathers over here for?"

"To say hello, get comfort, take your pick."

"Why?"

"What are you? Five? Because her husband just had a fairly serious crash that she watched happen." Doc sighed at the sight of the kid's face.

"She's my niece, rookie."

"Wait! What?! Lynda Weathers, wife to The King, is your niece. What other secrets do you have hidden?"

"I'm sure there's a few of them."

oOo

When he got down to the pits the rookie McQueen was talking with Tex Dinoco, everyone was being held back as the track medics were getting Weathers out of his car and strapped onto a gurney, while Lynda was over talking to her uncle. He watched from the distance for a bit, until Lynda started heading back to her husband who was now secured to the gurney, sitting up right and talking to the press of all things. He always did have a cool head on his shoulders, not one to rile up easily. He didn't want to stop her from going to her husband, so he joined her.

"Uncle Joe, it's been awhile since you've been down here."

"I thought it would be right to come down and check on you and Strip after that race ended like that. Though I was going to come down to see your uncle anyways."

"I guess there's no real reason to keep calling him Uncle Aaron then, is there?" She smiled ruefully. He smiled back at her shaking his head.

"No, not really; besides, I've known who he was since your wedding and even then it didn't truly surprise me."

"I was horrible at keeping secrets when little, wasn't I?"

"No worse than your brothers, you all had said something that lead to my conclusion to that."

"Thank you for not saying anything."

"It's not my place to say anything about that. I'm sure he had his reasons for wanting to stay out of the spotlight. I have a feeling how he was treated after his crash had part to do with it."

"It did."

They were quiet for a moment, before he spoke again.

"Your father threw a right fit when I let him in."

"I'm sure he did." She said rolling her eyes. They had made it to Strip now.

"How're you doing there son?"

"Well, I've certainly have been better, but I'm a lot better than I could be too."

"That's good to hear. You just had to take a play out of Lynda's uncle's book to make your last race memorable, huh? It would have been memorable enough without you crashing you know?"

"Well, if you're going to go out, might as well do so in style. Not like I crashed on purpose, now did I?"

"That McQueen kid is something else, isn't he?"

"He certainly is, something big happened to him in Radiator Springs, he's not quite the same anymore."

"I think it's obvious, he and dad are good for each other. He got Uncle Jesse to actually come and participate in a race. Not even Aunt Emily could get him near anything race related."

"Lyn, I think we're long over due for a visit to Radiator Springs."

"You're right, we are. Once you're all healed up and cleared for travel, we'll take a road trip."

"That sounds like a wonderful way to kick off retirement."

Joe left Strip and Lynda as they started talking off on a tangent, and made his way over to the Rust-eze tent from one legend to another of mythic qualities.

"Consider me your official welcome back committee. You got a minute to talk?"

"Might as well." Jesse said shrugging.

"Lynda told me about Emily, I was sad to hear that she had passed. Your brother-in-law threw a fit when I let you in."

"I'm sure he did. How long have you known?"

"Lynda's wedding was what cinched it, but I had an inkling of an idea before that. First time I spent anytime with Lyn she kept telling me about you, she had such trouble calling you Aaron at first. She liked hearing that Louise Nash had beat her father in a race."

"She always did liked hearing about Lou."

"Guess I also wanted to say that I never did care about how they handled you not racing anymore. We shouldn't have blindsided you like that. Know that might be a bit late, but it's always bothered me."

"You did your best, I could never fault you for that."