The rain lessened a bit as I drove, so that when I arrived at the auto shop it had subsided to a desultory patter. When I went inside I saw my truck sitting forlornly in the work bay—still with all the windows knocked out. But the young man on duty at the counter happily informed me that the glass would be delivered later in the day—in fact he was waiting for the truck to arrive any time now—and that as soon as it arrived they would get right on it. I thanked him and turned to leave. Though I wanted my truck back as soon as possible, I could wait another day without complaint. This was a good shop, and I knew they were doing their best.

As I stepped outside, to my surprise, I found Danny Ray, leaning against the shop doors, sheltered by the canopy that ran the front of the building. He looked at me from beneath the brim of his Braves cap and gave me a shy grin.

“Tr-tr-truck t-took a beating—huh?” he stammered, but with the grin still on his face.

“You tried to warn me, Danny Ray, but I wouldn’t listen to you. That is a bad place up there, and now, just look at my truck,” I replied with a grin of my own.

“Wh-what ha-ha-happened?”

“Some crazy guy—a huge dude named Leon Wren—tried to tear my head off, but instead he only managed to cripple my truck,” I bantered.

The grin left Danny Ray’s face only to be replaced by a look that was serious, and maybe even a little startled.

“Tha-that family is b-bad—real bad.”

“I heard about the uncle. And I can testify that the nephew—the one I met, is no pillar of the community, either,” I replied, still with a light tone of voice.

Danny Ray shook his head. “N-n-no. I mean—b-bad. K-killin’ bad.”

“Do you know Leon Wren? Have you ever had anything to do with him?” I asked.

Danny Ray shook his head again. “N-n-no. B-b-but I’ve heard. W-watch out.”

I looked at my friend. It would have been easy to make light of his words of warning, but now that I realized how serious Danny was, that would have been the wrong thing to do. Danny Ray was concerned for me, and I could only acknowledge his concern.