Early in the morning and Louis was having his morning coffee. He had a blend for every day and on Tuesdays, it was Irish whiskey-infused. As he stirred in a bit of heavy cream he decided he would check up on his boys, he sipped his hot coffee an set the cup down. He dialed Vern first on his mobile phone and as it rang he thought about how he loved and hated his phone. He loved the black and chrome but he hated how visible the fingerprints were. Maybe he should have gone with the fire red Deltoluxe as Joe had instead of this fingerprint prone Synchromatic. After a few more moments and right around the time when Louis was about to hang up to call Joe instead, the phone was finally answered, "Hey Vernie, Did you find what you needed?"

The sounds of mewing came from the phone's speaker before Vernard's voice came through the speaker, "I did find what I needed thanks to Joseph. Joe's pretty good at finding things you know, next time you lose your fancy pen you should ask him instead of me." he chuckled amidst the purrs and meows. "and it was- hmm" the voice paused, "easier than I thought it would be?"

"Huh, interesting. Did you sleep well? No problems with sleeping?" Louis looked walked around his kitchen, taking out some ingredients to make himself an omelet for breakfast. He turned on the loudspeaker instead and placed the phone on top of a glass to use both his hands for cooking. He washed a pan and drizzled some olive oil into it.

"I slept well. You know me. I've done a lot but uh, not that kind. But I wasn't the one who got things done. It was Joe." The meowing got a bit quieter, which was something considering how many cats the man had. "Oh, about Joe. He seemed shaken up even though he was trying to hide it. You should talk to him."

He was chopping tomatoes and onions into small cubes. "Have you eaten already?" He slid the cubes into the pan, taking in the sizzle and aroma as the cubes became a sauce.

"Yes, I always eat in the morning with my cats no matter what. We're all so close that they refuse to start eating unless I eat with them." Vernard laughed. "They even wait for me to get home! That is why during my break hour, I usually go home instead of eating nearby the shop. My kitties gotta eat."

"All right then," He added salt, pepper, and cumin, stirring it in and letting the flavors get incorporated. "That sounds adorable! I always wondered why you went off in your car. I shoulda asked earlier." He took two eggs and began to stir them in a bowl. "I'll see you at work."

Vern made a grunt of agreement, "I'll open up the shop. See you there, Lou." Then hung up.

Louis sighed and then dialed up Joseph, full well knowing that this one wasn't a morning guy. He had to dial twice before the phone was picked up. "Hey, Alex my man. Doing better today?" and he heard a groan and some rustling.

"Who's Alex?" The voice on the other side of the phone was lower than usual and Louis could imagine the head tilt quite vividly.

"You?" He poured the beaten egg into the pan and watched it turn opaque as it cooked.

After a moment of silence, Joseph responded."Nah..."

"It's your middle name. Alexander, remember?"  Louis completed the omelet, adding in the sauce he has made and in the same pan, he began to toast two slices of bread while the omelet rested on his plate.

"Well yes but no one calls me that, man."

"As if! I remember hearing a little something once behind the shop." He checked on his toast and flipped them over. "You know, near my office."

"What you were there? You heard that!?"

"Now that you're awake, I just wanted to make sure you were all right. Feelin' good? Is your face ok?" He slid the toast onto his plate and took his phone to the table to eat comfortably.

"Once I got home I checked up on Queenie and got myself cleaned up and I think my cut is healing well. But uh-" Joe's voice turned quiet yet not a whisper. "I want to talk to you about something that happened. I didn't want to talk to Vern about it on the way back. It was too weird.."

"Hmm. I'll wait for you at the office. Did you already eat this morning? I can bring you something." He tapped his plate for Joe to hear the clinking, "You like omelets?"

"I haven't eaten yet and yeah, I'd appreciate it if you got me something. Between the three of us, you're the only one who knows how to cook." Joe laughed but it wasn't as bright as usual. Whatever happened must have been truly weird, "I should pay you to make stuff for me instead of eating out all the time."

"I swear Vernard's shrimp aspic is something only his cats could love."

"Don't remind me about it..."

"Get ready, Alex. Don't be late. Vernard and I are going early." He hung up and ate now that he knew both his boys were well and awake enough to meet him at work. He wanted to know all the details. He fixed up breakfast for Joe and finished his morning routine.

Upon arriving at Lodestar, Louis noticed that Vernard had been at the auto shop for a while. The office and gate were open and his truck's radiator was already cool. He was already getting things together for the Disgustang and the burly man waived at him before looking back down at what he was carting around. He set the container of food on the desk for Joe to pick up when he showed up. Louis assumed they would speak while Joe ate. He looked at the clock on the wall and then out to the entrance. He heard the rumble of the Hemi engine and its exhaust before he saw the car. "Perfect."