secrets

Dally put the paper down, trying to let this new information sink in. He laid back on the bed, his head spinning. Darry and Ponyboy had gotten in a huge fight. Ponyboy was missing and Dally was hundreds of miles away. Johnny had a brother that he'd never met and no one had bothered to tell him about. Now Dally had to break all this to Johnny and take off for Tulsa before the sun came up. Dally sat back up, stared at the picture and chewed on his lip. This wasn't going to be fun. He was glad that Johnny had stepped out for the moment to walk Caroline home so he could have a little more time to think. And something was still bothering him. As if this new information wasn't enough, he had a nagging feeling that this was just the tip of the iceburg. It hadn't been the kid's picture that had puzzled him before. It had been something else. He just wished he could remember what. What pictures had Johnny been showing him that night? What had he seen that had put questions in his head? Dally put the photo album down on the edge of the bed. When he shifted his weight to turn and pick up a different book, the one he'd been looking at before fell off the mattress and onto the floor. Dally stared down at it. A portrait of Grandpa Cade stared back at him. Dark hair, soft, gentle eyes... just like Wendy's and Will's and... And then it all clicked. It wasn't about Christopher. It wasn't about Emily. They, he was sure, were significant pieces of the puzzle that was trying to put itself together in his mind. But the major piece was Grandpa Cade. He picked the book up, closed it and walked over and put it back slowly on the shelf. He pulled another book down and flipped through it, then another. They all told him the same thing. He stood in the middle of the room for a moment pondering the idea brewing in his mind. He wasn't sure what to think and he was even less certain of what to do about what he was thinking. But in time, as the thoughts began to settle, he felt anger building inside. He decided to handle this as he would have handled any situation- head on. He had to talk to Johnny. He looked up suddenly, feeling eyes on him. Grandma Cade was standing in the doorway. Their eyes met. Dally's eyes were blazing. Hers were as calm as a lake. "It appears we need to have a talk, Dallas," she said calmly, but with a slight note of concern. Dally closed the album he was looking at and glared at her. "Yeah. I need to have a talk. But not with you." He headed for the doorway, but she blocked his path. "Dallas, I ask that you allow me to discuss this with you before you do anything that you'll regret." Dally swore at her and threw the album he was holding on the floor. She didn't flinch. "Dallas, there is so much more you don't know..." "I know all I need to know! Your first husband, this Charles Hamilton guy... Johnny's father's father? Johnny doesn't look anything like him!" Dally said grabbing the photo album off the shelf and flipping to the page he'd seen earlier. Grandma Cade just watched him, unmoving. "Funny thing is," Dally continued, thrusting the open album into Grandma Cade's hands, "he's the spittin' image of your second husband. How'd that happen?"

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