Summary

In Chapter 13, Joe does not pick up the rest of the attorney's file for several weeks after it is ready, retrieving only when he visits that side of town to meet with Virgil. Virgil worries about Joe's intent, fearing he will harm Carl more than has already been done. Joe wonders why Virgil did not testify at Carl's trial since he is the only one who believes his friend is innocent, and Virgil explains that the attorneys did not want to incorporate character evidence that would highlight Carl's aversion to work and dependence on alcohol. Virgil explains that he met Carl in Vietnam in 1967, and revealing his prosthetic leg, Virgil claims Carl is the only reason he is still alive. Virgil and Tater were walking point when gunfire exploded, hitting Virgil once in the shoulder and twice in the leg, and though their...