Sal found Carl out in front of The Diner, smoking. He'd dropped him off there along with Rosie and Jack before driving Charlie to his hotel. Sal had to brace himself for a moment, and he rested his forehead on the steering wheel. He tried to mentally prepare for what was coming next. Sal had to figure out why Carl was so blue, he couldn’t bring himself to hack his brother’s mind. Still, he had to fight hard not to. The image of Carl helped, but it also left him disheartened. And they still had to go back to the house and deal with their parents.
He wondered how many times he could fry their brains before they permanently took on some damage.