After reorganizing the Red Hood, Jason visited Joseph, who was being held in Arkham Asylum, as a family member.
"I want to lead the Red Hood. How do I become like you?"
His question drew a string of grating laughter. Joseph's skin was now deathly pale, and his hair looked like a clump of green algae dredged from a dockside drain.
"Darling, find a pool and jump in."
"Will you keep leading us when you get out?"
"Of course. Gotham needs to be remade, but our old methods seem to have been too much trouble. The truth is actually very simple, as simple as remaking a teddy bear with split seams. All we need to do is cut off its ears, gouge out its eyes, and stuff a bundle of TNT into the wounds.
"The path has always been there. I've been running from it for too long.
"The path has always been there. I've been running from it for too long, heh heh!
"The path has always been there... hahahahahahahaha!!!"
Watching the man rock back and forth with laughter in the visiting room, Jason involuntarily rubbed his shoulders, perhaps to comfort the other man, perhaps to soothe his own sensitive nerves.
"Joseph, are you all right?"
"No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no! Don't call me Joseph anymore. Call me Joe, and say it together with my last name."
"Joe... Cole?"
"Hahahahahaha!!!!"
Joseph, enclosed in a straitjacket, laughed so hard he could barely breathe. Jason looked with some concern at the ocher leather straitjacket, as though something might break free and crawl out of it at any moment.
Visiting time soon ended. Just before Joseph was taken away, he suddenly broke free of his restraints and slammed his head against the glass.
That one really hurt. Blood