Injured Cat

Hello everybody, there's a stray black cat that I usually feed every single day and he went missing a couple weeks ago. He came back today, but I noticed that his tail is hanging and that he's limping on the right leg. I DO NOT want to bring him to the shelter because I can't imagine what they'll do to him. I would bring him to the vet, BUT I recently just brought my own cat to the vet and he was diagnosed with pancreatitis (aka lots of bills). If anyone can help me or point me into the right direction, I would appreciate it so much.