Published: 31 Mar 2022

From Previous Chapter:

“You two have fun. But, Mark, don’t overdo this. Maybe twenty or thirty more pitches and quit,” cautioned the boy’s dad. “I don’t want you to hurt your arm. You’re not used to doing this yet.”

Mark and Billy had a good time pitching and catching. When the last thirty throws were done, Mark thanked his ‘big brother’ with a big hug for suggesting he build the home plate and pitcher’s rubber for him, so he could practice there at home.

The two boys then decided to take a swim.

Mark was thoroughly enjoying having his ‘big brother’ in his pool with just him. It was just the two of them and the young boy was having fun. Mark had always wanted a big brother and now that he had one, he was going to enjoy him to the fullest.

As the two boys played in the pool, Miriam and Levi watched them and talked. Levi told his wife that he felt that there was a lot more to their foster son than they first thought. The man said he sort of instinctively knew that the home plate and pitcher’s rubber, was what Mark needed.

The man told her some more about what transpired out in the garage and how easily Billy persuaded him to let Mark at least try doing what he had Billy doing. Levi continued and told Miriam that when Mark complained about something, Billy was right there talking to him like a ‘big brother’ would.

The man said their foster son got Mark to understand that he couldn’t do something right now and that it would come with time, patience, training and experience. Then, he asked her, “What teenager thinks that way, or says those types of things? I believe we have a very gifted teenager in our midst and have lucked out.”

Levi added, as he talked to his wife, that if Mark turns out anything close to the way Billy acts, thinks or performs, he will be very happy. The man explained that their foster son didn’t tell him he knew how to do what he showed him, but that Billy let him show him first and then tried it himself on a scrap of wood before he did the final cut.

The new foster dad told his wife that the teenager was very laid back and attentive, yet he wasn’t a know-it-all as many teens are nowadays. The man also said that Mark might be a bit envious because of the way he was showing Billy what and how to do things.

Miriam told her husband that with Billy, he would be able to do more things than with Mark, as his son was just not old or mature enough to do many things yet. She reasoned that Mark would be jealous that his dad was doing something with a stranger that he wished he was doing. She suggested when he does something with Billy, he also let Mark at least try whatever it is, too.

Mark had Billy throw him in the water, as the other older teens had when he swam with them. They played what games they could and, of course, Billy being bigger and older could do everything better. But Mark didn’t care. He was playing with his new ‘big brother’ and no one was there to interfere.

After the boys played for a while, Miriam went outside and told them to get ready for dinner. Mark moaned they had to get out, but his ‘big brother’ told him they had their fun and that it didn’t do any good to upset his mom.

Miriam heard that simple exchange and began to understand what her husband was telling her earlier as they talked about the two boys.

When the boys went up to their rooms to change into street clothes, Levi got the grill out, cleaned it and got it hot, so they could cook hot dogs and hamburgers for dinner. It was going to be something simple as they already had a big lunch.

When Billy and Mark came down, the teen saw that his foster dad was getting ready to ‘burn the burgers’, so he went outside to talk to the man.

“I could do that, if you’d like,” began Billy. “Where I used to live, we cooked burgers and hot dogs every day. Even though we started rotating the ‘grill master’ duties, I cooked enough of them to know what I’m doing.”

“Grill Master? Is that what you became? Did you cook anything other than hamburgers and hot dogs?” asked Levi.

“Oh, no, sir. We called the people who were grilling that day the ‘grill master’s’. It was just our kid way of telling everyone who was ‘burning the burgers’, or cooking that day. But none of us were ever crowned ‘Grill Masters, that’s for sure,” laughed the teenager.

“Also, Mr. Ken … he provided the burgers and dogs, and sodas and toppings, ever since his first foster boy lived with him, and when the rest of us came along, he continued doing that for us and our friends. Oh, and he also included the lifeguards. We always cooked them and we took turns,” replied Billy. “Why?”

“I was just curious. If you knew how to cook steaks or chicken, we could hire you as our chef,” smiled Levi.

“Sir, I’d love to learn how to cook those, too. I look at everything someone shows me as part of growing up and preparing me for when I have my own family. I figure the more I learn now, the better prepared I’ll be for later in life,” answered Billy.

As the two watched the grill, Levi asked, “Billy …there is a lot more about Caroline that … that you didn’t tell us the other night … isn’t there?”

The teen looked at his new foster dad and said he didn’t want to say it in front of Mark. Levi asked him to tell him while they watched the burgers. Billy then told the man about how Caroline tried to have sex with Robert one night and then Charles the next night. But what got her banned from The Cove was she was caught in eleven-year-old Matthew’s bed and had his pants down.

Levi couldn’t believe what he just heard. The man asked Billy to tell him how he knew that since he wasn’t there yet. The teen told his foster dad that his ‘brothers’ told him all about Caroline and how she once went swimming in her panties and bra, which became see through, and that all the boys could see everything she had.

Levi told Billy to watch the burgers and not to burn them and that he’d be right back. Billy saw the hamburgers were not the frozen kind they had at The Cove, so this was going to be a trail-by-fire moment, that was going to be another learning experience.

When Levi came back outside, he had a tray to place the cooked meats on. He looked at the burgers, and told the teen to turn them over and press down on them some. When Billy did that, he saw that there was still quite a bit of juices inside. Levi told him they’d let the burgers cook a bit longer and then they’d be done.

The Golderson’s, Billy included, sat down at the kitchen table to have their dinner. The teen waited until the man, woman and his little ‘brother’ had taken their burger before selecting his. The teen then fixed his burger the way he always did at The Cove.

Mark watched how his ‘big brother’ built his burger. The young boy usually just added ketchup and mustard, but he was seeing his ‘big brother’ adding mayo, tomato, lettuce and onion, even though that was the way his parents always ate theirs.

“You add onion? That makes your breath smell bad,” snickered Mark.

“It adds so much flavor to the whole experience, Mark. You should try some. Oh, and there are different types of onions, and, yes, some can give you bad breath, but if you use the right one, the flavor is perfect,” was how the ‘big brother’ described why he adds onion to his burger.

As the family ate, Mark remarked to his mom about the new home plate and pitcher’s rubber his dad and ‘big brother’ made for him. He said it wasn’t something he ever thought about asking about until his ‘big brother’ talked with his dad about it.

Miriam asked her son how it felt. Mark told her the only difference was that it wasn’t mounded, like a real pitcher’s mound would be, but it’s the right distance and that it will really help him get used to the distance, and he could use it at any time, instead of having to go to the park.

That then reminded the youngster about something, and he quickly pulled out his cell phone.

“Who are you calling? We’re at dinner and whomever you are calling; they probably are too. You can call him when we are finished,” chastised Miriam.

Mark smiled and put his phone away. He then told his mom that he was going to call Kieran to tell him to bring his catcher’s mitt and mask tomorrow when he comes over to do their exercises. The boy said he was going to tell his friend about the new home plate and pitcher’s rubber.

It was then Billy told his new little ‘brother’ that he needed to get his cell number for his cell phone in case they ever needed to find one another. The teen then asked his foster parents if he could have theirs as well. The teen reasoned that it would be good for them to have one another’s phone number in their cell phone in case there ever was need to contact one another.

Miriam looked over to Levi to get his unvoiced take on what their foster son just said. The man just slightly nodded, so Miriam told Billy that that was something they could do before they all went to bed tonight. The foster teen smiled at the acceptances of his request.

When dinner was over, Billy helped clean the table and rinse the dishes. The teen told his little ‘brother’ Mark that he should help his mom when he could, so that way she could have more free time later for herself.

Mark felt guilty that he didn’t do the simple things like putting away the ketchup, mustard and mayo in the refrigerator and wiping down the table, as his ‘big brother’ had done. Mark did help a little, but most of everything that he could help with had already been done by his ‘big brother’.

When the four met in the Family Room, the first thing they did was exchange cell phone numbers. They each sent a text to one another to make sure they had input the number correctly.

After that, Miriam wanted Billy to tell her what he thought about what he did at the shooting range earlier. Billy smiled at the question and then told the woman how he was totally surprised that he’d only been there two days and they were teaching him how to shoot the guns they had in the house.

The teen told his foster parents how Mr. Ken told him when he learned his son had a 9mm gun that he wouldn’t get the opportunity to shoot it. Billy told them that he really didn’t understand it, but they did have armed guards that patrolled the estate grounds 24/7, so he figured they didn’t need to know how to use a gun.

Hearing something new about the estate on the lake, caught the Golderson’s off guard. Again, Billy had to explain to them why there were armed guards around-the-clock at the estate.

Billy told them what he knew about the attempted kidnapping back in October of last year, and then told them they needed to Goggle it to get a better perspective. The teen told them he wasn’t there when it happened, nor was he there when Matthew’s mom tried to kidnap him.

With the mention of Matthew’s mom trying to kidnap her own son, that brought about another round of questions from Billy’s new foster parents. The teen told Levi, Miriam and Mark that one of Mr. Ken’s rules was that they didn’t know why the other boys were at The Cove unless the boy told you himself.

Billy said that he only learned bits and pieces of why his other ‘brothers’ were living at The Cove just like they learned bits and pieces about why he was there. What he did tell the Golderson’s was that at one appointment with Doctor Doug, Matthew’s mom hid there and when she saw her son was alone pulled him aside.

Billy told them he heard that somehow Mr. Wayne got the Sheriff’s Deputies there to help look for him and that eventually Matthew made a noise when Mr. Wayne was calling for him and they arrested the boy’s mom. Billy added that the mom was arrested and that the trial would happen sometime later that summer.

Mark asked his ‘big brother’ if it felt like he was inside a prison with all the guards.

Billy laughed and said that you knew the guards were there, but then again you didn’t. The teen said the guards stayed in their guard shack at the front of the estate and they also walked the perimeter, but they tried to make themselves invisible.

The teen said he never felt like he was inside a prison. What he said was he knew he was inside a wonderful place to live, where his foster dad treated him very well, never yelled and tried to give him something to look forward to doing sometime in the future.

“He never yelled?” said a very surprised Mark.

“That’s right Mark. Mr. Ken … he never yelled at anyone. If we messed up, he pulled us aside and told us about it in private. That was the way he worked. He corrected in private, and he praised in public. The funny thing about him was … he would try to make a point at times and he’d say something like, ‘And let that be a lesson to you’”.

“What was the lesson?” asked a curious Mark.

“Oh, wow, let me think. … Oh, OK, sometimes the twins, or Matthew, would try to tease him and then Mr. Ken would chase them and when he caught them, he’d tickle them. Then, he’d say ‘And let that be a lesson to you’. The lesson being not to tease him.

“To me, Mr. Ken … he was really good at talking to me. He made time to talk to each of us every night before bed. And every night after dinner, like we are doing now, we’d all go to his Study and talk about our day, and what was coming up around The Cove. He was about communication. He once told me that when we didn’t tell one another what was going on, we were bound to have problems.

“Did you ever have problems?” asked Mark.

“To be honest … I can’t remember any. But I was only there for three months. But we met every day and we all knew what was happening for weeks in advance. Like what our trip after school was going to be like.

“We must have talked about it nightly for weeks and even though we did, Mr. Ken might add some new aspect about what time we’d leave, where from and what we’d do at the different parks,” offered Billy.

“Billy … I didn’t mean to get us off track about what you thought about going to the shooting range, today,” began Miriam, “so, can you tell me more about what you thought about it?”

“Oh, sure … it was a blast. I think I said it was as good as riding roller coasters. I’d never done anything like that before, so doing it gave me a better perspective on what a gun was all about and that it wasn’t like it looks on TV. It does take a steady hand and a sharp eye to hit the target.

“I really appreciate that you did that for me and why. I knew Mr. Ken had his own gun and I think Mr. Wayne had a concealed carry permit because he might need to protect us kids when we were with him. I just hope that over time I get to be a good marksman and can do what you are training me to do, if that situation ever happens,” honestly responded Billy.

“Who is Mr. Wayne?” Mark wanted to know.

“Mr. Wayne … he was the Estate Master. He is a licensed foster parent and when Mr. Ken is away, he fills in for him and has the same authority as our foster dad had. Mr. Wayne was also Mr. Ken’s right-hand man. He did things for us and with us when Mr. Ken had other business to take care of.

“My last foster dad was a very busy man and there were times that we knew to leave him alone and go to Mr. Wayne when we had problems or questions,” was how Billy described the man.

“Boys,” began Levi, “what do you have planned for tomorrow?”

“I need to call Kieran to tell him to bring his mask and mitt with him tomorrow,” quickly spoke up Mark. Levi told his son to call his friend right now, before it gets too late.

“Billy … what about you?” directly asked Levi.

“Geez, I barely know my way around the neighborhood. I was hoping Mark … I was hoping he could show me around more, so I can get orientated to where I now live. It would be nice to know where a skate park is or some local ramps are, so I can use my skateboard.

“I know where the playground and ballfield are, and where some of Mark’s friends live, but there has got to be more around here that I need to know about. Is there something that you want us to do, Mr. Golderson?” asked Billy.

“No, not really. I was just curious what you two would get into. Mark usually played ball with his friends, but tomorrow is Sunday, so they usually take the day off from that,” offered Levi.

“Dad … do you … do you think you could take us to the skate park for an hour or two? That way Billy could show me how to do some things on my skateboard,” Mark said, as he quickly jumped into the conversation.

“Let’s wait and see what the weather is like in the morning, and what your mother has planned for us. You never know what can change overnight. Will that work for you, son?” asked the boys’ dad.

“Boys … it is getting late. You both had a long day at the shooting range, building those baseball things and then swimming. You might not feel tired, but I bet when you lay down you fall asleep right away. So, why don’t you head up to your rooms and get ready for bed,” added Miriam to the conversation.

Billy saw that Mark was going to argue with his parents about having to go to bed. So, he stood up and then motioned for his little ‘brother’ to go with him. Mark hesitated, so Billy went over to him and whispered in his ear and the boy got up and followed his ‘big brother’ up the stairs.

“Levi … did you see that? Mark was going to argue about having to go up to bed and Billy … I don’t know what he said to him, but did you see the face Mark made when his ‘big brother’ said whatever to him? This teenager is definitely making changes to this household,” remarked Miriam.

Upstairs, Mark was mad at his ‘big brother’ for saying what he did. “I’m not a spoiled brat!” yelled the nine-year-old.

“Yes, you are! You’ve been an only child in this house and have been getting away with shit for way too long. Well, you got your wish. You now have your ‘big brother’ and I am going to be that ‘big brother’ you never had. Now, wise up little man, and start being a part of this family and stop being a taker.

“Your mom works hard; teaching and keeping the house looking as well as it does. She does the cooking, the cleaning, the laundry and you don’t help with anything. So, when there is something, no matter how small, you can do to help her, then you are going to do it, like it or not.

“You saw what I did and it didn’t hurt me. I didn’t get hurt, dirty or die from doing those simple things that I did for your mom and dad today. And one thing you learn, when you do things for adults, they tend to let you do things later that you might not have gotten to do because … well, because you were helpful and are being an asset and not a pain in their ass,” now chastised Billy.

“Well, if you’re going to be mean to me, then … then I’ll tell my parents to send you back!” yelled Mark.

“It doesn’t work that way, sport. So, what you need to do is settle yourself down and sleep on what I told you. But if you want to still be a jerk in the morning, I’ll tell your dad that I don’t want to go to the skateboard park. That all I want to do is sit around here and read all day,” shot back Mark’s ‘big brother’.

“You wouldn’t do that to me … would you?” wondered Mark.

“Listen, Mark … you have great parents. They took me in even though they wanted a twelve or thirteen-year-old. If you’d gotten one of them, they would probably be beating on you and bossing you around.

“What have I done with and for you since I arrived? Huh? Now … go to your room and get ready for bed. I bet your mom will be up soon to say goodnight to you, so you better be ready,’ now ordered Billy.

Mark dejectedly went over to his room and got ready for bed. He never thought that a ‘big brother’ would act like Billy was doing. The youngster thought that when he got his new ‘big brother’ they would be best friends, and would do lots of things together all of the time. But here was Billy telling him he better start helping around the house.

Miriam did come upstairs to say goodnight to her son. When she knocked on the door, and was invited into Mark’s room, her son asked her what she thought of his new ‘big brother’. Miriam was surprised at the question, but she told him that she and his dad liked that Billy was very mature, that he had a good head on his shoulders and was trying hard to be a part of their family. The boy’s mom asked her son why he asked that question.

Mark told her that he’d only been there a short time and was curious as to how he was working out, and if they thought about sending him away as his previous foster dad had. The boy’s mom told her son that they needed more time to get to know Billy better, but from what they have seen, they are happy he was offered to them.

Mark tossed and turned that night as he tried to get a good night’s sleep. His mind processed what he thought having a ‘big brother’ would be like, and what Billy was actually turning out to be. The boy saw how his new foster ‘big brother’ did the things he hoped he would, and he even had his dad and him build a home plate and pitcher’s rubber.

But on the other hand, his new foster ‘big brother’ was telling him he was spoiled and he never helped his mom around the house and he better start doing it, or that he would essentially stop doing those things he wanted him to do with him. Mark was confused, and his mind was having a difficult time wrestling with this conundrum.

Also, that night, Levi told his wife what their foster son told him what he knew about Caroline. Miriam was stunned that the thirteen-year-old girl would want to have sex at that age. She was equally upset that the girl had no morals that she would swim in what she did. She had to have known her panties and bra would be see-through once they were wet. The husband and wife went to bed, thanking their lucky stars they didn’t accept Caroline into their home.

The next morning when Mark woke up, he was still confused about what Billy told him the night before. Mark went to the bathroom and kept mulling over what he was told and he still couldn’t make sense of it.

When the boy finished in the bathroom, he knocked on his ‘big brother’s’ bedroom door to make sure he was up and to tell him the bathroom was free. Billy yelled he was awake and would be there soon.

But Mark hadn’t walked away from the door. He wanted to talk to his foster brother, so he knocked again and asked Billy if he could come in and talk to him. Billy said the door was unlocked and for his little ‘brother’ to come in.

Mark slowly opened the door and hesitantly walked inside his ‘big brother’s’ room. He looked around first, and then at his new foster brother.

“Billy … did you … did you really mean what you said to me last night,” wondered Mark.

Billy thought about the question for a few moments. He knew he was a bit rough on his little ‘brother’ last night, but he felt the boy needed to understand that he wasn’t there to be his constant companion. He also felt that the boy still needed a wake-up call.

“Yes, I did! When we were swimming the other day, the other teens … they told me how you’ve been telling them about getting a ‘big brother’ for weeks now, and now that you have one, you think I am here JUST for you? Well, I’m here to tell you … I am not your plaything!

“I’m going to have my own friends, my age or close to that. Yes, I am your ‘big brother’ and we’ll do things together, but I am NOT … I am not going to play every game you do and hang around you and all of your little friends. Baseball season is almost over for you, and with that, I won’t be playing ball in the playground with you every day,” Billy directly told Mark.

“What … what if I tell my parents what you just told me? And that you’re mean to me. Then what are you going to do?” smart-alecky said Mark.

“I’ll tell them the truth and have them talk to the other boys to verify my story. If they then decide to take your side and throw me out, it won’t be anything off my back. I’ve been to other foster homes and I survived them and I’ll continue to survive.

“The thing that you won’t have … is that you won’t have a ‘big brother’. And believe me … it will be a cold day in hell when you get another one. You know why? Because Ms. Judy will want to know why I was sent away so soon, after being so graciously accepted into your home.

“I’ll tell her that YOU … that you are a spoiled brat that always gets what you want and … that when it doesn’t suit you, you throw it back and ask for something different or better. Remember … Ms. Judy and I are good friends, so she’ll listen to me.

“And, I think she also believes that those drugs weren’t mine, because she believes I shouldn’t have been removed from Mr. Ken’s place so quickly after the way they found that little bag of marijuana. Mr. Ken … he has no idea how that man knew the drugs were there and he has no idea how they got there and who put them there. He just blamed me because the closet was mine and he didn’t want to lose face.”

Mark never had anyone talk to him the way Billy just had. He knew a lot of what Billy said was true. But he also forgot that Billy was much older than he was, and that his ‘big brother’ would want to have his own friends and do things with them instead with him most of the time.

Mark didn’t know what to do. He wanted a ‘big brother’ for so long, and now that he had one, it wasn’t working out the way he had envisioned. He had hoped they would become good friends and would do stuff together all the time.

Mark knew, though, that if he was going to make this work, and to keep his ‘big brother’, he had to try to apologize to Billy. He needed to find out what he needed to do so they would become friends and so that Billy would do things with him and show him things that a ‘big brother’ would normally do.

Mark knew he needed to apologize to the teen. So, the boy took a deep breath and said, “Billy … I … I want to apologize for … for acting the way I did. You’re right. I … I probably am spoiled. My … my parents tried lots of times to have kids, and I … I was the only one who … who survived.

“But I’ve seen my friends, who have older brothers, and I always saw what fun they have together and I … and I wanted that, too. So … yea, I probably pestered my parents so much that they decided to become foster parents.

“They tried to adopt … but they were always filling out forms and talking to other people and … and then they were told it could take a long time before they could adopt. So, when they became foster parents, they told the people that they wanted a twelve or thirteen-year-old and that was because of … because of me.

“They were called about taking in that Caroline girl, but after hearing what problems she created at her other homes, and then remembering I wanted an older brother, they decided to wait until a twelve or thirteen-year-old came along.

“Then, they were called about you. I didn’t know about it until they called me when I was at the park. I was pitching and I ignored my phone. But the guys … they teased me that it might be about my new foster brother, so I took the call. I was happy I did.

“That lady … Ms. … ah, Ms. Judy … she told us all about you and why you were leaving your last home. She then gave us something like thirty minutes to accept you, or she would have to find you another home where you could go.

“Billy … I really am sorry for being a spoiled brat … and a jerk. But … but that’s the way I was raised. It’s not really all my fault I’m that way. … But I do … I do want you to stay and be my ‘big brother’. So … will you still be my ‘big brother’ and be … be my … friend, too?” finished Mark who now had tears running down his cheeks.

Billy got out of his bed and grabbed the boy and hugged him tight.

“Yes, I want to stay … and be your ‘big brother’. And you know what? We just had our first disagreement as ‘big’ and little ‘brothers’,” laughed Billy, as he continued to hug Mark, and the little ‘brother’ joined in the laughter.

What the two boys didn’t know was that Levi had come upstairs to make sure they were both up and would be down for breakfast soon. But when he heard them talking, he decided to stay back and listen to what they had to say.

The man knew he shouldn’t have eaves-dropped on their private conversation, but he was glad he had. He didn’t know what had transpired between them before they went up to bed last night, but after listening to what they had to say to one another, he practically got the full story.

Levi decided to go back down to the kitchen and tell his wife, Miriam, what he just learned. He also wanted her to know that the boys would be a little late.

Miriam was surprised that Billy had called their son out as being a spoiled brat and a jerk for not helping around the house with even the simplest things. She was equally surprised that Billy told Mark that if they sent him away, he’d still be a survivor, but their son wouldn’t have a ‘big brother’ and that Billy would tell Ms. Judy not to give him another one because he was so spoiled and only wanted a ‘play thing’.

Miriam was getting furious at Billy, that was until her husband, Levi, told her what Mark said to Billy in a way of apologizing for being a brat and a jerk. Levi said their son told his new foster ‘big brother’ that it wasn’t really all his fault.

Levi told Miriam how Mark explained about him being the only baby to survive, but that he wanted a big brother so badly that they, he and his wife, did whatever was necessary to get him one.

Levi finished up his telling by saying how Mark asked Billy to stay and be his ‘big brother’ and his friend, and that Billy hugged Mark and told him he wanted to stay and be his big brother’. Then Levi said that Billy laughed and told Mark they just had their first disagreement and that the two boys laughed some more as they hugged.

The two adults just stood there thinking about what they just learned. And here again, it was their new foster son who was at the center of it all. The thing that impressed Levi was that their son acknowledged he was spoiled and that his new ‘big brother’ called him out on it and the teenager had only been there for three whole days. Levi wondered what other changes they would see in their son as the days went by.

Miriam said she’d take a wait and see attitude. But she did like that Billy was causing some positive things to happen in their home. She also said the teen was calm, wasn’t a know-it-all, seemed mature, and appeared very bright and that he wasn’t demanding at all.

But Miriam wanted to get breakfast over with, so she sent her husband back upstairs to get the boys.

The saga of Three Finger Cove continues. Let Chowhound know you are reading his story: Chowhound at CastleRoland dot Net

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