Published: 6 Oct 2022

From Previous Chapter:

The group grabbed dinner before they headed back to the hotel. As they ate, they talked about that portion of their trip, and Mark told how he’d never been on that many rides at any one time and that he was having the best vacation of his life, and it was even over yet. Everyone laughed.

After dinner, the boys packed their bags and left out the clothes they would wear tomorrow as they traveled to Discovery Kingdom. The adults did the same, but they also met down in the hotel’s lounge for a few adult drinks, as Mr. Dan would be leaving them tomorrow. The travelers slept well that evening.

All of the travelers were out of bed, showered, dressed and down in the hotel lobby by eight that Friday morning. The boys took the bags outside and helped load them into their transportation while Mr. Ken settled up the hotel bill. Then they all used the men’s restroom before loading into the vehicles and heading out to the airport.

Their air charter flight was waiting for them when they arrived at the airport and after they and their bags cleared security they loaded into the aircraft while the ground personnel placed their bags into the plane. Soon, they were off to their next stop, Discovery Kingdom.

Along the way they were served a light breakfast on the plane to hold them over until they got their lunch before arriving at the amusement park. When they arrived at their next airport, Mr. Ken checked on Levi’s inbound and Dan’s outbound flights.

Mr. Ken learned that a Gulfstream G150 was bringing Mr. Golderson would be the same one taking Dan Fischer back home. The aircraft was due in in about thirty minutes, so the man decided they would wait for it to land and greet Mark’s dad, and see Mr. Dan off. Then they would all head out to the hotel together.

When Levi Golderson alighted from the smaller aircraft, Mark wanted to run out to meet his dad, but Billy held him back. He told his little ‘brother’ he had to wait for his dad to enter the terminal, otherwise he would get into trouble.

When Levi did enter into the building, Mark couldn’t wait to give him a hug. The two Goldersons hugged like two long lost souls before Mr. Ken came over to ask Levi how he enjoyed his flight.

“Ken, believe me when I say I could easily get used to flying like that,” replied a smiling Levi Golderson, as he shook Ken’s hand.

“Well, Levi, just wait until you see what we will fly in when we travel to our next two parks,” chuckled the man’s host.

While the two men talked, the boys placed Mr. Golderson’s bags into one of the vans they were using to take them to their hotel. The group then gathered around Mr. Dan.

“Dan, thank you for coming along with us and helping me out,” offered Mr. Ken, as he held out his hand to shake Dan’s.

“Ken, I am so forever grateful for that day that I met you. From that day on, you have forever made my life interesting. You’re having me staying at The Cove to recover from my gunshot wound, the picnics, the cruise and now this. What can I say other than whenever I can help you out I’ll be there,” replied Dan with open arms to his host, who then went over to him and gave Mr. Ken a big manly hug.

The boys who’d been around The Cove long enough knew what Mr. Dan was talking about. Mr. Levi knew there was a story behind what the Sheriff’s Lieutenant just said, and he would try to get it all before he left The Cove.

Billy also knew there had to be more behind what Mr. Dan said, particularly about his being shot and recovering there at The Cove. The teenager knew from what he just heard that his foster dad wasn’t just letting Mr. Golderson recover at The Cove on a whim. He actually had done it before for Mr. Dan, which showed him Mr. Ken did care about the people he knew and cared about.

The pilots were ready to depart and asked for Dan to load onto the plane. The boys again thanked him for going with them and riding the rides with him. Mark went over to him and hugged him and thanked him for riding the roller coasters with him and explaining about where to ride. That surprised the boy’s father to no end.

After Dan was on the plane, Mr. Ken rounded everyone up and had all of them load into the two vans and the group headed over to the hotel. Once there, the boys helped the drivers unload the vehicles while Mr. Ken went in and checked into the hotel.

“Boys, listen up. Mark and Kevin are staying with Mr. Levi. Bill you’re staying with me. Matthew and Kyle are with Mr. Wayne this time around, and Robert, Eric and Charles are sharing the teen’s rooms. Now, let’s get the bags up to the rooms.

“Use the bathroom while you’re up there, and then we’ll meet down here in about fifteen minutes. When we’re all together, we’ll head out for lunch before we head out to the park. No questions,” finished ‘dad’ Ken.

Fifteen minutes later the travelers loaded into the vans and were on their way. They decided to stop at a fast food place along the way out to Discovery Kingdom. While they ate, Mr. Ken explained to Levi that the boys were always anxious to get to the park to start riding the rides, which was why they stopped for a quick burger, fries and drink. Mr. Ken told the man that they’d go out for a nice restaurant meal later that night.

Upon their arrival at Discovery Kingdom, Julia Rennartz, the operations manager, was outside waiting for them. She greeted them warmly and Mr. Ken introduced her to the two new faces in the group. She thanked the two Goldersons for coming along, and she added that she knew they would enjoy what they had there at Discovery Kingdom.

The boys were eager to get out into the park, so Ms. Rennartz had Jasmine, the perky, young blonde-haired person who they first met last December, when Collin was with them, take them over to the FFF Pass Booth to get them all their Fastest Passes for the day. Jasmine again asked Mr. Wayne about Collin and she was disappointed that, again, the teen wasn’t with them.

Because Mr. Levi still had his arm in a sling, he wasn’t going to be able to ride many of the amusements, but he still got his Fastest Pass just in case there were a few rides he felt he could ride with his son.

This time Mr. Wayne went with Robert, Eric and Charles, so they each would have a partner when they rode the bigger rides. Mr. Levi and Billy went with the twins and Matthew and Mark and the two groups headed in two different directions.

The younger Covers came to the Round-Up and Mark wasn’t too sure he wanted to ride it. Matthew told him he didn’t want to ride it back during their Holiday trip, Billy explained it he wouldn’t even know he was going around and around and that the G-forces kept him in the seat

Billy told his little ‘brother’ he could ride with him as it shouldn’t hurt him. Mark looked to his dad to see if he would ride it with him. Mr. Golderson thought about it for a few moments and then told his son that since all the ride did was go around-and-around and not jostle them any, he was game and would ride it with his son.

They activated their Fastest Passes and when it was their turn to ride, Matthew and Kevin rode together, Billy paired up with Kyle and the father and son rode together in the two-seat gondola.

Mark was a bit apprehensive about the ride, but once it began to spin and pick up speed the gondola began to rise up and he could feel himself being pushed into the seat. Then the arm holding the cars on its axis began to rise up to 90 degrees. Mark was initially surprised, but once he realized it was just like riding the Tomahawk he began to relax and enjoy the ride.

When the Covers met outside the exit they all talked about how much fun the ride was. Levi was surprised that Mark was so exuberant about the ride and had compared it to something he had already ridden during the past four days in two different parks. He knew his son was being changed in front of his eyes and for the better.

Their next ride was a swinging boat called the Tomahawk. This one was just like the Galleon at Fantasy Fun Park that went back and forth and higher and higher. Again, Mark wanted to ride upper most seats and he asked his dad to ride with him and Billy. Mr. Levi watched the ride go through its paces and decided he could handle that ride as well, as he did the last one, so he joined his son and former foster son, in that upper most row

After the ride was over, Mr. Golderson told the boys he felt like a kid again after riding the swinging boat and asked where they were going to next. The boys are laughed at what he said.

Their next ride was called the Beer Barrel. The ride barrels were shaped as an old wooden beer keg cut in half. These were big enough that four people could comfortably sit in one at a time. And with six of them, they split into two groups of three, with Mr. Levi, Mark and Matthew in one group and Bill and the twins in the second group,

When the ride started, the boys knew enough to grab the middle spindle and use it to turn the Barrel as it went through five different inner changing cogs. Mr. Levi couldn’t use his arm to turn the center spindle, so it was up to Mark and Matthew to turn their barrel.

Billy and the twins really had their cask spinning fast and in the end, the three boys were so dizzy that they had to sit down to get their bearings when the ride was over. But the three laughed the entire time as they talked about what they’d done. Luckily none of them got sick.

Discover Kingdom had a sky ride and Mark wanted to experience it and see what the park looked like from up high. The six loaded into two of the Metal tubs since they held no more than four people at a time. From up there Mark and his dad got a good overview of the park and where they wanted to go next.

The boys came up to the Twister. They’d ridden one like it at the other parks, but there it was called the Scrambler, so they decided to ride that one, as well. Mr. Levi saw how the ride wasn’t all that intense, so he decided to ride with his son. Afterwards he was glad he got to do it with Mark.

The small group then rode the bumper cars, but there they were known as the Scooters. But this time Mr. Levi told the boys he wasn’t going to take the chance and injure his arm or lung, so he would watch them from the outside and then catch up with them at the exit.

The boys had a blast crashing into one another. They knew not to hit Billy too much, but they did hit him a few times and he returned the favor before the ride was over.

Mark wanted to ride the 90-foot Ferris wheel so he could see what that section of the park looked like from above. The other boys weren’t all too keen on riding it, but Mr. Levi said it would be good to rest for a bit, and since they had the Fastest Passes they didn’t have to wait very long in line. The boys relented and they all got on the ride. Mark was happy.

The group then headed over to the Himalaya. The boys had ridden a similar one at the pother parks, so they quickly activated their passes and waited to be called to ride. Mr. Levi told the boys that with the speed the ride went around, he was afraid it could hurt his lung, and he didn’t need to go back into the hospital.

Billy said he shouldn’t ride it, either, and would stay outside and would stay with Mr. Levi as they rode it. The boys said they understood and quickly went up the exit to activate their Fastest Passes.

Mr. Levi and Billy could hear the boys as they whooped and hollered as they rode the speedy ride. And when the four Covers came off they were laughing about the ride they just took. Even Mark told his dad he wished he could have enjoyed the ride, but that maybe the next time they go to an amusement park he’ll ride it with him.

The boys quickly headed over to a ride called the Rotor. The riders would stand against the outer walls and as the ride began to spin it forced the person against the wall. Both Mr. Levi and Billy told the other four they weren’t going to ride that one either, as the centrifugal forces would be much greater than the Round-UP and might cause further injury to them and they would, again, wait at the exit for them.

Mark was a bit hesitant to ride since neither his dad nor ‘big brother’ would be with him, but his Cover ‘brothers’ told him he needed to do things for himself, and to ‘face his fears’. Mark followed his ‘brothers’ up the ramp and entered the ride.

As the ride began to turn, Mark felt himself being pushed against the wall, just as he been forced into his seat on the Round-up. Then the ride began to tilt upwards giving the guest the feeling they might fall to the other side. But Mark knew he was being pushed against the wall and he couldn’t fall. He began to enjoy the ride.

As the Rotor went through its paces, Mr. Golderson looked to Billy and said, “Billy … you and Mr. Ken … you are changing my boy … for the good mind you. He always wanted a big brother … and we didn’t know what we were getting when we got you.

“And, Billy, Miriam and I … we saw immediately how you began to influence him in how he should look at things and then … and then we saw how much you also protected him like a big brother should.

“And, now, living at The Cove … I can see all the activities and experiences he is being exposed to are … well they are giving him a new perspective on life that I know will forever change him in a good way. So … thank you, Billy.”

Billy was taken aback at what he’d just heard. He didn’t really do anything, but be himself, and he knew he needed to say something.

“Mr. Golderson … thank you for what you just said, but … but I didn’t really do anything special. I … I just wanted Mark to see things, you know, from a different perspective, and to start doing things, you know, for himself. As for what he is exposed to at The Cove, well … well, that is all Mr. Ken’s doing.

“Mr. Ken … he does that for all of my ‘brothers’ friends, no matter what. And I bet … I bet if one of his parks was closer, he’d hire a bus and he’d take them to it, so they could experience it too,” finished Billy.

The two were just standing there in their own thoughts when the four boys came off the ride. That sort of broke them out of their haze and they listened to what the boys had to say about the ride. The group then decided where to go to next.

The boys wanted to head over to the Super Kite. That was one of the three new rides that Mr. Ken had installed for that year. Mr. Levi was interested in seeing what the ride was all about, so he agreed to walk over to the new ride.

Mr. Levi knew he would not be riding Super Kite. He told the boys that lying down would not be good for his arm, so they would have to be one person short. Billy then told his ‘brothers’ he’d stay with Mr. Levi, so the four boys activated their Fastest Passes.

When it was their turn, Mark rode with Kevin and Matthew rode with Kyle on the 2 passenger gondolas that are designed to let the riders experience the sensation of free flight with a wave-like oscillating motion.

Mr. Levi heard his son laughing as he went by on the ride. The man could tell his son was having fun, and he knew having the boy go with his ‘brothers’, as he called them, was the best thing for the boy. He knew he was watching Mark change in front of his eyes. He just wondered if the boy, himself, knew what was happening to him.

Matthew wanted to go over to the Flying Wings. He remembered it from when he was there last time and how much fun it was to operate the large wing and made it go back and forth to have the carriage slide differently through the wind. The twins remembered it too and the group headed over in that direction.

The six travelers each activated their Fastest Passes and when it was their turn they each took a carriage. Mr. Levi didn’t remember riding something like that in the past, but he’d watched the ride before he got on, and he figured he could work the wing with just one arm.

Mark and his dad both enjoyed how the wing moved the carriage back and forth and twisted and turned their individual gondola as it spun on the spindle it was attached to. And even though the ride didn’t go high, turning the wing at the right time would allow them to gain some height and have them bounce some when they came back down.

After the ride, the Golderson’s told one another how much fun that was and that they would want to do that again tomorrow. The other boys in their group knew what the two were talking about as they had ridden it a few times themselves and they liked it, too.

The twins said it was now time for them to ride the roller coasters. They headed over to The Demon. That was a steel roller coaster with a single loop and a double corkscrew. The actual ride time was very short, as the roller coaster completed the 2,350-foot run, including the lift hill, in approximately 48 seconds. The ride only had one 28-seat train due to lack of block brakes because it was an older coaster first installed back in 1978.

Mr. Levi and Billy told the boys they would not be riding it because it could cause them problems later that they both didn’t need. Mark on the other hand wasn’t too sure he wanted to ride it without riding next to a big person.

The boy’s ‘big brother’ told him that he’d be in a tightly controlled seat and that the ride wasn’t all that high and his going upside down wasn’t any different that riding the Hatchet, Tomahawk or Round-UP. Billy encourage Mark to ride it next to Kevin and to have fun.

Reluctantly, Mark activated his Fastest Pass with his ‘brothers, and when they were called up he got in one of the middle seats next to Kevin. It didn’t take long for the ride attendant to check their safety restraints before the operator released the brakes and the coaster train was headed to the lift chain.

At the top of the lift hill, Mark was anxious about the drop, but it was too late to go back. The boy screamed down the hill and into the first corkscrew, but as they entered the second corkscrew he began to relax. The coaster made a few twists and turns after going over a few hills and before he knew it he was back in the station house.

“Now, that wasn’t too bad, was it?” asked Billy of his little ‘brother’.

“Well, I screamed down the hill and through the first corkscrew, because I didn’t know what to expect. But it was fun,” replied a smiling Mark.

“Yea, he screamed alright,” added Kevin. “I don’t think I’ll ever hear out that ear ever again.” Kevin then put his little finger in the ear he was talking about and wiggle it like he was trying to make it better. Everyone laughed at his antics.

The group then headed over to a smaller wooden roller coaster called The Figure Eight. This wooden coaster went back and forth in a figure eight pattern rather than an out and back as the Comet did. Some parts of the track had bunny hills that added to the fun of the ride.

The Figure Eight is only 80 feet high with a 72 foot drop and traveled for about 3300 feet before stopping back in the station house. Again, Mr. Levi and Billy told the boy they weren’t riding. Mark balked some, but again, Billy told his little ‘brother’ he rode The Comet and it was higher at 110 feet.

The boys activated their Fastest Passes and when it was their turn Mark made Matthew ride in the middle seats. When the coaster train began rolling Matthew held up his hands up in the air, while Mark held onto the lap bar with dear life.

At the top of the first hill, Mark looked down and it didn’t look all that high to him, but as the train raced down it he felt the speed and still held onto the lap bar. At the top of the first hill, the train made a quick turn around and then came back towards where it came.

The coaster being a figure eight wound up going back and forth with hills and valleys and every time it went over a hill the boys got some ‘air time’. Matthew laughed as he lifted off the seat. Mark was a bit perplexed at first, but as the train moved along the track he began to enjoy the ride. By the time the ride was over he wished he hadn’t been so afraid of it at first.

“Dad, dad, did you see? I rode it; I rode it!” exclaimed Mark, as he ran to his dad, and then hugged the man.

“Yes, I saw you did ride that roller coaster. Did you have fun?” replied Mr. Golderson.

“Well … I was a bit scared at first. But … after a few hills I got to enjoy it. I can’t wait until I ride it again tomorrow, now,” enthusiastically offered the man’s son.

There was one more roller coaster the boys hadn’t ridden, The Stagecoach. This wooden roller coaster was 125 feet high with a 78-degree slope that went down 115 feet before leveling out some and then heading up the next hill. This coaster was an out and back like the Comet, but was longer and had a few more hills on it.

Mark looked at it, and told everyone he wasn’t going to ride it unless his dad or Billy was. Of course those two people told him they couldn’t because of their injuries. But Billy told him he had ridden The Comet and it was essentially the same coaster.

But Mark reiterated that Mr. Dan had ridden with him and he was a big person and, “Unless Mr. Wayne or Mr. Ken was there I’m not riding it, period.”

Just then the other four Covers came over to The Stagecoach, as did Mr. Ken and Julia Rennartz.

“What do we have here? A special meeting and nobody told me,” joked Mr. Ken.

“Ahhh, ‘dad’, we all just came at the same time, that’s all,” spoke up Kyle.

Mark quickly spoke up and asked, “Mr. Ken … would … would you ride this with me? It’s … it’s just like The Comet that … that Mr. Dan rode with me, and … and I want someone big, you know, to ride it with me. My dad and Billy they … they can’t ride with me because … because of their injuries. So … so will you … will you ride it with me?”

Robert was hoping his dad would ride it with him, but with Mark speaking up so quickly he knew he had to wait to hear what his dad would say. Even Charles wanted to ride The Stagecoach with his dad, and now he too would have to wait to see if he would ride with Mark, or not.

“Yes, Mark, I would be happy to ride this coaster with you. Let’s all activate our Fastest Passes and wait our turn,” said a smiling Mr. Ken, as he directed the boys up the exit to get their passes activated. He, of course, didn’t have one, but knew he would just pull an ‘Owner’s Privilege’ card, and with Julia Rennartz there he knew he wouldn’t have any problem.

When it came time to ride, Mark told Mr. Ken they needed to ride in the middle of the train, because that was where Mr. Dan had told him he should ride until he got older or got used to riding the bigger roller coasters.

The Cover group took up five of the twelve doubles-seats the coaster train had. The people in line were a bit dismayed that the Covers took up the first two cars and where surprised when they saw a man and smaller boy take a seat in the middle of the train. The line was then opened and the people filled in the rest of the train.

When the brakes were released, the train rolled down to the lift hill where the chain grabbed it and slowly took it to the top of the 125-foot hill. Mark immediately grabbed Mr. Ken’s hand and knew the boy was a bit apprehensive. He told the boy to sit back and enjoy the ride.

Mark screamed down the first hill, as well as the second one. It was then he began to relax as he realized the ride was just as the ones he’d already ridden. He finally let go of Mr. Ken’s hand and began to laugh as he rode the hills and valleys of the coaster.

“Thank you, Mr. Ken for riding with me,” exclaimed Mark, as they got off the ride.

“You’re very welcomed,” replied Mr. Ken.

“Dad, dad, I rode another big roller coaster. It was great!” said a smiling Mark to his dad.

Robert and Charles each asked their dad to ride The Stagecoach with them and he told them he would. So the three of them walked up the exit and the man told the ride attendant he and his sons would ride the next train.

Julia Rennartz had stayed with the man just in case he did what he did the last two times he was at her park and talked to the crowd in line at The Stagecoach, and she needed to know what was said. Now, she asked the attendant if the man’s face looked familiar to him.

The teenager said he wasn’t sure. So, the operation’s manager told him that he was the park’s owner and those boys were his and he’d better remember them all if he continued to work there, and the man and his sons were going to ride the coaster again, no questions asked.

The ride attendant quickly went over to the operator and told her what he was just told. She then looked over and then realized she did recognize the man from earlier that year and told the attendant to do what Ms. Rennartz told him to do.

Mr. Ken and Robert got into the first car, first seat before the operator opened the ride line. The crowd moaned that they’d done that. Julia Rennartz walked out onto the platform and told them he was the park’s owner, and he was riding with his son and would be doing so with his other son on the next ride. The crowd settled down.

After Mr. Ken had ridden with both Robert and Charles, he waited on the platform until after the train had departed and talked to the people in line. He told them who he was and that when he was there during Christmas Wonders and earlier that summer he stood there and talked to the people in line and asked them if they had time to talk to him now.

A few of the people in line remembered that he had done that and yelled out they wanted to hear what he had planned for the park. Mr. Ken told the crowd that he was looking to eventually make the park a destination place. He added that as attendance continued to increase there could be a totally new major addition to the park. The man told the crowd that he hoped to have the plans ready to go in four to five years, and for them to keep their fingers crossed the economy continues to expand as it has.

The group decided to remain together as it was getting late. Ms. Rennartz pulled Mr. Ken aside and recommended to him that when he is in the park he should take a communications device so that he would be immediately recognized as someone in authority, and if there were problems he could contact her, or a ride or section supervisor. Mr. Ken said he would do that tomorrow, but now for she should get a ride/section supervisor to follow them around and run interference for them if needed.

The group headed over to the Axe. This was the same ride as the Tomahawk and Hatchet at the other two parks. The Axe is a dynamic, looping ride which propels passengers 70 feet in the air at 13 rpm. Mr. Golderson was surprised that his son, Mark was eager to ride it after seeing it operate.

The group walked up and activated their Fastest Passes and the ride supervisor called the ride operator over and told them who the people were, and they loaded on the next ride without having to wait. Mr. Levi decided to wait that one out, telling the group he’d better not chance it.

The man watched as his son, and the rest of the Covers, swing back and forth and eventually go over the top one way and then be reversed and go back over the top in the other direction. What was even better was that as it was getting dark the rides lights were on making the whole ride experience that much better for the riders and the observers.

The Covers headed over to the Hang Ten. Mr. Ken explained to Levi the radical ride was designed especially for the tween segment, as it promised to be hit with kids of all ages. When they arrived at the new ride for that season, Levi saw it was a giant painted surfboard that spun around and around, while riders stood up and ‘surfed’ the swells of the track. The ride held 20 passengers per ride cycle and was unique because of the interactivity of standing up.

The boys quickly ran to the exit to activate their Fastest Passes, while Mr. Ken and Mr. Levi discussed whether or not the injured man would ride it or not. Mr. Golderson saw that the ride was not that intense and he felt if he was balance between two big people he could probably ride it, so he decided to chance it and join the group.

The ride supervisor the operations manager sent with the group told the ride operator and attendant who the group was and they were to be put on the very next ride. Some people in line started to balk, but others in line spoke up told them who they were and that they not only had the Fastest Passes, but they were with the park’s owner and he was riding with his ‘sons’.

With only 20 positions on the ride, the group took up eleven of them, so some people did get to ride. Mr. Levi did position himself between Mr. Wayne and Billy as Robert and Charles wanted to be next to their dad. The ride was tame enough that moms and dads took their young children on the ride.

“Well, that was interesting,” proclaimed, Levi Golderson, after getting off the ride. “I didn’t know what to expect after watching it, but now that I rode it, I am glad I did.”

The boys had their ‘dad’ out in the park and even though he wanted to leave at a certain hour, they wanted him to ride more of the rides with them. He relented and he rode a few more rides with them. The group back tracked through the park and they rode the Figure Eight wooden roller coaster, the Flying Wings and the corkscrew roller coaster called the Demon.

But as it was getting late, Mr. Ken told the boys he had promised Mr. Levi a good sit down dinner and that they needed to head back into town and get a good meal. He told them they would be back tomorrow and they could ride the rides again.

But their complaint to him was that he didn’t ride the rides with them all that much, and when he was out there they wanted him to do just that. ‘Dad’ Ken told them he would try to be out there with them more tomorrow, but it was getting late and they all needed a good meal and good nights sleep.

The boys all moaned, but they followed their ‘dad’ back to the operations building where they loaded into the vans and headed back to town where they stopped at a steakhouse. After the nice breakfast on the plane, the fast food lunch and the junk foods he ate with the boys on the run at the park that day, Mr. Levi was grateful for the nice salad, baked potato, vegetable and the big steak he got that evening.

The boys all enjoyed the same type of meal and everyone talked about their day and compared it to the other two parks they had already attended. Mr. Levi listened intently as to what his son, Mark, had to say. He and his wife, Miriam, hadn’t taken their boy to that many amusement parks and when they did they didn’t allow him to ride many intense rides.

Now, after one day, he not only watched his son ride some very intense rides, he listened to how he was introduced to them, over the past five days, and as he slowly built up his courage to get on them. He heard how Mark did ride with either Billy, or Mr. Dan, so he had a big person with him in case he got scared.

Levi Golderson knew Mark was going to be a different boy when his family got back together around Labor Day. He knew his son was going to be a more confident and assured person in the future, and someone who had experiences that many boys his age had never even thought of. The man just hoped his wife would be able to see the good in what Mr. Ken and Billy had done for their son.

Knowing they had another day at Discovery Kingdom, Mr. Ken wasn’t too concerned that the group arrive back at the hotel later than he had wished. He told the boys not to stay up too late watching the television, and he would see them down in the lobby by ten the next morning.

The boys had their marching orders, and headed up to their rooms. The adults were going to search out some adult refreshments before heading up to their hotel rooms, when Levi asked Wayne to change his dressing as it hadn’t been changed in 36 hours.

After the dressing change, the two men found Mr. Ken in the lounge and joined him for a drink or two before all three headed up for their own bed. Everyone slept well that evening.

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

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