Published: 1 Dec 2022

From Previous Chapter:

Mr. Ken hugged all of the boys that night, even Bill, who smiled at the contact. Mr. Ken also told the boys not to spend time thinking about school, but to just let their minds relax and go blank and get a good night’s sleep.

It had been a busy weekend and with school beginning Monday no one knew what the week would bring. But, for now, The Cove was quiet and everyone slept well.

Six o’clock Monday morning came way too quickly for five boys in the Cover household that morning. After sleeping in all summer, they were rudely awakened by their alarm clocks and they all knew they had to get out of bed, drain their dragon, brush their teeth, shower and be dressed and downstairs for breakfast by 6:30.

Charles was the oldest and was given the responsibility by his dad to ensure the younger boys were up and getting ready. He slowly got out of bed, fixed his morning friend, then went to the twin’s bedroom to make sure they were up. Kyle was out of bed, but Kevin, the boy who loved to sleep in wasn’t. Charles knew what he had to do, so he went in and dragged the older twin out of bed and dropped him on the floor. He then told them they were wasting time and to get a move on.

The teenager then started to Matthew’s room, but as he did the boy came out of the room. The teen’s next stop was Mark’s room, but he too was just coming out of his bedroom, so Charles joined his ‘brother’s’ in the bathroom to get ready for school.

Mr. Ken also felt the change in time that Monday morning. He too got used to getting out of bed at 8:15ish during the summer, and now he had to get back into the school routine of getting up when the boys did so he could meet them at the breakfast table. He wondered how Momma was doing that morning as she had to not only get up early, but she had to drive to The Cove and get breakfast ready for the hungry boys.

Mr. Ken did his usual morning routine and then went outside to pick up his morning newspaper. He then went inside for his first cup of coffee. Lucky for him Momma Maria was already there and preparing breakfast and had the coffee hot and ready for him and poured him a cup as soon as he sat down.

The five boys came into the Kitchen Nook at 6:35 and ‘dad’ Ken told them they were cutting it close and to hurry it up tomorrow. ‘Dad’ Ken also saw that Matthew was not his jovial self, so he pulled him aside.

The man learned that the youngster was concerned about the upcoming trial and what the other kids would say. ‘Dad’ Ken told him that the only classmates that knew about the trial were his friends that he told. The man then told Matthew that if they had told anyone else and those classmates say something, that he should tell them that he was going to testify to make sure that Lincoln goes to jail for a long time for what he did to him.

Matthew asked him what to say if the kids asked him about his mom and what she did. Mr. Ken told the boy to tell his classmates that she would get what was coming to her for not protecting him against Lincoln, and then to just walk away.

Matthew’s demeanor immediately perked up after hearing how he could fend off any of the students at school if they harassed him about having to testify at his own mom’s trial for what she allowed to happen to him.

As the boys were eating their breakfast, Mr. Ken asked them to show him their lunch passes. Each boy reached into their shorts pocket and pulled theirs out and showed it to him and then went back to eating.

By that time, Miriam and Levi came into the Kitchen Nook. They wanted to see their son off to school as they would have if they were at their own home. Momma saw them and told them both to sit and that she would have their breakfast ready for them in no time.

The husband and wife went over to their son and hugged him and told him to have a good day at school. Mark said he wouldn’t know anyone, but his ‘brothers’ told him that he knew them and all their friends and once the other kids saw that, they would want to get to know him because he lived at The Cove.

Mr. Ken had to laugh at what his ‘boys’ said. He knew what they said was true as getting an invite to The Cove was the envy of all the students at the boys’ school. The only question he had was what Mark would do if he made a good friend over the next two weeks and then he moved back to his original home.

When it was time, Charles told his ‘brothers’ to drain their dragons and to hurry it up as the bus won’t wait on them.

Hearing the ‘drain their dragons’ line wasn’t something Miriam had ever heard before, so she had to ask her husband what that was all about. Levi laughed and whispered to her that it was a cute way of telling the boys to go pee. Miriam blushed at hearing that, but she also chuckled. Mr. Ken heard that and smiled knowing that Levi explained to her what that was all about.

As the five boys made their way up to the Bus Stop, the two older Covers were getting up for school. Robert commented to Billy that it felt good to get up later than he used to. He also said it was good not to have it so crowded in the shower.

The two older teens made it down for breakfast in record time as they didn’t have to deal with the rest of their ‘brothers’ that morning.

“Good morning, dad,” called out Robert, as he entered the Kitchen Nook, and then he went over and hugged the man.

“Good morning, Mr. Ken; Mr. and Mrs. Golderson,” added Billy, before sitting down for breakfast.

Mr. Ken asked the two teens to show him their lunch passes before Momma served them their breakfast. Robert had to run back upstairs to get his. When he returned, he showed it to his dad and then placed it in his wallet. The teen’s dad told him to leave it there.

Mr. Ken asked Bill if he had thought what he would say to Brett and Kaden if he saw them at school today. Bill told his foster dad that he’d just ask Brett to explain why he just stopped coming by even after he was sent away. Bill also said that if Kaden was at school, he would ignore him, but if he came over to him, he would be nice, but he would then tell him to just stay away from him.

Levi and Miriam were surprised at the relaxed way Billy responded as to how he would respond to the boy who caused such mayhem at their home, and who was responsible for his being beaten at the hands of those three men. They figured he would be angry and would want to get some sort of payback from the teenager. But here he was being the magnanimous one and turning the other cheek.

Robert’s dad asked him how he planned to handle his first day at high school. Robert told his dad that he’ll know a large number of people there, so he figured he’d feel comfortable there. He added that if there was trouble, he felt he could count on them to help him. Mr. Ken told his son to not get into any fights. All Robert did was look over to Billy and smile.

Billy and Robert caught the School Bus outside the Main Gate as their ‘brothers’ did. But Robert was disappointed that his Best Friend, Eric, wasn’t on it. The Cover asked Todd and Conner if the bus went by Eric’s street, but those Junior’s told the Freshman that with the number of schools feeding into the high school the bus routes change.

At the younger Cover boys’ school, Mark felt out of place. That was until the boys in his class saw he knew a whole bunch of boys that they knew were Covers and the Cover’s friends. Those boys immediately went over to him, introduced themselves and asked him where he lived. Upon learning he lived at The Cove the friendships began to develop.

At the high school, Billy and Robert’s friends met them as soon as they walked off the school bus. The two different groups headed in different directions and met up with more of their friends as they arrived on different buses.

Of Course, Robert’s nemeses, Joanna Schwimminger and her clique of girls, Sarah Pikerson, Nora Vestiklle and Callie Zemorah, all came over to him with a bunch of boys he didn’t know and began her usual harassment. The girl figured that now that they were in a different school, she could start all over again and no one would be the wiser. Robert just ignored her and walked away.

As the morning moved along, Harper Young came and changed the Goldersons’ dressings. They then drove over to their home to check on the repairs and to talk to their insurance man about what, if any, costs their home insurance policy would cover.

Mr. Chris also met Jacqueline Kromiere, Ms. Jackie, at the Main Gate at ten o’clock and got her entered into the estate’s database and then brought her to his office where he had her fill out the many employment forms that he had Dennis Florkert do when he was hired as a new employee the other day.

Also, while Mr. Chris was bringing Ms. Jackie on board, Mr. Wayne and Mr. Dennis met the drink machine supplier and had him place the new clear front beverage machine next to the other one at the Pavilion. The two men were also there to learn how to program the slots to handle the different sizes of bottles and anything else particular to the mechanism.

Once Jacqueline Kromiere was finished with all the paperwork, Mr. Chris took her up to meet her employer. When they arrived at the Study, Mr. Ken was on the phone and was not facing the doorway, so the woman could not see his face. When he hung up the phone, he turned to see her and she was totally surprised.

“Ms. Kromiere, meet Mr. Ken Thomas, Mr. Ken as he is known around here,” began Mr. Chris. “He owns Three Finger Cove and he is your employer.”

“I … I thought you were the HR person who did the hiring?” said a surprised Ms. Kromiere.

“Welcome to Three Finger Cove, or The Cove as it is now known, Ms. Kromiere, Ms. Jackie, if I may? And yes, I am the HR person and your employer. I do my own interviews. I want to meet the people, up front, who want to work for me to get a feel for them.

“So, I take it Mr. Chris here has you all on board now. Are you ready to begin your new job as my Projects Manager?” asked Mr. Ken.

Ms. Jackie said she was and was curious as to what it would all entail since this job came out of the blue without an announcement or description. Mr. Ken told her that she would work directly under him, and she would follow up on all his projects now under contract and anything that is developed.

Mr. Ken explained he currently has a 400-unit apartment complex under construction and an office building that is being finished out and that she would be helping him establish his new office for starters. He added that he was in the final development stages of building a marina and restaurant at Four Corners and a linear park alongside his estate. He added that he owned four amusement parks and that she might be asked to visit them, at times, to do some follow up inspections for him.

As the two were talking, Mr. Wayne, Mr. Dennis and Chief, came to the Study. They saw he was busy, so they began to walk away, but Mr. Ken called them back.

“Gentlemen, let me introduce you to Jacqueline Kromiere, Ms. Jackie, my new Projects Manager. She is married to a Public Relations Manager, Westley, and they have two children, a boy, Austin, who is sixteen, and a girl, Journee, who is fourteen.

“Ms. Jackie, I want you to meet Wayne Mitchell, my Estate Master, and otherwise known as Mr. Wayne to my boys, and Dennis Florkert, his assistant and otherwise known as Mr. Dennis to the boys and their friends. And just so you know up front, Mr. Dennis … he was hired for the part-time job you applied for. Oh, and then there is Chief. She is our resident pet. “Woof!”

“Mr. Wayne, do you have anything for me?” asked Mr. Ken.

“The new beverage machine is in place and Dennis and I have filled it with the bottled water that I had in the storage room. After lunch, we plan to go out and buy some flavored water for it and fill the rest of the slots. We’ll also buy a few other 20 oz sugar-free drinks so there is a good selection for your guests the day of the Labor Day Picnic. Other than that, we’ll take Kevin and Kyle to their dentist appointment for four o’clock,” finished the Estate Master.

“Speaking of lunch,” began Mr. Ken, “what say we all go out to the Kitchen Nook and I can introduce Ms. Jackie to Momma Maria and then see what she has made for us.”

The four people then headed out to the Kitchen Nook.

“Momma … I want you to meet my new employee, Jacqueline Kromiere, or Ms. Jackie. She is my Projects Manager and she will initially be helping me move my Study office to the new office building, so she will be around here the next few days, or until I am fully moved into my office out at the lake.

“Ms. Jackie, this is Momma Maria. She prepares all of our meals for us here at The Cove and is a valued member of The Cove and as you can see by her apron, she is also a Cover. That’s the name we give the people who live and work here full time at The Cove.

“Now, Momma … what do you have, good for us to eat for lunch?” asked Mr. Ken.

After lunch, Mr. Ken and Ms. Jackie drove out to the new office building so the Projects Manager could see where she would eventually be working from and to get to see the layout of Mr. Ken’s new office and begin to help him plan how he should set it up. On the way out there, Mr. Ken invited her and her family to the Labor Day Picnic.

Mr. Wayne and Mr. Dennis also departed The Cove after Lunch. They headed out to buy additional flavored beverages for the new machine. The Cove was quiet while the boys were in school and the majority of the adults were gone.

That night after dinner, and before the Covers meeting was again held in the Great Room, Mr. Ken asked the twins to meet with him and Mr. Wayne in his Study. When they were in there the man closed the door.

“Kevin, Kyle … we knew that your dad was going to be sentenced today. Well, he was. Anyway … I’ve learned that he was sentenced to … he was sentenced to 30 to 35 years in prison for his crimes and will begin serving his sentence immediately. Your mother … she will be sentenced later in the week. There is nothing else I can say,” finished ‘dad’ Ken.

The boys looked at one another and then they quickly jumped into one another’s arms and began to cry. Mr. Ken and Mr. Wayne went to them immediately and hugged them and let them cry out their pain. It took the twins about five minutes to calm themselves down.

When they were able to, Kevin asked Mr. Ken what would happen to them now. ‘Dad’ Ken told the boys that as far as he was concerned, they would remain there with him until such time as one of their relatives decided they wanted to raise them. Then he reminded them that when they first moved in with him that none of their aunts and uncles wanted anything to do with them. The boys wiped their eyes, smiled and said they hoped that would remain the same.

The four Covers then joined the rest of the people down in the Great Room. Of course, the rest of the boys wanted to know why the twins had to have a special meeting with their ‘dad’. Mr. Ken told them that it was none of their business. He then asked the boys how their first day of school went and he started with Mark.

Mark told him that the boys in his class came right up to him and introduced themselves right away. The newest Cover said that it was neat how they wanted to get to know him and they all showed him around the school and at lunch there weren’t enough seats at the table for them to sit with him.

Kevin spoke up and asked him if they asked him if they could come over to The Cove. Mark said they didn’t even ask him about The Cove, but he had told them anyway. Kevin told him to just wait and see. The rest of the boys snickered knowing that was probably what would eventually happen.

Mark asked his foster dad what he should do if they do start asking if they could come over. Mr. Ken told him to try to figure out which ones are the genuine friends first and then talk to him. The man said that the boys usually can only invite two friends over at first, which is why they needed to talk.

Matthew was next and he said a few of his classmates asked about his mom and when she was going to trial. The youngster said he was relieved that none of them knew about the trial that was happening that week.

The twins were next and they said school was as if they hadn’t left. They told how everyone talked about what they did during the summer and that their classmates were jealous they got to go to their ‘dad’s’ four amusement parks twice.

Charles told his dad how it felt strange that Robert and his friends weren’t there anymore. He said he then realized that he and his friends were the BMOC (Big Men On Campus) now, and were growing up and they now had to be the leaders and role models.

Robert told his dad that nothing had changed. That Joanna Schwimminger and her posse had begun to harass him as soon as he got off the bus. He said he ignored her and walked away, but knew that was just the beginning. He added that Joanna had some new boys hanging around her, so he knew there would be trouble eventually.

Billy was last and knew that Mr. Ken wanted to know about Brett. The older teen told his foster dad that Brett explained that when his parents learned he was sent away from The Cove, because of some marijuana that was found in his room, they wouldn’t allow him to come over nor was he supposed to answer any of my friend’s questions, phone calls or texts.

Mr. Ken asked Bill about now that he was back living at The Cove. Billy said that Brett didn’t know until just then and that he would talk to his parents and he would let him know.

Mr. Ken then asked Bill if he saw Kaden at school. Billy told him he didn’t see the teen there.

They did their normal review of what was going to happen and that the new beverage machine was now in place and stocked thanks to Mr. Wayne and Mr. Dennis and that Ms. Jackie was now on board and they might see her there helping him move his Study office to the new office building. Mr. Ken then reminded Robert that he and Eric needed to cut the grass that coming weekend so that the grounds looked nice for the picnic.

Before long the boys were sent up to their rooms and Mr. Ken and Mr. Wayne went up to say goodnight to them. The Cove was then quiet for the night.

At the high school that Tuesday, about mid-day, Billy saw someone in the hallway he wasn’t sure he would ever see there. It was Kaden. The teen raised a hand to wave to him, but Billy ignored him and turned away.

At lunch, Kaden tried to talk to Billy, but the Cover asked Lonnie to tell him that they talked in the hospital and had nothing more to talk about. Kaden looked over to Billy with hope that they would talk some more, but Billy shook his head that he wasn’t interested.

Mark’s new friends began to thin out on the second day. The ones who did stick around him did ask about The Cove and the things he got to do there. A few asked why he was living there and one even asked if he was the boy who was brought out of the house where the home invasion occurred.

Mark wasn’t sure if he should answer that, so he didn’t. He did tell the ones who asked why he was living at The Cove that after they get to know one another better he might tell them why he was living there, but for now it shouldn’t matter.

That afternoon, Mr. Wayne showed Mr. Dennis how they go to the school, sign out the boys and take them to their doctor appointments. Today they picked up Mark for his appointment with Doctor Doug. Mr. Wayne explained how they stay with the boy and if they use the restroom they stay outside and wait for them.

Mr. Dennis asked why they took such extreme measures. Mr. Wayne told the man that as a Three Finger Cove employee he wasn’t to talk about this to anyone, but that one of the boys was almost kidnapped from that building after his appointment. Mr. Wayne went on to tell Dennis that he now has a Texas concealed carry permit because of that day.

Mr. Dennis asked Wayne about the other attempted kidnappings that happened last October and if he was working back then. Wayne told the man that he was working for Mr. Ken, but wasn’t yet the Estate Master. Wayne did tell his assistant that it wasn’t until the Holidays that their boss asked him to take the job and also then that he became a foster parent.

That was something else Mr. Dennis now asked about as he now wanted to know if he would need to become one, as well as get his concealed carry permit. Wayne explained that Mr. Ken needed someone to fill in for him when he was out of town and be legally responsible for the boys, so he was asked to get his foster care license and he was vetted and approved to act in Mr. Ken’s stead by CPS.

Mr. Wayne said he didn’t think there would be a need for Dennis to become a foster parent as he would only be there to help with running the boys to their appointments and chaperoning them and their friends, when he and Mr. Ken were off the estate.

And as for the concealed carry permit, Mr. Wayne told Dennis that it would be a personal decision and Mr. Ken would not require it. But Mr. Wayne added that his boss wouldn’t mind if he did have one because of what has happened in the past with the boys. He added that was why he had armed security at the estate.

Mr. Dennis was relieved he didn’t have to be too involved with the boys other than be a driver and chaperone. Then later that afternoon, he and Mr. Wayne took Matthew to his dentist appointment for four o’clock.

When Billy came home from school, he thought he and Momma were going to fix barbequed chicken and baked potatoes and grilled corn on the cob up at the Pavilion, but Momma told him that with all of the dentist appointments and other things going on that week she wanted to try to do it next week. Billy was disappointed, but he understood and said he’d look forward to doing it then.

Later that night, Billy talked to Mr. Ken about Brett and seeing Kaden. The teenager told his foster dad that Brett’s parents weren’t too keen on his coming back to The Cove, but that he wanted to and was going to work on them.

Billy then told Mr. Ken about Kaden being at school and wanting to talk to him. The teen told the man how he had Lonnie tell the ex-friend that they had nothing to talk about and that he ignored him after that. Mr. Ken told his foster son that it was purely up to him if he wanted to talk to the boy, or not, but to know that Kaden was never coming back to The Cove, period.

The Covers had their usual meeting and after they discussed the upcoming events, the boys went up to their rooms and soon Mr. Ken and Mr. Wayne were up there saying goodnight to them. And again, The Cove had another quiet night.

Wednesday morning Mr. Ken let Matthew sleep in until his older ‘brothers’ came downstairs. They were to wake him before they did. He and the eleven-year-old needed to be at the courthouse by 8:30 and the man figured that would give the boy enough time to get ready and still have a light breakfast before they left for the trial.

Miriam still didn’t know the full reason why the boy had to go to the courthouse, but had caught enough of what was said between the boys to know that the boy’s mom was on trial and he was the key witness. She then wondered if they, including Mark would have to go to those two men’s trails when they finally came up. She knew she needed to talk to Levi about that.

Also, that Wednesday, Miriam and Levi would be talking to Lawyer David Jackson about filing a lawsuit against their home security company for not immediately repairing the Panic Button resulting in their almost being killed during their home invasion and Billy’s horrendous beat down by those three men.

While Mr. Ken and Matthew were at the courthouse and the Goldersons were at their lawyer’s office, Mr. Chris took a few phone calls from the high schools concerning this year’s Christmas Decoration Contest.

The Estate Manager told the three high schools that competed last year that Mr. Thomas hadn’t decided on what the challenge would be and that he would call them when he had. He also told the three high schools who cried foul, last year, that they hadn’t decided which, if any, would be invited to compete, and he would call them when that decision was made.

When Mr. Ken and Matthew returned from the trial, Matthew was totally worn out from being grilled on the witness stand. Mr. Ken told him to go lay down and he would have one of his ‘brothers’ come and get him when it was time for dinner. The boy didn’t even stop to get his afterschool snack he was so beat from his ordeal.

Mr. Chris was waiting for his employer and upon his return he told him about the phone calls from the high schools. Mr. Ken knew this was going to happen and Chris had warned him a few weeks ago that when school began the high schools would be calling to get a head start on the decorating contest.

The two talked and Mr. Ken asked Mr. Chris to go and visit the three high schools who wanted to be included and see what type of vocational training programs they had and decide if they actually could compete with the three original high schools. Mr. Ken then said that if they could they would have to decide how they could showcase their creations at The Cove.

Mr. Chris said he would make arrangements to visit the schools next week. He then asked Mr. Ken if he had any idea what he wanted the schools to build for this year’s contest. The man said he hadn’t thought about it and then asked Mr. Chris to come up with some ideas as he was now preoccupied with Matthew and the trial.

Mr. Ken then decided to brief both Mr. Wayne and Mr. Chris on what happened at the trial.

He told them that Matthew held his own until the defense attorney began to cross-examine him that afternoon. The foster dad told his employees that the defense attorney tried to make Matthew look like he was making it all up and was just trying to get his mom’s boyfriend into trouble.

Mr. Ken told the men that after repeated run-on questions designed to confuse Matthew the defense attorney then began badgering him. The foster dad said the prosecution attorney tried to get him to stop, but eventually Matthew got fed up so he stood up, pulled his shirt off and showed everyone his back and yelled, “I didn’t do this to myself!”

Mr. Ken said Matthew then burst out crying and the judge had him go to his foster son and help calm him down. He told them the judge then berated the defense attorney for his continued badgering and then fined him $10,000.00, but it was too late. Matthew was already frazzled and the judge adjourned the trail until tomorrow at nine. He added that Matthew was laying down until dinner time.

As the boys came home from school, they headed for their after-school snacks. They asked about Matthew, but Momma didn’t know anything. Mr. Dennis was there waiting for Robert, but the teen wouldn’t be home until a little after four. But as soon as the teen arrived home, he never got the chance to taste the snack as he had to go with the new hire to his dentist appointment.

When Mr. Ken was finished talking to Mr. Wayne and Mr. Chris, the Estate Manager said he was headed home and would see his boss in the morning. It was then that the Goldersons came to the Study and said they wanted to tell Ken about their meeting with their lawyer, David Jackson.

Mr. Ken asked them if it was OK if Mr. Wayne listened in as he filled in for him when he was away from the estate and would be involved with the lawsuit he would initiate for Bill’s sake. That was the first time Mr. Wayne was hearing that his employer was going to sue someone and he now wanted to know what was happening.

In the end, the Goldersons explained that David Jackson wanted to sue their home security company for breach of contract, emotional and physical injuries due to their negligence, physical damages to the house, physiological damages to their child, loss of income, pain and suffering and a few more items they mentioned.

Mr. Ken told the Goldersons that David’s brother Bill, his lawyer, would now talk to him and begin proceedings to file a lawsuit on behalf of Bill for his many external and internal injuries, emotional pain and suffering and his five days in the hospital. Mr. Wayne had listened intently to both plans to sue and knew he needed to stay on top of any actions Mr. Ken took.

With their snacks finished, the boys wanted to know about Matthew. They stopped by the Study, but they saw their ‘dad’ was busy with the Golderson’s and Mr. Wayne, so they sat on the stairs and waited. When Levi and Miriam walked out of the room, they walked in.

“Dad,” started Charles, “can you tell us what happened at the trial and how is Matthew doing?”

“Boys … Mathew had a rough day on the witness stand. So, I sent him to his room to lie down until dinner. His mom’s lawyer tried to make it sound like he did all those marks on his back just to get Lincoln in trouble. I’m sure he’ll tell you all about it, but please don’t go and bother him right now. Let him sleep,” implored ‘dad’ Ken.

After dinner, the Cover’s meeting was again held down in the Great Room because of the number of people attending. Mr. Ken covered his and Matthew going back to the courthouse in the morning, Mr. Chris working on the Christmas Decoration Contest, the Labor Day Picnic and his move to the office building.

‘Dad’ Ken then asked the boys if they had anything new from school to tell him. Robert asked him if he could go to the football game that Friday night. The teen said that most of his friends were going and he thought it would be fun. Billy said he’d never been to one and asked if he could go, as well.

Mr. Ken said he didn’t have a problem with that and he asked his son to let him know if he needed to ask Mr. Wayne or Mr. Dennis to drive him, or if he would have one of his friends’ parents take him and bring him back. He also asked Bill the same question. Both teens said they’d let him know.

With nothing more being said, the boys went up to finish their homework and get relaxed before bed. Mr. Ken and Mr. Wayne did go up and say goodnight to the boys starting at Mark’s bedroom so Miriam and Levi could then talk to their son.

After the men talked to the boys the house quieted down and before long everyone was fast asleep, and another day was over.

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

87,022 views