Published: 12 Dec 2024

From The Previous Chapter:

Ken Thomas finally got to his retreat and got ready for bed. When he laid down on his bed, he reviewed what he experienced that evening. He knew that these boys all needed to be loved and given the chance to experience things that they wouldn’t have gotten if they had stayed with their parents. He told himself that he was up to the challenge and that if he had to forgo his businesses for a while then so be it. He was going to make sure that these boys, and Collin, if necessary, succeed in whatever they wanted to do when they graduated from high school.

All of the boys slept well that night, as did Collin and Ken Thomas. The Cove was quiet and awaited another day.

Ken Thomas had already left the house before the boys came down for breakfast. But again, as happened yesterday, Mr. Wayne sidetracked them to help him feed the puppies before they got their own breakfast.

The boys helped and because they knew what to expect the feeding went smoother than it did yesterday. The puppies were also getting used to being fed and they eagerly went for their food and before long the seven puppies were fed and then they evacuated their bowels and bladders over a period of time.

The boys helped clean up the puppy’s messes before they went up to the Kitchen Nook for one of Momma’s breakfasts. But before she would let them eat, she made them wash their hands.

Phillip had to eat fast as he had a Doctor Doug appointment at ten o’clock and by the time he’d eaten, taken his shower and gotten dressed, he arrived at the appointment just as the clock struck ten.

When Phillip talked with Doctor Doug that day he wanted to talk about the accident and how it happened. But the discussion morphed into Phillip’s concern about when he would ever get to go back to living with his mom again.

Doug Jennings was a little surprised at the turn of the discussion and had to steer their talk back to the accident. The two did talk about what happened and how Phillip was knocked unconscious by the sudden impact of the front-end loader. The boy wanted to know if that would affect him somehow in the future and would he have any lingering problems from the concussion. The session ended before any of that could be fully discussed.

But because of the boy’s needs to discuss him going back to live with his mother, he realized that he would need to have Phillip back to talk about both issues before the boy would have a clear head concerning both subjects.

When the two went out to the reception area, the doctor asked to talk with Mr. Wayne for a few moments. When the two adults were in the office, Doug Jennings told Wayne that he needed to see Phillip a few more times for two issues, one of which came up during the initial reason for the appointment.

Wayne tried to learn more, but the doctor would not budge about what extra issue the boy wanted to talk about. So, the Estate Master made additional appointments for Phillip over the next few weeks, so that the young Cover could get things settled in his mind.

As the Covers drove back to The Cove, the car was quiet. Phillip was lost in his thoughts about the accident and when he would be back living with his mom. It had been so long since he was taken away by CPS that he was now really missing his mom and he wanted to get back together with her.

Phillip loved living with Mr. Ken and his ‘brothers’ and everything he had to do there including all the trips, the clothes he had and the good food Momma Maria made for him. The boy knew that he would miss all that, but he felt that he needed to be with his mom. And that was the thing that was the upper most in his mind right now, which was why he asked Doctor Doug about when he would ever get back to living with her, again.

When the Covers returned to The Cove, Phillip’s ‘brothers’ asked him if he remembered where he’d hidden his marshmallow peeps. The question startled the younger Cover at first, but when Matthew showed him his hardened yellow peeps, Phillip understood what he meant and knew exactly where he’d stashed his.

Mr. Wayne wondered what that was all about, so he followed Phillip to where he’d hidden his Easter peeps and when the boy brought them out of hiding, they were almost as hard as rocks. The boy offered the Estate Master one and when the man bit into one it was tough to bite but it was chewy and very tasty. Mr. Wayne asked the boys why’d they hide them and wait until now to find them.

Robert had come along and laughed and told the Estate Master that it was his idea to do that back at Easter time, and they had all forgotten about them until he found his today. The teen told the man that he told all of his ‘brothers’ to go and find theirs and to see how hard and good they were.

Mr. Wayne had to agree that they were nice and hard and that they did taste very good. The man then asked if the boys were going to eat them all now, or if they were going to save some for their ‘dad’ for later. Robert said that they’ll save some for their dad to enjoy, too.

The Covers’ friends arrived on time and then went about doing what they always do. The cooks got the barbeque ready, while some skated, some rode the PWCs, sailed, or swam in the cove and played on the water toys.

Of course, Phillip and his friends all got their instruments tuned up and then began to play. Bryce still had to help Phillip get his guitar on his shoulder, but after that the Cover was okay to play with the band.

When it came time to go swimming, after the band had eaten, the boys asked Phillip if he was going to swim today. Phillip told them that his ‘dad’ told him that he was going to have Doctor Powers decide if he should, or not. The band mates were disappointed that the young Cover didn’t go swimming with them again, but they wanted to swim and enjoy themselves as tomorrow they would be in school.

Phillip went into the house and Mr. Wayne, Mr. Chris and Mr. Dennis were all feeding the puppies, so he joined inhelping. The young boy felt it was fun for him to do that. It was different from all the other things he did there at The Cove. The boy also liked it because he was doing it with the other men at The Cove.

Earlier that afternoon, Mr. Ken came home from the office and he and Bill went out looking at cars. The evening before they only had the chance to look at a few vehicles. Today, Mr. Ken hoped to check out many more and from them he hoped that he and Bill could narrow them down to three, or maybe four, they could discuss and decide which would be the best one to buy for The Cove to replace the destroyed Taurus.

The Covers’ friends left at five o’clock that Tuesday. They all had school tomorrow and the rule was that if there was school the following day their friends had to leave at that time. Mr. Ken and Billy also came home then, which gave them about an hour to talk about the vehicles they looked at and test drove to try to narrow down their choices as the replacement vehicle.

Mr. Ken and Bill sat in the Study and discussed all of the vehicles they looked at, with Mr. Wayne, Mr. Dennis and Collin sitting in and listening. Billy first listed all of the cars they looked at, so the three other men would know what they were talking about.

Billy started listing the 2013 models first, which included the Hyundai Sonata, the Toyota Camry, the Kia Optima, the Dodge Avenger and the Chevrolet Malibu. The teen Cover then listed the 2014 vehicles they looked at, which comprised the Toyota Camry, Hyundai Sonata, Chevrolet Malibu, Nissan Altima, Ford Fusion Hybrid, Buick Regal, Kia Optima, Kia Soul and the Volkswagen Golf.

Wayne, Dennis and Collin were impressed that the two looked at so many vehicles. But Billy told them that they didn’t road test all of them, they just looked at those vehicles as possible replacements for the Taurus.

The teen Cover told the two men that they actually test drove of the 2013’s, the Toyota Camry and the Chevrolet Malibu and of the 2014’s, the Toyota Camry, the Nissan Altima, the Buick Regal, the Kia Optima and the Kia Soul.

Mr. Ken and Bill talked about what they liked and didn’t like about the seven vehicles that Bill test drove and that Mr. Ken sat in during the road test. They discussed the engine performance and its acceleration, fuel economy, interior comfort, blind spot detection and rear parking sensors. They even discussed which vehicle had the better radio sound or upscale infotainment system with GPS and mapping available.

Wayne, Dennis and Collin, from just what they had heard, were going to make their recommendation, but Mr. Ken asked them to keep it to themselves. He was going to have Bill research the safety rating of all seven vehicles, as well as their repair reliability to help them decide which of the seven they should narrow it down to. Then they would look at the cost factors and decide from there.

It was now dinner time, and the two men were invited to join the Covers for dinner. And it was at the dinner table that the discussion of the replacement vehicle continued. The boys were glad that they did that as it gave them some insight as to what their ‘dad’ and Billy were doing while they were out looking at the cars.

When dinner was over, everyone went to the Study for the usual meeting. ‘Dad’ Ken told the boys that they all needed to set their alarms to be up for school in the morning and he suggested that they get out which school clothes they wanted to wear tonight, so they aren’t trying to figure out what they want to wear after they got their shower.

‘Dad’ Ken then asked the boys to get their minds around the new school year and to focus on doing their best and to come to him or Mr. Wayne, or even Mr. Dennis, if they were having problems with their school work, or even a bully at school. He added that Collin would soon be back at college, so he wouldn’t be there to help them much. Mr. Ken then asked the boys to help one last time with feeding the pups before they went up to their rooms.

Phillip took care of fixing ice water for Chief and smaller water bowls for the pups for them to have if they also wanted a drink during the night. And with seven people feeding the seven puppies the evening feeding and clean-up of the pups after feeding messes went smoothly and fast.

Mr. Dennis left after the feeding and then Mr. Ken and Mr. Wayne went up to talk to the boys to say goodnight. The night time goodnight wasn’t a prolonged one that night. Mr. Ken did ask Bill to search the web for the information about the seven vehicles when he had the time and they would talk about them and hopefully they would buy the right car that Saturday. Billy couldn’t wait.

The other boys were looking forward to seeing their other school friends the next day. They all hugged their ‘dad’ and relaxed some more before actually getting in their bed.

In Phillip’s room, ‘dad’ Ken asked the young boy about his appointment with Doctor Doug and how it went. The boy said that it went well, but the man pressed the youngster about what other issue he wanted to talk to the doctor about.

Phillip was reluctant to talk about it, but ‘dad’ Ken told him that he can’t help him too much if he doesn’t know about it, as well. Phillip thought about that and then told his ‘dad’ that he was still concerned about when he and his mom would get back together again.

‘Dad’ Ken pulled the boy to him and hugged him. The man told his foster son that with his focus on going back to living with his mom he is not being fully aware of what is going on around him and he could miss something important.

‘Dad’ Ken stressed on him that if he focused on his living with his mom so much that he was and not focused on his school work he could miss something important in his studies and then get poor grades, which could affect him in his future.

The foster dad hugged his foster son and asked him again to please have some patience. He reminded the boy that the judge told his mother that she had to hold a job for at least four weeks and the fourth week was up that week before the Labor Day weekend. The man asked Phillip to please set aside his focus of going back to living with his mom for the next three weeks and enjoy living with him and his ‘brothers’, and getting his shoulder healed so when he does go back to living with his mom, he is good to go.

Phillip hugged his ‘dad’ and thanked him for taking the time to talk to him.

Mr. Ken walked to the top of the stairs where Collin was waiting for him. The young man told his Big Bro that all he wanted was a good night hug, as he gives his ‘sons’. The two hugged, there at the top of the stairs, then they said good night to one another and proceeded to their own rooms.

As Mr. Ken sat on his bed before laying down, he felt good about taking the afternoon off and going with Bill to the used car dealerships and identifying a few more vehicles that could very well be the replacement for the Taurus.

He saw how the teenager beamed that he was getting to do something he felt was important for The Cove and for himself. It was also a teaching moment for the teen and a memory that would probably stay with the young man as he goes into adulthood.

The Cove was going to be busy tomorrow as the boys began another year of school, but for that night the house would be quiet as everyone would sleep well.

‘Dad’ Ken Thomas wanted to be up when the boys came down for breakfast before they headed off to catch the bus to school. So, he got up well before six o’clock in order to be showered and dressed and out in the Kitchen Nook, reading his morning newspaper when Mathew and Phillip came in.

Both boys came in together and they smiled when they saw their ‘dad’ sitting there and they went over and hugged him. And even Chief was there waiting for them, so they went over and scratched behind her ears. Phillip then quickly went down to the Great Room and got the resident pets bowls and rinsed them out and filled them with fresh kibble and ice water for her and returned them to where they were.

Momma Maria had a special breakfast ready for the boys that first school day morning. The woman had scrambled eggs, rashers of crisp bacon, pancakes and hash browns as well as orange juice for the boys to wash it all down with. ‘Dad’ Ken also enjoyed some of the same.

The three Covers talked about what the boys expected during that first day of school, but before long, the boys needed to wash their hands, get rid of any excess bodily fluids and then head up to just outside the Main Gate, to where the bus stop was, to catch their school bus.

After the boys left the house, Mr. Ken went back to reading the morning paper and waited for the high school boys to arrive for their first day of school breakfast. Almost an hour later, the three high school boys arrived in the Kitchen Nook and they all hugged their ‘dad’ for being there for them.

Momma had them all sit down to their own special breakfast, too. As the teenagers ate, they talked with their ‘dad’ about what they hoped would happen during their first day of school. But as what happened to their ‘brothers’, time moved on and the teens had to head up to the top of the hill and out the Main Gate to catch their school bus.

At Phillip’s school many of his classmates welcomed him back, but some of them teased him about almost being beheaded during the accident. But now that Charles was no longer at the school, the young Cover had no big ‘brother’ to protect him. But Bryce stepped up and told the tormentors to ‘buzz-off’ and to ‘take-a-hike’ as Phil was just in the wrong place at the wrong time and they were lucky they weren’t there and now being bullied.

Phillip thanked Bryce for getting themoff his back. Other students had heard that Phillip and a few others had formed a band and they asked him if they had ever played anywhere. All Phillip could tell them was that they played at a reunion during the summer.

All the Cover’s bandmates heard what Phillip said and they all smiled, knowing what it really was. Later Phillip clarified with them that it was a reunion of Collin’s old classmates from when he attended the high school, so he didn’t lie to their classmates.

At the high school all of the Covers’ friends met them and they all gathered in separate groups. Charles and his friends felt a little out of place, as they were the new kids and even though they went through orientation, they still needed to get their bearings.

Robert’s friends greeted one another and the ones who had gotten jobs during the summer talked about what they did. Logan, Trevor, Gordon and Josh talked about their jobs at Four Corners and how they’ve changed working at the different game’s booths, but that Logan has also been working at the food kiosks, as well.

Logan told his friends that he told Mr. Sanders that he was interested in learning any position that was open and that he wasn’t afraid of hard work. So, he mentioned that the ops manager had been trying him in different positions including sweeping and emptying the trash cans as well as washing them. The boys all laughed, but Logan said that he was cashing a paycheck and asked how many of them were doing that.

Billy’s friends talked about what they missed at The Cove and they also wanted to know about the accident. Billy told them that what they heard from the police was essentially what happened. He told them that he was talking to his lawyer about suing the news report agencies for the way they miss-characterized him, but he hasn’t heard anything back.

Lonnie told their close friends that he and Billy, when he’s there, have been power washing The Cove’s perimeter walls, Main Gate house and the driveways and curbs. The teen also told their friends that Kevin and Kyle were visiting for about nine days, which was why Billy didn’t work all the time. Lonnie then let it slip that Billy didn’t need to work because he had a significant windfall come his way.

Brett, Gabe and Jamie pressed Billy to tell them what Lonnie meant. So, the teen Cover pulled them aside and told them that Mr. Ken sued the alarm company, in his name, and that they settled out-of-court with them. Then Billy told them that his foster dad had him put all of the money in the bank and only let him hold back enough for his own car for when he goes off to college.

Then Billy told them about how he and Mr. Ken had been going out and looking for a replacement vehicle for the Taurus that had its roof cut off, so they could get to Phillip. The Covers’ friends then had Billy tell them about that, then the first bell went off and they all had to go into the school.

When Ken Thomas arrived at the office, he called Ben Walthers to his office. The two talked about Ben finally going out to visit all of the amusement parks. The President of TFE had been putting it off, but after the owner of the parks had found what Jackie had seen was indeed happening, he wanted Ben out there to make sure that what he told the operation managers to fix, indeed was fixed.

The two agreed that Ben, possibly with his family going along with him, would visit two of the parks, Fantasy Fun Park and Mountain Top during the three-day weekend in October. Ben said that he could take the children out of school early on Friday and fly to the hotel late that night and visit one park on Saturday and one on Sunday and return on that Monday in October.

Then he agreed that in November, he could do the same thing with taking the children out of school early and then visit Discovery Kingdom on Saturday, and then, because Arnie had Crystal Lake running well, they could visit there and then do a quick visit to Edgewood with Jason and then fly home Monday night.

Ken Thomas agreed with that schedule. He wanted Ben to be out there with his face visible to all of the operations managers and their assistants, so they knew who they were talking with on the phones. Mr. Ken also wanted him to check out the new construction on the coasters and the water park that was going in, while he was out there.

The two then discussed the Fall Amusement Park Meeting Agenda that would happen the weekend after the Labor Day Weekend. He told Ben that the Travel Group would be responsible for sponsoring the Fall Amusement Park Meeting and that it would be four days long with all of the parks operations managers arriving on Wednesday. Mr. Ken added that they would all stay at the Lakeside Hotel and leave Sunday. Mr. Ken also told Ben that he already had a list of agenda items he wanted to cover and he showed him the list:

– That the park employees know who Mr. Ken and Mr. Ben are
– That they follow their directions
– Special polo shirts for ops managers/supervisors
– What colors for whom
– What additional rides the operations managers feel their parks need
– Spook-Tac-U-Lair and Christmas Wonders discussion for additions/changes
– Workers who project a bad work attitude or ethics, or ignore safety rules/regulations
– Clean parks continuously
– Power wash in front of food stands at least every other week
– Power wash ride queues every two to three weeks.
– Pick up trash daily
– Clear tall grass and weeds often
– Buy extra trash cans and wash them and exchange dirty for clean
– Protocols for people using Go Pros, quad-copters and other video equipment
– Ask if the parks could establish an early ‘behind the scenes’ tour
– Start an hour? earlier than regular opening time
– Show workshops?
– Show/Explain major ride controls
– Point out exotic plants/trees
– Take Ops Managers out to visit Four Corners Amusement Park

Ben looked over the extensive list and knew why the meeting should be four days. He also asked who was going to be the host and Mr. Ken suggested Jackie. Ben smiled and wondered if she would accept the task. The boss said he thought that she would, as she didn’t have any major projects on her plate as of now, other than the train at Four Corners.

Ken called Kate later that morning just to say ‘Hi’, and to see how she was doing. Kate said that there was no movement on the four men who assaulted her more than nine years ago. She admitted that was because she refused to press charges, even though the police had the video evidence and the names, but without her testimony they wouldn’t charge them.

Ken told her that he would support her in any decision that she would make. He already knew why she didn’t want to testify, and he wasn’t going to try to change her mind. He and Amy had their plan up their proverbial sleeve and once they had all four men’s DNA, they would talk to Kate about getting Rusty to volunteer more of his own DNA to use to compare against those four men to see which one was the boy’s real father.

Ken didn’t want to tell Kate about their plan until they had everything that they needed and then, and only then, Ken would fly out there and he and Amy would explain what they wanted to do and why. They both figured that Kate would go along with their operation as it would give her what she wanted. And that was to know who was the father of her child, Rusty.

At the high school, Charles told his friends about his trip to Edgewood to help with the Grand Re-Opening and how he got to know many of the ride operators and the operations manager practically invited him to come back, when he was sixteen, and begin to learn all about running an amusement park.

Charles told them that he and his dad have talked about him doing just that, but his dad also said that they wouldn’t discuss it until he was actually sixteen. Charles said that he bets that his dad will have him learn at Four Corners for that first year to gain experience and then when he is seventeen let him go to a full operating park to better learn how a real park operates. The teen Cover added that when he goes off to college he wants to study how to operate and run an amusement park and then eventually run one of his dad’s parks.

Robert and his friends talked about their getting jobs when they turn sixteen. The Cover told them that his dad doesn’t want him getting a job as long as he is going to the amusement parks with him three times a year. The Cover explained that no employer will hire someone who takes off on a trip with ‘daddy’ right after he hires him.

The Covers’ friends asked Robert if he’d ever get the chance to work. Robert told them that his dad talked to him about that, but that he wouldn’t make any commitments at this time. The teenager told his friends that his dad doesn’t want to leave just him at home when the rest of his ‘brothers’ are going with him on the trip to his amusement parks.

Robert’s friends told him that it sounded like he had a tough sell next year when he turns sixteen. The teen Cover said that he would be up to it then as Billy might be want to work then and Charles would be fifteen. So, Robert figures if all three want to work he might just take Matthew and Phillip with him and have either Mr. Wayne or Mr. Dennis stay with them while he’s gone.

The Cover’s friends wished him good luck next year when school was over.

Billy’s friends all wanted to know what cars he’d been looking at to replace the Taurus. Billy named them all and then told them that he and Mr. Ken had Mr. Wayne, Mr. Dennis and Collin sit in while they discussed the vehicles. But in the end, the teen said that they had whittled them down to seven and then named those.

The teen Cover told his friends that he now had to research their safety and fuel ratings, then he and his foster dad would sit down and decide which one they thought would be the best fit for The Cove.

Billy’s friends asked him which one he liked the best. Billy told them that he liked the 2014 Kia Optima, the 2014 Kia Soul and the 2014 Toyota Camry. But the Cover added that it won’t just be his choice, but that after he looks up the information, as Mr. Ken asked him to, they will sit down and talk about the pros and cons of all seven and then decide. Billy said that Mr. Ken wants to buy the car that coming weekend.

When school was over, Matthew and Phillip came home and went to the Kitchen Nook for the afterschool snack that Momma Maria had ready for them. As the two young Covers sat and ate the scrumptious snack, they both agreed that it wasn’t any fun with just the two of them. They decided and told Momma that starting tomorrow they would rather wait until their ‘brothers’ get home and then they would eat their snack with them.

The two younger Covers then went up to their rooms to work on the little bit of homework that they had for that night.

An hour later the high school ‘brothers’ came home and they stopped at the Kitchen Nook for their afterschool snack. They talked about their day at school and how their friends wanted to know what they missed at The Cove after they’d gotten jobs.

After the high school teens finished eating their snacks, they gave Momma a big thank you hug for fixing that for them and then they went up to their rooms to work on any homework they had. Billy, though, began working on checking the safety, fuel and reliability factors for the seven vehicles he and Mr. Ken had decided on as the potential replacement vehicles for the Taurus.

At dinner, ‘dad’ Ken asked the boys about their first day at school. They each told him about what their friends had to say and the high schoolers’ friends wanting to know about what they missed because they had jobs.

When the boys went to the Study, ‘dad’ Ken had some letters from the assessment company for Billy, Robert and Charles. He gave the envelopes to the teens and asked them to open them to see what the career assessment decided what they can be when they grew up. The man then laughed.

Billy read his out loud saying, “William Brooks Dirketson, your assessment determined that you are logical, analytical, and orderly. The assessment suggests that you would do well in careers that involve linear thinking, math, and verbal information, such as an accountant, a research scientist, or computer programmer. Other careers you may want to consider are as an elementary school teacher, a writer/author, industrial designer, or as a school counselor or social worker. Criminal justice might be another avenue for you to consider as either a police officer and/or a probation officer.” Billy smiled at what he read.

Robert read his next. The teenager read aloud, “Robert Arthur Thomas, your assessment determined that you are best at expressive and creative tasks. You are someone who is very visual, a little spontaneous, and often labeled as emotional. You would be best at a profession that combines your artistic strengths and talents with your technological expertise, such as graphic design, web design, art directing, entertainment software development, layout design and digital illustrating.” The teen smiled at what he heard himself read.

Charles went next as he read his assessment. “Charles James Thomas, your assessment determined that you are best at science, engineering, and business. You are someone who is detail oriented, likes order, is reality based, is practical, and prefers a safe course of action. You might be best at civil engineering, industrial engineering, electrical engineering, as a financial analyst, cost estimator and accountant. You could also do well as a school teacher, in research or as an architect.” Charles was pleased with his report.

Matthew and Phillip were surprised that the long assessment their ‘brothers’ took a while back was so detailed. They asked their ‘dad’ if they would be able to take that assessment. ‘Dad’ Ken told them that it would be best to take it when they were in high school after they’ve had more time to formulate the things they lean towards.

Robert then wondered out loud if Eric had gotten his assessment, now that they’ve gotten theirs. The teen’s dad told him to call his Best Friend later and ask.

‘Dad’ Ken told the teenagers that this assessment was by no means what they had to do. That it was only a guideline from which they could begin to plan what they wanted to study when they went off to college. He told them that they could take the assessment next summer again, if they wanted, to see if anything changed.

Mr. Ken told Bill that as a Junior he would soon start to look at which college he would want to attend, but that he could also attend the local community college to get his first two years of college requirements out of the way, before committing to a study major. The man told the teen that he could still live there at The Cove while he went to college. That put a big smile on the teenager’s face that everyone could see.

Mr. Wayne spoke up just then and told the teen that it would save him a lot of money by doing that, and that would help keep his total cost for his advanced education at a minimum. Again, Billy just smiled at knowing he could save money by living at The Cove, while he went to school, even though he had a good amount in the bank and could afford to go as a full-time student.

Mr. Ken then continued with their usual after dinner meeting and told the boys who had dentist appointments next week and that Phillip would see Doctor Doug next Tuesday, but that he would see Doctor Powers that coming Friday at three o’clock and either Mr. Wayne, or Mr. Dennis, would pick him up from school.

Dad Ken also reminded Charles when he would see his orthodontist and he asked his son to remind him so that he could go along with him to get an update. Charles was happy to hear that his dad wanted to know what the status of his braces were and when he would finally be finished with them.

With the meeting over, Mr. Wayne then invited everyone to help with the evening feeding of the puppies. Phillip went to retrieve Chief’s bowls to clean them and fill one with fresh ice water, while his ‘brothers’ helped Mr. Wayne get the soft ‘gruel’ ready for the seven puppies who had grown over these last four weeks.

Mr. Wayne had bought seven small bowls to try to see if the pups would start eating out of them instead of off the little feeding fingers he’d bought the other day. He read that once the puppies begin to eat the softened food they will begin to eat out of a small bowl and also drink from one as well, so he bought them, too.

The Estate Master had hoped that the puppies would begin to do that because the feeding would go so much smoother that way in the future. When they presented the food bowls to the pups, they came to the food, but backed off. Mr. Wayne put some on the feeding finger to one and they ate it and so took some more on the finger and enticed the pup to the bowl and the pup ate some more and then seeing the food right there began eating out of the bowl.

The boys began doing that with the other pups and before long all seven pups were eating out of the bowls. The trial was a success and Mr. Wayne was happy, for now. He had to hope that tomorrow morning the pups would remember that they ate out of the bowls.

When the feeding was over, the boys helped rinse out the bowls and by then, they were helping clean up the pups messes out on the Great Room floor. Lucky for them Mr. Wayne and Mr. Chris had put up that three-foot high puppy coral that contained the mess in a 10 x 12 foot area.

With the puppies all fed and their messes cleaned up, the boys went up to their rooms. ‘Dad’ Ken and Mr. Wayne came up a few minutes later to talk to them and say goodnight.

In Bill’s room the teen told his foster dad that he had the safety, fuel and reliability information on all seven vehicles and was ready to discuss them when he was. Mr. Ken told the teen that there was no real hurry and Saturday morning would be soon enough.

In Robert and Charles’ rooms, the teens told their dad that they were surprised at their assessment reports and they were now happy they had spent the time to take that assessment. They asked if he meant it when he told them that they could take it again next summer. Learning that they could, the teenagers said they might take him up on that. Robert also told his dad that Eric had gotten his assessment and it said that he was best at science, math, communication and health and safety.

Matthew enjoyed the one-on-one time he had with both men and tried to prolong it as much as possible when each man stopped by.

Phillip told his ‘dad’ that he was happy that he could ask Doctor Powers about his shoulder and if swimming would help. He then asked his ‘dad’ if he could swim at night to help his shoulder heal quicker. ‘Dad’ Ken said that they could possibly do that, but they will have to wait and see.

The first day of school was over and the boys were settled down for the night. As Mr. Ken walked to the top of the stairs, Collin stopped him. The young man told him that he called Jasmine and they talked some tonight and that they talked about school beginning soon.

Collin said that it felt good to talk to her and that he might try to go and see her sometime during the fall, but definitely during the Holidays. Big Bro Ken told his ‘little’ brother that he was happy for him and that he should remember that his studies were important, but that being happy and in love was important, too. The two hugged and went to their own retreats.

Ken Thomas was relieved that the teens were happy with their assessments. He now had to help steer them in the direction they wanted to go. But he knew that wouldn’t be too difficult because they thought the report fit them.

The Cove was quiet that night with seven Covers, one resident pet and seven puppies sleeping and looking forward to tomorrow.

The saga of Three Finger Cove continues. Let Chowhound know you are reading his story: Chowhnd at Gmail dot Com

137,405 views