Published: 20 Apr 2023

From The Previous Chapter:

“Dragon? Lizard? They both need to be drained. Now go and do it!” said Mr. Ken, as he hugged the boy and then tapped his butt to urge him to use the bathroom.

When the youngest Cover returned to his bedroom, Mr. Ken hugged the boy one more time and then headed down to his own bedroom. As he did that, Chief was coming up the stairs to join his new master in the bedroom.

It had been a long day for the oldest and youngest Covers. They were both happy to be in bed that night. Everyone in The Cove household slept well that night.

After their showers Friday morning, and as the boys were going down to the Kitchen Nook for their breakfast before going to school, Phillip stopped Charles and Matthew at the top of the stairs.

“Charles, Matthew … I … I want to apologize for the way I acted yesterday … after we got off the school bus. I’ve been … I’ve been worried about my mom … and … and that’s all I’ve been focused on ever since she was attacked last Sunday.

“I … I didn’t mean for you to tell me about your moms. I’m sorry they are where they are. I can’t … I can’t begin to understand what that must feel like. I’m … sorry,” finally got out the newest and youngest Cover.

Charles and Matthew looked at one another, and then Charles said, “Phillip … we are the ones who should be apologizing to you. We overreacted to your comment when you asked us if our moms were ever in the hospital. We forgot how difficult it was when we first arrived here at The Cove and what we went through, just like what you are going though now.

“When we get home from school today, and over the weekend, we all need to get better acquainted and become ‘brothers’. We might not tell you everything about us, but … well, we do need to give you some highlights, so you can begin to feel like you belong here, with us.”

Phillip smiled and thanked his ‘brothers’ for saying what they did. He told them that Mr. Ken and he talked last night about his mom and now that she doesn’t know who he is and has other medical problems, he won’t be going over to see her until she is better and has completed what the courts have required of her to do.

The three boys smiled and then continued on their way to eat breakfast.

“Taking our time this morning, are we boys?” chastised ‘dad’ Ken.

“It was my fault, Mr. Ken. I … I stopped them before we came down here. I wanted to apologize to them for what I said to them after we got off the school bus yesterday,” spoke up Phillip, as he continued to take care of Chief’s water and kibble.

‘Dad’ Ken was satisfied with the explanation and let it go. Momma Maria had the boy’s breakfast ready and served it to them and they made up those lost few minutes by eating it quickly.

While the boys ate, Mr. Ken reminded Phillip that what he learns about his ‘brothers’ he isn’t supposed to go out and tell his friends. Upon hearing that, Phillip got a look on his face that said he’d already’ done that.

“Phillip, I know it is hard to remember everything I told you when you first arrived. But the one thing that I want to stress upon you is … is that what you know and learn about your ‘brothers’ … it has to remain inside of you. Because what you learn about them might be embarrassing to them if it gets out. Please try to remember that.

“So … if you have said anything to any of you friends about your ‘brothers’ that you may have heard over the short time you’ve been here … I’d ask … I’d ask you to talk to them and ask them to not go out and tell everyone. Just explain to them that what you said should have been kept in-house and it might be embarrassing to your ‘brothers’ if it gets out and about. Can you do that for me and your ‘brothers’, Phillip?” finished Mr. Ken.

The newest Cover looked over to his foster dad and simply said, “Yes, sir,” and he went back to eating.

When Phillip arrived at his school that morning, he gathered his three friends together and he told them what Mr. Ken asked him to do. He explained that what he told them about Matthew’s real dad was essentially true, but he asked them not to spread what he told them, as it might be embarrassing to Matthew if everybody began talking about it.

The boys said they already told their families what he told them. Phillip then asked them when they got home tonight to ask their families not to spread it around anymore than they have and not to talk about it. The Cover’s friends asked him why. All Phillip could tell them was that he forgot that he shouldn’t have mentioned why his ‘brothers’ are living at The Cove and he was wrong to have said what he did.

When Mr. Ken arrived at his office that morning. Rosemary not only had his messages and hot coffee ready for him, she also had cut out the picture and the story of the previous day’s groundbreaking ceremony from the morning newspaper for him.

She asked him if he wanted her to have it framed and then placed on the wall in his office. The man thought about it for a few moments, and then told her to go ahead and do it. He said he really didn’t have anything on his office walls and that would be a nice start. Rosemary smiled at the opportunity to do that for her boss.

Mr. Ken then told her that he had the gold shovel from the groundbreaking ceremony in his truck and asked her what they should do with that. Rosemary told him she would put a plate on it explaining what it represented and then put in a place of prominence. The woman’s employer told her he’d get the shovel for her later and for her to do her magic. The woman smiled at the opportunity.

While the Covers were either at school or at their office, the one thousand Easter eggs were delivered to The Cove. The delivery van drove down to the four-car garage and Mr. Wayne and Mr. Dennis helped the driver unload the many boxes of plastic eggs and prizes and placed them in the fourth garage stall.

“Wayne … do you know what these boxes of Easter eggs, baskets full of candy and plush animals are all about?” asked a curious Dennis Florkert.

Wayne then proceeded to explain how Mr. Ken had held an Easter Egg Roll every Easter since he owned The Cove. He told his assistant that the boys and their friends would fill the eggs tomorrow with prize coupons, candy and coins and the following Saturday the local boys and girls, aged two through ten, would run amok on the grounds and gather as many eggs as they could and see if they got a prize and of course candy and possibly money.

Wayne asked Dennis if he wanted to stop by tomorrow and watch how the boys handle all one thousand eggs. Dennis thought about that question for all of about two seconds and then said he’d see, but for his friend not to hold his breath waiting for him to show. The two men then had a good laugh.

When the three Covers returned from school, Charles told his ‘brothers’ he wanted to see if the Easter eggs and prizes had arrived yet. So, the three boys looked in the garage and Phillip became amazed at seeing all the boxes piled high in the fourth stall. The boys then went inside to eat their after-school snack.

While the boys ate, Charles and Matthew began to tell Phillip how it was when they first arrived at The Cove. Charles told their new ‘brother’ how it was right around the 4^th of July and Mr. Ken was having his 4^th of July Carnival then. The teen told the boy how it was then he learned that Robert was also living there.

Charles told Phillip that he and Robert had at one time lived in the same foster home and Robert got moved and he hadn’t and he never knew where his friend was taken. It wasn’t until that fateful day that he learned that Robert had been brought to Three Finger Cove.

The teenager then told how he also met Collin and Ryan, two older teens and Cover’s, too, whom Phillip hadn’t met yet. Charles explained they were at college now, and that he would probably meet them over the summer.

Charles continued, then mentioned that his mom’s boyfriend found him at The Cove during the night of the 4^th of July Carnival and tried to take him away by knife-point and if it weren’t for Chief he might not be there right now.

“Isn’t that right, Chief?” Charles asked Chief.’

Chief replied with a “Woof, woof, woof!” and then went over to the teenager and got a few behind the ear scratches. Charles then explained that when Chief attacked the man the knife hit Chief and saved him. Phillip had loads of questions for his ‘brother’.

Matthew then told Phillip how his mother and her boyfriend left him at the miniature golf course one morning. The Cover continued and told his new ‘brother’ that she never came back for him and when Mr. Ken and his foster sons came over to play, later that day, the course manager told his foster dad about him.

Matthew told Phillip, “Mr. Ken … he came over to talk to me, but I told him I wasn’t allowed to talk to strangers. So, Mr. Ken … he had Mr. Dan come over and show me his Sheriff’s badge and he and I talked.

“Mr. Ken then had Robert come over and buy me a hot dog and a soda and when he brought it to me, he and I talked. It was when Mr. Dan came back to talk to me that I spilled the soda and I began to get scared that if my mom and her boyfriend found that out that I’d get into trouble. It was then that Mr. Dan tried to console me by patting me on my back.

“It was when he touched my back that … that I winced. You see, my mom’s boyfriend, Lincoln, he … he used to beat me. And that morning, he had beaten me for something and also the night before, so my back … it was really sore.

“As soon as Mr. Dan touched me and saw how I reacted, he knew something was wrong. So, he called his office and they sent out another officer as Mr. Dan was off-duty that night. Mr. Ken … he called Ms. Judy. Well, I was taken to the hospital. It was there that I met Kyle. He was also one of Mr. Ken’s foster sons, at the time, and we became good friends, and then eventually I was brought here to live.

“You don’t know about Kyle and his twin Kevin. You might hear the other boys talk about them, but, just so you know, their aunt and uncle … they came last Thanksgiving and took them away to raise them for their mom and dad. We sometimes talk, but we’ll probably never see one another again, as their aunt and uncle … they think it would be better if we didn’t,” finished Matthew, with a sigh.

Phillip was amazed at what he just learned about his two ‘brothers’. And he now had lots of questions he wanted to ask Matthew. Both older Covers saw the questions on their new ‘brothers’ face, and they told him to hold his questions until later, as they needed to finish their snacks and get started on their homework, as they will be really busy tomorrow working on the Easter Eggs.

After the boys cleaned off their table and placed their dirty dishes and glasses into the sink, they hugged Momma Maria and headed up to their rooms. As they left, Momma stood back and said a quick prayer. As the boys told their stories, she learned a bit more about how the boys were brought to The Cove and she was now thankful for what Mr. Ken had done for both Charles and Matthew.

An hour after the three younger Covers arrived home from school, the two older teens arrived home. They stopped at the Kitchen Nook for their after-school snack and they talked about their day. Robert asked Billy if he was going to ask his dad if he would take him to get his provisional driver’s license tomorrow.

Billy said he wanted to, but he knew they would be extremely busy with all of the Easter eggs tomorrow and he didn’t know if he should. Robert told his ‘brother’ that he should ask tonight and that way he’d at least know if it was possible. Billy smiled at the suggestion and said he’d think about it. When the two oldest Covers finished their snacks, they headed up to their rooms to start working on their homework.

Because it was a weekend, the boys didn’t usually have a lot of homework, which meant Phillip had his done fairly quickly. When he was finished, he remembered his oldest ‘brother’ telling him, he’d tell him about some boy named Kaden and about why he had to testify at an upcoming trial. So, the youngest Cover went over to Billy’s Room and did the Three-Knock Rule.

“Oh, Phil, how can I help you my ‘brother?” chuckled the teenager.

“Well … you told me a few days ago that you’d tell me about the home invasion and … and about some boy named Kaden. Do you … do you have the time to tell me now, or … or do you want to wait until later?” asked the newest Cover, with the big question on his face.

Billy looked at the time, knowing dinner would be soon. So, he told his new ‘brother to have a seat and he’d give him an introduction to what brought the home invasion about and how his ex-friend Kaden was involved.

Billy told Phillip how he was brought to The Cove back in March of last year after he’d been at three or four other foster homes. He didn’t tell the new Cover why he’d been moved around, just that Ms. Judy brought him there in the hopes that Mr. Ken could give him a place he could settle down in and thrive.

Billy told Phillip about how he didn’t get to meet any of his classmates, unlike Phil, until he went to school. The teen told his new ‘brother’ that Kaden was one of the first friends he had made. The teen Cover added that he wished he knew at the time what kind of ‘snake-in-the grass’ his so-called’ friend would turn out to be.

Charles and Matthew heard Billy talking to someone, so they came to his room to see who it was. Learning the teenager was telling their youngest ‘brother’ about his arrival at The Cove and how he met Kaden and was going to tell Phillip about the home invasion and how Kaden was involved asked if they could sit in too. Soon, Robert came by and he joined in listening to the story.

Billy got so engrossed in telling Phillip about his coming to The Cove and some of the things he got to do there before he was sent away that all of the boys forgot about dinner. Mr. Wayne came upstairs to get the boys as Momma Maria was waiting on them.

“We’re sorry about being late for dinner, Momma,” offered Billy. “I was telling Phil about my coming to The Cove and… well, I forgot to watch the time.”

“Yea, he was going to tell me all about his ex-friend Kaden and the home invasion he was involved in, too. He was giving me what he called the background, first,” spoke up Phillip.

The Covers sat down to a wonderful Momma Maria meal. Tonight, she’d made Mexican Chicken Lasagna where she used layers of corn tortillas in place of noodles added sauteed veggies, Spanish rice, diced jalapenos, refried beans, corn, shredded Mexican-style cheese blend, and white chicken meat. She served sour cream and guacamole on the side.

Phillip couldn’t believe all of the wonderful meals he’d eaten at The Cove. His mother never really cooked anything from scratch and here for the last nine days all he’s had were breakfasts and dinners that Momma Maria essentially made from scratch with what she had in her pantry.

As they ate, Mr. Ken reminded his son and Billy that they still needed to make the prize coupons to stuff in the Easter eggs tomorrow. Billy said they could do that while he told Phil about his living with the Golderson’s and what happened there. ‘Dad’ Ken said they could do that after their usual meeting in the Study.

The Covers meeting in the Study wasn’t a very long one that Friday night. Mr. Ken knew Billy wanted to tell Phillip about the home invasion and would essentially tell him about being banned from the Cove and why. The man knew it wasn’t the best decision in his life, he just hoped Phillip would understand by the time the entire story was told.

What surprised ‘dad’ Ken, after he discussed with the boys what they would do tomorrow, next Saturday with the Easter Egg Roll and Easter Sunday being a Family Day, was the boys wanting to go out to the garage and open the boxes as they did last year. They said that Phillip didn’t know what was in the boxes, and they should show him before their friends arrived tomorrow.

Mr. Wayne said he knew where the box cutter was and they could do as they did last year with one boy opening a box and then giving the cutter to the next person. Mr. Ken then said, “What are we waiting for?” All the boys laughed.

The Covers went out to the garage and Mr. Wayne got out the box cutter. He gave the box cutter to Matthew to open the first box. The pre-teen cut open the tape across the top of the box and then had Charles take out some of what was inside. The teen brought out two bags of large plastic Easter eggs. Charles then opened the next box and had Robert take out one of what was inside, a medium plush Easter bunny.

Robert opened the next box and had Billy take out what was inside, a couple of bags of small plastic Easter eggs. Billy opened the next box and had Phillip take out was inside, an Easter basket full of candy. Phillip was thoroughly surprised at what Mr. Ken was giving out as prizes. Phillip was then allowed to open the next box and Matthew brought out what was inside, a bag of medium plastic Easter eggs.

The boys continued to pass the box cutter around and open the boxes. They then stacked the like boxes together so they’d be easier to find tomorrow. That was until Matthew called over Mr. Wayne and asked him if what was in the box he just opened was supposed to be there.

Mr. Wayne then called Mr. Ken over. Mr. Ken looked at the contents and said that was probably part of Phillips computer system he had Mr. Chris order and it was probably delivered along with all of the Easter boxes. The man called out to the boys to look for more of the computer pieces and to set them aside as they were for Phillip’s room.

Hearing he was getting his own computer brought tears to his eyes. He went over to Mr. Ken and asked him if it was true that he was getting his own computer. When the boy’s foster dad told him that he was going to have the same computer system his ‘brothers’ had, the boy burst out crying, and then he hugged the man. Mr. Ken could only hug the boy back to get him to settle down.

The other Cover boys saw and heard what just transpired and they just smiled to one another. They all figured that Phillip didn’t have anything like that at his home, and this was too much for him to comprehend. The boys went back to separating the boxes and finding the rest of the computer system.

“Mr. Ken … would you let me help Phillip set up his computer? I can show him, you know, what to do and explain what everything is as we do it. Then, when we have it all ready to go, I can get you or Mr. Wayne to come and connect it to The Cove’s main computer server,” asked The Cove’s oldest teen.

“Well, my first priority is for you and Robert to get the prize coupons done,” immediately answered the owner of The Cove. “Then, I thought you were going to tell Phillip your story of how you got to live with the Goldersons for a few weeks and then about home invasion?”

Billy thought about what he wanted to say, then he replied, “Well, Robert and I … we can get the coupons done and as we do that, I can continue to tell Phillip my story. Then, I can tell Phil my story as we unpack the computer boxes. If that’s OK with you?”

The boys had all the boxes stacked into like piles and the computer system by the door leading into the house. ‘Dad’ Ken asked the boys to carry the computer system up to Phillip’s room and he’d be up there in a few moments. The two men talked and Wayne Mitchell decided he’d go back to his apartment and he’d return tomorrow around twelve noon to see if the boys needed any additional supervision. The two men had a good laugh.

When Mr. Ken arrived upstairs, he heard Robert and Billy working on the prize coupons. They were discussing the color they wanted to use for the different prize coupons. The man stopped by his son’s bedroom and asked them how things were going. Robert said they should have all 150 coupons done within the next half hour.

That said, Mr. Ken asked Phillip to go with him to the boy’s room so they could inventory the computer boxes to ensure the whole system was delivered. When the two Covers arrived at Phillip’s room, Mr. Ken pulled out the order form. He asked the boy to check each box as he called it off the sheet of paper.

With all of the boxes accounted for, Mr. Ken gave Phillip the box cutter and had him open all of the boxes. Once that was done, he had the boy carefully take out the largest pieces first and set them aside. Then, with all the parts out, Mr. Ken explained to the almost eleven-year-old, what he had in front of him.

The foster dad then had Phillip chose where he wanted the computer placed and from there Mr. Ken let the boy begin to carefully put the pieces together. While the foster boy did everything, Mr. Ken told the boy that he knew Bill wanted to do that, but he also wanted to make sure his new foster son understood what he was doing and the reason for the connections he was making.

Phillip took his time connecting everything and, as he did, Mr. Ken explained what each piece was for and what it did. Phillip said he was familiar with computers, as he used them at school, it was just that his mom only had a laptop at home and it wasn’t very good and they didn’t have a very good signal.

When every piece of the new desktop computer system was connected, Mr. Ken had the boy plug it in and then turn it on. The computer did its start-up check and then Mr. Ken connected it to The Cove’s servers. With that done the computer searched for the latest updates and the two Covers had to tell the computer if it should download it.

By the time Mr. Ken and Phillip got to that point in setting up Phillip’s computer system, Billy and Robert were finished printing the prize coupons and they came to Phillip’s bedroom. Billy told Mr. Ken he could stay with Phil and help finish with the final set-up process, if he was OK with that.

Mr. Ken knew Bill could do that as he and the teen did that not too long ago, plus his son was also there and was totally familiar with what to do. He also figured the teen also wanted to continue telling is new ‘brother’ his story.

“Bill, sure, go ahead and do what you can get done tonight. But, don’t stay up too late, OK? Phillip can finish personalizing his computer tomorrow, if necessary. I’ll be up later to say goodnight, boys,” finished ‘dad’ Ken, before heading down to his Study.

By then Charles and Matthew had arrived at Phillip’s bedroom and as the new Cover’s computer was downloading new updates, Billy continued his story.

“Phil … I got to do a lot of fun things here at The Cove. One of the most fun was when Mr. Ken took all of us to visit his amusement parks. He owns four of them and we all visited them right after school finished last year. But before that, Kaden, he was one of my so-called friends, was always questioning things, or testing the rules. He never broke them, but it was if he tried to see what he could get away with.

“I don’t know if Mr. Ken has talked to you about his stance on illegal drugs or not, but take it from me, that he does not subscribe to anyone using them or bringing them onto the estate grounds. So, if you know if any of your friends use them, then don’t invite them here, and if you learn that one of your friends who comes here is using illegal drugs you have got to tell Mr. Ken. He doesn’t want them here, so, let Mr. Ken be the one to tell them they can’t come here any longer,” emphasized the older Cover teenager.

Phillip told his oldest ‘brother’ that Mr. Ken did tell him about not inviting anyone over that he knows is using illegal drugs, or thinks is using them. The newest Cover then asked Billy why he was emphasizing the illegal drugs and anyone using them.

“Phil, I wish I knew who Kaden really was when I first met him. It was because of him that Mr. Ken … that Mr. Ken … sent me away from here,” began the oldest teen, before Phillips stopped him.

‘Mr. Ken … he … he sent you away? But … but why?” begged Phillip.

“That’s part of my story, Phil. You see Kaden … we came to learn later that he … that he was working for some men who were into the illegal drug trade in this area. They were also looking for someone they thought was responsible for the demise of the man who had control of the illegal drugs in this area two years before they took over.

“Kaden … he was the teen who delivered their illegal drugs to the high school students for the men, and he … Kaden … he somehow thought that it was me who was the one who called the police that got the man who used to control the drug trade up this way shot by police.

“So, in order for them to get to me, they got Kaden to hide some drugs in my room. And then … and then they made an anonymous call to Mr. Ken and … and they told him where I had supposedly hidden the drugs in my room.

“Well, Mr. Chris and Mr. Wayne … they went up to my room and they found the drugs right where they were told they would find them, and told Mr. Ken. Mr. Ken … he had Mr. Dan stop by and he brought in a drug dog to check to make sure they were illegal drugs. Then, upon learning they were illegal drugs … Mr. Ken … he then sent me away,” explained Billy

“Is that how Mark got to live here?” asked Phillip.

“Not right away. But his mom and dad, Levi and Miriam Golderson, were the ones who accepted me as their foster son for their young son, Mark, who always wanted an older ‘brother. I was taken to their home the same day Mr. Ken sent me away.

“It was a nice home. Not as big or as great as this place is, but nice in a four bedroom, two and a half-bath sort of way. They took me to Mark’s baseball game the first night I was there. Then, over the next few days they got to know me, and I them.

“Mark … he also introduced me to his friends, even though he was almost ten and I was fifteen. But many of his friends had older brothers or sisters, so that made it nice for me as I at least had teenagers my age in the neighborhood.

“What I didn’t know was those men … they also had Kaden try to find out where I was sent. That was because they wanted to make me pay for what I was supposed to have done to this man they called ‘Smokey’.

“So, what they did was … they had Kaden call my cell phone and unfortunately for me … Mark … he answered it when I was in the shower. Kaden … he told him he was one of my friends from where I used to live, and because Mark heard me talk to Lonnie one night, he figured everything was OK.

“Kaden … he also told Mark not to tell me that he’d called. He told my ‘little’ brother he wanted to surprise me by stopping by one night, so Mark didn’t say anything to me. He also deleted the phone call out of the listing, so I never knew Kaden had ever called,” continued Billy.

It was then that Matthew spoke up and said that he never knew that part of the story and he was glad he was sitting in and listening. The pre-teen said he wondered how the men learned where Billy was living after he moved away. The pre-teen said he now understood it was Kaden who called Billy’s cell phone and Mark told him he was living with them and where and Kaden in turn told those men he worked delivering the drugs for.

Billy continued his story. “Phil, then one night, after we returned home from dinner, someone rang the doorbell. It was getting late, and Miriam, she told her husband Levi to go to the front door and see who it was.

“That was when Mark decided to tell me and his mom that one of my friends had called my cell phone earlier in the week and said he wanted to come over and visit me and that maybe it was him.

“Phil, you don’t know how pissed I was when I heard Mark tell me that. I yelled at him and demanded he tell me who it was, and who that could be at the front door. When Mark told me that it was a teen named Kaden, I almost flipped.

“Upon hearing the name, I yelled to Mark to go up to the ‘Safe Room’ his parents had installed in their home and for him to stay there, and that he was not to come out for any reason until me or his parents came to get him. Mark wanted to know why he couldn’t meet my friend. I yelled at him that Kaden … that he’d been arrested with some drug dealers and he might be there to cause trouble for me.

“You should have seen Miriam. She turned white and immediately got mad that her son didn’t tell me someone had called my phone. She then yelled at her son to do what his ‘big brother’ told him. Let me tell you, Miriam, she was really scared and she demanded I tell her why her son needed to go up and get into the Safe Room.

“I told her how Kaden … how he had been arrested with three men and that he was being charged as the drug supplier at the high school he and I attended. I then told her that I bet he was the one responsible for planting the drugs that were found in my room at The Cove, because I had no idea about that area of the closet was where they were actually found.

“Well, just as Mark reached the top of the stairs, these men, and Kaden, came rushing into the house pushing Levi ahead of them. Two of the men, they both had guns, and they had us sit down. All Kaden did was stand by and watch. The men wanted to know where Mark was. I told them he was spending the night at one of his friends. They eventually accepted that.

The men then wanted to know where the Golderson’s guns were, but they told them they didn’t have any because of their nine-year-old son. Luckily, they believed that, too.

“What happened then was they beat on Mr. Golderson and then they had Kaden find something to tie them up with. Once they tied Levi and Miriam up and put them on their bed, they took me upstairs, leaving Kaden there to watch over the parents.

“When the men got me upstairs, in my bedroom, that was where … that was where they took turns beating up on me,” explained Billy, who, remembering where he had hurt the most, began unconsciously rubbing there.

“But why … why did they beat on you, Billy?” quickly asked Phillip.

“Because … well, because they thought … they thought I was the one who was responsible for a man known as ‘Smokey’ being killed by the police, and they wanted to get revenge on me for that,” explained Billy. “The thing was … it wasn’t me.”

“But who was responsible, Billy?” asked the newest Cover. “Do you know it was?”

It was very quiet in the bedroom just then. It was Charles who then spoke up.

“Phil … ‘Smokey’ … he was my mom’s … my mom’s boyfriend. Remember me telling you earlier today about a man who held a knife to my throat and that it was Chief who saved me?

“It was ‘Smokey’ … he was actually wanting to kidnap me the night of the 4^th of July Carnival. He was eventually going to kill me because … because … I was the one … I was the one who put my mom in prison,” finished the teen.

Phillip didn’t know what to say. The day before Charles told him his mom was in prison and now, he learned his ‘brother’ was responsible for her being there. He was dumbfounded.

“Phillip … there is a reason why I called the police on her. She was not only ‘Smokey’s’ girlfriend, but she … she was also delivering his drugs to his dealers. And, on top of that, she collected the money from the other drug dealers for him, too.

“She also wasn’t feeding me very well and, if it weren’t for some of my neighbors, I wouldn’t have gotten fed many days. Also, as she got hooked on the drugs she delivered, she even made me do some of the deliveries and collections for her … and I was only nine,” added Charles. “And, I … and I had had enough!”

“But … but why did they think it was Billy who called the police?” asked Phillip.

“Because when Kaden was coming here to The Cove, he heard stories and he thought … and he thought they all led to me being the one who called the police on ‘Smokey’,” spoke up Billy. “But on the night of the 4^th of July, when he sped away in a stolen boat, the police were already on his tail.

“My step-dad … he was one of ‘Smokeys’ drug dealers and he and a few others had all been arrested at The Cove the night of the 4^th of July Carnival for trespassing and menacing. Only ‘Smokey’ made bail that night, and then he went back to The Cove to get Charles.

“Well, you heard how Charles got away and it was then ‘Smokey’ stole a boat from the other side of the fence at the culvert to get away. The next day Jody, my step-dad, and the rest of the drug dealers, when they made bail, the Sheriff’s detectives … they followed them to where they went.

“Then that night, when the Sheriff’s Deputies had found ‘Smokey’s’ safe house, after they followed his drug dealers, they raided it and he was shot while getting away. He then used that same boat he’d stolen to get away from The Cove.

“But he bled so much he was found in the boat circling in the middle of the lake. There was no phone call to police on ‘Smokey’. He’d done it to himself by not bailing his drug dealers out when he bailed himself out.

“My step-dad … he was killed that night the Sheriff’s Deputies raided ‘Smokey’s safe house. And then my mom … she was also arrested because they served a warrant on our home and searched it and found all the drugs and some illegal guns stored in our house. That is why I am in the foster care system, Phil,” added Billy.

“But … what about the home invasion?” asked Phillip.

“Well, these men … they beat me within what felt like an inch of my life. And, as they were doing that, Mr. Golderson …he was able to get out of his restraints and overpower Kaden and get to his gun.

“The men heard the noise downstairs somehow and one of them … he took his gun and went downstairs to see what happened. Mr. Golderson and him exchanged fire and Mr. Levi shot and ultimately killed the man.

“Another of the men went downstairs, with his gun to see what happened, and he and Mr. Levi also exchanged gunfire. And, he too was shot. And then the third man went down and, from what I heard, picked up the gun the first man had dropped and then he emptied it into the master bedroom hoping to shoot and kill both Mr. and Mrs. Golderson. The two remaining men then ran out of the house and drove away. But they were eventually caught and are now going on trial sometime in May.

“Mark, because both of his parents were injured, he was brought here to The Cove until they were well enough to take care of themselves and him. And, because it was found out that Kaden had planted the drugs, Mr. Ken … he welcomed me back to The Cove,” finished Billy.

“Geez, I can’t believe all those things happened to all of you,” offered Phillip. “And to think I was afraid of Rafael, only because of what I thought of what he would do to me because I wasn’t there to give him back his gun.”

What the boys didn’t know was that ‘dad’ Ken had been out in the hallway and had been listening to the last ten minutes of the story telling. He decided to walk into Phillip’s room right then and say something to the boys.

“Phillip … you heard a lot about why your ‘brothers’ are living here at The Cove. It took them months and months to get even half of what you learned in one night. What you must remember is everything … is that everything you heard tonight and any time your ‘brothers’ tell you something about themselves and why they are living here … is that you MUST … you must keep it to yourself!

“I hope you understand that, Phillip. Very few people know what you now know, and if it gets out … it could be very embarrassing to them and all of us here at The Cove. So, be very careful of what you say to anyone about your ‘brothers’.

“And boys … I hope you are all comfortable with what you told Phillip tonight?” asked a curious ‘dad’ Ken.

“I am,” spoke up Billy. “There is more to it, but he got the gist of the home invasion, and he can read all about it on the internet when he gets his computer all set up.”

“I’m OK with what I told him dad,” said Charles. “He now knows why my mom is in prison and that Billy … that he was not the person to blame for ‘Smokey’ being dead.”

“OK. So, how about all of you head to your rooms and I’ll be there shortly to talk to you,” suggested ‘dad’ Ken.

Once all the older boys had left Phillips’s room, Mr. Ken sat down with his new foster son and talked with him some more. The man again stressed upon the boy that he had to keep what he learned tonight to himself. Phillip said he understood and that what happened to him was nothing compared to what happened to Charles and Billy.

Mr. Ken told the boy that he needed to be up at the Main Gate at twelve noon tomorrow to greet his new friend and get him entered into the database. Phillip said he didn’t understand. The foster dad said he’d have one of his older ‘brothers’ go with him to show him what to do.

Mr. Ken then hugged the boy and told him to make sure he took care of his dragon before he went to bed. The boy hugged him back and thanked him for everything he’s done for him. The boy also thanked him for all the hugs. Phillip said he hasn’t had any hugs like his for a very long time. and he was enjoying them. The two smiled at one another and Mr. Ken went to say good night to his other ‘sons’.

Mr. Ken’s next stop was Matthew’s room. ‘Dad’ Ken asked the pre-teen if he added any more about his mom to the story tonight. Matthew said he hadn’t because Billy’s story was already pretty intense and then Charles added what he did about his own mom and ‘Smokey, and he didn’t want to confuse Phillip.

In Charles’ room, the teen’s dad wanted to make sure his son was OK with what he told his new ‘brother’ tonight. Charles explained his and Billy’s lives sort of crossed and it only made sense to try to clarify them. Charles said he would probably sit down with Phillip and explain it to him some more, so he did understand their connection.

In Robert’s room, the teen’s dad learned the teen was only an observer and hadn’t told his new ‘brother’ anything about why he was living at The Cove. The teen’s dad asked him if he ever would. Robert said it was too early to tell. The two hugged and Mr. Ken headed over to Billy’s room.

“Bill, can I come in?” asked Mr. Ken, as he knocked on the door-frame.

“Sure, Mr. Ken,” responded the teenager.

The two talked some more about what Billy told Phillip tonight about the home invasion and his role and what was said about ‘Smokey’. Bill told his foster dad that he would probably sit down with his new ‘brother’ again and try to clarify any questions the boy might have.

Mr. Ken told the teen he better be prepared as there was a lot more yet to be told. Billy said he hoped that Phil would read about it on the internet first, and then ask him to fill in what wasn’t said.

It was then Billy asked Mr. Ken about the possibility of him going to get his provisional driver’s license tomorrow. Mr. Ken smiled at the question, and then told the teen that Mr. Wayne was the one he gave the task of teaching him to drive, so he needed to ask Mr. Wayne tomorrow when he saw him.

Billy thanked his foster dad for talking to him. The two shared a hug and Mr. Ken headed down to his own retreat to relax and get some rest before the weekend began. Everyone slept soundly that night in The Cove.

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

137,556 views