Published: 1 Jun 2023

From The Previous Chapter:

When he finished visiting with his ‘sons’, Mr. Ken was now happy that Collin had arrived. Initially, he would have had to take all the boys Easter baskets down to the Great Room by himself, but now he could draft Collin into helping him. The two would be using the big rolling cart from the garage and the elevator, as well. This year the Easter candy and gifts were in the extra room off the master bedroom, so the boys wouldn’t be tempted to go searching the guest suites to see what they were getting.

Of the five Cover boys, Phillip was the only one who wondered what he would find tomorrow morning that the Easter Bunny brought him. Mr. Ken had told him that he would get a cell phone one day, and he hoped that it would be one of the items the Easter Bunny would bring him.

The Cove was quiet throughout the night. Chief slept with Collin again that night.

At 7:30 Easter Sunday morning, Collin’s cell phone rang. He was thoroughly enjoying sleeping in that wonderful guest bed and being with ‘family’ that he didn’t want to answer it. He knew it was his Big Bro calling wanting him to help him take the boys Easter baskets down to the Great Room.

“Good morning, Bro, I’m up. Let me get rid of some excess fluid and I’ll meet you in your retreat,” was how Collin answered his cell phone.

Collin threw off the bed covers and headed to the en suite and drained his bladder. He then put on some running shorts and a t-shirt and he and Chief quickly walked down to Mr. Ken’s private retreat.

Mr. Ken had already gotten the cart from the garage, so all Collin needed to do was help place the baskets on the cart and also carry a few down to the Great Room, as well. The two worked well together and they had the majority of the Easter baskets and goodies down in the Great Room and arranged with the youngest, Phillip, getting more Easter baskets and candy than the oldest, Billy, did on their first attempt.

When the two older Covers went back up to the retreat, Collin was surprised to see what else there was to take down and place in and around the boy’s baskets.

“Whoa, Bro … when did you give my ‘brothers’ their own … guns?” asked Collin.

“I didn’t! I still have the guns locked up. But after the Goldersons’ stayed with us, Levi … he told me how he was going to begin teaching Mark how to shoot when he turned ten. We discussed why he was going to do that, even before the home invasion, at length, and … well, now for obvious reasons, he convinced me to teach the boys.

“So, I decided to buy some guns for Christmas and since then we’ve been taking the boys to the shooting range to teach them about guns and gun safety and how to properly shoot them. Even Mr. Dan has gone with us. The bullets … they are a way of telling them that is one of the places we are going today,” explained the young man’s Big Bro.

As Collin carried the boxes of 9mm and .22LR ammunition down to the Great Room, Mr. Ken carried two other special Easter gifts to the Great Room to be placed with the Easter baskets. One other special gift had already been placed during their first trip.

When they were finished it was already 8:45, so Mr. Ken suggested they go to the Kitchen Nook and grab a cup of coffee. The man told his Little Bro the boys would probably be downstairs exactly at 9 o’clock and this would give them the chance for at least one cup of hot coffee and some small talk before then. Collin laughed at that and followed his Big Bro up to the Kitchen Nook and a chance to talk to the man who had taught him what it was like to live in a real ‘family’ and have friends.

Upstairs, the boys began to stir well before 9 a.m., but they knew they couldn’t go downstairs until nine o’clock. They gathered and talked in Billy’s room about what they thought Mr. Ken had planned for them, during their Family Day. It was then they learned that Chief hadn’t slept with Phillip the past two nights.

“Phil, you probably don’t know this but Collin … he was Chief’s first boy and … well, he is something very special to her,” began explaining Robert. “What you don’t know was … that it was Chief … that she was the one who actually found Collin out on the Patio during that hundred year’s storm, back when you were probably five or six.”

“How did she do that?” now asked Phillip.

“Well, what my dad told me was … that during the storm that Chief … that she kept going to the big windows down in the Great Room and …and that she was growling and kept barking at something that was out there. Dad said he thought it looked like a rolled-up rug or something, but when Chief persisted, he went to the window and looked out once more and when he saw the object move, they both ran out there and found Collin.

“From that point on Chief … dad told me that she watched over Collin the entire time he recovered here, at The Cove, from his injuries. Collin … he lived here for almost eleven months before … before his grandmother … before she won custody of him a court battle to have him go and live with her.

“So, you see Phillip, to Chief … Collin was her very first boy and whenever he is here, she … well, she gravitates to him and him alone. They have a very special bond, so don’t feel bad that she didn’t stay with you the past two nights. When our big ‘brother’ leaves, she will be back sleeping with you,” finished Robert.

“There’s a lot more to Collin’s story isn’t there, Robert?” asked Phillip.

“Yes, Phil, there is, but … but I won’t be the one who tells you. You will need to get to know your older ‘brother’, and get him to tell you about his time here. Sorry,” replied the teen.

“Hey, what time is it? Isn’t it time yet to see what the Easter Bunny brought us?” now asked Charles, with a smile on his face.

Billy looked at his alarm clock and said it was 9:05 and they should probably all drain their dragons and head down to the Great Room. The boys all headed to the bathrooms to use the porcelain gods. As they did that, Charles reminded them not to go downstairs in just their underwear and that they should stop by their bedrooms and put on a t-shirt and running shorts.

Phillip first went to the bathroom he used and then to his bedroom where he changed out of his pajamas and into the nylon running shorts and t-shirts he recently got. He then joined his ‘brothers’ and they all went down the stairs to the Great Room.

As the boys started down the stairs, Chief was alerted and she went barking to greet them. Mr. Ken and Collin knew the boys were on their way and they got up from the table and headed towards the front of the house to join the boys who would undoubtedly be down in the Great Room finding their Easter baskets, by the time they arrived.

As the boys began their walk down the stairs to the Great Room, Phillip innocently asked, “How do we know which Easter Baskets are ours?”

Matthew took that question and told his youngest ‘brother’, “Just look at the size of the piles. The biggest pile is yours the smallest is Billy’s. It’s that simple! That’s how ‘dad’ did it last year.”

“Phil,” began Robert, “I think that pile over there is yours.” Robert then pointed out a large pile of baskets filled with candy and also with a special gift standing next to them. But not being little children any more, with Billy now sixteen, Robert fourteen (fifteen in June), Charles fourteen, and Matthew twelve, they didn’t get loads of Easter Candy. Only Phillip, being ten, (eleven in May) got more than any of them.

By then Phillip’s foster dad and his oldest ‘brother’ had caught up to the boys and they heard Robert point out the pile with the special gift to the youngest Cover. They then saw Phillip hurry over to the pile of Easter goodies, but instead of diving into the candy, the boy picked up his special gift and began to cry.

The other boys, with indifference to checking out their own Easter haul, watched as their ‘brother’ ran to his Easter pile of baskets of candy and other goodies and ignore them, but pick up what they all knew was a very special gift ‘dad’ Ken had gotten the boy.

The boys, along with Mr. Ken and Collin, saw Phillip begin to cry as he held the special gift in his hands and hug it to himself. The boy was beside himself as he never thought he would get such a precious gift from his foster dad.

After a few moments of surprise and disbelief, of what he had in his hands, he opened his eyes and began looking for Mr. Ken. When he saw his foster dad, he ran over to him as he still held the special gift in his hands.

And with tears still falling down his cheeks, Phillip said to his foster dad, “Mr. Ken … thank you, thank you for getting me this … this guitar. It is something I would never have ever thought I would get as an Easter gift. Thank you, so much!”

And with that said, Phillip put the guitar down and hugged his foster dad for all he was worth.

By that time the other Cover boys had found their own Easter baskets and began to look through their haul of candy and other goodies. One item in their baskets caught them all by surprise. And seeing them, Charles asked his dad if his giving them boxes of ammunition meant they were going to go to the shooting range soon.

Phillip was still hugging Mr. Ken when he heard Charles’ question, so he grabbed his guitar and quickly went over to his own Easter pile and looked to see if he had anything that looked like ammunition. And he did. The boy found two boxes of .22LR shells in his Easter baskets.

“Am I … am I going to get to shoot a gun, too?” spoke up the youngest Cover, to no one in particular.

Mr. Ken walked over to his foster son and told the boy that he was and that was going to be one of their Family Day adventures today. Phillip got a big surprised look on his face. It was then Collin came over and took a piece of the younger Cover’s candy.

“Hey, get your own,” offered Phillip.

“I would, but my Big Bro, here … he didn’t think to make me an Easter basket, and … seeing you’re not even looking at what the Easter Bunny brought you, I figured I’d help you eat it,” replied Collin, as he took a second piece of candy and then ruffled Phillip’s hair.

“Hey, Phil, what kind of guitar did Mr. Ken get you? Is it anything special, or is it a beginner’s one?” asked Billy, as he came over to look at the new guitar.

Phillip looked over the new guitar and told Billy, “Well, it’s not an extremely expensive one, if that’s what you’re asking. But I don’t think it’s one you’d buy someone who’s just starting to learn how to play, either. Mr. Ken … can you tell us something about this guitar?” finished Phillip.

“Phillip, I knew you were heart broken when Rafael, or one of his minions, smashed your guitar to pieces. So, I started asking around for what would be a good guitar for someone, like you, who knew how to play, but were still quite young and needed something to hone your skills.

“With that asked, I was told to buy this Donner Acoustic Guitar. It’s for a beginner adult teen or someone like you, who needed a better instrument to continue to advance their skills. What you don’t see here, and I have up in my retreat, is the padded bag, strap, digital clip-on tuner, pick-guard, 4 picks, extra pack of strings, a cleaning cloth and an Allen wrench and a few other accessories. Oh, and there is also an A-frame stand to hold your music on,” was how Mr. Ken described the brand-new guitar.

Phillip jumped into Mr. Ken’s arms and hugged him again and thanked him for buying him the guitar. He told his foster dad that he couldn’t wait until he came home later tonight in order to tune it up. The boy added he’d then pull out some of his music and begin working on getting his calluses back on his fingers.

It was then that Charles spoke up and asked his dad if that box hiding behind the chair was something for him. All the boys looked to where Charles was asking about, so Matthew went over and picked it up and brought it over to Mr. Ken.

“Yes, son, it is. You never got with me, so we could sit down for you to show me which Go-Pro you wanted for your birthday so … well, I took it upon myself to take what you told me you were thinking of getting, and so, I ordered you that. So … Happy Birthday, son! I hope this is what you were thinking about. If not … I can always send it back and, you know, get you the one you really wanted. Come over here and get your birthday present,” teased the teen’s dad.

Charles came over and took the box and looked into it and when he did, he told his dad that the GoPro Hero7 was exactly what he was thinking of. The Cover teen said it was a waterproof action camera with touch screen, that could do 4K Ultra HD Video, 12-megapixel photos and could also do live streaming if he were ever wanting to do that.

Charles looked through the box some more and he saw there were also straps with camera mounts for the head, chest and a helmet, plus a SanDisk 128GB Extreme MicroSDXC memory card with adapter, and a few other accessories for use on bicycles or in the water. The teen then went over and hugged his dad.

As Charles was looking at his Go-Pro, Phillip then saw there was another special gift in his Easter baskets. It was the cell phone Mr. Ken told him he would get him. The boy looked at the box and saw it was a TracFone box with a Samsung Galaxy A11 smartphone inside.

The young Cover read the specifications on the box and saw the phone had the Android 10.0 operating system, came with a 6.4″ diagonal HD+ LCD TFT touchscreen, 2GB RAM, 32GB internal memory, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and had a three-lens rear camera. The boy also saw there was a car charger, and a protective case.

“Mr. Ken … thank you for my cell phone. You told me you would be getting me one, and this is awesome!” spoke up Phillip, who then went over to the man and hugged him.

“Phillip, later, your ‘brothers’, they can help you set up your phone. You’ll probably have to charge it first, so before we go out, make sure to put it on the charger and when we come back, they can help you get it working, OK?” suggested the foster dad.

Collin then took another couple of pieces of Phillip’s candy. Phillip saw him and gave him a dirty look. Then he laughed.

The boys checked out each other’s Easter haul, but especially they looked over Phillip’s new guitar and his cell phone. Charles looked at the new cell phone and told his youngest ‘brother that it was much better than his and he started to tease his youngest ‘brother’ by telling him not to ask him to help him set it up.

Phillip got a surprised look on his face when he heard Charles say not to ask him to help him set up the phone. Robert saw the look on his ‘brothers’ face and told Phillip that Charles was only teasing him. He explained that Mark’s phone was better, too, and so was Matthew’s because they got them after he and Charles had gotten theirs, and so they each had gotten newer models. Robert told Phillip he’ll help him set the phone up later.

The Covers talked about their Easter morning and what candy they’d gotten. Robert then asked his dad if he could hide some of his marshmallow peeps and let them get hard. The other boys then asked if they could do it, too.

Besides getting some Easter chocolates and marshmallow bunnies, peeps and other candy, they also received extra minutes, texts and download data cards to use to add to their cell phones and of course the boxes of ammunition for them to use when they go to the range later in the day. Billy especially, but the other boys also, appreciated what ‘dad’ Ken did to make them feel and to do things such as a ‘family’ does.

Mr. Ken told the boys the candy was theirs, but that he told them he thought they couldn’t hide it long enough to let the peeps get hard enough. Then he laughed.

The boys then asked him if he knew why they wanted to do that. ‘Dad’ Ken said he liked the peeps when they were almost as hard as rocks as they tasted even better then. The boys all tried to figure where they could put the peeps until late summer. ‘Dad’ Ken told them not to forget to take the wrappings off or else the air can’t get to them to start drying them out.

Mr. Ken looked at the time and then told the boys he felt it was time for them to head up and get their showers, dressed in school like clothes and ready for their Family Day. He asked them to be downstairs by 11:15.

The boys asked him again where they were going. ‘Dad’ Ken laughed and told them they would find out soon enough, and for them to head up and get their showers. The boys each took a couple pieces of candy and started to walk up the stairs with Phillip carrying his guitar.

“Phil, leave your guitar, but bring your phone,” called out Robert. “We can set up the phone to charge while we’re gone. Then, when we get back, you can get the other stuff for your guitar from ‘dad’s’ area. OK?”

Phillip took his guitar back and put it with his Easter baskets and picked up his cell phone. He also took a few more pieces of candy and then quickly caught up with Robert. When the two Covers got to Phillip’s bedroom, Robert showed his ‘brother’ how easy it was to charge the phone and then told the younger boy to go get his shower.

Phillip stripped down to his underwear, took a clean pair out of his dresser and then walked down to his bathroom to take his shower. He saw two of his ‘brothers’ doing the same as they headed into their bathroom. They waved at one another before they entered their bathroom.

Phillip brushed his teeth first, then he jumped into the shower he’d been using. When he finished his shower, he dried off, put on his clean underwear, some deodorant, grabbed the dirty ones and then walked back to his bedroom to get dressed. He put on what he would normally wear to school and then headed down to the MRS Room.

When all the boys were in the MRS Room, Phillip asked Matthew why their bullets were smaller than their older ‘brothers’. Matthew told Phillip that the guns their older ‘brothers’ will shoot are heavier and give a stronger kickback than the ones they will shoot, and Mr. Ken feels they need the lighter one to learn to shoot before they get to shoot the bigger ones.

Mr. Ken had come out of his private retreat while Matthew was explaining the reason for the smaller ammunition and he smiled at the explanation. He then asked the boys if they were ready, and learning they were he told them to bring their boxes of ammo and to meet him in the garage.

The boys had to scramble down to the Great Room and their Easter baskets to retrieve their ammo and then hurry to the garage where their ‘dad’ was waiting for them. They all loaded into the van and Mr. Ken backed out of the garage and then headed up to the Main Gate where he stopped and told the guards they would be gone most of the day and to send any visitors away.

But there were news media waiting outside the Main Gate wanting some additional comments from Mr. Ken about the apprehension of Rafael Ruiz, and two other men, at his estate the previous day during his Annual Easter Egg Roll. Mr. Ken slowed the van and told them he had nothing else to say and with-it being Easter Sunday they were headed out to eat and spend some Family time together. He then sped away.

The Covers stopped at the Four Corners Diner for Brunch since none of them had anything to eat, other than candy, since they got up that morning. ‘Dad’ Ken told the boys to get either breakfast, or lunch, but not to over eat as they were headed to the shooting range after they ate.

While they were eating, the boys asked if Mr. Wayne was going to be with them today. ‘Dad’ Ken told them he invited their Estate Master to join them at the shooting range, and they would just have to wait and see if he shows up.

As the boys ate, they talked about their Easter candy. But Phillip took center stage with his getting a guitar as an Easter gift. His ‘brothers’ asked him how good a player he was, and all Phillip could tell them was that he wasn’t fast, but he could play without stumbling through a song.

The youngest Cover told them when they get home later, and he gets the chance to tune the guitar, he’ll play it for them. He did remind them that he hasn’t played for three weeks or longer and that his fingertips have gotten soft, so he might not be able to play very long.

Robert reminded him that they also needed to set up his cell phone, so he could take it to school with him tomorrow and get all of his friend’s phone numbers. Phillip said that Mr. Ken already had them and all he needed to do was ask him for them and he could program them in tonight.

Mr. Ken heard what his foster son said about the phone numbers and he had to laugh to himself. The boy was resourceful, he thought, that was for sure.

It was about 1 p.m. when the Covers exited the Diner and filed back into the van with Billy driving this time. Mr. Ken figured there wouldn’t be all that much traffic that day and giving the teenager the chance to drive the bigger vehicle would give the teen additional experience for the future.

The Covers arrived at the shooting range about forty-five minutes later and when they pulled into the parking lot Mr. Wayne and Mr. Dan were there waiting for them.

“What took you so long?” chuckled Mr. Dan. “We’ve been waiting here like … forever it seemed, didn’t it Wayne?” now laughed Dan Fischer.

“Dan, I didn’t know you were going to be here?” laughed Mr. Ken.

“Yea, well, Wayne here … he told me you were going to take the boys shooting today, so … well, I decided I’d come along to make sure they don’t shoot one another,” laughed Mr. Dan.

The boys heard what Mr. Dan said and they went over to him and told him they knew how to shoot. But Mr. Dan reminded them that Phillip didn’t and he wanted to make sure he didn’t mistake one of them for the target, since he hasn’t gotten his glasses yet. Mr. Dan and Mr. Wayne both laughed at the joke the man tried to make.

“Mr. Dan,” spoke up Phillip, “can I ask you … whatever happened to Rafael?”

“Well … you see … it was close to 3:45 when they finally took him to headquarters. Then by the time they processed him and charged him with all the alleged crimes we believe he is either responsible for or involved in, the judge who he would have been arraigned in front of and heard his plea and set his bail, if any, had already left for the day. So, Rafael and his friends got to spend the night in our glorious jail. They’ll get to spend time there tonight, as well, as the magistrates do not work on Sundays.

“Then, on Monday morning, the three men will be brought in front of the judge, or a magistrate and they will be either given bail, or held for a preliminary hearing. It could get complicated for them from there, but suffice it to say they are in a world of hurt right now,” finished Dan Fischer, Sheriff’s Lieutenant.

When Dan finished telling the boys what he knew about Rafael Ruiz and his two cohorts, Mr. Ken got the boys attention and told them to go and get their ammo, while he retrieved the guns and his own shells. The Covers then followed the other two men into the shooting range office to sign up for some range time.

Even though there were nine of them, they only got eight range stalls, but probably wouldn’t use them all as Mr. Ken would spend time with Phillip as he wanted Phillip to learn how to use the Ruger® SR22™ .22LR Rimfire Pistol handgun he’d bought, so Matthew wouldn’t have to wait his turn while his youngest ‘brother’ learned the rudimentary safety rules of shooting and the use of a handgun.

Mr. Ken first gave Robert the 9mm Glock the teen had gotten from his parent’s home before the court ordered the home sold and quickly got him set up in his stall. He then gave Billy the Glock 9mm GLK 19 Gen5 15 FSS MOS Pistol and Charles the Sig Sauer P365 XL 9mm Nitron Black X-Series Striker and set them both up in their own stalls. The 9mm handguns were the ones he bought at Christmas time for the boys to use to learn to shoot with.

Matthew was next and Mr. Ken gave him the GLOCK G44 .22LR Rimfire Pistol he also bought at Christmas and got him set up and ready to shoot, as well. Collin looked on as his Big Bro got the boys set up and ready to shoot.

Mr. Dan and Mr. Wayne went behind the man to double check that the boys loaded their gun magazines correctly and had their ear defenders and eye protection ready to put on before they began to shoot. They also quickly covered gun safety with them and then had them send one round down range to check their stance and gun control.

While Dan and Wayne worked with the four boys, Mr. Ken took Phillip aside in his stall and introduced him to the Ruger® SR22™ .22LR Rimfire pistol he bought, so he could learn to shoot with. The foster dad took his time explaining the operation of the gun and the safety rules the boy had to abide by as he handled the firearm and shot it. He also explained the proper shooting stance to the boy. Collin, again, looked on and took it all in.

Once Mr. Ken felt Phillip was ready to send his first round down range, he loaded one round in the clip, or magazine, and with all three now wearing ear and eye protection, the foster dad had his foster son point the handgun at the target and slowly squeeze the trigger.

When Phillip did what he was told, he expected a louder noise when the firing pin hit the primer of the shell, or cartridge, and more of a kickback, or recoil, from the pressure of the bullet leaving the barrel, but there wasn’t all that much from the smaller, less potent caliber shell.

When the round was fired, Mr. Ken saw a big smile come on Phillip’s face.

“You liked that didn’t you?” asked the boy’s foster dad. All Phillip did was smile some more.

Mr. Ken had the boy load two bullets into the gun’s magazine, or clip, and this time he asked him to shoot it twice. But he also asked him to take his time between both shots. Phillip released the magazine as he was shown, took two bullets out of the box, loaded them in the clip as he was shown, pointed the gun away from both of them as he slid the magazine back into the handle, or grip, of the gun.

Phillip then stood at the counter and faced down range. Mr. Ken told him that when he was ready to aim and fire two rounds down range. Phillip took a breath, let some of it out and then pulled the trigger and sent the first round down range. He then released his breath and then took another one and repeated what he’s just done.

With another smile on his face, the boy turned to his foster dad and asked him if he could shoot some more. Mr. Ken told the boy to go ahead and to fully load the magazine this time. So, Phillip released the magazine, and loaded ten more rounds in the magazine before sliding it back into the grip, or the handgun’s handle.

While Phillip was learning to shoot his first handgun, the other boys, even though they each had one hundred rounds to shoot, didn’t want to just shoot them. They wanted to take their time to learn to better control their aim through improved hand eye coordination.

Dan and Wayne also used the time at the range to shoot their own handguns. Dan often shot his service weapon at the Sheriff’s own range, as he was required to do so to maintain proficiency. But he also had a private handgun that he also loved to shoot and that was the one he had brought with him today.

Wayne brought his own handgun, the Taurus PT111 Millennium G2 9mm, to shoot, as well. He didn’t shoot it as often as he thought he should, and when his boss told him he was going to take the boys shooting on Easter Sunday he was all for it.

The good thing about this shooting experience, Wayne felt, was that the four older boys had a good appreciation for gun safety, they understood how to load their weapon and they could be trusted to not fool around with the gun, so they didn’t need close supervision as they did when they first started.

Phillip was thoroughly enjoying his first ever shooting experience. He was disappointed, though, that he was shooting all over the target and he couldn’t seem to put them in the same spot. Mr. Ken told him not to worry about grouping his shots, just yet, but to get the feel of the gun and to control his breathing and the squeezing of the trigger.

The foster dad also told his foster son that when he begins to shoot his second box of cartridges, they would begin to work on grouping his shots. Phillip liked hearing that, and told Mr. Ken he would try his best to get better control over his breathing and sending the rounds down range.

The other boys did take a break after they shot their first box of shells. They wanted a drink and they also wanted to see how well their youngest ‘brother’ was doing, too. When they looked in on Phillip, they knew from that smile on his face that he was enjoying shooting the smaller and lighter .22LR pistol.

“Hey Phil, we’re taking a break. We need to rehydrate and let our eyes rest after firing one box of shells. You ready to get a drink?” spoke up Billy, when the youngest Cover was finished firing and getting ready to reload his magazine.

Phillip asked Mr. Ken if he should go with his ‘brothers’. Mr. Ken told him that it was a good idea to take a break and rest his eyes, arm, shoulder and hand and then while he did that, he would go ahead and send some rounds down range.

While the boys went to get a soda and rest some, Mr. Ken then took out a Walther P99, a 9mm, 15-round, 4-inch barrel handgun he bought to replace his oversized Glock 20, Gen 4, 10mm handgun. He didn’t have a handgun for Collin to shoot, but told the teenager he’d let him shoot his while he was there.

Mr. Ken loaded his new pistol and sent a few rounds down range. He wanted to get the feel of the new handgun before he fired it for accuracy. He did that a few times before he loaded the magazine with fifteen rounds, took his stance and then fired all fifteen bullets at the target. He felt good with his gun control.

The man then had Collin come over and the Big Bro did the same with his Little Bro as he did with Phillip and went through gun safety and operation of the gun and the safety rules the teen had to abide by as he handled the firearm.

When Mr. Ken felt Collin was ready, he had the teen load one round in the magazine, stand facing the target and send one round down range. The report of the 9mm and the recoil was much more than that of the .22LR and Collin was surprised. But he did have a big smile on his face, just as Phillip had.

Mr. Ken had Collin now load two rounds in the clip and do what he had his foster son do to send two rounds down range. Collin did as his youngest ‘brother’ did and took a breath, released some of it and then fired the gun. When he was ready, he did that again. He got that same shit-eating grin on his face that he had the first time he shot the Walther P99.

Mr. Ken then had Collin load fifteen rounds in the magazine and to slowly shoot them at the target. Collin took his time and tried to group them together, but because he hadn’t been given any instruction on how to control his arm and aim his shots, they were all over the target.

Mr. Dan stopped by and watched as Collin shot and when the clip was empty, he asked the teen if he could give him some pointers. Collin readily agreed and the two worked together to get Collin to better group his shots on the target.

The boys had come back by then and they watched their oldest ‘brother’ shoot a gun they hadn’t ever seen before. But Phillip got antsy and asked when he was going to get to shoot his second box of shells.

Mr. Ken heard him and took him to his stall and there Phillip got to try to group his shots on the target. When the boy was about half way through his box of cartridges, Mr. Dan stopped by and asked the boy if he could give him some help in controlling his gun and grouping his shots.

Phillip looked to Mr. Ken to see if he should. The foster dad told the boy that the Sheriff’s Lieutenant knew more about handguns and shooting than he’ll ever know and to get that first hand instruction was something he shouldn’t pass up.

So, Mr. Dan worked with Phillip on his last twenty-plus rounds. As the boy shot the rounds at the target, he saw that using the helpful hints he received from Mr. Dan he was able to get better control of the gun and his aim was truer than when he first started.

The Covers spent two plus hours at the shooting range. Before leaving, they cleaned up their brass and brought their guns to Mr. Ken for safe keeping in the van before they drove to their next stop. Along the way they each had to tell everyone about how well they shot and how much fun it was they got to do that again.

Phillip, though, had the better story of them all. “That was my first time ever shooting a gun of any kind and it was really fun. I can’t believe I got to do that. Thank you, Mr. Ken.

“I had a hard time, at first, getting the shots in the same area of the target. That was until Mr. Dan came by. He asked me if he could give me some pointers. So, after some great instruction by him on how to better stand, control and aim the gun that helped me group my rounds on the target better than when I started. And you know what was the best thing of all? That even though I didn’t have my glasses yet … I didn’t seem to hit any of you!”

When Phillip finished saying what he did, everyone in the van got quiet. They looked around at one another to see if they all heard what their ‘brother’ had just said. Then they all burst out laughing. Even Mr. Ken laughed because of what Mr. Dan said at the beginning of his being there to make sure none of them shot one another, and especially since Phillip hadn’t gotten his glasses yet and didn’t mistake any of them for the target.

The boys then began tapping Phillip on the back of his head for saying what he did to tease them back about not shooting them. Then they all laughed. Even Mr. Ken inwardly smiled knowing that was what a ‘family’ of boys would normally have done.

The boys asked their ‘dad’ where they were going next. He told them he was stopping at a convenience store where they all could get a drink and a snack and from there, they would head to their next stop which would be revealed when they got there.

The boys all booed knowing their ‘dad’ wasn’t going to tell them. But they told each other that they were already happy with their first stop and if that was any indication of what was coming next it should be fun.

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

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