Published: 22 Jun 2023

From The Previous Chapter:

Phillip again thanked Mr. Ken for getting him his cell phone and especially for the guitar and a teacher to come and help him be a better player. The boy hugged the man for all he was worth. Mr. Ken returned the hug, ruffled the boy’s hair and then told him to go drain his dragon before getting into bed.

Mr. Ken then headed down to his own private retreat. As he walked down the stairs, he passed by Chief who was going up to sleep in Phillip’s room. The owner of The Cove thought about the busy day he’d had and that the boys made everything worth every minute of it.

The Cove was quiet throughout the night.

When Phillip arrived at his school that Tuesday, he searched out Jeffrey and asked him for his home phone number. Jeff told him he already had his cell number and wanted to know why he needed his home number.

The Cover told his new friend that he wanted to invite him over to The Cove that weekend and that Mr. Ken needed the home number so he has direct contact with his parents if he needed to talk to them. Phillip added that it wouldn’t do Mr. Ken any good to call his cell number and have it ring there at The Cove. The two boys laughed at that thought.

Jeffrey said he understood and took out his cell phone to check it to make sure he got the home number right. Phillip then copied it to his own cell phone, so he could give it to Mr. Ken later. The Cover then decided to text the number to his foster dad, so he would have it right away.

When Mr. Ken arrived at the office, he asked his secretary if Jasper Bentson indicated what he wanted to talk to him about. She told him he sounded quite upset and was saying something about his visit to the Marina Project on Sunday. Mr. Ken figured as much and told her to have coffee ready for them when he arrived and to show him right in.

Wayne and Chris got together and talked about the additional patio furniture they bought the previous day to add to the Cove Skate Park and Pavilion areas. The Estate Master gave Mr. Chris the credit card receipt so the man could reconcile the bill when it arrived at The Cove. Wayne told the Estate Manager that the new furniture should arrive that Friday afternoon.

Chris asked Wayne what the two men had bought. Wayne said they bought another five-piece conversation set and matching cantilever umbrella, along with their covers. The Estate Master then told Chris that they also bought ten additional individual chairs and covers and a few side and coffee tables and five additional umbrellas in different colors, along with their heavy bases, which would establish five separate huddle spots for guests to gather and get to know one another.

Mr. Chris asked where he was going to place the additional conversational set, and then asked that if after their boss sees the additional chairs and tables, might he want them to go out and buy a few more, then he laughed.

Wayne joined in the laughter and said he might, and that he might agree after he sees if the space still looks empty after they place the new furniture around the Cove Skate Park and Pavilion. Wayne also told the Estate Manager that the additional discussion area would go on the new concrete pad on the other side of the Pavilion. Wayne said that conversation area would be away from the skaters and thus much quieter than the other two and might be the preferred place to sit and talk.

When Jasper Bentson, one of the four additional investors of the Marina Project arrived at Mr. Ken’s office, Rosemary Martin, Mr. Ken’s executive secretary, immediately showed him into her boss’s office.

Mr. Ken warmly greeted the man and showed him over to the sitting area he had set up in the office for friendly conversation. As they sat and exchanged some friendly banter, Rosemary brought in a fresh carafe of coffee along with milk, sugar and artificial sweetener. The two poured themselves a cup of the hot brew and relaxed.

After a few minutes of chit-chat, Mr. Ken asked Jasper what brought him over. Mr. Bentson immediately mentioned the incident at the marina on Sunday. Ken Thomas asked him to tell him what he’d heard. Jasper told him that the security company’s day supervisor told the security firm’s owner what happened and that they just couldn’t have him leave the office on a whim. He added they, meaning the investors, just can’t threaten to cancel their contract for an unresponsive guard at their site.

Ken smiled at the way Jasper sugar coated what happened at the marina on Sunday, so he told him what had actually happened. At the end of his telling, he told Jasper that there were seven witnesses to the actions of the security guard, and told him that they all wondered if the man was drunk. That was something that Jasper Bentson was not told anything about.

Ken told his investing partner that he will not overlook a security guard, or its company, who does not do what they are paid to do. Jasper went on to defend the security company as one he always used and that there rarely was much product loss at any of his work sites and that he wouldn’t expect any more at theirs.

Ken Thomas shook his head that the man would accept a certain amount of any kind of loss at his construction sites, as a cost of doing business. So, he told Jasper outright that if he was okay with a certain amount of loss at his construction sites and he continued to use the same security company then this would be the last project they would work together on.

Jasper Bentson was taken aback at the straight forward talk from the man who allowed him to join with him in the Marina Project. So, he asked him to elaborate a bit more on why he would say that.

Mr. Ken told Jasper that if he continued to accept the continued loss of supplies on each and every job, plus or minus, and he continually used the same security company then he should suspect there was something amiss. He continued and said that a certain loss at large job should be planned for, but the loss should be all over the board and not concentrated on specific items or at or around the same amount of loss.

Mr. Ken told Jasper that he was going to set up security cameras at the Marina Project to observe what is going on there, and if the current security company is complicit, with any losses at their site, they will be held accountable. Bentson wondered if that wasn’t overkill and wouldn’t that cause a cost over run on the project.

Ken Thomas told the investor that he would absorb the initial cost, but that if the security company is found to be involved in any shenanigans, then he would recover his costs and the people involved will be held accountable and hopefully put in jail, including the owners of the company.

The two talked strategy and whether or not if the other three investors would be brought into their confidence. They decided not to inform them, just yet, and while Jasper was there, Mr. Ken called Jules Diamond and told him what he wanted and asked him how soon he could get the cameras installed with 24/7 taping and review. Jules told him it would start today and be completed by noon Thursday and they would add cameras as construction warranted.

Mr. Dennis picked up Phillip at his school in time for the boy to be at Doctor Doug’s for his 3 p.m. appointment. Now that there was a new school secretary there was no problem for Mr. Dennis picking up Phillip, and for that the Assistant Estate Master was thankful. As they drove along, Mr. Dennis was still interested in what happened at the Easter Egg Roll on Saturday, so he asked Phillip if he knew how Rafael knew he was living there.

All Phillip could tell him was that when he visited his mom on Thursday, he told her about what would happen on Saturday. He continued and said that she must have told her friends who were also there to see her, and they must have talked to others about where he lived. The boy added that it must have gotten back to Rafael that he now lived at The Cove. Dennis figured that was what must have happened because the boy was scared of the man and wouldn’t knowingly let him know where he lived.

When Phillip was finished with his appointment with Doctor Doug and the two went out into the reception area, the Cover was surprised to see someone he recognized.

“Mark, I didn’t know you came here!” offered the surprised Cover, who ran over to the boy to shake his hand and give him a hug.

Mark laughed and said, “Yea, after Billy told us how good Doctor Doug was, I … well, I convinced my parents to let me come over here, too. He really has helped me ever since the home invasion.”

“Yea, I like talking with him, too!” spoke up Phillip. “He’s helped me a lot, you know, to understand why my mom might have done what she did, and why I’m living with Mr. Ken. Oh, and Mr. Ken … he got me a new guitar for Easter. Rafael, or one of his men, they broke mine when they attacked my mom. The guitar … it was something that I would never have ever thought I would get. He’s also getting me a guitar teacher to help me play better. And, I can’t wait until we go and visit all his amusement parks.”

“Yea, it was fun living with Mr. Ken. He even had the soccer field made for me, and the team I played with practiced there. And he has so much there for you to do that if you’re bored it’s because you’re not trying. Oh, and last summer, me and my dad, we got to visit his amusement parks with him and the other boys. And boy was that ever fun, too. Mr. Dan, he went with us too and I’d never ridden a rollercoaster and I asked him to ride with me and now I love to ride them,” laughed Mark.

Doctor Doug stood back and listened to the two boys talk. But Mr. Dennis broke up the confab by telling Phillip he needed to get him to his dentist appointment. The boys told one another they’d see each other at the Memorial Day Picnic. Mr. Dennis and Phillip quickly headed over to the dentist’s office, where the boy’s last two cavities were taken care of that afternoon.

After dinner that evening, and the boy’s meeting with ‘dad’ Ken, Phillip decided to do some research on Three Finger Cove, as his big ‘brother’, Collin, asked him to do. The newest Cover was totally surprised at what he read about the attack at the home, where he now lived, and that Mr. Ken had been shot defending his home and his unnamed foster son.

Phillip immediately went to Robert’s room to ask him if Collin was the unnamed foster son that Mr. Ken was shot defending. Robert was surprised at the question, but when he learned that Phillip was reading about Three Finger Cove, because Collin told him to, the teenager admitted that Collin was the foster son they were talking about.

Phillip continued to read about the happenings at The Cove over the past five, or so years, and he was totally surprised at what he read. He had no idea that four of the Cover boys, and some of their friends, were almost kidnapped, while they were out Trick-or-Treating.

The more the young Cover read the more he was surprised at how involved his foster dad was in local politics and celebrating the local community with his 4^th of July Carnivals and saving a wayward sailor out on the lake. And he learned that some of the boys, who regularly come to The Cove, also received plaques and scholarships for their part in helping save Walt Tankards and another man who had fallen off his own sailboat.

Phillip had many of his questions answered, but he now had many more questions as he continued to read about The Cove and all of the happenings there, including the trials a few of the boys had been involved in. Of course, Robert, as he’d been there the longest, was his go to fact checker.

When ‘dad’ Ken came upstairs to say goodnight to the boys, he was surprised that Phillip was in Robert’s room asking him questions about what he’d read on the internet concerning The Cove. So, the man let the two boys talk, as he went to say goodnight to the other three boys first.

When the man went to Robert’s room, he decided to help answer some of Phillip’s questions. By the end of their question-and-answer session, Phillip had gotten a better perspective of what The Cove was all about and what had occurred there and some of what happened to the Cover boys and their friends.

But the boy still didn’t learn all he wanted to know about Collin. Robert told him he needed to ask his big ‘brother’ and see if he would tell him. Mr. Ken agreed with Robert and then told the youngest Cover to drain his dragon and, “Get to bed.”

That Wednesday, when he arrived at The Cove and had his first few cups of coffee, Mr. Wayne made some calls to upholstery shops and asked them about fabricating outdoor seating for the Cove Skate Park’s concrete benches.

Only one shop indicated they could do the job and have it done in time for The Cove’s Memorial Day Picnic, since they were stand-alone items. The shop’s owner did want to come by The Cove to take measurements. Mr. Wayne set it up for him to stop by at lunchtime.

Mr. Wayne and Mr. Dennis met the fabricator at the Main Gate and had him drive his van into the estate. The three men walked around the Cove Skate Park and the fabricator learned that the cushions would be outside 24/7, so he recommended that they use his most durable fabric, Sunbrella, instead of the Naugahyde Mr. Wayne had initially thought they’d use.

The shop’s owner explained it was colorfast, ultraviolet, mold and mildew resistant and that it, along with Dry Fast foam, air-mesh gromets and a bottom mesh fabric they would dry fast after a rain. After some discussion, Wayne and Dennis agreed with the man and now the only question was whether to match or contrast them with the Sun Shade Sails, or the other patio furniture. The decision was to match, as closely as they could, with the Sun Shade Sails, as they would already contrast with the color of the concrete.

The linear park which Mr. Ken was funding and had been started at the parking area outside the Main Gate right after the Holidays, and would continue towards Four Corners, was moving along nicely. The contractor had already cleared away the underbrush and scrub trees, between The Cove’s masonry wall and the street, and had identified which specimen trees would remain.

The company was now installing the electrical power cable for the light poles and pathway lighting. The men were also laying security camera cable to the light poles that would hold the security cameras which would be monitored by The Cove’s security guards from the Main Gate.

Once that was completed, the contractor would begin installing the meandering walkways, using different types of stone paver materials, retaining wall blocks and toppers, benches, some metal art work, a large fountain, and a faux river that would flow towards the lake and finally establish perennial planting areas.

Over at the Marina Project, Jules Diamond’s installation team, that was placing security cameras all over the area, looked like any other subcontractor working there. The cameras would be solar battery powered and would send their motion-action captures up to The Cloud and would be reviewed by Diamond Security personnel at the main office.

Wayne Mitchell did receive a phone call during the afternoon telling him that Phillip’s glasses were in. The Estate Master told them that he and the boy would stop by that afternoon to pick them up and have them adjusted for the boy to wear.

When Phillip returned from school, Mr. Wayne let him have his after-school snack, but without his ‘brothers’. The man explained to Momma Maria, and the boy, that it would take about ninety minutes to go and return to the ophthalmologist’s office to get the boy’s glasses, because they didn’t want to be late for dinner.

Upon the boy’s return from getting his new glasses, all of his ‘brothers’ began teasing him about having ‘four eyes’ and being the only Cover to wear glasses. Then they all had a good laugh and Phillip joined in with them knowing they were all teasing him.

After dinner, Mr. Ken told Phillip that he could invite Jeffrey to The Cove on Saturday. Charles then asked if he could invite Jordyn. Dad Ken smiled and said he could and no more than four girls in total. That made his son smile. Both Robert and Billy asked if they could invite some girls over that Saturday as well. Mr. Ken threw up his hands and told both teen’s they could, but no more than four girls each.

Mr. Ken then looked to Matthew to ask if he wanted to invite some girls over as well. The twelve-year-old said that adding four more girls would add a total of twenty more people on Saturday and it would be just as crowded as it was when Kevin and Kyle were living there.

Robert, Charles, and Billy looked at one another and then asked their ‘brother’ what was wrong with that. Billy said that they had much more fun when they had more people there and when he and Robert had their female friends from school come over it made it even better. Matthew said he really didn’t have any close girls as friends in his class, so he’d pass this time around.

“Well, what about Bailey, Tyler’s sister?” asked Charles. “Wasn’t she the one girl you were always wanting to invite to the sleepovers and everything else?” continued the teen with a smirky smile on his face.

“Well … I guess I could invite her,” lamented Matthew.

“Don’t be so enthusiastic, ‘bro’,” laughed Billy. “So, what gives? What’s the real reason you don’t want to invite the girls?” now pressed the oldest ‘brother’.

Matthew looked at Billy and then sighed. “It’s those girls. They think … they think they are so … so wonderful, that if it weren’t for them us boys … we wouldn’t exist.”

That statement caught the other boy’s attention, and even ‘dad’ Ken was interested in what Matthew had to say about that.

“So, I take it, these girls … they are saying if it weren’t for them being girls, and them having babies, you wouldn’t be here,” laughed Billy. “Well, you should have told them that if it weren’t for you having the injector with the fertilizer, they wouldn’t be here either, and for them to shut their pie-holes!”

The boys all laughed at the way Billy just put it and both Mr. Ken and Mr. Wayne couldn’t hold their own laughter from coming out. ‘Dad’ Ken then told Matthew that he shouldn’t tell the girls that in exactly those words, but that it does take a man and a woman to produce that baby and for them not to be so smug and feel so superior.

Matthew thanked Billy for talking with him and to his ‘dad’ for a way to counter the high-and-mighty girls. He then said he’d invite Bailey and three other girls. His three older ‘brothers’ cheered he was going to invite some girl from his class. Phillip said not to look at him as he barely has four friends, and barely knows the girls in his class.

After their meeting, Phillip went up to his room and finished his homework and then he played on his guitar. He got out the guitar music book Mr. Ken got him and he began playing one of the songs he never played before. He took his time strumming the notes until he heard the entire song and then he played it a little quicker the next time through.

“You can play that pretty good, can’t you,” the young Cover heard from his doorway.

When Phillip looked up, it was Billy who was standing there watching him play.

“Well, I can read the notes and I know where to place my fingers on the frets, but I like to take my time the first few times through the song until I get it down. Then I can go a little faster, but not as fast as good guitarist does,” answered Phillip.

“Well, anyway, I bet you’ll be really good after that teacher helps you out,” offered the older ‘brother’, who came into the room and then ruffled the boy’s hair and then walked out.

Mr. Ken heard the simple exchange as he came down the hallway and smiled at Billy as the teen left the boy’s room. The man stopped at his newest foster son’s bedroom first and began saying his goodnights to the boys there. It was a quiet night at The Cove that night.

At school the next day, Phillip’s friends all made comments about his new glasses. But the Cover didn’t care. He told them that all of his ‘brothers’ teased him last night about having ‘four eyes’ and being the first Cover that had glasses. But he added that he can now see things much clearer and he was glad he now had them.

Jeffrey didn’t know what a Cover was, and so he asked. Phillip told him that it was a term started by Phillip’s older ‘brother’ Charles, when he first started living at The Cove. The boy said it was a name given to describe everyone who lived and regularly worked at Three Finger Cove and thus they are known as a Cover. All Jeffrey said was, “Oh.”

When Charles got to school, he searched out Jordyn and when he found her, he asked her if she would like to come over to The Cove on Saturday and spend the day. He told her he’d also invite two or three of her friends, so that she wouldn’t feel all alone. He also told her that his other ‘brothers’, Robert, Billy and Matthew, were also inviting some girls over, too, so it should be a fun day.

Charles then told her that her brother, Jeffrey, was invited by his ‘brother’ Phillip and so he would be there and her parents would be getting a tour of the estate by his dad when they brought him over. The other girls, who were with Jordyn, told her she should go and see where Charles lives, and enjoy all the things they have there to do. Jordyn said she’d let him know tomorrow at school.

When the boys returned home from school, there was a man waiting at the Main Gate that the guards would not allow inside the estate because neither Mr. Wayne, Mr. Dennis or Mr. Chris were there to sign him in.

The three young Covers asked the man who he was and when they learned he was there to see a boy named Phillip, Phillip stepped up and said he was the one who wanted guitar lessons. Charles then signed the man into the estate and had him drive down to the front door and told him they’d meet him there.

The boys came into the house through the garage door, and Phillip quickly went to the Foyer Door and opened it and invited Mr. Bindy into the house. The boy said he needed to go up to his room to get his guitar and that he’d be right back. When Phillip returned, he asked the man where he wanted him to set up. The man asked if they could go down where the light was bright.

The two walked down to the Great Room and Phillip set up his A-frame music stand and opened up the music book Mr. Ken had bought him. Mr. Bindy told him that Mr. Thomas wanted him to evaluate where he was in his playing, so the man asked Phillip just to play.

Phillip told the man that he hadn’t played for over three weeks and that he just got the new guitar and his fingertips sort of lost their calluses, but he’d do his best. Phillip opened to the song he played last night and James Bindy listened intently. After the first song, the man asked Phillip if he could play something from memory.

Phillip closed his eyes and began playing. Mr. Bindy watched what the boy did and saw that Phillip was sort of ‘seeing’ the song in his mind as he played. The man was also impressed at how well the almost eleven-year-old played, and even though it wasn’t fast, it was correct.

After Phillip finished playing a few songs for the man, Mr. Bindy asked if he could give him a few pointers. Phillip eagerly agreed and that put a smile on the man’s face. An hour had gone by and Phillip hadn’t realized it as he was learning so much from his teacher.

By then Mr. Wayne had returned to The Cove and had stayed up in the MRS (Meeting, Sitting, Reading) Room listening to and enjoying the boy play his guitar. He greeted the man when the hour was up and apologized to the man for not being there to meet him and sign him into the estate. The two talked about the man’s continuing to give Phillip lessons and Mr. Bindy said Saturday at nine in the morning was his first available opening. Phillip quickly spoke up and said, “We’ll take it!”

Both men smiled at Phillip’s enthusiasm and Mr. Wayne sent the boy to join his ‘brothers’ for his after-school snack while he walked the music teacher out to his car. Mr. Wayne directly asked James Bindy what he thought about Phillip’s ability.

The teacher said that the boy has very good potential and just needs a metronome to help him work on his keeping a steady pace. The teacher added that the boy has a good ear for music and with his help he believes he can get the boy to the next level of ability. Mr. Wayne said he’d tell Mr. Thomas who, he was sure, would like to talk to him on Saturday.

After dinner in the Study, Mr. Ken’s first question went to Phillip when he asked the boy how his music lesson went. Phillip had a great big smile on his face and told his foster dad that he had a great time. He added that he loved having someone telling him how to do something better on the guitar, and how he could pick up his speed. The boy then asked his foster dad if he knew what a metronome was as that was what Mr. Bindy said he needed, so he could use it to work on strumming to its beat. Mr. Ken smiled and said he’d have Mr. Chris or Mr. Wayne to try to get one for him tomorrow.

As the man went around the room, asking the other boys if they had anything to say, Charles said he wouldn’t know until tomorrow if Jordyn, and a few of her friends, would be there on Saturday, or not. Robert spoke up just then and stated that his four female friends said they would love to come over. Billy just said, “Ditto.” The boys all laughed, then Matthew said he invited Bailey and three other girls. The other four boys applauded their ‘brother’.

That night when Mr. Ken stopped to talk to Phillip, before he went to bed, he asked the boy how he really liked the guitar teacher, Mr. Bindy. The boy said he never had anyone teach him how to play, that his mom gave him the guitar and a beginner’s lesson play book and he learned to play from that.

Phillip said it was great having someone finally telling him what he was doing wrong and that he needed that machine to help him get to work on keeping the beat going. The boy added that Mr. Bindy was going to bring his guitar on Saturday and they would play some together. The boy added that Mr. Bindy was also going to show him how to play some simple chords and play a duet with someone.

Mr. Ken was pleased he could do something special for his foster son. He hoped the boy would be able to build on his ability and gain confidence in himself and use music to bring his friends together and have fun.

At school on Friday, Jordyn told Charles her parents said it was okay for her to be at The Cove on Saturday, since there would also be a number of other girls there as well, and that her friends, London, Faith and Morgan, were now looking forward to being there. Charles told them to be there at twelve noon and he would meet them at the Main Gate to sign them in.

Jordyn asked why they needed to be signed in. So, Charles told his new female friend that his dad had security guards who controlled who entered the estate and kept their names, dates and times for their records.

The new girl then asked what they could do there. Charles put a smile on his face and told her about the Cove Skate Park, the indoor pool, the personal water craft, sailboats, Commander, swimming in the cove and the water toys out there, the soccer pitch and the four games at the Pavilion and that they would cook burgers and hot dogs later in the afternoon.

The Cover then told her, and her friends, to bring their skateboards, and swimsuits and towels if they wanted to swim in the indoor pool, as the lake water was still too cold to swim in and play on the water toys.

Also, at the school that morning, Phillip told his friends about his first guitar lesson. He told them how his guitar teacher had him just play for him, so he could see how well he could play. The Cover said he played something from the guitar music book Mr. Ken gave him for Easter and then Mr. Bindy had him play something from memory. Phillip then enthusiastically told them how the man also gave him some pointers on how to play his guitar. The boy told them he couldn’t wait until Saturday when Mr. Bindy was coming over and would have his first real guitar lesson.

Westin mentioned that he had taken some guitar lessons, but not from that man and that his teacher often plays with him and that it is always fun. He told Phillip that when his dad lets him bring his guitar over it would be fun to play together.

Jeffrey then spoke up and said he’s been playing the drums, but he isn’t all that good because his parents don’t like it when he plays in the house. Preston spoke up and said they should try to form a band. The first bell rang just then and they all agreed to talk about that at the morning break.

At lunchtime, as Wayne and Dennis waited for the new patio furniture to arrive, they talked about Mr. Ken’s two project’s over at Four Corner’s that would eventually need people to manage them.

Wayne asked Dennis if he knew of any of his retired military friends who might be looking for a position that would initially require a lot of start-up hours, but that once the facility was up and running smoothly, that they would probably only need to work four or five hours a day, if that.

Mr. Dennis said he’d ask his military brethren if they were interested, but he said that most of them still had their wives and were traveling and enjoying their retirement. He told Wayne that the reason he jumped on the position at The Cove was because he was a widower, now, and he had loads of time on his hands and this gave him something to do without overwhelming him. He added that he’s enjoyed his time there and the boys were all polite, helpful and interesting to talk with and he loved the free sodas as well and the food was a plus. Wayne laughed.

Wayne changed topics and then asked his assistant if he was available to go with them when they visited the amusement parks when school let out. Dennis said he was looking forward to another ‘paid vacation’, then he laughed. The man then asked how long they would be gone. Wayne said they planned on ten days, as usual, but if the weather turned bad the boys would probably talk their ‘dad’ into staying an extra day or two. The two men laughed at that.

When the patio furniture finally arrived, a little after one o’clock, they showed the delivery men where they wanted them placed. The conversation area, set up on the other side of the Pavilion, looked good after it was set up, as it matched the other one that was bought last fall. But the ten new chairs with their coffee or end tables and umbrella combinations, spread around the Cove Skate Park, although they gave loads of color to the entire area, they really didn’t completely fill in the empty space.

After the delivery men had left, the two men stood back and admired the five colorful seating combinations, with their umbrellas opened. Mr. Dennis then asked Wayne if he thought their boss would send them out to buy at least three to five more sets. Wayne told him that he was just thinking the same thing.

As the men admired the new purchases for The Cove, Wayne told Dennis that he was going to have the boys begin power washing the Pavilion floor along with the tables and benches in preparation for the Memorial Day Picnic. The Estate Master added he was also going to have them power wash the top of the Cove Skate Park, as well, so that it all looked clean and bright for the Picnic.

Mr. Dennis asked Wayne what the boys had to use, to do that job. Then, after learning the boys only had one power washer and the accompanying cleaning tips, the Assistant Estate Master told Wayne that it would take them days and not hours to clean all that. So, he talked to the Estate Master about getting them a rotating surface cleaner attachment for the pressure washer, explaining that it would speed up the cleaning time.

Mr. Wayne opened his phone and Googled what Dennis suggested. He watched a YouTube video and saw that the rotating surface cleaner would definitely speed up the process for the boys. So, the Estate Master decided he’d go out to a big box hardware store that sold them and not only get one, but he’d also buy a second pressure washer and two rotating surface cleaning attachments, so the boys would be able to do the job in half the time.

What Dennis didn’t know, was that the Estate Master had been thinking about a job he was going to give to Billy to do, so he could earn some money, since he wanted to be able to place money into his mom’s commissary account. The Estate Master knew the rotating surface cleaner would definitely do the job he had in mind for the teenager, and possibly one of his friends.

Wayne called Mr. Chris, the Estate Manager, to let him know where he and Dennis were going, in case he went looking for them. Wayne and Dennis then took the van and headed out to the hardware store to buy a second power washer and two rotating surface cleaners so the boys would have them when it came time for them to clean the Pavilion and Cove Skate Park for the Memorial Day Picnic. They decided they’d store them in the new storage building, opposite the Pavilion, when they returned.

At lunch, Phillip and his friends talked about what Preston said about Phillip, Westin and Jeffrey forming a band. Phillip said it was much too early to even think of doing that, but it might be fun if they did jam some at The Cove when they were together there. The Cover said he wanted to have a couple of lessons under his belt before he even did some duets with Westin.

Phillip then mentioned that once school was over, he would be gone for almost two weeks on a trip to visit Mr. Ken’s amusement parks, so they would probably have to wait until the middle of June, at the earliest, before they should try to do that. But he added that if they could somehow play like a little band by the end of summer, he would be thrilled, but he wasn’t going to count on it, just yet.

Robert’s and Billy’s female classmates told the Covers that they were all looking forward to being at The Cove on Saturday, as it had been quite some time since they had been invited there.

They also told the teens that they better be ready to play some of those silly games as they didn’t skate very well.

At lunch, Jordyn told Charles that her friends told her some about The Cove and now she was really looking forward to seeing where he lived. She told him she was bringing her swimsuit and that she and her friends wanted to swim in that big indoor pool.

The boys immediately noticed the new colorful chairs and umbrellas set around the Cove Skate Park and Pavilion as they walked down to the house after they had returned home from school. They liked them, but they also thought there weren’t enough of them.

The boys went right up to their rooms to start working on their homework, but being it was the weekend, they didn’t have a lot to do. About an hour later, Billy came upstairs to get them so they could have their after-school snack with him and Robert. Momma always enjoyed seeing the boys having their after-school snacks together. She liked hearing their jokes, their teasing one another and their laughter because, most of all, it told her they were all happy and things were good at The Cove.

After dinner, during their usual meeting in the Study, Billy asked Mr. Ken if Dakota and Annie would be at the pool tomorrow. He told him that with there being about twenty pretty young girls there tomorrow it would be good to have the female guards there if they go swimming.

Charles spoke up right then and told his dad that Jordyn told him that she and her friends did plan on swimming, so he agreed with Billy about having the female life guards. Mr. Ken thought about that for a few moments and then picked up the phone and made two phone calls.

When his ‘dad’ finished his phone calls, Matthew asked the man what he thought about the new chairs and umbrellas up at the Cove Skate Park and Pavilion. Mr. Ken smiled and told the boys he loved them, but he thought there should be a few more. He then looked over at his Estate Master, who nodded and held up his hand showing one finger at a time and when he got to three, Mr. Ken nodded back.

Mr. Ken then told the boys that for the Memorial Day Picnic they would need to make sure the Pavilion was very clean and he asked them to power wash the tables, benches, serving area and the concrete floor and that he also wanted them to power wash the top of the concrete deck of the Cove Skate Park and locker area. He told them to get with their friends and to plan to have it done by the weekend before the picnic.

He also asked them to go up to the Pavilion tomorrow morning, after breakfast, and to make sure the women’s restroom was clean and presentable. He explained that since they had their female classmates coming over, they needed to ensure they gave them a presentable place to freshen up and go to the bathroom. The boys all smiled.

It was then that Matthew asked, “‘Dad’ … I know you said something about us having a sleepover after we returned from our trip, but … well, do you think we could have one, maybe, before school was over? We haven’t had one in like… forever, and Phillip … he’s never had one before and this … and it would be nice if we could have one next weekend, or the weekend before the picnic.”

The question surprised the three older Covers, but Phillip was the most surprised of all. Mr. Ken was equally surprised, but he was used to his ‘boys’ pulling something like that on him. So, he asked them what they would serve.

Billy quickly said the weather was warming up and if they did the sleepover next weekend, or the following one, he thought they could do the pancakes up at the Pavilion. Mr. Ken asked him if he thought they could do breakfast tacos, as well. Robert cheekily said that Kevin wasn’t there anymore and none of them know how to cook eggs on the grill. Mr. Ken smiled and said he thought Momma could teach one or two of them how to do that and then they could have them as well as the pancakes.

The Covers used the rest of their meeting to talk about which weekend would be the best one to have the sleepover on and what they would serve. Pizza won out for the evening meal, and self-made sub sandwiches, as they’ve done in the past, won for the afternoon meal.

The boys said they would consider their ‘dad’s’ request for breakfast tacos, but they still wanted to have the pancakes. After careful consideration, next weekend was chosen for the sleepover, as the weekend before the Memorial Day Picnic, ‘Dad’ Ken thought, should be used to finish cleaning the Cove Skate Park and Pavilion areas.

Mr. Ken asked the boys to have their friends come over Friday night at six and that way he would give Momma the evening off and then have her come in on Saturday morning to teach them how to prepare the eggs for breakfast tacos. He told them they would have pizza as planned and the Dive-In movie, as it would probably still be too cool to have a movie out on the Patio. The boys said they would talk to their friends tomorrow about it.

When the boys went up to get ready for bed, the five gathered in Billy’s room and the three older teens thanked Matthew for asking their ‘dad’ about having the sleepover. Phillip quickly spoke up and asked his ‘brothers’ what did he have to do.

Billy told his younger ‘brother’ that all he had to do was ask his friends to ask their parents if they could spend the night next Friday night and, if they can, for them to bring a sleeping bag, and a pillow if they need one, their swimsuit and a towel, what they sleep in and a change of clothes, if they want. The teen added for him to tell them to be there at about six o’clock and that Mr. Ken and Mr. Wayne would be the chaperones, and there would be the two high school lifeguards when they go swimming.

Charles added that Phillip should tell his friends that they would have pizza for dinner and then they’ll show a Dive-In movie and afterwards they’ll have a midnight snack. Robert told his youngest ‘brother’ that the next morning they’ll get up real early and make breakfast for all of their friends.

“How early?” now asked Phillip.

“Seven o’clock, early,” answered Robert, “and you won’t have to get a shower. But you will have to help set up the serving line, while the rest of us cook pancakes, heat the bacon, make the coffee, and get the orange juice and milk ready and it sounds like some of us … are going to learn how to cook eggs on the grill and make breakfast tacos.”

Billy told the newest Cover that some of their friends will also help them, so it won’t just be the five of them having to do all of the work. Phillip asked if his friends could also help. Billy looked to Robert and Charles and the two of them said the more help they have the easier it is to cook the breakfast and get lunch together. Phillip smiled at hearing that.

Mr. Ken was out in the hallway and heard what the older boys said to his newest foster son. He was glad the older boys didn’t discourage the boy, but actually told him that he and his friends could get involved.

“Knock, knock, knock,” announced ‘dad’ Ken, as he tapped on Billy’s doorframe.

The boys invited the man in and told him what they were talking about. He told them he heard the last part of their conversation and was happy they told Phillip that he and his friends could help if they wanted, too. He then told Phillip he had to be up and fed by the time Mr. Bindy arrived for his first guitar lesson, so he should go and drain his dragon and that he’ll meet him in his room in a few minutes.

As the young foster boy left the room, the foster dad looked over at Billy and told the teenager he needed to be ready for the DA, or ADA, by nine o’clock, so he should probably drain his lizard and try to get a good night’s rest, as he’ll probably spend a good amount of the morning preparing for the trial, which could start sometime towards the end of next week.

That broke up the boys meeting and Mr. Ken quickly stopped in Robert’s room and mentioned to him to talk to Eric to schedule when they would cut and trim the field and then make sure it all looked good for the picnic.

Mr. Ken then stopped at his other son’s room to see how he was doing. The teen told his dad to ask him tomorrow, after the girls left. The dad chuckled and asked him why he was so gloomy about the girls being there tomorrow. Charles said he just hasn’t gotten comfortable around them after how Leah Hoalmes and her posse treated him and his friends when he first started living there.

The teen’s dad told him that maybe tomorrow would be a new beginning of a positive outlook on girls as these are different ones from Leah and her group. Charles’ dad told him to interact with the girls and to try to enjoy himself tomorrow and look past what Leah did. Charles said he’d try. The two hugged and the man went over to Matthew’s room.

“You rascal,” said ‘dad’ Ken, as he pointed to Matthew as he walked into the boy’s room.

“Who, me?” replied the boy, while sporting a sheepish grin.

“Yes, you! Asking me about having a sleepover in front of all your ‘brothers’,” responded the boy’s foster dad.

“Well, you could have told us, no! And just told us to wait until we came back from our trip,” argued back Matthew.

Mr. Ken went over to the boy and hugged him and told him he loved him, while at the same time gave him a light noogie. The boy squirmed, but he also enjoyed the closeness of the interaction he had with the man who had saved him from his dad last Christmas. The two shared another hug before ‘dad’ Ken headed to Phillip’s room.

“Phillip … you ready for your guitar lesson tomorrow?” asked the foster dad, as he knocked on the doorframe.

“Yes, sir. I have the guitar all tuned up and ready and I can’t wait until tomorrow. It will be the first time I ever had someone teach me how to really play the guitar,” offered the foster boy, with a smile a mile wide on his face.

The man and foster boy talked for a few minutes, before Mr. Ken gave the boy a hug and told him to get a good night’s rest and that he’d see him in the morning.

Mr. Ken finally went to Bill’s room to say goodnight to the older teenager. The man told the teen to watch out for his youngest ‘brother’, as he helps during his first go around with the breakfast and lunch. Billy said he would and then the teen thanked his foster dad for letting them have the sleepover. The two shared a final hug and the owner of The Cove headed down to his own private retreat.

On his way to his own suite, the owner of The Cove stopped by the Kitchen Nook and took out some breakfast tacos to thaw. That was so they wouldn’t take too long to heat up in the morning as Phillip and Bill wouldn’t have a lot of time to eat something before their guests arrived. The other boys would also appreciate having them ready, too.

Everyone in The Cove slept very well that night.

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

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