Published: 9 Nov 2023

From The Previous Chapter:

Phillip then hugged Mr. Ken again and thanked him for being his foster dad, and that he will miss him and his ‘brothers’, when he has to go back to living with his mom. Mr. Ken hugged the boy back, and thanked his foster son for what he said. The man told the boy that he will be a better son, when he goes back to his mom. The foster dad then told his foster son that he should remember that he will forever be a Cover, and that he can always count on them if he ever needs them.

As Mr. Ken was walking down the stairs to his own retreat, he was thinking to himself that there was only one more day, and then there would be the weekend. He smiled then said to himself that he was now thinking like he was a schoolboy and then laughed.

The Cove was quite throughout the night.

Phillip couldn’t wait to get to school, so he could tell his friends what he’d gotten for his birthday. He talked about getting the surprise electric guitar the whole time he ate his Momma breakfast. His ‘brothers’ just laughed at their ‘brothers’ enthusiasm, as they ate their own Momma breakfast.

‘Dad’ Ken, hiding behind his morning newspaper, was happy his instincts were right, when he picked out Phillip’s birthday present. He was even happier that Phillip was still enthused about his present, and couldn’t wait to tell his friends about it.

Charles looked at the time and told his ‘brothers’ they needed to hurry up in order to catch the school bus. The three boys thanked Momma for fixing them their breakfast; they gave her a quick hug, and then they washed their hands and rushed out the Foyer Door, and up the rise to the Main Gate, and their School Bus Stop.

When Phillip got to school and got off the school bus, he looked around for his friends. When he found them, he hurried over to them and said, “You’ll never guess what Mr. Ken got me for my birthday!”

“Your birthday … it was yesterday?” asked Jeffrey.

“Yep, and we had a birthday dinner up at the Pavilion and Momma Maria … she made us steaks. And she even made me a birthday cake,” answered the young Cover. “But the best thing of all was what Mr. Ken got me for my birthday. Boy was I ever surprised, and so were my ‘brothers’.”

“So, what was it that Mr. Ken got you?” now asked Bryson.

“My foster dad … he got me … an electric guitar,” replied a smiling Phillip.

It was then that Kurt, Ty, Travis and Tony, the four boys Phillip asked over to The Cove that coming Saturday, came up to the five friends, and they heard Phillip tell his four friends that he’d gotten an electric guitar, but they hadn’t heard it was for his birthday.

“Phillip … you got an electric guitar?” asked an astonished Kurt.

“Yes. Mr. Ken … he got it for him for his birthday,” answered Preston, for his Cover friend.

“Wow! What kind is it?” now asked an interested Ty. “I play a guitar, too, and I’ve been bugging my parents to get me one.”

“Mr. Ken … he told me that it wasn’t an expensive one. He said he wanted me to experience it, and to see how easy or difficult it was to use. He asked me to talk to my guitar teacher about it, and see what he says about it,” answered Phillip.

“I wonder how we’ll sound with you playing an electric guitar, and me just paying an old acoustic guitar,” quickly spoke up Westin.

“You guys … you play together?” asked Ty, with the question showing on his face.

“Yea, and Jeff here …he plays his drum along with us and Bryson … he sings, and so does Phillip,” added Westin.

“Oh, Jeff, Mr. Ken … he told me to tell you that it’s OK if you bring the rest of your drum set over. But he said your parents … that they have to be OK with it. He says you can store it in the storage garage across from the Pavilion. But we’ll be gone for about ten to twelve days after-school is over, on our trip, so you won’t have access to it if you leave it there after the Memorial Day weekend,” Phillip told Jeffrey.

Ty, after hearing that the three friends were playing together asked a lot of questions. He also asked if he could bring his guitar, and maybe join in with them. Phillip said that he could, but he might miss out on some of the things they do at The Cove. Ty said he’s always wanted to play some with other people, and said he thought it might be fun to do that.

Tony and Kurt then told the Cover that their parents said it was OK for them to come over to The Cove on Saturday. Phillip was happy that they could. The Cover then reminded them, as well as Ty and Travis, to bring their skateboards, swimsuits and a towel. It was then that the first bell rang, and the boys had to file into the school.

The other Cover boys also checked with their invited friends about what time to arrive at the Cove tomorrow, and what to bring with them. Charles talked with Erin and told her to ask her parents to call his dad at the phone number he gave her, if they have any questions. The young girl said she would try.

Chief was anxiously waiting for Sully to arrive at The Cove that Friday morning. The resident pet was having fun cavorting with the sire she had picked to be the father of her pups. The past two days were full of the two dogs running around the estate chasing one another, play fighting and every once in a while, the two dogs would take the time and mate, and then they would lie down and relax together.

Chief had never had a litter of puppies, and she was looking forward to the experience. She had kept herself from mating before now, and now that she was given the opportunity to do so, she was going at it with gusto. She had no idea what was in store for her when she actually birthed her puppies, but she had this feeling that her instincts would kick in and get her through it.

When Mr. Dennis arrived for work that Friday, he was sent out to the big box stores, and a few of the independent paint stores, to pick up a number of color paint chip samples that Mr. Wayne told him to collect. These would be the samples the boys could pick from to have their rooms painted, while they were on their trip, once school was over for the year.

The colors that Wayne told the Assistant Estate Master to look for were the off whites to light tans. Mr. Dennis saw all the different color chips at the big box stores, and he had selected what he thought were the best ones from Glidden, Valspar and Behr.

But when the man visited the independent paint stores, Benjamin Moore and Sherwin Williams, he came away with their color paint fan decks, which represented more than 2000 of each of their available colors. He knew the boys would now have a better representation of what colors were out there. But he also knew it might present them with a more difficult time choosing the color for their rooms. Then he laughed to himself. They would then have to try to convince Mr. Ken to let them have the color they wanted.

Back east, at Mr. Ken’s Edgewood Amusement Park, Jason Zimms, the new Operations Manager, was working hard to get the park ready for its Grand Re-Opening scheduled for the first of July. The new Operations Manager had only been on the job for less than two weeks, but you could already see the beginning changes in the overall appearance of the amusement park.

Jason had hired over 70 extra men and women, and along with the high school students, who worked some evenings after-school, and on the weekends, to work on getting the park cleaned up, and ready for that Grand Re-Opening. They initially raked under all the rides and picked up all the trash inside and outside the park. They then focused on cleaning all of the food stands located out in the park. But first they had to have the electricity and gas disconnected before they could disassemble the old food service equipment and they could begin to clean the insides of those buildings. That’s where they were at the end of that second week.

The extra department leads from the four other amusement parks that Ben Walthers, the President of TFE, asked to come to Edgewood took control of their specialty when they arrived at the park, to the chagrin of the other employees.

Jason, along with Braxton Carter and Tucker Clark, his right-hand men, met with all of the DERR (Development, Enhancement, Repair, and Restoration) Work Center employees and told them up front that there was a lot of work that needed to be accomplished and Mr. Thomas and Ben Walthers brought these specialists in to supplement and lead the teams.

The Ops Manager was up front with all of the Edgewood DERR employees and told them that if they didn’t work up to their potential, or if they didn’t like having to work for someone else then they could clear out their locker. Jason added that he would forward their last, emphasizing the word ‘last’, paycheck to them. The park’s operations manager then gave the new leads their assignments. That done, he and his right-hand men walked out of the meeting, while taking no questions.

Jason’s vision of working from the back towards the front didn’t really work. The inspection and repair (I&R) companies contracted to look at all of the rides in the amusement park worked all over the park, and, as they finished working on a ride, Jason saw he needed to focus some of the work force on cleaning and then painting some aspects of the ride that needed it and adding any landscaping he needed to complement the ride. So, instead of working back to front, he refocused his efforts and began working front to back, and sometimes the middle to the outside.

With this as his new focus, the main entrance received a lot of attention, as it received new lighting, was repaired, cleaned, painted and then landscaped, with new pavers and shrubs. Even the ticket booths received the same attention, with updated electronic payment systems to speed up sales.

Jason also focused on patching and striping the parking lot with the hopes that one day he could pave it in its entirety. The Ops Manager also decided where the Parking Toll Booths would be located, if Mr. Thomas ever decided to have the guests pay for parking, as many of the major amusement parks now did.

Jason also felt pressure coming from Ben Walthers, the President of Three Finger Entertainment. Ben called Jason to tell him that the big boss and owner, Ken Thomas and his family, would be at the park for an inspection tour around the 11^th of June. This would be one month after the man had taken the reigns of resurrecting the Edgewood Amusement Park, and getting it ready for the Grand Re-Opening on the first of July. That visit was only three weeks away.

Jason was happy he’d already had the Para-Drop and Swinger, the two rides the Investigation Team took off-line, and Mr. Thomas identified as being unsafe, well on their way to being dismantled and carted away. Once those areas were cleared of their rides, Jason would have them raked clean and looking nice for the Grand Re-Opening.

The two standing roller coasters, The Wooden Coaster and the Twister Coaster were presently being worked on and it showed. On the Wooden Coaster everyone could see new wood being installed all over the coaster layout to replace what the I&R company felt was necessary. One of the coaster trains had already been removed and sent to the Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters Company for a total overhaul. What people couldn’t see was there was also the total inspection and any needed repair of the safety blocks and their controls and all of the other braking mechanisms. This would definitely be a very safe coaster after the I&R company was through.

At the Twister Coaster, the Wild Mouse type coaster, the employees saw the I&R company employees inspecting all of the bolts and tightening them to manufactured recommended specifications. They also saw there were a few new supports installed and there was the occasional welding going on, which indicated a crack somewhere in a support or track. The I&R company also inspected and repaired, as needed, the safety blocks and their controls, as well as the braking mechanisms. The coaster would definitely be safe after the I&R company was through.

The other I&R Companies had already finished working on as many of the smaller kiddie rides and were now focused on the rest of them and would soon focus on the larger flat rides, such as the Tumble Bug, The Zipper, the Cages, Scrambler, Swinging Boat, Himalaya, Octopus, Ferris Wheel, Train, Rotator, Head Over Heels and The Whip. Jason was only hopeful that all of the rides would be ready for their Grand Re-Opening on the First of July.

At school, that Friday, the Cover boys made sure their invited friends knew to come to the Main Gate around twelve noon, and that they would be there to sign them into the estate. Phillip told Ty he could bring his guitar and place it in the storage garage, with the other instruments, but the Cover didn’t promise they would get the chance to play together. Ty said he understood.

At The Cove, Karson’s new lifeguard gear arrived in time for him to wear that weekend. Mr. Chris signed for it and then left it in the Study for Mr. Ken, or Mr. Wayne, to give to the new lifeguard tomorrow, when he arrived for work.

When Mr. Dennis returned from collecting the color paint chips, Wayne was surprised at seeing the two large color fan decks. The Estate Master asked Dennis why he brought those, as well as the color paint chips. The man said he felt it would give the boys a much better representation of what paint colors were out there that they could choose from, and then they could convince their ‘dad’ to let them have that color. Wayne smiled at what Dennis implied could happen.

At the office that day, Mr. Ken called Kate as he usually did. The two talked about the trip he and the boys would make when school finished in two weeks. During the conversation Ken Thomas invited Kate and her boys to join them on their ten-day jaunt to all five amusement parks. The man explained to Kate what it all involved.

After hearing about the continuous going from one hotel to another, Kate told her boyfriend that she felt the trip would be too strenuous for the still young boys, and thanked him for the invite anyway. She told him that maybe when the boys were much older, they could handle all that hustle and bustle.

Mr. Ken was disappointed, but recovered quickly and then asked her if she had thought any more about her and the boys coming to The Cove for the 4^th of July Carnival. He again explained what would be there for them to enjoy, and where they would stay. Kate said she was still thinking about it, and should know when they saw one another in a few weeks.

The Cover boys were happy the week was finally over, when they were all home after-school. They thought it would never end, as they were all looking forward to their invited friends coming over that Saturday, the Memorial Day Picnic the following weekend and knowing that the weekend after that they’d be headed out on their school’s-out trip to their ‘dad’s’ five amusement parks.

The boys enjoyed Momma Maria’s after-school snack before heading up to their rooms to attack their homework, knowing their ‘dad’ wouldn’t be home from the office for another hour, or so.

But as Phillip was working on his homework, he began smelling something he hadn’t really noticed before. He thought he smelled it the past few days, but today it was very noticeable.

The young Cover checked his shoes to see if he stepped in something, and then brought it into the house and up to his room. But he saw the soles of the sneakers were devoid of any foreign substance. So, Phillip smelled around his room to see if he could find out where the smell was coming from. When he got close to Chief, the boy realized the resident pet was where the smell was coming from.

“Chief … where have you been that you smell so badly?” teased the young Cover. “You need a bath!” finished the young boy, as he held his nose with his fingers.

Chief heard what the boy said and knew that she didn’t want to get a bath and immediately rushed out of the bedroom. Phillip laughed and was now happy the smell was now gone, so he went back to finishing his homework.

Later, before dinner, Phillip stopped by Mr. Ken’s Study to see if he was there. Seeing that he was, he told his foster dad about the smell that emanated from Chief. The boy said that they needed to give her a bath, because he wouldn’t be able to sleep tonight with her in his room, if she continued to smell that badly.

Mr. Ken figured that Chief and Sully had mated some more today, and that Chief was somehow soiled from the mating, as well as she was probably still discharging some blood from being in heat. Mr. Ken told Phillip that they would give Chief a bath after they came home from visiting his mom.

Phillip liked hearing he would be visiting his mom after dinner, but also knew they wouldn’t have much time, as visiting hours were over at eight o’clock. But he would at least get to visit with her for a little while and some time was better than no time.

At dinner, the other boys commented to ‘dad’ Ken about the smell emanating from Chief. ‘Dad’ Ken said Phillip had already mentioned it to him, and that they needed to give Chief a bath tonight. The man asked the boys for some help, as he and Phillip were headed over to visit with his mom, when they finished dinner.

Chief heard them talking about giving her a bath, and she began to try to sneak out of the Kitchen Nook, but Mr. Ken saw what she was doing, so he called out to her. “Chief … come back here, girl.”

When the resident pet came back to the man, she hung her head. Her first master looked at her and said to the resident pet, “Chief … you and Sully … you two have been having fun together the past few days and now … and now you need to get cleaned up.”

Chief lowered her head some more and made a noise that sounded like she said ‘no’.

Mr. Ken heard what she said, smiled over at the boys, as they heard it too, and they were laughing that she could say that. So, the owner of The Cove took her muzzle and lifted her head up, so the two were looking at one another and he told her, “Chief … yes! You need a bath and you’re getting one, and tonight before Phillip goes to bed!

“Boys … do I hear any volunteers to give Chief a bath, or better, maybe a shower, while Phillip and I are gone?” asked ‘dad’ Ken.

The boys looked around at one another, and then Billy said he’d do it, but he needed someone to help him. Charles volunteered to help. ‘Dad’ Ken told the boys to use the shower in the Men’s Locker Room, and to get some old towels to dry Chief when they were finished. He told the teens to be careful around her private areas, as she was in heat and the area might be sensitive. Mr. Ken added they could use the handheld shower wand to rinse Chief’s private areas well, but to be careful when they dry her.

Billy asked if they could use the warm air setting of a hair dryer. Mr. Ken asked if they had one. Billy said he thought he saw one and if he could find it, he wondered if it would be OK to use it. Mr. Ken told the boys they could. Soon thereafter, he and Phillip left to visit with Mackenzie Flores, Phillip’s mother.

“Mom, mom,” called out Phillip, as he entered the woman’s room.

“My Philly,” returned Mackenzie, as she opened her arms to her son.

Phillip asked his mom how she was doing, and if she was getting any better. Mackenzie told her son that she felt she was making progress, but that only time would tell. The two talked about Phillip’s week and what he had planned for the weekend.

Mackenzie was surprised to hear that her son’s foster dad had bought her son an electric guitar for his birthday. She felt a little embarrassed that she never treated her own son as good as this stranger has during the past six weeks her son has lived at The Cove.

“Mr. Thomas … my mother … she told me that she received an invitation to attend your … your Memorial Day Picnic. She told me she was also flabbergasted when she saw it. She also told me … that she wasn’t sure if she should go. Can … can you tell me why … why you invited her? This way I can tell her why she should or shouldn’t go,” explained Mackenzie.

“You invited my grandma to the Memorial Day Picnic?” asked Phillip. “That’s awesome!”

Mr. Ken smiled at the boy and ruffled his hair, and then he looked back at Mackenzie.

“Ms. Flores … I invited Adeline because … because I wanted to give her an opportunity to spend some time with her grandson … while you recover from your injuries. She doesn’t get the chance to see him often enough and … and there will come a time that … when you do recover from your injuries, the judge … that he will order that neither you, nor she, will have any contact with Phillip, until you complete your court ordered requirements.

“So … so, I hope you’ll encourage her to attend the Picnic and enjoy the day. She’ll also get the chance to see where her grandson is living, and she’ll also meet a number of great people,” finished Ken Thomas.

“Like who, if I may ask,” quickly asked Mackenzie.

“Hmmm, let me see. The District Attorney will be there. Some of the County Commissioners, my business partners, the people I work with, Mark and his parents, and a few of his friends,” and it was then that Mackenzie stopped him.

“Who is Mark?” asked Phillip’s mom

But before Mr. Ken could answer, Phillip told his mom that Mark was once one of Mr. Ken’s foster sons. Phillip also told his mom that he met him, and that he played soccer and that Mr. Ken had a soccer field built at The Cove for him to practice on.

Mr. Ken smiled at Phillip’s answer, and then added that Mark lived with him, while his parents recovered from some serious injuries, but they are now back together. The man added that he and his parents will also be there, and that Mark’s best friends and their parents might also be there.

Phillip then added that Mark might also go with them when they visit all of Mr. Ken’s amusement parks. Mackenzie then quickly asked about the parks and that turned the visit into a question-and-answer session that filled Mackenzie Flores in on more of what Ken Thomas was doing for her son, while she recovered from her blow to her head.

Then before the three knew it is was already eight o’clock, and the visitors had to leave the rehabilitation center. Phillip hugged his mother and the two kissed one another. Mr. Ken and Ms. Flores shook hands and he promised to have her son over earlier one day, so they could have a longer visit. Then the two Covers left the boy’s mother and returned to The Cove.

All the while Mr. Ken and Phillip were visiting with Mackenzie Flores, Billy and Charles were cleaning Chief using the shower down in the Men’s Locker Room. The two teens had put on their swimsuits knowing they would get wet while washing the resident pet.

At first Chief wasn’t cooperating. The resident pet made Billy and Charles chase her all around the house, but the two teens appealed to her by saying how bad she smelled, and that ‘dad’ Ken told her that she had to be bathed before Phillip went to bed tonight. Chief finally gave in and went into the shower, where Billy and Charles used the dog shampoo to get her clean.

Robert and Matthew came looking for their ‘brothers’, and they watched as the two cleaned Chief in the shower. When the resident pet was all cleaned up, Billy told the other two boys to grab the towels and to begin drying Chief after she shook the excess water off of her.

Chief didn’t disappoint them as she immediately shook herself to get rid of the excess water once she was free of the shower enclosure. Then Robert and Matthew began using the towels to help dry Chief of as much of the water as they could, being mindful not to focus too much on her private parts.

While the two Covers worked on drying Chief, Billy went looking for the hair dryer he thought he’d seen. Then he found it. It was in the other bathroom, the one Phillip used. Charlotte must have left when she was unceremoniously kicked out of The Cove way back before Billy was brought there.

Billy quickly brought the hair dryer to the Men’s Locker Room and, once he hooked it up, he began using the low setting to slowly dry Chief’s coat. It took quite some time to get the resident pet’s clean coat dry. Lucky for the teen, the Goldador’s coat wasn’t too thick.

Once Chief was dry, Robert got out the brush and began to groom the resident pet’s coat. He was glad he did because it looked like no one had done that in quite some time, as he was getting quite a lot of dog hair in the brush. Seeing all the hair, Matthew went to check the shower drain and he was glad he did. The pre-teen called out to Charles and asked him what he could do to get rid of all the dog hair off the shower drain.

Charles came to look at the shower and laughed at what he saw. Then all he did was reach down with his hand and start scrapping the hair off the drain. Matthew saw what his ‘brother’ was doing and he did the same thing. The two of them scraped all the hair off the drain, and then Charles ran the shower to rinse any more hair to the drain, so they could get it all. They did.

Chief was enjoying all the attention she was getting, now that her shower was over. Yes, she didn’t like getting bathed, but she did like getting brushed, and then all the hugs and ear scratches afterwards. She just sat there, with her smile, liking it all.

Once the boys were finished cleaning Chief up, they all decided to go swimming. And since there were four of them it would be safe. And that’s where Mr. Ken and Phillip found them when they returned from their visit to the younger Cover’s mother.

Phillip quickly went looking for his swimsuit, and he jumped into the pool with his ‘brothers’. The boys then begged their ‘dad’ to join them, as they hadn’t swum together for a very long time. Mr. Ken figured that since the boys didn’t have school tomorrow; he went and got his swimsuit on and joined them in the pool.

The Covers swam until about ten o’clock when Mr. Ken said they needed to talk about what was in store for them tomorrow, and the following week. The boys told their ‘dad’ they didn’t want to get out, and for him to hold their meeting right there in the beach entrance area of the pool.

So, that’s what Mr. Ken did. He reminded the boys that they all needed to be up at the Main Gate tomorrow before their friends arrived, so their friends didn’t have to wait for them to get there. Robert asked his dad to also be there, as many of those new kid’s parents would probably also be there, and that it might be good if he was there to meet them as well.

Phillip spoke up just then and told his foster dad that his friend Ty was bringing his guitar in the hopes that he could play with the other guys later, as he always wanted to know what it was like to play in a group. Mr. Ken smiled and said, “Oh, well … the more the merrier.”

‘Dad’ Ken continued the meeting and then reminded Phillip that Mr. Bindy would be there at nine o’clock for his guitar lesson, and he needed to be downstairs and ready for him. The man then finished the discussion with how he saw tomorrow with the boys finishing hanging the second dinner bell, which he hoped they would do before they went up for their showers after breakfast.

‘Dad’ Ken then remembered he needed to cover which boy had appointments next week, and then did so. He also reminded the boys that their older‘brother’ Collin would be there by Thursday, and that he would be there for the Picnic and for the weekend, as would be Mr. Owen, Mr. Nathan and their boys. Hearing that made the boys smile.

When the short meeting was over, the boys continued to swim until eleven, when Mr. Ken told them they needed to get out and go to bed. He told them that he’d be up there in a few minutes to say goodnight.

‘Dad’ Ken started in Bill’s room and he thanked the teen for bathing Chief. He also asked Bill to see if could get his ‘brothers’ to help him hang the other dinner bell, and not to forget to put a piece of rope on it first. Bill laughed at hearing that, as if he’d forget to do that. The two hugged before the foster dad headed to his son, Robert’s room.

Father and son hugged before they talked. Dad Ken then thanked Robert for brushing Chief after Bill and Charles bathed her. Robert again asked his dad to be up at the Main Gate to meet the new friend’s parents if they ask about him when they bring their girls and boys over. Dad Ken smiled and said he would be there. The two hugged and then dad Ken headed to his other son’s room.

At Charles’ room, father and son shared a hug and they talked about Chief getting her bath. Mr. Ken laughed at what Charles told him they had to do to get the resident pet into the shower stall, but he was happy their dog was now clean and smelling that way.

Dad Ken asked Charles to help with hanging the second dinner bell, and he asked the teen to make sure they put the rope on it before they attached the bell to the 6×6 post. The two hugged one more time before the man headed to Matthew’s room.

At the pre-teen’s room, Matthew hugged the man as soon as he entered. The pre-teen told his foster dad about drying Chief and then Robert brushing the resident pet, and how much she loved it. There wasn’t much to talk about, so Mr. Ken hugged the boy and then headed to Phillip’s room.

When ‘dad’ Ken approached his foster son’s room he could hear the boy playing on his guitar. The boy wasn’t playing a song, but was playing different chords, which were probably the ones Mr. Bindy had given him to learn for his lesson in the morning.

“Knock, knock, knock,” said Mr. Ken, as he came to the boy’s bedroom door.

“Oh, hi, Mr. Ken. Come on in,” replied Phillip.

Mr. Ken went into Phillip’s room and sat down on the bed. Phillip thanked the man for getting his ‘brothers’ to give Chief her bath because she sure smelled good right now. Chief spoke up right then and baked a “Woof, woof!” The two Covers laughed.

Phillip also thanked Mr. Ken for taking him to see his mom. He added that he missed her and then he asked him if he thought if she was getting any better. Mr. Ken said that he’d have to talk to the doctor, and that he’d try to talk to her next week. Phillip smiled and thanked him for doing that for him, because he sure hoped she was, as he was looking forward to being back home with her.

The two talked about tomorrow and if Phillip would be able to play some music with the other boys, and let Ty join in. Phillip said that they’d try, but if they want to do everything then they might not get the chance. Phillip said it would be nice if his friends could stay a little longer instead of them all having to leave at six.

Mr. Ken changed the subject and asked Phillip if what he was playing was his homework for Mr. Bindy. Phillip smiled and said it was, and he told his foster dad that Mr. Bindy gave him a few extra chords to learn and to practice changing, from one to the other, and on a four beat. The boy said that Mr. Bindy was going to show him how he could play some of the songs by just using a few of those and the others he already learned.

Mr. Ken told him to put the guitar away as it was getting late, and he needed to be up and ready for his guitar lesson. The man told the boy to set this alarm clock, so he’ll wakeup in time. Then he looked over at Chief and told the resident pet to make sure Phillip is up by eight thirty. The resident pet stood up and barked out a, “Woof, woof,” in agreement.

Mr. Ken hugged the young Cover and told the boy to drain his dragon before he jumped into his bed. The boy smiled and hugged the man back. And as the man walked out of the room, so did the boy, as he headed to the bathroom.

It had been a very busy and interesting week for the man, who owned the estate known as The Cove. He was happy with how things were shaping up with his amusement parks, and his three new ventures. He now told himself he had to focus on Kate, and how he could make her his wife. Then he smiled to himself, as he was becoming more and more sure that he would one day ask her to be his wife.

Everyone at 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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