Published: 18 Jan 2024

From The Previous Chapter:

The owner of The Cove then told Dan that he’d try to get the boys to keep the noise down, so they don’t wake him. Dan thanked him for that, but he knew that would be a losing proposition. The two men laughed, as they both walked up the stairs, with one going to talk with his ‘boys’ and the other to his guest suite, when they reached the top.

After saying goodnight to the boys at nine o’clock, the owner of The Cove, and of five amusement parks, where he and his ‘boys’ were headed beginning tomorrow, headed down to his own retreat to also go to bed, as 5:30 came awfully early. The Cove was quiet after everyone did finally fall asleep.

At 5:30 Saturday morning five alarm clocks went off and none of their owners wanted to get out of bed. But get out of bed they did. One alarm clock, though, went off fifteen minutes earlier, so he could put eight breakfast tacos in the convection oven before he went and got himself ready for the long day ahead of him.

Mark and Phillip both jumped out of their beds at the same time and they each laughed at their morning condition. Each of them grabbed a pair of clean underwear and their toiletry bag and headed to the bathroom Phillip used to get ready for the day. They met Matthew coming out of his bedroom who asked them if he could join them.

The teens groggily came out of their bedrooms at the same time and they headed to the boy’s bathroom to brush their teeth and get their showers, while the three younger Cover boys headed to the other converted bathroom to get ready.

Phillip, remembering back to when Chase and he showered last weekend in that same bathroom, didn’t hesitate to shuck off his clothes and jump into one of the showers. Then, when he was finished, he dried himself off in front of Mark and Matthew.

The three young Covers were all naked until they put on their underwear, then they put on their deodorant. Matthew then told his ‘brothers’ they needed to hurry and get dressed and not to forget to put their toiletry bag in their suitcase, and then take it downstairs and put it at the Foyer Door.

Mark and Phillip got quickly dressed, packed their toiletry bag in their carry-on bag and headed down the front stairs with their suitcases and carry-on bags in hand. Their ‘brothers’ weren’t too far behind them.

Charles said that they should check the convection oven because the last time they went on this trip their dad heated a breakfast taco for each of them to hold them over until they got breakfast on the plane. The seven boys hurried to the Kitchen Nook to see if they each had a breakfast taco waiting for them.

Finding the breakfast tacos, the boys went looking for something to drink with them. ‘Dad’ Ken came into the Nook just then and stopped them from grabbing glasses from the cupboards. He told them to find the paper cups, so they could take them with them and then throw them away.

When the Foyer Doorbell rang, the boys hurried to open it knowing it would be the limousine driver. But when they opened the door, there were two men there which surprised the boys. ‘Dad’ Ken told them to help the men load the bags, just as Mr. Wayne and Mr. Dennis arrived and parked their cars.

Mr. Ken explained that he was going in one limo and would be picking up Ms. Judy, while the other one would pick up Ryan. The boys quickly asked which limo they would be in.

Mr. Dan and Chief came to the Foyer Door to wish the traveler’s a safe trip, and the boys all gave Chief some ear scratches before they loaded into one of the limousines. Mr. Ken came up and shook Dan’s hand, thanking him for staying with Chief. The owner of The Cove then bent down and scratched behind Chief’s ears, and told her to listen to Mr. Dan. Chief barked out a “Woof, woof!” in reply.

When the limousine pulled up to Ms. Judy Turner’s home, Mathew and Mark jumped out to help with her bags, while the limo driver opened the trunk for the boys to store the multiple bags in. Phillip just watched. Mr. Ken and Mr. Dennis got out to greet the woman who would be riding with them, along with the three boys, to the airport.

“I see you have all of the younger boys with you,” teased, Judy, as she greeted the two men.

“It will be much quieter on the drive to the airport this way,” laughed Ken.

Along the way to the airport, Matthew and Mark told Phillip what to expect when he got to the airport and when he got on the plane. They also explained to him what will happen when they get to each airport and then the hotel. They also told the newest Cover that Mr. Ken switches up who bunks with whom at the different hotels. Ms. Judy listened to what the boys had to say between what she, Ken and Dennis talked about along the way to the airport.

Being it was a Saturday, the traffic to the Austin-Bergstrom Airport the traffic was fairly light, so it didn’t take as much time to get there as the last time the Covers left on their trip to visit all of Mr. Ken’s amusement parks.

Phillip had never been in a limousine before, and he was amazed at how plush it was inside and that they could face one another, so they could talk. The young boy had also never been that far away from where he grew up, so he looked around at everything and he enjoyed the sights as they drove east.

Phillip knew he was getting close to the airport when he saw more and more airplanes flying overhead. And soon the limo drove past the end of the runway and turned into the airport property and headed towards the General Aviation services area, where he figured he would get on a private plane.

Both limousines pulled up to the fixed base operations terminal and the passengers got out and the drivers opened the trunks and waited for a few trolleys to be brought out to take all of the bags inside to be screened by TSA. Once all the bags were taken away to be checked, everyone went inside to be screened by TSA themselves.

Upon entering the terminal, the older boys could see two large jet airplanes parked out on the tarmac. One was a Gulfstream 650 aircraft, like the one they used last summer, and they asked their ‘dad’ if that was theirs.

All their ‘dad’ could tell them was that he had to check with the people at the counter to see if it was. He told the boys to go drain their dragons and wait in the lounge until they were called. Ms. Judy heard what Mr. Ken said, so she decided to visit the Woman’s restroom, while he sorted out their travel arrangement.

Learning their charter was outside, Mr. Ken called for his group to go through TSA. The first thing they needed to do was show some form of identification. Everyone then had to empty their pockets into a tray before walking through an X-ray machine to be cleared. Once they were all cleared, they were all met by Collin, who was waiting on the other side for them.

“It’s about time you got here,” teased Collin, as he held his arms opened for his Big Bro.

The two Covers talked about Ryan flying with Collin, who also invited his ‘brothers’ to also fly with him. Mr. Ken told the young man that he could only allow Robert and Charles to fly with him, because the other boys needed a CPS certified foster parent with them. He also told Collin that Ms. Judy could allow Eric to fly with him, as she was his mother, and that he could also invite Wayne and Dennis if he wanted.

The flight attendants for both planes came inside looking for their passengers. Collin went over to his attendant and asked him what would it take to add someone to the flight manifest. Mr. Ken then talked to his attendant and asked what it would take to delete someone from his passenger list.

The four people got together to figure out who was going to fly on which jet and thirty minutes later the flight manifests for both charter jets were submitted for approval and once they were approved the group began to head out to the jets.

The flight attendants already knew the jets were going to the same destinations, so they didn’t bother moving any of the baggage. Robert and Charles hugged their dad goodbye, while Eric hugged his mom good bye as they joined Collin, Ryan and Mr. Wayne on C.W.E Inc’s Gulfstream G280 Super Mid, a 9-seat jet.

The remaining travelers, Mr. Ken, Ms. Judy, Mr. Dennis, Billy, Matthew, Mark and Phillip headed out to the Gulfstream G650 Executive, a 12-seat jet that was originally chartered for the eleven original travelers.

Phillip had never flown before and he was amazed at what he was seeing inside the airplane. He couldn’t get over how plush the seats were and that everything was so clean and shiny. He was going to take a seat up front, but Matthew told him that the adults would sit up there.

Phillip then tried to sit in the middle section, but Matthew told him his older ‘brothers’ would probably want to sit there. Then he remembered they were flying with Collin, so he told the younger Cover he could sit there, and he would probably want a window seat, so he could look out and watch as the plane took off. The four boys all wound up sitting in that section with two facing forwards and the other two facing backwards.

The flight attendant made sure everyone was seated and they all had their seatbelts on before he gave them the safety briefing. Matthew told Phillip to listen carefully, as he never knew when they might need to use the information.

Once the briefing was over, the plane’s captain introduced himself over the intercom and explained about their taxiing and eventual takeoff and climb out to their cruising altitude. He asked them to stay seated until they reached their cruising altitude at which time their flight attendant would talk to them about breakfast. Matthew didn’t elaborate any further.

Phillip was fascinated with everything that he was seeing and hearing. But, just before the pilot released the plane’s brakes, the flight attendant came to the back looking for him. Upon finding him, he led him to the extra seat up in the front, so the boy would now be sitting with Mr. Ken, Mr. Dennis and Ms. Judy. There he would get a firsthand experience during the initial climb out and level off of the plane, with Mr. Ken explaining everything to him, as it happened.

Phillip looked out the window the entire time the plane taxied and climbed out to cruising altitude. He was amazed at what he saw underneath him, as the plane continued along its flight path back east. His smile the entire time told the three adults he was thoroughly enjoying his first airplane flight ever.

“Phillip,” began Mr. Ken, “what do you think about your first airplane flight?” asked the man.

“This is more than I ever thought it would be,” replied the smiling young Cover.

“Phillip, have you felt your ears pop? That’s because the air in your inner ear expands as we go up in altitude and is coming out. If you yawn or swallow you can help it come out sooner if you feel it is uncomfortable. When we begin to descend later, there is a way I’ll have to show you so you can push the air back in there. OK? So, make sure you ask me, or have your ‘brothers’ to explain it to you, then. OK?

“Also, this is a private air charter. This is totally different from what you would experience if you were to fly on a commercial airliner. Here … we basically have our own window and we can walk back and forth. Oh, and there are two restrooms; one up front and the other one is in the back. In a commercial airliner you could have to share three restrooms with upwards of 250 people.

“We also have these tables between the front two seats on either side. That would allow us to play cards and use them when we eat. And some of the seats can recline if we want to go to sleep. You saw back where you were first sitting, the four of you could have a good game of cards or play some board-games, while we fly along to our destination.

“Soon, the flight attendant will come through and ask you what you want for breakfast, and I bet you are hungry. When they bring you your breakfast you can come back up here to eat, or you can stay back there with your ‘brothers’. Now go on back and join your ‘brothers’,” finished the foster dad.

Phillip went back and joined Billy, Matthew and Mark. He told them what it was like to sit up front and watch the plane take off, and how small everything looked as they climbed. His ‘brothers’ told him they all experienced the same thing, on their first flight.

Mark then told Phillip that after they eat, they’ll probably take him up to the cockpit and show him around and they might let him sit in the co-pilot’s seat. Phillip didn’t believe what Mark told him. That was until Billy and Matthew told their youngest ‘brother’ that they both had that opportunity and he’ll have fun when they show him around.

The flight attendant came through and asked the boys what they wanted for breakfast. The boys all ordered something different, but in the end, it was all similar. Pancakes, scrambled eggs, crisp bacon, breakfast tacos and milk were what the boys ordered, while the adults added coffee to their order.

The travelers were about an hour and a half into their trip when the flight attendant came to the back of the aircraft. He then asked Phillip if he wanted to see what the cockpit looked like. Phillip had to have Mark move out of his seat, so he could slip out of his and go with the flight attendant, so he could get his look at the very front of the airplane.

The co-pilot had Phillip stand behind him as he began orientating the young Cover to what he was looking at on the instrument panel. The man pointed out the major instruments they use to fly the plane and how there are two of them for each of the pilots to use to cross-check one another, and also that they were able to safely fly the plane from either seat.

The co-pilot then asked Phillip some questions about what he’d told him. Then when the man was satisfied that the young boy had been listening, he asked the youngster if he would like to sit down in the seat. Phillip couldn’t believe he would be allowed to sit where the man was.

Phillip got to do what all the other boys had gotten to do when they first flew. He was allowed to place his hands on the yoke and feel what it was like to ‘fly’ the plane. He had the headset on and was able to hear the communications between the pilot and the air traffic controllers, as the plane flew east.

When Phillip was finished with his orientation from the co-pilot, he walked back to be with his ‘brothers’, but he stopped and thanked his foster dad for making it possible for him to do that. The boy told his foster dad that he thought the trip to visit the amusement parks would be awesome, but he didn’t know it would start with him being able to also ‘fly’ the plane. He leaned over and hugged the man. The boy stood up with a few tears sliding down his cheeks.

Judy Turner heard and saw what transpired and after the boy walked back to be with his ‘brothers’, she asked Ken if all the boys had that opportunity to sit where the co-pilot sat and ‘fly’ the airplane.

The woman’s friend told her that the pilots had done that for all the boys. He also told her that the boys will, and that she will too, get a Fastest Pass at the amusement parks, so they won’t have to wait in lines to get on the rides. All Judy said to Ken about that was that he spoils those boys and he knows it. Ken smiled back at her and said, “Guilty as charged!”

Phillip just had to tell his ‘brothers’ what he’d just gotten to do. Billy heard his youngest ‘brother’ telling his story, so when the youngster finished, he added his own perspective when he was given the same opportunity. Matthew and Mark then joined in with their own take on what it was like for them to do what Phillip had just done.

With all that was going on throughout the flight, the breakfast, Phillip’s cockpit orientation, and then the boys talking about their own chance to sit up front and how they saw it, made the time seem to go by very fast for the boys. And before they knew it, the flight attendant came through the cabin and told everyone to put everything away, as they would be landing in about thirty minutes.

Mr. Ken called Phillip to come up front and sit up there with them, so he would have a first-class view of the plane descending, and so that he could explain to the boy how to clear his ears as they descended. He also gave the boy a piece of gum to chew to help him keep his jaw moving to assist in helping equalize the air pressure in the middle ear.

Phillip loved that he could see everything from the forward-facing seat he had. Mr. Ken explained things to him as the plane reconfigured to land. The boy was all smiles and he kept looking out the window trying to see as much as he could see.

When each group arrived at the terminal, and they had all deplaned, everyone headed into the building and they all visited the restroom. Their transportation was there waiting for their bags to be brought to them and when they had everything, they had the group load into the three conveyances and they were off to the hotel.

After the approximately three-hour flight and the one-hour loss in time, the group arrived at the hotel around 1 o’clock. Mr. Ken went to the counter, introduced himself and his party and presented his credit card for the six rooms he had reserved. The counter-person warmly greeted him and told him everything was ready, and all they needed to know was who would be in which room.

When Collin presented himself at the counter and asked for his room, the man behind the counter said that they didn’t have one in his name. Collin asked if they had any in the name of C.W.E. Inc. The man checked and said that they had three, and he named the two pilots and the flight attendant. Collin was fit to be tied and was going to call his travel people, when Mr. Ken put his hand on his shoulder.

“Collin … I have reserved a separate room for the teens, and with three adult males I think we can spread all the other boys around. So … why don’t you and Ryan use that one for now, and later you can call your travel people to find out what happened,” suggested the young man’s Big Bro.

The hotel counter person had called for the manager to come out to the front desk while Mr. Ken and Collin were talking. And, as soon as the manager came out, and saw who was out there, he warmly greeted Mr. Thomas, shook his hand, and asked him if there were any problems with his reservations.

Mr. Ken explained the possible problem with Collin’s reservation, but since the hotel allowed him to have that extra room for his teenagers, he was going to let Collin and Ryan use that one, for now, until Collin can get in touch with his company and get it all straightened out. The hotel manager told Mr. Ken that it shouldn’t be a problem, and then told the desk clerk to do what the man wanted to do.

It took a little longer than it should have to get the rooms sorted out, but in the end, Ms. Judy had her own room, as promised by Mr. Ken. Mr. Ken would have Charles, Mark and Phillip with him. Mr. Wayne would have Billy and Matthew, and Mr. Dennis would have Robert and Eric for this stop.

With room keys in hand, Mr. Ken asked everyone to take their bags to their respective rooms, unpack some, use the facilities, and then be back in the lobby in about fifteen minutes. He told them they would then go out for a late lunch and then head out to the park.

The boys found trolleys to use to take everybody’s bags up to their rooms, which were all located on the same floor. The boys had all been there before, so they knew the drill. They told Phillip to just follow along and to help where he could.

The boys got all of the bags in the right rooms and were all downstairs by 1:20. Mr. Ken asked everyone if they wanted to head out to the park and eat there, or eat along the way. The majority wanted to stop at a fast-food restaurant, for a burger, fries and a cold drink, so the meal would get a chance to settle before they began to ride the roller coasters.

Ms. Judy would have preferred to have eaten at a sit-down restaurant, but knowing the boys were anxious to get out to the amusement park, she didn’t say anything.

Even though the boys wanted to go right out to the amusement park, the stop on the way out didn’t deter them from eating their share of burgers and fries along with drinks and they also drank a number of refills of soda. Everyone did drain their dragons before loading into the limos before continuing their journey out to their first stop of their trip, Fantasy Fun Park.

“Joseph,” said Mr. Ken, as he greeted his host, Joseph Shartz, The Fantasy Fun Park’s operations manager, upon exiting the limo, “let me introduce to you our newest travelers. This is Ms. Judy Turner. She is the Director of Children’s Protective Services back where we live. And this young man is Phillip, my newest foster son. As for these two young men, Collin … he was my first foster son and Ryan was his constant companion, and are considered my ‘little brothers’. They are both soon to be college juniors.”

“Welcome Phillip, Collin and Ryan, I know you all will enjoy Fantasy Fun Park and especially our new Wild Mouse coaster, the Mouser. The other boys have been here a few times, already, so they can show you around, and tell you which rides are the better ones for you.

When the boys heard there was a new coaster called the Mouser, they all got big smiles on their faces and couldn’t wait to go out on the park and ride it.

“And a big welcome to you, too, Ms. Turner. We don’t normally get someone so ahh … so high up in the government, but I know you’ll have all the fun you want here at our wonderful Fantasy Fun Park,” offered the parks operations manager.

Mr. Shartz already had someone waiting to take his visitors to the Fast, Faster, Fastest (FFF) Booth, so when all of the introductions were over, he had that person walk them over to the booth. Mr. Ken told Judy to go with them and get her Fastest Pass, so she could pick and choose which rides she wanted to get on, because he already knew which ones the boys would head to.

Ms. Judy followed Wayne, Dennis, and the boys, to the FFF Booth and asked them how the pass worked. Wayne told her that the older boys would want to head right off on their own and not be encumbered by hanging with them ‘old’ folk, then Wayne and Dennis laughed.

Billy, Robert, Eric, and Charles told Collin and Ryan to hang with them and they’d all go over to the new Wild Mouse coaster, and then show them to all the good rides first. Matthew looked disappointed that they didn’t include him, and Mr. Wayne saw that.

The Estate Master told the pre-teen that he, Mark and Phillip will hang with him, Mr. Dennis and Ms. Judy, and that he and Mark can ride together and that either he, or Mr. Dennis, will ride with Phillip, since he’s never been there before and he doesn’t know which rides he’ll like.

Phillip then asked, “What’s a Wild Mouse?”

Matthew told his newest ‘brother’ that it was a steel coaster that had lots of twisty turns at the top, with some steep drops and tight turns and some quick up hills that repeated towards the bottom, along with some bunny hills thrown in before the end. You’ll like it; it’s fast!”

“I better see it before I ride it,” matter-of-factly stated Phillip, making the rest of them laugh.

Mr. Wayne suggested that they just walk to the right and ride the amusements as they come to them. Everyone agreed and so the first ride the adults and the three younger Covers came to was called the Galleon.

This ride that was shaped like a boat that swung up back and forth and went higher and higher on each pass. Phillip watched it and said he thought he’d like to ride that, so the three boys went up and activated their fastest Pass. Ms. Judy and Mr. Wayne decided to join them.

When it was their time to ride, Matthew and Mark, along with Mr. Wayne headed to the higher seats, because they knew those would get higher and higher on subsequent passes. Phillip told Ms. Judy he didn’t want to sit that high on his first ride, so the woman suggested they sit two rows lower.

Phillip giggled the whole ride; he was having so much fun. When it was over Ms. Judy asked him if he thought maybe he should have been one row higher. Phillip thought about that for a few moments, and then said that when he gets to ride it again, he’ll ride at the highest row, and then ran to catch up with his ‘brothers’.

The next ride they came to was the Scrambler. Phillip watched it and said he wanted to try it. The three boys went up and activated their Passes. The three adults said that they’d sit that one out and watch them when it was their turn.

When Phillip went to ride the Scrambler, Matthew was going to put him against the outer wall, but Mr. Wayne yelled out to the pre-teen and told him to let him be on the inside, as it was his first ride. Matthew smiled back knowing what he intended to do.

As the Scrambler whipped and twisted around, Phillip could be heard laughing, as he passed the three adults standing on the perimeter fence. Ms. Judy was glad the young foster boys were having fun.

The next ride was the Tilt-A-Whirl, and Phillip didn’t hesitate to ride. Phillip said he’d ridden that one at a local fair, and he didn’t hesitate to activate his Fastest Pass with his ‘brothers’. The three adults decided to ride that one, too, so Phillip rode with Ms. Judy, Matthew rode with Mr. Wayne and Mark rode with Mr. Dennis.

After the ride, the boys laughed about how they twisted and turned on the hills of the ride and how much fun it was when there was more weight in the ride car, to the chagrin of the adults. The group then headed onto their next ride adventure.

The Bumper Cars was next. Phillip liked that the people got to bump into one another and he couldn’t wait to get on that ride. Ms. Judy said she didn’t want to get whip-lash and she would watch from the outside. The other five activated their pass and waited for their turn.

Once in the bumper car and strapped in, Phillip had his foot on the pedal and he couldn’t wait until the power was turned on. And then when it was, he headed towards Mark and hit him square on the side. The gauntlet was thrown and from then on it was Cover against Cover.

Ms. Judy heard Phillip’s laugh, while watching from the sidelines, and she knew the youngster was having fun. She watched as Phillip got hit as much as he hit the others, and he still went back for more. She saw the disappointment on his face when the ride was over. She told him when he came through the Exit that he could ride it again later and then tomorrow. That put a smile on the young Cover’s face.

The group came up to one of the roller coasters, the Comet, an Out and Back coaster that was only 110 feet high at the top of the first hill, with its first downward hill of just 80 feet, and Mathew and Mark wanted to ride it. Phillip wasn’t so sure if he wanted to ride something that high, just yet. So, he told his ‘brothers’ to go ahead and ride and he’d stay there and watch.

So, Matthew, Mark, Mr. Wayne and Mr. Dennis walked up the Exit to activate their Fastest Passes, while Phillip and Ms. Judy told them they’d wait at the bottom of the Exit. The riders never came back as the ride operators knew who they were, as the six other Covers had already been there, so they put them on the next train. About five minutes later, the four riders came down the Exit and Matthew and Mark were laughing.

“Phillip, you should have ridden that coaster,” exclaimed Mark. “It was so much fun! I remembered last year when I first visited here and didn’t want to ride it at first. Then, Mr. Dan rode it with me and I got to love roller coasters.”

Phillip didn’t know what to say. The Cover told his ‘brothers’ he could hear the screaming of the riders, as they went down and up the hills, but what he couldn’t understand was that the screaming was replaced with laughter and whoops and hollering when they came back into the station and then people were clamoring to get back in line to ride the Comet, again, as they came down the Exit.

Mark told his ‘brother’ that the fun of the ride is the thrill of the racing down one hill and then quickly up the other, and then over and over again. He told Phillip he should think about trying it before they leave tomorrow. Phillip said he’d think about it.

Of course, Matthew convinced his group to ride the train. He explained that Phillip could see a good portion of the park from it and then when they returned from where they started, Phillip could decide which rides he wanted to go to and try.

After the train ride, Phillip did see a few rides he wanted to try and he and his ‘brothers’ and the adults did try them. He also did try a few rides that Mark convinced him to throw away his fears on and give it a chance. One of those rides was called the Octopus.

Seated together, Phillip and Mark sat in their ride car that spun on a center axle while the car also spun on the central spindle all the while the arms went up and down. Phillip had watched the ride from the outside and thought it would make him sick. But once he was on it, he liked the up and down motion as well as the spinning he and Mark did. After the Cover had gotten off, he told everyone he was happy he tried it.

Matthew and Mark led Phillip and Ms. Judy over to one of the three new rides Mr. Ken had installed the previous year. The Super Flyer, a 2-passenger laying down gondola, which let the rider experience the sensation of free flight, with a wave-like oscillating motion. Ms. Judy said she was definitely not going to ride that one.

Phillip watched the ride as they approached it and said it didn’t look all that scary and he was game to ride it. Mark smiled and asked his ‘brother’ if they could ride it together. Matthew and Mr. Wayne rode it together when it was their turn. Phillip came off the ride smiling and told Ms. Judy that she should have tried it. The woman said that maybe tomorrow she would and left it at that. Mr. Dennis choked out a chuckled laugh at hearing that.

Matthew and Mark wanted Phillip to ride another one of Mr. Ken’s new rides from last year, so the group walked over to the Surfer Wave. As Phillip walked up to it, he saw that it was a painted giant surfboard that slowly spun around and around, as the riders stood up and ‘surfed’ the swells of the ‘wave’ on a track that had hills at both ends.

Phillip could see that it was a tame ride and something he could enjoy. He talked all of the adults into riding it with him, so the six waited for their turn and loaded to the front of the surfboard with Phillip and Ms. Judy going to the very front. Phillip laughed and laughed as he rode the fun ride, and even Ms. Judy enjoyed herself, standing next to the young boy, wishing her Eric was that young again.

The Ferris wheel was the next ride the group went on, it was while they were at the top, that Matthew pointed out the Tomahawk, telling his younger ‘brother’ it was the third new ride their ‘dad’ installed last year. They also saw the new Mouser. The Wild Mouse coaster that Mr. Ken had installed for that year.

Phillip also saw another roller coaster and asked Matthew about it. The pre-teen told him that the Looper was a steel coaster that had a big loop, a zero-g turn, a helix, a corkscrew and a few other elements that make it a fun ride. Phillip didn’t say anything about it after that.

After they got off the Ferris wheel, Mark explained about the Tomahawk and how you were strapped in and there was no way you could fall out. He told the eleven-year-old to ask Matthew, because he saw how he was just as skittish last spring when he finally rode it and he was glad he did.

The group walked over to the Tomahawk and they watched it go through its operation. That was when the rest of the Covers stopped by and asked their younger ‘brothers’ if they were going to ride the Tomahawk.

Matthew, Mark, Mr. Wayne and Mr. Dennis all said they were going to ride and the big group went over to the ride operator to activate their fastest Passes. Billy called over to Phillip to come along and activate his, just in case he decides to ride, so he doesn’t have to wait. Phillip reluctantly walked over to his older ‘brother’, but told him he didn’t think he was going to ride.

Billy told Phillip they’d watch the ride a few more times to give the younger boy a chance to see that the ride wasn’t as bad as it seemed. The older Cover was trying to convince Phillip to ride and figured he could get him to ride eventually. The teenager just had to persuade the youngest Cover that it was safe and that Mark rode it last year as a ten-year-old.

While Billy was working on Phillip to ride, Eric was talking to his mom trying to get her to ride the Tomahawk with him. Mom Judy really didn’t want to ride this, but her son told her that she didn’t do anything like that with him and that he would never be that young again. The teenager was really laying it on thick, to try to get his mother to ride the Tomahawk.

The ride operator called their group a few times to load, but Mr. Wayne told them to load the next people in line, as they were talking about who would ride with whom. But in reality, they were trying to encourage Ms. Judy and Phillip to ride with them.

It was then that Mr. Ken and Mr. Shartz drove up in a golf cart. The boys saw their ‘dad’ and called him over, so he would ride with him. It was then that they saw him wearing his new owner’s polo shirt.

“Dad … nice looking shirt,” called out Charles. “Do we get to wear one just like it?”

“I’m afraid not, my son, you’re not an owner,” teased Charles’ dad.

Mr. Ken was wearing a white polo shirt with a dark green Three Finger Entertainment logo with the word “Owner” under the logo that he had Ben Walthers, his President of TFE, LLC designed and order five for him and sent to each of his five amusement parks for when he visits.

Judy Turner went over to her friend Ken and felt the material and then offered, “That looks sharp, Ken. People who see you should know who they are talking to when they have the opportunity to talk with you.”

“Thank you, Judy. This is the design that I want my main supervisors wearing in the parks from now on. When we have our annual meeting after Labor Day, we’ll decide on which color each type of supervisor should wear and Ben will buy them for the start of next season.”

“Dad, we’re going to ride the Tomahawk, come and ride with us,” announced Robert. Then the other boys began to encourage their ‘dad’ to ride with them.

“Judy … you going to ride with Eric?” asked Ken, with a smile.

Ms. Judy hesitated, but her son came over to her and asked, “Mom, come on and ride with me, please,” begged Eric.

Ken told Judy she could ride between him and Eric, then looked at Phillip and told the boy he could ride between Mr. Wayne and Mr. Dennis, or Billy, while his ‘brothers’ took other seats.

Mr. Shartz heard what was happening, so he went over to the ride operator and told them to hold the next ride. The ride operator told the parks operations manager that he’s been calling them to ride, but they kept telling him to load the next group. But Mr. Shartz told him to hold it this time, as the park’s owner is probably going to ride.

Hearing that the park’s owner was now in the group caused the ride operator to call the other ride attendants over to tell them what was about to happen. None of those people were working at Fantasy Fun Park last year, so they had never met Ken Thomas and his ‘boys’.

Mr. Ken saw that the ride was stopped and empty, so he told everyone to head over to the empty seats and load up. Eric led his mom over to the middle of the ride and had her sit in the middle seat as he took one on one side of her while Mr. Ken sat on the other side. Billy did the same for Phillip and sat on one side, while Mr. Wayne sat on the other side. The other boys took the remaining seats and then Mr. Shartz had the operators fill up the rest of the ride.

Once everyone was strapped in and the shoulder safety harness was locked into place and double checked by the ride attendants, the ride operator began the ride sequence.

The unique seating arrangements of the ride allows the passengers to interact with each other as the middle seats sit face to face and so the Covers could see one another as the ride began. Ms. Judy and Phillip began enjoying the ride as it began to swing back and forth just as the Galleon had done.

The ride slowly went higher and higher, but it also picked up speed and before Ms. Judy and Phillip knew it, they were going upside down and over the top. They both screamed.

The Tomahawk went over the top about three times before it reversed course and went over the top in the opposite direction. By that time, Ms. Judy and Phillip had calmed down as they realized they hadn’t fallen out and neither had any of the other Covers, or other riders.

“You tricked me into riding that ride,” smiled Phillip, as he happily complained to Billy, as he also hit his arm.

“Who, me?” replied the teenager, with his hands up in the air at his shoulders, feigning he had no idea what his ‘brother’ was talking about.

“Yes, you, ‘big brother’. But I’m glad you did. That was fun … after I stopped screaming,” laughed Phillip. Ms. Judy was having the same conversation with her son, Eric.

The rest of the Covers heard the exchange between the youngest Cover and Billy and they all patted Phillip on the back for his riding the Tomahawk. They also went over to Ms. Judy and told her how ‘brave’ she was, too.

Since they had arrived at the park late that first day, Mr. Ken asked the group to head back to the operations building. He told them they would then head back to the hotel and stop along the way and get a nice sit-down dinner.

Once they were all at the operations building the boys thanked Mr. Shartz for their Fastest Passes, and then everyone loaded into their transportation and they headed back towards their hotel and a stop for a sit-down dinner.

They stopped at a nice restaurant and as they ate, they talked about their day. But Phillip stole the show as he told them about the rides he rode and how Billy made him ride that terrifying Tomahawk. Billy then bopped him on his shoulder and everyone laughed.

Phillip rubbed his shoulder and told everyone how Billy walked him out to the Tomahawk and had him sit down and they strapped him in and before he knew it the ride started and he couldn’t get out. Billy bopped him on his shoulder again. Phillip’s ‘brothers’ laughed some more knowing what happened as they were there.

Ryan then told everyone how much fun he had riding the roller coasters with his ‘brothers’. He explained that it had been a long time since he got to do that out in California. He then had to explain about the California Boys because, even though his ‘brothers’ knew about them, Mr. Dennis didn’t.

The older boys then told everyone how much fun the new Mouser Wild Mouse coaster was. They then thanked their ‘dad’ for buying it for the park. ‘Dad’ Ken told the boys that he bought two more just like it, and they will see them at the next two parks. The boys asked why he didn’t get one for all four parks. ‘Dad’ Ken told them that Chrystal Lake already had one, then he laughed.

Ms. Judy then took her turn to tell the group about her day. “Even though I am an older person, it’s been a long time since I took some down time, and did anything remotely like what I did today. And I want you all to know, it was … really fun! I did ride a number of the rides. Didn’t we Phillip? Although, we didn’t ride that Comet, or the Mouser. Maybe, tomorrow; we’ll both think about it. I do know there are a number of rides we didn’t get to do, so tomorrow we’ll see what it brings.”

The table applauded the woman’s ‘confession’.

Mr. Ken then told Charles that he did talk to Mr. Shartz about his flying his quadcopter at his park tomorrow. The teen’s dad told him that he needed to check with Mr. Shartz, so he could verify the radio frequency the copter uses, so there won’t be any interference with anything there at the park. Charles got a big smile on his face, and then thanked his dad for asking for him.

It had been a very long day for the traveler’s and Mr. Ken told the boys not to stay up watching the television. He told everyone they would meet in the lobby at nine in the morning, go out for breakfast, then head out to the park for another day of fun.

The boys were up in the rooms by 9:30, whereas the adults were enjoying a few adult drinks in the hotel’s bar before they headed up to their hotel rooms. When they arrived, the boys were in bed and fast asleep. Then they too, were soon in bed and asleep, as well.

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

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