Published: 22 Aug 2024

From The Previous Chapter:

Phillip thanked his foster dad for talking to him, and told him that he didn’t know how he could ever repay him for what he’s done for him. The young Cover then shed a few tears for how he felt about everything he’s been given a chance to do there.

Mr. Ken finally got down to his own retreat. The week was over and he was ready to relax, but he had to get up in the morning to take Bill to his driver’s test, so he knew he couldn’t sleep in. So, the man got ready for bed, made sure his alarm clock was set to wake him up, and then he went and laid down.

The day was over for the Covers, and now they were all at home and in bed. The night was to be uneventful and they all slept well.

Mr. Ken woke at the sound of his alarm. He used his en suite, showered, dressed for the day and then went out and got his morning newspaper. He was drinking his coffee and reading the paper when Billy walked into the Kitchen Nook.

The two Covers said good morning to one another, as the teenager went to the freezer to retrieve two breakfast tacos to thaw in the microwave. But Mr. Ken told him that he already had some sitting in the microwave for him, and that he might need to give them a few more seconds of heating.

Billy thanked the man for doing that for him, and the teen gave the breakfast tacos another fifteen seconds of heating. The teen then got himself a glass of orange juice to help wash them down.

The two Covers were talking as the other boys began filtering into the Nook. They said good morning to their ‘dad’ and Billy, and asked if there were breakfast tacos for them, as well. ‘Dad’ Ken told them to check the convection oven. The four boys all had smiles on their faces when they saw twelve tacos sitting there all warm and ready to be heated some more, if they wanted, in the microwave oven.

Mr. Ken was watching the time and when it was 9:10 he mentioned to Billy that they both needed to use the little boy’s rooms and then head out to the driver’s testing place.

Billy’s ‘brothers’ told him “Good Luck”, as he walked through the Kitchen Nook on his way to the garage. There the teenager opened the garage door, sat behind the wheel of the Taurus, and when Mr. Ken was in the front passenger seat, and buckled in, he backed the car out of the garage, hit the button to close the garage door and then headed to drive out the Main Gate.

The Cover boys speculated what it would be like having Billy with his driver’s license. It was Robert who told them that their older ‘brother’ wouldn’t be able to have but one of them with him when he drove, because of the rules for new drivers.

The two Covers arrived at the driver’s testing center with ten minutes to spare. They signed in and waited for their turn. When it was Billy’s turn, he and Mr. Ken went with the Department of Public Safety customer service representative to the Taurus where he made sure it was legal and that it had passed its annual inspection.

After that, the customer service representative had Billy get behind the wheel and the two of them began the driver’s test for the Cover.

Mr. Ken was on pins and needles for the teenager. He wasn’t this nervous when Collin got his driver’s license. He figured it was because he was getting old. Then he laughed at what he was thinking.

The driver’s test took about twenty-five minutes, but for Mr. Ken, he felt like it took forever. When Billy finally came over to him, the teen had a big smile on his face. The teenager told his foster dad that he had passed, and that he had only one point deducted, because at his first stop sign, he was nervous and it wasn’t smooth. The man smiled.

The customer service representative came and got Billy to have him check his temporary Provisional Driver’s License to make sure everything on it was correct. When the Cover said it was, the representative told the Cover that he would receive his plastic card license in two to three weeks.

But Mr. Ken had a question for the Department of Public Safety customer service representative. He asked him what does ‘family’ mean, or better still represent when the household has foster children in it. Mr. Ken qualified his question by saying that Bill was his foster son, who is in a household with his sons and other foster sons, and he wanted to know if Bill could have one of them with him when he is driving.

The man went and checked the Department of Public Safety, Youth or Young Adult in Foster Care Driver License Fact Sheet. He read through the entire three-page Fact Sheet and there on page three he read that Bill could not operate a motor vehicle with more than one person under the age of 21, and he stopped reading there.

Mr. Ken thanked him for that clarification and with Bill’s paper Provisional Driver’s License now in his wallet, Billy got behind the wheel in the Taurus, and Mr. Ken told him to drive to the nearest fast-food restaurant to celebrate.

When Billy returned to The Cove, his ‘brothers’ quickly asked him if he passed his driver’s test. The teen just pulled out his wallet and showed them his paper provisional license. They all congratulated him.

Lonnie also congratulated Billy on passing his driver’s test when the teen came out to work power washing the estate walls. Then the friend told him to get to work. The two laughed, as Billy had missed a lot of work as of late. But the Cover teen told his friend that it won’t affect his bank account too much after Friday.

Lonnie wanted to know what Billy meant. So, the Cover told his friend not to tell anyone, but that his lawsuit might be settled next week, and then he’ll have a few extra dollars in his bank account. Lonnie was happy for his friend, then told Billy to stop stalling and get to work. More laughter.

The Covers’ friends arrived at twelve, noon, as they usually do. Some came with their sleeping bags for the nights’ sleepover, as this way they could just spend the entire day, and not have to worry about going home.

Phillip’s friends saw what some of the other boys had done, and they asked Phillip about it and all Phillip could tell them was that he didn’t know that they could have done that. He told them when their parents come by to have them bring their sleeping bag and whatever else they need, like a pillow, change of clothes and PJs, if they wear them.

All the boys, except Bryce, giggled when Phillip mentioned PJs. So, Bryce asked them why they did. Westin told him that when they had the last sleepover and they all wore PJs, they were the only ones that had them on.

Bryson added that when they have what’s called the midnight snack right after the movie all the other boys were either in their tighty whities, or boxer briefs. Preston said that they felt out of place with everybody else standing there in their underwear, and they were in their PJs.

Bryce then asked his friends if they were going to wear PJs, or not. The six boys looked at one another and then simultaneously said, “Not!” Then they all laughed. Bryce said he was glad they said that, as he didn’t wear PJs any more.

Just then Collin came driving into The Cove. He told his Big Bro that he would come back by Thursday night or Friday, but here it was Saturday, and he was just coming back. The young man drove down to the house and then walked inside and to the Study, to talk to his Big Bro.

“Collin … I thought we’d see you well before this,” said the young man’s Big Bro, when he saw who came to the Study’s door.

“Sorry, Bro, I got distracted working on the final house plans and wanting to get them finished, so the architect would get them in for approval. They’re still not in for approval, but only because the architect needs to finalize them, print them out and then submit them. We worked on them until late yesterday evening, and … and I am happy with the final result. Bro… I truly am happy with the final product.

“Bro … with what you gave me and what Mr. Dodenhoffer showed me that I could do, or change to make the house work much better, I think I have transferred Wilkinson into the 21st Century, and it will be a wonderful home for me and for my future wife and kids,” offered a smiling Collin.

“Well, I think that is wonderful Collin,” congratulated the young man’s Big Bro. “That is one big item off your shoulders.”

“Yea, but now I have to select a builder, or remodeler, Bro. How do I go about doing that?” asked Collin, who had a big question mark look all over his face.

“My little brother … you have all those contacts from all those charities that your family has worked on. So … you go to them and you ask them for their counsel. I bet that if you talk to them the right way, they will gladly give some real references,” offered Big Bro Ken.

“But that’s it, Bro … I don’t know how to do that. I never learned how to talk to those big wigs, and do the ‘tit-for-tat’ that my dad, grand dad and Grammy could do. They never showed me, and they never took the time to explain it to me, Bro.

“Maybe … maybe you … maybe you could come down there with me, when it is time to find a builder, and help me do this,” sort of begged Collin.

Big Brother Ken felt trapped. He wanted to help his little bro, but he had a full plate, and he didn’t know when he would have the time that he could even dedicate to do that sort research. What he has, though, is an investor/builder he will be seeing on Monday and he could ask him for some suggestions.

“Collin … I’m not going to make any promises to you, but what I can do for you, to get you started, is, I am meeting with a man on Monday, who is an investor in my Marina Project, but he is also a builder. So, I am going to pick his brain and see who he knows, down your way, as being a top-notch remodeler that he would recommend.

“You, Collin, … you will have to do some leg work and you’ll have to check these remodelers out. You can talk to your Uncle Andy and the leaders of all those charities that your family has been involved with, over all those years. Now you won’t have to do that right away. But when your architect has the plans approved by the county you will want to get started right away. Keep in mind that I will be leaving Tuesday, and I won’t be back until Thursday evening,” offered Big Bro Ken.

When the boys began the afternoon barbeque, the rental company delivered the 21-foot movie screen. Mr. Wayne had them set it up where they did last weekend for the twin’s party. Mr. Dennis asked Wayne to let him set the projector up to make sure he knew how to do it, in case Wayne wasn’t there.

The other night, the Estate Master had chosen Alice Through the Looking Glass, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Independence Day: Resurgence, London Has Fallen, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children and Sully for the twins to pick from, to show the night of their party.

The twins had already seen Independence Day: Resurgence and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, but that didn’t mean the rest of the boys had, so tonight he was going to offer all of the same movies except Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, since that was the movie that they did show, and most of the boys were there.

Wayne gave the DVDs to Dennis for him to announce to the boys to see which ones they wanted to watch and then he could set it up for viewing later.

“Hey, everyone, while you’re all here eating, can I have your attention,” announced Mr. Dennis.

“I have a very large movie list and I want to know which one you want to view tonight. There are the movies from the other night Alice Through the Looking Glass, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Independence Day: Resurgence, London Has Fallen and Sully.

“Plus, I have a few more for you to pick from, such as Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Ultimate Edition, Hacksaw Ridge, The Magnificent Seven, Captain America: Civil War and The Accountant,” offered Mr. Dennis.

“Can we watch two movies?” someone called out to ask.

“I will have to check with the bosses. But if you start early enough and don’t pick ones that go too long that might be doable. But don’t quote me. I just work here,” teased Mr. Dennis.

The boys all laughed. All the Covers went over to the Assistant Estate Master to look at the DVD covers to see what the show times were, and to try to figure out how they could watch two movies.

After the barbeque and cleanup, Phillip and his band mates went swimming. They were getting comfortable enough with one another, when it came to changing in front of one another, that they just went about changing and they talked as they did.

Billy and Robert went to ‘dad’ Ken about watching two movies. They said they could watch one movie that was three hours long, or two ninety-minute movies, or a ninety-minute and a little longer one if they started the movies early enough, like at 8:30.

‘Dad’ Ken smiled at the question and then asked what about the ‘midnight’ snack. Billy said that since they were already up at the Pavilion, they could do it right there, and when everything was cleaned up, they would all head down to the house to sleep.

The owner of The Cove then asked if Mr. Wayne and Mr. Dennis were on-board with their watching two movies. Robert smiled and told his dad that when someone yelled out if they could watch two movies, Mr. Dennis said that if they started early enough and didn’t pick ones that didn’t go too long that it might be doable, but not to quote him, “because he just works here”. Billy told his foster dad that everyone laughed. Mr. Ken smiled at hearing that, too.

After everyone swam and they were up at the Pavilion waiting for the pizzas to arrive. Billy gathered them together and gave them the news.

“OK, here’s what we can do. We can watch Batman versus Superman: Dawn of Justice, The Ultimate Edition, which is 182 minutes long, or we can watch London Has Fallen, which is 99 minutes and Sully, which is 96 minutes, or …. we can watch one of them and one of the following: Alice Through the Looking Glass at 113, minutes, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story at 133 minutes, Independence Day: Resurgence at 120 minutes, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them at 132 minutes, Hacksaw Ridge at 139 minutes, The Magnificent Seven at 132 minutes or The Accountant at 128 minutes.”

Robert then described to the group what each of the movies was about. The pizza came just then, and the boys’ stomach stook over, and while they were eating, they talked amongst themselves about which movies they should watch.

At the same time the pizza came, Frank Longger and his two sons also came to The Cove. Charles saw his friend Richard getting out of the car and he ran over to him and hugged him. The teen Cover then thanked Mr. Longger for bringing his friend and brother, Ryan, over for the sleepover.

Mr. Ken was up at the Pavilion then and he also came over to Frank Longger and thanked the man for allowing his son to get back into somewhat of a regular routine. He then invited the man to eat some pizza with them.

Mr. Ken, Collin and his two Estate Masters all ate and talked about that turn of events about watching two movies. Mr. Ken then asked if the midnight snacks had been bought and were available to be served after the end of the movie, or movies. Mr. Dennis told his boss that they were sitting in the storage room and the milks were in the Pavilion refrigerator.

Mr. Longger listened to the men talk and then realized that there was a lot that went on behind the scenes when there was a sleepover at the Cove.

Since Mr. Dennis was the projectionist that evening, he went to Billy and Robert and asked them if they knew which movies he was going to show. He told them the later they started the less time they had to watch them. The two Covers quickly canvassed their friends and came back to Mr. Dennis to tell him that they all decided to watch London Has Fallen and Independence Day: Resurgence.

Mr. Dennis thanked the teens and told them that the first movie would start at 8:30, and then he went to set up the first movie.

Many of the boys had brought the patio chairs down to the flat area between the Pavilion and the Cove Skate Park, but there weren’t enough for everyone, especially since Mr. Ken, Collin, Mr. Wayne and Mr. Dennis were using the sofas for their viewing.

Mr. Ken invited Frank to stay and watch the movies with them, but he declined and told him that his boys would rather him not watch over them, and then he left, saying that he’d pick the boys up tomorrow.

Luckily, many of the boys hadn’t taken their sleeping bags down to the house yet, so they spread them out on the concrete and used them for their viewing point. The boys using the patio chairs had them go in front, so they would have a good view of the screen.

Mr. Wayne had the boys bring the popcorn making machine up to the Pavilion last weekend for the twin’s party, and he had never taken it back to the house. He was glad he’d never done that, so now he was able to make hot popcorn for the boys to have, while they watched the movies.

Robert’s friends, Logan, Gordon, Trevor and Josh arrived from working at the Four Corners Amusement Park, at about 10:20. Robert saw them arrive and he showed them where the leftover pizza was. He told them that they would have to use the microwave, as it took a long time to heat up the grill plates.

The second movie was already about half-way done, but the four teenagers were hungry and had been looking forward to the pizza and the sleepover, so they watched the movie, as best they could, from the table and benches as they ate.

The second movie was over around 11:30, and Mr. Wayne and Mr. Dennis got out the Krispy Kreme Donuts, while the Cover boys got out the three different milks, and plastic cups. Billy told them not to drink all the vanilla milk, as there was one new friend who hadn’t had any yet.

Bryce asked Phillip what vanilla milk was. The young Cover told him that was why Billy told everyone not to drink it all, as he needed to have some. So, Phillip took one of the gallon vanilla milk jugs and shook it to mix the milk up to make it frothy, and then he poured Bryce a glass of the sweet vanilla milk

When Bryce tasted it, he instantly loved it. “My mom makes something like this for me, but this tastes so much better,” said a smiling Bryce, with a milk mustache.

Each boy was allowed two Krispy Kreme donuts and while they were eating, Mr. Wayne reminded the boys, who haven’t helped with the breakfasts, that they need to step up tomorrow morning and get up with their Cover friend and help in any way they can.

Billy quickly spoke up and told everyone that they would be getting up at seven o’clock to get the breakfast started, so they needed to set their phone alarm to wake them if they were going to help.

Everyone helped clean up the leftovers and the scattered popcorn and straighten up the Pavilion, while others put everything away. With that accomplished, they all headed down to the house to get to their sleeping area. Phillip knew not to set up at the fireplace, as it was agreed that Mathew and his friends would go there this time.

Billy saw that Phillip was having a difficult time trying to figure out where he and his friends would go, as Charles and his friends took over the area next to the pool, since most of the area under the stairs was being taken up by the whelping box, which was where they usually went.

Billy told Phillip and his friends to join him and Lonnie up in the MRS Room, as there was now plenty of space, since it was just the two of them now that his other friends had jobs.

The young Cover and his friends took all of the gear to the MRS Room and spread out where Billy and Lonnie weren’t, stripped down to their underwear, not caring that the two older teenagers were there, and then slipped into their sleeping bags. Billy told them not to talk too long as seven o’clock came early.

Bryce asked Phillip what Billy meant. Bryson told them that the last time they all helped with the breakfast, Phillip and Westin were taught how to make the breakfast tacos and the rest of them helped set up the serving line. Preston added that when you help you also get to eat first. Bruce smiled and said to wake him.

Seven o’clock the next morning came and a number of cell phone alarms could be heard going off in the Great Room. Boys moaned that it was time to get up already. Phillip and his friends weren’t any different.

Phillip and his friends got up, got dressed and then they went down the stairs to use the Party Restroom, since they could handle a number of boys at one time, as compared to the half-bath off the Study. They then caught a ride up to the Pavilion and started to help with whatever they could, to get the breakfast going.

Robert and Charles were cooking the pancakes, while Eric was cooking the scrambled eggs on the grill. Logan had volunteered to crisp the bacon in the microwave.

Then when there was enough crispy bacon and scrambled eggs done, Billy told Phillip and Westin to go wash their hands and to start making the breakfast tacos like Momma showed them the last time.

Bryce then watched as the Cover and Westin began to take a tortilla, put a dollop of scrambled eggs and a piece of crispy bacon on it and then fold it all together into a soft breakfast taco wrapped in aluminum foil. Bryce watched them and he couldn’t believe that they were doing that. He knew his mom would never allow him to do anything like that.

Bryce then looked around and saw that the others were setting up the serving line and getting out the different flavored milks and the orange juice and that there was coffee made for the adults. He couldn’t believe that they did that. Then he was shaken out of his thoughts when Billy yelled over to him to help with the serving line.

As the Covers and their helpers had the breakfast pretty much ready, the rest of the boys began to come up to the Pavilion, as did Mr. Ken, Mr. Wayne, Mr. Dennis and Collin.

Once the pancakes, crispy bacon and scrambled eggs, as well as breakfast tacos were ready Billy told everyone they could begin taking three pancakes, three pieces of bacon, but only two tacos on their first go through to ensure everyone could have some.

The adults not only got their first plate full, they also took some scrambled eggs, as they told the cooks not to tell anyone what they did. They laughed all the way over to the end table to sit down and enjoy the wonderful warm breakfast. They also drank the hot coffee that they thoroughly enjoyed.

When all the pancake batter and scrambled eggs were used up, the cooks made their own platters of freshly made pancakes, crispy bacon, scrambled eggs and hot breakfast tacos. The other Covers and their helpers joined them and then they told the rest of their friends that they could have ‘seconds’ and to eat up, so there weren’t any leftovers.

When Charles saw that all of the cooked breakfast foods were eaten, he went into the storage room and brought out the remaining Krispy Kreme donuts. He took them to the adults first, so they could have their choice. The teen Cover then took the donuts he wanted and then he told the rest of the Cover friends that there were donuts leftover from last night, and then yelled, “First come; first served,” and then he got out of the way.

As the boys were cleaning up from the breakfast, Mr. Ken called everyone together.

“Boys … you came together for another wonderful night of pizza, a movie, or two, a sleepover, a hot breakfast made by your Cover friends, and a few helpers, and later there will be sub sandwiches for you make and enjoy.

“But before you all forget … you all need to thank your Cover friends for making all this possible. And, as you know, Chief is going to have a litter of puppies, so, I’m sorry to say, that this is essentially your last large sleepover until after school starts,” announced the owner of The Cove, and sponsor of the sleepovers.

There was a round of applause to thank the Covers for doing that for them. But then Logan stood up and asked for everyone’s attention.

“Listen up everyone … yes, we needed to thank Billy, Robert, Charles, Matthew and Phillip for putting on the sleepovers for us. But … the person we really need to thank is … is Mr. Ken. He pays for all of this. And, if you’ve ever done the math this is not cheap. So, we a need to give Mr. Ken a rousing round of applause. So, let’s hear it for him, too,” finished Logan.

All the boys applauded Mr. Ken for sponsoring their sleepovers.

Billy stood up next. He told everyone that if it weren’t for Mr. Wayne and Mr. Dennis for chaperoning them, they couldn’t have had the sleepovers either. He explained that their parents wouldn’t just let forty or fifty boys come over there and have the run of the house without some sort of supervision.

So, the teen Cover asked the boys to give a round of applause for the two Estate Masters for spending the nights there with them and keeping them safe and from them doing stupid stuff. The boys all laughed at what Billy said last. But they all applauded the men, but they also cheered that the men were there for them, too.

When the breakfast cleanup was over, Mr. Wayne handed Phillip a package. It was the sheet music that he had ordered for the band, courtesy of Mr. Ken. Phillip hugged the man and then gathered the band members together and showed them what he had. They all got their instruments tuned up and then they tried out a few of the new songs.

As it was still early, the rest of the boys went out to skate on the Cove Skate Park. Charles and Richard also went out there and the Cover watched over his friend to see if he lost any balance since his attack and recovery.

The men, and Collin, went down to the Study to talk. Mr. Ken told the men, and Collin, about his meeting with his Marina Project investors tomorrow night at six o’clock. He asked Wayne to remind him to tell Momma that he won’t be at dinner Monday night.

Mr. Ken continued and told the men about his planned trip back east on Tuesday to support Kate. He explained there was a man she knew who was causing trouble for her and they are scheduled to be in court on Wednesday. He expressed his need to be there to give her some support, especially if things don’t go her way. He added not to expect him back until Thursday evening.

“Men, Collin … on Friday … a very significant event will happen, and what I am about to tell was confidential, until the final papers were signed on Friday. Anyway, on Friday … Bill’s lawsuit against the alarm company … will be settled. I can’t tell you what the final amount will be, but it will be a nice amount for the young teen to start his future,” finished the teen’s foster dad.

“And again, I am asking you to spend more time here than I have ever expected. And on top of that, Chief … she is due to birth her litter of seven pups, and that will increase the workload around here until the pups are weened and sent off to their respective families.

“And if I hadn’t mentioned it to you … we are keeping one of the puppies – a male. We’ll have to have a naming contest once we pick the puppy, and picking the puppy will probably cause another problem because everyone of us will have our own favorite.

“And because of the puppies, I’ve told the boys that someone will have to stay and take care of them when we head out on our trip. I mentioned that I also may have to go by myself, or that maybe just a few of them will go, if I can’t find someone who can take care of them.

“Dan’s name came up, as did Judy’s and Chris’, but not yours, because you’ll be with us unless some, or none, of the boys go with me. Stay tuned because that, for now, is a very fluid situation.

“On another note … the boys have already mentioned going to SeaWorld and/or Fiesta Texas for either their Halloween and Christmas celebrations, or both. I’m not sure if they’ve talked to Chris about going to them yet, but put it in the back of your mind that they’ll want to go come October and December,” finished Mr. Ken.

Collin then told the men about his finalizing his remodeling plans for what everyone knows his home as, Wilkinson. He told them that his architect was supposed to finish up the plans and present them to the county for approval, and then he’ll have to select a remodeler. So, he will be going back and forth to do that.

Collin also told the men that he will also begin to visit his manufacturing plants and Board Meetings, while he is off for the summer, which will also keep him away from The Cove for days at a time. He added that he was telling them that, so they would know why he was gone so much.

As the day moved on, the Cover boys set out the sub making ingredients and then they made a call to the Study to make sure the adults would come up to the Pavilion and make their own sub sandwich.

Making their own sub sandwich was something new for Bryce, and he was beside himself that he got to choose his bread, select which meat he wanted and then if he wanted lettuce, tomatoes and/or onion on the sandwich, and if he wanted mayonnaise and/or Italian dressing. Then there was the kind of cheese and the pickle and chips on the side.

“Phil … do you do this every time you have a sleepover?” asked Bryce.

“Bry … this is only my second sleepover, and we did it the other time, too. But I heard that they didn’t always do the sub sandwiches; that they just did the burgers and hot dogs for lunch.

“What I also heard was that for breakfast … was that they used to only have pancakes and crispy bacon. And that it was Mr. Ken who pushed to have the scrambled eggs and the breakfast tacos. And we did that during my first sleepover and Momma Maria, she showed Westin and me how to fold them. That was why I did it this morning, too,” explained Phillip.

After eating, the band went swimming. They changed and talked and then enjoyed playing on the water toys. Then, when the wind came up and they got cold, the boys went in and changed back into their street clothes. It was then that Phillip had them gather up their sleepover gear to have it ready for when their parents came to pick them up.

The other Covers had their friends do the same thing, so when six o’clock came all of their friends would have their sleeping bag and whatever else they needed to take home ready to be placed in the parent’s car.

Mr. Ken, Mr. Wayne, Mr. Dennis and Collin were all up at the Main Gate when the parents started to stop by to retrieve their boy. Frank Longger asked his boys how was the sleepover. Richard hugged his dad for letting him come over and finally have some fun and be with his friends.

The parents thanked Mr. Ken for taking such good care of their boys before leaving for the night.

Once all of the Covers’ friends were gone. Mr. Ken asked everyone where they wanted to go to eat. The boys all wanted to go to Four Corners, as they all wanted to see how the amusement park was doing.

When the Covers arrived at Four Corners, they were surprised that parking was at a premium, and it was only going on six-thirty. They all walked into the Diner side of the restaurant, because the boys didn’t want to take a long time to eat.

After eating, they saw people were parking in the parking lot across the street and walking across the five-lane highway. Mr. Ken saw the potential for a major accident happening because a driver doesn’t see a pedestrian, or a person darts out into traffic. He called Dan to tell him what he saw.

About ten minutes later two patrol cars arrived and began directing people to use the crosswalk at the traffic light. A few people thought they could cross otherwise, but were caught by the patrol officers and cited for jaywalking.

Mr. Ken didn’t realize that his amusement park would create such a mess, as he looked at it, and he figured he needed to talk to the powers-that-be, as soon as possible, to come up with a solution before someone gets hurt.

Then the owner of the Four Corners Amusement Park told himself that this was Ben’s problem to fix. So, he called his President of Three Finger Entertainment and told him what he was seeing, and what he did for the night as a quick fix, but that they needed a permanent fix and fast.

The boys wanted to ride the rides and they pulled the man over to the amusement park. Tonight, all of the rides were operating and the refreshment stands were very busy. And, unlike the other night, the park was almost crowded in comparison. And it didn’t matter which ride you looked at, there were long lines at all of them.

This was the first time that Mr. Dennis visited the new amusement park, and he was surprised and amazed at what he was seeing. He liked that he saw that people didn’t have to pay to get in. That people could walk around and look at what was there, and they could stop at one of the three refreshment stands and buy something if they wanted. He also saw that the amusement park was focused on children versus the older crowd, although there were a few rides for them to go on and enjoy.

“Boys … are you interested in standing in line to ride something that you’ve ridden, possibly many times, at one of my parks?” asked ‘dad’ Ken.

The boys talked amongst themselves and they decided that the rides weren’t exciting enough to stand in line for, so they asked if they could drive the Go-Karts instead. So, the Covers walked over in that direction, only to find that with it being a Saturday night, and with the whole amusement park open, there were many more people taking advantage of all of what was there to offer.

Seeing they would have at least a ninety-minute wait to drive the Go-Karts, the Covers decided to get ice cream instead. But they didn’t want to walk all the way down to the traffic light in order to cross over to Mr. Ken’s Kream Kone. So, they decided to go to their other favorite ice cream place, Dairy Queen.

When the Covers returned home, sans Mr. Wayne and Mr. Dennis, they all headed to the Study.

“Geez dad, did you think the Four Corners Amusement Park would be that crowded that soon after its ‘soft’ opening?’ asked Robert.

“I wonder what the park will look like when you finally have its Grand Opening?” asked Matthew.

The Covers talked about what they saw that night at the new Four Corners Amusement Park. One thing for sure was that their ‘dad’ had a hit on his hands.

Before sending the boys up to their rooms to settle down before going to bed, ‘Dad’ Ken told them that tomorrow night he had a meeting with his Marina Project investors, and that he would not be there at dinner. He also reminded them that he was leaving on Tuesday to go back east and that he would not be back until late on Thursday.

He also reminded the boys that Chief was due any day during the week, and they needed to watch her for any signs of wanting to birth her pups. He told them that they should help her if she was having problems with pushing the pups out.

‘Dad’ Ken didn’t spend much time with the boys that night. He did remind Billy not to spread the word about his lawsuit settlement, that is, until it was signed, sealed and delivered on Friday.

Dad Ken and Charles talked about Richard’s appearance at the sleepover. Charles told his dad that Richard was really happy his dad let him, and his brother, come over to the sleepover. The teen told his dad that he felt that Mr. Longger was being over protective of both of his sons.

All the teen’s dad could tell his son was that Mr. Frank loves his sons, and he was afraid that he would lose Richard and he is just being a protective parent, as any parent would be after the scare he went through.

Charles asked his dad what would happen to those teens and Leah. All his dad could tell him was that they will have to watch the newspapers for when the trials would be, or if the teens accept a plea bargain.

In Phillip’s room the boy thanked his ‘dad’ for the sheet music. The youngster told his ‘dad’ that they tried to learn a few of the new songs today. The boy added that it will take them a while to get the timing down and the sound just right. ‘Dad’ Ken told his foster son that he would look forward to the band playing the new songs, when they were ready.

After a hug, the man told the boy to sleep well, and not to forget to drain his dragon before going to bed. The boy laughed and headed out the door on his way to the bathroom, at the same time ‘dad’ Ken did.

Ken Thomas told himself, as he entered his retreat, that his life is getting too complicated at times. He also told himself that he loves that the boys have brought life to The Cove. He just needs to slow the pace down some, and now that Edgewood/Adventure Forest is up and running and Four Corners has gotten out of the starting blocks, he’ll look to see how he can do that.

So, when Ken Thomas laid down that Sunday night, he was relaxed, as he felt he had the beginnings of a plan in his mind. The Cove was quiet the whole night through.

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

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