Published: 29 Aug 2024

From The Previous Chapter:

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.

Monday morning, when Mr. Ken went out to the Kitchen Nook, after getting ready for his day, Momma Maria asked him if Bill had passed his driver’s test. Ken Thomas told Momma that he had and then he wondered why she asked.

Momma told her employer that she had a present for him to celebrate, and she hoped that he didn’t mind. Mr. Ken said that he didn’t mind, but that it wasn’t necessary for her to buy him anything.

Momma giggled and told her boss, “Mys nephews … hesa watches thesea YousTubes videos alls thes times. Anda hesa shows mes these videos froms insides thes cars, yous knows, that gets intos crashes. Sos, I boughts Bills a dashs cameras sos ins cases he’s evers ins a crashes, hes wills haves hims proofs thats he wasn’ts ats faults.”

“You know what, Momma? That is a great idea. I should probably buy them for all the vehicles, just in case they are ever in an accident. And, you know what else Momma? I think Bill will really appreciate the gift, especially with him being a young driver,” finished Mr. Ken.

Mr. Ken then remembered to tell Momma that he had a business meeting with his Marina Project Investors tonight at six o’clock, and that he wouldn’t be home for dinner. The woman thanked him for telling her that, so she wouldn’t hold dinner for him.

Mr. Ken then told Momma that he would be going away tomorrow, and that he wouldn’t be home until Thursday evening. He told her that Wayne would be filling in for him, while he was away. He also told her that Chief was due to have her puppies any day now, and that things would be different with seven new born puppies in the house.

By then Wayne and Chris had arrived and heard those two pieces of information. They each got themselves a cup of coffee and the three men talked about what was going to happen over the coming week, including Mr. Ken’s meeting that evening, his three-day trip in the middle of the week, the possibility of Chief having her litter of pups that week, and then when Mr. Ken returns, he and Bill would meet with Bill Jackson on Friday.

“Why is my big ‘brother’ having to meet with your lawyer, dad?” asked Charles, as he came into the Kitchen Nook.

Matthew and Phillip came into the Nook at the same time, and they had the same question on their minds. They were glad Charles had asked the question, because they would have been afraid to ask it.

“Well, Charles, if you really have to know,” began the teen’s dad, but he didn’t get much further when Collin came into the Kitchen Nook and asked, “What did Charles have to know?”

Wayne and Chris chuckled that their boss couldn’t answer Charles’ question.

“OK, let me try this again. Bill Jackson … he wants to meet with Bill and me, on Friday, to talk to us about Bill’s suit against the alarm company,” explained the teen’s dad.

“I didn’t know that, dad,” offered Robert, as he entered the Kitchen Nook.

“That’s because only Bill and I knew that, at the time, and now all of you know it. And seeing what time it is, I need to get a move on, and get to the office. Remember, I will not be here for dinner tonight,” finished ‘dad’ Ken, who then got up from his seat and went to use the half-bath before heading to his office.

The boys talked to Billy about his having to talk with their ‘dad’s’ lawyer, again, after he and their ‘dad’ had talked to him just the other day. Billy told them that Mr. Ken told him that after they talked a few days ago, Mr. Jackson wanted to talk some more about some thingsthat came up. But since Mr. Ken would be gone most of the week, Friday was the only day that they could go to his office to talk.

The boys were satisfied with their’ older ‘brother’s’ answer, and then they all went back to eating their breakfast.

That was when Momma Maria took the opportunity to give Billy his gift.

“Bills … sinces youse passes yours drivers tests, Iss boughts youse a presents. Iss hopes you likes its,” announced Momma Maria, as she gave the present to the teenager.

Billy thanked the woman for the gift, but told her that it wasn’t necessary for her to buy him anything for just passing his driver’s test. But Momma told him that she thought the present would be something worthwhile for him to use when he was driving.

Hearing what Momma said about using the gift, while he drove, piqued the teen’s interest and now he couldn’t wait to open it. So, Billy quickly ripped the wrappings off the gift and was surprised at seeing the dash camera.

Billy’s ‘brothers’ were full of questions, as to what the dash camera would be used for. Momma told them that her nephew watched YouTube videos all the time where dash cameras showed the accident from inside the car, and that it proved that the driver wasn’t at fault. Momma explained that she wanted Bill to have that same proof, if he was ever in an accident.

Billy thanked Momma for the special gift, as he hugged her with gusto. This was something he never expected and Momma was only the second person who willingly gave something to him just for being who he was. Mr. Ken was the other person.

When the teenager finished his breakfast, he asked Mr. Wayne if he could place the dash camera in the Taurus, as that would probably be the vehicle that he would be driving. The Estate Master told him only to just place it on the windshield and insert the connector into the cigarette lighter receptacle. Mr. Wayne reminded the teen that he has also driven the van and the truck, and might want to transfer it to those vehicles, when he has to drive them.

Billy’s ‘brothers’ went with him out to the garage to watch him install the dash camera. Of course, there wasn’t much to doing that. All the teenager had to do was read the instructions, set up the dash camera and mount the camera on the inside of the windshield.

But the teen hit a snag. He needed to first charge the dash camera’s internal battery, and then set the date and time, but he couldn’t do that until the internal battery was charged. The boys all walked back into the house and, as they did, Billy told the adults why they were back, so quickly. The teen then took the camera up to his room to charge the camera’s battery.

The boys then decided to watch a few YouTube videos to see why the dash camera was so important to Momma Maria that she bought one for Billy. As the boys watched the videos in Billy’s room, Collin had come upstairs and heard the boys ewwing and ahhing as they watched the videos, so he walked down to where he heard all the noise.

Collin stuck his head in the room and watched some videos along with his ‘brothers’ and together they saw how the dash camera showed how the accident happened from the driver’s perspective. They all agreed that having the dash camera was a great gift.

Billy then looked at the time and then realized that he was supposed to be outside helping Lonnie power wash the estate’s walls. The teenager jumped up and put on his work clothes and rushed out of the room and hurried over to where he was supposed to be working alongside Lonnie.

That Monday was a typical day at The Cove. The Covers’ friends came over, as they usually did, at twelve, noon. They skated, swam, drove the PWCs, sailed the sailboats, played on the water toys and got dragged on the water tube, burned the burgers and dogs and they went home at six o’clock.

Phillip’s friends, when they came over, played as a band and they practiced the new songs off the sheet music Mr. Ken had gotten for them. They were having fun playing the new songs and laughing when they messed up, and then they started all over again. Of course, they went swimming after they ate lunch.

Being that it was Monday, Mr. Ken held his meeting of all the key people of his Groups. They reported what they had accomplished, since their last get-together, and Mr. Ken asked questions as they gave their report.

Mr. Ken asked the Real Estate Group how they were doing on finalizing the purchase of the properties around his Edgewood Amusement Park. They reported that some of the owners are now balking at the sales prices they are selling their properties for, and that they wanted to renegotiate. Mr. Ken told them to go with the sales price, or take them to court to force the sales.

Mr. Ken asked about the buildings to be placed along the train tracks. The architect told him that the designs and plans were all completed. He further explained that the railroad station needed his and Ben’s approval, before they sent them over to the county for approval and before they gave them to the Construction Group to begin building it, and the rest of the out buildings.

Mr. Ken informed the Construction Group that the train installation supervisor told him that it is easier for them to install the train tracks to the building versus the carpenters building to the tracks. The Construction Group manager appreciated that piece of information, and then asked when they could begin the constriction of all of those buildings.

Mr. Ken asked them to talk to the track installation supervisor to learn when would be the best time for the backside buildings. The owner of the amusement park then asked them to wait to start building the railroad station until around the first of October.

When it came to talking to the Games Group, Mr. Ken asked if they had worked with Ben to order the plush prizes for the games for all of the amusement parks including the new Four Corners Amusement Park.

The Games Group manager explained that Ben’s Three Finger Entertainment people did all that, but that she did work on developing and ordering souvenirs associated with Four Corners. Mr. Ken thought to himself that there was another building that he needed to have at the park, now. Then he inwardly laughed that he didn’t plan that park out well enough, with all the extra things that he was having to add, but that it was too late now.

Ken Thomas left the Three Finger Entertainment report until last, as it was going to be the longest one. Ben started off with attendance records as compared to this time last year at all of the parks. Mr. Ken was really surprised at the attendance numbers at Edgewood.

Ben went through all of his reports and then he reminded Mr. Ken that all of the other parks operations buildings plans had arrived and they needed to sit down with Nelson and the architects to design an operations building for Four Corners and hopefully get it approved and built before next spring.

Hearing that he would need to design an operation building for Four Corners, the architect asked where they would be able to place one without taking out a large number of parking spaces. Ben told the assembled group that they intended to remove the miniature golf course and place the building there. Ben also indicated that he felt a two-story facility would work best, as they didn’t need the same amount of space as the other parks did, as Four Corners was only a fifth, or maybe a sixth, of their size.

The architect asked by when he would need to have this new building designed. The Construction Group quickly asked when they would have to have the building built. Ben looked to Mr. Ken who nodded back. Ben then said they would like to have the building started no later than after the Holidays, but the sooner the better. The President of TFE added that they would like to be moved in by the first of June.

Mr. Ken said that he was heading back east beginning tomorrow and that he would not return until Thursday evening. He added that had an appointment Friday morning, concerning one of his foster sons, so he would not be in the office until that afternoon. He asked the architect to sit down with Ben and Nelson, over the next few days, and get a feel for how they see the new structure. He told them then they’d get together the following week to discuss the configuration and the park’s needs.

When Ken Thomas left the office that afternoon, he headed directly to the Marina Project where he was to meet with his other investors, Jasper Bentson, a heavy construction equipment owner and builder, Damian King, a structural engineer, Bentley Cooper, a civil engineer and Miguel Sanchez, an architectural engineer.

The four were to meet on site at six o’clock along with the site supervisor, who would brief them on the status of the project. Also, meeting with then was Jules Diamond, the owner of Diamond Security Services, who would brief them on any security breaches, since they took over the security contract at the Marina Project.

The men all shook hands and walked around the property listening to the site supervisor who told them that the marina store, which would sell fishing gear, bait and licenses and have a scuba section that offered lessons and sales and service, was completed with the interior almost finished. The supervisor indicated that once the building passes inspection and receives it occupancy certificate, outfitting it with sales counters and display racks would come next.

The site supervisor indicated that the Public Restrooms would be completed by the first of September, and by then all of the parking spaces would be paved and striped. He added that the boat docks were now complete with water, electricity, fire hoses and life preservers located as recommended by the local fire code.

The site supervisor did ask if they had selected a scuba vendor. He told them that the vendor would be responsible for outfitting his entire area, and that if he needed any special electrical connections now was the time to install them. Mr. Ken said that a search had been conducted and negotiations were underway, and he hoped they would be concluded by the end of the month.

The supervisor stated that the seafood restaurant was coming along and was now under roof. He indicated that the trades were working inside installing the plumbing, electrical and heating and air conditioning ducts. He indicated that he didn’t expect the building to be finished and ready for kitchen outfitting and furniture until the end of August.

Once the men were satisfied with the status update of the site, they retired to the Four Corners restaurant where Mr. Ken had reserved his corner table for them to have a working dinner. It was a bit difficult for them to find a parking space as the Four Corners Amusement Park was going strong and people were coming from far and wide to check out the new amusement park.

Jules Diamond met them there and he briefed them on how security had tightened up ever since his company took to watching over the Marina Project. The owner of the security company currently working the Marina Project told the gathered investors that ever since their initial meeting the loss of materials was negligible.

Jules explained that he attributed that to word getting out that the original security company was fired and a number of men were arrested for stealing materials. The workers knew that the new security personnel were not going to look the other way. And when Mr. Diamond’s report was over, he left the men to conduct their working meeting.

And, as Jules Diamond departed the group, Mr. Ken had the servers come over and take the groups initial drink and salad orders. Then, as the men waited for the servers to return, Jasper Bentson took the time to report how he handled the release of the original security company, and got the construction company to stand up and pay for what was stolen by their workers.

“Gentlemen … after our meeting of about a month ago, when Jules Diamond … when he briefed us on how the workers were systematically stealing us blind, I … I took it upon myself to handle the firing of the security company … the security company that I had used for years, only to find out that it was stealing from me for years … and I thought it was just a part of doing business.

“So, gentlemen … when I showed the security company’s president the video, and asked him to reimburse us for the stolen materials, you know what he did? He laughed in my face.

“So, I told him his company no longer held the contract at the Marina Project. I then told him that with the video as evidence, he should expect to hear from my lawyers. Today, he was served with a multi-million-dollar lawsuit for failure to perform, and a number of other things.

“And, as you heard from Mr. Diamond … a number of construction workers were arrested for stealing materials from the Marina Project. I had talked with the construction contractor and showed him the videos. I told him that we knew who those people were, that were loading the material into the backs of their trucks and driving off the property.

“So, I asked him if he was going to reimburse us for all of the stolen materials his workers stole from the work site. He just sort of sat there not saying anything. So, I gave the nudge that if he doesn’t, then all of those men will be arrested, and he will be short of men to complete the project, and he will then be in default.

“Hearing the word default … that made him sit up and take notice. He then asked me for a few days to let me know. I told him if I don’t hear from him in twenty-four hours the men will be arrested.

“Twenty-five hours later, after the first five men were arrested at the job site, he couldn’t call me fast enough. He asked me how much it was going to cost him. I told him that I’d let him know. I still need to give him a figure. I hope we can decide that before we leave here tonight,” offered Jasper Benson, as his mea culpa for forcing the original security company on them in the first place.

The men discussed the Marina Project at length and what they plan to do for a Grand Opening when the Bait/Scuba Shop was opened and they were renting out the boats slips. They figured that the Labor Day Weekend would be a good time to hold a big party to celebrate the opening and have some raffles for a free boat slip for a year as a grand prize.

Ken Thomas returned home well after nine o’clock that Monday night, and his ‘boys’ were all waiting on him to return. He asked where Mr. Wayne was and they told him that the Estate Master told them that Billy was old enough to hold down the fort until he came home and so he went to his apartment. Billy than added that Mr. Wayne told them that he would be staying with them the next three nights and he needed a quiet night before then.

Mr. Ken laughed at the boy’s story and told them that he’d be up in a few minutes to say goodnight. The man didn’t spend a lot of time with each boy that night, as he still needed to pack for his trip that started tomorrow morning at ten when the limo would pick him up and drive him over to the Austin-Bergstrom Airport.

Tuesday morning, Mr. Ken was up at his usual work day time. He immediately got ready for the day, as he would be leaving for the airport around ten o’clock, and he didn’t want to be distracted by the boys and not be prepared when the limo arrived.

Of course, Momma had her employer’s coffee and morning newspaper ready for him when he finally came out to the Kitchen Nook, after dropping his bags at the Foyer Door. They both said good morning to one another, and then they went about their normal routine – Momma fixing breakfast and Mr. Ken reading his morning newspaper.

Collin and Chief came into the Nook before the other boys. The young man said good morning to his Big Bro, while Chief went over to her first master to get a few behind the ear scratches. Big Bro then mentioned to his Little Brother that if Chief is spending much of her time with him, then he needed to be watching for when she goes into labor, and that he needed to tell Wayne, and or Chris, so they could call the veterinarian.

By then the other boys started to come into the Kitchen Nook. They all wanted to visit with their ‘dad’ before he left on his trip. After Phillip said good morning to his ‘dad’, he took care of freshening up the resident pet’s food and water bowls. He also made sure he put some ice cubes in the water bowl.

While they were eating their breakfast, the boys asked their ‘dad’ if he would be stopping by Crystal Lake, while he was back east. He told them that if he had the time he would, but that he was going back there specifically to support Kate. He again reminded them that Kate was being harassed by someone, and they were going to court on Wednesday and he wanted to be there for and with her.

The boys knew not to pursue that matter any further, so they asked about their trip to visit his parks after Chief has her litter of pups. Their ‘dad’ said that they would have to play that one by ear, in that someone would still need to be here to take care of Chief and her pups, if something went wrong, and they needed the vet.

‘Dad’ Ken then changed the subject and asked Robert and Bill if they had thought any more about when they wanted to go visit their moms. He added that he knew they wanted to go before school started, but he wanted them to know that they could also go on a Saturday, after school did begin, and that their mother’s would understand.

The two teenagers told him that they were trying to decide on a date around whether or not they were going to visit his parks again. They told him once they knew that they could easily choose a date, and then plan who would take whom.

Mr. Ken then looked at the time and he realized that it was getting close to when Derrick would be stopping by to drive him over to the Austin-Bergstrom Airport, so he excused himself to check that he had everything for his trip, and to relieve any excess fluid he had before he got into the limo. The boys chuckled when he told them about having to use the little boy’s room.

Mr. Wayne and Mr. Chris had arrived during the last part of the boy’s conversation with their ‘dad’, and they took notice of what was said about the boy’s parks trip and the teen’s visit to see their moms. They would use that information to plan future actions at The Cove.

Before Mr. Ken left for the airport, he mentioned to Wayne that the men from his construction company who helped with the lockers, Arlo Gomez, Myles Gooders, Carlos Martinez and Milo Gleese, would be stopping by sometime during the week to change out the lockers and to ask the boys to be there to help them.

After Mr. Ken left the Nook, the boys finished their breakfast, then Billy went and changed clothes to work at his job, power washing the estate’s walls, with Lonnie, while the rest of the Cover boys went upstairs to take their showers and get ready for their day.

Collin went up to his guest suite and got ready for his day, but he also wanted to make a phone call. He called a young lady that he was somewhat smitten with, and he wanted to tell her that he might not make it by to visit her next month. He explained to her that the resident pet was due to have her litter of puppies soon, and they couldn’t find someone to watch her while they would be gone.

The young lady appreciated the call and was disappointed that she might not get to see the young man that she, too, was infatuated with. But the thing that she truthfully enjoyed about the call, that came out of the blue, was that the young man thought enough to call her and let her know, in advance, that the trip might not happen.

The two told one another about the things they didn’t get to talk about the last time they were together. The discussion was almost like two teenagers talking after a late-night date, even though it was mid-morning. The two young adults were so enjoying their long-distance chitchat that they lost track of the time so that the young lady was going to be late for work.

While everyone at The Cove was busy getting ready for the day, or was doing their job, Chief was slowly walking around her whelping box. The resident pet was checking out the place where she would birth her puppies by getting inside the box and lying down to try it out. Chief wanted to get familiar with the place she would go to when she felt the urge to give birth to her seven puppies. She wanted to be prepared for that wonderful day that would soon be upon her.

The Cover boys’ friends arrived as usual and they all did what they normally did in mid-July. The barbeque team got the onions, tomatoes and lettuce ready for when they cooked later, while the rest of the boys either skated or went swimming,

Upon their arrival, Phillip’s friends picked up their instruments and practiced the new songs they’ve been trying to learn. Unfortunately, they were still making mistakes, but they weren’t laughing as they had been. And, as they continued to make those mistakes, they were beginning to get upset at one another because, for some reason, they were making simple mistakes that were noticeable as they played. And it just wasn’t one or two of them; it was all of them who were continually making errors while they played.

Phillip was the de facto leader of the band, mainly because of where they all practiced. It was his idea that they each play the song individually in order to see where the mistakes were happening. So, with the exception of Jeffrey, who played the drums and Preston and Bryson who sang, Phillip, Westin, Ty and Bryce each took turns playing the song.

The thing was that when they each played individually, they didn’t make a mistake. Phillip then had two of them play together to see if there was something that one did that caused the other to play the wrong chord. It was while they did that that Preston noticed that it sounded as if someone’s guitar was out of tune.

The guitarists then tuned their guitars and tried it again. But this time all four played the song without the drums. They didn’t make a mistake. Jeffrey joined in with his drums the next time they played and they got through without making a mistake. They all had smiles on their faces.

The band couldn’t believe that a simple out of tune guitar could cause them to hear the wrong note and also play something out of tune. But since they were all novices at this band thing, they brushed it aside and promised one another to tune their instruments every time they got together.

After the band figured out why they were making simple mistakes, they continued to work on the song until it was time to eat. Then, after they helped clean up, once the barbeque was finished, the seven band members all went swimming.

Ken Thomas was just getting into the charter aircraft about the time his ‘boys’’ friends were arriving at The Cove. While he waited for his charter to arrive, Ken Thomas had called Amy Ozarker, his back east lawyer, to find out if she was able to track down any of Lane’s former friends from the time he graduated from high school.

The lawyer told her client that her investigator was able to locate three of Lane’s five best friends from high school. The trouble, she told him, was that after they answered a few questions they all refused to answer any more questions once the detective asked if they knew if Lane might have evidence of Kate having sex with other men. Ms. Ozarker told Ken that she felt that they knew something, but weren’t going to offer any incriminating information just yet.

The lawyer then added that she and Kate did go and talk to the district attorney about the situation, and after they gave him all the information about the blackmailing Lane had done to Kate, copies of the signed checks, Lane’s touting that he had evidence that Kate sept around and Amy’s investigator’s notes on the three men he talked to, the assistant district attorney said he would hand it over to the police detectives for them to start an investigation.

Ken Thomas was pleased that they had done that. It would now put Lane on the defensive and if he actually had some sort of incriminating pictures, or video, and he was found with them, his parole would be revoked, and he would be put back in prison, with the possibility of another trial on the blackmailing charge.

Ken Thomas had a lot to think about as he traveled east on his air charter flight. He was also going to look over some work he had brought with him from the office, as he had a three-hour flight, with which he could use to get caught up on all of his many business dealings.

Once the Covers’ friends left that Tuesday, Momma had a nice dinner prepared for them, as usual. Tonight, Mr. Dennis was invited to eat with them. The boys missed their ‘dad’, but they all knew he would be back on Thursday. Even Matthew took his being gone in stride this time around.

When dinner was over, the Covers all headed to the Study where Mr. Wayne held the evening meeting. As he did, he explained the nightly ritual to Dennis, in case he ever finds himself filling in for him if he is ever sick, or away for some reason. Dennis Florkert knew why he’d been invited to dinner and he appreciated the opportunity to experience what goes on after the Covers’ dinner and see how it is handled.

The most important topic that Mr. Wayne brought up that night was the fact that Chief could have her pups any time now. He asked them all to watch for the signs of her being restless, panting, not eating much and maybe regurgitating what she did eat and her hanging around the whelping box. He told the boys to come and tell him, Mr. Chris or Mr. Dennis if they see any of those signs.

Mr. Wayne then reminded Bill that he had a meeting with Bill Jackson on Friday at ten o’clock along with Mr. Ken. He mentioned that none of the boys had Doctor Doug appointments, but he did remind them that they would all have dental appointment before school began. The Estate Master also told them that their ‘dad’ would also take them out shopping for school clothes in the near future.

Mr. Wayne then asked them to check the clothes they did have and to find any that did not fit. He also asked them to see if one of their ‘brothers’ could use them to wear for after school play, and if no one could use them they needed to set them aside, so they could be donated to a worthy cause.

The Estate Master then mentioned that the men that helped install the lockers might arrive late in the afternoon one day that week to change out the lockers and for them to ask their friends to be there to help them with the heavy lifting.

The Estate Master then asked the boys if they had anything they wanted to bring up. Matthew asked if they could have one or two of their friends spend the night, as they used to do. He said that with Chief having her pups, he knew they couldn’t have a sleepover with forty boys, but maybe they could each have at least one friend spend the night, once in a while, before school started. Charles agreed with his ‘brother’ and even Phillip said he thought that was a good idea.

Mr. Wayne said that he’d think about it and let them know. Robert then asked if they could go over to Four Corners Amusement Park and see how it is doing, and maybe go on the rides they hadn’t ridden yet.

Mr. Dennis smiled to himself at hearing the question and wondered how Wayne was going to answer it. He saw the young man bring out his wallet and take out a black credit card and show the boys.

Dennis then heard Wayne say, “Well, I have this black credit card your ‘dad’ gave me to pay for things when he isn’t here. I guess we could try it out.”

Dennis didn’t know about the Black American Express credit card that Wayne had to pay for things, while their boss, Ken Thomas, was away. He also didn’t know that Mr. Ken would, at times, say, “Mr. Wayne was buying.”, and then the Estate Master would have to use his black credit card to pay for everything.

The boys all smiled at hearing that they would go over to Four Corners to get on some of the rides. Billy asked if he could set up his dash camera in the van before they went, to see how it worked. Mr. Wayne told him to hurry up and get it in the van. The boys all joined their older ‘brother’ out in the garage, as he placed the suction cup, with the dash camera, on the front windshield and put the electrical connector in the cigarette lighter socket.

While the boys did that, Wayne explained to Dennis all about the black credit card and how he had gotten it, and what it was supposed to be used for. Dennis then asked if going to the amusement park was something Mr. Ken would be OK with. Wayne laughed and told the Assistant Estate Master all of the things he’s bought with it and paid for, so the boys could have a good time, while the boss was away. All Dennis did was laugh along with Wayne.

After Ken Thomas arrived at his destination, he signed for his rental car and before he drove over to his hotel, he called Kate to see if he could take all of them out to dinner tonight. He reasoned with Kate that it would be a nice evening for everyone and to give the boys, and her mom, a distraction from what is happening tomorrow.

Mr. Ken met the four of them at the buffet where the boys liked to get their favorite foods. Ken and Kate helped the boys with their plates, and Edith watched over them while the two adults went and filled their plates.

The boys, of course, asked Mr. Ken if they would get to go over to the amusement park, while he was there, and go on the rides. The man told the boys that their mom was busy tomorrow morning, and that they would have to see if they would have time later in the day. The boys told their mom that they hoped they could go there, and then they dug into their chicken nuggets.

The three adults did talk some about what might happen the following morning. Ken told them that all they could do was wait and see and then move forward from there. Kate wasn’t very talkative that evening, but she did stay positive for the boys’ sakes.

After dinner, Ken took them all out for ice cream. Of course, the boys were loving everything that they got to do when Mr. Ken came to visit. They knew that when he was there, they would get to do something different and they usually had fun, so they looked forward to when he came to visit.

Ken followed the four home and then he and Kate talked some, while the boys and Edith went inside. Ken tried to reassure his girlfriend that everything would work out for the best, even if there were some roadblocks along the way.

Kate loved the fact that this man, that she had fallen for, always had a bright outlook on things. She also loved that he made time to call and visit her, but, most of all, to be there for and with her at a crucial time, which would tell whether, or not, Lane was Rusty’s father. That telling tomorrow was what Kate was the most afraid of, at that moment.

Ken held her tight and kept telling her that whatever the outcome was tomorrow, he would be there to support her and do whatever was necessary for her to move forward. Kate loved being held by the man of her dreams. She felt safe in Ken’s arms and knew what he said is what he would do for her and her sons. It was difficult for her to part from her boyfriend that evening, when he had to leave and go back to his hotel. He promised to meet her at the courthouse before the court set time. They shared a lover’s kiss and then they were both alone.

The Four Corners Amusement Park was crowded when the Covers arrived that Tuesday evening. Billy had to drive around some in order to find a parking space. Mr. Wayne went up to the ticket booth to buy tickets and when he presented his black credit card the lady wasn’t sure if she could accept it, so she had to make a phone call. Wayne stepped aside to wait for the decision.

A person from the revenue trailer, that wasn’t too far away, came over to the ticket booth to look at the credit card and then told the lady in the booth to accept the card. The revenue lady told Wayne that the black credit card wasn’t something that many people saw and she had to verify that it was genuine. She told him and his party to have a fun tonight.

The boys had already ridden the Tilt-A-Whirl, so Mr. Wayne only bought tickets for the Octopus and Scrambler. He asked Dennis if he wanted to ride, who said he did, so the Estate Master bought fourteen tickets.

The Covers had a good time riding the two rides at the park that night. Yes, they had ridden rides like those at their ‘dad’s’ parks, but it was something new to them, so they wanted to experience them.

After they had ridden the rides, the Covers walked around some. They saw their friends Logan Trevor, Gordon and Josh all working the games booths and they waved to them, but they were way too busy to talk to them.

When the Covers returned to The Cove, Billy wanted to watch the dash camera’s video to see what it looked like. The teen took the micro-SD card out of the camera, but the box the dash camera came in didn’t have a SD card adapter in it, so he asked Mr. Wayne if he knew where he could find one.

Mr. Wayne knew that Mr. Ken had those, so he found one and gave it to Billy to use so they all could watch the video. They used Mr. Ken’s computer in the Study and they all watched as the van drove out the Main Gate and down along the road leading to Four Corners. They saw the video was clear and crisp and what surprised them was on the return trip, when the light was low, the video was still bright and clear.

“That sure was a great present Momma gave you, Billy,” offered Matthew.

“Yes, I can see that having one in the car could help someone prove they weren’t at fault, if they were ever in an accident,” remarked Billy.

“Or, if you were at fault,” teased Charles. The boys all laughed.

Mr. Dennis thanked the boys for having him there tonight, and he left for his own home. Mr. Wayne asked the boys to head up to their rooms. Billy put the micro-SD card back in the dash camera before heading up to his room.

Upstairs, the boys had turned their computers on and were watching the dash camera YouTube videos of crashes, when Mr. Wayne came up to say good night. The Estate Master watched a few videos with the boys and then he said good night to all of them.

As Mr. Wayne was about to go to his guest suite, Collin stopped him. The young man told him that Chief was very restless, and that it seemed that she couldn’t get herself settled. Wayne asked him to keep a close watch on the resident pet, and to come and get him if she goes down to the whelping box during the night. Collin said that he would, and then told the man to have a good night.

The Cove was quiet that night. Although Chief was beginning to feel something inside of her that she had never felt before.

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

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