Published: 22 May 2025

From the Previous Chapter:

Ken and Kate talked some before Kate’s yawn told Ken he should leave her alone, and go to bed, too. The man met Matthew coming up the stairs with Sarge and Daisy on their leads after taking them outside to go potty.

It had been a busy day for Ken Thomas, and he just had a great evening with the woman he wanted to marry. After he got himself ready for bed and finally laid down, it didn’t take his body long to fall asleep

Everyone in The Cove that night slept well, as they all just had a busy day and night which caused them to fall asleep quickly, and stay that way until their alarms woke them the next morning. It was very quiet in The Cove all night long.

The alarm clock in the master retreat rang at seven o’clock that Saturday Morning, and Ken Thomas got right out of bed. He knew that it was going to be a busy morning, and he didn’t want to waste any time by lying in bed.

After getting himself ready for the day. The owner of The Cove went out to the Kitchen Nook, where Momma had his coffee ready for him, and the morning newspaper waiting at his normal place at the Nook’s Table. Kate came into the Nook just then.

Ken and Kate shared a hug and a kiss, which Momma saw and smiled at her seeing it. Momma then brought a cup of coffee over for Kate, while Mr. Ken took the paper out of its protective sleeve and separated it as was his habit.

The front-page headline shocked the owner of The Cove that morning.

Ken told Kate about the headline, and he began to read.

The boys had arrived in the Nook while ‘dad’ Ken was reading the article, and he hadn’t noticed them. It wasn’t until he finished reading the article that he noticed the added noise in the Nook.

Recognizing that they were there, he decided to tell them, “Boys, I have your money for the park, so don’t let me forget to give it to you. Also, make sure you have your phones in case I need to get a hold of you,” also advised ‘dad’ Ken.

Momma waited until the man had finished talking to the boys, and then she placed his breakfast in front of him, and then upon seeing it he quickly dug in. He knew he needed to catch up with the bus driver when he arrived, and get his passenger list to check off the names before they all hopped on at nine o’clock.

Rusty and Jessy were more interested in playing with the puppies than eating their breakfast, so mom Kate had to get on them to sit down and eat. Matthew had to again remind them not to feed the pups from the table.

Todd arrived around eight o’clock, and Mr. Ken talked to him about what he should do during the day. He told him that he could leave for a few hours if he needed to, but that he shouldn’t be gone all day.

The owner of The Cove also told the teenager that he could have three of his friends come by and skate and he could cook some burgers and hot dogs if he wanted, and that the television in the Pavilion rafters was also available for them to use.

Mr. Ken also told Todd, though, that his friends couldn’t ride the personal watercraft unless they had the Water Safety Training, and he had a copy of their certificate on file for insurance purposes. The beachmaster told his employer that he understood what he was saying.

The Cover boys’ friends began to arrive around eight-thirty. The bus was already in the estate and had turned around and was ready for departure. Mr. Ken had his list, and he began to check off the names, as the people arrived. There was almost a party atmosphere out on the driveway, as the boys were talking to one another about which rides they wanted to go on first.

At 8:50, Mr. Ken asked the adults to get on the bus first. He wanted them to choose their best seats first. Doctor Doug, Mr. Dan and Kate, along with her two boys all got on the bus. Kate kept a seat next to her for Ken. Mr. Wayne and Mr. Dennis were next to load onto the large bus.

Then, in age order, came Billy with his friend Lonnie, then Robert and his four friends, then Charles with his eleven friends. Next came Matthew with his six fiends and lastly came Phillip with his seven friends.

The boys all commented to one another that there were loads of empty seats, and they wondered where everyone else was. Mr. Ken heard them talking, so he got on the bus intercom and told the boys that Mr. Chris and his family would meet them at the park, as would Owen and Nathan and their boys. Then, with everyone onboard, the bus headed out the Main Gate and the group was off to Six Flags Fiesta Texas.

Todd kept Sarge and Daisy on their leads, so they wouldn’t chase after the bus with Rusty and Jessy on it. Then, with the Main Gate closed, Todd led the two young pups down to the beach where he decided he would do the job that was initially hired for. He wanted to get it done before his friends came over later that afternoon. That way, he figured, he wouldn’t have to hurry and get it done before Mr. Ken returned later that night.

The bus took on a party atmosphere as it made its way to the amusement park. Many of the boys had been on a trip like that before, so they knew how much fun it could be. The bus had a fairly good WiFi system, which allowed them to stay in touch with their other friends and on top of their social networking. They also enjoyed looking out the windows and seeing the countryside pass by. This was all new for Phillip, and he was thoroughly enjoying the experience.

Rusty and Jessy heard all the commotion coming from the back of the bus, with all the boys talking, and since they’ve never been on anything like that before they wanted to go back and see what was going on. They also wanted to go back there and be with their big ‘brothers’.

Kate wasn’t too sure if she should allow her two youngsters to go to the back of the bus, and be with all those older boys. Ken told her to walk the boys back there and see for herself what was going on, and if she didn’t like what she saw she could always bring Rusty and Jessy back with her.

Kate liked that idea, so she told her two boys that she would go back with them. Rusty and Jessy got great big smiles on their faces, and they quickly jumped up out of their seats, and they were half way down the aisle before Kate got out of her seat. Ken just smiled at how fast the boys got to the back of the bus.

A few minutes later, Kate came back to her seat next to Ken, minus her boys. Ken asked her if the boys were going to be OK. She told her boyfriend that Billy and Robert took them from her, and assured her that they’d be OK with them. Ken attested to the boy’s veracity in taking care of the young boys, and he was confident that her boys were in good hands.

Doctor Doug Jennings was again back on board for the Cover’s trip to Fiesta Texas. It gave him an opportunity to observe the Cover boys in action, plus, it also gave him an excuse to be a kid again, and enjoy the sights and thrills of the Six Flags Fiesta Texas Fright Fest and Monster Mash Bash.

He, along with Dan Fischer, Wayne Mittchell and Dennis Florkert, were the boy’s chaperones for the trip. But unlike previous trips, the men wouldn’t be corralling the boys as much as observing them throughout the park.

Phillip and his group may be the exception, since this was the first time the youngest Cover has ever been to Fiesta Texas. The men talked about how they wanted to maybe trade off watching those eight youngsters, as they rambled around the huge amusement park.

Dan, Wayne and Dennis had been with Phillip at Mr. Ken’s amusement parks, so they knew which types of rides the eleven-year-old will want to try, telling Doug that it will probably mean what the other boys will also want to go on.

When the bus arrived at the amusement park, and was situated at the bus parking lot, Mr. Ken asked everyone to wait until he met with Mr. Chris, who had the entrance tickets. The man went looking for Chris, and when he found him and his family, he also found Owen, Nathan and their boys, Ryder, Jayden and Chase.

The ten of them all walked over to the bus, and as the riders alighted off the vehicle, Mr. Ken handed each of them their entrance ticket. When he was finished passing out the tickets, he had two passes left over.

“Chris, I thought you said that I’d only have one left over,” teased Mr. Ken, as he showed his Estate Manager the two passes he now held in his hand.

“Ooopps, my bad,” laughed Chris Dominions.

The boys all laughed right along with the man, as did everyone else. Mr. Ken then told the boys they had free run of the park, and that he wanted them to meet at Sangerfest Halle at 5:30 for dinner, so for them to watch the time. He told Phillip and his friends to go and have fun, but that the men would be checking up on them, as they would the other boys throughout the day. He then asked if one had any questions.

Jessy spoke up and asked, “What about us?”

Lots of laughs burst out from mostly everyone, as Kate hugged her son and told him that he, his brother, Mr. Ken and her would be going through the park together. Hearing that put a smile on the eight-year-old.

But before the Cover boys left to go through security, Robert reminded his dad that he still needed to give them their money for the park. The man pulled out a number of twenty-dollar bills and gave each of the boys two of them. Each of the boys thanked him for the cash, and then they caught up with their friends.

With that done, the older boys all headed to the security entrance before going into the park, with Phillip and his friends right behind them. The Dominions family, Chris, Sandra, Hailey and Chris Jr., the four chaperones along with Owen, Nathan and their three boys were right behind the boys. Mr. Ken, Kate, Rusty and Jessy hung back some, so Mr. Ken could find a worthy party to give his two extra tickets to.

And just as he did last time, he looked for a large family that he figured could use a few free tickets to lessen the cost of admittance for them. Ken told Kate who he was looking for and, of course, Rusty and Jessy heard and they too were looking for a certain family. It was Rusty who noticed a large family of seven walking towards the security entrance, and he told Mr. Ken.

Ken Thomas walked over to the mom of the group and said, “Excuse me. I brought a very large group to the park today, and I seem to have two spare tickets and … well, I’d like to give them to you and your large family. They are yours if you could use them.”

The woman told Mr. Ken that he didn’t have to give them to her. But Mr. Ken told her that if she didn’t use them someone else would and, with seven people, this could save them a few dollars against admission that they could use for drinks, or anything else in the park.

The woman went and talked to a man, who was probably her husband, and the two had a quiet discussion and a few moments later the two came back to Ken and Kate and the two boys and they thanked them for the generous gift. The man told the story that their five children had wanted to go to Fiesta Texas all summer, but had really wanted to go to the Fright Fest more than anything, which was why they were there today.

Mr. Ken handed the man the two extra tickets, and told him and his wife to have a great day in the park, and that maybe they’d see one another somewhere inside. The woman hugged him for the tickets after the man shook his hand. The two then thanked Kate and the family then walked away.

Kate looked at her boyfriend and offered, “That … that was awesome, Ken. I could feel their gratitude coming through to me and … and I didn’t do anything. Do you do something like this often?”

Ken thought about how he wanted to answer, and then he told her that was how he met Owen and Nathan and their boys, a few years back. He continued and told her how last year he gave four tickets to another family whose dad needed a better job, and after their meeting with Owen and Nathan at Sangerfest Halle the man got a job with their company. Kate hugged her man for being so generous, and then the four of them walked through the security entrance, so they could finally use their tickets to enter the park.

Most of the boys stopped at the first ride they came upon, the Boomerang. Phillip and his friends stopped as well, and seeing the size of the roller coaster, many of them weren’t sure if they wanted to ride.

But Phillip told them that he wanted to, as he rode something like that at one of Mr. Ken’s amusement parks. So, he went and got in line. Bryce went in with his band friend and that was all the rest of the boys needed to get their courage up, and just that quick they all joined their bandmates.

Ken, Kate and the boys, as they passed the area, saw most of the boys in line for the Boomerang, and the boys wanted to stop and watch the ride before they walked away. So, that’s what they did.

As they watched the ride go through its paces the boys both agreed that it was way too scary for them, and they didn’t want to ride it, and with that the four walked to the right.

As they passed the water park that was on their right, Rusty asked Mr. Ken if the water park he is building at Crystal Lake would look like that. Mr. Ken told the boy that it would have some of the same water rides, but it would look a lot different from what he was seeing.

The small group continued and soon they walked over the train tracks and then they came upon the Road Runner Express. Ken told Kate that the roller coaster was considered a family friendly one, and he felt that Rusty would enjoy it, but he wasn’t sure if Jessy would, or if he was even tall enough.

Kate asked Jessy if he wanted to ride it. The boy said he wanted to look at the ride first and when he saw it went up pretty high, he told his mom that he didn’t think he would like it. But Rusty told his mom that he wanted to ride it, and then asked Mr. Ken if he would ride it with him. The two then got in line, while Kate and Jessy looked for a shady spot to wait for the two to get off the ride.

It took a while for the man and boy to work their way through the line, but after about thirty minutes the two finally got on the ride. They took seats about mid-way on the coaster train, and when the brakes were released, the train made its way up the first lift hill. Rusty was a bit anxious, but Mr. Ken told him the ride was fast but was not scary.

Over the top of the first hill the coaster train raced down the hill with a few quick and fast turns and then it came to the second lift hill. Rusty looked at Mr. Ken, and told him that it was fast and fun, as the train made its way up the hill. Then over the top of the second hill the train went slow along a flat section at first and then Rusty found it went fast down and up the hills and before he knew it the ride was over.

“Mom, Jessy, that was so much fun. And Jessy … I think you would have liked it. It was fast, but not too fast, and it didn’t have a lot of steep hills. It was just fun. Thank you, Mr. Ken,” excitedly offered Rusty, who then hugged the man for taking him on the ride.

By then the other boys had worked their way down to the Iron Rattler, and they were now waiting in line. Mr. Dan and Doctor Doug were in line with the boys, and they were looking forward to riding it just as much as the boys were. Wayne and Dennis were there too, and were in line with Phillip and his friends. Phillip wanted a big person to ride with him since, to him, this was a really big coaster that he hadn’t been on anything like that.

While they were in the queue and passed by one another, Billy told his younger ‘brother’ that he’d ridden roller coasters as big as this one; it’s just that this one looked different, that was all. Phillip wasn’t all that convinced, and he told his older ‘brother’ that he wanted either Mr. Wayne, or Mr. Dennis, to ride with him.

With all of those boys in line there was no way that they could have ridden at the same time, as the coaster train only held 24 riders at a time. But they didn’t care, as they were all together at Fiesta Texas, and they all knew they were there to have a good time, and this was their second coaster of the day.

As Ken, Kate and the boys walked past the Iron Rattler, Jessy asked his older brother if he wanted to ride that. Rusty told him that it was too big for him, but when he got older, he would be with Mr. Ken. Ken and Kate both smiled at that telling.

It was then that Jessy saw Foghorn Leghorn’s Barnyard Railway right there in front of the Iron Rattler’s line queue, and asked if he could ride that. Kate looked at the ride and thought the ride was a bit lame, but she didn’t tell her son that. So, she decided that they could stop and let the boy ride it.

The four came up to the line queue and Jessy got into it and Rusty joined him. The wait wasn’t all that long before the two boys got on the bright, colorful train that looked like it drove straight out of a cartoon. The train cruises around a figure-8 track past big trees and a covered bridge, in an easy-paced circle that went around twice before the ride ended. Jessy was happy that he finally got to ride something.

After their ride, the four walked to the end of the Crackaxle Canyon District where they came upon the Fiesta Texas Railroad Whistlestop Station #39. Ken suggested they ride the train all the way around the park to give them an idea of what was there, so they could decide what rides they would want to ride. Kate thought that was a great idea, so the four walked up the stairs and waited for the train to arrive.

When it came time for Phillip and his friends to ride the Iron Rattler, he chose a seat in the middle of the train and Mr. Wayne sat with the young Cover. The Cover’s friends filled in the seats all around him. When the brakes were released, the train rolled down the grade to the left to the lift hill, caught the lift chain and proceeded to the top of the first hill. Phillip looked out over the entire park and liked what he saw.

At the top of the 179-foot hill, the coaster went over the crest and before he knew it Phillip found himself racing down the 81-degree, 171-foot first drop, while being lifted up and out of his seat; he almost lost his breath.

At the bottom of the drop, where the track leveled off, the youngster felt the coasters peek speed of 70 MPH before it raced up the hill where the train entered into a 110 then a 95-degree over-banked turn to the left, giving all the riders an exhilarating thrill before continuing its speed into a full 360-degree barrel roll turn. Phillip didn’t know what to think, after finding himself upside down, as it happened so fast.

The ride continued into the airtime filled camelback hill, then two reverse over-banked turns, one to the right then one to the left, with some twists added for good measure. After that was another airtime hill before Phillip felt as if the bottom had dropped out, as the train took a turn down off the quarry wall, lifting him out of his seat, as the train made a heavy bank to the left into a tunnel built into the rock quarry wall. The eleven-year-old boy found cool temperatures inside the tunnel, as well as the multi-colored LEDs before coming out into the bright sunlight and then an extreme brake run.

Phillip looked over to the Estate Master and offered, “Mr. Wayne, that was fun. I sure hope I get to do that again today!” All the man did was smile back at the very happy lad.

When the Fiesta Texas Railroad train arrived at Whistlestop Station #39, Mr. Ken, Kate and the two boys found some seats in the middle cars, and when it departed, they saw the train went over a portion of the Gully Washer, a white-water rafting ride that held up to eight people.

The train then approached a tunnel mined through the quarry and they had to be careful if it was windy that they didn’t get splashed from the waterfalls that came off the quarry walls. The tunnel was dark but the light in the cars helped the boys view the rocky side walls. When they exited the tunnel, they found themselves next to the Superman Krypton coaster.

As the train continued, they saw the Power Surge on their right that had these huge boats that carried large numbers of people that went down a long flume that, at the end, made a huge splash and anyone up on the cross over bridge got soaked. The boys asked if they could do that, but Kate quickly told them that she didn’t bring dry clothes for them, so they wouldn’t go there.

As the train continued the small group passed by the Swings, Batman: The Ride, Bugs White Water Rapids and Poltergeist before entering the next stop, Der Pilger Bahnhof Strasburg Railroad Station.

As the foursome sat waiting for the people to get off and new riders to get on, Mr. Ken asked Kate if they wanted to continue to where they started, or did they want to get off and look at what was there at that section of the park. Kate decided they should see what was there.

The four got off the train and walked down the winding walkway. Ken knew to turn left to head towards the rides he knew the boys would enjoy riding. The first place he wanted to stop was the Bugs White Water Rapids.

Kate wasn’t too sure she wanted the boys to ride that, as she just knew the boys would get wet. But Ken assured her that even if they did get wet; it was warm enough that they would dry out before the day was over. She relented and the four got in line.

The large group of boys had intended to split up after they rode the Iron Rattler, but they all seemed to head over to the Superman Krypton Coaster. But a few did decide to stop at the SkyScreamer, a 200-foot-tall tower that had 32 chairs which allowed the rider to dangle their feet, as the ride went around in a circle at the top.

Phillip and his bandmates were some of the ones who peeled off and stopped at the SkyScreamer. Doctor Doug and Mr. Dan also went with the small group of eight, as they too wanted to experience the height of the ride. As the boys waited in line, they talked about the height of the SkyScreamer, but also that they wanted to head over to the Superman Krypton Coaster ride when they finished there.

When it was their turn, the boys raced to get an outside chair. They wanted to be able to see the entire park, as they circled around at the top. But that was not to be as other riders had the same idea, so the boys took the empty seats. The ride attendants checked their safety connections, before the ride attendant started the ride.

Ken sat with Rusty, while Kate sat with Jessy, and they wound up in the last two seats in the four-seat log flume boat. The boat was pushed through the castle’s watery moat, by the force of the water until it came to a 30-foot hill, where at the top it was dropped into a water trough.

The log flume meandered through the trough bouncing back and forth with the boys giggling until there was another slight hill, where they were lifted up a little higher hill before they plunged down a flume where it made a big splash at the end, and everyone got a little wet. Both boys laughed and Kate wasn’t happy at all. But all her boyfriend told her was that they would all dry off before the sun goes down. Then he smiled at her.

The boys whooped and hollered that they rode that, and they thanked their mom and Mr. Ken for letting them do that. Of course, the boy’s shoes squeaked a little as they walked after they got off the ride, but Mr. Ken told them that they would dry out, as they walked around. Mr. Ken then gave the boys their choice of Zoom Jets or Fender Bender bumper cars. The boys choose the bumper cars.

The riders on the SkyScreamer began their ride going around in circles, at the base of the ride, before it began its ascent to the top of the tower. The boys enjoyed the view, as they ascended the 20 stories and went around the 98-foot circle at 40 miles-per-hour.

With their feet dangling below them, and their hair blowing in the wind, the boys tried to focus on what they were seeing below them, but because they were traveling so fast, everything was very much a blur because they couldn’t just focus on one thing. The thing, though, was that they were enjoying the overall view from 200-feet up in the air. Unfortunately, like all fun rides they come to an end and at the bottom the boys hurried over to the Superman Krypton Coaster.

Phillip was amazed at what he saw when he looked at Superman. He couldn’t believe it was as high as it was. His friends told him that they read that the loop was 168-feet high, and the Cover was even more astonished at the size of the roller coaster.

When the bandmates and their adult chaperones got to take their seats, four took one row and the other four took another, while two were relegated to another row. Phillip knew from riding his ‘dad’s’ coasters that for his first ride he needed to stay in the middle, so that was where he decided to sit.

When the ride operator started the ride, the floor of the coaster was dropped away from the riders, and that startled the eleven-year-old. He looked to Mr. Dan who reminded him that it was a floorless coaster. The boy said that he knew their feet would dangle, but the sudden dropping of the floor just caught him off guard. The man just smiled back at the boy.

The ride to the top of the 168-foot first hill was thrilling to the youngster, and he smiled as the coaster ascended to the top. The coaster made a 180-degree turn to the right before racing down the hill before going up into that 145-foot-high loop.

Phillip wasn’t the only one heard yelling through the loop, but before he knew it, he was going onto a helix to the right, after which there was a zero-g roll with a feeling of weightlessness. That was followed by the 78-foot-tall cobra roll and then a mid-course brake run. The exit from the mid-course brake run banked down hard to the right and directly into the two interlocking corkscrews leading to a last turn before the final brake run and return to the station.

At the end of the ride, as they sat waiting for the train to be taken into the station, Phillip told Mr. Dan that the ride was intense and that everything happened so fast that he doesn’t remember most of it. The youngster continued and then told the man that he liked what he did, even if he did scream through that big loop, and that he wanted to do it again before they went home.

Mr. Dan told the boy that he hoped he did, and for him to get with him and that he’d ride with him if he needed someone. Phillip smiled back at the man and told him, “It’s a deal.”

The two young boys checked their height at the Fender Bender. Rusty was tall enough to drive the bumper car by himself, but Jessy was just a shy short, so he had to ride with either Mr. Ken or his mom. He decided to ride with Mr. Ken.

When it was their turn, they each picked a bumper car, and Mr. Ken was going to allow Jessy to drive as he pressed the pedal to make theirs go. The eight-year-old knew all about bumper cars, as his older ‘brothers’ taught him at Crystal Lake.

When the ride operator energized the ride floor and the cars could operate, the boys quickly went after one another. They bumped not only each other, but they also went after their mom. Kate was having fun with her boys coming after her and bumping her car. She returned the favor as she went after Jessy, and her boyfriend. When the ride was over, they all compared how they each bumped one another and how much fun it was. The boys now wanted to head to the Zoom Jets for their next ride.

As the day wore on the older boys rode the 205-foot Scream tower that shot them straight up and then had them fall straight down. They also rode the roller coaster known as Poltergeist, which is a linear induction motor launch that sent its riders from 0 to 60 miles per hour in less than 3.5 seconds into a rare “spaghetti bowl” design track that is literally draped and piled on top of itself. It included a cobra roll, a sidewinder loop, a downward spiral, a corkscrew and countless returns on itself.

The boys loved coasters so much they made sure they rode Pandemonium. The five-story tall massive red twisted maze of steel used gravity, and the weight of the people in the ride car to determine the unpredictable ways the riders plunge and rose at more than 30 miles per hour down the track, while spinning 360 degrees around S-shaped curves, twisted helixes and sudden sharp dips. The boys loved it.

Batman: The Ride was another coaster that the boys all had to try. It was a world class 4D Free Fly Coaster that thrust the rider into a totally immersive, high-speed mind-warping thrill. The innovative design delivered an experience that is one of its kind where magnetic fins cause you to flip as you fly over the top of a 12-story hill and two vertical drops.

During the day the older boys even made their way over to the Road Runner Express, and then jumped back on the Iron Rattler, while they were back in the area. Many of them also rode the Bugs’ White Water Rapids early in the day just in case they got wet, so they would dry before it got cool in the quarry.

While the older boys were out having fun riding the bigger coasters and flat rides, Ken and Kate took Rusty and Jessy over to the Kidde Koaster, which was a small roller coaster that they rode together. After that they all walked over to Taz’s Tornado, which was a smaller version of a swing ride that even Ken and Kate went on with the two boys.

The Sky Searchers was next for the two young boys, which was a small version of a Ferris Wheel. A tea-cup ride called the Kinderstein, was next. On this ride the boys had to turn a center spindle to make the ride car spin around while the whole cup spun around four other cups.

The next ride the four went over to was Scooby-Doo Ghostblasters, which Ken and Kate also rode with the boys. On this ride the foursome rode through a scenario, where they each shot light guns at targets to earn points to see who had the better score, at the end of the ride. Rusty won to the chagrin of Jessy.

The older boys also took advantage of the day and rode the Wave Runner, which is a scrambler type ride; the Twister, a giant gondola platform of seats, mounted between two enormous, powerful arms; the Fireball, a 7-story looping thrill ride that fully inverts the rider; the Spinsanity, which is a Tilt-A-Whirl type coaster ride; and the SkyScreamer, when they hadn’t ridden with Phillip and his friends earlier.

The day moved on and before everyone knew it, they were supposed to meet at Sangerfest Halle for dinner. Mr. Ken, along with Kate and her two boys, arrived first. Kate, Rusty and Jessy went through the lines together, and they got what they wanted to eat, and Mr. Ken paid for it right away, as no one else had showed up yet.

But over time the boys began to arrive, and the man had them go to the Men’s Restroom and wash their hands before going through one of the three food lines. Then, with their tray full, they headed to the last register in order for him to pay for their meal.

Everyone had their own idea of what was good for dinner. When Mr. Ken looked over to see what the boys were eating, he saw them eating chicken, hot dogs and fries, the huge soft pretzel, turkey legs, personal pan pizzas, barbeque sandwiches, and there were even plates of Tex-Mex on the tables all being washed down with large drinks.

Mr. Ken then went to get what he wanted to eat and as the last person through the line, he paid for everyone’s meal. The man brought out his black American Express card, and he didn’t flinch when the tab was a little over $1750.00.

As the boys ate, they discussed what they were going to do for the remainder of the evening. They knew they had about three hours before they had to meet out at the bus. They took out their park maps and noticed a roller coaster at the front of the park called Goliath. They all wondered how they missed it, so they made a plan to go there after they finished eating. The adults wondered if that would be a good idea after eating.

The older boys also decided which other rides they wanted to ride again before they left later that night, besides looking out for the monsters, ghosts and goblins that would be all over the park now that it was getting dark. Iron Rattler and Superman topped their list of rides that they wanted to ride again.

Jessy heard the older boys talking about the ghosts and goblins and the monsters out in the park, and he asked his mom if they would be scary. Kate told the young boy that as long as he didn’t stray away from her, or Mr. Ken, he would be safe.

But the boy wasn’t satisfied. He asked if his brother, Rusty, would be safe, too. Kate hugged her younger son and told her that they would keep them both safe. Jessy smiled at hearing that and hugged his mother back.

Goliath was another coaster that was in the park, but it was located at the front, and many people overlooked it because it was to the left, and somewhat hidden if you didn’t look. It wasn’t until after they ate dinner that the boys saw it on their park maps, and the boys decided to head to ride it. The chaperones went with them, as they wanted to see it and decide for themselves if they wanted to ride it, too.

As the boys walked up to the Goliath, they wondered how good a ride it was. Robert told them that it looked a lot like the Great White at SeaWorld, except that it went to the right. The boys who went to Sea World with Robert for their Howl-O-Scream said that they remembered riding the Great White, and they bet the Goliath will be just like it.

Phillip and his bandmates had followed the older boys to the Goliath, and they had been trying to decide if they were going to ride. The Cover said that he was, because it couldn’t be any worse than that 145-foot loop of the Superman, and then he proceeded into the queue. Bryce, the oldest of the eight, quickly hurried to catch up with his friend, and the rest of the band came along.

Dan, Doug, Wayne and Dennis were there with all the boys and they, too, got in line. They figured that since they were there, they might as well enjoy the ride, as well.

Doctor Doug made his way through the boys so that he would be able to ride with Phillip. The two talked some, as the doctor wanted to get an idea as to how the youngster was doing since he hadn’t seen him at his office lately. The young Cover told Doctor Doug that his mom was supposed to visit him tomorrow, and that he was looking forward to seeing her since he hadn’t seen her in a long time.

After they finished eating, and they got the boys to wash their hands and use the little boy’s room, Mr. Ken and Kate took Rusty and Jessy over to 90-foot tall, Crow’s Nest Ferris Wheel. They figured that ride would give them all a chance to let their meal settle, and give them a nice view of the park, as the lights get turned on.

The two young boys enjoyed seeing the park from the 90-foot height of the Ferris wheel and after they got off, they asked where they were going next. Kate had decided to take them over to the carousel. As the four walked over to the Amerigoround, the ghouls and goblins had come out, and they were walking around and Jessy was somewhat afraid that they would get to him.

The street characters were everywhere, and with the evening there seemed to be even more people in the park. Kate told Ken, as they were in line, that she was happy they got to ride as many rides as they did before the park got crowded. The four got on the ride and enjoyed the horses going up and down and around and around.

The Goliath is 105-feet high and travels for 2,693 feet to give the rider a big bang for his buck. Phillip and Doctor Doug sat in the same row and at the top of the lift hill the train made a sharp 80-foot downward right turn into a vertical loop reaching a top speed of 50 mph. The riders continued through a zero-g roll inversion then a second vertical loop followed by a helix and a series of corkscrews before entering the brake run.

When all of the boys were off the coaster, they all had smiles on their faces, and then they talked about where they were going next. A few said they were going over to the Boomerang, some said they were headed down to the Iron Rattler to see how it was at night, while others wanted to ride Superman again. None of them wanted to ride the Batman, as they said once was enough for them.

All of the boys and adults saw all sort of ghosts, goblins, ghouls and other scary characters that night as they walked around the park and rode the rides. They did see Owen, Nathan, Jayden, Ryder and Chase during the day, and the boys did go on a few rides with the boys.

The day was one full of fun, friendship and companionship, and they all enjoyed seeing and talking to one another again and talking about how they all met back at SeaWorld, so many, many months ago.

Everyone had fun that day, but as night came along, they all knew they had to meet up at the bus at nine o’clock. But they weren’t the only ones headed to the exit as the park closed at nine o’clock that night, so many other guests were also headed to the exits and their modes of transportation that it was slow going.

Ken, Kate and the boys were also caught in the throng of people walking towards the exits, and they just made the best of the situation. The four stopped at the restrooms in Los Festivales, as Mr. Ken knew the small restroom facilities at the exit would probably be crowded.

Everyone met at the bus and by 9:15 the driver had the entourage on their way back to The Cove. Mr. Ken got on the microphone and asked everyone to text their parents, and tell them that they would probably not be back until closer to eleven, so they wouldn’t have a long wait for them.

It didn’t take long for Rusty and Jessy to get comfortable in their seats and fall asleep. Even Kate got comfortable and leaned against Ken, and the two held hands. And everywhere on the bus most of the boys got themselves comfortable, and they also fell asleep.

It was 10:45 when the bus came up the street to the Main Gate to The Cove. The security guards heard the bus, so they opened the gate and the bus drove in and turned around before it allowed the riders to get off. Todd had Sarge and Daisy’s leads, and held them back, as they knew the boys were on the bus, and he didn’t want them to go running to it and get hurt.

The boy’s parents were anxiously waiting outside the Main Gate, and when the bus had entered the guards allowed them to enter, too. That was unusual, but the guards got to know the majority of the parents over the years, and they figured Mr. Ken wouldn’t mind.

As the boys got off the bus, they all thanked Mr. Ken for the wonderful day they had. The parents were also there and they thanked the man, too, for doing what he always does for their boys, which was treat them like they were ‘family’.

Sarge and Daisy’s tails were wagging a mile a minute, and when they saw the two young boys get off the bus, they pulled Todd to get to them. The boys got down and greeted them by hugging them all the while getting loads of doggie kisses. Chief was there as well, and she went to Mr. Ken to greet him home, too.

The throng of people around the bus talked to one another, and the boys talked about their day to their parents. But before long the moms got the dads and their sons to go to the car, so they could all go home and to bed.

Kate had to get her sons away from the pups and down to the house, so she could get them to bed. Matthew asked Todd if he had fed the pups and learning that they had gotten their evening meal, thanked him and then took their leads and then walked them down to the house.

Mr. Ken gave the bus driver a large tip for his time, and before long the man drove the bus out of the estate. Mr. Ken then thanked Dan, Doug, Wayne and Dennis for taking their time to chaperone the boys at the park. The owner of The Cove then told Wayne and Dennis that he’d see them on Tuesday, unless they wanted to stop by.

The boys had all gone down to the house and up to their rooms. ‘Dad’ Ken went upstairs to say good night to the boys, and he didn’t spend any amount of time with them, as it was late and they all had a long, and busy day at the amusement park. He did say something to both Rusty and Jessy, with Kate there, and then the two of them went to Kate’s room to say good night to one another.

When Mr. Ken went down to his own bedroom, he found Matthew coming up the stairs with Sarge and Daisy on their leads. They said another goodnight to one another, and before long they were each in their own beds. The house was peaceful and quiet throughout the night.

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

If you are using webmail please include, on the subject line, [CR] [name of story]. This let’s the author know 2 things: Where you read the story and which story you are writing about.

54,433 views