Published: 17 Jul 2025

From the Previous Chapter:

Back at the hotel, Kate sat down with her mom and Ken and the three of them talked about their afternoon meeting with the Baileys. Edith was non-committal and told her daughter that only time will tell, but she liked Patrick and hoped that he would follow through, and get to know his son. The older woman did say that it appeared that Victoria did settle down after a while, but she had no idea what could have brought that about. She then smiled at Ken.

Ken told Kate that for a first meeting he thought it went very well. He said that the biggest hurdle was Victoria, particularly after learning that her husband had fathered a child right after high school. The man opined that he felt that even though she was sort of stiff in the beginning, she did seem to settle down and enjoy the conversation, as they ate their desserts and drank their coffee. Ken then excused himself saying he had five boys who were expecting him to call.

Their return flight was scheduled for eleven, Sunday morning, so the travelers had set their alarms for eight o’clock. That, they figured, would give them enough time to get ready, catch some breakfast, and then head out to the General Aviation Terminal in time to catch their charter flight.

Ken Thomas was the first one down in the lobby, and he proceeded to checkout. Edith arrived shortly thereafter to do the same, but Mr. Ken told her that he had already taken care of their hotel bills. It would be another fifteen minutes before Kate and her two boys would arrive in the lobby. The five then headed to the restaurant to have a simple breakfast.

Mr. Wayne awoke early, so he could put breakfast tacos in the convection oven for the boys and himself, in order to allow them to heat while he read the Sunday morning newspaper. As he sat where Mr. Ken usually sat, he enjoyed the quietness of The Cove, when no one was around.

The Estate Master also decided that he now understood why his employer loved sitting there in the Kitchen Nook reading the paper. It was so relaxing and calming being able to look out that big window, and enjoy seeing the lake.

Getting back to the newspaper, the man recognized the fire that took the mother, father and teenage son the previous weekend. It appeared that the arson fires had stopped, as there hadn’t been any fires reported in yesterdays, or today’s, newspaper. For that the Estate Master was thankful, as no fireman had to risk his life to fight a fire that was set for the enjoyment of someone’s curiosity, compulsion, or gratification of some kind, or another.

The man was then interrupted from his thoughts, when Phillip and Chief came into the Nook.

“What got you up so early?” asked Mr. Wayne.

“I just woke up and couldn’t go back to sleep. So, I decided to come on down and get breakfast, and then practice the reception songs,” replied Phillip, who had begun to get Chief her morning breakfast, before sitting down to his own first meal of the day.

“So, how did the other band members take to learning the new songs?” asked Mr. Wayne.

“I think it went pretty well,” began the young Cover. “I played the songs first, so they could hear them, and then they played along with me from the music sheets. We did all ten songs a few times off the music sheets, and then I asked them to try them without the sheets. I hope today goes a little better,” smiled Phillip, as he ate his breakfast taco.

The five travelers had a simple meal of scrambled eggs, rashers of bacon, toast, and either coffee and milk, before heading to the airport to catch their flight back home. The boys were full of energy and Kate hoped that their breakfast would cause them to slow down some, and maybe sleep on the two-and a half hour flight home.

They arrived in plenty of time to catch their flight. After dropping off their rental car, they dropped off their bags on a TSA cart, which was taken to be inspected before the bags were placed on the plane.

The five did have to go through their own TSA Security check before going to the waiting room to await being called to their flight. The boys had the toy Mr. Ken had bought them, which kept them occupied as the adults talked.

“Ken,” began Kate, “do you think Patrick … do you think he will really try to keep in touch with Rusty?”

Ken smiled at the question. He told Kate that they had to give the man time for he and Victoria to accept the fact that he was Rusty’s father, and then how they were going to blend him into their young family. Ken then changed the subject and asked Kate if she, her mother and the boys had decided if they were coming to The Cove for Thanksgiving.

Edith spoke up right then and told Ken that she would be happy to be invited to The Cove for Thanksgiving. Ken told her that with Grammy now gone, and Collin remodeling Wilkinson, the main Thanksgiving meal would be at The Cove that year. He added that on the Saturday before, some good friends of his had decided to use The Cove for their wedding and reception, so there would be an added attraction to the week’s festivities. He said that with a smile on his face.

Edith smiled at that revelation and nudged Kate, “Well daughter of mine … maybe you could get some ideas from watching that. Tell your boyfriend that we’ll be there.”

“Mother!” exclaimed Kate.

Ken just sat there and smiled at the exchange.

It wasn’t too long after that when they were called for their plane, and the five walked out onto the tarmac, up the stairs and into the 10-passenger Gulfstream-G280.

The five Cover boys had eaten and were up at the Pavilion after they’d taken their showers. They were taking advantage of the empty Cove Skate Park, before all of their friends showed up, and took over the place. Phillip, for one, needed all the time he could get on the obstacles, as he never made good use of the Cove Skate Park, because he focused most of his free time on his guitar playing instead.

While the boys were up at the Pavilion and skate park, Ms. Judy called and talked to Wayne. She asked if she could come over and have Matthew show her what he accomplished with Riley, and then train her and Eric to work with their puppy.

The Estate Master told her that if Matthew was going to establish a Puppy Training School this was something he was going to have to deal with. So, he told her to come over when she brought Eric, and to bring Riley, and he would call Matthew, so he would be ready for them.

But instead of calling, Mr. Wayne drove a golf cart up to the Pavilion to talk to Matthew to explain what Ms. Judy wanted him to do. The man explained to the young puppy master that this was something he will have to get used to, if he was going to create his puppy training school.

Then, while Mr. Wayne was up there, he stopped to talk to Phillip. He asked the band leader what his band was going to wear next weekend for their Halloween gig. Phillip told the man that they figured they would wear a white shirt and black pants. The youngster then asked him why he asked.

Mr. Wayne told the young Cover that he thought they would want to wear some sort of scary Halloween t-shirt to go along with the motif of the night. Phillip said that they never thought of that and that even if they did, they could never find matching shirts. The Estate Master asked him why they had to match, if none of the participants would be.

The flight back east and home was smooth. The flight crew served the flyers a simple lunch of burgers, fries and either coffee or soda. The boys were happy with their meal, the adults would have enjoyed something better, but Ken told them with the smaller plane you get what you get. He told them they could go out for a better dinner after they land, and take the bags to the house.

With Edith speaking up about wanting to be at The Cove for Thanksgiving, Kate asked Ken about flight arrangements, and where would everyone sleep. Ken told her that it would be good if she could take the boys out of school early on Friday, as she did for that other trip, so they could arrive Friday night, and then they’d be there for the wedding and reception on Saturday. The owner of The Cove told his girlfriend that they would use the guest house, as they had before.

Kate asked why couldn’t they be in the main house. Ken told her that Collin would be there and he would be using one of the two guest en suites. The man then said that he could ask his first foster son to stay in one of the boy’s bedrooms, and then that way she and Edith could use the guest en suites, and her boys could bunk in with Phillip and Matthew, as they had before. Kate told him that she would like that better than being out in the guest house, and away from all the fun. Hearing that made Ken smile.

Kate also asked Ken when he had to leave to fly back to The Cove that Sunday. He told her that their flight will get in around three o’clock and his flight is scheduled to leave at six, which would get him home around between nine and nine-thirty figuring in the hour he gains flying west plus, the drive time to The Cove.

Kate snuggled up to him and wished that he could stay the night, and not have to have all that flying he was going to do that day. Ken told her that if he wasn’t going to be gaining another foster in the morning, he would do that, but that Ms. Judy was counting on him to be there.

Edith heard the simple conversation and knew that Ken Thomas would continue to take care of needy foster boys, until he no longer could. She then wondered where the couple would live if they were to marry. She didn’t like the idea of her daughter and grandsons moving to Texas to live. She then wondered what her daughter would do all day in that big house. Now she had second thoughts about pressuring Kate to marry Ken.

When Judy Turner, Eric and Riley arrived at The Cove, Matthew and Sarge were waiting for them. The two pups greeted one another, and they began to play some before the puppy master told them to ‘Sit’. Ms. Judy was impressed at how quickly both puppies listened to Matthew.

Matthew told Ms. Judy that he had Eric go through the commands with him yesterday, before she picked him up, then added that the more the two of them reinforce the commands the better Riley will retain his training, and they will all enjoy one another more.

The small group moved away from all of the arriving Cover friends, so the pups wouldn’t be distracted. Matthew then had Ms. Judy take her puppy, Riley, through all of the commands that he had taught the young pup. He gave her a handful of treats to give the puppy each and every time Riley did the behavior correctly.

The puppy master had Ms. Judy start with the simplest command, ‘Sit’, and then work her way through ‘Lay Down’, ‘Stay’, Come’, ‘Fetch’. ‘Kiss’, ‘Shake Hands’ and ‘Crawl’. When Matthew had Ms. Judy use the ‘Stay’ command, he had her walk further and further away before calling Riley to her with the ‘Come’ command. He then told her to give her pup two treats for doing that, as that was what he’d been doing.

When it came to the ‘Fetch’ command, all Matthew had Ms. Judy do was throw the ball to see if Riley would bring it back to her. He did and that made the woman smile. She gave him two treats for doing that. She threw the ball again and Riley eagerly went after it. Two more treats came his way.

Ms. Judy then wanted Eric to take his turn and see how well their puppy would listen to him. But Matthew asked them to let Riley get a drink of cold water, and take a break with Sarge. The three of them and the two pups took a golf cart up to the Pavilion, so Matthew could get the ice water for Riley. Of course, Sarge had to share it, too, and then the two pups found a nice place to lay down to rest.

“Matthew, I am impressed at what you’ve been able to get Riley to do; I really am,” offered Ms. Judy. “Had you started on anything else before I picked Eric up yesterday?”

“Well, I was working on ‘Roll Over’ with Sarge,” began the puppy master, “and my bet is that once Riley sees him do that, he will want to do it, too. It is a simple behavior, and once I have Sarge doing that, I want to get him to do the ‘Play Dead’ behavior.

“You know the more I think about it … whatever Chief has in her … it had to be passed onto her puppies as Sarge, Riley and Daisy all learned things so easily. Chief, you know … she does things without ever being told. She also can sense things like when she knew those guys had come over the wall, when Mr. Dan was staying here. I sure hope Sarge can eventually do those things, as well.”

Rusty and Jessy did finally fall asleep on the plane, and they had to be awakened before they landed. It was two o’clock when the travelers drove out of the General Aviation Terminal parking lot and they were all hungry. But Edith wanted to stop by the house to drop off their bags and freshen up some, before they went out to eat. So, that’s what they did.

It was after three when the group sat down at a nice restaurant. The boys had hoped for a buffet where they could get their favorites, but their mom told them they had that the other night, and it was time they ate at a nice restaurant, the Olive Garden.

The boys liked the Olive Garden and especially their breadsticks and raspberry lemonade, but mom made them eat some salad along with the bread sticks. The adults also ate the bread sticks, but much more of the house salad was served, with the restaurant’s signature Italian dressing. Ken did ask for butter pats for his bread sticks, as he loved the taste of bread and butter.

As they ate, they talked some more about their weekend trip. Rusty spoke right up and told them that he likes his ‘new’ dad. He said that Mr. Patrick talked with him, and was interested in what he was doing and what he liked. The boy added that the man was easy to talk with and that he never yelled at him. Rusty ended his evaluation by saying that he liked Mr. Patrick, and his wife, Victoria, and he hoped that he could get to know him better.

Jessey said he liked talking to Royce, and he hoped they could become friends. The boy then asked when they would be seeing them again. Kate told her son that she needed to talk to Patrick and Victoria to see when would be a good time for them to get together again. The youngster asked if Thanksgiving would be a good time.

Kate smiled and told Jessy and Rusty that they were all going to Texas for Thanksgiving, and they would be with their ‘big’ brothers, so that wouldn’t work for that time, but that maybe later they could get together. Both boys were happy that they were soon going to see their ‘big’ brothers again. The boys then went back to eating their meal of spaghetti & meatballs.

Edith remarked that it took Victoria a while to relax around them. She added that it could have been because of what Ken told her. That caused Kate to ask her boyfriend what he could have said that would have changed the woman from being so guarded to being so outgoing and accepting.

Ken smiled at his future mother-in-law because she was there when he told Victoria what he did. But Kate had asked and she needed to know, so he told her how he explained to Victoria how he had five boys waiting for him back in Texas, which caused the woman to become blank faced.

Kate asked Ken to tell her the whole story, which he did. Kate laughed at the telling, and even more so at why he said what he did. She told him that she didn’t blame him for putting the woman in her place, and then she thanked him for standing up for her. Kate then smiled at Ken and she would have kissed him if they weren’t in such a public place.

After Riley had a good rest, Ms. Judy had her son, Eric, go through all the learned behaviors with their new puppy. Riley went through them all with ease, and when it came to the ‘Fetch’ command he had fun getting the ball, and bringing it back. Of course, the young pup got his reward each and every time he did the behavior correctly.

When they finished all of those behaviors, Ms. Judy asked Matthew if he would try the ‘Roll Over’ command with Riley. The puppy master had Sarge come over, and after he had the resident pup ‘Lay Down’, he gave the command ‘Roll Over’. Matthew, at the same time, gave the hand motion of rotation, so the pup could get an understanding of what he wanted. And since Matthew and Sarge had been working on the new command, Sarge knew what he was to do, when the puppy master called out ‘Roll Over’, Sarge rolled over.

Matthew then called out, “Riley … ‘Lay Down’. … Riley … ‘Roll Over’.” All the while giving he hand motion of rotation.

Upon the ‘Roll Over’ command Riley rolled over onto his back and stopped. The three people laughed. Matthew had to start all over and he had Sarge show Riley what to do.

After Sarge showed the command, the puppy master gave the same command to Riley. “Riley … ‘Roll Over’.”

Riley rolled over and then went back to the way he started, which was not what Matthew really wanted, but it was a start. So, Matthew tried again with Sarge demonstrating the correct way the command was supposed to go.

Matthew explained to Ms. Judy that the training doesn’t always go easy the first time around, which was why they had to continue to reinforce the commands often after they got home, so the puppy doesn’t forget. The puppy master tried the new command again and that time Riley got it right, and for that he got his treat reward.

Matthew then had Ms. Judy, and then Eric, try out the new command and after Riley got it right, he asked them to mix up all the commands, as they had been doing the commands in repetition, and the puppy master wanted to make sure the puppy hadn’t learned them in order.

After the Turner’s had done that, Ms. Judy was very pleased that her new puppy was well trained and would be a pleasure to have at the house, and eventually taken to work when he was a bit older. The woman then pulled out one-hundred dollars and gave it to Matthew, as payment for training Riley.

Initially, Matthew didn’t know what to say, but he quickly recovered and then thanked Ms. Judy for the money. He told her again that Chief had to have passed on her genetic material to her litter, as they seem to learn quickly. He again reminded her to reinforce the commands every day, or every other day, so Riley doesn’t forget them. He also asked her to get him a new ball or something that she liked for him to fetch. Then, before long, Ms. Judy and Riley were gone.

Not wanting to carry around all that money, Matthew went down to the house, so he could put the money in his room. But he stopped by the Study to tell Mr. Wayne how much Ms. Judy paid him. The Estate Master was surprised at the amount, but with all the time that the boy had spent with the pup he figured it was a fair amount.

But before the boy went up to his room to set aside his largess, Mr. Wayne asked Matthew to sit down, so they could talk about how much he might want to charge per hour, when he begins training the puppies, or small dogs.

The man had Matthew figure out how many hours he spent training Riley, and then divide that into the amount of money Ms. Judy gave him. The puppy master said he figured he spent about a total of eight hours working with Riley, so he was paid $12.50 an hour.

The Estate Master then asked Matthew if that represented all of the hours that he worked with Riley the first time, yesterday and today. The pre-teen thought for a few moments and said that it hadn’t, and then said that it didn’t include the time he spent today working with Ms. Judy and Eric. Mr. Wayne asked Matthew to add in those hours and then to do the math.

After Matthew did the calculations, the puppy master said that his hourly wage after adding in the twenty dollars Ms. Judy gave him the first time, because it would only be fair, came out to $12.00 per hour.

Mr. Wayne asked him if he thought that was a fair wage for his time. Matthew said he wasn’t sure. The man then asked him how much was he going to spend on treats, or was he going to expect his ‘dad’ to pay for them? That got the would-be entrepreneur to think.

“Mr. Wayne … twelve dollars sounds like a fair price to start. But … when you mention that I need to buy the treats, I guess they will have to come out of what I earn, so maybe fifteen … maybe fifteen dollars an hour is a better price to charge.

“I bet that there will be other things that I will need, too. So, I guess I need to find a dog training school that will let me stop by to watch, so I know what I am getting myself into, and what I will need, like balls and leads, so I can do the job right. What do you think, Mr. Wayne?” finished the puppy master.

Mr. Wayne smiled and told the young Cover that after he puts his money away, he should get on his computer and search for local dog training schools, and then tomorrow, after school, he could call them and ask if he could stop by next weekend to watch how they go about training small dogs. Matthew smiled at the suggestion and thanked the man, and then headed up to his room.

When they left the restaurant, Ken immediately drove the Partlunds to their home. He apologized that he couldn’t stay long, because he had a six o’clock flight to catch. He did take time to say goodbye to Kate, though.

The couple hugged and shared a few kisses, as they talked about what Kate could expect to happen in the future. Ken told her to call Amy and let her know about her meeting with Patrick and his family. He also recommended that she call and talk to Evelyn, so she knows that you found out which of Lane’s best friends is Rusty’s father.

Ken also told Kate that he and Amy had been working on figuring out how and where Lane got-that fifty-thousand dollars, and that they think they know the answers. He told her that now they know Patrick is the father, he will ask Amy to get with Evelyn to close Lane’s money source.

When Kate asked Ken what he meant, he told her that he didn’t have a lot of time to explain it to her, as he needed to get to the airport. He did tell her that Amy could explain it to her tomorrow, and they could talk during the week, if she had any questions. He did remind her that he was getting a new foster son tomorrow, and that he would be extremely busy the next few days getting Darrin settled.

Kate told him that she understood. They shared another strong hug and long kiss and then Ken was gone.

Edith had watched from the inside of the house, and when Kate came in, she asked her why she had tears in her eyes. Kate told her mother that she didn’t want to see him go; that she wanted him to stay there with her. Edith heard the heartbreak in her daughter’s voice that her lover was gone, and she hugged her close.

As the mother hugged her daughter, she offered, “Oh, daughter of mine … you will be back together soon enough. And I am sure you will be talking every day, as you usually do. And Kate … I hope that you will be ready to say yes to that man … when he asks you to marry him,” said the smiling mother.

Kate heard what her mother spoke to her and pulled back from the hug and assured the woman that when that time comes, she will accept his marriage proposal. She only hopes that she will be ready for her, and the boys to move to Texas, as that is where her new husband’s businesses and focus is, and she will want her sons to have the best ‘big’ brothers’ ever.

Edith hugged her daughter tight and told her to go where her heart tells her to go. The two hugged and they each cried. But for different reasons.

Ken Thomas was on time for his charter flight, which took off on time. The flight attendant asked him if there was anything that he could get him. Ken thought about that for a few moments, and then all he asked for was coffee, explaining that he just came from a big meal.

As the plane flew along, Ken Thomas decided to spend the next three hours working on things from the office. But his mind wandered to what he was going to do with Darrin come Monday, and his mind began to focus on how he was going to welcome his new foster son to The Cove.

As he sat in the comfortable airplane seat, he thought of all the things he got wrong when Phillip, the last foster son, arrived. As he was thinking of what he needed to do, he began to type the list on the laptop. Make sure Darrin has a comb, toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant and an alarm clock. Check to see what clothes he has, if any, and plan to take him shopping for polo shirts, shorts, pants, shoes, sneakers, socks, t-shirts, underwear (boxer briefs or tighty whities) Crocs, a suit and a vest for the Holidays, and don’t forget to get him a suitcase for the 3-day trip. Mr. Ken then added he needed to buy the boy a swimsuit for the pool, and a skateboard to use up at the skatepark.

The flight attendant refreshed his coffee cup and brought him a sweet cake, which Mr. Ken thanked him for. He drank his coffee and ate the sweet cake thinking of what else he needed to add to the list to get Darrin settled in The Cove. Then, as the plane flew along, he went back to typing his list.

Mr. Ken typed that he needed to show the new foster which room would be his, to remind the boy to strip his bed on Friday, as that was when the cleaning company came, to let him choose which bathroom he wanted to use, to introduce the people who work at The Cove, and that he would be responsible for Chief, who would sleep in his bedroom, and that he would fix her meals.

Continuing to remember what he needed to tell Darrin the man wrote down that he needed to tell the new foster about the five other boys living there, and that he wasn’t to bother them about why they were there. He put down that they would eventually tell him when they got to know him.

He added to the list that he would introduce him to Doctor Doug, and explain that he was a child psychologist. who will not tell him what they talk about and Doctor Rick. who will do a take-in physical. Then he added that Darrin was to get to him the name and home phone numbers, not cell phone numbers, of the friends he wanted to invite over and at least to him by Wednesday, and no more than two friends at a time.

Then thinking about Darrin making friends reminded him that he had to register the boy at the school, and that he would take him there on Tuesday. He then looked over the list and when he saw that he needed to buy the thirteen-year-old a suitcase he added to tell the teen about their taking a three-day trip after the Holidays, and for the boy to talk to his ‘brothers’ about where they went, and what there was to do.

Sunday night the Covers went out to eat at the Four Corners Diner. The parking lot was crowded, but not as much as it usually was, as Fall was in the air and people were getting themselves ready for Halloween.

The boys liked eating at the Diner, as they didn’t have to get too cleaned up or dressed up to go there, as it was wide open with booths along the sides, and tables out in the middle of the floor. Tonight, they took a corner booth for the six of them.

“I wonder what time ‘dad’ will get home tonight?” asked Matthew, as they were talking while they waited for their food to arrive.

Mr. Wayne took the question and answered, “He called me before he boarded his plane at five o’clock our time. So, with it being a three-hour flight and, depending on traffic, there’s about a ninety-minute drive from the airport your ‘dad’ could be home between ten and ten-thirty.” The boys weren’t too happy to hear that, as they now might not get to see their ‘dad’, as they would probably be in bed when he returns home.

As they ate, the boys talked about Matthew making some more money training Riley. They asked him if he was really going to try to start a Puppy Training School at The Cove and, if he was, where was he going to set it up at.

That question was another thing that the young pre-teen hadn’t thought of, so he asked his ‘brothers’ what they meant. Robert spoke first and told his younger ‘brother’ that when he was just training Daisy and Riley it wasn’t a problem, when he brought them near the Pavilion, but he felt that when he has multiple puppies, or small dogs, at The Cove, their barking will cause problems with their friends.

Charles quickly added that with all those dogs there will be more dog poop all around, and they will expect him to pick it up when they leave. The teen recommended to his ‘brother’ that he search the estate for a practical place to work with the puppies, away from everyone, where their barking won’t interfere with their friends, and he can safely house them if it rains.

Billy added that he’d help him walk around to look for a place where he could set up his training area. The older teen liked helping and he felt that this would be a perfect project for him to get partially involved in with his young ‘brother’ to make sure his endeavor to establish a Puppy Training School worked out for him.

Mr. Wayne listened to what the boys had to say, but Phillip hadn’t said anything yet. So, he asked the youngest Cover if he had any comments about Matthew and his Puppy Training School.

Phillip told the Estate Master that he hopes Matthew can make it work, but right now the only thing that he was concerned about was who was going to be taking him to the gig next Sunday, and if the band will be good enough. Phillip then asked if the man knew how the other band members were getting there.

Mr. Wayne smiled and told the young Cover that he thinks that his ‘dad’ was planning on taking him to the gig next Sunday. The man added that some of the other boys could probably ride with him, if they come to The Cove, but that he needed to coordinate with his ‘dad’ about that, and with the other band members including their moms and dads.

Phillip thanked the Estate Master for telling him that, so now he won’t be so anxious about next Sunday. The boy did say that he was a bit nervous about them playing out in public and in front of all those people for the first time, though.

Hearing that he said he was nervous about playing out in public, his ‘brothers’ told him that he’d already played for Collin and his classmates, for their ‘dad’s’ business associates and friends at the Labor Day Picnic, and this won’t be anything different other than at a different venue. The four boys encouraged their youngest ‘brother’, which put a smile on his face.

After they ate, the boys talked Mr. Wayne into letting them drive the Go-Karts. The man said that he still had that special black credit card their ‘dad’ gave him, and he didn’t have to pay the bill, so he was all for it. All the boys laughed.

As they all walked up to the Go-Kart Track, they noticed the construction of the Railroad Station was well under way, and that the Miniature Golf Course was now gone. They all bemoaned that the Miniature Golf Course was gone, even though they didn’t play there all that often.

It was Matthew who spoke up and mentioned that it was at the Miniature Golf Course where he was found. The pre-teen continued and reminisced that it was where Robert bought him a hot dog and soda and he met Mr. Dan who touched his back, which caused him to be taken to the hospital. Matthew then told how he met Kyle at the hospital and who helped him get into that paper gown, and then later he came to visit him in his hospital room.

Charles added that he was there that night when they watched the Sheriff Deputies, from the window, surround that car and arrest those people. Matthew added that those people were his mother and Lincoln, who was the one who beat him so badly, which was why he was in the hospital. The pre-teen added that they were probably there to try to kidnap him, so he wouldn’t talk to the police. Phillip and Mr. Wayne were hearing all of this back history for the first time.

As the boys continued to walk supposedly to the Go-Kart Track, Matthew wanted to walk over to the Miniature Golf Course to see what was still there. The boys wanted to drive the go-karts, but Billy said to them that this was a special moment that their ‘brother’ needed to go back and look at the place and recall how he became a Cover, and they should all go with him, so he can look back at that day that brought him here to this day.

The boys walked up to where the Miniature Golf Course once was. Matthew was quiet as he approached the site. He mentioned that the Starters Shack, Refreshment Stand and Restrooms were still standing, but the bench where he and Mr. Dan talked was now gone.

It was Phillip who noticed some benches off to the side of the still standing buildings, and told his ‘brother’ to look there. Matthew saw what Phillip was talking about, and he went over to them and sat down. The rest of the boys stayed where they were.

A short while later Robert thought he heard some crying and he told Mr. Wayne. He told the man that he thinks Matthew is crying, and they should go up to him and find out why. And that is what they did.

“Matthew, why are you crying?” asked Mr. Wayne, who sat down beside the pre-teen.

“Oh, Mr. Wayne … th … this … this is … this is where my life changed for the good. If … if I … if I had never met Mr. Dan, Mr. Ken, Robert and the rest of my ‘brothers’ I’d … I’d probably be dead right now,” offered the pre-teen, who cried some more.

Mr. Wayne hugged the boy close and told him that he was loved by him, his ‘dad’ and his ‘brothers’, and that whatever happened before was in the past, and that he had a good future before him and to trust his ‘dad’ to make it happen.

Matthew heard what the Estate Master had said, but he wasn’t so sure that ‘dad’ Ken would make it happen, so he said, “But, he hasn’t! My mom … she wants to kill me! She told me that day at Doctor Doug’s building and … and when she gets out of prison in three or four years, she … she will want me to go and live with her and then she will kill me! ‘Dad’ … he has told me that he is trying to adopt me but he hasn’t yet.” And Matthew continued to cry.

The boys heard what angst Matthew was going through right then and they all knew that they needed to have a group hug right then and right now. So, Billy pulled Matthew up from the bench and told him, “Matthew, we, your ‘brothers’, we all love you, and we will do whatever we can do to protect you. Now, please dry those eyes.”

The boys got around their ‘brother’, did a group hug, and held it longer than they normally would have. Matthew could feel how much they loved him, and when they broke up, he thanked them for their support. He then wiped his eyes and then apologized for crying.

“There is no need for you to apologize for crying, young man,” offered Mr. Wayne. “There have been gallons of tears cried by the Covers over the years, and there will probably be gallons more. I do hope that you will take the time and talk to Doctor Doug about this. OK?”

Matthew nodded his head, and instead of driving the go-karts the Covers decided to stop by Mr. Ken’s Kreamy Kone for some ice cream sundaes, and ice cream cups for Chief and Sarge.

After Chief and Sarge ate their cold concoctions, Mr. Wayne held a quick meeting in the Study. He told everyone that tomorrow they were getting a new ‘brother’, Darrin, to be ready to meet him when they return from school. He then reminded Charles that he and his dad were supposed to go to the dentist on Tuesday for him to have his braces removed. Charles put on a big smile that showed his braces.

The man then told Robert and Billy that they were scheduled to go and visit their moms on Saturday. He mentioned that Mr. Ken was taking his son, Robert, and that either he or Mr. Dennis was taking Billy.

Continuing, the man told Matthew that he hoped that whomever doesn’t take Billy to visit his mother, the other one will take him to visit some dog training schools for some ideas on how to set up his Puppy Training School. He finished by adding that on Sunday Mr. Ken was taking Phillip to his booking.

It had been a long day and with school tomorrow, Mr. Wayne asked the boys to go up to their rooms to relax before going to bed. He told them that he’d be up soon to say goodnight to them and if their ‘dad’ came home before too long, he’d send him up, too.

Mr. Wayne waited as long as he dared to say a quick goodnight to the boys. He had hoped his boss would be home by the time he went upstairs, but by 9:15 the owner of The Cove still wasn’t home.

The Estate Master started in Bill’s room and then quickly went to Robert and then Charles’ rooms. When he stopped at Matthew’s room, he wanted to make sure the boy was going to be alright after what he experienced that evening. Matthew told the man that seeing where he began his becoming a Cover was torn down brought back all those memories of that day. The boy again apologized for what he did.

It was then that ‘dad’ Ken came to the doorframe and knocked.

“‘Dad’, ‘dad’,” yelled Matthew. “you’re home; you’re home.” The pre-teen hugged the man with all his might.

The other boys heard Matthew call out that their ‘dad’ was there and they all came running. They gathered around their ‘dad’ and asked him how his trip was. Charles asked him if Rusty got to meet his real father.

“Boys, boys … the trip … it was a busy one and we had good winds on my return flight and practically no traffic, which is why I am home this early.

“And, now, to answer your question, yes … Rusty, he did get to meet his real father. And the man’s wife and children,” chuckled ‘dad’ Ken.

“Now, it’s time you all were in bed, as you all have school tomorrow, and as for me … I have a big meeting at work, and then I get to welcome your new ‘brother’. So, I will say goodnight to you all here,” finished ‘dad’ Ken, who then hugged each boy, and then headed to the stairs to go down to his retreat.

But before he got there, Chief and Sarge were there waiting for him to get their own welcome home behind the ear scratches and belly rubs, which the man happily gave.

Wayne caught up to the man before he entered his private lair.

“Mr. Ken … something happened tonight that I think you need to be aware of,” called out the Estate Master, before the man could close his door.

Mr. Ken stopped, turned and then headed back towards the Study. He motioned to Wayne to enter the room, and then the two sat down in the leather chairs.

“OK, what is it that I need to know about what happened tonight?” asked the owner of The Cove.

Wayne then proceeded to tell him about what happened at the old Miniature Golf Course, and how Matthew reflected on his meeting him, Dan and Robert, and his becoming a Cover, and saying that if it wasn’t for that chance meeting, he would probably be dead.

When the Estate Master was finished with his story, Mr. Ken thanked him for letting him know how being at the old miniature golf course brought back those memories to Matthew. The foster dad offered that he needs to spend some special time with the boy, and to make sure that Matthew gets to talk to Doctor Doug about those memories, and what he was feeling tonight.

The two men then said goodnight to one another, with Mr. Ken going to his retreat and the Estate Master going upstairs to the guests en suite, where he was staying, while the owner of The Cove was gone. And before long, The Cove was quiet throughout, with everyone sleeping soundly.

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

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