Darrin’s newest friends asked him what Billy meant when he said that they should volunteer to help with the breakfast. Sam and Terran told them that they usually make pancakes, crisp the bacon more than it already is, fix the coffee for the adults and set up the serving line, as they do for when they fix the hamburgers and hotdogs.

Martin thought about it for a few moments and then told Darrin to wake him when he got up. He said that he wanted to see what it took to put the breakfast on. Jody then said that he wanted to help, too. Then, before he knew it, all of Darrin’s friends had volunteered to help in the morning.

By 12:15 all of the boys had settled down and were in their sleeping bags and asleep. Billy had his cell phone for 06:55 and had planned to get Robert, Eric, Charles, Matthew, Darrin and Phillip up right after he got dressed. They, in turn, would then wake up those friends of theirs who volunteered to help.

Chief slept where Darrin was and Sarge slept next to Matthew. The Cove was quite throughout the night after everyone had finally fallen asleep.

Billy’s cell phone alarm went off exactly at 6:55 A.M. Saturday morning. The teenager wasn’t all that happy that he’d set it for that time, but he knew that it took them a good half-hour to get things started before the first breakfasts would be ready.

The Cover got up, put on his clothes and then went to the half-bath just off the Study to drain his bladder. He then went to Phillip to wake him and to tell him to wake those friends who were going to help. The teenager then went down the stairs to wake, Robert, Eric, Charles and Darrin and to tell them to wake their friends who were also going to help.

It was well after 7:10 when the Covers and their helpers were beginning their caravan of golf carts up to the Pavilion to get the breakfast started. Even then they had to go back down to the house to pick up additional volunteers, because Billy’s little speech the previous day sparked something in many of the boys that they felt guilty for not helping in the past.

Robert and Eric got started on cooking the eggs and pancakes, while Charles started reheating the already precooked bacon in the microwave oven that was bought for that very purpose. Phillip and Westin got the tortillas, shredded cheese and aluminum foil wrappers into an assembly line and ready for when the eggs and bacon were done, so they could begin creating the breakfast tacos.

Darrin was seeing all this for the first time and he was mesmerized by what everyone was doing. Billy saw him and his friends standing around and told them to start setting up the serving line.

Sam and Terran knew what to do, so they had Darrin, Jody and Martin follow them into the storage room to first get clean rags to wash down the serving line table and then to start bringing out the plates, napkins, and utensils, as well as the cups for the ice machine. The boys then had to check the ice dispenser to make sure it was full, which it wasn’t, and then they had to fill it.

The boys also filled the ketchup and mustard dispensers since they were already doing that portion of the serving line and that would speed up the time for when they fixed their sub- or hero- sandwiches later that afternoon.

The coffee maker had been set to begin making the adults coffee at 7:15 and everyone could smell the hot brew. Billy made sure there were coffee cups available for the three men to drink their coffee from and not just the paper throw-away cups, but regular ceramic, or porcelain, cups from the house.

Billy also had a few of the volunteers go down to the house and retrieve what remained of last night’s midnight snack, the sheet-cake that Momma Maria had made for them, so they could have that after they all ate. But then he remembered that only the Covers were allowed to drive the golf carts, so he had to take someone with him to get the cake from the Kitchen Nook.

While the Covers were getting the breakfast together, their remaining friends were all beginning to wake up and walk up to the Pavilion. The three adults caught a ride with Billy up to the Pavilion and when they got there the first thing they went after was the hot coffee they could immediately smell upon their arrival. They were even more pleased that there were real coffee cups with which to enjoy that hot brew.

With the pancakes and breakfast tacos ready and extra scrambled eggs also on the table, the boys let the adults go through the line first and then everyone followed after them.

Darrin and his two newest friends still couldn’t believe what they were seeing that morning. And it wasn’t until they began eating hot pancakes, with the maple syrup and butter, and warm eggs and that there were also bacon, egg and cheese breakfast tacos for them to eat they just couldn’t fathom that this was all put on by a bunch of kids aged eleven to sixteen.

After they had eaten, the adults walked around and talked to the boys about their experience last night with the talk that Mr. Dan and Mr. Griffin gave, as well as their late-night swim and now the early morning breakfast.

Mr. Ken went over to Darrin and his two newest friends to get their take on everything that happened in the past twelve to fourteen hours. He wanted to get their honest opinion on how they saw everything, since this was all new to them.

The three boys looked at one another trying to decide which one would go first. Darrin decided that he’d be the one to tell his foster dad what he thought of what he experienced, since he was the newest Cover.

“Mr. Ken … what Mr. Dan and Mr. Griffin did for us last night … that was something that … well, that is something that is just not normally done for young boys our age. I mean … if the shootout hadn’t happened at your estate … the Sheriff’s department … they would never have come to a group of boys, like us, and tell us all about it. And I am glad he, Mr. Dan, did because it gave me another perspective of what The Cove is all about and what has happened over the years since it was built.

“As for the sleepover … who would have thought that anyone would allow a group as big as this to have a sleepover at their home. I mean, my mom … she would complain if I had two of my friends spend the night.

“And being able to swim in that huge pool last night was a blast. The rock ledge … it took a bit of getting used to, but over time I can see me, well, us jumping more and more and having contests of some sort.

“And then there is this morning’s breakfast. What was great about it was that no adult was there supervising and giving out orders to do this or do that. Sure, Billy … he kind of orchestrated the whole thing, but everyone knew what to do and they went right ahead and did it. Even Phillip … he and Westin … they had the breakfast taco assembly line down pat and the two of them made the tacos pretty quickly when the eggs and bacon were made available to them.

“Me and my friends … we were used to help set up the serving line and fill the dispensers. And when everything is over, we’ll help fill up the soda machines, so we know how to do that too. As the newest Cover, I’ll need to pull my weight when it comes to doing things like this. All I need is to be shown and given an opportunity to see if I can do it,” finished the teen Cover.

Mr. Ken had a big smile on his face as he listened to his newest foster telling him how he saw the sleepover and the following morning’s breakfast that he and his ‘brothers’ were responsible for putting on.

The owner of The Cove then asked Martin for his thoughts on the sleepover. The thirteen-year-old told the man that he had heard many stories about what fun things went on at The Cove, and after being exposed to just one aspect of it last night with the night-time movie, the late-night swim, midnight snack and now this awesome early morning breakfast that he was a believer.

Martin added that he never thought that when he came over to The Cove that he would also hear a first-hand account of the actual fire-fight between three intruders, who were possibly out to rob the place, and the on-scene security guards and the sheriff’s deputies who came in reserve.

Jody told Mr. Ken that he never thought that he’d ever get the chance to be invited over there and after just spending one night he is hooked and that he can’t wait to come back again, and again. He added that he hopes that he’ll be around when they go out on the Commander and they get to experience some of the fun and interesting things the boys have done like visiting the Lake Water Safety and Rescue Team Headquarters and possibly helping some hapless boater out on the lake, like Logan, Todd, Brad and Gordon did a few years back.

That last part put another smile on the owner of The Cove’s face. It told him that at least word about some of the accomplishments that the people of The Cove had been involved in has been disseminated out into the community.

When the eating was just about over and the cleanup had begun, Mr. Ken asked for the boys’ attention.

“Boys … another great sleepover is behind you. And one that you will probably remember for many years, after what Mr. Dan and Mr. Griffin revealed to you all last night. I ask you not to go out and shout it from the highest hills about what you heard last night. Let’s not put any undue attention on those men for telling their tale.

“Now, what you may have heard by now, and if you haven’t, I’m letting you all know now, is … is that next Sunday … it is going to be a ‘Cover Family Day’. You can come over on Saturday, but next Sunday you’ll have to figure out what you’re going to do around your own homes.

“The boys and I … we are first going to go out for a good breakfast, which Charles loves to do. Then afterwards … we are all going to the shooting range. There we’ll send a number of 9mm and .22LR rounds down range. When we’re finished there, we’ll find a great place to have dinner, other than at Four Corners. Your friends then … they will see you all at school on Monday.

“Tonight … Phillip and his band … they have a Halloween themed booking that goes from 7 until 10 P.M. They’re also booked to play at a wedding here at The Cove on that first Saturday of the Thanksgiving weekend. So, again, you will not be allowed to come over to The Cove on that Saturday, unless you are a part of the wedding party and the band.

“And, of course, in keeping you informed of what your Cover friends are doing … over the Holidays we will be traveling to visit my amusement parks. The dates have not been set in stone as of yet. But please be aware that when we are gone you are not allowed to come over here. Any questions?” finished up the owner of The Cove

“Yea,” spoke up one boy, “can we come with you?” All the boys laughed.

“If only it were that easy,” replied a smiling Mr. Ken.

“OK, enough of my speechifying,” started Mr. Ken. “I would now ask you boys to give a big round of applause to your Cover friends, and those volunteers, who put on this morning’s breakfast.”

The boys gave a rousing round of applause.

“Now, I also understand that for lunch there will be the usual sub-sandwich fixings available, so go out and work up an appetite and have fun,” encouraged Ken Thomas.

As the boys began to finish cleaning up the Pavilion, ‘dad’ Ken called Phillip aside. “Phillip … I don’t want you spending the whole day playing with the band and then going out to your gig tired. So … after you eat lunch … I want you to go inside and relax. Also, there is to be no swimming.

“As for your bandmates … you should suggest to them that they also need to rest and relax. And when is Jeffrey’s dad coming to get his drums? We also need to leave here around 5:45, so you need to be showered and dressed and ready to go by then. I know you boys want to continue to play, but you all know the songs and now you need to settle down before you play tonight,” counseled the boys’ ‘dad’.

That wasn’t what Phillip wanted to hear, but he knew what his ‘dad’ was saying was right. He was feeling somewhat tired and he knew if he continued to push through for the entire day, he’d be really tired when it came time to play at the booking. So, he told his ‘dad’ that he’d tell his bandmates that they needed to call their parents to come and get them after they ate lunch, so they could rest before the gig tonight.

After they helped clean up the Pavilion and put everything away and then fill up the soda machines, Darrin and his friends got out on the Cove Skate Park and had fun riding their skateboards. The seven teens loved the smooth concrete surface, as compared to what they would have to use at the local community skate parks.

What was even better for the teens was that they didn’t have to fend off the bullies, as they might have at the community parks, or have to wait long times to get on the better elements. And what they also enjoyed was that even though the Cove Skate Park had two bowls, the skate park also had a 270-degree area of quarter pipe that allowed them to practice some of their ‘moves’ without having to utilize the entire bowls and keep the other boys from using them.

Darrin was totally enjoying living there at The Cove. He often saw on the television and in the movies that there were places like The Cove, but he never knew that people actually lived like that. And here he was being given the opportunity to experience what it was like to live in a huge estate home that had all of the amenities that any boy could want. It was truly a dream come true.

The Cover and his friends took a break and when they did Jody asked if they could see Darrin’s room. And since this was the first time Jody and Martin had come to The Cove, Darrin had the boys and his other friends follow him down to the house.

The seven boys entered the house through the garage and when Darrin only used his forefinger to open the lock Martin thought that it was really awesome, that he could do that. Darrin told his new friend that it was much easier than having to carry around a bunch of keys, or leaving the door open so that anyone can enter the house without anyone knowing.

The boys walked up the back stairs, which was something else that Jody, or Martin, didn’t know about, as they only saw the front stairs last night when they went swimming, then to the Kitchen Nook and then when they went to get into their sleeping bags.

At the top of the stairs, Martin asked where the door to the left went. The Cover told him that it went to the empty space over the garage. Darrin told the boys that his foster dad showed them the space and told them that he had envisioned it being made into four more bedrooms, if there ever was a need for them.

Blake kiddingly asked, “When would Mr. Ken ever need more bedrooms?”

Darrin answered that his foster dad was dating some woman named Kate, and that if they were to get married, they might need the extra bedrooms, as she had two young boys herself. Sam and Terran spoke up and mentioned that their older brothers had talked about the woman and that she’s visited there a few times.

When Martin and Jody saw the teen Cover’s bedroom, they couldn’t believe its size. And when they saw the new computer, they asked what it was. Darrin told them that it was a Dell Intel 64-bit, i7 processor 64-bit, 8-Core with a 12MB Cache, 8GB DDR4 RAM with a 1TB 7200 RPM hard drive running Windows 10. Again, the two new friends couldn’t believe their friend had the latest computer at his disposal.

As Darrin and his friends were looking at his room and computer, Billy was getting lunch ready early, and he was looking for his new ‘brother. Hearing someone saw him and his friends walk down to the house, the oldest Cover teenager called Darrin on his cell phone.

The boys were talking about the computer and how good it was, when Darrin’s cell phone rang. Darrin told his friends that he never gets calls and he wondered who it could be. His friends told him to look at the Caller ID. So, the teen looked and saw that it was his older ‘brother’ Billy, so he knew he needed to answer it.

“Hello, Billy,” said Darrin.

“Hey, Darrin, we’re going to start lunch early and we need you to be here to help. So, how about heading on up here. OK?” replied Billy.

“Yea, sure. We’ll be right up,” answered Darrin, and then he hung up.

“I need to help set up for lunch. So, we gotta go,” was what the Cover told his friends.

The seven boys walked down the back stairs and up to the Pavilion, where Darrin was put to work helping set up the serving line for today’sfixings for the sub sandwich lunch.

Darrin couldn’t believe that there werefour different breads, six different meats along with Swiss and American cheeses to make sandwiches with. Then he was shown how to wash and pat dry the lettuce, and Billy showed him how to use the mandolin to cut the tomatoes, onions, and green peppers.

When that was done, Billy showed his newest ‘brother’ how they put out mayo to ‘butter’ the bread and Italian dressing if the person wanted a different taste on their sandwich, and then they had pickles and different types of potato chips to add to the side of their sandwich and pepper grinders and sea salt if someone wanted to enhance their creation.

Again, Darrin was blown away by what his foster dad allowed him and his ‘brothers’ to do for their friends. This sleepover weekend was an eye-opening revelation for him, something that he would never have gotten the opportunity to experience if his family hadn’t been lost to the fire.

The newest teen Cover helped with the whole presentation of the sub sandwich lunch. He and his ‘brothers’ were front and center and made sure everyone that came through the line had what they wanted for their lunch. Then, when everyone had their sub sandwich built, the Covers then made their own sandwich with what was left, and there was quite a bit left over.

After Darrin had his lunch made, he joined his friends at one of the tables under the Pavilion. Jody and Martin told their Cover friend that they had heard about people making sub sandwiches after the sleepover, but they never knew it would be like this and so much fun, too. They told him that they also liked that there were pickles and chips for them to eat along with their sandwich and, of course, they had access to the soda machines for their drink of choice.

When everyone had eaten, the Covers made sure everything was put away. Darrin and his friends, instead of using the Cover Skate Park decided to go swimming along with the other boys.

They saw Phillip also going down to the house and they asked him if he was going swimming, but the young Cover told them that he had to rest and relax, as he needed to be ready for the gig tonight. So, when the boys entered the house Darrin and his friends went down the stairs, while Phillip went up.

Mr. Wayne heard the two Covers out in the Foyer so, he went out there to talk to them. When he heard that Phillip was going up to his room to rest and relax before his gig he was satisfied. But because Darrin and his friends were going to go swimming, he told the new Cover that when they went swimming, they entered through the Great Room and not through the main portion of the house.

The Estate Master told Darrin that he’d overlook it this time because he’d never been told otherwise, but that was how they should do it from now on. Then he looked to Terran and Sam and told them that they knew better, and that they should have told Darrin what the rules were. The two young teens lowered their heads and apologized to Mr. Wayne and the man then let them proceed to the pool.

While Phillip was up in the roomrelaxing, Donald Jenkins came to The Cove to pick up his son and his drum set. The older boys helped the man move the drums into his vehicle and then Billy, Charles and Matthew told him that they’d see him at the booking and that they would help move the drums into the building. Mr. Jenkins was happy to know the ‘roadies’ would be there again tonight.

Other band member’s parents also came to pick up their son and their band equipment. With the entire band gone by two o’clock The Cove was unusually quiet, as compared to when the band played and sang almost all day long.

With Darrin and his friends going swimming early, the lifeguards engaged them in playing the games with the other boys that they had devised a few years back. The first game had them broken up into groups with half on one side of the pool and the other half on the opposite side.

When the game began, one partner took an object over to their partner who had to take it back. But the twist to the game was that the thirteen and older boys had to walk backwards. That explained why there were mixed up on different teams. Darrin said that he now wished his ‘brother’ and his bandmates werestill there, as they wouldn’t have to walk backwards. The boys played the game and it was fun for everyone, even though Darrin, Jody and Martin had never played before.

The next game they played was for the teams to place an item on the bottom of the pool and for the team member to retrieveit, while leaving another one. The team member had to dive down to get the item and leave theirs. Some boys did have a problem diving down in the deeper end. But again, the boys had fun doing something different than what they would normally have done which was just swim around and talk.

As the day moved on, ‘dad’ Ken and Billy went to the bank, so they both could deposit their checks that Mr. Ken’s lawyer, Bill Jackson, brought them from the newspaper. Billy had no immediate need for ready cash, so he just deposited his check and immediately bought one-year, at maturity, Certificates of Deposit, which were offering the highest rate of return.

Mr. Ken had his check deposited and spread amongst his personal savings, checking, and money market accounts. The teller was surprised at the size of both checks, especially when one was made out to a sixteen-year-old. She wanted to ask where a teenager gets an insurance company to give him so much money, but she knew asking that sort of question would get her fired.

But before Billy left the teller’s window, he decided to take out $600.00. He told Mr. Ken that this way he could give it to Mr. Chris for the next three months of money to be sent to his mother, so this way he doesn’t forget with the Holiday coming up so fast. The foster dad applauded the teen for thinking that far ahead.

Then when the two Covers returned to The Cove, Billy asked if he could read the apology that the newspaper had published. Mr. Ken went to his filing cabinet and pulled the article out for the teenager to read. Billy sat down in one of the leather chairs and took a few moments to read what the newspaper had written.

When the teen was finished reading, he looked to his foster dad and remarked, “Mr. Ken … I think they did a pretty good job of acknowledging that they messed up and they took … they told everyone that they did and then they apologized to us personally. Is that how you saw this?”

Mr. Ken smiled at the teenager and told him that he fully agreed with his assessment and he gleefully cashed the check they, well their insurance company, gave him. Billy smiled back at his foster dad and replied that he enjoyed cashing their check as well.

‘Dad’ Ken then went upstirs to make sure Phillip was getting ready for his gig, only to find the boy fast asleep on his bed. Lucky it was only five o’clock, so when the ‘dad’ awakened the boy Phillip had enough time to get a shower, dress and be downstairs, so they all could head off to the gig on time.

The dolly and hand truck had been delivered, as Mr. Chris had promised, and were in the van when the Covers drove out the Main Gate. Mr. Dennis had decided to stay on the estate to allow the boys to stay until six that Saturday night.

Robert and Darrin, just as they did for the first gig last weekend, had decided not to go to the dance, but to stay there with their friends. ‘Dad’ Ken had again given them money to order pizza later.

The dance was to go on from seven to ten o’clock that Saturday night and the Covers arrived in plenty of time for the roadies, Billy, Charles and Matthew, to unload Phillip’s guitar and the sound system and get it set up inside the venue.

By the time they had done what they needed to do, Mr. Jenkins had arrived with Jeffrey’s drums. The roadies then proceeded to bring the drums set inside and set it up, too. They also helped the other band members with anything they needed help with, such as with the keyboard and stand, as they arrived.

The band did a tune up and sound check and they all looked good up there on the stage in their black pants, black shoes and that bright white Nightmare Before Christmas t-shirt on.

At seven o’clock the band started their first song and the dance started strong. And as the band played, Charles had taken out his Go-Pro and began recording the event. He wanted to use his Quadcopter, but his dad told him that in the closed area it might not be such a good idea if the device crashed into someone.

As the two teen Covers ate their pizza, Darrin told Robert that he read as much as he could on Google about Three Finger Cover and The Cove and the things that happened there. So, he asked Robert to tell him some more about The Cove and some of the happenings that went on there, especially the 4^th of July Carnivals.

Robert told the new teen about the Carnivals different rides and games and how he and his ‘brothers’ got to test the rides the night before. The older teen told Darrin about the foods and how his dad gave out coupons for the local people to use to buy the foods, which his dad, in turn, reimbursed the churches, as his way of making a charitable contribution to them.

The older Cover continued and told the newest Cover about the 4^th of July fireworks and how good they looked from the one finger of the cove. Then he told of the rides his dad used to take them on out on the lake, and over to the Lakeside Water Park.

Darrin then asked Robert if he thought Mr. Ken would marry the woman he was dating. Robert smiled back at his new ‘brother’ and said that he felt like he would, as his dad had made many trips back east to visit with her and that she had visited The Cove a few times as well.

Darrin then asked what it was like to visit his dad’s amusement parks. Robert got a big smile on his face right then and began telling the teen about how they would go to visit them, as soon as school was over, and spend a day and a half at one park, fly to the next and do that all over again.

The older teen then told Darrin that during the Holidays they’d fly to the parks and spend just one day at each park. Robert explained that it was fun, but you had to stay focused because you got up early, flew to the park, experienced it, slept and repeated it. Darrin said that he bet they were all tired when they returned home.

Robert laughed and told his new ‘brother’ that they didn’t have time to be tired, as they had the New Year’s Eve Party to get ready for and that was the highlight of the Holidays with the Vocational High School Christmas Decoration Competition being announced, the two big New Year’s Eve Partys going on and all the important politicians and local businessmen and women attending and that he’d get to experience it for himself this December.

Darrin then asked Robert to name some of the important people who’d attended his dad’s New Year’s Eve Parties. Robert smiled and started with the County Commissioners, District Attorney, County Court Judges and then he revealed that the Governor came the first year and the Lt. Governor came last year. Hearing that the two most important people in the state had attended one of Mr. Ken Holiday parties the new Cover was astonished that his foster dad was that well connected.

Darrin then asked Robert if he knew how rich his dad was. Robert smiled and told Darrin that he didn’t know exactly how much money his dad had and that if he knew he wouldn’t tell him. Robert told his new ‘brother’ that it was a private thing, and that he had no business knowing, or even asking.

Then the older teen continued and added that the new Cover could see that his dad has more than a few dollars available to him and that he uses it to provide that awesome home for them to live in and that he has bought and owns six amusement parks, a car wash, a storage lot, a marina, a couple of restaurants, a hotel and an office building.

Darrin just sat there open mouthed at what he’d just learned. He knew his foster dad owned a lot of things, but he never knew to what extent his holdings spread out.

Darrin then apologized to Robert for asking that question. He told his ‘brother’ that he was just curious, and that was all. Robert told the teen that his dad doesn’t flaunt his money, and he will make sure that they have what they need to be healthy and well fed and that he will take them on trips wherever he feels they will thoroughly enjoy the experience. Robert then told Darrin of some of the places that he’s been to ever since he began living at The Cove.

At where the band Pavilion was playing, they took a break and Phillip went looking for his mom. He looked and looked and he asked his ‘brothers’, and Mr. Ken, if they’d seen her. He was so hoping that she would show up to watch him. And when the band’s break was over, Mackenzie Flores had yet to be seen.

Ken Thomas continued to look for Mackenzie as the band continued to play. He had also hoped the boy’s mother would show up and support her only son, but he figured two weeks in a row might be asking too much of the woman who didn’t seem to put too much focus on her own son, Phillip, but who did enjoy herself being out on the town with her ‘man’ friends, as he had learned from his having Jules Diamond Security check up on her activities.

While Darrin and Robert were talking, the newest Cover asked his ‘brother’ if he ever got out of The Cove and walked around. Darrin qualified his question by saying that all of the neighborhood that he’s ever seen is what he sees from the school bus, and whenever he’s been driven from and to the estate and he wondered if there was any more to it than that.

Robert told his ‘brother’ that the one and only time that he and his ‘brothers’ walked around the neighborhood was a few years ago when they went out Trick-Or-Treating. The older teen said that the area is not that old, so the houses are fairly new and well kept up. Robert added that he heard his dad tell someone that this was the last piece of undeveloped land when he bought it and it was 17 acres, which could have held a large number of homes.

Darrin then asked Robert what were all the things sticking out of the ceilings for. Robert looked up and told the teen that he should have recognized the smoke alarm and that if one goes off, they all go off throughout the entire home, so that anybody in the house knows there is a fire.

Robert then told Darrin that other item was a concealed residential fire sprinkler that would atomically begin spraying water over the area whenever a fire was detected. The new teen Cover asked if every sprinkler would start spraying water. But Robert told the teen that only where the fire was would water spray out to either stop or slow the spread of the fire until the fire department arrived.

The older Cover then asked Darrin if he saw that big box under the window in his room and ever wondered about what it was. The new teen indicated that he was curious, so he asked Robert to tell him what it was. The older teenager told Darrin that in that box was an escape fire ladder and that the fire department came over about two years ago and let them use one to climb down to the Patio.

Darrin was surprised that his dad let them do that. Robert told him that it was his dad’s idea to let them do that, so they knew they could do it in case they ever had to. Robert further explained that the firemen were there with them and that they had these air bags they could put under them, and that the firemen put ropes under them to steady them as they climbed down. Darrin wondered out loud if they’d ever get to do that again.

At the band’s venue, they were playing strong and everyone was enjoying the large sound the six instruments pushed out, as well as the strong vocals that the eight boys gave the dancers and onlookers, namely the parents.

The man who’d contracted to hire the band for the night came over to Mr. Ken and told him that he had only remembered seeing five band members back during the Labor Day Picnic, but that he could be wrong.

Mr. Ken smiled at the man and told him, “Back then there were four boys playing instruments, but what you probably missed were the two extra boys who were also singing. But since then, they’ve added a keyboard player and a bass guitarist to round out their sound. And, I must admit, that they sure do sound a whole lot better now than they did back then.”

The man agreed and said that those boys were playing their hearts out and the music they were playing was strong and the young boys and girls, who were dancing to it, had told him how surprised they were at how young the band was. The man added that he made a good choice in hiring them and that he might want them for their Christmas Dance, too. Mr. Ken smiled at hearing that.

As the dance was winding down, Phillip saw two familiar faces out in the audience. His heart filed with joy when he not only saw his mother, but his grandmother as well. He couldn’t wait until the set was over and he could go to them and hug them for coming to see him. Mr. Ken saw the two women, as they came into the venue, and he was happy to see them, for Phillip’s sake.

And when the last song for the night was over, the crowd asked, well they actually more like begged, for one more song and the band obliged by givingthem a good send-off song. Then when it was over the boys and girls asked for just one more. But the dance organizers told them that the band had to get home and that the crowd should give them a big round of applause for the awesome sounds they presented tonight.

And that was what the crowd did. Then Billy got up on the stage and began introducing the band members one by one, and when he came to Phillip, the Cover teenager introduced him as, Phillip Girroads, the Pavilion’s organizer and band leader. The crowd gave the young Cover a special round of applause.

When Phillip went to his mother and grandmother, he received big hugs from both women. It was his grandmother. Adeline, who told him, “My grandson … you were marvelous up there tonight leading your band. And what a band it is!

“Phillip … I am very proud of what you have not only done for yourself, but that you have shown your mother that your plucking on a guitar was not just a waste of time. I am sure that we have your Mr. Ken to thank for making it possible that you had a good teacher to show you the way,” finished Adeline Flores, who then grabbed her grandson into another big hug.

Ken Thomas was standing nearby when the three were talking, and he heard what Adeline had to say. He only wished that Mackenzie would see that her son needed that encouragement now and, in the future, when they finally returned living again together, as mother and son.

Mackenzie also told her son that he was amazing up there on the stage and that she thought that the band sounded much better tonight than they had last weekend. She added that after talking to his grandmother last week, she wanted to see and hear him for herself, which was why they were so late arriving.

The three talked and talked until it was time for Phillip to load up into the van with his brothers’ and go to get something to eat. He gave each of the women a big hug and a kiss and then the youngest Cover was gone with his Cover ‘family’.

What neither Mackenzie, her son Phillip nor foster parent Ken Thomas knew was that Mackenzie Flores had been followed, as she picked up her mother and had driven to the venue that Saturday evening.

Mackenzie had also been followed that previous Sunday, as she drove to watch her son, Phillip, play at the other gig the boy’s band had.

Ever since Rafael Ruiz had been sentenced to serve 15-years in a Texas State Penitentiary controlled by Texas Department of Criminal Justice, he set out to seek revenge on the two people he held responsible for putting him there.

The revengeful man had instructed his minions to follow Mackenzie and find the best opportune time when she and her son were together and to put a hurt on them that they would never forget. If they lived that long.

The roadies had done a quick tear down of the drum set for Mr. Jenkins and then the sound system and had everything loaded into the right vehicles within forty minutes after the end of the dance. The Covers were all tired and hungry and the question was where did everyone want to go to eat. The boys won out and McDonalds was where ‘dad’ Ken drove to.

The group went inside to wash their hands first and then to order what they wanted to eat. Big Macs, Quarter Pounders with Cheese, large fries and either cokes, or shakes, were what the boys ordered. Mr. Ken settled for a McDouble, with no cheese, medium fries and a medium decaf coffee.

The Covers found a corner table and they talked about the dance and how the band performed, as they ate. ‘Dad’ Ken told Phillip that the man who booked them was delighted at how much better they were than at the Labor Day Picnic when he heard them and was now thinking of booking them for their Christmas Dance. Phillip was all smiles.

Charles told everyone that he had his Gro-Pro there tonight and that he videoed the majority of the dance. He told them that he would download it so that everyone could watch it when they wanted. Phillip told him to let him know when it was ready to be watched.

Billy then mentioned that he saw Phillip with two older women tonight. Then he teased him and asked him if he had two older girlfriends now because he was a big band leader. All the boys laughed.

Phillip answered that by saying they all knew that it was his mom and grandmother, and that they were late getting there because his grandmother wanted to see and hear him and she took a long time getting ready. When he finished, the young Cover had tears in his eyes that they were both there to see him.

Billy got up and went to Phillip and apologized to him for teasing him. But Phillip told his older ‘brother’ that it was OK, because that was what older ‘brothers’ did to their younger ‘brothers’. The two then hugged and the rest of the boys joined in with a group hug. ‘Dad’ Ken just sat back and watched and told himself how grateful he was to have such a wonderful group of young men living with him.

Chief and Sarge were ready for the Covers to come into the Kitchen Nook when they returned to The Cove that Saturday night. The resident pets greeted them like they hadn’t seen them for a week as they danced and pranced all around them wanting their attention, as well as behind the ear scratches and belly rubs.

All of the Covers headed to the Study which was a habit for them. But ‘dad’ told them all to head up to their rooms instead and rest and relax some because some of them had a long day and need to unwind. He told them that he’d be up to say goodnight to them in a few minutes and that he wasn’t going to stay long.

Dad Ken then told his son, Charles, that they were not going out to breakfast in the morning, as they would be doing that the following weekend. All the boys laughed, as they walked up the stairs.

True to his word, ‘dad’ Ken did not stay very long in any of the boys’ rooms that night. All the man did was give them a goodnight hug and then told them to sleep well and that he’d see them in the morning.

It had been a busy sleepover and then there was the dance, but the Covers had survived. They all were tired enough that they would fall asleep soon after laying their heads down on their pillows. Even the owner of The Cove fell right off to sleep after he lay down himself. The Cove, thankfully, 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

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