Published: 2 Apr 2026

From the Previous Chapter:

As soon as Phillip sat back down, he reached into his pocket and he squeezed his coin. The man saw that he’d done something in his pocket and asked him where his cell phone was. Phillip pulled his cell phone out of the pocket from the other side of his shorts and placed it on the table. The man took it and placed it in his pants pocket. He then asked Mackenzie for her phone and did the same with it.
 
 
Ken Thomas was in the General Aviation Terminal at the Austin-Bergstrom Airport seeing Kate and her family off when his cell phone rang. When he answered the phone, he learned that it was Diamond Security telling him that one of his coins just went off.

Mr. Ken’s first question to the man at Diamond Security was, “Whose coin, was it?”

Upon learning it was Phillip’s his next question was, “Where it is located?”

The Diamond Security operator told Mr. Ken that it was located at the Four Corners Diner and that the Sheriff’s Office had already been notified. Mr. Ken thanked the man for the information and answering his questions.

Mr. Ken then told Kate and Edith what he just learned. The women were shocked that Phillip had to activate his coin, but none of them knew why. Ken called the boys cell phone, but as it rang in the man’s pocket it was not answered.

Phillip told the man that he needed to answer his phone, as it could be his foster dad wanting to know where he is. The man laughed and told the boy to just stay where he was.

Mr. Ken, when Phillip didn’t answer his phone, then called Wayne.

When the Estate Master answered The Cove’s phone in the Study, he was surprised to learn that it was Mr. Ken.

“Wayne … Diamond Security … they just called me and they told me that Phillip’s coin just went off! He’s down in the Four Corners Diner. The Sheriff’s Deputies have been dispatched and that’s all I know. I am still at the airport and it will be at least ninety minutes, or longer, before I can get home,” quickly announced Mr. Ken.

“I have this strange feeling the Rafael Ruiz is behind this. I’m going to call Dan to see if he’s been notified and if he has any other information,” offered Wayne’s employer.

“Should I tell the other boys?” now asked Wayne.

“Wayne … watch the TV. If you see that the news stations are sending news crews to the scene, then I’d say that you should tell them. But don’t let them go down there. Keep them inside the estate. I’ll call you if and when I know anything more,” finished Ken Thomas.

“Why … why are you doing this?” asked Phillip, as he wanted to know.

“You know why. You were supposed to hold something for Rafael. But you weren’t there when he came for it, were you? So, your mother here … she took a beating just because you weren’t there,” admitted the gang banger.

“But … but I couldn’t help it,” argued the Cover. “They came, CPS did, and they took me away. I … well, I tried to get back over there, but Rafael had already … he’d already beaten my mom and ransacked the apartment, I later learned.”

“He didn’t do that. I did,” laughed the man. “All he did was search the apartment for the gun you were supposed to hold for him, but he couldn’t find it. That was why everything was broken. He was mad that he couldn’t find the gun that he gave you to hold for him. You were supposed to be there, kid. Later, he tried to talk to you at that Easter thing, but … but you had him arrested.”

“That wasn’t me! That … it was my foster dad who had him arrested and that was for attacking my mom,” continued to argue Phillip.

“Why did he try to rob The Cove, then?” now asked Phillip.

The man laughed. “He didn’t go there to rob the place. He went there looking for you. That was so he could take you away and then do to you what we’re going to do for him, when we finally take you away from here,” continued to laugh the man.

While Phillip was distracting the man, Jeanie had already talked to the Diner’s manager about the gun and he in-turn had called the Sheriff’s Department to make them aware of a potential problem at the Four Corners Diner.

Mr. Ken, after talking to Wayne to make him aware that Phillip had activated his coin and was at the Four Corners Diner and that he wasn’t answering his phone, made his next phone call. That call went to his best friend Dan.

When Sheriff’s Lieutenant Dan Fischer answered his phone, he knew by the Caller ID that it was his friend Ken. He figured he knew why he was calling, so when he answered he said, “Ken, Diamond Security called and we already have men dispatched to the Four Corners Diner about their being a security situation there. And, Ken, the off-duty men working at the amusement park have been notified about the gun inside the Diner, as well.

“Dan, what gun? I didn’t know anything about a gun at the Diner! The reason that I called was that Diamond Security called me because Phillip … because he activated his coin for some reason. And, he isn’t answering his phone. Dan, something bad is happening inside there and my bet is it has something to do with Rafael Ruiz somehow,” offered Ken Thomas.

Ken also told his friend that he just dropped Kate and her family off at the Austin-Bergstrom Airport and was at least ninety minutes away.

The gang banger who was keeping Phillip and his mother from leaving kept watching out the windows for his cohorts to arrive. What he hadn’t noticed was that as Phillip was keeping the man preoccupied with his questions was it allowed Jeanie, the other waitresses and the manager to slowly get many of the other customers to exit the Diner through the kitchen. But they were not able to remove all of the people, as some were near or next to where Phillip and Mackenzie were seated.

A car finally did pull up out in front of the Diner and two men, brandishing guns, did get out and began to rush into the building. But the off-duty Sheriff Deputies, who were working up at the Four Corners Amusement Park and were notified of a possible man carrying a gun inside the Diner, had come down from the amusement park and were hidden just outside waiting for their back-up to arrive.

When they saw the men with their guns get out of the vehicle, they called out to them, “Stop! Sheriff Deputies. Drop your weapons. And get down on the ground. Now!”

But all the men did was shoot towards the sound of the deputies’ voices and run into the Diner. As they did that, they could the hear sirens of the Sheriff’s Deputies, who’d been dispatched to the area were now getting closer.

“What did you do that for?” asked the gang banger, who was inside the Diner, of the two men who just entered.

“There’s Sheriff Deputies outside and they wanted us to give up,” replied one of the gunmen. “How did they know that you were here and we were coming?” he now asked.

The gangbanger looked at Phillip, then he said, “He was fumbling with something in his pocket. I thought he might have been trying to use his phone, but it was in his other pocket. But I took it and his mother’s phones.”

“Let’s see what’s in your pocket, kid!” demanded one of the gunmen.

Phillip begrudgingly brought out his coin. It was hot to the touch, as the battery had worked as advertised, and he put in on the table. The man picket it up and he almost dropped it because it was so hot.

“Why is this coin so hot, kid!” demanded the man.

“It’s my lucky coin and I’ve been holding it, that’s why,” shot back Phillip.

As soon as the Sheriff’s Deputies put out a ‘Shot’s Fired’ call over the air waves, the news media picked up on it and began to send reporters to the Four Corners area to start reporting on it.

With the situation unfolding at the Four Corners Diner, the Sheriff’s Deputies also dispatched additional manpower to the area as they now needed to shut down the amusement park and get those people to safety. All of that also went out over the air waves which caused the news media to break into current programming and report what was happening.

Mr. Wayne heard and saw what was happening at the Four Corners area on the TV and decided he better let Mr. Ken know before he calls the boys to come down to the Study to let them know what might be happening to their ‘brother’.

After talking to his employer, the Estate Master called Bill and asked him to bring all of his ‘brothers’ down to the Study, as he had something very important that he needed to talk to them about. But Billy told him that they were preparing the barbeque just then and asked if he could come up there.

Mr. Wayne thought about that for a few moments and he decided to drive up there and pull the boys aside and tell them what was happening down at the Four Corners Diner.

Once at the Pavilion, Mr. Wayne took Bill, Robert, Eric, Charles, Darrin and Matthew into the garage and told him what he knew about the gunmen at the Four Corners Diner. He told them that Phillip had squeezed his coin and that Diamond Security had dispatched the Sheriff’s Deputies there.

The Estate Master told them that their ‘dad’ has tried to called Phillip’s cell phone, but that the boy was not answering. The man added that Mr. Ken now feels that this has Rafael Ruiz behind it since Phillip and his mother were there without any security.

Upon hearing that their ‘brother’ was without any security, Robert and Charles quickly demanded to know why their ‘brother’ didn’t have one of the security guards with him. Mr. Wayne told him that with Ruiz in prison their dad didn’t think he would need it, but that hindsight was always 20/20 and they couldn’t do anything about it, now.

The boys wanted to go down there, but Mr. Wayne told them that the Sheriff’s Deputies have cordoned off the area, so they wouldn’t even be able to get close. Billy pulled out his cell phone and tried to call Phillip, but all it did was ring.

“You sure must be a popular kid. You phone keeps ringing,” laughed the gangbanger, as he looked at the cell phone he’d taken out of his pocket.

“I told you that my ‘dad’ … that he is probably trying to find out where I am. You should let me answer it,” again demanded Phillip.

The gangbanger looked at the cell phone number and told the Cover that the number was different this time. The man then threw the phone on the floor and stepped on it in order to break it. “Now we won’t have to worry about whose calling you now, will we?” All three men laughed that the phone will never work again.

The men then looked out all the windows and they saw that there were a large assembly of Sheriff’s Deputies surrounding the Diner. They then got together and talked about what their next move should be. They discussed that they not only had Mackenzie and Phillip, but they also had six other people as potential hostages that they could possibly use as shields to get out of there.

The two gunmen then asked the gangbanger what happened to the other customers that should be inside the Diner when he entered. The banger told them that had no idea, other than that they somehow were able to sneak out, while his back was turned.

The one gunman suggested that with eight people that should be enough protection for them to get to their vehicles and make a run for it. The question they had to first decide was who would take Phillip.

The gangbanger argued that he would take the boy and the mother, as he was the one who found them. One of the gunmen told the banger that he was the one who also screwed up the kidnapping and he should take any two of the female hostages. The three began to argue and it got so heated between them that one of the gunmen fired his pistol into the ceiling.

That gunman then made the decision that he was taking Phillip and the man who came with him was taking the mother and the gangbanger would take anyone else. He reasoned that trying to control two people would only lead them to getting themselves killed.

When ‘dad’ Ken finally arrived back at The Cove his sons and foster sons descended upon him with questions about Rafael Ruiz and why Phillip didn’t have security with him. The man answered their questions as best he could and told them that he had no indication that Ruiz would pull anything like this from prison.

But ‘dad’ Ken revealed that now since Phillip had activated his coin and that he wasn’t answering his cell phone the only conclusion he could come up with was that Rafael Ruiz was behind what was going on at Four Corners.

After learning what was happening down at Four Corner’s, and that Phillip may be involved., the Cover’s friends were now just as interested in what was happening at the Diner as the Covers were. So, they had turned on the television that was up in the rafters, so they could keep abreast of what was going on there.

The barbeque went on as planned, since everything was already cooked. But it was quiet under the Pavilion as everyone ate and watched the TV. All they could see on the television, from the distance that the authorities had the news media located, was that the Sheriff’s Deputies had the Four Corners Diner/Restaurant surrounded on all sides.

The news media had also released the fact that there were at least two, but as many as eight, people still inside the Diner, but they had not released any names, as the Sheriff’s office had not provided them, as of yet.

All of the boys and the two adults under the Pavilion were riveted to the television screen to try to get the latest information. None of the boys were interested in skating or swimming until they knew the outcome of the situation down at Four Corners.

The Sheriff’s negotiator had already begun to call inside the Diner, but to no avail, as no one ever answered the phone. He also used his bullhorn trying to engage the gunmen, but again, none of the men came to the door to reply. It was now going on three-thirty with no movement from the men inside.

The gang members knew they needed to make a plan to break out of the Diner and do it quickly. They talked amongst themselves saying that the longer they stayed in there the more Sheriff Deputies there would be outside that would hinder their escape.

They all had guns and they knew how to use them and they obviously weren’t afraid to use them as witnessed by the two gunmen’s arrival at the Diner. They had a plan, they just needed to figure out how to implement it. Did they go out one at a time. Or, did all three go out together each holding a hostage.

The one hiccup to their plan was that gangbanger’s car was the furthest away from the Diner and he would need some sort of cover in order to get to it, before he could drive off. The two gunmen’s vehicle was just outside the door, so they could just walk down the steps and get inside and hopefully drive off.

The gangbanger had decided that he’d take two hostages with him. He told his two companions that he felt the more cover he had the better it was for him that they couldn’t take him out without hitting the captives, which would be women. He also told them that he’d go first, but that he wanted them to go right after he did to throw the Sheriff’s planning off if they had decided to take them out one-by-one.

While Ruiz’s men were discussing strategy, Phillip was whispering to his mom that they had to do whatever they could to get away from the men. He reminded her that they were probably planning on killing them, if they got them away from there, so they had nothing to lose by trying to save themselves.

Mackenzie was very scared from what was happening to her and her son and now she was hearing her son telling her that she had to fight their captors when the time came. She whispered back to Phillip that they would do no such thing, as it could get them hurt,

Phillip was exasperated at his mother and told her, “Yes mom, we can get hurt. But you heard him. They have big plans for us and I bet it will lead to us getting hurt in one way or another. So, what would you rather do? Get hurt here and be saved by the Sheriff Deputies, or go with them and … and maybe not survive what they have planned?

“As for me, I’m gonna fight them! I’d rather die here fighting than to let them kill me slowly where no one will ever find my body!” almost screamed the young Cover.

“Hey, what are you two talking about over there?” yelled the one gunman.

“Nothing! I’m saying some prayers,” barked Phillip back at the man.

“Well, you better say a lot of them, as you’re going to need them, where you’re going,” laughed the man.

“See mom,” whispered Phillip.

Mr. Ken called Dan trying to get any additional information that he could. When Dan answered he knew what his friend was calling about and he told Ken Thomas that they were taking a wait-and-see stance for now and they were waiting for the gunmen to make the first move. The Sheriff’s Lieutenant told Mr. Ken that the men in the Diner hadn’t answered the phone nor have they responded to any of the negotiator’s advances.

Ken Thomas was disappointed at hearing that. He again told Dan that he felt that Rafael Ruiz was behind all that was happening at Four Corners. Dan told his friend not to tell anyone but that waitress Jeanie had identified the man who had the gun in his waistband as one of Ruiz’s gang members, so his instincts weren’t too far off.

Dan also told him, in passing, that the two gunmen, who engaged the Sheriff Deputies, who came down from the amusement park, were also identified by the deputies as members of Ruiz’s gang.

The last question that the owner of The Cove asked Dan was if Sheriff Barnes knows that Phillip and his mother are inside the Diner. Dan told his friend that he did know and he also knows the names of the other six hostages. Dan then told Ken that he needed to get off the phone and for him to stay where he is. He also told him that he’d call when he has any important information to tell him. Then the call was ended.

Mr. Ken had to tell someone what he knew. So, he quickly picked up the phone and he was going to call Kate. But he quickly realized that she was still in the air as the flight would take at least three to three and a half hours and the man’s fiancée was only half way home.

Ken Thomas was distraught over not knowing what was happening to his foster son and why.

Inside the Diner, time was moving forward and the men were now discussing if they wanted to wait until the sun went down, to try to escape under the somewhat cover of darkness, or did they want to attempt to leave while the sun was low on the horizon.

One of the gunmen took out his cell phone and learned that the sun would set at 5:36 that day and it was now only four o’clock. That was another ninety minutes they would have to wait before they could make their break from the Diner. And even then, there was no guarantee that they would make it with all of the Sheriff Deputies outside waiting for them to make their move.

Fifteen minutes later, the gangbanger decided that he was going to make his break. He told his compatriots that they had to make their break and the sooner the better, and without giving them any advance notice.

The three argued some, but in the end they all agreed that it was either now, or later. But they all knew that it would have to happen and they figured the more ambient light they had the better they could spot their targets, if they had to shoot their way out.

The first preparation they did was to make sure their Glocks were fully loaded. Second, they silently identified which two women the gangbanger would take with him. The two gunmen then flipped a coin to see who would hold Phillip, as they exited the Diner.

At four-thirty the men went to the two identified women and dragged them out of their chairs. The women immediately collapsed to the floor crying in hysterics. The gunmen pulled them up by their hair and told them to stand up, or take a bullet to the brain right there. The women, still crying, stood up.

Then one gunman abruptly pulled Phillip out of his chair, while the second gunman pulled Mackenzie out of hers. Mackenzie decided to fight and she struggled to get away. But all it got her was a gun under her chin and being told that it was either a bullet, or she walked with them. She decided to walk.

It was four-forty-five when word came over the police radio that there was movement at the Diner’s front door. Word went out to the Sheriff’s Deputies to prepare to contain the gunmen,

Then word came over the radio that each of the three men had hostages, with one of the men having at least two women, while one man had Phillip and one had Mackenzie. That changed the Sheriff’s plan of action.

One action that the Sheriff Deputies did put into action was that as soon as the men went out the front door, the deputies went into the Diner through the kitchen and freed the remaining hostages and took them out through the kitchen. The deputies then went back inside to stand behind the Diner’s front door to capture the gunmen if they decided to come back inside.

Outside, the Sheriff’s negotiator called out for the men to drop their weapons, release their hostages and for them to get face down on the landing.

The three men looked at one another and the man with the two women decided to rush down the steps. As he did that the women stumbled and fell and as they did the man was shot where he stood on the steps.

The other two men, who had pointed their guns at Phillip’s and Mackenzie’s heads, were now momentarily surprised at their companion being shot, gave the young Cover the chance to look over to his mom and yell to her, “Now!”

With that one word, Phillip and Mackenzie went limp and dropped out of their captor’s grasp and the two men were then both shot. The Sheriff Deputies then rushed out of the Diner to contain the men, while other Deputies rushed to protect the two women, Phillip and his mother, in case the men still had access to their guns.

Phillip, Mackenzie and the two women were quickly escorted away from the mayhem at the steps of the Diner, so they wouldn’t see what had become of the three men. Emergency medical personnel immediately took the four hostages to a waiting ambulance, which drove off, with sirens’ blaring, to the hospital to be checked out and to be debriefed by the detectives.

The phone rang in The Cove’s Study and when Ken Thomas answered it, Dan Fischer on the other end.

“It’s over. They were just freed. The ambulance took them to the hospital. I’m not sure if they’ll let you see them, but it won’t hurt if you go over there,” announced the Sheriff’s Lieutenant.

“Thanks Dan, I owe ya!” replied a relieved, but teary-eyed, Ken Thomas.

The boys had been watching the television up at the Pavilion when it all went down. They didn’t see the shootings, but they sure did hear them. The TV cameras hadn’t caught the shootings as they were located quite some distance from the Diner’s front door, and even so, they immediately pulled back and away from the scene, just in case they might have caught something.

The on-scene reporters came over the air waves saying that something had happened, but they weren’t sure what and they were awaiting word and would report it as soon as the Sheriff’s public information officer gave them whatever they could.

The boys were talking amongst themselves about what they had just seen and what they thought had happened. That was when the Cover boys saw their ‘dad’ quickly driving out the Main Gate.

Robert pulled out his cell phone and called his dad, but the man didn’t answer. The teen then called Mr. Wayne to find out what he knew.

“Mr. Wayne … do you know why did my dad … why he rushed out the Main Gate?” asked Robert.

Wayne Mitchell thought about what he wanted to tell the man’s son. “Robert … your ‘brother’ … he’s been taken to the hospital. Mr. Dan called him and told him that. So, your dad… he’s gone there in the hopes to see your ‘brother’. He didn’t want all of you there, as he didn’t even know, what, if anything had happened to him. He’ll call me when he gets to see him and he learns anything.”

Robert was disappointed that he didn’t know any more than when he called, other than Phillip was taken to the hospital. The Cover teen told everyone what he just learned. As soon as he did, all the boys cell phones were pulled out and calls were made to their parents.

Eric’s call to his mother put her in action. The Director of Children’s Protective Services quickly got her briefcase and went out to her car and headed over to the hospital in order to see one of her charges. She figured she would be rebuffed upon her arrival, but she would use her authority as the Director to move those mountains if necessary.

Upon his arrival at the hospital, Ken Thomas immediately attempted to see his foster son, Phillip. But the staff in the emergency room told them that there was no one by the name of Phillip Girroads had been admitted there.

Mr. Ken stood there trying to figure out what the Sheriff’s Department might have done with the boy, his mother and any other people that may have brought there from the Diner. Then he spotted Lieutenant Matthias and Sergeant Roberts and he followed them. He figured they were there to debrief Phillip and Mackenzie. He watched as the two detectives entered an out of the way room being guarded by a Deputy.

He tried to gain entrance by claiming that he was the boy’s guardian. But the Deputy told him that the boy’s mother was with him and thus he had no standing. Ken Thomas told the Deputy that he did have standing until the courts said otherwise and that he better let him see his charge.

The Sheriff’s Deputy told Mr. Ken to move on before he arrests him for obstruction and interfering with an officer in the performance of his duty. The Deputy added that he’d then lose any hope of seeing anyone tonight.

Ken Thomas walked away and had decided to call Dan when he saw Ms. Judy come in the hospital. She quickly asked him if she knew where they were keeping Phillip and when she learned that he was being kept incommunicado she became visibly upset. She then asked him to show her where this private room was.

“I am the Director of Children’s Protective Services and you are holding one of my charges in this room. So, I demand that you allow me to see him at once,” demanded Ms. Judy.

“Listen, lady, no one goes in this room without the Sheriff’s say so. So, beat it!” the Deputy gruffly announced.

Ms. Judy brought out he sell phone and called Sheriff Barnes. The Deputy laughed.

“Sheriff, Judy Turner, Director of Children’s Protective Services. You are holding one of my charges and this so-called deputy just told me to go jump in a lake. By-the-way, Phillip’s foster dad, you know him, Ken Thomas, is also here with me and was told essentially the same thing. Is this an election year, and do you wish to stay Sheriff?” asked Ms. Judy.

Sheriff Barnes understood the underlying implication if what Ms. Turner was saying. So, he had Ms. Judy give the phone to the Deputy who heard the Sheriff tell him to have Matthias and Roberts come to the door.

When the two detectives came to the door, they saw who was there and learned that Sheriff Barnes was on the phone. The Sheriff over the phone’s speaker told the two men to allow the two people to talk to Phillip, and then finish their debriefing without them there.

That satisfied Mr. Ken and Ms. Judy and they both entered the room.

Phillip, seeing ‘dad’ Ken enter the room, ran to the man and hugged him and cried. “They … they were going to take me away and do something to me. I … I think they were going to … to kill me, ‘dad’,” continued to cry the young Cover.

Ms. Judy heard what Phillip had said and was upset that those men were still after the boy after all that time.

After about five minutes to see and talk with Phillip to ensure that he was OK, Mr. Ken and Ms. Judy were asked to leave the room. The two did notice that Mackenzie and the two women didn’t appear to be all that mentally well, though. As the two exited they told Phillip and Mackenzie that they would wait for them outside.

Mr. Ken then called Wayne to tell him that Phillip was physically alright, but that he’ll need to see Doctor Doug for some time to come. The man asked the Estate Master to tell the boy’s ‘brothers’ that they’ll be home later and that they’ll all go out for dinner.

Ken then called Kate to tell her that things worked out for the better. The two talked only for a few minutes, as Ken was still focused on when Phillip will be released to go home.

The Sheriff’s public information officer finally gave a briefing that the news media broke into their regularly scheduled programs to show live on air.

With the situation now resolved, Ken decided to call Kate. He looked at the time and figured that she should be home by then. When they talked, Kate could tell that her fiancé was relieved that his foster son was safe. She told Ken that, in hindsight, she wished she could have stayed there with him and helped him get through all of that together. Hearing that put a big smile on Ken’s face.

Ken told Kate that he was waiting for the detectives to release Phillip after their debriefing and then he and the boys would go out for dinner. He told her he couldn’t wait until they would all be able to go out as a family.

As the couple talked, Ken heard some commotion down the hallway and he told Kate that he better check it out. So, as he ended the call with his fiancée, they told one another how much they loved each other and that they would talk again soon.

The commotion that Mr. Ken heard were the news reporters wanting access to the people taken away from the hostage scene. He knew that if they saw him, he would be asked why he was there.

Unfortunately, what he didn’t know was that the Diner’s patrons, who the waitresses and manager had gotten out before the two additional gunmen arrived, were able to talk to the news reporters.

It was they who told them that the initial man was focused on two people, one of which was called Phillip. It was the waitress Jeanie who added that the boy was one of Mr. Ken Thomas’ fosters and the woman was the boy’s mother, Mackenzie.

It was just after six o’clock when Phillip and his mother were finished with their debriefing by the detectives and were allowed to leave the hospital. The mother and son were met by Mr. Ken and Judy Turner and the four of them talked for a few minutes with Mr. Ken inviting Mackenzie to have dinner with him and the boys and Ms. Judy.

Mackenzie had made plans for the evening, but with the gunmen causing the situation that they had and had taken her cell phone, which the detectives told her they would try to get to her later that night or tomorrow morning, she didn’t have any way to contact her evening’s paramour, so she accepted the invitation.

While they talked before leaving the hospital, Phillip told his ‘dad’ that the man took his cell phone and crushed it under his foot thinking that he used it to contact the police. The boy also said that the men took his ‘lucky’ coin and it was still in the Diner. Mr. Ken smiled at the coin comment and told the boy that he’d get him a new one. But Phillip said that he wanted that one.

Ms. Judy and Mackenzie smiled at the boy’s insistence over wanting the original coin. They whispered to one another that there are somethings about boys that will never change and his need for that one special coin was one of them.

As the four attempted to walk out of the hospital they were confronted by a group of reporters who inundated Phillip and Mackenzie with questions about why the first gunman wanted to kidnap them before his accomplices arrived and shot at the Sheriff Deputies.

Phillip didn’t know what to do, or say, so he looked to his ‘dad’. Mackenzie was beside herself and just stood there not ever having had something like that happen to her. Lucky for both Ken Thomas had experience with the reporters and answered for both of them.

“It has been a long and exhausting day for my foster son and his mother, who were in the wrong place at the wrong time,” began Ken Thomas. “Why these gunmen targeted them is still up for conjecture and the detectives are working on that. So, please … please give them some space and time to recover from their ordeal. They deserve that after what they’ve been through. Thank you.”

With that said, the four walked past the reporters, ignoring any further thrown out questions. Mr. Ken, Mackenzie and Phillip went to his vehicle, while Ms. Judy went to hers. They had already made arrangements to meet the rest of the Covers at the Marina Seafood Wharf & Steak House restaurant when they drove off.

The Covers were waiting outside the restaurant for their ‘brother’ to arrive. They couldn’t wait to see him and give him a group hug after what he’d been through and when they did ‘dad’ Ken was pleased that they had done just that.

Mackenzie saw how the boys treated her son as a conquering hero and also saw that her son being with all of his ‘brothers’ was the best thing for him right now.

Ed Henry, the restaurant’s manager, moved over from the Four Corners restaurant, knew what that gathering was all about and had placed the group in one of the private rooms, so that the other customers wouldn’t be staring at the boy and his mother, because their faces had been on the news.

The night’s dinner was a celebration of sorts and the banter was loud, as evidenced by the other customers outside that room wondering what was going on inside there. Phillip’s ‘brothers’ wanted to know everything that happened in the Diner and they weren’t holding back with their questions. Mackenzie was furious that her son’s ‘brothers’ were doing that. But Mr. Ken told her that if they didn’t do it there, they would do it later at home, but, at least, here he could control it.

Phillip was reserved at the beginning of his ‘brothers’ questioning, but as it went on, he loosened up and began to participate and he answered their questions. It was while he was answering them that he realized that he remembered things that he hadn’t told the detectives, so he told his ‘dad’. Lucky for the boy that Mr. Wayne took notes on his cell phone, as he usually did.

When, dinner was over, Mr. Ken drove Mackenzie over to the Diner, so she could get her car. But the Diner was still closed due to the Sheriff’s Department still collecting crime scene evidence. The woman thanked him for the dinner. Ken then told her that she needed to make it a point to visit her son more often and that he would be playing at the amusement park every weekend if she wanted to stop by to just say, ‘Hi’.

Since Ken Thomas was there, he went over to the crime scene supervisor, introduced himself as the owner of the establishment and asked her when they would be finished, so they could reopen. The lieutenant told him that they would be finished around ten o’clock. Mr. Ken thanked her and then went over to his car and called the Diner’s manager, Xander Perez.

When the manager came to the phone, Mr. Ken told him that the Diner would be available at ten o’clock that night, but that the front entrance would need to be pressure washed due to the blood from the dead gunman that was still on it. He told the man that he’d have one of his boys over there first thing in the morning to take care of it and all it would cost him would be a free breakfast.

Because of the late hour and what had happened to his foster son, Phillip, ‘dad’ Ken deferred the nightly meeting and sent the boys right up to their rooms when they had all returned to The Cove.

Before he went up to say goodnight to the boys, he told Wayne that he was going to ask Bill and Robert to be at the Diner at seven o’clock to pressure wash the front of the Diner, so it could open at eight. He told the Estate Master that the front steps were coated with blood and they needed to get it washed off before they opened to the public.

Wayne asked if he was sure he wanted the teenagers to do that. Mr. Ken told Wayne that he wasn’t going to tell them what it was, but that it needed to be done before the Diner could open. Wayne just shook his head and told him that he’d be there at eight to see how they made out.

When ‘dad’ Ken went up to say goodnight to the boys. He did ask Bill for a big favor. The teen said that he’d take care of it. Dad Ken asked Robert to help Bill with the task he asked him to take care of but that they needed to be there at seven o’clock and they would get a free breakfast for their work. Robert told his dad that he’d help.

In Phillip’s room, ‘dad’ Ken asked the boy how he was doing. Phillip said that he still felt scared, but knowing that he was there and the guards were outside he believed that he would be OK.

‘Dad’ Ken hugged the boy who then finally felt being safe in his ‘dad’s’ arms and he burst out crying and he cried his heart out. His cries echoed throughout the entire upstairs of the house, which brought all of his ‘brothers’, as well as Chief and Sarge, to his room.

Upon entering the room, the Cover boys saw that Phillip was being comforted by their ‘dad’ and there was no way they could join in a group hug. They watched and listened as their ‘brother’ continued to cry and cry and tell how scared that he was going to die and they would never find his body.

Slowly, Phillip began to calm down and it was then that he recognized that his ‘brothers’ were in his room. Knowing that they were there to give him a group hug, he asked his ‘dad’ to let him go to them.

‘Dad’ Ken watched as the boys grabbed their ‘brother’ and hugged him tighter than they had ever hugged one of them before. They knew from what he had said that they knew how scared he had been and they wanted him to know that they loved him and they were there for him. Even Chief and Sarge were there standing with the ‘brothers’ in a show of solidarity.

When the hug broke up, Phillip stood back and thanked his ‘brothers’ for giving him the ‘Hug of Life’. Hearing that caught all of the boys off guard. And when they thought about what he said it brought tears to their eyes that he felt the way he did about what they had done for him.

‘Dad’ Ken asked the boys to go back to their rooms, as it was late and they were all going to breakfast at eight o’clock. That was the first they were hearing about that and Charles had to ask if his dad was kidding. The teen’s dad told him that he would never kid them about going out for breakfast.

That was a trying day for the owner of The Cove and the dad/foster dad of six growing boys. He was so happy that things worked out as well as they had for Phillip. But he was concerned that Rafael Ruiz had somehow controlled things from inside the prison where he was incarcerated.

He knew he needed to talk to Dan tomorrow to see if there was something he could do to styme the man’s access to his gang members, or even have whatever he says taped, so they can intercept his next attack on Phillip, or his mother.

Ken Thomas was mentally exhausted when he finally sat on the edge of his bed after getting ready to go to sleep. He knew he had to decide what type of security he needed to have to ensure Phillip’s safety in the future. He also knew that he’d have to wait until Jules returned from his honeymoon before any of that could be discussed and implemented.

Mr. Ken said a little prayer that Phillip, going forward, wouldn’t have any lasting effects from what he experienced that day. He then made sure his alarm clock was set to make sure Bill and Robert were up in time to head over to the Diner to pressure wash the steps and whatever else they could get done before it opened at eight o’clock. Tomorrow, he had a lot on his plate.

It didn’t take long for the dad/foster dad to fall asleep because he was so tired from the events of the day. By the time he did fall asleep all of the boys had already succumbed to the effects of the busy sandman. The Cove was quiet the whole night through with the security guards on high alert for any further action from Rafael Ruiz’s gang members.

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

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