Published: 19 Jan 2023

From Previous Chapter:

When Mr. Ken stopped by Mark’s room, the youngest Cover asked him if there was a way that he could spend the night in the new apartment tomorrow night. The foster dad said that it would be up to his mom and dad to let him spend the night, because, as of tomorrow, he would no longer be his foster son. Mark was a bit disappointed at hearing that, but said he’d ask them.

Before long ‘dad’ Ken had talked to all of his ‘sons’ and had finally gotten down to his own retreat. It had been a very long day for everyone, and he was looking forward to laying down in his bed and getting some well-deserved sleep.

The long day had worn out all of the residents of The Cove, so that when they all went to bed, The Cove was very quiet all through the night.

Sunday morning the boys were still tired after having a fun filled Labor Day Picnic the previous day. They dragged themselves out of bed knowing they were going out for breakfast and then for a boat ride on the lake before they helped the Goldersons move back to their home.

‘Dad’ Ken also felt somewhat tired that Sunday morning, as he too, had had a long day at The Cove’s Labor Day Picnic the previous day. He walked around all day talking to his guests and also did a lot of standing too. Getting up, he knew he needed the day just to recover from all that activity.

The owner of The Cove used his facilities, got dressed in his usual morning attire and then went outside to get his morning Sunday newspaper. He wanted to see what happened in the world and locally before he got ready to take everyone out for breakfast by 9:30.

When Levi and Miriam got up that morning, they decided to get themselves showered and dressed before going downstairs. They knew Momma Maria wouldn’t be there, as their host had told everyone they would go out for breakfast that morning.

When the boys began to show up in the Kitchen Nook a little after 9 a.m., ‘dad’ Ken knew he needed to head back to his private retreat and hurry to get himself ready. After their ‘dad’ left the Nook, a few of the boys read the comics from the paper, while Billy and Robert read through the local section to see if there was any mention of the Picnic.

‘Dad’ Ken got ready in record time and was ready to head out at 9:30 as he had wanted. The only question he had was where were they going. He asked Miriam where she would like to go, so he could call Wayne to tell him where to meet them.

The boys reminded the woman of all the places they’ve eaten breakfast to let her decide where they would be heading to in a few minutes. After a few moments, she chose Four Corners. She told everyone that by going there they didn’t have a long way to drive and that way they could start their boat trip around the lake sooner and then they could get back home earlier.

Mr. Ken inwardly smiled at what Miriam said. It told him she was in a hurry to get home, and he couldn’t really blame her. She’d been away from her home for seven weeks and was anxious to get her life back on track, and these last few stops were keeping her from doing that. The sooner she got them over with, the quicker she’d get to put her life back together.

Everyone loaded into the van and as they did that, dad Ken had Robert call Mr. Wayne to tell him where they were going to eat breakfast. The Estate Master joined the group about ten minutes after they all sat down.

During breakfast, Mr. Ken told everyone that Mr. Wayne would be moving. The boys were surprised at hearing that and Wayne told them he was going to move into the new apartments there at Four Corners. He told them he chose a 3-bedroom, 2-bath, third floor corner unit that had a good view of the lake. He added he would be moving sometime in early October and he would appreciate any and all the help he could get.

Mr. Ken told him not to worry about that as he would hire a moving company to get his things up all those stairs. Mr. Ken then told the group that Mr. Dan would also be moving. He said he and Mr. Dan would go over to the apartments on Tuesday and Dan would get to choose his own apartment as Wayne had. ‘Dad’ Ken then told everyone that Mr. Dan would be moving into the Senior Living apartments.

Hearing that Mr. Dan was moving into the Senior Living apartments surprised the boys, so they asked why. ‘Dad’ Ken told them that apartment complexes offered police officers reduced rents to live in their apartments in return for their helping keep a watch on vandalism and theft and to help keep down other crimes. ‘Dad’ Ken said that with Mr. Dan’s rank, he would fit in nicely with the older residents, better than a fresh face just out of the academy.

Mr. Ken added that he would ask Mr. Dan if he knew of an older Deputy who might want to move into the Senior Living Apartments and four Deputies who might want to move into the new apartments as the new buildings open up. He then told the group that one of his investors asked if he could buy the remaining land to build townhomes, instead of the other 400 apartments and put a greenspace between them and the apartments. Mr. Ken said he was leaning towards doing just that as it diversified the area.

When breakfast was over, the group headed back to The Cove where they all used the facilities and then met down at the dock before loading onto the Commander. Mr. Ken had Robert and Charles man the lines and had them release them as he slowly maneuvered the Commander away from the dock and out into the lake. He had Mark up on the flying bridge and once they were clear of the dock, and out of the cove, had him steer the large vessel.

As Mr. Ken had Mark sail the Commander around the lake, Robert pointed out where Collin was held by his captors and how far he swam that night of the huge storm to be saved by his dad. That telling caused loads of questions from the Goldersons and his ‘brothers’, and Robert answered them as best he could.

They motored past the area where Walt Tankard and his friends capsized and the older teen almost drowned. Robert explained how Todd controlled the Commander while his dad and Logan dove into the water and helped save the teenager.

The twins then spoke up and told how they were just brought to The Cove and during last year’s Labor Day Picnic they saw Todd and Logan get awards and college scholarships and Mr. Ken also get a Life Saving award from the Red Cross. They told how Mr. Dan, Brad and Gordon also received awards for helping save a man who’d fallen overboard and was entangled in some lines.

The telling of the stories, the warm and beautiful day and the scenery made the boat trip around the lake a nice outing. Mr. Ken then had Mark steer the large cabin cruiser towards the Lakeside Water Park. When they were close, Mr. Ken took over the controls and he docked the large yacht into one of the reserved slips. The man had his two sons set out the bumpers and man the lines to tie up the boat when he turned off the engines.

Miriam wanted to know why they were docking. Her host told her he wanted to show her son around the Lake Water Safety and Rescue Team Headquarters and then they would head on back to The Cove. Mr. Ken had Chief stay on the Commander and guard it.

George Lamake, one of the men who gave the Covers and their friends a special tour of the Rescue Team Headquarters last year met the group as they approached the front of the building. George knew there was going to be one special tour guest today, a new Cover and the boy who was carried out of the house after the home invasion seven weeks ago.

Mr. Lamake explained that Mr. Thomas was the one who built the Lake Water Safety and Rescue Team Headquarters as he showed the Goldersons the Headquarters from top to bottom. From the observation deck, he allowed Mark to look through powerful binoculars and as he did the man explained that it was Mr. Thomas who was the one who bought three military grade, night vision capable and waterproof binoculars to spot trouble out on the lake

On the third floor Mr. Lamake showed off the offices and explained who they were for and how any remaining space could be used for meetings and classroom instructions and storage. They didn’t stay on the second floor as their tour guide explained it was used for more meetings and training and had storage space.

On the first floor, George Lamake explained how the central information and communication desk was right there where visitors can stop and ask their questions. The man explained how they can stay in contact with Police & Fire with their two-way radio system.

Down in the basement, George showed them double-wide lockers where the rescue divers store their gear and a compressor that they use to refill their scuba tanks. He then took them outside to show them around the four rescue boats and answer any questions they had.

Mark thanked the man for the tour and came away from it with a better understanding of what it takes to keep the lake safe. He then thanked Mr. Ken for setting up the tour for him and his parents. The group then loaded onto the Commander and they headed back to The Cove.

Once they were back at The Cove, The Goldersons gathered up their remaining things and loaded them into their vehicle. Everyone then used the facilities before loading into their respective vehicles and then headed to the Goldersons’ home. Mr. Wayne was not going with them as he was taking the rest of the day and Monday off.

On their way back to their home, Mark talked to his parents about his spending the night with his ‘brothers’ in Mr. Ken’s apartment over the office building. His mom asked if he didn’t think he’d spent enough time with his ‘brothers’ and would want to start spending time back in his own home and getting reacquainted with his friends again.

Mark argued that even his ‘brothers’ hadn’t had the chance to spend the night in the apartment yet, and this might be the only time they will ever get as Mr. Ken said that since he had so many ‘boys’ now that it is too small for all of them, so he would probably rent it out now instead of letting it sit vacant.

Miriam told her son that she and his father would talk about it and let him know. Mark knew that when she used the ‘father’ title, it meant ‘No’. So, he sat there in the back seat trying to think of another reason he could use to get them to let him spend the night.

Then it came to him. “Dad … did you pick up my home plate and pitcher’s rubber? And mom … won’t you … won’t you have to go back and get your … your car?”

Levi was driving and had to think about the home plate and pitcher’s rubber, but he almost choked when he heard they didn’t plan on Miriam having her car at The Cove and that they would now have to go back to get it.

“Well, dear … I think we can let our son spend one more night with his ‘brothers’. Seems that we not only need to go back to get his home plate and pitcher’s rubber, but … but we also forgot to plan to take your car home with us, too,” chuckled Levi.

Miriam had to laugh at their oversight. She was in such a hurry to get back home that she didn’t think everything through, and now they would have to make another trip back to The Cove to get her car. With that in mind, she told her son that it was OK with her if it was OK with his dad if he spent one more night with his ‘brothers’. Mark smiled and thanked his mom and then asked his dad if he could spend the night at the apartment. The boy’s dad said he could as long as Mr. Ken was OK with taking him.

As soon as the boy arrived at his own home, and the Covers arrived, he ran to Mr. Ken and yelled, “Mr. Ken, Mr. Ken … they said yes, they said yes that I can spend the night with my ‘brothers’ … at the apartment.”

Mr. Ken looked over at the boy’s parents to see if what the boys just told him was true. They nodded back to him, so he knew he should plan to take the boy with him when they leave later.

The Cover boys helped with emptying the Goldersons’ vehicle and putting everything in the house where they wanted it. While they were in the house, the boys who’d never been there asked Robert to show them where the man was shot and died and also where Kaden was shot.

The boys could see where there was new drywall and paint and they figured there was a lot of repair work done in the master bedroom and hallway. Mark then showed them his newly painted bedroom. And Billy showed them his room. He was surprised at the new color and that the bedspread was changed.

Mark told him that he had bled all over it from the beating he got from the three men and they had to throw it away. Mark then jumped into his ‘big brother’s’ arms and cried. Billy cried right along with his little brother. The other boys joined in and hugged their two ‘brothers’.

Just then Mr. Ken and Mr. Levi came up the stairs looking for the boys and hearing all the crying asked what it was all about. Mark ran to his dad and cried some more.

Billy explained to Mr. Ken what that was all about. Mr. Ken then asked Bill if he still needed to see Doctor Doug and if he thought Mark should, too. Billy told his foster dad, ‘yes’ to both questions.

Levi heard what the two Covers were talking about and spoke up. He said that he and his wife had agreed to continue to have Mark see Doctor Jennings for as long as their son needed. Mark heard what his dad had said and thanked him. The boy told his father that he had hoped they would allow him to continue to talk to Doctor Doug for at least a few more weeks and after his crying just now he knows he has more to talk to him about.

Mark’s friends heard he was home and they all came over to see him. They rang the doorbell and Miriam called her son to come down and talk to his friends. All of the Cover boys went down with Mark and they all went outside to talk.

A few of the boys wanted to know if Mark was going to play soccer now that he was back home. Mark said he wasn’t sure. He told his friends that he would have to have his dad talk to the coach to see what the rules were and how much longer the season was.

A few of the boys told him how when they went to the skate park, with their Cove Skate Park gear, many of the other kids asked them if they knew that other kid who skated there a few times. They also wanted to know if the Cove Skate Park offered lessons because they said that the other kid was pretty good. Billy smiled at hearing that.

Mark then told his friends that he was going back with his ‘brothers’ when they left. He told them they were going to spend the night at Mr. Ken’s special apartment he had constructed above the new office building he had built. He added that he forgot to bring back his home plate and pitcher’s rubber, which was another reason why he was going with them, so he could bring them back tomorrow when his mom and dad came to get him. Everyone laughed.

Mark told his friends that after he came home on Monday he would be back permanently and would start school with them on Tuesday, after his mom registered him. The boy’s friends all applauded they would have their Mark back home with them.

Mr. Ken talked with Levi and Miriam about their stay and asked them if he could have done anything differently to make life easier, or better for them. All Miriam could say was to have him live closer to her friends. Then she laughed, which made the two men laugh right along with her.

Miriam then told Ken that she just wished she could have availed herself of all that The Cove had to offer. She said with her injury she was afraid to do anything until her doctor told her she could. She mentioned that she saw what was there and using the WaveRunners, the water toys and the sailboats all intrigued her, but she never learned to use a skateboard, so that was out. Mr. Ken laughed at hearing that.

Mr. Ken looked at the time and told the Goldersons he needed to get his crew back to The Cove, so they could get their swimsuits, towels, sleeping bags, pillows, snacks, sodas and then take them out to eat before they headed over to the apartment for the sleepover.

Levi told Ken that he and Miriam would be over later Monday afternoon to pick Mark up. Mr. Ken told them to plan to stay long enough to have a burger or dog and for them not to forget Mark’s baseball pitcher’s stuff, and Mark, before they left.

Mr. Ken then rounded up his ‘boys’ and they all loaded into the van. Mark made sure he took his sleeping bag, pillow, swimsuit and towel. As Mr. Ken drove the van back to The Cove, Mark called Bryson and Preston, as he wanted to let them know he would be at The Cove one more day and that if they wanted to, they could come over at twelve noon.

It was close to five o’clock when the van drove into the estate grounds. Mr. Ken stopped the van outside the garage doors and Robert used his fingerprint to open the side door lock to gain entrance into the house. Chief was waiting for her ‘men’ to return and was very happy to see them as they all headed into the house.

The boys first used the restrooms and then they gathered up everything they needed for the sleepover at the new apartment. They also asked if they could take Chief. But ‘dad’ Ken told them that there was no place for Chief to go potty and that he didn’t want to contaminate the apartment with pet hairs just in case someone who wanted to rent it was allergic to pet hair. He also told them he was also leaning towards not allowing pets in the apartment to renters.

When it came time to go out to eat, ‘dad’ Ken asked the boys where they wanted to go out to eat. The boys listed a number of places, none of which included Four Corners. Then Robert suggested that place they went to, back around the 4^th of July. Mr. Ken remembered that burger joint and said that was a great idea.

Billy said he remembered that place and that his mouth was already watering for those wonderful onion rings and juicy burgers. The rest of the boys agreed, so ‘dad’ Ken drove in that direction.

When the Covers walked into the restaurant that evening, they found themselves in a very busy place. It was the Sunday evening dinner rush and they had to wait for a table big enough for eight. They did get a table for four in one corner and Mr. Ken had the four younger boys take it while he and Bill, Robert and Charles stood waiting for another table to open up.

Eventually, a table did open up and the rest of the Covers got to sit down. Mr. Ken told the younger boys to go up to the counter and order and he had Charles go over to hold their table. He then had Bill and Robert order their food and he gave Bill his credit card and told him to order last and then give it to the cashier to hold it for when he came up there.

Kevin, Kyle and Matthew had told Mark about the different sizes of burgers they sold there while they waited to go up to the counter. The youngest Cover couldn’t believe the restaurant had six different sizes of burgers, ranging from the standard burger most restaurants serve, all the way up to a full one-pound burger for someone who was really, really hungry.

The four boys all ordered quarter-pound-burgers, but they each put different toppings on. But they remembered the onion rings and fries there, so they ordered a large basket of fries and onion rings to share. They then got their drinks and as they went back to their table to wait for their number to be called, Mr. Ken had Kevin sit at his table so he could go and order his food. He also told them to send Charles over so he could order his food.

Billy and Robert ordered the third-pound burger and they each topped them with cheese and then loaded them with mayo, lettuce, tomato, bacon and onions and they each got a medium sized basket of onion rings. Charles also got the third-pound burger and loaded his burger the same way and he too got the medium basket of onion rings.

‘Dad’ Ken wondered where they were going to put it all, but they really hadn’t eaten anything since breakfast, so they were probably very hungry. He then ordered a third-pound burger with cheese, mayo, bacon, lettuce, tomatoes, and onions for himself, but he ordered a large basket of onion rings.

And just like the last time, as it got later, the crowd started to thin out and they were able to move closer together by the time their orders were ready.

The eight Covers took their time eating and enjoying their burgers and fries and onion rings. They first talked about the Labor Day Picnic and the demonstration Harper and Wayne put on. Then Charles mentioned how Logan and Sydney were inseparable all day long. He said they looked like a nice couple together, but wondered how a long-distance relationship would work out.

Robert then mentioned how Journee, his dad’s new Project Manager’s daughter, hung around Brad after she was introduced to him. And the Cover teen said that he thought Brad had enjoyed the attention. He wondered if he got her phone number. All the boys laughed.

Billy did mention that Brett showed up at the Picnic, but his parents didn’t come. The Cover said that his friend hung out with him and the rest of his friends and he also took time to get to know Gus better.

Charles said that a girl named Isabel was smitten with Cooper and the two did lots of things together all day long. Billy added that Isabel was Gus’s host family’s daughter, if anyone wanted to know who she was.

Mr. Ken then asked if she and her brother Isaiah were given Cove Skate Park gear. Not hearing they were, he told the boys they should have made sure any new kids at the Picnic received the gear. He told his ‘boys’ that when they were there again to make sure they got some. The boys said they understood what he wanted.

Changing the subject, the boys then asked Mark what he thought about going back to his old neighborhood and friends. Mark was taken aback by the question and ‘dad’ Ken saw he was caught off guard and told the boys that it wasn’t a fair question to ask. He reminded them that, just like them, he was a foster boy, but unlike them he was going back home to his parents. The boys all lowered their heads knowing that they probably would never be with their parents ever again.

But Mark had that time to think about what his ‘brothers’ meant, so he told them. “Guys … to be honest … I’m … I’m going to miss all of you and … and what we all have at The Cove. I’ve … I’ve learned so much from all of you and I wasn’t watched, like I will be at home.

“The trip … that was the best thing I was ever on. I got to go on rides that my mom … that my mom would never have allowed me to go on and when my dad … and when my dad was with me, he got to see that I could go on some rides that looked scary, but they weren’t when you were actually on them. But, guys … I really am looking forward to getting back to my old friends and doing what we all used to do together.

“At The Cove … I never had any real friends. They were all your friends and it wasn’t … it wasn’t until I went to school that I finally made friends of my own, with a few of my classmates. So, you see, going home … it’s the best thing for me. I’ll be back with my mom and dad and … and my old friends. I am going to miss all of you … and especially Chief.” That said Mark began to cry.

‘Dad’ Ken got to the boy and pulled him up and out of his chair and hugged him. His ‘brothers’ then got up and before long a group hug had materialized. The customers sitting around the Covers heard what was said and they knew it was a very intense time right then, as they sensed one boy was going home to live with his parents. But they didn’t understand the circumstances behind it, and none of them wanted to ask.

When the hug was over, Mr. Ken asked the boys if they were ready to go. Learning they were, he asked them to quickly use the restroom. While they were gone, one woman did ask him what that was all about. Seeing Mark wasn’t there, he told her that the boy was a foster son who was being reunited with his parents tomorrow and the other boys were going to miss him.

The Covers loaded into the van and Mr. Ken drove over to the office building. When they got there, Mr. Ken used his key to enter through the front door and into the atrium. Then, before he could call the Penthouse elevator, the security guard came over and asked them what they were all doing in the building.

Mr. Ken told him he owned the building and they were going to spend the night in the Penthouse apartment. The guard said he wasn’t told anything about anyone spending the night upstairs and they were to leave the building before he called the Sheriff.

Mr. Ken told him he better first call his boss, Jules Diamond, before he calls anyone. The guard became incensed at what the man said to him and began to direct the Covers to leave the building by the way they came in.

Mr. Ken pulled out his cell phone and called Jules himself.

When the owner of the Security Company answered, everyone there heard Mr. Ken say, “Jules … I am at my office building and we have, NO … YOU … YOU have a PROBLEM and you have FIVE minutes to FIX IT!” Mr. Ken then ended the call.

It wasn’t more than thirty seconds later when the security guard’s cell phone rang. He initially ignored it as he was intent on rushing who he considered were trespassers out of the building. When the Covers weren’t moving as he directed, he called his fellow security guards over at the hotel to come over there as he needed help with some trespassers.

The two Lakeside Hotel security guards came rushing over to the office building in their golf cart, with their flashing red-light, to see what trouble their security brother had gotten himself into. It was while they were rushing over there that one of them received a phone call from Jules Diamond himself. They now knew what they were headed into.

As soon as the two security guards appeared at the front doors, the office building guard opened the door for them and let them inside the atrium. The three quickly talked and then one of them came over to the group.

“Mr. Thomas … on behalf of Jules Diamond Security, and Mr. Diamond himself, I … I want to apologize for the inconvenience you received here tonight. Our partner … he is a recent hire and … well he is not that familiar with your picture and who you are. Sir, please go ahead and call the elevator and have an enjoyable evening in the Penthouse apartment,” finished the security guard.

When the Covers had gotten into the elevator and the doors had closed, the guard who had talked to Mr. Thomas told the security guard, who was at the office building, that he had made the biggest mistake of his new career working for Diamond Security.

The guard explained that Mr. Thomas not only owned the office building, but that he also owned the Lakeside Hotel and that he was probably Mr. Diamond’s best client. The guard went on to say that Mr. Thomas has Mr. Diamond’s personal home phone number, which he called tonight when he was refused entrance to his own Penthouse apartment.

The office security guard asked what he could do to make amends. The two guards told him to make sure he knew who the clients were wherever he worked and to stay away from Mr. Thomas for a while. The two hotel security guards then returned to their posts.

The boys were amazed at the size of the Penthouse. They walked all throughout the four-bedroom, four-bath apartment looking at the way it was decorated and how large the dining and family rooms were. They then headed out onto the open patio/pool deck area where the four-foot-deep wading pool awaited them. They were then going to change into their swimsuits and jump in, but ‘dad’ Ken put a stop to that.

“Boys … I want you to get everything organized first. Get the snacks out of the bags and on the kitchen counters and the sodas in there as well. Then choose where you are going to sleep. There are no sheets on the beds, as they are only made up for show. You can sleep on them, but take the duvets off them first. Now, get a move on and then you can get in the pool,” announced ‘dad’ Ken.

The boys quickly got all the snacks out of the grocery bags and arranged them on the counters in the large kitchen. They left the sodas in the coolers otherwise they’d get warm. Kyle asked why they didn’t put them into the refrigerator, but Charles showed him it hadn’t been turned on and by the time it cooled down it would be tomorrow.

When the boys had everything arranged, they all went and put on their swimsuits and took their towels, a snack, a soda and then went out to the patio/pool deck and got into the pool. Mr. Ken joined them a few minutes later.

As the boys snacked throughout the night, ‘dad’ Ken, just as he did back at home, asked them not to eat in the pool. He told them he didn’t want the pool water contaminated with junk food or soda water as he needed it pristine for when they began to show it to potential renters.

The wading pool was only four-feet deep and ‘dad’ Ken kept reminding them not to dive into it. The boys did play some games they figured they could, but they mostly relaxed and talked. The wading pool also had a tanning ledge, or Baja shelf, where some water furniture was placed and people could relax on a hot summer day and work on their tan. The boys had to try that out as well.

There was also a music system that played out on the patio/pool deck and ‘dad’ Ken had turned it on, so they had some soothing background tunes playing. The boys liked that and they told their ‘dad’ he should add that to the cove for when they were out there swimming or playing on the water toys. All ‘dad’ Ken could do was inwardly smile.

The boys also saw that there was a big blank wall out there that could easily be used to show movies on at night. They then asked their ‘dad’ if he could turn all the lights off. They told him they wanted to see if they could see more of the night’s sky, since there weren’t many ‘city’ lights out that way to interfere. ‘Dad’ Ken did what they asked and he was pleasantly surprised at how much more of the night sky they all could see.

As the Covers watched the sky, they saw a few shooting stars and they could make out the hazy band of light seen in the night sky that formed the stars that cannot be individually distinguished by the naked eye, but helped form the Milky Way. The boys were impressed with what they were seeing and thanked their ‘dad’ for giving them the chance to see something so awesome that they knew many of their friends had never seen anything like that before.

As the night moved along, the boys began to get sleepy and they all decided to go to bed. Kevin, Kyle, Matthew and Mark asked if they could sleep out on the pool deck. There were four loungers out there and they argued they could use those for their beds, since they were using sleeping bags.

‘Dad’ Ken was concerned they would decide to go swimming during the night, and he told them he didn’t want them to do that, so he didn’t think it was a good idea. But Kevin argued that if his older ‘brothers’ had asked to do it instead of them, he probably would have let them.

‘Dad’ Ken had to admit to himself he probably would have, so he told the four boys they could sleep out there, but they weren’t to swim during the night and said to them, “If I find you floating on the pool bottom in the morning, I’m going to kill you. You understand?” laughed ‘dad’ Ken.

The boys knew exactly what he was saying, and they all laughed right along with their ‘dad’. The four boys promised not to swim during the night and they went to change into their dry clothes and get their sleeping bags and pillows.

The older boys were disappointed that they hadn’t thought of sleeping out on the deck before their younger ‘brothers’ had. But Robert asked his dad if he could sleep out on the deck anyway, even if he didn’t have a pad to sleep on. Then Charles asked and Billy said if his ‘brothers’ were going to be out there, he wanted to be there too.

‘Dad’ Ken knew he was defeated, so he told the older boys that they could join their ‘brothers’ out on the pool deck. He added that he didn’t want to hear in the morning that they took the loungers from them. He told the older boys that they would be responsible to make sure none of them swam during the night.

All of the boys had their sleeping bags and pillows out on the pool deck by eleven o’clock. The lights were off and they were all looking up into the night sky, admiring all the stars they could see. They talked about how much fun it was just to be there, and that they should try to convince their ‘dad’ to keep the place for a retreat for all of them.

But Robert argued with his ‘brothers’ that if he did, they would undoubtedly want to bring a friend over and before long it wouldn’t be the six of them, it would be twelve, or eighteen and their dad wouldn’t want that at all.

Billy spoke up just then and told his ‘brothers’ that if they talk with Mr. Ken about his keeping the Penthouse, they have to use logic and reason and not argue with him when he counters them. The teenager asked them how often they thought they could come over there and would it be fair to Mr. Ken to forgo the money he could earn from its rental, just so they could have a few nights’ fun every once in a while.

Charles then joined in the discussion and added that he had to agree with Billy. He said their dad was becoming extremely busy and the busier he gets the less and less time he would be around to not only spend time with them, but to be able to go over there and do what they did tonight.

The thirteen-year-old, added that his dad said he wouldn’t rent the Penthouse out until the office building was at least seventy percent occupied, so they might be able to get a few more nights like tonight there, but they need to let their dad make money as that was what paid for what they had at The Cove, their trips and everything else.

Kevin asked if they could still talk to their ‘dad’ about his keeping the Penthouse. Billy, Robert and Charles said that he could, but he had to understand that if their ‘dad’ said he was still going to rent it out eventually, he had to drop it and remember the good times they had there. Kevin thought about that for a few moments, and with Kyle in his mind talking to him, he said he’d go with that.

The boys talked and talked and slowly they all nodded off. ‘Dad’ Ken watched them from inside the darkened apartment. He wanted to make sure they wouldn’t go swimming and he should have trusted them. He chided himself for not doing so, but he was afraid that they would swim and maybe get hurt, and he knew he could not forgive himself if that had happened.

The boys slept out on the pool deck that Sunday night. The boys in the loungers weren’t as comfortable as they thought they would be, as the loungers weren’t totally flat. The three teenagers lying out on the artificial grass were a lot more comfortable, but even still, lying on a hard surface with only a sleeping bag wasn’t as comfortable as if they had chosen to use their sleeping bag on one of the beds.

‘Dad’ Ken did get a good night’s rest, but not a good sleep, as he was still anxious about the boys sleeping out on the pool deck.

Mark was happy he had gotten to spend one more night with his ‘brothers’. He had also gotten to spend it at the Penthouse apartment and he’d gotten to see the Milky Way, some shooting stars and all the many stars he normally didn’t get to see from his usual vantage point at his home.

It was a wonderful night for all of the Covers. A night they would all remember for a long time.

The saga of Three Finger Cove continues. Let Chowhound know you are reading his story: Chowhound at CastleRoland dot Net

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