Published: 30 Apr 2026
From the Previous Chapter:
The owner of The Cove, dad and foster dad sat on his king-sized bed before going to sleep that night thinking of how much the boys thought and knew about the Trust Funds. He was a little concerned that the lawsuit money was becoming a focus of the boys, as of late. And the worst thing about it was that he knew he couldn’t do anything about it, because he was the one who kept mentioning the lawsuits to them.
Mr. Ken decided that he’d try to bring the boys back down to earth after the individual lawsuits were over and try to instill on them that the money would be there when they needed it the most, as they went off to better learning endeavors at either college or a trade school.
The man then turned off the light in his bedroom, pulled on the covers and went to sleep. The Cove was peaceful and quiet the whole night through.
When Ken Thomas awoke that Friday morning, he was very happy the weekend was just about there. He knew the two days away from the office would give him time to recoup his internal physical and mental energy and possibly relax some with the boys.
He was also looking forward to doing something fun for a change by taking Matthew out and looking for a suitable structure the lad could use temporarily as a training studio, or workshop, for his budding puppy training business.
He began thinking that this would be where the new teenager could take his charges away from the distraction of the other boys, as well as store his needed supplies, like treats, leads, crates, harnesses, toys, and possibly an elevated bed for resting the dogs between training sessions.
Looking at the time, he realized he was day dreaming for far too long and he needed to get a move on and get shaved, showered and dressed for the day. He was a bit late getting out to the Kitchen Nook and Momma had a big smile on her face when he arrived.
The woman never said a word to him, but her big smile told him that he was ‘behind schedule’, and he kiddingly apologized to her for being late. Again, Momma Maria didn’t say anything to her employer, as she poured the hot coffee into the man’s favorite coffee cup.
Mr. Ken then did what he’s done virtually every morning, which was to take a sip of the hot brew, and then raise the cup to Momma as a salute to her for fixing the hot liquid for him, and taking such good care of him.
When the first three boys came down for breakfast, and after Darrin and Matthew took care of fixing the resident pets’ meals, and were eating their Momma breakfast, ‘Dad’ Ken got Phillip’s attention.
“Phillip … I forgot to ask you last night,” began the boy’s foster dad, “can you tell me what time you need to be at Four Corners this evening, and on Sunday? That’s so I can coordinate a security man to be with you both times. I talked with Mr. Diamond and he suggested that the estate guards will rotate that assignment, and all I need to do is let them know the time that they need to be available.”
Phillip thought about the question and he told his ‘dad’ that he needed to be at Four Corners by five-thirty that night and on Sunday. The youngster then added that they would play to at least ten o’clock tonight and only nine o’clock on Sunday. ‘Dad’ Ken thanked the boy for his answer.
Then the man told the boy not to forget to get his new cell phone from Mr. Wayne, when he gets home from school, and have his older ‘brothers’ help him set it up if he has any problems doing that.
When the three older boys came down for breakfast, ‘dad’ Ken got his son Robert’s attention.
“Robert, son, I was remiss on not keeping up on when you were going to take your driver’s written test. I thought you told me that you were going to see if Mr. Wayne could schedule it for this Saturday. Did you ever get to do that?” asked the teen’s dad.
Robert smiled at hearing the question and he told his dad that he was able to get Mr. Wayne to schedule the written test for that coming Saturday at ten o’clock. The teen added that he was as ready as he could ever be, and as long as he got at least seventy percent correct he would be happy.
Dad Ken laughed and asked his son if he wasn’t going to try to beat Bill’s test score. Robert quickly asked, why, and then reasoned that as long as he passed the written test, that was all he needed to do to get his permit that would allow him to start practice driving.
The teen had a smile on his face as he went back to eating his Momma breakfast, while his dad just shook his head, while he too smiled at the answer.
“Oh, and boys … I got Phillip a new cell phone. Those men, on Saturday … they destroyed his because they thought he was somehow using it to call the police. So, if he asks you to help him set it up, don’t give him a hard time about it. OK?” asked ‘dad’ Ken.
Mr. Ken delayed his departure to the office that Friday, as he wanted to talk to both Wayne and Chris. After both men had arrived, had gotten a fresh cup of coffee and a few of Momma’s sweet cakes they could eat while they talked, the three withdrew to the Study.
“Guys, I wanted to touch base with you both on what will be happening around The Cove in the coming weeks. You know I rely on both of you to tackle the moving parts of the decorating of The Cove and the coordinating of the Holiday parties.
“Wayne, I’ll begin with you. Have you and Mr. Meekerts decided when he will begin decorating The Cove and when he plans to be finished? The Vocational School Christmas Decoration Competition high school students will be installing their Gingerbread houses beginning on the 16th of December, so he needs to know not to interfere with them, if he is still installing decorations.
“And Chris … make sure the Vocational Schools know that’s when they have to install their creations. Also, have you decided when you are going to pick the light post they will be using?” now asked Mr. Ken.
Wayne looked at Chris to see which one of them should answer their boss first. And since Chris’ questions was asked last, he decide to go first.
“Mr. Ken … I have been in contact with the four Vocational High School counselors and they all know that they need to install on the sixteenth. I also asked that at least one person from each school be present on Friday, the fifteenth, at four o’clock, for the selection process. I explained that the double-blind selection process that we used the first two times would again be used,” explained Chris Dominions, The Cove’s Estate Manager.
Wayne Mitchell, the Estate Master, went next. “Mr. Ken, Central Texas Decorating are scheduled to begin delivering parts on Monday and the women should begin installing the decorations on Wednesday. The Christmas tree is slated to be erected beginning that Saturday and everything is to be finished, both inside and out, by Wednesday the thirteenth.”
“OK, great. Now what about the catering, bands, workers, etc. for the two Holiday parties, and of course, the New Year’s Eve Party? And what about the invitations for the New Year’s Eve gala,” now asked the owner of The Cove.
While Mr. Ken was talking with his Estate Manager and Estate Master about The Cove’s Holiday decorations and upcoming parties, Darrin was at the school talking with his friends.
The teen Cover told Terran, Sam, Blake, Landon, Jody and Martin that next Tuesday he had to go to court. That surprised Blake, Landon, Jody and Martin, but Terran and Sam knew that the other Cover boys had been to court a few times, so they asked why he had to go.
Darrin told his friends that because his parents and older brother perished in their house fire the insurance companies wanted the courts to assign where the life and house insurance monies would go. The teen also told them that he had an uncle that has shown some interest in wanting to raise him, but he doesn’t have a lot of money and he doesn’t want all of the insurance money to go to him, and possibly spend it on him and his family instead of on raising him.
Blake asked the Cover if there wasn’t anything that he could do about that. And all Darrin could tell him, and his other friends, was that if the judge asked him, he could say what he just told them.
Sam spoke up and told Darrin that he should sit down and tell Mr. Ken what he is thinking about his uncle not using the money for him and then let his foster dad tell the judge. The other boys all agreed with what Sam just said. Even Darrin said that was much better than hoping the judge would ask him what he thought.
As Mr. Ken finished up his discussion with Mr. Wayne and Mr. Chris, he mentioned to them that he would bring out his S-gauge American Flyer train, along with all the track, switches and buildings that the boys could install under the Christmas tree, as they had the previous years.
He also told them they needed to talk with Todd about seeing how many high school students might be interested as being hired as busboys, servers and hat check people for the upcoming three Holiday parties.
He told Chris to call those from last year first, but to supplement what he needed by asking Todd, and not to wait, as time was getting away from them. He also asked him to talk to the Police Explorers coordinator to make sure they were also available.
Mr. Ken also asked Chris if he talked with his caterer to be available for the two parties. Chris said that he already had her on the calendar, but with the dates now confirmed he can call her and put that to rest.
Chris also said that he has talked with the Police Explorer’s coordinator about being able to handle the parking duties, as they have in the past, and, again, with the dates firmed up, he can now confirm with them.
Mr. Ken then reminded the two men that he would be gone from Wednesday through Friday of next week and these things would all fall on them, as it always had. He thanked them for all their hard work during the work up to the Holidays, and then for Wayne to get Dennis involved in as much as he could. Then the owner of The Cove left for the office.
When Ken Thomas arrived at the office, his executive secretary, Rosemary, had his phone messages ready for him. One was from Bill Jackson, his lawyer, who had asked that he call as soon as he arrived.
“Bill … Rosemary said you wanted me to call as soon as I get to the office,” spoke Mr. Ken, as Bill Jackson came to the phone.
“Yes, Ken … remember that tidbit you gave me about what Matthew said his mother told him, while she held him captive. Well, I had my researchers go into the police files and find the Deputies reports from that day of Grace Turnsten’s arrest.
“And you were right. The arresting deputies … they both reported that Matthew stated that his mother told him that she would kill him, because he had talked to the police. And, Ken … I did a phone interview with both arresting deputies about their arrest. And they both remember what they filed in their reports and best thing of all is that they remember that day because of the way they found Grace.
“Ken … when they found her … she was holding Matthew … she was holding the boy by his crotch. They both also agreed to testify if we take her to trial to have her parental rights removed. So, when do you want me to file with the courts?” asked Bill.
“Bill, don’t you … don’t you have to give Grace notice, or something, before you even start that sort of process?” asked Ken Thomas.
Bill Jackson explained to Mr. Ken what the process would entail and that Grace Turnsten would have to be told that they would be petitioning the courts to strip her of her parental rights and why. When he finished, Bill asked Ken how soon he wanted everything to happen.
Ken told Bill that he would be in court next Tuesday for Darrin and that he would be in court back east with Kate from Wednesday through Friday, so next week would not work for him at all.
Mr. Ken then told his lawyer that if he could pull this off, and get Grace’s parental rights striped away from her before Christmas, he could at least give Matthew the hope that he could adopt him sometime soon after the Holiday.
Bill Jackson quickly understood what his client was saying and he told Ken that he would set the process in motion on Monday and hopefully by Christmas they would have that answer.
During lunch, Darrin’s friends asked him what he thought about having to go and live with his uncle. The teen told them that he wasn’t too thrilled with the idea, as he was just getting used to living at The Cove. Darrin told them that with everything that there is to do there, and with the upcoming summer, there will be so much more to do with the WaveRunners, sailboats and the swimming out in the cove.
The boys asked the Cover if he was going to take the Texas Boater Safety Course next year. Darrin told them that Mr. Ken had already mentioned that to him and that he would also like to take the sailboat course and he thinks that Phillip would like too, as well.
The teen said that with the WaveRunners and sailboats to use and the trips to Mr. Ken’s amusement parks and the other things that the boys get to do, he’d be crazy not to want to stay there.
And since Terran and Sam had been going to The Cove for much longer than any of the other boys, they began telling Darrin some of the things that the Cover boys also got to do. They told him how the boys used to go out on the Commander and sail around the lake.
They told him how, while they were out on the lake, they found these teens who had capsized while sailing on the lake and Mr. Ken and Logan dove in to save the one teen who was trapped under the sail. Then they told how they had all gotten awards for doing that.
They also mentioned that Mr. Ken got them a personal tour of the Lake Water Safety and Rescue Team Headquarters and that he has his own boat parking space there. Then they mentioned how, when Mr. Ken was away, Mr. Dan was staying with the boys and when two of them hadn’t returned Mr. Dan took the Commander, and the rest of the boys, out looking for them.
As they continued the story, they told how when they found them, they were trying to help this guy who had fallen off his own sailboat, because he had gotten tangled in his lines. They finished the story by saying that Mr. Dan, Brad and Gordon had all got awards for helping the man.
Blake then began telling the teen Cover about how Mr. Ken took the boys and all of their friends to SeaWorld San Antonio and Six Flag Fiesta Texas. Blake told the teen that any time Mr. Ken took his ‘boys’ places like that, he always took their friends, too.
Darrin was just given a crash course on what happened during the time that he wasn’t there. And hearing those stories gave him even more of a reason for wanting to stay at The Cove, no matter what.
It wasn’t too long after Mr. Ken returned from lunch when Rosemary rang him and told him that he had a visitor wanting to talk to him. Mr. Ken got up from behind his desk and went out to the outer office to find Emilio Ramirez, the Three Finger Real Estate Group Manager, was waiting patiently to talk to him.
After Mr. Ken invited Mr. Ramirez into his office to find out why he needed to talk to him, he learned that the man’s contact concerning the 8+ acre of land right next door to the Four Corners Amusement Park had contacted him wanting to know how much his buyer was willing to pay for the land.
The first thing Mr. Ken wanted to know was if a contract to sell the parcel of land had been initiated. Otherwise, Mr. Ken told Emilio, it was a fishing expedition to see how serious his, meaning Mr. Rameriz’s, buyer was in wanting to purchase the land.
Mr. Ken then did some quick calculations in his head knowing how much he paid for the land when he purchased the Four Corners area and came up with what he considered what would be a fair asking price for that land now after four years.
“Emilio … I know what a fair asking price for that land ought to be. So, how about going back to your contact and tell them … and tell them that your ‘buyer’ will consider buying that property only after there is a serious written contract offer to sell it,” proposed Mr. Ken.
“But what if he balks, Mr. Ken?” now asked Mr. Ramirez.
“Well … if he does … let me think. … Then I’ll write a contract to buy the property. But don’t tell him that. Just come back to me and we’ll write one that will spell out my terms.
“Your contact … they are a real estate agent, right, and if so, they are obligated to bring my offer to the owner, and it is up to the owner to reject it, not the agent dabbling behind the scenes. They know that if they don’t present the offer that they can lose their license. Am I right?” finished Mr. Ken.
All Emilio Rameriz did was nod his head in agreement that the person was an agent, but he did not agree that they could lose their license. Mr. Rameriz indicated that since the owner had not listed the property For Sale that the agent withholding the contract wasn’t doing anything illegal.
Emilio Rameriz also indicated that if the property owner told his agent not to bring him contracts that didn’t meet his minimum standards, then a buyer who offered anything below the asking price could have their contract placed in File 13, otherwise known as the trashcan.
Ken Thomas said he understood what Emilio was saying, and that they would have to decide what to do when the time came. But until then he asked the Three Finger Real Estate Group Manager to play everything by ear and to get back with him when he knows anything more.
After he walked Emilio to the entrance door to his outer office, Mr. Ken turn towards to Rosemary and asked her to call Ben and to ask him to come down to his office.
Once Ben Walthers was in his office, Mr. Ken told him about Emilio’s visit. The owner of the amusement parks then told Ben to dust off their plans for the Four Corners operations building that if they do get the 8+ acres next to the Four Corners Amusement Park, he wanted him and Nelson to work with the Construction/Design Group and the Architect Group and work on creating a two-story, with basement, operations building for Four Corners.
Mr. Ken explained that if they get the 8+ acres he will want to use the back 2+ acres for the operations building and any ancillary storage and three acres, or so, for at least a five-story parking garage, and the remaining acreage for regular parking, signage, setbacks, and whatever else the county would require.
Hearing that Mr. Ken was thinking of building a parking garage for Four Corners caught Ben totally by surprise. So, the President of TFE asked the man if he was sure he wanted to spend that amount of money for such a small amusement park.
Mr. Ken told Ben that he was concerned about parking with the response that they’ve already had with just the small footprint at Four Corners. He added that with the addition of the coaster, the train and the other big rides that they were considering, they will need to expand the parking overall to handle the amount of parking he figures they will generate.
So, Mr. Ken said that with a 5-level parking garage that covers 3 acres, or so, he can place 1000 to 1250 cars and with that additional acreage there can be another 350 cars, plus or minus, for around 1,250 to 1700 cars that they could support along with what they currently park. The owner of the park said that he would hope that would suffice.
Ben then asked if the parking garage would be free. Mr. Ken smiled and said that it would not be and that eventually, over time, all parking would have a fee. Hearing that parking would eventually have a fee now put a smile on Ben’s face.
Mr. Ken then qualified his parking idea as just that and mentioned that he still needed to do some more calculations and soul searching over spending such a considerable amount of money on the parking garage and he asked Ben not to spread that idea around too much.
Mr. Ken also suggested that if he goes the parking garage route, they may have to delay the addition of the other rides until the garage is completed, as there was no way they could handle the influx of cars and people coming to the new rides without it. Ben asked him to keep him in the loop, and that he’d get with Nelson over the two-story ops building that weekend.
Seeing that the day was so full and it was getting late in the day, Mr. Ken asked his executive secretary to hold all his calls, except any important ones, as he was going to talk to his fiancée. The soon to be married couple talked for about a half-hour before they both needed to head home to their families.
Darrin’s room faced out the front of the house, and as he did any homework he had for the weekend, he watched for Mr. Ken to arrive home. He wanted to talk to the man about what his friends suggested to him about the insurance money and his uncle.
And as soon as the teen saw his foster dad arrive home, he waited about ten minutes to give him time to get settled, before he went down to the Study to talk to the man.
The teen knocked on the Study doorframe to get the man’s attention. What he didn’t know when he went down to the Study was that Mr. Ken was talking to Mr. Wayne and Mr. Dennis.
“Yes, Darrin, what can I do for you?” asked the foster dad.
“Oh, I didn’t know you were busy. I can come back later, Mr. Ken,’ announced Darrin.
“No, Darrin, come in. These are my right-hand men and they know a lot about what goes on here on The Cove, and they can hear what you need to talk to me about. Unless, that is, you’re going to tell me you’re going to run away, or something like that,” chuckled Mr. Ken.
A smiling Darrin, from the going to run away comment, walked into the Study and sat down in one of the vacant leather chairs and he hesitated to start telling his foster dad what he was there to talk to him about. Mr. Ken had to convince him that they didn’t bite.
“Well, Mr. Ken … I was thinking that if my uncle … if he doesn’t have a lot of money to raise me as it is, what … well, what I’m wondering about is … what would he do if he was to get all of my parent’s insurance money?
“I mean … if he doesn’t have much money now, what would he do with all of that money? And with him not having much money and then he gets a whole bunch of it would … would he … would he just spend it all on himself and his family, and if he did that, what … what would happen to me?
“Would he then send me back in to the CPS system where he lives? That wouldn’t seem fair to me if that money was supposed to be for me, for my future, would it?” finished the teen Cover.
The three men looked at one another, but Wayne and Dennis looked to their boss to see how he would answer.
“Darrin … I hear what you are saying. And I can understand your concern about all the money possibly going to your uncle to raise you. But on Tuesday, I am hoping that the judge … that he will ask me what I would do with the money, since I am your court appointed guardian.
“And son, I think you already know that I will tell him that I intend to place it into a Trust Fund that will earn interest and will be available for you to use as you go on to college or a trade school.
“Also, I do intend, if the judge decides to award your uncle any of the money, to ask him to place at least fifty to sixty percent of the money into a Trust Fund for your future. And, at a minimum, I will ask the judge to do a background check into your uncle’s finances and earnings and not allow him to be one of the trustees of the trust fund,” explained the fosters dad.
Darrin sat there thinking of what his foster dad just told him. The teen then asked, “Well, what if my uncle doesn’t like his finances looked at and I get to stay here. Who would be the trustees then?”
Mr. Ken thought about that question and then offered, “Well, I certainly would not be, as I am not a trustee on any of your ‘brothers’ Trust Funds now, as it might be looked on as a conflict of interest, me being your guardian, and all.
“So, I’d probably ask someone who knows you, like these two gentlemen, or Mr. Chris, Ms. Judy, Ms. Mary, and Collin even to act as the trustees. You need two to watch over the account to make sure it is earning good interest. They also would dispense any monies that you need for school, and whatever else they thought you needed at the time.”
“If, and when we get to that point, I’ll have my lawyer sit down and explain it all to you. It is a bit more complicated than that, but once it is created, it looks seamless, until the time comes that you gooff to school, or you decide that you want to just chill until you’re twenty-one, when the entire fund would be turned over to you,” added Mr. Ken.
“Twenty-one? I’d have to wait that long to get the Trust Fund if I don’t go on to college or a trade school?” now asked Darrin.
“Yes, that’s the way I would set it up. Depending on the size of the account, I might allow a monthly stipend to be distributed to you. But by then, hopefully, you’d have decided that furthering your education was best for your future, and you’d be using the fund to pay for that,” counseled Mr. Ken.
Darrin thanked his foster dad for talking to him about his feelings over his uncle getting all of his parent’s insurance money at the court hearing on Tuesday.
After the teen left the Study, the three men discussed what Darrin was there for. It was Dennis who asked if the boy’s uncle was really interested in raising him. But all Mr. Ken could tell him was that Ms. Judy was in contact with the man who had indicated some interest in doing so, but that he was not financially well off at the moment to do so.
The next question that Dennis had dealt with if Darrin wasn’t far off in asking what if the uncle got all the money and spent it all, and then put the boy back in the system. The man wanted to know what would become of the boy, then.
Mr. Ken honestly told Dennis that if the uncle got a hold of all the money and did what Darrin is afraid of what that he’d do, and the boy was placed back in the system, there was nothing that he could do, as he would be in another state.
Dennis then asked him if he didn’t go and get Matthew when his dad put him in the hospital. Mr. Ken told the man that the circumstances were different at the time, as he had formed a fondness for the boy and had an understanding of his needs, which caused him to fight for his return.
Mr. Ken sat there and thought about the question for a few moments. Then the man told both men, “To be honest with you both … I haven’t really formed the same sort of what you called fondness for Darrin. And the reason for that is … well, I haven’t had the time to really get to know the teenager, as of yet.
“You both have seen how busy I’ve been since his arrival, and how I’ve also been kind of neglecting the other boys, Matthew being an example of that, which I hope to rectify this weekend by taking him out to look for a suitable building that he can use for the puppy training venture.
“But I will also tell you that if I do get to know Darrin well, by the time the uncle takes him away, but does something akin to Matthew’s dad did, then I’d probably go and get him, too.”
When Darrin left the Study, he didn’t go too far away from the room. He wanted to hear what they might say about why he was there. He heard Mr. Dennis ask his questions and he also heard how Mr. Ken went and got Matthew away from his own dad, when the man put him in the hospital.
But when he heard what Mr. Ken had to say that he hadn’t formed that fondness with him, he quickly left the area, not waiting to hear the end when the foster dad said, but if it does form that fondness by the time the uncle takes him away, and does what Matthews’s dad did, then he’d probably go and get him, too.
After dinner, during their usual meeting, ‘dad’ Ken again asked his son, Robert, if he was ready to take his written driver’s test in the morning. The teenagers said that he was ready as he could ever be, and that he was hoping to get at least enough questions right to get his driver’s permit. The teen added that if he does that, he’d be happy. All the teen’s dad did was smile and shake his head.
‘Dad’ Ken then reminded Matthew that the two of them would go out looking at storage buildings after breakfast, that he could base his dog training business out of. He told the soon-to-be-teen that this was going to be his birthday present.
The man also recapped that on Tuesday he and Darrin had a court appearance and that on Wednesday he was leaving to support Kate at a court appearance on Thursday, and it would probably be a protracted case meaning that he might not be back until late Friday night.
He also asked the boys if they’d been working on their Christmas and gag lists, so they could begin Christmas shopping on Saturday. He also asked them if they had their Christmas Wish List ready for him, err, Santa, too. The boys all laughed at his slip of the tongue.
Again, ‘dad’ Ken told the boys that the high school students would be installing their competition Gingerbread Houses on the 16th and that the Holiday parties would take place on the 22nd and the 23rd and they would wear their colorful vests then.
‘Dad’ Ken then asked the boys if they had any more thoughts on when they were going to visit his amusement parks. He wanted to know if they were going to split them up into two groups, or go at them in one fell swoop.
Matthew asked what were the options again. Mr. Ken smiled and told the boys that they could go to two or three of the parks before Christmas, and then visit the remaining ones after Christmas. Or, they could go to all five parks before Christmas or all five after Christmas. He added that he needed to know by the time he returns next Friday, so he can plan the air charter service. The boys told him that they’d figure it out by then.
That night, as the dad/foster dad said goodnight to the boys, he got feedback on his push for the boy’s lists. A few of the boys told him that they had no idea of what they wanted from Santa.
‘Dad’ Ken in turn told them that if they didn’t know what they liked, how would Santa know what to bring them. There was always a laugh and a smile between the man and boy when they had that discussion.
Bill did ask his foster dad if he had heard anything more about the lawsuit’s settlement. All Mr. Ken could tell the teen was that Bill Jackson was working it as fast as the media people wanted to deal with the lawsuit, and then he asked him to be patient as these things took time.
Bill then asked Mr. Ken if he could possibly go and see his mother over the Holidays. All Mr. Ken could tell the teenager was that they would have to look at the calendar and try to find a date amongst everything that was happening at The Cove. Bill thanked the man for at least considering that for him.
In Robert’s room, dad Ken heard the same request to go and visit his mom. It was as if the two teens had coordinated the question. All the teen’s dad could tell his son, was to look at the calendar and to see what date could work, amongst everything that was happening around The Cove during the Holidays.
Charles didn’t have anything important to say or ask for during his few minutes with his dad. The teen did still enjoy that one-on-one time he got with his dad and, of course, the hugs at the end.
Matthew was full of questions about tomorrow. And all ‘dad’ Ken could tell the boy was to look at the world wide web and see what types of storage buildings were out there, so he knew what he might be looking for tomorrow. And before he left to talk to Phillip, he told the boy not to spend all night doing that. The two shared a long hug and then the man was gone.
When the foster dad entered Phillip’s room, he saw that the boy looked tired. The boy had performed at Four Corners for four hours that night, and it showed. He asked the boy how the security guard worked out for him. Phillip said that once he got to the amusement park and they began to play, he didn’t know he was there until they took their breaks.
‘Dad’ Ken asked if the man was staying too close to him or interfering with the band. Phillip said that he didn’t think so, but that everyone wanted to know why he was always with him, when they took a break. All ‘dad’ Ken told his foster son was for him to tell the people that it was because of what happened at the Diner, and to leave it at that and don’t explain it any further.
‘Dad’ Ken did ask Phillip if he’d been paid yet. That question caught the boy by surprise and he honestly said that he hadn’t. ‘Dad’ Ken said that he’d look into it for him and his bandmates.
The man told Phillip to get a good night’s sleep and that he’d see him at breakfast. They shared a hug and as the man left to go to Darrin’s room, Phillip left to visit the bathroom to drain his dragon.
As Mr. Ken entered Darrin’s room, he noticed that the teen seemed off, for some reason. That the boy wasn’t acting as he usually did when he entered the teen’s room. He asked the teen what might be the matter, but all Darrin said was that he was tired and thinking about his uncle and having to go to live with him.
Mr. Ken told the teen that it might not happen if his uncle doesn’t have the means to properly raise him, even with the added monies from the insurance. Darrin asked him how would he know.
The foster dad told his foster son that he wasn’t going to just let his uncle to take him without some sort of background check to make sure the uncle could properly take care of him. Mr. Ken added that they won’t let people adopt without a background check, and he will insist they do one on him to make sure he wasn’t a bad man of sorts, and/or just out after the money.
Hearing that put a smile on the teen’s face and some hope in his soul that maybe he could stay there at the Cove after all. He did tell Mr. Ken that he would rather stay there than have to go to someplace that he’s never known and have to learn all over again. Mr. Ken told the teen to not lose hope, and that they’d know more after Tuesday.
After Mr. Ken left his room, Darrin thought some more about what he heard in the Study and what he just heard from his foster dad. He was somewhat confused, but he knew that the whole time he lived at the Cove Mr. Ken had been honest and up front with him, and so he knew he needed to wait until Tuesday to see what really happens.
Mr. Ken was happy that the week was over. It had been a worrisome week for him, but it ended well, he thought. He got ready for bed and then as he sat on the edge of his king-sized bed, he wondered why it was that every Holiday season, that things got so complicated and busy for him. He wished that one time, everything would be simple and easy.
Then it dawned on him that amongst all the things he had been talking to the boys about, he’d forgotten that Chief would be having another litter of puppies right after the New Year. He knew that he’d have to add that to the list of things he brought up to the boys and the staff.
As the owner of The Cove turned off the lights in his bedroom and got under the blankets, he felt a calmness enter his body. He hoped that as he relaxed, he would fall asleep sooner than later. As the Cover’s slept, The Cove was peaceful and quiet the whole night through.
The saga of Three Finger Cove continues. Let Chowhound know you are reading his story: Chowhnd at Gmail dot Com
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