Ken Thomas was dragging some that Monday morning after his 4th of July Picnic. Getting to bed after 1 a.m. and then getting up as he usually did around 8:15 didn't let him get the full night's rest his body needed. He knew he needed to get to bed earlier that evening to make up for it.
The owner of The Cove did his usual morning thing before going out to get his morning newspaper. After that, Momma Maria had his first cup of hot coffee ready for him and told him she'd have his breakfast ready for him when the boys came down.
Mr. Ken also reminded himself to call Doctor Doug's office to make an appointment for Kevin. That was a prime phone call he had to make about the time the boys came downstairs.
Mr. Wayne came to The Cove about the time the boys walked into the Kitchen Nook. Chris Dominions wasn't too far behind and the two employees got their first cup of hot coffee and sat with their boss as he read his paper.
The boys said good morning to their 'dad' first, and then to the men and Momma Maria before sitting down to breakfast. Billy took care of Chief's needs before he sat down to a wonderful Momma breakfast.
Chris said the Picnic, in his observation, was much better than last year's. He said there were a lot more people there and the rides were much better and the food was just as good or even better as his children enjoyed what they had to eat. Chris then said the fireworks were outstanding and he couldn't remember one as patriotic as that one was.
Ken Thomas smiled at what Chris had to say about the fireworks display. He too thought the pyrotechnic display he purchased was well worth the money, and he hoped the community would remember it for some time to come.
Wayne added that he thought the children enjoyed having access to the Cove Skate Park. The Estate Master said there were kids waiting for the hour to be up, so they could get their time out on the Park. He remembered seeing a few children getting off the Skate Park and getting back in line so they could do it again an hour later.
Billy spoke up and said Robert's idea to have the police explorers put those wristbands on the kids, who had a signed release form, was a great one. The teen added that without them, they would have spent more time figuring out who could and could not skate than watching out for kids getting in the way of more experienced skaters.
Robert said they had a few bumps and bruises when the inexperienced skaters got in the way of the better skaters. The cover teen described the Cove Skate Park as one large skate-a-thon and they limited the number of skaters to less than one hundred.
Charles said he didn't have to ban anyone from skating, but he did tell a few smaller kids to stay in the quarter pipe area and away from the bowls. He added he explained to them they could get the same feeling if they rode it right without getting run over.
Billy said he and Lonnie would close the one bowl for the smaller kids to use for the last ten to twelve minutes of the hour. He explained he told the better skaters the inexperienced children needed to try it out, otherwise, they'd never get to know what it was like and if they could do it.
The boys talked about the neighborhood children using the Cove Skate Park while they ate. Mr. Ken was inwardly happy he made the decision to let the other children use the new facility. He thought to himself that he might do that again during the summer. But first, he needed to ask if his 'boys' were going to start asking their friends over to try it out.
It was then Mr. Ken got up from the table and hurried out of the Nook. He went directly to his Study to make the call he needed to make thirty minutes ago, but got distracted by all the conversation about the Picnic and the Skate Park.
Mr. Ken was happy to find an opening that afternoon and took it. It was for 3 p.m., but he didn't care as Kevin needed to get his life back on track and quickly. The foster dad also made appointments for Kevin for Wednesday and Friday, too, but those were in the morning at 10 a.m.
"Kevin, you have an appointment at 3 p.m. this afternoon. You also have one on Wednesday and Friday at 10 a.m. I want to go with you today and we'll see who takes you for the next two appointments. And, boys … I haven't been pushing you to see Doctor Doug since school was out, but … if you want to talk to him let me know. I can make an appointment for you as well.
"Bill … after Kaden's arrest and what we all learned … do you want to go back and talk to Doctor Doug? And, if not about him, maybe about general things as we talked about in your room.
"It might be good to stay in touch with him every other week, so you have someone you can bounce issues off of and, you know, get some unbiased feedback from. Please think about it and let me know. That goes for the rest of you boys,” finished 'dad' Ken.
As the Covers were eating, they could hear lots of noises coming from the outside. Mr. Ken told them it was the carnival, taking it all down and packing it up to go to their next stop.
Kyle spoke up just then and told his 'dad' he should do the carnival for two days next year. He said there just wasn't enough time to enjoy everything, especially the food. Hearing the food comment perked up Momma's ears.
"What did you like about the food, Kyle?" asked Mr. Chris.
"I don't know, exactly. I guess … I guess it was that there were so many different foods to choose from. They were all good, but not as good as Momma's, but … I guess it's … it's because I could choose what I wanted. It was like going to the food court, you know, at The Mall. We each could choose something different, instead of all of us getting the same thing. Did I say that right?” finished the younger twin.
Everyone smiled at what Kyle had to say. Matthew said he thought he understood what his 'brother' was saying. He agreed it was nice getting to pick and choose from the wide variety of different foods that were out there. He also said it would have been nice to be able to ride the rides again today, if they were staying another day and play the Midway games, some more.
Mr. Wayne asked Kyle if the boys were playing the games he had Mr. Ken buy for the Pavilion and Skate Park. Kyle said they played them some, but not as much as he thought they would. Mr. Wayne said that maybe they needed to have a competition and see who were the best players of the individual games, and then crown an overall champion.
That got the boys to talking amongst themselves about doing something like that. It was Charles who asked what would be the prize for the individual game's champs, and then the overall champion. 'Dad' Ken said if they could put a competition together, and make it fair and keep good records, he'd have Mr. Chris figure it out. Everyone laughed.
The impromptu meeting in the Kitchen Nook broke up and the Covers headed off to get ready for their day. Mr. Ken asked Wayne to set his cell phone to ring at about 2:30 to remind him to take Kevin to his appointment.
The boys talked about creating a game competition for the four games Kyle had their 'dad' buy. They weren't sure how they would go about it, so Billy said they should talk to their friends to see if they would even want to get involved in something like that. The teen said if they won't play then what good would it do to try to create it.
The Boys headed up to the Skate Park after their showers and getting dressed for the day. They all went to the four games to check them out and to play them. They really hadn't played them all that much and they needed to play them a few more times to get a feel for how they could set up a competition.
As their friends arrived, they asked the Covers what they were doing and when they heard that Mr. Ken was thinking of having an individual game champ and an overall champion, they got excited. They asked how it would be set up. Robert said that was what they were trying to figure out.
The boys all began to offer their suggestions. Billy considered all the suggestions and said they needed to write down some rules and procedures and ways to break ties, if there were any. Charles said he felt everyone needed some time to get familiar with playing the games and then they should start the competition.
The younger boys asked if there would be champions for different ages. Robert said the games were more of skill and ability, not so much of size and strength. The teen said Logan's size wouldn't help him pull a block from the Toppling Timbers any better than Ryan would. Or, Billy couldn't put a chip in the Giant Four in a Row any better than Eli could.
That description helped the boys understand that they all had the same chance to win as any of the bigger, older boys had, so they were all on board for setting up some sort of competition. As the boys talked some more about the rules, procedures and tie breakers, other boys began playing the four games – Bean Bag Toss, Toppling Timbers, Giant Four in a Row and Washers.
Mr. Ken, Wayne and Chris talked about the Picnic and what could be changed for next year. Chris took notes. They did talk about the possibility of making it two days long. Mr. Chris said he'd have to contact all of the church groups to see if they would be able to do it for that long, plus he'd need to see if the carnival operator would be available for those two days. Mr. Ken asked him to start making those calls that week, but not to make any commitments yet.
The men then discussed what was on the schedule for The Cove, Mr. Ken and the boys for the rest of the summer. Mr. Chris was particularly interested, as he was usually responsible for making arrangements and the sooner he knew the easier it was to make them.
With the new office building supposedly opening in mid-August, the only thing that needed to be done was coordinate the moving of all of Mr. Ken's business interests to the building. The man said he had already informed the seven groups of the move. The only thing he had to plan for was the office equipment for all of them.
With that in mind, he picked up the phone and called Mary Taylor. When she answered, they made small talk until Mr. Ken got down to why he called. When Ms. Taylor learned he wanted her to coordinate with his seven business concerns and their office needs, and to buy what they wanted and set it all up, at first, she was flabbergasted and then she told him she didn't have the time to handle that amount of work.
Mr. Ken asked her if she had an assistant who could do that for him and have it done by the end of August. Mary Taylor asked if she could get back with him later in the week. She told him she knew of someone who did that sort of office establishing and would see if she could handle that. Mr. Ken said he would appreciate that and the two then hung up.
Mr. Chris asked if the first week of August was still good to go to plan his and the boys next trip to visit the amusement parks. That was the first Mr. Wayne was hearing of that, so he took out his cell phone and put it into his calendar. Mr. Ken said to plan for them to leave on Sunday and return the following Saturday. He also asked Mr. Chris to get a third room for the teens just like he had this past trip.
The Labor Day weekend Picnic was also discussed and then the Fall Meeting of the Three Finger Entertainment, LLC at the Lakeside Hotel, with the conference room reserved for the weekend. Mr. Chris asked if he knew anything more about the Edgewood Amusement Park and if he was still going to buy it. Mr. Wayne said he hadn't heard anything from the owners yet, as to if they were interested in selling.
Mr. Ken did take Kevin to talk to Doctor Doug that afternoon. He and the doctor talked for a few minutes about why Kevin was there and then the young Cover went in to talk to the doctor by himself. Forty-five minutes later the twelve-year-old came out smiling and happy.
Kevin thanked his 'dad' for making the appointment for him, and he told his 'dad' that he was looking forward to talking to Doctor Doug on Wednesday, too. Mr. Ken hugged the twin and the two went out to DQ to celebrate.
At dinner the boys talked about creating the competition for the four new games. They said their friends were on board. Billy said he was going to check the internet tonight to see how he could set up a double elimination schedule for fifty-one people.
Robert then asked if they would ever get the chance to ride on the Commander that summer. The teen's dad said that with fifty-one kids there was no way the Commander could accommodate them. He kiddingly said he'd need a barge to hold that many. Charles said kiddingly, "Well, what are you waiting for?” The boys looked around at one another and then laughed. Even Momma Maria laughed.
When the Covers were in the Study, Robert asked if they were ever going to get to go to the Lakeside Water Park. Talking about the ride in the Commander and now about going to the water park was a wakeup call for the dad by his son.
Ken Thomas was extremely busy as of late and while trying to keep his 'boys' busy and engaged, he was also forgetting they also had wants and desires as young boys who had things they wanted to do besides what their 'dad' had planned.
"Boys … I am sorry we haven't taken the Commander out. We could do that tonight if you want. But we can't take all of your friends. There are way too many of them. As for going to the Lakeside Water Park … we can do that, as well, but … how do I get fifty some boys there and back? The logistics is daunting?” explained the teen's dad.
"You could get us a bus as you did for SeaWorld and Six Flags,” spoke up Kyle.
"Yea, dad, and you get all of us in for free, don't you?” asked Charles.
"OK, boys, let me look into that. But I am not making any promises. I'll ask Mr. Chris to see if we can take a bus there later this week. But I also need to see if I am overstaying my welcome by bringing fifty plus people to the water park for free. Yes, last year I took, what … twenty of you? But fifty … that might be a stretch, boys. Again … no promises. I'll have to get back with you about that,” counseled 'dad' Ken.
Mr. Ken quickly covered the summer for the boys. He mentioned their August trip, the Labor Day weekend Picnic and his Fall meeting of Three Finger Entertainment LLC. He told them he hadn't gotten too far into looking at Halloween or Christmas, but that maybe they could go to Six Flags for Halloween and SeaWorld for Christmas that year. That put big smiles on the boy's faces when they heard that.
Billy did go directly up to his computer to look up a way to schedule a double elimination for fifty-one people. There he found page after page of Tournament Schedulers and began to look at the ones he figured he could download and use to make something for their competition.
Mr. Ken and Mr. Wayne came up earlier than usual to say goodnight to the boys. The men started at different ends of the hallway so they could each talk to the boys individually. When Robert's dad talked to him, he asked him why he was asking about the Commander and the water park.
Robert said that he missed doing those and he felt the summer was half over and they hadn't even done one of them. The teen's dad told his son that last year there was just him and Charles but since then he tripled the number of boys in his household and he just doesn't have the time to do all of those things. Dad Ken told his son he would try to see what he could do, but when they added thirty other boys it made it difficult to coordinate it.
When dad Ken talked to Charles, he asked his son if he was kidding about the barge. Charles said he really wasn't. He said that with the Commander being too small the next best thing would be a barge that had an upper deck and a slide and a toilet in case someone needed to use it.
Dad Ken said that if it was that important to his son that his son should check out the World Wide Web and see if he could find something and show it to him. Charles said he would. They hugged and then 'dad' Ken went to talk to the twins.
Kevin was in a good mood when 'dad' Ken walked into the bedroom. Kyle thanked their 'dad' for helping his twin see Doctor Doug so quickly and getting him into a better mood. 'Dad' Ken was happy for the boys, but he told them Kevin still had to work through his trouble and that it could be a few more sessions with Doctor Doug before he feels totally better. What Mr. Ken failed to tell them was their dad's and moms' trial would happen that July and it might set Kevin back once again.
Matthew was the easiest of the boys to talk with. He didn't want for much and he didn't have the baggage the twins had. He did have his mom's trial ahead of him that he didn't know about, yet, but for now he was a happy go lucky boy, that couldn't be happier he was living at The Cove.
At Billy's room, Mr. Ken asked him how he was doing with finding a schedule for the four games competitions. Billy said he found what he needed, but would need some big poster boards in order to make the schedules up. The teen also said they needed to come up with some Rules to follow and a way to break ties, if they ever had them.
Mr. Ken loved the way Billy got fully involved with the things he was interested in. The teen wasn't afraid to get involved and he had a good head on his shoulders. The teenager looked at things differently than many people would, and he saw ways to deal with them others might not otherwise consider. Mr. Ken felt the teen had a good future ahead of him, as long as he kept going the way he was and kept his grades up.
Mr. Ken told Billy to get with Mr. Chris to buy him what poster board he needed and any markers and anything else he might need to set the schedules up. The man told him he was proud of the way he took charge and hoped he would involve his 'brothers' in what he was doing. The man asked Billy to let them help him build it so they understood it and could administer it if he was sick or something. Billy smiled and thanked the man for believing in him.
Mr. Ken did get to bed early that evening. He needed the rest because of all the late nights and the stress from the 4th of July Picnic. He fell right to sleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.
The Covers met their 'dad' in the Kitchen Nook as usual the next morning. He was reading his morning newspaper and drinking his coffee when they went up to him and hugged him. Even Billy hugged the man that morning, before taking care of Chief's new water and kibble.
Momma made the Covers pancakes, crisp bacon and sausage, and asked them what types of eggs they wanted. Most of the boys wanted scrambled, but Mr. Ken, Billy and Robert, asked for over-easy with one piece of toast. Momma made the scrambled eggs first as she could make a whole lot at one time. The three sets of two over easy-eggs came next.
"Dad … were you serious about letting me research for a barge?” asked Charles.
"Yes, son … if you find something you think would work and I would approve, the key words being 'I would approve' then go for it. Show me what you find, and I'll think about it. OK?” replied the teen's dad.
Billy then told his 'brothers' he found a scheduler they could use to create the double elimination competition. He asked them to help him create the boards, since he needed four of them. He added he would ask Mr. Chris to buy him the poster board and when he got it, they could start building the schedules. He mentioned that when it was all ready, they could possibly start the competition on Sunday or Monday. The boys all agreed they would help him.
After getting ready for the day, Charles went directly to his computer to see what kind of barges there were out there that could accommodate large groups and his dad would be ok with. He went at the research with gusto. He liked going out on the Commander with his friends, but the Commander can't handle fifty plus people, so the barge was the next best thing.
Mr. Chris found himself very busy that Tuesday with all the requests he received from multiple sources. First, he had to research getting a bus to take the boys and their friends to the Lakeside Water Park and buy poster board for Billy for some sort of competition the boys were going to have.
Mr. Chris also had to start making phone calls to see if taking the 4th of July Picnic to two days was feasible for the carnival operator and the church groups. The unasked question was his finding out about Fright Fest at Six Flags and SeaWorld's Christmas Celebration and scheduling a bus for each of them. All he needed were the dates. Then he decided he' look at the school's calendar to see when those Holidays were and what, if any, time off was around them.
When the boys began arriving at The Cove that day, they could smell a distinct odor coming from the Pavilion area. Robert and his friends went looking for the source and found it at the trash cans and the restrooms.
They quickly emptied the trash cans, but the smell from the restrooms was still very powerful. Robert told his friends that his dad told them they were responsible for keeping the place clean and that they had better get the pressure washer and wash down both restrooms and quick.
Logan and Brad went with Robert to get the pressure washer and eye and ear protection out of the shed. They loaded it all onto a golf cart and took it up to the Pavilion restrooms. Robert asked the other boys to take down the toilet paper and paper towels so they wouldn't get ruined as they washed down the restrooms.
Logan asked to use the machine first. He began with cleaning the boy's restroom, but afterwards, it still smelled off. He asked Robert if they had something, they could use to clean it better. Robert went down to talk to his dad.
Mr. Wayne heard the question, so he told his boss he'd look through the cleaning supplies and go up there to see what he could do to help the boys out. When the Estate Master and the teen Cover arrived back at the Pavilion, they had vinegar, baking soda and hydrogen peroxide.
They mixed one-part vinegar to one-part water and sprinkled it around the urinals and the toilets and let it stand. While they waited, they went to the women's restroom to see if the pressure washer would clean up the smell in there.
The boys couldn't understand why the smell happened and why right after the Picnic. All Mr. Wayne could say was, that a bunch of people who didn't have any concern as to whose restrooms they were, just used them all day Sunday and didn't care what they did in them.
When they used the pressure washer in the women's restroom, Mr. Wayne had them set the plastic tube into the vinegar bottle and that way the vinegar was automatically mixed as they washed the toilets, sinks and floor. When they were finished, the women's restroom smelled so much cleaner.
When they went back to the men's restroom, Mr. Wayne had them pressure wash it lightly to wash away the vinegar solution they'd put down. When they were finished the room smelled clean, as well.
The Estate Master had the boys chock open the doors to allow the rooms to air dry. He asked them to not go in them unless absolutely necessary, so as to keep the floor from getting sneaker footprints. He did thank them for taking proactive action to keep the Pavilion clean the other day and today.
The Estate Master also told them Mr. Ken was happy that his charge to them to do that was being undertaken by them. The boys helped Mr. Wayne put the pressure washer into the golf cart and he drove it down to the shed.
Once the restrooms were cleaned, Billy called all the boys together to explain what he intended to do for the double-elimination competition. He said they would begin building the schedule as soon as Mr. Chris got him the poster board and hoped the competition could start that Sunday or Monday.
The boys said they were looking forward to it. Some even went over to the games and began challenging one another so they could get used to the games to have a better chance of winning as the individual game champ and maybe the overall champion.
Some of the boys wanted to swim. They said they saw loads of people swimming and the water must have gotten warmer for them to have stayed in there as long as they had. Many of the boys headed to the Locker Room to change and then they went out to the cove to swim. The lifeguards were ready for them.
Before long all of the boys were out swimming. Kevin, Kyle, Matthew and all of their friends, being twelve and under, had to wear the life vests. Mr. Chris had bought some that weren't too bulky, so they could still play without being too encumbered.
The boys immediately got to playing King of the Raft. The lifeguards cringed as they saw the boys fall off the top, or get pushed off the top, splash into the water and come back for more. The boys were having a good time.
When the boys got tired, they spread out on the runway platform between the Rave Iceberg Climbing Wall and the Jungle Joe II. Some even spread out on the new floating platform that had the lifeguard tower on it.
Many of the younger boys wanted to ride on Rock It after they were rested. Four scrambled to be the first ones to ride it. Others wanted to be first, so they tussled with one another before four boys got onto the seats. Then they started rocking the water toy as fast as they could. The higher someone got the better the height they'd get. Sometimes the person let go; other times they lost their grip and were sent flying. Either way, they had fun.
Lunch was late that day as the boys were having fun swimming and forgot about cooking. Robert and his Team were up for the barbeque that day and they headed up to the Pavilion to get things started. They had already sliced the tomatoes and onions, the lettuce was patted dry and the dispensers were full, so all they needed to do was burn the burgers and dogs and set up the serving line.
The adults came up for a late burger, but they only ate one burger knowing that dinner would be in a few hours. Mr. Ken asked his boys not to eat too much as well for the same reason.
While they ate, the boys' friends thanked Mr. Ken for having the Picnic again. They told him they enjoyed the rides because they were newer ones this year. They told him they also loved the Midway games as they were a lot more fun than last years, as well.
The boys then asked Mr. Ken about the possibility of having some sort of competition over the four Pavilion games. They said they thought it would be fun to see who was the best player of all four individual games and then to see who was the best overall player of the four games.
Mr. Ken said that Billy was going to handle the competition schedule and would be the person overseeing the overall competition. The owner of The Cove said Billy's 'brothers' would help him along the way, but he asked them to help, too, by playing by the Rules and being a gracious loser as well as a considerate winner.
Mr. Ken did check out both restrooms before he went back to the house. He wanted to see how well the boys cleaned them up and if the smell they complained about was taken care of. He thanked the boys for taking care of the problem as soon as they discovered it. He reminded them that he charged them with the care of the Pavilion and the Cove Skate Park and he was pleased they had taken that responsibility to heart.
After dinner that night, Mr. Ken asked the boys if they wanted to go drive the Go-Karts instead of having a meeting in the Study. The six boys couldn't move fast enough to the van so they could head over to Four Corners.
While the Covers were in line, waiting their turn to drive the Go-Karts, Billy asked Mr. Ken if he ever thought of putting a Slick Trax Race Track there. The teen said he thought there was enough room for one and it would bring additional people to the area. The teen added that would also give them the chance to have ice cream at his store, play miniature golf and maybe eat at the Diner.
Mr. Ken smiled at how the teen justified his putting the Slick Trax in the Four Corners area. He told Billy that he liked the idea of having one, but he was just too busy with his other endeavors to do so. Billy quickly spoke up and said that all he needed to do was find a like-minded partner and have him do the heavy lifting and then enjoy the profits. Mr. Ken laughed hard at how easy Billy thought it could be, while Mr. Wayne just coughed and smiled at the forwardness of the teenager.
"Billy, I do need to find some partners to work with me on some of the endeavors I have planned. Maybe Mr. Wayne here has enough money and time he could devote to helping me,” replied Mr. Ken.
Mr. Wayne said only if his employer would pay him a whole lot more. The two men laughed.
Charles and Robert heard Billy's conversation with their dad. They thought their dad should add more things to Four Corners and the Slick Trax was one of them. But they knew their dad wanted to put some kiddie rides there as well as a small train. They also knew with him looking to put a 200 slip Marina with fishing, scuba, fuel as well as a restaurant he just didn't have the time to plan anything else at that part of Four Corners.
When it was finally their turn to race, Mr. Ken wouldn't let Robert or Charles to be upfront. He told them they needed to be humble and win from the back. He had Kevin, Kyle, Matthew and Mr. Wayne up in the first four cars and told them to see if they could hold off their 'brothers' and the other four people in the race.
When the Greenlight was lit, the three youngest Covers smashed their gas pedals and quickly headed out of the starting block. Mr. Wayne followed along, but he wasn't interested in winning. All he cared about was having fun and watching the boys race against one another.
Robert, Charles and Billy had to work their way from the last three places to the front to even have the chance to win. The unknown were the four other racers on the track. But the three older Covers were good on the track and they did work their way to the front by the seventh lap. The question would be, did they have enough time to get past their three younger 'brothers'?
But Kevin, Kyle and Matthew weren't waiting for their older 'brothers' to catch up. They too wanted to win the race and Matthew knew what it felt like to win and he tried to pass either of the twins, but they were blocking him very well. He also knew Robert was trying to pass him, so he had his hands full.
Charles and Billy were putting pressure on Robert and they both tried to pass him and when one tried on one side the other tried on the other. Doing that distracted him enough that it took some pressure off Mathew. This time 'dad' Ken and Mr. Wayne did not interfere with the race. Well, other than making the older boys start at the back. They wanted the boys to win on their own.
Kevin won the race and he danced all around when he got out of his race car. His 'brothers' congratulated him and he accepted their accolades. The Covers then headed over to Mr. Ken's Kreamy Kone for ice cream.
The line wasn't as long that night. When the boys looked inside, they saw a familiar face.
"Hey, dad … when did Conner start working here?” asked Robert.
"Well, the other night when there were only two servers and I had Mr. Ed come over to help, I told him I knew a teenager who might need a job. I called Conner and asked him if he was interested. When he said he was, I gave him Mr. Ed's phone number and obviously he was hired,” replied the teen's dad.
"Conner, how is the job working out?” asked Mr. Ken.
"I'm enjoying it, Mr. Ken. It's kept me busy and I am finally making some money this summer. I do miss not being at The Cove with Todd, but I need to make my own way as I get older. What can I get you?” replied Conner.
The boys began telling Conner what they wanted. Conner waited on one boy at a time and when he had finished one Sundae he started on the next. It took him a while to get all eight Sundaes built, but they were exactly as he was taught.
Conner took Mr. Wayne's credit card and ran it through the system. He then gave the receipt for Mr. Wayne to sign and then kept the top copy and gave the carbon to the Estate Master.
When the transaction was over, Conner thanked them for coming and then went to wait on the next customer. Mr. Ken was pleased with the way Conner waited on them. He was cordial, as he worked on their order. He didn't waste time talking with people he knew. He did the job he was hired to do. Mr. Ken said he'd call Ed tomorrow to tell him what he saw tonight.
The Covers had a cup of vanilla ice cream for Chief when they arrived back at The Cove. The resident pet again didn't know which boy had her treat, so she sat down and waited to see who would give it to her. Robert had the cup this time.
Chief lapped up the cold concoction as fast as she could. The cup walked around the Kitchen Nook floor as she ate it and all the Covers laughed as she chased it and ate the ice cream. When Chief was finished, she went to Robert and gave him a few cold doggie kisses.
Mr. Ken told the boys they didn't need to talk in the Study tonight. He told them they all had a good talk earlier that morning and they all could use the time to relax in their rooms before going to bed. He sent the boys up to their rooms and told them he'd be up there soon.
Mr. Ken and Mr. Wayne went into the Study to talk, before heading upstairs to say goodnight to the boys. Mr. Ken noticed he had a message on the answering machine and he was going to listen to it. But then he told Wayne there wasn't anything he could do about it tonight, so he'd wait until the morning. The two men then headed upstairs to talk to the boys.
The teens all complained about how unfair it was they had to start at the back of the race. Robert asked if next time they race if they could do it without their younger 'brothers' on the same race. He said they could be on one race and they could be on another one and that way they would be racing against total strangers. The teen's dad said he'd think about it for the next time. The two hugged and the man went to another boy's room.
Kevin couldn't stop smiling that he'd won the race. 'Dad' Ken told the twin he'd done well that day, but not to let it go to his head as on another day he could come in last. Kevin said he knew what it was like to do that. They had a good laugh over that. Mr. Ken reminded the older twin he had an appointment with Doctor Doug at 10 a.m. in the morning, so he had to eat quickly and get ready, so they could leave by 9:30.
After talking to all six boys, the men said they'd see one another in the morning and decide then who'd take Kevin to his doctor's appointment. The Cove was quiet that night.
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