Three Finger Cove: The Twins ~ Book Four

Ken Thomas and Robert met Bill Jackson and Stewart Russell at the Front door and invited them in. Mr. Ken told them they'd talk in his Study. Once the four were in the Study the owner of The Cove asked his guests if they wanted something to drink. Bill said he'd like a good cup of coffee and Stew seconded that. Robert told his 'dad' he'd go and get it. The three men made small talk until Robert came back with the drinks.

Charles, Kevin and Kyle cleaned up the mess on the kitchen table and then headed out to the skateboard ramps. Charles told the twins to practice, so they don't look like geeks in front of their friends. The three lads all laughed.

In the Study, Bill Jackson took over handling the meeting. He went over the things Stewart covered on Thursday night and then he told Mr. Ken and Robert how he intended to proceed on Wednesday. He told his clients that since they asked for a jury trial it could take all day to get through sitting the prospective jurors. He told them that just in case they felt that the trial would be over in one day.

That explanation caught Robert off guard, so he asked his 'dad' what that would mean for him and school. 'Dad' Ken told him he would have to buck-it-up and if he fell behind in his school work he'd have to make it all up. 'Dad' Ken told Robert that it was unusual that kids brought a lawsuit in court, but when they do they have to attend the proceedings. Robert wanted to know if they could do what they did when he had to go to court for his mom's and dad's trials.

Bill Jackson heard Robert and took the question. The lawyer told the teenager that they were extremely lucky that the judge agreed with them about the stress of exams, coupled with having to get ready for the trail, would interfere with the teen and his possibly passing. Bill told Robert that he would have to endure the trail for as many days as it takes even if it took 3, 5 or even 7 days. Hearing that did not make Robert happy at all.

The group in the Study then watched the video Mr. Ken had compiled on Mildred's attacks on Robert. Even though all the principals had seen the video, Bill wanted to carefully point out the specific occurrences that he wanted Robert to be able to discuss when he asked him about them on the stand.

When they were finished looking at Robert's video, Mr. Ken told them he had another one he wanted them to watch.

"Since Mildred was let off with barely a slap on the wrist, I figured I'd look for some other oddities that she might have been doing. And, I found them," offered Mr. Ken.

Mr. Ken started the video on his computer so everyone had to gather around. As the video played, he explained they were now watching how Mildred mistreated Chief over and over. Ken explained he wanted to lodge an Animal Abuse charge on the woman so she would get some jail time. After watching the video, both lawyers said they were surprised at what Mildred did to Chief and were utterly amazed that the estate's resident dog never attacked her in return.

Then Bill told the group that he didn't think that using Chief's video would be necessary. He brought out the list Chris gave Ken to give to him. Bill handed out copies so everyone could follow along and he began to read through it. As Bill ticked off each contract he indicated what amount of money Chris was able to ascertain Mildred had skimmed off or somehow taken through kickbacks in the contract. He then began to cover each item.

"As you can see, Ken, Mildred Johnston had been a very busy woman. She took advantage of your naiveté, your easy going disposition and for leaving all Estate money matters in her hands. She probably figured out, fairly quickly, that you wouldn't check her figures or question where the extra monies she asked for ever went. And, she's been doing this for, what, over two years. If we extrapolate the length time she worked for you, Ken, into a total amount of funds she probably embezzled over all that time comes to, I'd say, well over $110,000.00," Bill said in a finishing flare.

Robert couldn't believe what he just heard and read off the sheet of paper Bill Jackson passed out. He had no idea what Mr. Jackson was going to do with all that information, so he asked.

"Mr. Bill … how will you use this against Mildred? I mean … what good is all that … that information?" directly asked Robert.

"Robert, my boy … that is our ace in the hole. Sure, we will use your video to show how she berated and mistreated you and for that alone doesn't deserve to ever be a part of Three Finger Cove, again. We will also then present this consolidated C.P.A Certified Accounting of how she embezzled that tremendous amount of money. Of course, we also have the notarized statements from her former charges. And boy are they ever telling how she also mistreated them, beat them, and denigrated them and more," replied Bill Jackson.

"But what about my lawsuit? How will we be able to win against her if she gets to tell her story first and bring her witnesses to testify against Mr. Ken and me?" asked Robert.

The three youngest Covers went out to the ramps as they said they would. Kevin and Kyle weren't all that good on their skateboards, but Charles told them that with practice they'd get as good as he was and he had just picked it back up when he first arrived back in July.

Kevin and Kyle went at the ramps with a vengeance. They wanted to improve their skills and now that they had ramps in their 'own backyard', so to speak, they knew they could practice as much as they wanted, so they could get as good as the older lads were.

Charles gave the twins some tips on how to do certain things on their boards, but he told them he only knew so much and they needed to master some basic tricks before the older guys would help them more. Kevin didn't like the idea he needed to be better for the older boys to help him learn more. He figured because they were there they should help him.

Kyle, on the other hand, felt that if he couldn't do the easy or the basic tricks well enough there was no way he'd ever be able to do some of the Grind and Air tricks, or even the Grind and Slide ones. He liked to skateboard and knowing he was still small and young and knew if he learned now he'd be able to skate the rest of his life.

Each twin could already do an Ollie, the Basic Snap, the Tic-Tac, a Fakie Kickturn, and a Pop Shove It besides staying on their board as they rode on the ramps. Both lads were working on perfecting the Halfcab, Fakie Bigspin, Carving a Flat Wall and were working on Carving the Corner. They could do them pretty much 5 or 6 out of 10 times but they wanted to be able to do it at least 8 or 9 times out of 10.

The morning moved along faster than any of the Covers realized. Charles had set his phone alarm to ring at 11:50 and when it did ring Charles was in the middle of a trick and it startled him and made him lose control and he fell.

"Damn that phone! That fall hurt," screamed Charles.

Kevin and Kyle were giggling at Charles' fall and his yelling. Charles saw them and was about to go off on them and then realized he should have been watching the time anyway. The pre-teen got up and started laughing, too. Kevin and Kyle knew why their 'brother' had set the alarm, so they accompanied him as he walked up to the Main Gate to meet the twins' friends.

When the three Covers arrived at the gate, Charles noticed his 'dad' wasn't there yet so he called the man.

"'Dad', it's almost twelve noon. … NO, they aren't here, yet. … OK. … C'Ya," was what the twins heard.

"'Dad will be right up. He said he really wants to meet your friends' parents. He said he and the lawyers were finished, anyway," relayed Charles.

"Does 'Dad Ken' always meet your friends' parents?" asked Kyle.

"Yes, I'm pretty sure he has met Robert's and my friend's parents at one time or another. Some of my friends started coming over when 'dad' and Robert and Eric were back East, on a trip, so he didn't meet them until later. But 'dad' usually meets our friends' up here.

"Did you know that our friends' parents surprised us one night after we came back from the water park? 'Dad' had taken about 15 of us out to the Lakeside Water Park and we knew when we came back we would have to cook something for everyone because they were all spending the night.

"Anyway, when we got back to The Cove, our friends' parents, they'd all gotten together and they had made potato salad, baked beans, and deviled eggs and they also provided the tomatoes and lettuce and the onions for the hamburgers. They provided the plates, napkins, knives, forks and spoons and they also brought the ketchup and mustard and mayo along with the hamburgers and hot dogs and their buns. They had the grill out and ready for when we got back to the dock. What a wonderful surprise that was," finished up Charles.

"Yes, 'son' that was a wonderful surprise," agreed 'Dad Ken.

"I didn't hear you come up," said a surprised Charles.

"Then next time don't be so focused on one thing and not aware of what is happening around you," teased Mr. Ken, who then ruffled Charles' hair.

By then many of the Cover's friends had begun to arrive. Sam and Terran said they got there early, so they could be there to meet Isaac, Landon, Grant, and Blake when they arrived.

Charles teased them saying they arrived exactly at twelve noon which was when they usually arrived. But Sam shot back saying they got there before any of the new kids, so they were indeed early. That brought a big laugh from everyone who was up at the Main Gate waiting for the twins' new friends to arrive.

"Hey, that looks like Landon," said Terran.

Kevin and Kyle walked to the front of the assembled lads and waited for the vehicle their friend was in to stop. When the car stopped the driver turned off the engine and two other people got out at the same time Landon did. The twins said 'Hi' to their friend.

Ken Thomas walked up to the man and woman and said, "Welcome to Three Finger Cove, I'm Ken Thomas, the twins' foster dad. This is Kevin and this one is Kyle."

"Hello, Mr. Ken, I think just about everyone knows who you are," smiled the woman. "My name is Laura Jennison and this is my husband, Jason. And this young man is our son, Landon. Say hello to your friend's foster dad, Landon."

"Ah, hello, Mr. … ahh," stumbled Landon.

"You can call me Mr. Ken. All the lads do," responded Ken Thomas.

"Hello, Mr. Ken, thank you for allowing me to visit Three Finger Cove and get to try out those awesome new ramps," said a now smiling Landon.

"You are very welcome, young man. I am glad you could visit and if you behave yourself you'll be able to come back if your parents say you can," replied Mr. Ken.

"I can? Can I mom, dad?" said a very surprised and now hopeful Landon.

"Yes, Landon, I think that can be arranged. … Ah, Mr. Ken … I ahh … I see you have guards here. Is there something we need to know about? I mean, will Landon be safe here?" asked a cautious Laura Jennison.

It was Charles who spoke up right away and told the lady that the guards kept track of who comes and goes, and they help keep the nosey people away. The pre-teen told Laura Jennison that they are there 24 hours a day and his son would be safer there then if he went over to the community skate park.

Sam then spoke up and told Landon that he'd been coming over to The Cove ever since the skateboard ramps were built and so had Terran. Sam continued to tell Landon, and his parents, that practically just about everybody who's ever been invited over has continued to come back.

While the Jennison's were talking to Mr. Ken, Isaac Kerns and his parents, Amanda and William, came up to the Main Gate. They heard what Sam had said and, when William Kerns introduced himself and his wife and son to the owner of The Cove, he asked if that was true.

"Yes, Mr. Kerns, just about all the boys' friends who have been invited over here have continued to return day after day, and, well now that school is in, it will probably be weekend after weekend. As long as the lads behave themselves, I have no problem allowing them to come back. There is usually a cookout, later in the day, and the lads are fed hamburgers and hot dogs to fill their empty stomachs," laughed Mr. Ken.

It was Charles who then spoke up and told the Kerns, and the Jennisons, that it was actually the kids who did all the work for the cookout. The pre-teen explained how everyone chipped in and retrieved the burgers and dogs and the flatware and buns and the condiments and the drinks. Charles also told them that the boys all took turns cooking and when they have all eaten the boys all help clean up and put everything back.

"Is that true, Mr. Ken? Do you allow these young boys to use a … a grill and … and cook the hamburgers and hot dogs?" asked a concerned Amanda Kerns.

"Yes, ma'am, I do. They are responsible young men and need to be trusted to perform simple jobs in order to earn the opportunity to perform more complicated tasks," answered Mr. Ken.

By then, the twins' other friends, Blake Shepherd and his parents, Paula and Jack, and Grant Lowery, and his parents Denise and Saul had arrived. They heard the conversation about the cooking of hamburgers and hot dogs and were very interested in hearing the outcome.

"You can't be serious?" continued a now alarmed Amanda Kerns.

"Yes, I am!" quickly responded Mr. Ken. "My foster son Robert is thirteen and has been hosting his friends ever since he arrived last January, when he was twelve. His friends have not only joined in setting up the grill and getting all the things needed for the meal, but they have also begun to share in the responsibility for cooking the burgers and hot dogs.

"They were supervised at first, of course, to ensure they had a good grasp of the concept and the seriousness of the task they were performing. Since then, I do believe Lieutenant Fischer has watched over the lads as they cooked and he was impressed with not only their skill but their focus on what they were doing. There are always two lads who do the cooking while the rest do the set up."

"Hello, Mr. Thomas, I am Jack Shepherd, and this is my lovely wife Paula, and this is my son, Blake," said Jack Shepherd.

"Welcome to Three Finger Cove," said Ken Thomas, as he extended his hand to the man who just introduced himself and his family.

"And I am Saul Lowery, and this is my family, Denise, and Grant," spoke up the last parent of the twins' new friends, as he offered his hand to shake Mr. Ken's.

"Mr. Ken," began Denise Lowery, "I heard you saying something about the boys cooking on a grill. Will my son be required to cook the hamburgers and hot dogs when they eat?"

"Oh, no Ms. Lowery, the older lads usually share that honor and if one of Charles' friends offers to help cook there is a thirteen-year-old right there helping, too," responded Mr. Ken.

"And who is this … Charles?" asked Paula Shepherd.

"Charles, come over her 'son'," said Mr. Ken.

But before the man could say anything else, Ms. Lowery said very sarcastically, "You have a son … the age of my boy, Grant? You can't be old enough to have an eleven or even a ten year old as a son!"

Charles saw the potential for a major mash-up so he quickly spoke up and offered, "No, ma'am, he doesn't have a biological son, but he has Robert and me as his foster sons'. I am Charles, and I am twelve and I attend your son's school, too. I am in the 7^th grade."

"I have a question," spoke up Laura Jennison. "Who is this Lieutenant Fischer?"

Robert didn't arrive at the Main Gate with his 'dad, but did arrive a few minutes later. It was he who took that question. "Hi, I am Robert and I am one of Mr. Ken's foster sons. I am thirteen and yes, we cook the hamburgers and hot dogs and we all share the tasks of getting all the stuff together, like the sodas and ice and the burgers and hot dogs and everything else. I was shown how to host my friends and as more and more kids joined us the cookout got larger and with that everybody joined in helping.

"As for who Lieutenant Dan Fischer is, he is the best thing that has ever happened to The Cove!" enthusiastically offered Robert. "Mr. Ken knew Mr. Dan from back when Collin came to live here. Then, when our 'dad' learned Mr. Dan was recuperating from a gunshot wound he received in the line of duty, from, a week or two back, our 'dad' invited him to recover here.

"With Mr. Dan here he made it so we had another adult to help chaperone us when our 'dad' had other things to do away from The Cove. He is back to work now, but he still has a key to the house and has been invited to stop by at any time.

"We also have Mr. Chris Dominions who works here during the week. He's the Estate Manager. He also helps chaperone us when, again, our 'dad', Mr. Ken, needs to be out and about. Mr. Chris is a recovering wounded army officer who was selected from a large number of people who responded to an advertisement our 'dad put out looking for a person to run this large estate," finished up Robert.

"I thought Mildred Johnston ran Three Finger Cove?" spoke up Saul Lowery.

Mr. Ken inwardly smiled at the absurdity of the asked question, but before he could answer Saul Lowery, Robert spoke up and said, "Mildred Johnston … yeah right! She beat me about my head and back and shoulders with this huge metal spoon. I was bloody all over and I had welts on my back for at least a week. My 'dad' called Doctor Powers to come up to check me out and it was the doctor who called the Sheriff's office and they sent a squad car to investigate.

"Deputy Fischer, he wasn't a Lieutenant yet, saw the bloody spoon and called for the detectives. She was eventually arrested and taken away in handcuffs. She hasn't been the Household Manager since late January."

"I just talked to her yesterday and … and yes, she told me she was up for a very big raise," began Saul.

"A raise, that's a laugh! I am now suing her for what she did to me. I'm suing for my many injuries and the suffering I had to endure from her during the weeks prior to her attacking me and for a number of other things," spoke up Robert.

"Oh, by-the-way, the trial starts Wednesday and I am sure she will have lots and lots of lies she'll tell there as she tries to get her old job back. Won't she 'dad'?" angrily bellowed Robert.

"Who is this 'dad' you keep talking about?" now asked Williams Kerns.

"Charles just explained that. My 'dad' is the owner of The Cove, Mr. Ken! He is the man I, and now Charles, calls 'dad'. Of course he is only our foster dad, but after I was here for about a month I found it awkward to keep saying Mr. Ken or Mr. Thomas all the time. My real dad is no longer in my life and I felt that … well, that I needed someone I could call 'dad' and have him be like a 'real dad' to me.

"I did ask Mr. Ken if I could call him 'dad' and he agreed I could. And even Charles, after he was here for a while, asked Mr. Ken if he, too, could also call him 'dad'. Mr. Ken's been the best 'dad' I could ever ask for now that my real dad is … gone. Mr. Ken cares about me and I can tell he loves me just like a dad should love his son.

"I got to get to know Collin, his first foster son, and he and I have shared stories about living here and I know I am not being treated any better or any less than Collin was while he lived here at The Cove. That is who the 'dad' is I keep mentioning!"

When Robert finished his speech he ran to the man he calls 'dad' and hugged him.

As the 'dad' and 'son' shared a hug, a few claps from a few hands began. As more and more hands joined in, from all the other kids and their parents who had also arrived as Mr. Ken was talking to the twins' new friends, the applause began to swell.

Mr. Ken got a great big smile on his face at the show of support Robert had gotten from the other lads and their parents. Even the new parents and their boys joined in the clapping.

It was Saul Lowery, who then spoke. "Mr. Thomas … I am sorry. I had NO IDEA Mildred had done all that, especially to that young man. I only knew her through an associate of mine and she was only a passing acquaintance, please believe me. If we saw one another on the sidewalk downtown, or at the Mall, we always seemed to stop and chat. She always told me how important her job was and that she ran the entire Three Finger Cove estate. She made it sound like that if it weren't for her you would lose everything. I can't believe she would attack the young lad as she did."

It got very quiet outside the Main Gate after Mr. Lowery said what he did. All the lads who were coming to The Cove that Saturday were there and many of their parents, who brought the ones who didn't ride their bikes, were just waiting to see what would happen next.

"Well, boys … Landon, Isaac, Blake, and Grant … are you going to stay? Did you bring your skateboard and your swimsuit and towel? The ramps are waiting for all of you, and here come the lifeguards for when you are out on the water rafts.

"Come on over here Megan, Christy and Russell and let me introduce you to the young men you'll be guarding out in the lagoon or in the indoor pool if it gets too cool to swim outside. Boys, Megan and Christy are college freshman and Russell is a high school senior. Who's your friend, Russ?" asked Mr. Ken, after he introduced the lifeguards.

"Mr. Ken, Audrey said she's sorry she isn't here. She told me she had already made plans for today and had forgotten all about them when you called her and asked her to be here today. And knowing you needed another lifeguard, she asked Jordan to fill in for her. Jordan, this is Mr. Ken. He's the man who hired us to watch over the kids when they swim. We worked for him back when he had his Labor Day Picnic," said Russell.

"Well, welcome, Jordan, I am glad you could fill in for Audrey and I'll have your pay ready for you when the day is over. I'll have to pen over Audrey's name on the pay envelope, but I don't think you'll mind as long as you get paid," laughed Mr. Ken.

"Christy and Megan have worked most of the summer for me, so they know what needs to be done out in the lagoon, or at the indoor pool. I'll let them show you around and where your position will be and they'll switch you up as the day goes on. You're also going to find that even though you are here at twelve noon, the lads probably won't swim until about two, so you'll have lots of time to get acquainted with the layout of the lagoon. Have Russ take you inside and show you around the indoor pool area. If you need to change, or use the restroom, there is a Men's Locker Room and restroom you can use in there," finished Mr. Ken.

"Thank you sir for not getting mad that Audrey didn't show up and accepting me as her, well as her, substitute. She and I took the lifeguard training together, so she knew I was qualified. … Mr. Ken, I'll do my best for you, sir," offered Jordan.

After talking with the owner of The Cove, the security guard registered the lifeguards in their database before letting them walk through the Main Gate, The four lifeguards continued down the driveway, past the front of the house and around to the back patio. There Christy explained the layout of the lagoon to Jordan and how they would work the water rafts.

The four lifeguards then walked into the indoor pool area so Jordan could see where the locker room and restroom was. Jordan decided to use the locker room and change into his swimsuit. He saw the lockers out on the pool deck, so after changing he put his clothes in a locker and caught up with the other guards.

Up at the Main Gate, the parents of the twins' new friends were introduced to the other lads and their parents. It was Carol Fletcher who told the 'new' parents about many of the special things Mr. Ken had done for their boys. She also told them about the time they, the parents, hosted a cookout for Mr. Ken after he had taken all their boys to the Lakeside Water Park for the day.

The parents of Kevin and Kyle's friends were thoroughly surprised that Mr. Ken did all that without asking the parents for money to help pay for what he did. Barbara Sullivan then spoke up and told the parents that the man always told them he did it for his 'sons' and he included their friends because it was the right thing to do.

As the parents talked, Kevin and Kyle had their friends sign-in with the Gate guards and then had them follow them to where the skateboard ramps were. As the lads hurried down the slight slope to the parking coral, many of the boys waved and said goodbye to their parents.

The adults continued to talk about the things Mr. Ken did for the lads and how safe the boys were while they were at The Cove. Some of the parents needed to get away so they exchanged phone numbers in order for them to stay in touch if there ever was a need.

The lads walked down to the skateboard ramps in age order with the twins and their friends bringing up the rear. When the new boys arrived at the ramps, they were extremely surprised at seeing what good shape the skateboard ramps were in knowing they'd been out in the elements ever since they were built back in the spring. Isaac was the first one to put down his satchel with his swimsuit and towel in. He then put down his skateboard and rode it over to the ramps. The other new lads soon followed suit.

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