Run: 2026-02-24-01KJ8X34VMXTFBM5K3J06ZVGR0

Molly spread the crayon-drawn map across the hood of the rusty van and smoothed out the corners with her palms. It had been drawn by her nephew two years ago and was originally a picture of a dragon, but with some creative interpretation it served its purpose. "Okay, here's the situation," she said, tapping a squiggly orange line. "The party starts at two. That gives us forty minutes before the cake comes out and everyone gets distracted." Bill squinted at the map. "Is that a tail or a garden hose?" "It's the side gate. Focus." "Right, sorry." He pulled his black beanie down over his ears even though it was seventy degrees outside. "What's our entry point?" "We go over the back fence. There's a bouncy castle in the yard which gives us cover. Nobody looks past a bouncy castle." "That's actually brilliant." Bill nodded with the solemn respect of a man who had never once been brilliant himself. "What about the presents? Where are they usually staged?" Molly tapped the dragon's belly. "Inside table near the front door. Classic placement. Parents pile them there when they arrive so nobody trips over them during pass the parcel." "Pass the parcel," Bill muttered darkly. "Terrible game. You're just unwrapping someone else's disappointment." "Stay on task, Bill." He straightened up and crossed his arms. "What's the haul looking like?" "Twelve kids confirmed on the invite list." She held up a slightly damp piece of paper she had retrieved from a recycling bin outside the family home. "The birthday kid is turning seven. That's prime gift age. We're talking Lego, remote control cars, art sets, the works." "Not dolls though. Last time we got dolls I had nightmares for a week." "We take everything and sort it later." Bill chewed the inside of his cheek. "What about the clown?" Molly paused. "What clown?" "There's always a clown." "There is not always a clown." "At every single children's party I have ever attended in my entire life, Molly, there has been a clown. It is a universal constant, like gravity or bad weather on bank holidays." She stared at him for a long moment. "If there is a clown, we improvise." "I don't improvise well around clowns. You know this." "Then you stay focused, keep your eyes on the presents, and do not make eye contact with the entertainment." She rolled up the dragon map and tucked it under her arm like a general preparing for battle. "We are in and out in under four minutes." Bill looked at the suburban street ahead of them, at the cluster of balloons visible above a garden fence two houses down, at the faint cheerful sound of children shrieking with joy that drifted toward them on the breeze. "You know," he said quietly, "sometimes I wonder if we're the villains in this story." Molly was already walking. "Move your feet, Bill."