Run: 2026-09-29-01M3P2E6E29WC6SWMC1H5MZ1T3

Molly crouched behind the hydrangeas with a pair of binoculars, watching the birthday party unfold across the lawn. A bouncy castle shaped like a unicorn wobbled in the breeze. Bill crouched beside her in a balaclava and a paper party hat he refused to explain. "Okay," Molly whispered. "Target is Tobias Winthrop-Adams, age seven. The present table is by the gazebo. I count forty-two gifts." "Forty-two," Bill breathed. "That's a lot of LEGO." "Not all of it is LEGO." "Most of it is LEGO. I can feel it." Molly lowered the binoculars. "Why are you wearing a party hat?" "Camouflage." "You're wearing a balaclava." "Layered camouflage. Nobody suspects a man in a party hat." He adjusted the elastic under his chin. "It's psychology." "It's a choke hazard. Focus. At two o'clock the magician arrives. Every parent will be watching him pull a dove out of a hat." "Is the dove real?" "Bill." "I'm just saying, if the dove's fake, that's a scam, and I don't work near amateurs." Molly pinched the bridge of her nose. "While they're distracted, you handle the clown." "There's a clown?" Bill's voice cracked. "Nobody said anything about a clown." "It's in the briefing." "I skimmed the briefing. Molly, I don't do clowns. I had an incident." "The incident was you falling into a fountain." "A clown put me there emotionally." Molly ignored this and unfolded a sketch of the yard, drawn in crayon because the pens had been left in the van. "You keep the clown busy with balloon animals. I swing in with the wagon, load the presents, and we roll out the side gate." "What if a child sees us?" "Then we're the entertainment. We're from the Gift Wrapping Inspection Bureau." Bill nodded slowly. "That sounds official. Do we have badges?" "We have stickers." "Ooh." He brightened. "Which ones?" "Sheriff stars. And one dinosaur." "I call dinosaur." A shriek rose from the party. Both thieves froze. A small girl in a tiara pointed directly at the hydrangeas. "Mommy, there's a man in a hat!" Molly rose slowly, smiled, and slapped a sheriff star on her jacket. "Gift Wrapping Inspection Bureau, ma'am. Routine check." Bill popped up beside her, proudly displaying the dinosaur sticker on his forehead. "Rawr," he said gravely. The mother stared at them. Then her face melted into relief. "Oh, thank goodness! You're the entertainment! The clown canceled. Can you do the piñata?" Molly and Bill exchanged a look. "We'd be honored," said Molly. "Do we get to keep the candy?" Bill whispered. "Bill, we're keeping everything."