Run: 2026-10-08-01M4DYHCA8DDYRH2N4EAM9DJXE

Molly tapped the blueprint of Rosemary Hallowell's birthday party with a chewed pen. "Right. The house has three entrances, two dogs, and one grandmother who never sleeps." Bill squinted at the paper. "Why is the grandmother on the blueprint?" "Because she's the real security system, Bill. Pay attention." "I am paying attention. I'm paying attention to the cake. Is that a unicorn cake or a horse with ambitions?" "Focus. The presents are stacked in the living room, behind the piano. Forty-two gifts. Wrapped in shiny paper. I counted them through the window yesterday." "You climbed a tree to count presents?" "I climbed a tree to count presents. Don't judge my methods." Bill scratched his head. "And how do we get past the grandmother?" "We don't. We wait until she's doing the bouncy castle with the kids. She's been doing it all afternoon. Apparently she has a bad hip and an even worse competitive streak." "Brilliant. So we sneak in while she's bouncing." "Exactly. You take the back door. I take the side window. We meet at the piano." "What if the dogs come after me?" "Give them the sausage rolls. Dogs will do anything for a sausage roll." "Molly, I've been chased by a Rottweiler named Captain Crumble. He doesn't care about sausage rolls. He cares about my ankles." "Then bring a bigger snack. Honestly, you're the one who volunteered for dog duty." "I volunteered to drive the getaway van, not to be a dog's dinner." "Well, the van's parked three streets away, so you'll have to run anyway. Good cardio." Bill sighed, then pulled a crumpled party hat from his coat pocket and jammed it on his head. "Fine. But if I get caught, I'm telling them you made me wear this." "Perfect. Nobody suspects a guest in a party hat." Molly slid a pair of cardboard reindeer antlers across the table. "And these are for you." "Why do I need antlers?" "Because every child in there will think you're the magician's assistant, and nobody questions a magician's assistant." Bill put them on slowly. "This is the worst plan I've ever heard." "And yet it's the only one you've ever followed without arguing for three hours." "That's because I'm tired of arguing." Molly grinned and checked her watch. "Ten minutes until the cake. That's our window. When the candles go out, we move." "And when the candles go out, the kids will scream." "Which is exactly why nobody will hear us unwrapping." Bill nodded, adjusting his antlers. "Right. Forty-two presents, one grandmother, two dogs, and a horse cake with ambitions." "Now you're thinking like a professional."