Tom slowed the car as soon as the family in front of the castle came into view. The many members of the clan took notice of the wagon as he steered toward the van parked on the gravel.

“I guess we can park here?” Tom reasoned.

The wagon rolled to a stop beside the Matthews’ big Dodge Caravan.

“I didn’t know there were gonna be other people here,” Molly admitted. “Well, the more the merrier, I suppose. In a way, it actually kind of

makes me feel a little more comfortable,” Tom replied.

“Why would it make you feel more comfortable?” Isaac asked, always intuitive.

“Ah—I guess it’s just nice not to do stuff by yourself sometimes is all I meant.”

Isaac knew his dad was lying. Whenever Tom spoke, he didn’t mince words, but Isaac had come to understand if his father stuttered, the pause itself was the tell. It was a lie but he wasn’t sure why his father would fib about something so seemingly pointless.

“Alright then! Is everybody ready for some fun?!” Molly asked. She turned back toward her three children.

Isaac remained in a state of wonder while his sisters yelped with delight, and just as the doors of the station wagon opened, so did the two at the entrance of the manor.

As the Grimleys filed out enthusiastically, the Matthews family turned their attention to the royal, sable slabs of metal that opened at the front of The Borden Estate.

The families joined together, taking in the odd sight of their welcomers. The trio looked like a version of the Addams Family from a parallel dimension, the freshly scrambled brigade each a unique shade of strange.

Rock stood to the right of Geraldine. The big man looked every bit as dapper as he had when he’d approached the families at their respective playgrounds. His gray suit was pressed and fit flawlessly over his bulging frame. He’d even been given a matching flat cap. Rock’s five o’clock shadow remained but didn’t detract from his overall presentation.

Adolpho Fuchs flanked Geraldine’s other side, also dressed to the nines. It was a common occasion for him, this was more the standard. The espresso ensemble he’d fitted into required no adjustments. He puffed upon a matching wooden pipe, smoke seeping out of his mouth like an old dragon.

At the center of the odd trio stood the lady of the manor. Geraldine’s face was glowing for more reasons than the ones that transpired in the bedroom. Her cheeks were painted with blush, with mascara applied to her fading lashes. Her teeth had been pasted back onto her gums and sat surrounded by licorice lipstick. The makeup smoothed some wrinkles but could only do so much to cloud her age. The long, dark dress was elegant without being overzealous.

“Good afternoon, everyone,” Geraldine said.

She discreetly rubbed her wrinkly hands together.

Most of the children replied politely in unison before Greg’s voice overshadowed the group.

“Finally. We were wondering if you were gonna show.”

“Yes, apologies for being a bit tardy. But I can assure you all, this experience shall be more than worth the wait.”

Geraldine’s habitually despicable persona somehow seemed absent. She was in the rarest of forms, wearing her most brilliant mask, a game face for the ages.

She stared back at Greg Matthews and grinned.

“Sorry, looks like we must be a little late too, then,” Tom said.

The leader of the Grimleys guided his family up to the front of the estate, beside the Matthews.

“Not to worry, dear. Now, I take it, based on the information your wife provided, that you must be the Grimleys?”

“That’s correct—”

“Let’s cut to the chase, how does all this work?” Greg interjected, overstepping Tom.

“Well, that must make you Mr. Matthews then?” Geraldine asked. Greg nodded his head, offering her that much.

“Excellent,” she replied. Geraldine’s eyes darted about, calculating the number of people that littered her exquisite lawn. She turned to Fuchs. “It seems we may be one short still.”

“It appears we are,” the German confirmed.

Isaac squinted at Fuchs. He hadn’t expected the old man to be foreign. Isaac was curious about Fuchs, but not curious enough to interrupt the meeting.

“That’s okay, I’m sure she’ll be here shortly,” Geraldine replied.

While the absence was a disappointment, Geraldine did her best to conceal her disdain.

“Forget about them, we’re here now. The least you can do is answer my question,” Greg demanded.

Geraldine whispered to Rock. “Leave the gate open for her. But when she arrives, see to it that it’s shut, locked, and activated.”

She rotated back to Greg.

“Absolutely, forgive me. I’m just a tad frazzled. First, please allow me to formally introduce myself. My name is Geraldine Borden. I’m the owner of this estate, and this is my associate, Adolpho Fuchs, and my butler, Rock Stanley.”

Rock wanted to display his contempt openly but decided he wouldn’t give her the satisfaction. After all the years he’d spent appeasing her, the dark deeds he’d done at her behest, the absolute loyalty, and still, she didn’t acknowledge him as family, and even worse, only offered him the lowliest title imaginable.

“As you likely learned from the pamphlets, I’m head of a charitable organization called Helping Hearts. We deal in many things, such as donations for the deprived, shelters for the homeless, and food bank collections. But what we’re here for today is a project that, up until we approached you, has been kept secret from the public. All funding is in place, but we’re here today to ensure we understand what the optimal childhood experience would be prior to selecting a location to invest in. Your children shall have a hand in both of these outcomes.”

Tom leaned into Molly. “That’s where I heard the name. Some lady got snagged dumpster-diving in one of her donation bins.”

“What?” Molly asked.

“Is there a question, Mr. Grimley?” Geraldine asked, picking up on his sidebar.

“Ah—no, I just was mentioning that I’ve heard of your charity before.” “Oh, excellent! Then it seems we’re doing our job.”

The phony grin found Geraldine’s face.

“So, where the hell’s the playground?” Bobby asked with impatience threading each word.

Greg turned around, shooting laser beams through the most disappointing sperm he’d ever unleashed.

“Boy, keep quiet. Don’t interrupt when adults are talking,” Greg reminded before turning back to Geraldine. “Now, where the hell’s the playground?”

The man’s juvenile rudeness was unamusing to Geraldine, but she lofted a courteous chuckle.

“Before we can get started,” Geraldine said, “we have a small matter of business to attend to. Please present Rock with the tickets embedded in the brochures you were given. As specified, you must possess the entire document wholly and intact to participate.”

Rock marched down the stone steps until he was close to the families. Greg looked up at his incredible stature. Despite Greg being a former athlete, Rock still dwarfed him.

“Here you go, big fella,” Greg said, thrusting the pamphlet into Rock’s sternum. The tough guy antics were always alive and well when Greg was in the picture. Rock didn’t play into it. He just took hold of the paper and half-nodded.

Molly made her way to the giant and thanked him with a smile, then offered the brochure. He offered her two nods in response.

“Everything looking proper?” Geraldine asked Rock. Rock nodded.

“Wonderful.”

“Right, can we get to it now?” Greg persisted.

Molly narrowed her eyes, already disliking the man. “Of course, Mr. Matthews—”

“Greg,” Lacey interrupted Geraldine.

“I’m sorry?”

“He likes to be called Greg.”

Geraldine didn’t normally display such grace. Had there been nothing to look forward to that day, she would’ve engaged Greg and Lacey with a far more volatile attitude. Instead, she diverted her emotions and reeled in the prize.

“Right. I promise, I’m getting to it in a moment. But before we can divulge any further details, I need each of you to confirm, as promised when given your retainer fee, that you haven’t spoken a word of this to anyone. Without the anonymity of this event firmly in place, your participation is useless to us. If your presence here today has been discussed with anyone outside of those present, then the integrity of this event has been compromised and we cannot proceed. I need a verbal confirmation that none of you have discussed this with anyone.”

“No, we haven’t,” Molly offered. “I didn’t,” Tom cosigned.

“Nope,” Greg added.

“Of course not,” Lacey said, rolling her eyes.

Geraldine studied them all scrupulously, her mind pivoting like a seesaw, unsure whom she believed. All she truly believed was she wanted this to proceed, regardless of the risk and potential repercussions that could surface as a result. The idea of the spoils was too tantalizing to turn her back on.

It was her day.

“Good,” Geraldine said. “That gag order will also apply after you leave until we instruct you otherwise.”

“Gag-order? For what?” Tom asked.

He didn’t particularly like secrets. It seemed harmless enough, but, like Greg, he just wanted to understand the scope of what they were participating in.

“For anything that happens inside. For any designs or structures you should have the advanced opportunity of viewing once we all walk into the property,” she explained, gesturing behind her.

“Why’s that? What’s it gonna matter if we mention it?” Lacey asked.

“With all due respect, it matters to me. Mr. Fuchs and I have been working on these designs for years. It’s only fair that they should find daylight when we see fit. In the same way that you have children and

control who gets access to them, it’s the same with our creations. It may seem silly, but to us, it’s important.”

The long-winded response was mere showmanship. None of them would ever leave the premises.

“Zon’t spoil zhe surprise, please,” Fuchs reaffirmed. “Do we have your word?” Geraldine asked.

A chorus of yeses and nods pushed forth.

“Okay, then. I want to assure you that all of the playground equipment has been tested countless times over by multiple CPSIs. It’s essentially—”

“CPSIs?” Tom asked.

“Certified Playground Safety Inspectors. Additionally, I’ve taken the liberty of furnishing the documentation in advance. And should any of you feel inclined to examine it, upon review, I’m sure it will galvanize your confidence in both our agreement and the overall security of the structures on the premises.”

Geraldine held out her spotty hand to the left.

Fuchs extracted a long white envelope from his inside pocket and pulled the documentation from within it. He placed watermarked papers in Geraldine’s hand, and she descended the steps, brandishing the documents toward each parent.

“Rest assured, everything is completely safe as evidenced by the dozen signatures I hold in my hand. The best in the fields of adolescent precaution and child security have all agreed. So, when you’re brought into the spy room to watch your children have the time of their lives, you can appreciate their joy anxiety free.”

“Wait, we’re being separated?” Molly asked.

“No need to worry, they won’t be far. You’ll be able to see them at all times and even communicate via a PA speaker, should you feel it necessary. However, we do ask to keep that to a minimum, if possible. We’re aiming to harness the true playground experience, and we can’t get that if the children aren’t left to their own devices, as they normally would be. It’s critical we observe them with freedom and free range to understand their relationship with the revolutionary equipment we’ve created. And, furthermore, we understand this may create a slight discomfort, and with that in mind, we’ve decided to up your payments to an additional four thousand dollars each.”

“Shit, as long as I can see ‘em, that’s fine by me,” Greg said.

“Holy freakin’ crap, we’re getting paid for this?!” Bobby exclaimed.

“No, we’re getting paid for this. Your payment is you havin’ a nice day and that roof over your head back home,” Greg corrected.

Tom and Molly looked at each other.

“Everything she said makes sense to me,” Molly offered.

A look of uncertainty overtook Tom’s face, just as it had on the ride to pick up the kids. Something didn’t feel right to him, but four thousand dollars for a few hours of play was a life-changing sum of money.

“Can I see the papers?” Tom asked. “Of course,” Geraldine replied.

She promptly handed over the documents.

Tom fished through the sheets. They looked authentic enough. There were signatures and stamps and fine print. What the fuck did he know about the authenticity of playground safety documents though?

“It should only be a few hours of your time. Feel free to ask any questions you see fit,” Geraldine said.

Tom looked back at his kids. They were all using their best beggar faces, pleading for him to say yes. Even Isaac showed rare excitement.

Geraldine’s veiled description of their ‘revolutionary equipment’ had Isaac beyond intrigued. The potential prospects within the castle were endless.

Tom looked back to Molly. Her big brown eyes glowed with anticipation.

The immediate increase in cash would surely change their simple lives. Not only would it help amend some of their financial woes, but the experience would surely be otherworldly for the kids, a grand time like nothing they could afford to offer them currently.

Tom turned back to Geraldine and handed her the documents, subtly nodding.

“Alright. We’re in.”