Everett sent for more wieners and buns and enlisted assistants for wiener in a bun sandwich production while Sarah set up an assembly line for slushies. Joseph, Guiney, and Everett Jr., all fed, burped, and wearing clean clothes, were evacuated to the cool shade of the arches of the south arcade just two steps away from Everett’s position on the front lines and were resting comfortably with Aunt Louise sitting in a lounger and watching over them.

Along with four rugged individuals with hawk-like gazes whose casual, Picnic Day clothing did nothing to camouflage the fact that they were elite members of Pauly’s “special lethal operations group.”