I didn't like the last chapter. It felt blech if that makes any sense. Thus I intend to make up for it with this one and the next. Read on dear friends. Read on…

Chapter 3

Eyes

Dear Diary,

Soooo. Got a call from the manager today. He told me the bots, ALL OF THEM (dangit), need to be in top shape because there' an inspector coming. A certain lawyer. He's supposed to do double checks to make sure we're good for the insurance guys. If those poor saps only knew…

And guess who the lawyer is? Yep. Him. That backstabbing, butt-kissing little….!

Anyway, me and my coworker are not going to be leaving at 6am like usual, because the company wants this "lawyer" (laughable really) to meet most of the staff in the morning. Namely, the night guard and the night mechanic. Yeah, "I wonder why?" she writes sarcastically. I'm debating telling our "friendly" night guard what happened between us. On the other hand, maybe the Toys scarred him enough. Then again, I really hate him…


"Psst…"

"Mmm…"

"Pst!"

"Not now."

"Yes now! I heard something!"

"Probably just a rat; go tell Mangle."

"Mangle's not feeling well and it's not a rat!"

Toy Bonnie cracked opened his one good eye and glared at Toy Chica. Being left to rot for fifteen years takes its toll on robots. It wasn't so bad the first eight years since they had something to do. A reason to keep themselves in relatively good condition. But now? Now they needed a longer time to recharge just to sit around and talk to each for a couple hours.

Toy Chica was cutting into Toy Bonnie's precious recharge time.

"Leave me alone T—," Toy Bonnie started to snap but the chicken beat him to it.

"I think it's people!" Toy Chica chittered excitedly.

Toy Bonnie's ears perked up, or rather the one and a half that was still functional, but they deflated after a moment?

"Adults? Or kids." It was ridiculous, he knew, but he couldn't help hoping to see another child.

Toy Chica seemed to have the same thought because she suddenly looked a little crestfallen, even in the low light. "Adults I think." She seethed.

"Gah," spat the rabbit, "I'm betting they're not staying for the night shift either?" His voice dripped sarcasm.

"Don't think so. I'm going to wake Puppet. Mangle's being nasty."

"Oh. I guess I'll wake up Toy Freddy," Toy Bonnie shrugged. He winced, using the shelving he was stored next to pull himself up, shaking some dust off while he was at it.

Once standing, both the chicken and the rabbit gave each other that look. One of them was going to have to do it, but neither wanted to.

"Nose goes!" Toy Chica shouted but her voice box cracked and it came out as a rasp.

"That can't count! You don't have a nose!" Toy Bonnie whined.

Toy Chica rolled her eyes but lowered her hand anyway. "Fine Mr. Pouty-pants. Rock. Paper. Scissors."

The blue rabbit nodded sharply and they both put out the least damaged hands.

Toy Chica won.

"Two out of three?"

"Ha! Have fun!" she chirped as she limped away.

Toy Bonnie scoffed "I let you win," he growled.

His friend just giggled at him and waved as she went to the section of the warehouse where Puppet had decided to stay, his box tucked under some shelf in the J section.

Ugh. Toy Freddy would be the easiest to find. Maybe Toy Bonnie could convince him to help find the other member of their little crew.

…Yeah right. He knew what the bear would say. "You lost him, you find him."

He didn't lose him! He just…didn't go looking for him. Totally different things.

Toy Bonnie was so engrossed in thinking about why it wasn't his fault no one had seen Balloon Boy in days that he didn't notice someone poking their head over the edge of a shelf above him to watch him pass underneath.

Nor did he notice that robot preparing to jump until it was too late.

"BATTERIES!"

"ARRGH!"

Five aisles over, Toy Chica forced a snicker. It was going to cost her three double-A's that she found way over in section Y. But it was so worth it.

Suddenly, the sound of talking reached her and she looking up in panic. They were coming her way!

The place wasn't in lockdown yet so they couldn't risk being seen, even if they were all in full view of the cameras. The day guards were idiots; they never actually checked those things so Toy Chica usually felt comfortable walking around before lockdown, so long as she was careful.

But this wasn't 'careful.' She was going to be seen. Then she spotted something off-white out the corner of her eye.

Two adults turned the corner, talking about some kind of agreement as they passed a cloth covered statue.


Earlier

Well….

This day sucked!

Twenty-four hours ago, things didn't suck.

Yes, she hated flying but this last trip wasn't the worse one she'd been on. And that voicemail from Uncle Scott, while worrying, did not enter into the realm of "suck."

But ever since she woke up that morning things have just taken a downward turn around every corner.

She called her uncle, just like she planned, as soon as she was able to drag herself (literally) out of bed and into some clean yet slightly wrinkled clothing. She tried calling at least five different numbers.

All she got was either an annoying "We're sorry. The number you have called has been disconnected" or a voicemail saying "Hello? Hello, hello. This is Scott. Leave a message!"

That added to the fear that had been slowly growing overnight. Something was wrong. She knew it.

Then, in hope of distracting herself, she went through the daily errands. Picking up her truck from Henry Tops was the first thing on her list but even that soured quickly.

True, he had only done what she asked him to do and helped her on a job search as a favor, but he should have known how giving her resume to those people would make her feel.

He did know. And he did it anyway. He didn't understand. He didn't know what really happened. He only ever saw the aftermath they let others see.

Then when Hedy got home after a couple hours, what did she find but two men in business suits knocking on her door?

That was fun. She got to her door just fine by pretending to listen to their rambling, but as soon as she was inside she slammed the door in their faces hard enough to rattle the picture frames hanging on the walls.

They were persistent though. The older man attempted to do most of the talking and he would have too if Hedy hadn't rudely interrupted every sentence. The man who looked to be around her age seemed to be trying to resist laughing after five minutes had passed.

Can you blame her for being a little hostile?

Okay, a lot hostile?

Liam was maybe a little too amused watching his partner's goal transition from "getting the girl to take the job" to "getting the girl to let him get a word in edgewise."

It was Ms. Hedy threatening to roast them alive with the flamethrower she was holding up to the keyhole that finally got his partner John to cut-bait and leave. Of course, neither of them believed she actually had a flamethrower but it seemed like a good excuse to let the matter drop and retreat.

"Why that little…" John Cave muttered as he stalked past Liam and down the driveway.

However, Liam lingered. He pulled out a few papers from his briefcase along with his business card and wedged them in the mail slot. He flashed a smile at the wooden door.

Hedy waited until the other one impatiently honked the horn of his car and the younger man darted off the porch in a rush before she lowered the lighter and modified hairspray can from the door's keyhole. When she was sure they were gone, she pulled the papers out of the mail slot.

She stared at them for a moment. Then she read a few pages. Thanks to her brother, she was able to cut through all the legal jargon fairly easily. Although, she didn't really need to. She knew what the job was already.

This was dredging up all kinds of memories, good ones scattered amongst the bad.

Even with Uncle Scott still working at that place, the pizzeria left this…scar on her family. A scar that she had successfully managed to avoid for fifteen years. Why now? Why was she being dragged back into this now? And so suddenly at that. It didn't make much sense. Then again, what happened to her and her brother didn't make much sense in the first place. Still didn't.

Hedy huffed softly and set the papers aside for a moment when she made her way to the living room. They kind of just..sat there, almost tauntingly even though she knew that was a ridiculous idea.

A few hours later, after dinner, they were still there. Hedy wasn't sure why she didn't just throw them away. Or better yet burn them. It would be so satisfying.

Around nine she decided to look for more of Scott's messages on her answering machine.

She found one. Completely on accident. She just happened to stop on the phone number when she took a break from scrolling.

"Hello hel—damnit Foxy you'd better—." He was interrupted by a harsh clanking bang followed by what sounded like sharp knocking of metal on metal.

Hedy blinked in surprise. What was that noise?

" Er…Hello? Did I miss the beep? I missed the beep. Hey Owl! Just calling to check it. I figured while I'm making recording for the new guys…I uh…just a s-second." He stopped talking for a moment and there was a rapid clicking noise. "Okay clear for now. Um…heh… a-anyway. I thought since I'm making recordings for the newbies with the phone recorder I might as well give you a call. You're always my favorite call buddy after all."

Hedy smirked. It was a joke they had. When she was a little girl, she was terrified of ordering take-out for her dad, her brother, and herself. If her dad was busy, she called Scott for help. He told her that whenever she had to call someone, be it a customer service desk, a pizza order person, or even a teacher, that she should treat them like a friend. Be nice. Be funny. And if all else failed, he would be staying right on the next line if she needed help. Her backup, or as he like to say, her "call buddy."

Of course, it would have been preferable if he were actually there next to her to give her this advice but at the time they were hundreds of miles apart due to her dad deciding to move away so long ago.

"Er…so things have been…uneventful… here…at work. Oh geez!"

Wow. Where should she start with that sentence?

"NOTHING! That was n-nothing!" he assured quickly, "Just thought I s-saw something! Not that I, y-you know, see things that aren't really there a lot. Heh…That'd be crazy."

"Hmm," mumbled Hedy as she sighed nervously. She didn't want to listen to him work. "Just stop talking and concentrate please," she begged.

Hearing him was nice and all, but she'd really rather him be paying attention to whatever was going on over there.

"Everything's going well by the way. Um…I mean…it is the night shift of course…but…You know what? Nevermind."

There was silence for a long moment that left Hedy checking to see if he hung up.

He began speaking again, however Scott'ss voice seemed to take on a slightly different tone. He distractedly mumbled something Hedy probably shouldn't have been able to hear.

"…No…It's too early."

It was so quiet, Hedy almost missed it. She frowned. Something was up.

When he spoke again, louder, his voice seemed weirdly forced and…slightly sad. "Hey kiddo? This is going to sound strange and really mean of me but…do you remember when…." There was another silence for a minute, filled only by clicking and the squeaks of a swivel chair.

Hedy waited.

"Do you remember when…it…happened?" He forced the words out like they tasted bad. He knew he didn't need to be specific. Not with Hedy.

It.

Suddenly, Hedy was angry. It was her own special brand of cold, gut wrenching anger that was slow to come and quick to leave, but not without first terrifying the recipient. It was a rare person that saw that kind of righteous anger, for good reason. And yet, it was only a tiny bit that was ever coming to the surface. The rest was still far below, deep in her heart.

That anger was reserved for an unique someone else and she would never let it out on anyone undeserving, especially not Uncle Scott. No matter what he said.

But she was still angry. After the kind of day she had, you wouldn't blame her. Why did the one person she trust not to bring "it" up do just that?

"Yes." She answered unnecessarily, forgetting once again that he wasn't really talking to her.

"Do you remember…how scared you were?"

What was the point of remembering!? Are far as Hedy could tell, there was absolutely no reason to bring any of this up, especially not on a voicemail he knew she wouldn't hear for months.

…He must have known…

Strange. Scott was not a confrontational guy. So why would he mention it months in advance when he knew Hedy was going to confront him about it as soon as she got home? Why would he plan an argument he knew Hedy was going to make him a part of?

Scott suddenly changed his tone of voice so fast, Hedy was left just a little stunned.

"Do me a favor will you Owl?" His voice was lighter, joking almost. "Check your dad's old manuals would ya? See if they say anything about the animatronics' eyes acting strange."

Hedy could have sworn she heard an audible gulp.

"Y-you know…like the eye lights changing to white kind of strange. W-white or..ah.. s-silver. It's my…l-last week here right? How about be go out someplace to celebrate when you get home. Actually, you celebrate, I mourn. How's that sound?"

He abruptly hung up without even a goodbye leaving Hedy gaping at the phone.

Silver.

Eye-lights changing to white. That sounded familiar the second he said that.

Within minutes Hedy was in her garage rifling through old boxes stored under one of her workbenches.

Half of her garage was for the truck, Jo-jo, while the other half was her workshop and serious computer lab. Hedy had packed up the all the clutter and stored away the expensive stuff before she left so she couldn't remember where she put anything, much less the old manuals her dad left her.

She was cursing herself in her head. Why now? She gave up looking for evidence years ago. She thought she put it behind her. Everyone else forgot, so why shouldn't she? But…something was nagging at her once again. Maybe it was the phone calls. Maybe it was the job being shoved in her face. Maybe it was the people at her door. Maybe…it was nothing.

"Where the heck are they?" she said to herself. She couldn't find the books in any of the lower cabinets or in the boxes under the tables. Then, against her better judgment, she looked up.

Yep. There they were. Up on the highest shelf where she often left things she would probably never need down. There was a stack of thick paperback books collecting dust. She also noticed her high school diploma and the bottom of her graphing calculator peeking over the edge.

With a twinge of annoyance Hedy thought back to just which of her friends helped with the cleaning several months earlier.

It was probably AJ who did it. The jokester. Maybe if the circumstances were different she might laugh but as it was, her mood was already sour.

One expensive broken calculator and some broken glass later she picked up the book, shaking glass out as she flipped through the pages before landing on the page she was thinking of.

It was a section that dealt with optical sensors, the animatronics eyes.

In big bold red letters in the margin were the words "SILVER EYES?" with a large question mark.

She checked the clock in the kitchen once back inside. It was late, nearly ten thirty.

So what.

She went to the living room.

The phone rang three times before a voice answered.

"Go for…" A yawn. "Ingerson."

Hedy couldn't help but smirk. She didn't even know the guy and she already knew enough about him to tell that yawn was cringingly fake.

"You're one of the jokers who decided it was a good idea to ambush me at my home." It wasn't a question.

The was a sound of papers being shuffled and a laptop being closed.

The young man sighed long-sufferingly. "Look miss," he said, obviously mentally preparing himself to deal with what he viewed as a "difficult person."

"I was just doing my job," he defended, "We were just in the neighborhood and thought it was a good idea to stop by to discuss the job. If you have a complaint, I'm more than happy to connect you to the firm I work for."

Hedy laughed.

"Is something funny?"

"Yeah. The fact you think I'm not going to question how you could possibly 'be in the neighborhood."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"My house in certainly not on the way to anything in town. It's the very definition of 'out of the way.' You can't just happen to come this way unless it's on purpose. You better have a good reason to be stalking me."

"I think you may be a little paranoid ma'am." The man on the other side said with sterness.

"Heh. Does your boss tell you to call people paranoid when they catch you? Deflecting guilt? Anyway, I have a few questions."

Hedy held the phone away from her mouth for a moment and took a breath. Her instincts were screaming at her.

"Trying to hire people isn't usually in an attorney's job description. Why are you guys so interested in getting me into a repair job?"

There was quiet for a moment.

"How much did they tell you?" Hedy prompted, "Do you know all the company's dirty little secrets? Including me and my family?"

"Even if I knew what you're talking about, I would be bound by attorney/client confidentiality and couldn't tell you anyway." He seemed to almost recite that from a textbook.

"Good luck finding another mechanic then. You guys seemed pretty desperate. Nobody in their right mind in this town is going to take that job. But I figure you know that already if you came looking for me of all people…." Hedy moved to hang up. "Were you banking on my nostalgia?"

"Wait." He spoke hurriedly, in slight panic.

"What?"

"I-I'm sure we can come to some kind of an agreement."

"Depends. There's information I want."

"I'll bet. I have your file right here." There was a shuffling of papers. "It's one of the biggest ones here." His spoke jokingly. Friendly. "Tell you what. My client needs this repair job done soon. The deadline is next month but the sooner the better. We're already behind schedule since nobody's doing the work."

This guy's tone of voice was really starting to grind on Hedy's nerves.

"And you've got no takers," she asked.

Silence was all the answer she needed.

Hedy huffed, pressing the phone to her leg to stifle the shuddering that escaped her lungs so that the guy on the other end couldn't hear. This was such a bad idea.

"So I do this job. Then what?"

"You tell me. I can get you a meeting with the chairman if you want? Meetings, documents, a raise. I could probably pull anything off if you took the job."

Hedy huffed, a slight laugh slipping through. "Anything?"

"Within reason of course."

"Can you get me information about why the eyes would turn white."

"Um…" Liam paused, genuinely confused. "Probably?"

"What about the murders and missing people?"

"….You know that's just a myth right?"

"…." Hedy glared at the phone.

"O-okay, I'll see what I can do."

Hedy scoffed. She paused, weighing her options. The books in the garage wouldn't tell her anything new. She'd already read them many times. She at least hoped there was something scribbled something in the margins she missed.

Something was wrong with Uncle Scott and she hadn't been able to reach him. The internet never helped the last time she went looking for answers and newspaper copies have been missing for years.

It wasn't ideal, but it was an opportunity.

"Fine. I'll do it. I'll have a couple more requests though."

"Good! That's great! Whatever you need." Going by his voice, one might have guessed Hedy just said yes to his marriage proposal.

"You guys are really desperate for a mechanic."

"Guilty as charged."

Hedy groaned. "Okay. What are the specifics?"

She gently rolled herself back and forth as she listened. She really hoped this was the right decision...