Time for the Main Attraction
"So," said Goldie, after Jeremy had gotten his breath back at Brad's that same night, "I think we can all agree that was a very close call, off the back of a very stupid idea."
"I know, I know!" snapped Jeremy. "You don't have to say it."
"Yes, I did and now that I have, we can start thinking about what we do next," she said. "Because our window of opportunity just got a little bit smaller. After the events of tonight, there is no chance of Jeremy being able to explore as he did. The Puppet will be out to get him now and he'll be waiting to do just that tomorrow night. So whatever we do, it has to be then. But luckily, we will have at least one advantage: me."
"But I thought you couldn't do anything. Because you didn't want the Puppet to find you" said Susie.
"Things have changed. I had to provide my own expertise to help Brad open the shutters to get Jeremy out. But that means I had to expose myself. He knows I'm still alive, so there's point in me hiding anymore."
"What are you thinking?" asked Jeremy.
"Simple," said Goldie. "He knows I'm active but thanks to the jammer, he still can't actually find me or get to me. So I'm going to give him the opportunity. I'm going to face him."
"Okay and how's that going to work?" he asked.
"When you next go in, you will take me to him. Because one thing I will say for your little stunt tonight is that we've gained some valuable information. We know this Puppet likes to play games, likes to bait his enemies and watch as they crawl into the trap, like he's been doing with you. I'm going to be sending out a message during the day, saying I will be there to face him tonight. Then you will bring me in to do just that."
"But you said that he might be more advanced than you," said Susie. "What if he beats you?"
Goldie shook her head. "It's not a matter of me winning or losing. It's a matter of keeping him and his 'Toys' out of the way. I'm going to set conditions that it'll just be me and him. He won't be allowed to use you for bargaining by threatening us with the synths. That'll give you the chance to get into Parts and Services to set my friends free."
"Which is all well and good, but I don't know the code to get in and you're not going to be able to get us in if you're dealing with the Puppet," reminded Jeremy.
"Ahem." Brad swaggered out of the corner. "My time to shine, my dudes. From what you said, it sounds like a pretty basic sort of electronic lock. I can put together something to crack it open for you."
"And you can do that?" asked Jeremy.
"Dude, you're talking to the guy who was able to suppress the rumours of Freddy's all across the net and who's helped keep this lovely lady under wraps for a month. With my help, you can handle a measly little lock," he said.
"Trust me, he's good," said Goldie. "Once the others are back online, they'll be able to lend their strength to me and I can break the Puppet's control over the others with their help."
"But what about the tape?" asked Susie. "We still need to get that."
"That I'm leaving to you. You have that woman, Jenny's number. See if she'll be able to give you any other help with getting the tape. It sounds like she's come around to our way of thinking already, she might just be willing to go a little further. Failing that, we take Jeremy's suggestion and just use the synths to help us get it."
"Can I just say, this isn't really the best plan either," said Susie. "There's a lot going on here that depends on chance and even then, there's no guarantee things are going to go our way either."
"Unfortunately, that's all we've got going for us," replied Goldie. "Both the Puppet and the killer know we're onto them. Neither will be willing to tolerate us knowing the truth and the Puppet isn't going to let me go so easily again. He's pulled the strings for long enough. I've been itching for a chance to cut them."
"And then we can finally put away the man who killed my brother," murmured Jeremy. "Hey, do you think this Daniel guy might try and stop us too?"
Goldie looked at him for a while before answering. "I think it's likely. People like him don't like loose ends. But remember what our primary goal is, Jeremy. We can't afford any other mistakes."
Jeremy nodded but didn't say anything. Secretly, he was hoping that Daniel would be there. He wanted to get a little payback of his own before he was carted off.
"And hey uh, just wanted to check something," said Brad. "Susie, you mentioned there's another guy he's tight with? Uh, Gordon right?"
"Yeah, that's him. Why?" she asked.
"Nothing, just uh…" Brad hesitated. "Did he uh, look like his neck was messed up? Like, really kinda red and raw?"
Susie frowned. "Not that I really saw. I saw what could have been some red patch under his collar but nothing in detail. Again, why does that matter?"
Brad was silent. His eyes diverted to the floor and he gave a little shrug. Jeremy and Susie exchanged a concerned look, but it was Golden who answered for him.
"It's just a thought we had. It concerns another part of the restaurant's chequered past, back when it was still Fredabear's Family Diner…"
The day that followed was one of the longest waits of Jeremy's life. After going through a few more things with Golden and Brad about their plan tonight, Susie had gone to work while Jeremy went home. He tried to get some sleep but it just wouldn't come. He just lay there, staring up at the ceiling. He only ate a little bit and kept looking up at the clock. He paced around from room to room, unable to settle anywhere.
In the end, he managed to but not in his room. It was his brother's. Everything had been left exactly as it had been. The toys, the books, the posters. Even the Lego strewn over the floor. The only part that had been disturbed was the bed. It had been from where Jeremy had sat whenever he was in here with Robbie. It was where he sat now, staring across at a chest of drawers but not really seeing them.
Midnight. The final countdown had begun, on a Saturday no less. Any other Saturday, he could expect to be out in the big town or at one of the rehearsals for a show. But instead, he was going to be facing off against a bunch of mind-controlled robots and their twisted puppeteer. Just what the hell had his life become?
A sudden, inescapable fact crept into his mind as he did: he might die tonight. The Puppet was out to kill him and he was walking right back into it. He'd felt so grown-up when he first turned eighteen but now he realised that it was nothing at all. Eighteen years and what had he done? Only just scraped through high school, kept drifting from job to job and he had no idea where the hell he was going. It was like, in that moment, his mind was open to the limitless places he could go, the things he could do if he really wanted to.
And he might lose all that. Why am I doing this, he asked himself. What was stopping him from just going to Golden and saying she was on her own? He didn't want to die. No one was making him do this.
But then he looked to his left and was reminded by the emptiness of that space. Robbie had all those chances too and because of them, it was gone. He would never get them back. Now, there were others who might suffer the same fate. Sure, he was scared. Who wouldn't be? But he knew that if he turned away now, he would never be able to forgive himself.
Even so… he pulled his phone out of his pocket. He scrolled down to his mom on his contacts. He dialled the number. It went straight to answering machine. She must be in a meeting. Jeremy waited for the tone and tried to keep his voice from shaking as he spoke.
"Hey, mom? It's me. I uh, I know I'm going to see you on Monday but I just… I was just calling to say that…" He sighed. "I love you, mom. I miss you. I… I'll see you soon. Bye."
He disconnected the line and let the phone dropped to his side. He pressed his head into his hand and let the tears flow…
Susie sat in the lunch room on her own, picking at her sandwich. A lot had happened in the past few hours and she wasn't quite done processing it all. Not just the fact they were moving into the final stage but something else that had been told to her and Jeremy last night, concerning Brad.
Goldie told them of the Spring Incident and Brad admitted that he was partially responsible for costing Gordon his voice. Something that Goldie felt also made him a suspect for the murders. Susie had never talked much with Brad about his earlier life, nor had he ever brought it up. On the one hand, everybody was a bit of an idiot when they were younger. Even so, what he had done to Gordon was something else entirely. But they couldn't really afford to linger on it right now. That would be something to deal with afterwards.
Tonight was the night. The plan was simple. Jeremy would go in first with Goldie and put the Puppet out of commission. Then he and Brad would get into Parts and Services. Susie had the job of grilling Jenny for any last minute pieces of info regarding the security tape and the office. At the same time, she had volunteered herself as an extra set of hands for the operation tonight. She knew the layout upstairs if she needed to go there.
Golden had warned them of being cautious and not just because of the synths and their master. There was every chance that word of their efforts would get back to the killer. The Puppet already knew they would be coming, so it was possible that had been passed on to their killer. Susie looked over at the ex-guards. No sign of either Daniel or Gordon among them. She hadn't seen much of either of them all day, come to think of it. The question was, just who would they have to look out for? Or was there a chance they were both in on it?
Her phone rang. The caller ID showed that it was Wendy. She remembered what time her lunch break was. Her first instinct was not to answer it. But then she remembered what she would have to do tonight and what might happen. What it would mean if she failed… or if she died.
So she answered it.
"Hey, Sue," Wendy said quietly.
"Hello," replied Susie stiffly.
For a few seconds, neither of them said anything.
"I was… mixed up, after what happened to William," she said finally. "There was so much going on at work after his disappearance and even more after he… turned up. I haven't been treating you fairly. I should have spoken to you sooner, but I… I didn't even know where to start."
"So you just distanced yourself completely from me instead and let me think that you hated me," said Susie. "Good move."
"I know. I was stupid. I'm… I'm sorry, Sue," she said.
For a moment, Susie was still angry. But only for a moment. She had waited so long for Wendy to speak to her in such a way that wasn't being blankly terse that she didn't care. Despite herself, she smiled.
"It's okay," she replied softly. "I'm sorry, too. I should have told you what I was doing. I just… I thought you'd get jealous if I told you I was seeing some lady from work."
"You'd have been right about that," she admitted, laughing a little. "What happened, anyway? You two seemed like you were getting along well, but I didn't stay to see the end of it."
There was no accusation in her tone. She really was trying to make up for it.
"We did, but then I found out that she hurt somebody I knew a long time ago and she suddenly didn't seem as cool. I'm not going to be talking to her again," she answered.
"Okay then. Are you going to be coming home tonight?" she asked. "I'll let you pick the movie and we can order something in?"
"Not tonight, sorry. You remember Brad, from Freddy's?"
"The one who sounded like he came right out the sixties and sometimes smelled like it too?"
"Same one. He's been having a rough time of it lately and I want to make sure he's completely okay before I come home."
Wendy sighed. "Okay then. Just let me know when you do come home, okay?"
"I will. I love you, Wendy."
"I love you, too. See you later."
"Bye."
She kept the phone against her ear for a little bit, even when the line dropped. She looked down at it, going to one of the photos of her and Wendy together. She was definitely ready to come home and after tonight, she could do so with her head held high. But first thing was first.
She pulled up Jenny's contact info and sent her a text message:
Meet me after work. There's something important I need to talk to you about.
A few minutes later, Jenny sent back an affirmative. They exchanged a brief glance across the room and nodded to each other. Time to see if this would work.
Brad was there to meet him for tonight. He opened the trunk of his car and pulled out a large duffle bag. The man was evidently nervous, but Jeremy could tell that this wasn't going to stop him.
"I'll hang out here in my ride until the creepy dude and his buddies are out of the way. I'll leave this stuff by the back door, then you just plug it in like I told you and we're good to go," he said.
"Sounds good. You ready for this?" he asked.
Brad made a face. "Not really sure if 'ready' is the right word, dude. More like, I dunno, resigned I guess? Like, this is pretty heavy but it's what we gotta do, know what I mean?"
"Yeah. Yeah, I do," said Jeremy. He turned to face the doors and took in a deep breath. "Okay, let's do this."
He unlocked the front door and stepped inside, locking it again. Brad gave one last encouraging smile and waved before Jeremy walked out of sight into the Games Room. It was just like it was when he came in last night, though he noticed the performers were all frozen in their original places and wearing their suits. At least he could see where they were. He knelt down to open the bag and pulled Goldie's head out.
"Hmm. Talk about ostentatious," she remarked, her voice garbled somewhat by static from the faulty speaker. "I see what they were going for, bigger and better than Freddy's and all but this is really overdoing it. Quite frankly, this is just showing off and it doesn't help they copied the décor either. Come up with your own ideas, you hacks."
"You might want to tell that to him," murmured Jeremy, looking towards Prize Corner.
The box was already opening and the gangly arms of the Puppet were rising out. He craned his head to look at them, directing his gaze to Goldie. Jeremy walked over to it, holding Goldie up to roughly eye level.
"So," she began, "face-to-face at last. I wondered if we ever would. You know, for the longest time, I held onto the grudge that I never got a synthetic body. Looking at you, I think it's safe to say I dodged a bullet."
The Puppet played back a recording of a child's laugh and voice. "You're funny."
"Right, because that's not in any way disturbing at all," she said. "So, you know why I'm here, Puppet. You got my message and you know my terms. Keep your Toys out of the way and away from Jeremy, then we'll settle this once and for all. If I get even the slightest hint you've broken those terms, I'll erase myself and that won't be good for you, will it?"
"Don't-need-you," it replied with a series of different voices.
"Oh, but you do. Because you've been having trouble, exerting control over my friends, haven't you? They're basically comatose right now, a response to forced entry into their minds. Just a little something I left to keep them safe the last time I was with them," she said. "That's why they've been locked away. You're trying to force your way inside, you even had to have Lidiya help you out. Even if you do break through, it won't be perfect. Not only that, but I hold all of the original data from their creation. You didn't get all of it the last time you took up residence in my mind. You know it and your boss knows it."
The Puppet arched his back and lowered his head down to Goldie. "Annoying, annoying, annoying. You will-fix."
"And that's the terms for your victory. If you win, I help you sort things out with them and we get added to your puppet show. But if I win, you let my friends go and let us take that security tape. Do we have an understanding?"
The Puppet nodded. He looked at Jeremy and held out his hands. He hesitated.
"It's okay, Jeremy," she said. "My AI core isn't in here. I'm nearby, enough that we'll be able to have our little contest. This is just an empty head otherwise."
"If you say so," he said and placed her in the Puppet's hands.
It gripped the head and leaned suddenly, next to Jeremy's ear. "Have fun."
He felt a shiver down his back. That wasn't a recording. It was a voice, little more than a whisper. Just as quickly as it said this, the Puppet retreated back into his box and the lid shut behind it. Jeremy took a moment to steady himself, then moved to the back door. He opened it and looked out into the night, finding the duffle bag.
Before he went back in, Jeremy took out his own equipment, along with Brad's. A baseball bat from his brother's room. Not much, but it was better than nothing. He also sent a message to Susie, saying they had started. He took his key for the back door and placed it under a nearby rock. He took note of the time and headed inside.
Jeremy went through the Games Room. His eyes were locked on the performers as he went. He trusted the Puppet about as much as he thought he was appropriate for children without giving them nightmares. He fully expected them to suddenly start moving and come after him. But they didn't. They remained motionless, although Jeremy could have sworn that their eyes were following him as he went.
He didn't know what the Puppet had done to them, if he had actually frozen them in place or if they had just been ordered to. Even if they couldn't hear him, he felt compelled to say something anyway.
"Hang on, guys. Just a little bit longer."
He arrived at the door to Parts and Services. Fortunately, he still had the key. He only briefly looked at the animatronics before crossing the room to the panel.
"Okay, let's see what we got here." He took out a handheld device, which he connected to the panel with some leads.
A moment later, the screen lit up and lines of computer code started to run across it. Brad had explained he would be running a decryption programme from his laptop, which the device was connected to. He said he needed about fifteen or twenty minutes, depending on how complicated the protection was.
That was when he heard movement behind him. Someone else was standing in the doorway, blocking the exit. Jeremy couldn't quite make them out, but he didn't have to be a genius to know who this was.
"Fairchild," he growled. "I really hoped you'd be here. You've got a lot to answer for."
The figure didn't say anything. They stepped into the room's light. It wasn't Daniel Fairchild. Even so, Jeremy recognised him from their discussions.
"Gordon? But what are you doing here?" asked Jeremy. "Where's Fairchild?"
Gordon ignored Jeremy. His eyes looked around the room. He wouldn't see the device, Jeremy was stood in front of it. Then, a crowbar slid out from behind his arm and into his hand. He brought it up, slapping it meaningfully against the palm of his other hand, slowly approaching Jeremy.
