Chapter twenty-one: Crossing a line
"Stop."
Paul froze. His hand was still raised, ready to knock. He didn't glance around in search of the voice; he knew there would be no point.
He smiled.
"If your hand touches that door," the golden one's voice whispered, "I'll rip it off."
He lowered his hand.
The growing darkness that seemed to creep from the corridor's corners didn't startle him too badly. He kept himself calm as the lights flickered, then turned off, leaving him with a little sliver of sunlight that crossed the window and the shadows. He glanced from one end to the corridor to the other.
And there she was, emerging from the unnatural darkness and into the dim light. He didn't back off at her approach.
"I warned you…" she growled as she towered over him. "But even after all of that… After all the prying and the shooting, after I gave you a fair chance to walk away, you tried to kill him?"
Paul looked up at her.
"You…" she hissed. "You come here, with your gun in hand…"
"Yes," he said. "And you came to his rescue."
She paused. A glint of hesitance shone in her dark eyes.
"You were right; you're more than just a robot," Paul said. "And if this is any indication, you were also truthful about the nature of your relationship with him."
"You weren't going to kill him?"
"No; I was trying to lure you out."
It stared at him. The darkness retreated a little, and the lights flickered back on. Only then did Paul see just how confused the robot looked.
"It seems my gamble paid off." He looked at her, then brushed past her and returned down the corridor he'd come from.
"Hey, you're not going anywhere," she said. "Why should I believe you won't come back here to finish the job?"
"My job is already finished," he said without breaking stride. "I'm done, like you said. I won't come after you anymore." At the corner, he stopped and hesitated. "And have Griffiths send me the check for those warehouse animatronics."
He resumed. He had his answers. That's all he wanted. Now, he could leave this case behind.
He felt a hand on his arm. "Wait."
Mildly startled, he turned to face her.
"How're you going to explain this to Nicholas?" she asked.
"I'm not. I no longer work for him."
"Still… There may be something you could tell him."
He paused. "… Reports about sentient animatronics and teleporting bears aren't usually received with grace."
"You want me to believe what you said? That you're done?"
"Well, yes."
"Then let's talk for a moment longer. I've…got an idea."
For some reason, that made him hesitant.
