"Hello, Blake. I hope I'm not disturbing you."

"Hi, Mr. Bairren…No, no, you picked a very good time to call; I just woke up."

"Good. I thought you'd be interested to know about the next step of our partnership as well as what is happening to the animatronics you have salvaged."

"Yes, of course! Any success with repairing that endoskeleton?"

"We're working on it. I sent it away for repairs, and once that is done, I hope that it will become a fantastic addition to the jewel that is Fazbear Fright."

"And Spring Bonnie?"

"We've already transferred him to the attraction building. He will have another chance to become a shining star there. A springlock suit that has gone rogue and now threatens the safety of everyone who wanders into its domain. Spring Trap, if you'd like…Speaking of Fazbear Fright itself, it is almost ready for its debut."

"Already? Damn, you're quick."

"We're on the verge of tremendous success; no need to waste any time whatsoever. Now, as to your role in all of this…I assume you want to continue working with me?"

"Yes, sure! Assuming the pay is…Adequate."

"You know that I reward my workers to the best of their abilities, no more, no less. I have a job for you to do. As this place now has a lot of valuable items, it will require someone to guard it. We have got a man who agreed to work during the day, but the night shift is still free…Will you take on it?"

"For an opportunity to work at the place I helped create? You don't ask!"

"Then I await you for some formal introductions."

…

"So, you say his name was Kyle?"

"Yes, quite tall and with short blonde hair; if I saw him somewhere, I'd recognize him."

"That's something."

Elizabeth didn't expect Charlie to invite her into his flat so soon, but she did not feel like declining. There was, of course, some suspicion in her mind. He might have been her friend years ago, but who knew how much he changed now? It wasn't a question Elizabeth wanted to ask, but she couldn't fully trust anyone, no matter how close they were. Still, she accepted his invitation, a friendly visit where they could talk more about the club she worked in and how to proceed.

They met near the house Charlie lived in as he led Elizabeth upstairs to his flat. The woman remained fairly quiet unless he asked her questions. She simply followed Charlie's lead, realizing that her bubbly feeling of wanting to spend time with someone she trusts outweighed all rationality.

"And here we are," Charlie announced as he opened his door and welcomed Elizabeth into his flat. She wasn't exactly sure what she expected to see, but it immediately made a very positive impression. The flat was impeccable; there was not a single grain of dust she could notice, and everything was in its place. The blue walls that surrounded them did not break their pattern for a single moment; the bed was neatly made, and even the relatively small kitchen area was clean. "You like it?"

"Wow, you have a really nice place!" Elizabeth smiled and took a deep breath. It almost felt as if she was still outside. "You didn't just clean it up because you have a guest, didn't you?"

"We have to be impeccable as policemen, and it helps to never drop this standard, even at home," Charlie explained as he took his shoes off. "Not like anyone likes living in filth."

"Yeah, true…" She said with an echo of shame in her voice, realizing that it's been a while since her own flat got a thorough cleaning. She was a neat and tidy girl when she was younger, but just like with any other activity today, it was hard to find motivation to do anything at all for her.

"Come here; I have some biscuits." He led Elizabeth towards the dining room. "They aren't usually meant for guests, but I can make an exception."

"Thanks!" The woman smiled again and sat at the table in front of Charlie. She tried one of the biscuits, and the feeling of something sweet melting in her mouth was enough to soothe Elizabeth, at least for now.

"So, let's get back to Kyle. You know his last name?"

"No."

"Don't they record the names of the people who came in?"

"Probably, but it's not like they'll allow me to see it." Elizabeth chuckled quietly and looked down. "I am just a waitress there; I guess they thought I was pretty enough for the job…"

"You're much more than "pretty enough," don't undersell yourself there," Charles said with a smile on his face, making Liz immediately lift her eyes and look into his.

"Oh, wait…You did not invite me just because you wanted to have sex with me, right?"

"What? No, of course not!" Charlie denied vehemently. "I just compliment people when they deserve it, simple." He was quick to reassure her before taking a biscuit for himself. "Can you tell me anything more about him? I can try and meet him in that club if that's the only option."

"Hm…He usually comes in on Thursday evenings. I can't say it's every single time, but if you come in, chances are he'll be there. I could bring you in as a guest, though they would charge for that."

"That shouldn't be a problem. I'd gladly pay if it means discovering the truth." Charlie said with anticipation and took a breath. "We really have a chance there, you know. I don't know about you, but I've been waiting to see what those bastards did to my parents for a while…" He clenched his fist. "Twelve years and nothing until now. Maybe we will find out what happened to your father, as well."

"What do you mean?" Elizabeth raised an eyebrow.

"I wonder if your father never actually killed himself, and this was just a cover story for murder." He was so firm in his assessments, and he wasn't that far away from the truth…At least closer than most others.

"Hm…Maybe." The woman said quietly, realizing just how idiotic she must have looked at this moment.

"Don't you want to find out the truth?" He was persistent, and Elizabeth realized that this was simply not fair. She promised her father that she would never tell the truth of his disappearance to anyone, but she also promised Charlie to help with his investigation in any way she could. She wanted to keep both of those promises, yet she had to make a choice. One of them was missing for more than a decade, never appearing in Elizabeth's life since the day of this promise; the other was here, right in front of her, and willing to communicate. Was it a betrayal if his father broke his promise to return in less than a year first?

"Charlie, I…" Elizabeth stuttered. "I need to tell you something."

"Is it about the investigation?" Charlie asked calmly. He was only focused on his task. There was nothing else that mattered. Elizabeth respected this level of dedication. Perhaps if she were the same, she could discover a lot more with the information she had.

"Yes, but…Can you promise not to tell anyone else? No one at all? Just so you understand, I knew it for twelve years and never told anyone." It was too late to turn back; it was time for a confession. Charlie already realized that it was something very important as he looked at the woman with a gaze full of concern.

"Alright…You have my word." Somehow, he didn't seem like the type to break promises.

"Sorry, I should've told you earlier, but everything just happened so quickly…Couldn't expect to meet you there and…Well, we had better things to talk about." She was stuttering as if subconsciously rejecting her opportunity to tell the truth.

"Come on, Elizabeth, you can just tell me."

"Fine, fine…My father didn't kill himself." She said quickly, making Charlie immediately aside his eyebrow.

"What?"

"You said it might have been a cover story, and you were right. He wanted to disappear and make people think he was dead; that's why he wrote a suicide note…He came to me just a few days before and explained it to me. He had me promise to never tell anyone about his…I suppose you could call it a mission."

"That changes everything…" Charlie couldn't hold his excitement back. "What did he tell you about this mission? I know you promised him, but this can be another lead!"

"Not much about what he was going to do, only that he wanted to destroy Fazbear Inc from the shadows."

"And why did he want to do that?"

"That's the interesting part…" Elizabeth sighed. "You know Chris, right?"

"Of course, your brother who…" Charlie stuttered as if holding himself back from mentioning the tragedy.

"He told me something before the bite; I never told that to anyone outside of my family, either…He had a friend, Lily, and she disappeared a month or so before the bite. He saw how she disappeared." Liz concentrated and tried to remember all of the key details. "Basically, my father tried to distract Chris and lure Lily to one of the Funtime animatronics while no one could see, but Chris followed her and saw…That."

"Saw what?"

"A claw. When Lily came closer to the animatronic, its stomach hatch opened, and had a metal claw come out of it…It just grabbed Lily and dragged it into the robot's body before closing. I don't think she lived for much longer."

"Jesus…" Charlie whispered in disbelief.

"Father didn't see Chris that time, so he didn't do anything about it…For a while, at least. Chris told me about it at some point and even made some drawings, quite realistic, you know. And after he died, I…" Elizabeth took a deep breath, feeling tears emerge in her eyes. She couldn't allow herself to get emotional, not now. "I asked father about this. He never admitted to doing any of this, but…He didn't deny it either. We barely talked after that point until the CPS took me away; you know what happened next." It was easier than Elizabeth expected…It even felt relieving, a secret that she hid for twelve years and could now finally share with someone else. A heavy burden finally fell off her shoulders. Charlie stayed silent for a few moments; that must have been a lot of information to process at once.

"So, let me get this straight…Your father was kidnapping children?"

"Yes."

"And not only that, the animatronics commissioned by Fazbear Inc. had actual functions for kidnapping in them?"

"Yeah…"

"That…That explains so much!" For the first time since their reunion, Elizabeth saw Charlie brimming with so much excitement it almost felt unnatural. "He was secretive and apparently helped Alison and whoever else was at the top of the company to do dirty work…"

"I don't think it was willingly!" Liz rushed to William's defense. "They must have threatened him…He said it was to protect me and my brothers."

"Yes, that's what I thought as well. But the point is if he was forced into this situation and had to keep secrets…"

Charlie didn't finish as a loud call interrupted him, a somewhat familiar hard rock song from the 90s. Charlie checked his phone and answered it immediately.

"Yo, you have time?" An excited man's voice rang from it.

"Depends on how important it is, Cody."

"So you have time, good! I dug through the archives and tried to collect all information about Alison, Fazbear Inc., that kind of stuff…"

"Have you found anything?" Charlie's tone switched, and his intrigue became clear the moment Cody mentioned those names.

"I did, actually, mostly a lot of little things, which I'll send you over today if you want to double-check, payment receipts, cargo shipments of some metal parts…But there's a common thread there. Alison's name barely appeared during the last decade. It doesn't seem like he was engaged in any business, but…

"What?"

"He shipped some of the stuff he kept at former "Fredbear's Family Diner" to Japan and held some agreements and reservations with a couple of companies, again, in Japan." Now that was unexpected, Elizabeth decided to remain silent and listen to what more Cody could tell.

"What the hell would he want there?" Charlie squinted his eyes; he must have been just as confused.

"Your guess is as good as mine, but hey, it's in the archive. Don't think anyone would fake that."

"Interesting…Thanks, Cody, I'll look over it."

"Let me know if you find anything."

Charles put the phone down and turned to Elizabeth.

"My friend from the department helps me dig up info buried in our archives that no one cares to check. Your father didn't mention anything about Japan, did he?"

"No, sorry…It doesn't make any sense."

"It's fine, don't apologize." He reassured her. "Between what you've told me, what Cody found…Listen, I need you to get information on Kyle. I need to meet him, inside or outside the club; it doesn't matter, there is a lot to discuss."

"I'll…I'll see if I can learn anything tomorrow."

"Thank you!" Charlie let out a loud breath of relief. "God, meeting you was a stroke of luck in many ways…I know you're not from the police, but it is a personal matter for you, just like it is for me."

"I'll gladly help with anything if you allow me."

"Oh, I will. Thank you for telling me the truth. We'll find your father and with him…Perhaps we'll find my parents as well."

...

It took time for Charlie to realize how much a single visit from Elizabeth changed. Having an upcoming meeting with a former Fazbear Inc. employee was good progress already, but what Elizabeth revealed has been the key to everything. All the mystery that surrounded this company, all the disappearances, even the missing children incident…Now he knew that Alison oversaw the abduction of children, and the recent restaurant must have been a cover for something similar, too. All those mysterious disappearances, just like the ones that happened now, they were a product of the same scheme. It also explained why his parents and William Afton were so secretive and avoidant after they tied their lives with Alison and his corporation. They knew something they should've kept secret and had to comply to protect their families while not revealing anything to them…Of course, anyone would grow distant in circumstances like this. They called him paranoid for suspecting the company, for distrusting them so much, for refusing to accept what happened as a chain of simple accidents and tragedies. And if there was even the smallest chance that William, Gron, and Lynda were alive…He will find them as soon as possible.

The only missing piece of the puzzle was Alison's connections to Japan. He looked over Cody's report, and it confirmed that those connections existed; however, there was nothing more than what Cody already told him. Perhaps Kyle could tell him more once they finally meet…The man who brought the situation to Cody and Charlie's attention was an immigrant from Japan as well. It is a big city, and it would be easy to write it off as a coincidence, but not in a relatively remote town like Hurricane. He will have his answers soon enough and for now…

The ringing doorbell made Charlie spur up from his sofa and rush to the door. As he opened it, the man immediately saw Elizabeth waiting with a faint smile on her face.

"How did it go?" He asked impatiently as the woman slid inside.

"Better than I expected. I talked to our manager when he was in a relatively good mood and asked him about our 'client.' His full name is Kyle Kayar, and he will be coming there again tomorrow. He already has a spot reserved."

"And a place for me?"

"I asked him to bring a guest in, and thankfully, he agreed." Elizabeth smiled. "Everything's ready now; all we have to do is wait and come at the correct time tomorrow. I'll try and sit you two together or at least close enough."

"Thanks…I won't waste the opportunity."

"Just please, try to not cause any trouble, okay? I'll hear no end to the complaints afterward."

"I'll do my best not to steer anything." He could only hope that Kyle would prove cooperative and not try to incite a scandal.

Soon, they will find out.

…

"So, how do you find our humble place?"

Alison asked Blake after giving him a quick tour of Fazbear Fright, the attraction he would be guarding soon.

"It's…Haunting!"

It was definitely a sight to behold. The building was new, but with all the work done on it looked positively abandoned. The dirty, emptied halls were filled with glimmering gaming machines, wires sticking out from the halls and ceiling, dirtied tiles, and animatronic heads sprinkled all around the place. There was the main trio, Foxy, Sugar, Kitty, Circus Baby, and Vigo; all the phantoms of the past had found their place here, where they would terrify the visitors. Blake was impressed; he could already imagine himself being the operator of this place by the time it opened. He would see those terrified yet excited faces as they have the time of their lives…And Jim won't.

A part of Blake wondered if it was wrong to turn the tragedies of the past into a cheap horror show built on the rumors of the crimes that Fazbear Inc. supposedly committed. But in the end, all his doubts were driven out by the prospect of earning a prosperous salary. He wasn't like Jim, after all…He wouldn't allow those tragedies to hold him back.

Finally, Alison brought him to the main sight. The golden animatronic is standing in the shadows and looking at the floor, waiting for his visitors.

"Here he is…Impressive, isn't he?"

"He looks terrifying, good job."

"I think Springtrap is a good name for him…A springlock suit in the past, a monstrous creature eager to trap its victims in this building now."

"Has he been programmed yet!"

"We'll modify him when the opening time finally comes," Alison explained. "But we won't need to change too much. His system is designed in a way that allows him to react to children's laughter. When he hears one and is not bound by a stage, he'll immediately move to entertain them. While there won't be many laughs here, there is a recording of one that whoever sits in the office can play. This will be a way to lure him away from the visitors and open a way for them. But as for now, you've got your toolkit, Blake; you've got your camera system in the office. You know why your duty is nightguard…Welcome to the family."