Five Nights at Freddy's: The Silver Eyes(9)

“Charlie?” John was saying her name, and it sounded like he was repeating it.

“Sorry,” she said. “What were you saying?”

“Do you want to go inside?” Jessica said.

Charlie was surprised they were only now considering this, but then again none of them was usually prone to criminal activity. The thought was a release and she took a deep breath, speaking on exhale. “Why not.” She said, almost laughing. She hefted the flashlight. Her arms were getting tired. “Anyone else want a turn?” She waved it back and forth like a pendulum.

Carlton took it and took a moment to appreciate its weight.

“Why is this so heavy?” He said, and passing it off to John. “Here you go.”

“It’s a police flashlight,” Charlie said absently. “You can hit people with it.”

Jessica wrinkled her nose. “Your aunt really wasn’t kidding around, huh? Ever used it?”

“Not yet.” Charlie winked and made a half threatening glance at John, who returned an uncertain half-smile, unsure how to react.

The wide entrances were sealed with hammered metal doors, no doubt intended to be temporary until construction was finished. Still, it wasn’t difficult to find a way in, as many large mounds of gravel and sand scaled the walls, leading right up to the edges of the large, gaping windows.

“Not trying hard to keep people out.” John said.

“What’s anyone going to steal?” Charlie said, staring at the blank, towering walls.

They climbed the hills slowly, the gravel shifting and sliding beneath their feet as they went. Carlton reached the window first, and peered through. Jessica looked over his shoulder.

“Can we drop down?” John said.

“Yes,” said Carlton.

“No,” Jessica said at precisely the same time.

“I’ll go,” Charlie said. She felt reckless. Without looking through to see how far the fall was, she put her feet through the opening and let herself drop. She landed, knees bent, the impact rocking her, but it did not hurt. She looked up at her friends, staring down. “Oh. Hang on!” Charlie called, pulling a short stepladder from a wall nearby and setting it under the window.

“Okay,” she said. “Come on!” They dropped down one by one, and looked around them.

Inside was an atrium, or maybe it would have become a food court, with metal benches and plastic tables scattered around, some bolted to the floor. The ceiling rose up high above them, with a glass roof where they could see the stars peering down at them.

“Very post-apocalyptic.” Charlie joked, her voice echoing in the open space.

Jessica sang a brief, wordless scale, suddenly, startling them all into silence. Her voice rang out pure and clear, something beautiful in the emptiness.

“Very nice, but let’s not call too much attention to ourselves.” John said.

“Right.” Jessica said, still very happy with herself. As they walked on, Carlton swept up and took her arm.

“Your voice is amazing,” he said.

“It’s just good acoustics,” Jessica said, attempting humility but not meaning a word of it.

They walked the empty halls, peering into each of the massive cavities where a department store might have been. Some parts of the mall had been almost finished, while others were in shambles. Some hallways were littered with piles of dusty concrete bricks and stacks of wood, others were lined with glass-paneled storefronts, lights hanging in perfect rows above their heads.

“It’s like a lost city,” John said.

“Like Pompeii,” said Jessica, “just without the volcano.”

“No,” Charlie said, “there’s nothing here.” The whole place had a sterile feel to it—it was not abandoned, it had never sustained life at all.

She looked in a store window across from her, one of the few with glass, wondering what would have been displayed. She imagined mannequins, dressed in bright clothing, but when she tried to picture them all she could see was blank faces, concealing something. She suddenly felt out of place, unwelcomed by the building itself. Charlie began to feel restless, some of the luster wearing off the adventure. They had come; Freddy’s was gone, and so was the shrine she had kept in her thoughts, where she could still find Michael playing where she last saw him.

John stopped suddenly, turning off the flashlight as carefully as he could. He put a finger to his lips, motioning silence. He gestured back the way they had come. In the distance, they saw a small light, bobbing in the darkness like a ship in the fog.

“Someone else is here,” he hissed.

“A night guard maybe?” Carlton whispered.

“Why would an abandoned building need a guard?” Charlie wondered.

“Kids probably come here to party,” Carlton said, and grinned. “I would have come here to party too if I’d known about it, or if I partied.”

“Okay, well, let’s backtrack, slowly.” John said. “Jessica…” John started, and made a “zip-it” motion across his lips.

They continued down the hallway, this time with only the dimmer light of Carlton’s keychain.

“Wait.” Jessica stopped with a whisper, looking intently at the walls surrounding them. “Something’s not right,”

“Yeah, no giant pretzels. I know.” Carlton seemed sincere. Jessica waved a hand at him impatiently.