My Third Eye

Chapter 16

 Ezra

Louisa hits Remy over the head with her violin.

"Sorry, Remy, but you were about to do something pretty foolish," she says, apologizing to his unresponsive body slumped on the floor.

"Never knew you could do that with a violin. Very creative," Mark remarks, brushing off his shoulder with an approving nod.

"Improvisation is my specialty," she replies with a playful bow, grinning.

"Not to interrupt this touching moment, but you just knocked someone out with a musical instrument. Isn't that a bit illegal?" I point out, gesturing to the glaringly obvious cameras positioned around the room. Seriously, what is wrong with these people?

"Oh, definitely. We should leave before Mark here volunteers for any experiments," she agrees.

"I'd prefer not to, actually," Marcus retorts, mock sadness dripping from his tone.

"That's too bad," Louisa tsks, shaking her head. I opened my mouth to protest against this ridiculous conversation, but the tall doors swung open and four employees entered.

"Oh, brother," she groans, lifting her impressively intimidating violin once more. Looking closer, I noticed they all practically resembled one another—two women and two men, their facial structures identical except for differences in hair and skin color. The guy at the front was the host from earlier. Oh right, robots.

"Man, I hate these things," I say, picking up a reasonably heavy book and holding it threateningly.

"Why do they look like that, and why are they so disturbingly still?" Marcus asked, a hint of unease in his voice. He had a point—despite being animatronics, they looked uncannily realistic. Oh fuck. I turn to him, realizing he doesn't know they aren't human.

As if reading my thoughts, the "person" at the front snapped their head to the side, a red light coming to life in their eyes as they scanned Louisa's face. She blinks rapidly, rubbing her eyes before settling back into a guarded stance. Why is she silent? She complained just five seconds ago. Louisa is never quiet.

"What the hell—" Mark began, but the emcee from earlier interrupted him.

"Louisa Harmon. You're not allowed to be here due to your suspension." Its mouth opened and closed as it spoke, the words emerging with an odd delay, almost as if they were spilling out faster than its lips could move.

"Suspension? It's only been a few days. They can't expect me to... complete it so quickly," her voice strained. What was she suspended from? She'd mentioned working here, but what had she done? Well, aside from knocking out one of her co-workers.

"They are growing impatient. They know how to do it perfectly this time and are eager." The sandy-haired host just seemed to notice there were other people in the room and he tilted his head to look at the unconscious boy on the floor. "Get rid of the extras."

Louisa's face didn't look like it liked that comment and she swung her violin, denting the head of a female automaton on the side of their formation. "Run."

I scan the room hastily, searching for an escape. A door, a window—any possible exit would be welcome but there was no opening other than from which they came which was currently being barricaded by Louisa and her violin of electrical death. Sounds of clattering metal echo around against the walls and I grit my teeth. Before I can ask the robot people to be a little more quiet, someone grabs my arm and points to a bookshelf. Mark?

"I pulled a book from the shelf, but it acted like a lever, causing some of the books to shift aside and reveal a hidden keypad. It seems like a secret door, and it might be our only escape. The other way is blocked, and I'm not keen on getting caught in the chaos," he says, warily.