REPEATED SEARCH.

|| III. ||

It didn't take long for Anne to completely adore her new companion. To her, Mark was part of the family, a sort of second father and older brother all in one. She jumped at the chance to play with him, and while she noticed that he seemed distant sometimes, it never really bothered her. Her parents could be a little distant too, but that was only because of work. She knew they cared about her, and she was certain Mark did, too.

One night, after a long day of school and hanging out with Mark, Anne settled into her bed. The android tucked her in snugly with a small smile. "Sleep well, little one," he said, painting a forced fondness into his voice. "I shall be right here charging if you have need of me."

Anne smiled at him, her eyes slowly falling shut. "Good night, Mark," she murmured, and she soon fell asleep.

As soon as her eyes closed, the smile faded from his face, replaced with a small grimace. Stupid child. If only he had admin permissions, he could be done with her and the rest of her family. But, as always, the list of instructions flitted across the screen of his eyes. It was not time for that yet. Letting himself sigh tiredly, he slipped his adapter into the wall and plugged himself in, growing a bit "drowsy" himself.

Anne tossed and turned in her sleep, her mouth moving but barely making a sound. It was so dark and so freezing; she hugged herself and rubbed up and down her arms, trying to create warmth. She walked down what appeared to be an alley, but she could hardly see two feet in front of her.

A voice laughed darkly behind her, and a chill ran down Anne's spine. She began to run, and in the darkness she could hear footsteps, slow at first, but soon picking up speed.

"L-leave me alone!" Anne cried, not daring to look back. She didn't know why she was so scared, but she knew she couldn't let them catch her. She wouldn't!

"Poor dear," came a smooth voice next to her ear. "Don't you see? You're already alone."

"Go AWAY!" Anne screamed, running even faster away from the voice. The harder she ran, the less energy she had, but she willed herself to keep going. "Mommy! Daddy! Help me, please!"

The voice laughed again, louder this time, and it seemed to fill the entire space. "No one can help you, little girl. You're alone! No one would love a child like you!"

"That's not true! Daddy! Mommy! Mark! MARK!"

Was she screaming? Mark jolted from his half-sleep mode, eyes wide, rings of blue glowing brightly in the dark. Time update, 2:10 AM, Mountain Standard Time. Quickly unplugging himself, he strode quickly over to Anne's bed, looming over her and grabbing her to check for signs of injury. Tears streamed down Anne's face and she hugged him.

"Mark!" she cried through her tears. "I-I had a nightmare!"

"A nightmare?" Mark repeated, motors whirring slightly. "That's foolish."

"I know," Anne said quietly, wiping her eyes. "Mommy and Daddy always say they're not real. But somebody was chasing me, and it was really dark... a-and I was so scared!"

Mark mechanically took the girl into his arms, looking down at her, eyes glimmering. "Who was chasing you?" maybe if she could place a name, he could find another target to satiate his needs, pretend he was protecting her from her tormentor in her dreams.

Anne thought back to the nightmare, remembering what the man's voice sounded like. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't remember seeing his face, not once. "I don't know," she said. "I couldn't see. It was too dark. But it sounded like a man."

"Did he sound like anyone you know?" Mark asked.

"Uh-uh," Anne shook her head.

"What did it sound like? Can you describe it?" Mark began to soften slightly, the vulnerable tone in Anne's voice slowly eating through his resolve to hate her.

"It was deep. Kinda growly. And... and scary..."

"And what did he say?"

"He said... he said I was alone," Anne whimpered. "And that nobody loved me." Mark stayed silent for a while, but he did hug Anne tighter. The child needed comforting, and while he didn't necessarily like her, he was her caretaker. He would do his job.

Anne hugged him back, smiling slightly. "Thank you," she said quietly. She glanced up at Mark and a question entered her mind. "OK, Google: does anyone love me?"

"Yes, of course," Mark answered immediately. "Your mother and father love you very, very much."

Anne smiled wider, the words comforting. She knew it. "Thank you," she said again.

"You don't need to thank me," Mark said with a shake of his head. "I'm only doing my job and answering your question."

"I know," Anne said. "But you're nice. My mommy always says that when someone does something nice for you, you say thank you."

"You don't need to thank me, though. It seems strange," Mark said, a bit less forcefully.

Anne yawned slightly. "I'm sorry. I think I'm OK now, though."

"Would you like a glass of water?"

"Yes, please!" Anne nodded.

With a more genuine smile, Mark got up and went towards the kitchen, filling up a glass halfway and coming back. "Be careful with it," he said.

"I will." Anne took the glass from him and sipped from it. Mark watched her, eyes trained upon her hands and the glass, making sure nothing happened. When she was finished, she handed the glass back to him with a smile. He took it and placed it on her night table, and patted her head, going back to his chair.

"Good night," Mark said.

Anne snuggled back under the covers. "Good night!" she called. Mark nodded, and let himself slip into sleep mode after re-plugging himself in.

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Thank you very much for reading so far, and hopefully, you're enjoying this. Please, do comment with questions and concerns; I'll answer them to the best of my ability.

- Madelyn