Bonnie stepped through the door into the lab where Justin and his team were rebuilding Kitt�s body.  She�d needed a couple of chips for the CPU and instead of going to the store at the Foundation she�d decided to come to the R&D facility and check on their progress.  When she saw the change that the last few days had seen, her mouth fell open.

Justin met her at the door and looked proudly on their work.  �Almost sorted,� he told her.  �And this time we�ve found a substance to bond into the MBS that should protect from the higher temperatures caused by certain burning chemicals.�
�It�s� it looks incredible.�  She walked around the car, as close to it as she could get with the cables, monitors and mechanics blocking her way.
�We decided that the basic black should stay, and the scanner.  But the body shape�s changed slightly.  It�s more� curved, sleeker. I think.�  Bonnie had to agree.  The hard lines of the car had been smoothed off.
�It�s beautiful.�
�Glad you approve.�  He bit his lip, regarding her with excitement.  She saw it.
�What is it, Justin?�
�We might have something� else.�   She could almost read his nervousness.
�Out with it.�
�It�s�.�  He caught her expression.  �Okay.  We�ve been working on something here for a while.  It�s called SensorNet.  It�s� a network of tiny sensors that can be bonded into almost anything - paint, bonded shells, material, plastic.  The sensors can be accessed by any system coded� to access them.�
Bonnie leaned back against one of the workbenches.  �You�re saying you can cover that car in this SensorNet, and it�ll relay signals to Kitt regarding his surroundings.�
�Yes!  Temperature, humidity, touch�.  For instance, if you put your hand on the hood he�d be able to feel it.�

They were both avoiding stating the obvious reason for the network of sensors like the one already replaced in the steering column.  But Bonnie needed more than the pros.   �And if someone sets light to him again?�
�There are limits to the input, exceed the limits and the input automatically cuts out altogether.  Kitt can� override that if need be.�  Again, he didn�t elaborate.  Even if he�d tried to, he only had vague notions he would never have given voice to.  �Kitt can shut off the network whenever he wants to, all of it or just a part.  Nothing would be visible because the net would be bonded into whatever material is on whatever part of the car.  For Kitt�s security, it wouldn�t be an externally accessible peripheral like, say the voice box, because it would be coded directly into the CPU.�
She smiled wryly.  �You�ve given this a lot of thought.�
He shrugged.  �It�s an idea.  We haven�t incorporated it into the car as yet.  But I�ll give you the software and if you could mention it to Michael and Kitt�.�  He trailed off, and she nodded.  �How is Kitt?�
She sucked on her bottom lip.  �Unsettled.  He wants to be back in a familiar system.�
�And Michael?�
�Torn between worrying about Kitt and worrying about who attacked them.�
�Which I assume Nick is working on.�
�You assume correctly.�
He sighed.  �So� you�ll ask?�
�I�ll ask.�
�Thanks.�

*

Reluctantly, Michael left Kitt with Swan while she gave him full instructions on the use of his new body.  He wandered outside into the cold sunlight to cross the silent road and lean on the railings of the dockside.  Nicholas found him there some time later.
�How�s it going?�
Michael shook his head.  �He�s� okay, I think.  We had years without the link, Nick.  Years when the only way to communicate with him was to talk to him.  I learnt to read him in other ways, the quality and length of silences, the tone and inflections in his voice.  And then link� blew all that away.  I didn�t have to read him �cause I could sense him.  Every� emotion, every feeling.�  He looked down at the damp, dirty dock beneath him.  �Now, it�s�.  You know.�
Nick was silent for a while, strange emotions flickering over his face.  Some Michael had seen there before, some were frighteningly new.  �Perhaps,� Nick answered slowly after a while.  �I know what�s like to lose the link.  But I�m not sure I know how you�re feeling right now.�  He didn't meet Michael's eyes and his face had a mask-like quality.

Michael touched his forehead, rubbed his temples.  Digging his hand into his coat pocket he came up with only his lighter.  Nicholas dug into his own coat pocket and produced a half-full, half-squashed pack of Camel cigarettes.  �Yours?�
Michael took them, surprised.  �Thanks.  Where...?�
�Down the back of the couch.�
Michael chuckled, took out a cigarette and lit it.  �Why the hell do we do this for a living, Nick?�
That drew a smile.  �Because we were chosen to.�
�By Wilton fucking Knight.  But� why do we keep doing it?�
Nicholas shrugged.  He knew why he did it.  There were reasons, most of them unknown to all but one person, and that was Karr.  What little Michael had learned about him in the past was merely a fraction of the real Nicholas MacKenzie.  �Michael, there are implants in the back of our heads that connect us to Artificial Intelligences, sentient lives.�  He said finally.  �If we didn�t do this, what else would we do?�
Michael gazed at him.  He had a good idea what Nick might be doing if not for Wilton Knight's interference, and he shuddered to think about it.  As he had told Bonnie once before, he was glad Nick was on their side.  �Sometimes� sometimes I just want to take Kitt and run, leave it all behind.  Each time something like this happens, he gets hurt or I get hurt� even when something happens to you or Karr�.  People get killed in this business.  If I lost Kitt� I dread to think what I�d do.�
"People get killed.  Not only in this business," Nicholas agreed.  �But, Michael� Kitt was practically born to it.  It�s all he knows.  In a way, it's all you know as well.  What would he do if you gave it up?�
�Come with me.�
�Undoubtedly.  Then what?  He�d make a great golf cart.�  The ghost of a smile caressed Nicholas� face.  �You�d easily beat all the other carts over the course.�
Michael tried not to laugh, not to giggle, but it broke through.  A highly qualified robotics expert had once suggested, long ago, that Kitt might be down-graded to a utility vehicle.  Michael hadn�t reacted well.  It was a joke this time, as it hadn�t been then.  But the meaning remained the same.  Kitt was what he was.  An AI programmed to protect Michael�s life in the most dangerous of situations.  So what happened when Kitt himself was the target?

�Did you find anything in FLAGNet?�
Nicholas hesitated.  �I�m afraid so.  The only people reading the Tarasine data files for Kitt are the test team themselves, and Jennifer Knight.  I�m sorry, Michael.  It looks like it was her.  There are several instances of her accessing the files in the right timeframe.�
�He isn�t safe.�
�She won�t ever find you here.�
�Not here, no.  But she set us up and I walked right into it.  And Kitt almost paid with his life.�
Linking his fingers, Nicholas turned to lean back on the railings.  �You know� she could vanish as easily as you can.�  His voice had an almost casual tone to it, something so cold and still that Michael briefly thought he was talking to someone masquerading as his friend.  A few years ago, he might have been shocked.  Now... there was a brief moment of revulsion, then the firm decision not to let Nick handle the dirty work.
He shook his head.  �I won�t let Karr � or you - kill her.  Not for her sake, but for his, for Kitt�s and for yours.�
Nick's cold blue eyes met Michael's.  �I know that.  But there are others.  I don�t think you quite understand yet what resources I have at my disposal, what� I can make happen with just an email.�  It was as if he was talking about the weather.
Michael thought for a time.  �It�s murder, Nicholas.�  But the part of him that ached for Kitt�s presence to be back with him was seriously considering what Nicholas could do.  He had the resources, yes.  He had the training.
�Yes it is.  But if it comes down to her or Kitt, she won�t live.�  There was a protective streak to his voice that made Michael smile slightly.  Nick had changed over the past years, though he would never admit it out loud; just like Karr had changed.  He would still kill without remorse, he would take Jennifer out, but he wouldn�t do it for his own pleasure.  He would do it to protect Michael and Kitt.

�Michael!�  Swan�s call took him straight inside, Nicholas close behind.

The android body that contained Kitt�s mind was on the floor, face down, sprawled out on the hard concrete.  Michael dropped to his knees, reaching to turn Kitt onto his back, to help him up.  �Kitt�.�  Brown eyes looked up at him, and Michael thought he could read the pain there that he would otherwise have felt flooding through the link.  He glared up at Swan, who was crouched a way from them.  �What the hell happened?�
�He� he just tried to walk.�  She was obviously confused.  �I don�t know what went wrong, it�s simple�.�
�Simple for who?  He�s a car, walking does not come naturally.�  Michael pulled Kitt up into his arms, sitting with him on the floor, giving him something solid and real to lean on.  �It�s okay, Partner.�

Nicholas took Swan�s elbow and hoisted her to her feet.  �With me.  Now.�  Michael watched him lead her across to the other side of the warehouse.  He made sure Kitt was comfortable.
�Are you hurt?�  Kitt shook his head, but he screwed his eyes up and rubbed his nose with the palm of his hand.  It was the most human gesture Michael could remember seeing and it almost broke his heart.  �You hurt your nose.�
�I don�t know� I can just feel pain.�  There was desolation in his voice.  �I hate this, Michael!  I want to go home, please.�
�Ssh, Kitt.  I know, I know.  Soon, I promise.�

Finding Kitt�s hand, Michael laced their fingers together.  �We�ll do this together.�
�I don�t want to do this at all.�  He lifted one arm and dropped it uselessly into his lap.  �How do you� synchronise it all?�
Michael smiled affectionately.  �How do you leap us over a two-ton semi while keeping the engine running, the car�s centre of gravity balanced, the laser restraint system active, the air conditioning blowing and my attention held with nonsensical banter.  You know, only once have you ever stopped talking when we�ve jumped something.  You�ve never missed a beat, whatever the condition of the road, the speed we�re travelling at, the strength and number of munitions being fired at us.�
He looked down and actually saw Kitt smile.  �It�s second nature.  First nature even.  This�.�
�This is for a couple of days, Kitt.  You can either experience, or just lie back, close your eyes and wait for Bonnie to finish the repairs on the CPU.  Either way, I�m here with you.�

Looking down at their joined hands, Kitt started rubbing Michael�s finger, noting the temperature, the texture and the idea that Michael was holding him at all.  �I want to feel you.�   The emotion flowing from Kitt�s CPU was affecting his voice, his expression, his eyes, exactly as it would a human.  Perhaps if the link was standing this would be easier.  Yet there was something undeniably magical about being this physically close.  He looked around.
�How about we go for a drive?  Get some privacy.�
�Really?  We could� do that?�
Michael nodded.  He stood, helping Kitt up, catching sight of Bonnie�s car at the end of the warehouse.  Perfect.  �Bon,� he called upstairs, �I�m borrowing your car.�

The announcement was answered by a simple, �okay� from Bonnie, and he took up the car keys from the workbench.  But a definite, �No!� from Swan stopped him in his tracks.  Michael stared at her, where she was breaking away from Nicholas.
�What?�
�He can�t leave this building!�
Michael frowned.  �Why?  I thought it was an internal power source.�
�It�s nothing to do with the power source!  That android is my life�s work!  I can�t just let you� walk out with it!�
Michael glared at her, eyes flashing as he closed the gap between them.  �Listen.  You�re getting just what you want out of this, don�t try to deny it.  It�s no longer an �it�, it�s a �he�.  He�s my partner, my friend, and he means more to me than any of this.  We are going for a drive.  We�re going to get some privacy and some time to ourselves.  You are not going to stop us.�
�Oh yes I am!�
She stepped around Michael toward Kitt.  Immediately, all three moved.  Karr�s engine fired and the Stealth ran the distance in an eye-blink, placing the car between Swan and Kitt in what for Michael was a frightening re-enactment of his reaction to Jennifer Knight.  Nicholas also moved, grabbing her left arm at the same time Michael reached out and took her right.  Kitt froze.  The sudden movement of the Stealth had taken him by surprise.  His trust in his brother was implicit, but it seemed for a split second that Karr was going to run him over.  And then the car pulled in to a tight turn, settling in to a familiar protective stance.  Kitt reached a trembling hand to the body of the Stealth and touched Karr gently; a silent �thank you�.

Nicholas� anger was more palpable than Michael�s, fired as it was by Karr�s own fury.  �What did I just say?�
�Nick�.�
�Nothing�s going to happen to him, he�ll be fine.�
She nodded, �Right.  So why�s he in this mess?�
�That�s enough, Swan!�  He nodded at Michael.  �Go.  Come back when you�re ready.�
One arm around Kitt�s waist to assist him with walking, Michael helped him up and over to Bonnie�s Mercedes.  They took off with Swan still prevaricating.
 

Once the red Merc was out of sight, Swan sat heavily on the Stealth�s hood, and it was only Nicholas� grip on her that held her upright when the car backed up from under her.  �You can�t do this to me, Nicholas!�
�Swan� did you hear a single word I said?�
�That�s my project!�
�The AI that you�ve transplanted into Jez has been with Michael for over twelve years.  They�ve been mentally linked by the same implant that links Karr and I for just under two.  That intimate connection has gone.  They need time.�
She sighed.  �I do understand that, Nicholas, I don�t want to hurt Kitt, believe me.  He seems� quite� wonderful.  But Jez�.�
�Is in very good hands.  Michael won�t let anything happen to him.  The man is trained, Swan, and he�s very good at what he does.  If he wasn�t he�d be dead by now.�

It was obvious that the discussion was over.

*

Michael drew the car to a halt at the side of the road.  To their right, the Lake opened out, surrounded by hills.  They�d come here before to talk or just �be�.  Killing the engine, Michael got out of the car and went around to the passenger side, helping Kitt out.  Neither spoke until they were settled on the hood of the Merc, leaning back against the windscreen.  It was how Michael often sat with Kitt.

�You have absolutely no regard for paint work,� Kitt surprised Michael with.
He smiled.  �It�s bullet proof, I�m sure it�s scratch proof.�  He let Kitt be for a minute or two, letting him take in the surroundings.  �Does it� look different now?� he asked eventually.
�No.�  Michael hoped he�d get used to hearing that voice come from so-human-looking lips.  �The� signals are different but they�re being processed in the same way.  I can�t� see.  I can only perceive.�
�And what do you perceive?�
The ghost of a smile touched those lips.  �The sun sparkling on the water, the song of birds in the trees on the hills, the scent of pine trees.�
Michael caught himself staring at the human form beside him.  �A true sensualist.�
Kitt turned his head.  �What?�
�Nothing.  Just� something Devon said once.�  He shook his head.  �Remember last time we were here?�
�My memory is still intact.  Heaven only knows how.�  He reached down and wrapped his hands over his right foot, drawing it up, bending his knee.  He did the same with the other one until he was sitting cross-legged on the car�s hood.  Michael watched, fascinated despite himself.  When Kitt found himself being regarded, he frowned.  �I haven�t got the leg thing sorted quite yet.�  Michael couldn�t keep himself from smiling.  �Last time we came here we� connected, deeper than we�d ever done before.�  His voice quieted.  �We� touched something within one another.  It was incredible.�

Michael reached over, touching Kitt�s fingers with his own.  �Are you okay?�
�Not really.�  Again, emotion touched the synthesised tone.  �I�m being used.�
�No�.�
�Yes.  Nicholas didn�t mean to, and he�s regretting it.  But when he bought Swan in, he set me up as a part of her experiment.�
Michael wanted to deny it, but he knew as well as Kitt did that his partner was right.  �I won�t let anything happen to you.  Two days and you�ll be out of there.�
Kitt nodded.  �I thought I might� give Swan some test data.�
�Kitt�.�
�I know.  But like you said, I either experience or don�t.�
Michael bristled, but for the moment he couldn�t put his finger on what was bothering him.  �Is she� monitoring you the whole time?�
�No.  And I can choose what data to download to her system.  This� body is standalone, so to speak.�  Hesitantly, he turned his hand under Michael�s, threading his fingers up through his partner�s.  His eyes alone asked for support that Michael would otherwise given without thinking, through the neuro implant.  Sweeping his thumb over Kitt�s, Michael tightened his hold on the warm hand.

�Michael?  Is this�.�  He trailed off, unsure what it was he wanted to ask.  Before the link he�d had to find the words to ask these questions, express these feelings.  But for almost two years he�d not needed to; thoughts had been enough to convey everything between them, vague at first, images, fleeting ideas.  Later, after the time they�d spent together joined so deeply while Kitt recovered from his treatment at the hands of Jennifer and her test team, those thoughts became words.  Before this they�d been able to talk to one another without thinking, to communicate at a level so intimate it could have been mistaken for telepathy.

�Is this what?�
Kitt looked away from Michael, over at the sun dancing on the water.  �The one thing we�ve never had is the ability to� touch.  I know how important it is for people to connect physically.�  He smiled, glancing at their joined hands.  �I mean� twenty-four hours and this is�.�
�Natural.�  Michael thought he should let go but he didn�t want to.
Kitt nodded, eyes returning to the natural beauty around them.  He appeared to think for a time, and then he met Michael�s searching gaze and almost in a whisper he said, �All I�ve ever wanted is to touch you.�

Never, never in a million years had Michael ever imagined that Kitt could be like this.  Turning, folding his legs out from under him, he moved close to his partner.  �For an Artificial Intelligence you are so incredibly human.�
Kitt drew his head back slightly.  But he lifted his free hand, reaching up but hesitating before touching Michael�s face.  �There�s a part of me missing.�
�I know.�  Moving his own free hand, Michael combed his fingers into Kitt�s hair, feeling the reality of it, the clean, silken strands that fell over the back of his hand.  �I can�t fill that void, only echo it.�
�You� you just need� to stay� close to me.�  The emotion within his self translated into tremors in his voice modulation, but Michael only heard the meaning.
�You�re coming on to me!�
Kitt raised his eyebrows without ever knowing how he did it.  �You�re coming on to me!�

Michael smiled, chuckled a little.  He threaded his fingers further into Kitt�s hair, drawing him slowly closer, touching their lips together.  Parting, wide brown eyes gazed into deep blue.
�Why?�
�Because it�s something I didn�t believe I�d ever be able to do.  I love you.  I know you think I�m� fickle.  But for a long time there�s only been Bonnie, and you.  I can�t block you, I can�t shut you out because I want to share everything with you.  You already know me better and deeper than anyone ever has.  I can�t be with anyone else.�
�I can block, I can back away�.�
�I don�t want you to anymore.  Maybe a year ago, but not now.�
�You�re sure?�
�I�m sure.�  Bringing them together again, Michael parted his lips over Kitt�s, kissing him properly this time, waiting, wishing he could broadcast his intent, his need, into his partner�s mind.  But they�d trusted a long time before they�d linked, and under Michael�s gentle ministrations, Kitt mirrored his actions, opening his mouth slightly.  As Michael�s tongue brushed over his bottom lip, something ignited in his mind, in his whole body, something completely new to him.  He gasped, trying to pull away then a moment later, reaching up to wrap his hand around the back of Michael�s neck, using the experiences of others, of having watched Michael kiss almost every woman he�d ever met.

He felt what he would later describe as a �shiver� when Michael moaned softly into his mouth, tongue slipping over his own in an intimate caress.  He�d seen Michael do this so many times and felt no emotion, no jealousies.  He understood now why humans kissed so often.  But he knew also that he would no longer be able to watch his partner kiss a woman without feeling something.  What were they destroying?

Then again, what were they building?

Kitt ended the kiss, stealing a nip of Michael�s upper lip before he sat back.  �We shouldn�t.�
Michael almost laughed.  �You watch far too much television.�  He moved so that he was leaning over Kitt�s crossed legs, taking his fingers from between his partners and folding them back over the warm hand.  �Okay, I�ll bite.�  He smiled, tracing circles over Kitt�s fingers.  �Why shouldn�t we do this?�
Uncertainly, Kitt regarded him.  The movement of Michael�s fingertips over his skin was unbelievably distracting.  �I know� I don�t�.�  He tried again.  �I guess I�ve always been asexual, but in this body�.�  He couldn�t continue with Michael�s index finger pressed against his lips.
�You�re male.  You�ve always been male.  Your voice, your self; you, Kitt.  I see you as male, I always have done and I always will do.�  He looked into the liquid brown eyes of a stranger more familiar to him, better known to him, than himself.  �It makes all the difference.  We wouldn�t have come this far if you�d been female.�
�But you�re�.�
�Ssh.  Don�t think in terms of labels.  You�re an Artificial Intelligence that belongs in a car, linked to me through an implant in my brain.�  He smiled, moving his finger over Kitt�s jaw-line.  �We stepped away from labels a long time ago.�
�We could destroy everything.�
Shaking his head, Michael said, �I never knew this side of you.  Why do you keep it hidden?�  How it developed wasn�t a question, after all, Kitt had spent twelve years with the best seducer this side of the border.
�There was no one to show it to.�

Michael felt touched, shamed, hurt and oddly bemused in all one.  If he thought about it, Kitt was right.  Only very recently had he started to admit to himself that his feelings for his partner were different than they had once been, more intense, more difficult to push to one side to allow another human being close to him.  Maybe he�d hinted to Kitt, but what was the AI supposed to do with hints?  Now, though, they were almost on equal terms.  Kitt was facing him as another person, another �human�.  Despite what Michael had always perceived Kitt as being, Kitt had obviously perceived himself as something very different.

�Show me now,� Michael sighed, �and when you get back into the car, when we�re together up here,� he tapped his forehead, �show me again.�
Kitt regarded him for a few moments, eyes wandering over the face he�d known for most of his life.  �I�m the one� person you can�t break it off with.  If we go somewhere and regret it�.  Michael, it�s hard enough at the moment to be without the link, but if you ever� ever decided you no longer wanted me in your head, I don�t think I could survive.�
�Kitt�.�  Letting go of his partner�s hand, Michael reached both arms around Kitt�s slim form, hugging his friend to him, feeling Kitt hug him back.  �Believe me, I will never, never want you out of my head.  Having you with me, whatever intensity the implant�s working at, however close we are, whether it�s a vague impression when we�re working or the deep intimacy when we�re resting, you being there isn�t something I could live without for too long.�
�But if we do something we regret�.�
�I�m not going to regret anything we do.�  Releasing his embrace a little, Michael pulled back to study those soulful brown eyes carefully, as if he could read there the certainty he was missing.  �You don�t understand what I feel for you.�  Thinking for a moment, he asked finally, �Do you know why I married Stevie?�
�Because you loved her.�
Michael shook his head.  �Because by contacting her, Devon offered me a way out.  I�d been shot at once too often.  I was tired of the life.  But saying goodbye to you, leaving you behind�.  Afterwards, after the funeral when I was walking along the beach, I looked up and saw you there.  I realised I�d said goodbye to you, but you�d never left my side.�
�How can I?  You know they�d have to reprogram me before I�d ever be compatible with anyone else.�
Michael smiled.  �Me too, Kitt.�

There was barely any distance between them now anyway.  It was easy for one or both of them to bridge the gap.  Kitt mimicked Michael�s actions of minutes before.  He licked his tongue over Michael�s lips before probing between them, tasting his partner.  Moving his hands across Kitt�s back, Michael began to pay more attention to the body in his arms.  He ran his fingertips down the length of Kitt�s spine, feeling the physical shiver that drove through the slim form.
 

Oddly, Kitt had never known Michael spend any length of time kissing and cuddling a lover.  Despite the number of different driveways he�d been parked in at night, he�d very rarely still been there at sunrise.  But when Kitt next checked the time, looking inwards at the clock in his processor, almost three hours had passed since they�d left Nicholas� warehouse.

He was sitting with his back pressed against Michael�s front, Michael�s arms wrapped around him, his arms folded over those that held him.  Every so often he�d feel his partner�s lips touch the side of his throat, or better still, the smooth skin where the base of his neck met his shoulder.  Once, he�d heard �I love you,� murmured into his ear.  Even with the dark hole in his mind where Michael�s presence should have been, he felt himself bordering on happiness.

As the sun started to dip, Kitt dropped his head back to Michael�s shoulder, face turned upwards to collect a kiss.  �We should get back.�
�Umm.  Soon.�

*

Jennifer Knight was seething.  For a short time, her unwanted step-brother and her father�s own Frankenstein�s monster had been accessible, working as per their contract for the Foundation.  Taking information sources from the Foundation.  It was how she�d managed to set up the attack on the Knight Two Thousand.  She wasn�t a murderer, she�d reassured herself.  All she�d wanted to do was end the money drain on her father�s estate by curtailing the existence of the project he�d spoken of in his will.

Her inheritance was split.  In the event of the Knight Two Thousand project closing down, her share of his estate increased substantially.

Now though, Knight and that freak he called a partner had disappeared off the face of the Earth yet again.  There was something going on at the R&D lab, but she didn�t have the clearance yet to find out what.  Barstow had visited for something, but Knight hadn�t been near the place, so it was a safe bet that the Knight Two Thousand computer wasn�t in there.

The problem was Nicholas MacKenzie.  He�d protected them after the experiments she�d run to get the military the data they�d required before they�d make an offer on the car.  She�d only managed to collate a third of the data she�d needed and then the board had signed the car and computer over to Michael Knight.  End of story.  So the damn car was now rightfully his.  Yet it would continue to be financed by Wilton Knight�s estate for the rest of its wretched existence.

Nothing infuriated her more than that single thought.

She�d paid the best and most expensive expert she could find to rig the sprinkler system in the park and get rid of the Knight Two Thousand once and forever.  But something had gone wrong and they were still out there.  Somewhere.

But the entrapment in the park had been Plan A.  She had a Plan B.

*

Michael helped Kitt out of the car and over to the couch.  Nicholas was watching him from Karr�s hood.  Michael couldn�t help but smile at the habits they picked up because of the nature of the partners that had been chosen for them.
�Okay?�
Michael nodded, knowing he looked a lot happier than he had done when he�d driven out almost four hours ago.  �How are things?�
Nicholas was busy doing a little hacking for a client.  He nodded.  �Good.  I have something for you, but it can wait.�
�Sure?�
�Completely.�

Swan approached, and with Kitt�s silent acknowledgement, Michael left them to it.
�I�m sorry, about this morning.�
�Apology accepted.�
Smiling, she handed him a neatly folded while shirt and a second pair of faded jeans.  �I picked out some more clothes for you, in case you felt like a change.  The shirt�ll be too big but� baggy seems to suit you.�  She shrugged.
Kitt took the clothes, placing them carefully on the table.  �Thank you, I appreciate it.�  He indicated the laptop she was waving around.  �Is that for me?�
�Only if you want.  No pressure.�
�Take a seat.�  Kitt watched her sit down next to him and took the laptop from her.  �I won�t give you everything.  Some of what�s happening� is personal and private.�
�Yeah,� she nodded, �I get that.�
�But I can give you enough for you to consider this experiment a success.�  He flipped open the Toshiba, pulling his legs up once again into the cross-legged position he seemed to be able to best balance in and resting the laptop between his knees.

Swan covered Kitt�s hand where it hovered over the keyboard.  �Nick�s been� explaining some things.  I didn�t expect you.  I didn�t expect a subject so� human.�
He glanced over at her.  �You�re in a difficult position.  You�re trying to break into the middle of something that�s so established you don�t stand a chance.�  There was a gentle apology in his tone.
�I�m beginning to understand that.�
�You saved my life.�
�No, I didn�t.  Nick wouldn�t have let you go, Karr would have kept you in his CPU until they thought of something.�
Kitt knew that was true.  �Maybe.  But you�ve let me experience things I never imagined that I would.�  A smile touched his features.  �I can thank you for that at least.�
�Yeah, you can.�  She patted his hand.  �I�ll let you get on with the download.�

Leaving Kitt, she crossed to Nicholas.  �I�m gonna go get some food.  Want anything?�
He shook his head.  �Make sure you follow security protocol.�
Disappearing off the face of the planet wasn�t as straight-forward as they made it look.  Kitt and Karr could pick up any homing beacon that might have somehow attached itself to either car or driver.  Any tails were constantly watched for, and if a car or selection of cars behind them started showing signs of actually following, diversionary tactics were used until the coast was clear.  In the case of other cars, other sources, every journey into the warehouse was monitored where possible for a five mile radius, to check for the same things Kitt and Karr automatically looked for.  A security system was set on the harbour perimeter.  The rest of the warehouses around here were derelict.  From the outside they all looked the same.

As Swan pulled her truck out of the side doors, Nicholas watched her go.
�Keep her monitored.�
�Yes boss.�
At his response, Nicholas sent a wave of surprise.  ��Pet Monster� wasn�t far wrong was it?�
�I beg your pardon?�
�Now I know you�ve been spending too much time around Kitt.  Just do as I asked?�
�It�s being done.�
�Good.�  He shut off the laptop and slid down off the hood.  For a moment he stopped and watched Kitt type, computer mind heaving learnt the keystrokes in a second he was using the laptop as if he�d been using one all his life.  Nicholas hesitated, but he finally made the decision to approach the AI.

�Hey.�
Kitt looked up and smiled.  �Hello, Nicholas.�
He had to agree with Michael, it was strange to hear Kitt�s voice coming from Swan�s android.  �How�s it going?�
�It�s going� as well as can be expected.  Thank you.�
Nicholas nodded, hesitated again, and headed upstairs.  As soon as he was out of sight, Karr fired the engine and rolled forward.  Kitt watched him, putting out a hand and pressing the palm on to the hood as soon as the car was close enough.  Closing his eyes, Kitt shut down most of the sub-routines he�d been using and concentrated on where one of his two links to Karr had once been; the private channel as a peripheral port, and the link deeper in his CPU.  It was the private channel he paid attention to now.  He had no idea how he�d known what Karr was planning on doing, he�d just known.

Karr started with a wide-area broadcast through the warehouse, directed forward.  When that signal found something it thought it might recognise, Karr narrowed the broadcast, directing straight at the pick up.  There was nothing at first, and he tried a different frequency.  Suddenly the private channel came alive with a mirroring signal.  Excitedly, he ran the incoming signal through a translator.

_Karr?
_Kitt!  It worked!
_You knew it would
_But how did you know?
_I just knew
_It�s quiet
_I miss you.  This isn�t quite the same as the link
_I know but it is something
For a short time they sat together, Karr streaming a broadcast and Kitt answering it.  Not words as such, just nothings - logic and data - just enjoying the familiar communication.

Finally, putting the laptop down on the couch next to him, Kitt got up unsteadily, using the hood of the car to help balance him as he wobbled toward the driver�s side.  The Stealth�s door clicked quietly open as Kitt approached.  He didn�t say a word until he was seated in the plush driver�s seat, legs drawn up as he settled back into the seat and Karr closed the door.
�Are you all right, Kitt?�
The human form smiled slightly.  �I� don�t seem to be able to get balancing right.  Swan thinks the sub-routines that control the legs aren�t functioning properly.�  He looked up, seeing his brother�s dash for the first time.  He realised he hadn�t yet seen his own.  �Sorry.�
�No apology needed.�  There was a loaded silence.  Kitt leaned forward, his hand hovering just above the sensor mounted in the steering column for Nicholas only.  He would never touch it.
_Something�s changing, isn�t it?  You feel� different.
Kitt spread his palms.
�I am different.�  _But not for long
_You and Knight
_His name�s Michael
_Apologies
_You and Michael� you�re closer if that�s possible
_How do you know?
_It was changing before this happened.  The quality of your presence was different

Kitt hung his hand over the steering wheel, brushing his fingertips over the warm leather.  �I love him.�
The simplicity of the confession stunned Karr for a moment.  "I understand."
"Do you?"  Kitt simply asked.
Karr was silent for a second.  "Yes, I do," he answered calmly.  Kitt gazed at the steering wheel where his fingers were tracing patterns.  �Why are we so different?� the older AI suddenly asked, catching him off guard.
Kitt thought about that, sending back an answering signal to Karr�s broadcast while he did.  �We�re not that different.  You care deeply for Nicholas even if you won�t admit it to me out loud.�  A smile grazed his features.
There was a brief, embarrassed silence.  �It�s not the same and you know it,� Karr finally told him.
"Isn�t it?"  Kitt sighed.  �We have very separate histories.  You and Nicholas were thrown together, neither of you wanted the other, neither knew the other.  You fought almost to the death because neither of you understood what was happening.�  His voice trailed off as he became aware of Karr's pained silence.  It was a part of his past he would never be able to truly accept.  Kitt had often tried to imagine what it would have been like if this had been Michael's and his beginning, and he had failed each time.
�You can�t tell me you wanted the implant,� Karr demanded.
�Not at first.  But we were already close.  It terrified me at the start, terrified both of us.  But we had a lot there to build on.�  He lowered his voice.  �We didn�t try to kill one another.�
_Low shot, his brother snarled.
_I was only answering your question

A long silence followed, filled only by the inaudible communication between the two computer minds.

�What�s it like?�  He filled in the details of the question using their broadcast.
�Uncomfortable.�  Kitt stared at his fingers where they still curled around the base of the steering wheel.  �Nothing works properly,� he complained softly.  �I can�t control this body as smoothly as I can control� me, the car I mean.  I feel so vulnerable.  What chance would I stand if Jennifer found us now?  How would I ever be able to protect Michael�?�
Karr could easily hear the building distress in his brother�s voice.  �It�s all right, Kitt.  She won�t find you.  I wouldn�t ever let anyone hurt you.  Or Kni� Michael.�
Kitt smiled, automatically translating the emotion and sending it to Karr.  �I�d never have believed we�d become close.  When you drove passed us that day on the mountain track, I was so� freaked out.�  He paused, smiling at the colourful colloquialism he�d picked up, this time from Nicholas rather than Michael.
Karr�s pulsing amusement mirrored his own.  �That was the evil me.�
Kitt stared at the voice modulator.  �The evil you?�
�Yes, do you not have an evil you?�
The communication between them flared with laughter.  �You�re the evil me.�
�I�m the evil you?�
�Yes.�
�So you�re the good me?�
�Yes.�
 �You are losing it.�
 

�Nick?�  Michael realised he�d lost his friend�s attention somewhere in the conversation.  �Everything okay?�
Nicholas refocused.  �Sorry.  Yeah� I think�.�  He trailed off again, reaching toward the implant.  Karr was there.  He was distracted, his attention and concentration elsewhere.  But more than that, there was an energy flowing into him that was trickling through to Nicholas.  �I think he�s� connected to Kitt somehow.  They�re� talking, but� on two levels.�
He stopped trying to work out what was going on, looking at Michael�s amazed expression.  �Connected?�
�While you two were out he was muttering about trying a wide-area broadcast.  Kitt�s got some of the same hardware as he had, within his mind.�  He nodded his understanding when Michael waved his hand in the air.  �Karr thought he might be able to broadcast to Kitt in the same way they used the private channel.  He thought if Kitt could pick him up, he could send back an answering signal.�
�So they�re� linking?�  There was something underlying Michael�s tone that Nicholas was sure was jealousy.  He couldn�t blame him.
�No.  It�s not permanent.  It�s just a broadcast.  When it stops, the connection drops.�
�Can you hear it?�
�No, but� I would swear they were laughing.�
�Laughing?�
Nicholas shrugged.  �I guess they�ve found something to amuse themselves.�  He regarded Michael for a time.  �What happened between you two this morning?�

Michael hesitated.  �We� talked.�  Nicholas raised his eyebrows.  It was strange how close they�d become, linked indirectly by two AIs whose own connection was perhaps stronger than them all.  For a long time, Nick had refused to let Michael closer, but the months of shared suffering, teaching Michael how to use the implant, feeling echoes of Kitt through Karr, had left their traces.  As Karr had once told him, he had mellowed.  It wasn't a bad thing, just... unprecedented.  �Okay� we might have done a bit more than talk.�  Michael read the other�s expression.  �You were the one who told me to accept it all.�
Nick nodded slowly, his eyes never leaving Michael's face.  �I know.  I�m not�.  I�m worried about what impact the current situation might have on the two of you.�
�The current situation?�
Nicholas tilted his head.  �You know what I mean.�

Michael accepted that.  He knew.  But it was a minute or so before he found the words and courage to answer.  �I kissed him, this morning.  And he kissed me back.  Have you any idea what that was like?�  Michael stood, crossing to the dark stereo system he realised he�d never heard playing.
"Actually, no," Nicholas answered dryly.
�It�s Kitt, in that body.  I�ve been touching him from the beginning, you know� you touch the paintwork, draw your fingers over the hood, the sensor on the steering column, and with the link� it was the best thing that ever happened to me.  But today� he touched me.�  He shook his head.  �Sounds so damn simple, doesn�t it?  People touch one another all the time, but Kitt and I, we can�t.�

Nicholas listened, trying to understand.  He and Michael were so alike in a million ways, and so different in a million others.  This was something he�d never ever thought about.  Maybe he had never dared to think about because a part of him was instinctively pushing everyone away.  To protect them from himself, to protect himself from the pain.  When Karr had entered his life, when the implant had connected them, it had been the first time he hadn't been able to push.  He had had to accept.  But Karr was� Karr, the AI he was linked to, his partner, his friend and confidant.  Somewhere deep inside, a tiny part told him he was more.  He was so much more, in a way that he couldn't put into words.  But he wasn't Kitt.  Kitt was so much more to Michael he could barely begin to understand it.

�Don�t get me wrong, Nick, compared with the link it�s barely a whisper of intimacy.  But it�s something we�ve never had.  I told him� how I felt about him.  I told him before this happened and I don�t think he believed me.  When I told him this morning, he knew I meant it.�
�It�s his interpretation of your perception.  He�s probably having trouble believing you could love him in his� natural form.  This morning you talked to a �human� form.�
�But it�s still him.�
Nick smiled.  �Michael� how many women did you sleep with while you were on the road with Kitt for all those years, before the link was activated?�
Michael crossed his arms, blushing.  �A few,� he said awkwardly.  Nicholas raised his eyebrows.  �All right!  Quite a few.  What�s that got to do with anything?�
Nick gazed steadily at him.  �For ten years Kitt watched you seduce women.  I�m not saying he felt one way or the other about it.  But now you�re asking him to believe that�s all over, at least to believe that you feel the same way about him as you did about them.�
�Nick!�  He shook his head.  �They don�t compare.�
�I know that, but�.�  He searched for the point he was trying to make.  �Has he ever known you go for anyone who isn�t female?  Not to get too personal but, have you ever kissed a man before?�
Michael held his palms out.  �No, but I�ve never kissed an AI in an android�s body before either.�
Nick conceded.  �Touch�.�

*

�Hey.�  Michael found Kitt outside the warehouse leaning on the railings over the harbour.  �You okay?�
Kitt�s head turned, watching his partner come to lean next to him.  �Just� taking in the view.  We�ve lived here so long and I�ve never just� taken it all in.�
Michael looked out over the harbour.  In the distance a tanker ship was making its way into dock on the new quay.  �Justin called, the car�s ready.  Karr�s going to run me over there, I was thinking you might like to come?�
Kitt looked surprised.  �To� to the lab?�
�Yeah.�

He couldn�t help but feel wary.  He hadn�t been back to the R&D facility since Michael had rescued him after the Tarasine experiments had almost killed him.  �I don�t know.�
�No pressure.  I just thought we could take her for a run, check it out.�
Kitt nodded.  �I don�t want to run into� her.  Not like this.�
�Why not like this?�
�Because if she knew�.�  He tightened his grip on the railing.  �I�m vulnerable like this, you�re open to attack because I can�t protect you.  She�d use this against us.�
As wrong as Michael wanted his partner to be, he knew Kitt was right.  �I�ll call Justin, make sure the coast is clear.  But if the worst happens, just don�t say a word.  She�ll never know it�s you.�  His last comment was accompanied by a smile.  �Hell, I wouldn�t know it was you.�
�Liar.�  It was a gentle push.
Michael shrugged.  �Okay, I would.  But don�t ask me how.�

Echoes of the implant, Michael had put it down to eventually.  Several times before they�d even known of the link waiting to flare into life, Michael had sensed Kitt�s presence when something had gone wrong.  Now, when he was close by he could feel Kitt even if the link was silent.
�So?�
�I�ll go with you.  Someone has to watch your back.�  Kitt�s tone betrayed the uncertainty he felt in his temporary body.

*

Karr drove them to the Foundation�s R&D facility in silence.  Kitt was as quiet as his brother, and several times Michael found himself wandering if the two AIs were communicating via the broadcast Nicholas had mentioned.  Not for the first time he ached for the implant to function.  And as if thinking about it had reminded his mind about the hole within it, his head started to ache dully.  He rubbed his forehead and when he looked up again he found his partner watching him.
�Hurts,� was all he had to say.
Kitt nodded.  �I know.�

It was late evening and the lab was quiet.  �Do you want me to stay?� Karr spoke for the first time since they�d left the warehouse.
�We�ll be fine, thanks.�  But Michael didn�t miss the fact that Karr only moved away after Kitt ran his hand over the Stealth�s hood, in a moment when somehow Michael knew they were �talking� to one another.

Kitt watched the car tool away and turned to take in the imposing building in front of them.  He glanced at Michael, whose expression was annoyingly difficult to read.  He thought about it for a moment and then smiled to himself.  He knew his driver so very well.
�It bothers you.�
Michael hesitated, but shook his head, putting one friendly arm loosely around Kitt�s shoulders.  �Ignore me, Partner.  I�m just jealous.�  He hugged Kitt close for a second and then released him, gallantly standing aside and sweeping his arm in front of him.  �After you.�
There was just the slightest reservation in Kitt�s step as he walked forward.
 

Justin looked up as the lab door opened.  He felt a momentary stab of alarm as the stranger came in first, but settled when he saw Michael.  �Hi, Michael!�
�Hi, Justin, how�s it going?�
The mechanic glanced at the other man who was gazing about him.  �Who�s�?�  And then it clicked.  �Oh, my God�.�  He couldn�t help but stare.  Bonnie had told him, of course, and sworn him to secrecy.  But whatever he�d expected, it wasn�t what he saw now.  Standing before him in a long black coat - Michael�s spare - over a loose, untucked white shirt and close-fitting faded blue jeans, Kitt looked as human as anyone else.  �Kitt�.�
The small, almost shy smile touched him.  �Hello Justin.�
�Jeez�.  I, er, I just didn�t expect�.�  He trailed off, watching as Kitt stepped further into the lab.  The sandy brown hair and large brown eyes were distracting him, taking him somewhere he really didn�t want to go, somewhere he hadn�t been in a long time.  �Sorry.�  He made an effort to pull himself together.  �Come on, I�ll take you to the car.  We�ve moved it to the loading bay.�

They walked through the quiet corridors, Justin filling Michael in on the upgrades and improvements they�d made to the car.  Kitt followed a little way behind, gazing around him.  Once he would have said that he knew the R&D facility.  But he was seeing everything from a different angle.  The inside of the building, with its high ceilings, pipes and networks of cables running above his head and large doors periodically leading off from the corridor was a very cold, clinical place.  He glanced up at Justin�s back.  The mechanic was talking animatedly to Michael, walking through the place completely at ease.

They walked passed a set of double metal doors and suddenly he stopped.  Approaching the door, he ran his fingers over the lettering there.  �Cold Room�.  A lance of fear drove through his circuits, but he pushed down on the door handle and to his surprise it opened.  Up ahead, Michael had looked back to ask his partner something.  �Kitt?�

Kitt stepped inside the room.  It was just as his crazed memories pictured it.  A giant freezer in essence; specially covered walls, floor and ceiling, coated sprinklers in the top to distribute the liquid nitrogen or whatever the hell it had been that they�d frozen the Trans-Am with that day.  Wrapping his arms around himself in a gesture he�d seen people do and suddenly understood, he took a few more steps into the room and turned, looking up through the observation window in to the control room.  He recalled Devon and Jennifer standing in that window while a cold hell had been released on to him.  His body seemed to shiver of his own volition, and he turned again to stare at the floor on which he�d stood and let it happen for a short time at least.

A terrible feeling of sorrow settled over his mind as he remembered.  A moment later he felt a moisture on his face.  Reaching up to touch his eye, he realised he was crying.

�Kitt.�  He heard Michael�s soft voice behind him just before he felt his partner�s strong arms come around his waist.  Almost a foot taller, Michael drew Kitt back against him, hugging him, dropping a kiss into his hair.  He could feel the slim form trembling ever-so slightly in his arms.  It didn�t take a genius to guess what had upset him.  �Ssh, it�s okay.�
Kitt�s head was bowed, eyes scrunched closed.  �Why did they do that to me?�  It was barely a whisper but so like the constant questions that Kitt had bombarded Michael with during the nightmare that followed Jennifer�s tests.

Michael tightened his embrace, rocking Kitt gently on his feet, pressing his cheek to the side of his partner�s head, lips touching the cold neck just above the coat�s collar.  There was no answer to his question, there never had been.  All Michael could do was what he�d done when this had originally happened.  Support and comfort, give Kitt something real to cling to.

It took a couple of minutes, but Kitt quieted, tears running dry.  �Sorry.�
�It�s okay.  I understand.�  Lifting his head, he rested his chin in Kitt�s hair.  He looked around, knowing where they were only because of the words on the door.  �What made you come in?�
�I just� I don�t know.  I just needed to.  What�s that human phrase - walk towards things that scare you?�
�It�s more of an analogy.�  But he understood.  �Come on, let�s get out of here.�

Justin turned when Michael stepped back from his partner.  He was frankly stunned.  But when he considered it he guessed he was just seeing the closeness, that had always existed between the two partners, physically expressed.  He wandered if Karr was usually witness to this.
 

Keying in the door code, Justin led them into the loading bay.  Reaching out his hand, he flicked on a bank of switches.  Instantly, the area was floodlit.  The car stood in the centre.  Michael smiled at their mechanic.  �It�s beautiful, Justin.�
�All in a day�s work.�  But his own smile was one of pride.

Kitt stood silent for a moment, staring at the restyled Trans-Am.  Talk about �out of body experience�.  Slowly, he approached the car, smoothing his hand over the new MBS shell.  Michael watched him closely.  He wasn�t sure now that this had been such a great idea.  He�d imagined that asking Kitt to come to pick up the car with him would do his partner some good.  But he hadn�t really thought it through.

Without taking his eyes from Kitt, he murmured, �Bonnie mentioned that you�ve installed the SensorNet.�
�Yeah.  Everything�s in and tested.  Kitt� will have total control from the CPU.�
Kitt was looking at them now.  �SensorNet?�  He smiled softly.  �You completed it?�
Justin nodded, crossing to where the other was still standing with his hand on the roof of his car.  �Couple of weeks ago. It�s been through extensive testing, everything should work without a hitch.�  He gave Kitt a sideways glance and found himself enticed.  �Does everything� function?� he asked despite himself.
Kitt regarded him with slight confusion, missing Michael�s quickly-hidden smirk behind him.  �Everything�s run via sub-routines which are difficult to juggle in some cases.  It�s taken me this long to get the legs to work.�
�Respiration, digestion?�
�No.  Add-ons, I think.�  It took Justin a moment to realise Kitt was making a joke.  His eyes widened.
�Reproduction?�  It too was supposed to be a joke, but Kitt simply raised his eyebrows and smiled.  Lost on Justin, it was a reply caught by Michael.  Suddenly the winter coat was too hot for the temperature inside the lab.  Wanting to get back onto solid ground, he approached the other two.
�Could you take us through the system?�
Justin nodded, �Sure.�  But he couldn�t help glancing at Kitt every now and again.

*

�This must be so strange for you.�  Michael glanced over at his partner as they waited at a red light.  A very basic control computer had been placed in the car to make it driveable.  The security systems were all running.  But Kitt was clearly uncomfortable.  As he sat watching Michael drive he�d idly started to try to access some of the car�s functions, using the broadcast technique which enabled him to communicate with Karr.  It had taken several attempts but he thought he had some basic control over the braking system.

�Kitt?�
He snapped his attention back to Michael.  �Sorry.  Just� trying something.�
Michael frowned.  �Trying what?�
Kitt gave him a half-smile.  �Don�t slow down at the next light.�
�Excuse me?�
�Trust me.�  It was bait, Kitt knew, and Michael took it.  Approaching the next light, it turned red while they were still a couple of hundred yards from it.  But he did as Kitt had asked and didn�t slow down.  They moved another fifty yards, and then the car started to slow.  Michael momentarily took his hands from the wheel, grabbing it again quickly.  So used was he of handing the car over to Kitt�s control he had done it without thinking.

�How the hell did you do that?�  Michael glanced between Kitt and the red light they had stopped at.
Kitt explained.  �I won�t do it again.�
But as Michael drew off from the light, he was smiling, shaking his head in amazement.  �Can you� drive the car?�
�I only have the brakes at the moment.�
�But you could?�
Kitt regarded his partner for a time.  �Why?�
�I was just�.�  He was amazed.  Stunned.  �I was just thinking how incredible you are.�
 

When they got to the warehouse, the doors opened automatically at a signal triggered by Kitt through the small temporary control computer in the car.  By the time Michael pulled the car to a stop close to the diagnostic area, he and Kitt were grinning at one another.  Bonnie and Nicholas both looked up at the arrival of the repaired and upgraded car.  Within the sound-proofed cabin of the modified Trans-Am, Michael killed the engine and shifted in the driver�s seat to face his partner, dropping his head back against the headrest.  �Are you okay?�
�Not really, but� I�m surviving.�  He looked into the blue eyes of his driver.  �You�re making it a lot easier.�  Embarrassed, he glanced away.  Michael reached out, lifted Kitt�s chin with his index finger.
�You remember before the link, when we had to tell one another what we were feeling, be open with one another, completely.�  Kitt nodded, taking Michael�s hand from under his chin, not quite letting go.  �We have to do that now.  I can�t begin to imagine everything you�re feeling, what you�re going through.  But I do know how it feels without the link between us.�  Michael turned his hand in Kitt�s, taking a hold of his partner�s fingers, stroking the digits one by one.  �If you need to say things, just say them.  I�m here for you always.�

*

Bonnie took her mug and sat down next to Kitt where he was busy typing into Swan�s laptop.  She�d left for now, having talked to Kitt she was confident enough to trust she�d get some data and sensitive enough to the situation to know where she wasn�t overly welcome.  Nicholas was working on something that he wasn�t sharing with the rest of them, except for Karr who was his usual private self.  But he didn�t want to take off while this was going on.  Kitt needed Karr desperately at the moment, and both Kitt and Michael needed protection while they were this vulnerable, just in case.

�I�m sorry it�s taking so long.�  Bonnie felt she had to apologise.  Justin had fixed and updated the car faster than she�d managed to fix the damage to the CPU.
Kitt shook his head.  �What you have to do is much more delicate and incredibly more complex.�  He leaned in to her like it was second nature, and she in turn slipped her arm around his waist.
�I�ll have you back home the day after tomorrow, I promise.�  He smiled his thanks.  �How are things with you and Michael?�  He turned from her.  �Kitt, it�s okay.�
�How can it be?  I�m the reason you and Michael� split up.�

Sliding her arm up his back, she curled her hand around his shoulder and pulled him closer to her.  �Kitt, you�re my� baby.  I was with you long before I was with Michael.  I can�t pretend to understand what you share through the implant, but I know how important it is, how it saved your life after� what Jennifer did, and this last attack.  I know how much it gives the two of you, how much it means to you.�
�What did Michael say, when he� ended it?�  The sorrow and apology in Kitt�s tone were palpable.
�He just said he couldn�t block you anymore.  He hated to cut you out of a part of his life, such an intimate part.  He� said that at night you two curled up together through the implant.  He didn�t want to push you away.�
�I wouldn�t have minded.�  Kitt�s tone was plaintive.  �I didn�t ask him to�.  It was those weeks he spent so close to me after the experiments.  I was so dependent on him then.  After that� we never really went back to how it had been.  We stayed close.  I�m sorry.�

Again, Bonnie hugged Kitt to her.  �Don�t be.  You know he was never really mine.  He�s always belonged to you.  I still love ya.�  Relived, Kitt leaned into her warmth, his gaze going to the car parked a little way from them.  �Feeling homesick?�
�Very much.�  He glanced down at the laptop and then back at her.  �I went to the cold room, at the lab.  And I lost it� I just broke down.�
�It�s only to be expected, Kitt.  You haven�t been back since, it was bound to provoke some memories and they were never going to be good ones.�
�I expected to have a hold on those emotions by now.  After everything that everyone did.  I knew I�d never forget, but� and I found myself crying, Bonnie.�
Her face displayed a mix of heartfelt sorrow and innate fascination.  �You cried?  Actual tears?�  He nodded.  �That�s� I can�t believe it.  How did she do that?�

She didn�t expect an answer, but it was obviously not what Kitt considered a rhetorical question.  �I believe the tear ducts are activated under extreme duress.  Emotions are� differing tones of current.  The interface picks those currents up from my CPU and acts on them, expression, tone of voice, that kind of thing.�
Bonnie smiled to herself.  �She�s done a good job.�
�I just wish the legs worked properly,� he muttered almost to himself.  �They were fine at the lab but there�s a glitch in the sub-routines.�  He indicated the complicated code on the laptop�s screen.  �I�m trying to sort it out for her.�  He felt the kiss on his cheek before Bonnie drank down the almost cold coffee and headed back to her work.

*

Usually, by three am, the warehouse had quieted down and for the most part everyone would be asleep.  Even Nicholas had started to get some shuteye at nights.  In his own bed.  Justin had his own apartment and usually worked on Kitt away from the warehouse either at the Foundation garages or in the Semi.  Bonnie had also moved into her own apartment, but for a few days she was staying at the warehouse in the room she had been using as her own before she and Michael broke up.

Karr was on standby, powered down to the point at which he could recharge but still be aware of his surroundings, still keep watch over his brother.  But Kitt was awake, still working when Michael came downstairs.  He�d wanted to give his partner some time to just �be�.  But sleep had eluded him.  He�d thrown on pair of sweat pants and a sweatshirt and made himself a coffee before padding down to the diagnostic area.

Curling into the corner of the couch, he rested his elbow on the back, leaning his face into his palm.  �You know, you could offline, take a break?�
Kitt smiled over at him, genuine affection touching his eyes somehow.  �I�m not� tired.  You, on the other hand, should be exhausted.�
Michael shrugged.  �I have difficulty sleeping without you there.�  It was the truth.  For almost eighteen months they�d slept entwined around each other in the place between the implant and the link.
Kitt nodded, putting the laptop down onto the table in front of him.  �Me too.�

For a moment they sat in silence.  And then Michael leaned over to put his mug on the table.  He reached for Kitt.  �Come �ere.�  Kitt went willingly, going into Michael�s arms, stretching his legs out as Michael did the same, hooking one ankle over Kitt�s bare one.  �You�ve already developed something against shoes,� he murmured, wrapping both his arms around his partner, enjoying the feeling of at least having him physically close.  �Your feet must be so cold.�
Kitt rubbed his toes over Michael�s sock.  �They�re lovely and warm, thank you.�  He closed his eyes.  �Does this remind you of being in Geiger�s prison?�
Michael nodded silently.  It had been exactly what he�d been thinking of.  �Your physical closeness was the only thing that kept me alive, Kitt.  We got through being separated then, we can do it now.�  He smiled gently.  �You�ve got less pointy corners this time.�
He felt Kitt�s arm come around him, his partner�s head lying on his chest.  Michael took a deep breath and relaxed, resting his head on Kitt�s head.

�I can hear your heartbeat,� the quiet voice came after a few minutes.  There was no reply, except for a subtle change in Michael�s breathing as he shifted deeper in to sleep.  Feeling safe and secure, Kitt sent out a single broadcast before closing down most of his higher functions.
_Goodnight Karr

Watching over his brother, Karr sent a reply that might or might not have been received.  He regarded Kitt lying with his driver for a long time.  Then, out of some need he dared not analyse, he touched the link to his own partner.  Nicholas was sleeping, and not wanting to disturb, Karr simply moved a part of himself close by Nick�s presence and rested there.  It was close enough for now.