"Empathy, humanity, love: these qualities are resident within a man's
soul, no matter where that soul resides."
- from "I, Robot", Issac Asimov

*** One man can make a difference, but not alone. ***

Soul Survivor
by elfin

("...and I wonder when we are ever going to change,
living out this fantasy 'till nothing else remains...")

Prologue

In brilliant sunlight a sleek black form, held under the control of one
man, driven for the pure pleasure of driving, streaks along the quiet,
dusty road. Several miles ahead, a man waits in an Ivory white Esprit,
watching.
(there are moments in our lives which are cross-roads)
As the black form closes on the waiting man, he gives an order to a
long truck at the next fork in the road.
(moments which alter the course of our lives)
With calculated timing, the truck pulls out of the left-hand fork,
directly into the path of the oncoming car.
(moments when worlds crumble and we emerge to an unrecognizable
existence)
Without pause, the car becomes airborne, launching itself over the
truck, end to end. And as it passes overhead, a large weapon is fired
in rapid succession at the underside of the car. Instantly, its driver
is thrown out, landing heavily in the long grass to the side of the
road. Under the onslaught of the attack, the driver's partner loses
control, fails to bring the car down safely, and the vehicle crashes
heavily into the road just beyond the truck.
(there are moments that can shatter everything we know and depend on)
The truck moves off, towards the man in the white car, to report
success. It leaves behind a silence, pierced only by the groans of the
fallen man, and the frantic attempts of his dying partner to contact
him.
(these are moments we have to survive)

*****

One - A Place in the Forest

The torrential rain crashed against the windshield as Michael drove
through the night. The wipers were on maximum speed, but they were
still having difficulty coping and visibility was low.

_This is not happening, it can not be happening_.
There had been a time when his life had been easy. There had been a
time when all he had had to worry about was whether the store would have
any chocolate mousse filled doughnuts left by the time Jerry managed to
turn up at work. In those days the only things he had to care for were
his job, his cat Molly and his appearance; vital for pulling the girls
drawn to the uniform of a Lieutenant.

_This car is impossible to steer... too heavy... why do they make cars
so heavy?_
It was only because he was not used to it. He was spoiled, he took his
transport for granted. Fast cars, powerful trucks, Lear jets. Could
all that really be gone? What the hell was happening? Only two days
ago everything was fine, everything was as normal as it got for him, and
for his friends, the people he worked with and depended upon. Three
days ago life had been as near to perfect as it ever had been.

A whine of... of what? Frustration? Pain? Fear? Whatever that sound
was, it was terrible to hear. Michael dropped his hand on to the metal
casing on the passenger seat, in a gesture that could only possibly have
comforted himself.
"Hang on, please, just hang on."
The weather was abysmal, the sheets of rain making it almost impossible
to see more than a couple of feet in front of the hood. These
unfamiliar roads were pitch black, the only light coming from the weak
headlamps, straining to cut through the incessant downpour. He almost
missed the turn-off. The signpost was old and barely readable, but he
was paying attention. A life depended upon it.

Two days ago. There had been a malfunction in the communications
software. Actually Michael had just been relieved to get his boss off
his back for a short while. He had initially imagined it to be weather
interference; the electrical storms had been quite bad recently. And
then he had thought properly about the software. But the diagnostic
programs had not turned up any problems, and he had eventually started
to worry. Then had come the attack.

If he closed his eyes he could still see the look on her face when she
had seen the limping wreckage of her baby.... It had mirrored the
horror of his own expression, although his was worn down by fear and
worry, and the constant of having spent ten hours watching his friend
slowly slipping away from him.

And now... now they were still fighting to save a life, a life whose
last real hope had been destroyed in the devastation they had found back

at the lab. Up until then, he had had a chance of survival. But when
they had seen what had been done, when they had realized that every
diagnostic computer in the building had been smashed, their hope of ever
getting him back had faded to practically nothing.

So here he was, driving a strange car to the place that held the only
hope that his own life, just maybe, could be real again.

**

Bonnie Barstow stood in the open doorway, watching the rain cascade off
the sloped roof of the house. They had taken a big risk at the
airport. Devon had spotted several men he recognized from mug shots,
but they had been waiting for Michael, and any sign of the black
casing. They were not waiting for her or Devon. Their suspicions had
been right. Sending the computer by car had been safer, keeping it well
out of the way of those that had already done so much damage.

Bonnie's ears still seemed to ring with the high pitched screaming of
the alarms that had signalled the start of this nightmare. She felt
empty inside. She had been surfing the Internet when it had all
started. She could even remember what she was looking at; views of the
mountains, giving her ideas about taking a winter break. All the horror
had begun with one simple beep. She had not known what it had meant at
first, had not honestly known where it had been coming from. But it had
not stopped, and eventually she had gotten up and walked over to the
small console built into the corner of the trailer. There was one
flashing red light, and five steady columns of small red and green
LEDs. There were a great many LEDs around her, but these meant
something specific.

(As she watched, a second red light started to flash. Another,
slightly louder beeping joined the first, and the initial column of LEDs
dulled. She stared at the display, understanding starting to descend
over her as the second column of lights went off; first the green ones,
then the lower red ones. Another beep, this time unmistakably an alarm,
overrode the other two. As the third column of the five darkened, a
small LCD display came alive, lines of text starting to scroll slowly up
the small screen into view. By the time the high-pitched shrieking
alarm started, the words on the screen had stopped moving, and a cursor
was flashing.
External Access Released : Command >

Almost without thinking, Bonnie pressed her thumb against the large
black button on the console. The noises, the flashing red lights,
everything, stopped. Except for the LEDs winking out down the final
column. As the last red LED turned to black, some more words appeared
at the command prompt on the screen.
>Integrity 0%
Before she had time to do anything it was over.

The phone was ringing, and still in a slight daze she lifted the
receiver. She vaguely heard Devon telling her that every alarm in the
lab was sounding and that lights were flashing; big red lights. He was
panicky, but for a wonderful, blissful moment, she still remained
ignorant as to what it all meant. And then she knew. Devon had simply
said his name. She almost dropped the phone. This could not be
happening....

She hung up the receiver with Devon still talking. The silence that
remained around her was deafening. All she could focus on were the
words displayed on the screen. And in a moment of horrifying clarity
she knew exactly what it all meant. She knew what each tiny dark LED
represented. She knew what the words 'External Access Released' meant.
And worst of all, she knew what 'Integrity 0%' stood for. In human
terms, flatline.

Almost immediately she started to type, she refused to let herself
consider what all this meant for Michael, she silently prayed that he
was okay. But there was nothing she could do until she knew where they
were. At the command prompt she simply typed 'reboot system'. That
should have brought the system back on line; the last time they had
managed to salvage eighty percent of the database at this early stage.
This time, the display stopped at 30%. Holding back the panic, Bonnie
typed 'display location'. Moments later she contacted the emergency
services and got the mobile trailer unit on the move.

Nothing could have prepared her for the sight that awaited them.)

**

Finally the house came into view. Set back from the road, the old
Tudor-style building had a short open driveway, leading up along the
side of the house to where a large garage could just be seen. Michael
swung the heavy car onto the gravel drive and continued up past the
house, through the open doors of the garage. It was a large, damp
building, dimly lit, save for the desk lamps on the work-tops that had
obviously become the makeshift lab. Opposite, at the far end, Michael
could see the mobile unit backed up against a second set of doors. The
trailer's back was open and its ramp down. He knew what that meant, and
he was almost too frightened to look. To the other side of the garage
stood the covered wreck of his car, a dirty grey tarpaulin hiding the
damage. He sighed, fighting back the tears of exhaustion and despair,
and clambered out of the sedan. Every part of him ached.

"Michael!" He turned and smiled a sad smile as Bonnie came from the
back door of the house towards him. "Are you all right?"
He nodded, and motioned to the makeshift lab, electronic equipment
spreading out to take up most of the floor area over to the left-hand
side. "Nice set-up, I didn't think they left anything intact."
She shrugged, frowning. "It's all I could salvage, plus the stuff we
had in the trailer." She turned to look up at him, emotions clear in
her expression. "I don't know if it's going to be enough." She took a
deep breath and looked passed him, through into the passenger window of
the car. "How's he doing?"
Michael's gaze fell on the casing on the front seat. "Not good."
Bonnie fought back more tears as she opened the car door and watched as

Michael bent to pick up the black box, about the size of a modern VCR,
and about the same weight. She led him over to a workbench in the midst
of the lab equipment. Clearing a laptop out of the way, Michael gently
set the casing down.

As he backed away to give Bonnie more room, a mug of steaming coffee
was pushed into his hand. "Devon..."
The older man, who had appeared at his shoulder, smiled gently at him,
encouraging. "Drink it. It may help compensate for the sleep you're
not going to get."
Michael nodded and smiled gratefully. "So," he tried for some
semblance of a normal conversation, "why haven't I seen this place
before?"
Devon Miles shrugged, sipping from his own mug. "Wilton always
suggested we keep this location secret, just in case. I always wondered
just in case of what? Now I know."
"Who's doing all this Devon. Who would want to hurt us like this?"
Devon shook his head, helplessness clouding his stark features. "In
honesty, I suppose there must be a very long list." He took in
Michael's almost desperate expression, knowing the journey up here could
not have been easy for him. "I wish I knew," he said finally.
Michael's eyes settled back on the black casing that was rapidly
disappearing beneath a varied collection of wires. "So do I," he
breathed.

Bonnie was ignoring the talk behind her. Within seconds she had
removed the crumpled lid from battered casing and was starting to wire
up the monitors, switching them all on one by one to the tune of the
same weak pulse each time. Finally she hooked in the laptop and hit
return. It asked her for the alphanumeric access code and she keyed it
in without thinking.

>ACCESS GRANTED : DATABASE INTEGRITY AT 30.25% : SYSTEM INTEGRITY AT
12.72%
>backup status
>LAST SYSTEM BACKUP : CEEPS 17:58 20.07

Bonnie frowned. A backup had been taken at the time just before the
system crash, but she was not certain what CEEPS meant. Sighing,
feeling the eyes of the two men behind her on her back, she reached
again for the laptop.

>backup integrity
>BACKUP INTEGRITY AT 34.05%

That was not good. She could feel the emptiness inside her growing
like a black hole. A quiet whimper from next to her rung in her ears as
the desperate cry for help that it was.
"I know," she spoke quietly, her words directed at the mangled circuit
boards contained within the casing Michael had so lovingly brought
here. "I know you're in pain, Kitt. I promise I'll make it all go
away, just give me another minute, okay?"

>set system recovery
>SYSTEM RECOVERY SET : RESTART REQUIRED
>_

She looked behind her, at Michael and Devon watching her with expectant
hope. "Look, I know you're worried, but this is going to take some
time. There's nothing you can do now, you've done all you can for
him." She tried to keep the concern from her voice, striking for
tenderness, understanding the knife-edge that Michael's emotions at
least were balancing on. "I have to shut the system down, and try to
restart it." She took a deep breath, meeting Michael's hopeful gaze.
"I'm not going to lie to you, I don't know if there's enough data left
to bring Kitt back. Our Kitt may no longer be there."
Michael reached a shaky hand out and gently touched the casing, rubbing
his thumb back and forth, not for Kitt, but for himself. "See you soon,

Partner."
Bonnie's eyes fell to the floor, as she heard Devon whisper,
"goodbye,", and lead Michael back out of the garage and into the house.


As they stepped out into the falling rain, Devon squeezed the bridge of
his nose, trying to ease the hours-old headache. Michael caught the
gesture through the fog in his own tired brain. "Are you okay?"
Devon tilted his head to gaze at his companion. "Not really,
Michael." He glanced back at the garage. "I've known Kitt from the
moment they first switched him on." He sighed at the memory. "You
know, Wilton never got to know him. He saw the car and the computer
simply as part of the Knight 2000 project, as a means to an end. Kitt
was another expensive toy for Wilton to wave in front of the
authorities. I only wish we'd thought about the consequences. They
weren't very clear back then." He sighed. "I know Kitt still thinks of

Wilton as his... father, in a way."
"I think it's best to leave it that way, Devon." Michael said
quietly. "Kitt regards Wilton as his mentor, his hero. I wouldn't want
to change that."

Devon lost himself in his thoughts for a moment. He, Michael, Bonnie;
they were all looked after in Wilton's will. All except for Kitt. Kitt

needed money spent on him to continue to exist, to thrive, for his
overhauls and updates, to keep the technology on the cutting edge. And
they spent the money without thinking; what choice did they have? If
the funding was ever cut, if the Foundation board ever decided to end
the project, to dismantle Kitt, would he be able to do it? Would that
not be... murder? He shook those thoughts from his head. It was wrong
to be thinking about it now, with Kitt in the grimy mock-up of his lab,
fighting for his life under worse conditions than he ever deserved.

Meeting Michael's puzzled expression with an apologetic one, he said,
"Forgive me, I loved Wilton. But there were so many things we
overlooked...."
Michael smiled, touched. "You surprise me. I never imagined
that you saw Kitt as anything but 'the most expensive car in the
world'." He affectionately mimicked the proud tone Devon had used when
he had first introduced Michael to his new car. "I don't mean to be
rude, but I thought you saw him in terms of money too."
Devon stared despondently at the house in front of them. "I'm
not very good at showing my feelings towards any of you, but especially
towards Kitt. I feel like a father figure to you all, protecting you,
looking after you. I've always imagined that Kitt can look after
himself, at least a lot better than the rest of you can."
"Under normal circumstances I'd agree with you, and Kitt understands
that. You know how he feels about you."
Devon smiled. "Thank you Michael." And he sounded almost wistful when
he added, "I just wish that I had found the time to tell him how much I
cared about him."

Michael knew that he ought to say something comforting, but the
truth was, Kitt may not make it this time. And when was the last time
he had told his partner, his best friend, how much he cared, how he
really felt? When was the last time he had really talked to Kitt, asked
him if everything was okay, if he was happy, if there was anything he
needed? Of course Kitt would have said, yes, everything was fine, no,
there was nothing he needed, and if any of his systems had any problems,
he immediately informed Bonnie anyway. But that was not the point, the
point was that Michael had not asked.
"Come on, Devon," he tried for his best British accent, "let's
get some tea."

*

>_

Bonnie took a deep breath. "I'm going to shut you down now, Kitt. The
pain will go away, everything will go away, and I promise I will try to
bring you back." The was a faint sound as Kitt tried to tell her
something, although he had been way beyond talking for a long time.
Bonnie wiped a tear from her eye. "I love you, Kitt."

>shutdown
>SYSTEM WILL SHUTDOWN IN 30 SECONDS

As she waited, she watched as words appeared on the screen without
being typed.

>goodbye bonnie

>SYSTEM SHUTTING DOWN NOW


It took several minutes for the shutdown to complete, and it should
have taken several more for the system to restart. But when the laptop
beeped at her, she saw only the extensive list of hardware problems that
needed her immediate attention before there was even a chance of getting
Kitt back.


Five hours later the rain had stopped, and Bonnie had not noticed the
distinct drop in temperature. Michael had been out several times with
coffee, buttered toast and finally two sweaters, and a heater that he
had found in the attic. He had questioned Devon about where he had
found an open store in the middle of the night. Devon had left at just
after two am and returned less than an hour later with enough supplies
to keep them going for several weeks. Sometimes their boss could pull
miracles when they really needed him to.

She had replaced all the circuit boards that had required replacing.
Sitting waiting for the system to restart was the longest few minutes of
Bonnie's life. She watched the laptop, remembering the day Kitt was
switched on, remembering the first words he had spoken to her as she had
sat face to face with the microprocessor in Wilton Knight's lab. She
had never heard him talk before, she interacted with him using the
keyboard and screen, but to finally hear that soft Boston accent had
been wonderful. He had told her that it was nice to hear her voice for
the first time.

She had nurtured Kitt through a difficult first few weeks, teaching him
how to interact with humans, teaching him about himself, giving him
purpose and ambition. He was self-aware from the beginning, but sadly
also aware of his presumed role in society.

From the start, when Michael treated him like so badly, Kitt was polite
and obeyed orders. Only later did he start to put up a fight and give
as good as he got until Michael realized that Kitt was much, much more
than just the microprocessor that controlled the flashy Trans-Am.

Her thoughts wondered back to the night after Michael had taken off
from the Foundation, the day of Wilton's funeral. Kitt had contacted
her from the parking lot of Michael's hotel. She had been sitting up in
the lab worrying about Kitt, and wondering why Michael had not called
in. It had been a relief to hear the announcement chime of the
communications unit, but Kitt's stressed voice had nearly broken her
heart. He and Michael were not getting along, Michael had threatened to
have him disconnected, had told him to 'shut up' on several occasions
and currently he was not supposed to talk. Kitt had asked her over and
over what he had done wrong, what he could have said to offend the one
man in the world he was configured for. Bonnie had never felt hatred
towards one person so much in her life. Knight had taken off with their
car, her baby, without a word of thanks, and now he was treating Kitt
like the computer was nothing but circuitry and bubble chips.

And she recalled seeing Kitt finally drive up into the mobile unit
several agonizing days later. He had a dent in his hide, but was a lot
happier than he had sounded that first night, and had already formed a
special bond with his driver.

Through the years, Kitt had proved himself to them where he really had
never needed to. He had become a friend to all of them, and to Michael
he was a partner, a brother, a best friend, a father and a son. He was
Michael's life, and Bonnie could only guess at the effect that the loss
of Kitt would have on him, the effect that it would have on all of them.



The laptop beeped once. The system restart was complete. The data,
whatever data had been rebuilt by the retrieval program, had been
loaded. All Bonnie had to do was run the program that would initialize
the system and lockout the external access once more, handing control
back to Kitt, as long as the database and systems were intact.

>SYSTEM READY... WAITING
>kitt
>RUNNING PROGRAM KITT... PROGRAM ABORTED

Bonnie hated this. It just felt so impersonal, typing words into a
laptop, words on which a life depended. Kitt amounted to more than a
complex computer program, he was her friend.

>kitt integrity
>KITT INTEGRITY AT 14.55%
>_

Her breath locked in her throat. Fourteen and a half percent?

>rebuild database kitt $MAINBASE
>REBUILDING KITT......... REBUILD COMPLETED
>kitt
>RUNNING PROGRAM KITT... PROGRAM ABORTED

Bonnie realized her hands were shaking. Not that it was warm in the
garage, even with the heater, but it did not matter. Nothing mattered
expect the words on the screen, and they were telling her, over and
over, in varying ways, that Kitt was gone. There was no recovering him
this time.

>kitt integrity
>KITT INTEGRITY AT 14.55%

Again, she tried rebuilding the main database, but the program still
aborted, the system still could not boot. Just as she was about to try
again, she felt a warm hand on her shoulder. "Let him go, Bonnie,
you've done everything you can." Devon's voice was gentle, pushing the
truth of his words through to her.
Her hands dropped from the keyboard and her tears started to fall.
"I've failed him," she whispered. "I can't revive him. There's just
not enough left."
"You did everything you could do, he would be proud of you."
"But I can't get him back...." As her quiet tears turned to bitter
sobs, Devon crouched down to hold her. She had been there from the
start, taught Kitt everything about the world they had brought him
into. She had been a teacher, a mother and a friend. Kitt had always
thought the world of her.

Devon let his eyes wonder to the electronics on the work-top. It was
all beyond him, he looked after the legal and financial side, left the
practical running of the Knight 2000 project to Bonnie and her team.
That had been Wilton Knight's dream, that was the fantasy they had all
helped keep alive. But in the midst of all the planning and revenge
seeking, they had brought a life into the world. That had been the real
truth. They had created a life, without giving it a second thought,
albeit without ever meaning to, and now they had to deal with the
consequences. The Knight 2000 project had proved to be more of a
success than Wilton could have ever imagined it would be. But as Devon
had started seeing Kitt for the first time through Michael's eyes, he
had seen the innocence and naivete of a child. Wilton's child. A child
the man had never wanted, and never cared about.

Devon caught himself and derailed his train of thought. Those were
late night fancies that had no place here. No use blaming anyone now.
"He's dead." Two softly spoken words that he needed clarifying before
they went on from this moment.
He felt Bonnie nod against him, before she slowly pulled away.
"Where's Michael?"
Devon watched her wipe her eyes and nose with the sleeve of the jumper
Michael had dug up for her earlier, when there had at least been hope.
"I left him sleeping in the living room. He was exhausted, and I'm
still not convinced that he's in perfect health after the attack."
"One of the paramedics said that he may have sustained a concussion
when he hit the ground. They wanted to keep him in over night, but
Michael refused to even go to the hospital. I'm not sure it's good for
him to sleep." She took a deep breath, she could barely remember what
day it was, never mind her first aid.
"Would you like me to tell him?"
Bonnie smiled up at her boss. "Thanks Devon, but no, I think it ought
to come from me."
He nodded. "I'll be inside if you need me."

Silence fell as she heard the back door close once more. She was
alone. She could not ever remember it being this quiet. It seemed like
there had been some background noise; a quiet humming of the systems in
the mobile unit, or in the lab, the coming and going of Foundation staff
as they worked. When Kitt had been around, there was always the
familiar, calming tracking of his scanner; almost permanently alive over
the past few years, searching out Michael's heartbeat amidst the
constant noise. Even at nights there had been activity, people working
late, always some programmers and technicians who preferred working in
the dark hours.

But now there was nothing. Under its dirty cover, Kitt's scanner was
dark and silent. Before her, the small, triple-columned voice panel
that had become the basis for the visual reference for Kitt, was just a
piece of electronic junk. She could run a current through it,
illuminate the lights once more, but the soul was gone from their
creation. It was not to be brought back this time.


"Bonnie?"
She felt her heart sink, and turned to see Michael coming into the
garage. Quietly, she stood and simply let him walk up to the bench at
which she had been sitting. Michael's eyes moved from the words on the
screen to the dead circuitry next to it, and finally his hopeful gaze
came to rest with Bonnie's. She simply shook her head, no words were
needed, the truth was written all over her face. Her tears began again
as she watched Michael rest his palm against the side of the casing, he
opened his mouth to say something, but no sound came out.

At that moment, the world stopped turning. Michael found he could
barely breathe, but he had to ask. "Are you sure?"
Bonnie nodded slowly. "Michael...." She took him by the arm, turning
him from the computer screen, from the lifeless form of his partner.
She gathered him into her arms as his exhaustion, disbelief and profound
sadness erupted into heart-wrenching sobs. Kitt was deep in their
thoughts, painfully etched into their hearts, and his sparkle would be
more than missed. Life was never going to be the same again.


From the kitchen window, Devon watched Bonnie lead Michael away from
the garage. Closing his eyes, he whispered a little prayer.

**

Feeling nothing but an anguish he thought may never end, Michael looked
up at the moon as if it could provide the answers he needed. All Bonnie
could do now was be there for him, because she had not been there in
time for Kitt. She knew she would never forgive herself for failing
him. So many times they had relied on him, and he had come through for
them. This once, when he had turned to them, helpless and desperate,
they had not been able to pull off the miracle he had needed.

"I keep thinking about it... keep thinking over what happened... what I
could have done to stop it from happening."
"Don't, Michael, you did what you'd done a thousand times before....
There was no way you could have known what was waiting...."
He smiled, meeting her sad eyes, gently taking her hand. "I wish you
would take your own advice. I know you're blaming yourself." His words
were spoken softly, admonishing any blame she thought she deserved.

They walked on in silence, neither wanting to think, but both lost in
memories. Michael did not try to stop the tears streaming down his
face. What the hell was left without Kitt? He had lost too many
people. He had believed that he was safe with Kitt; that he could not
get emotionally involved with a computer. But the microprocessor had
grown, developed along with Michael Knight as he had left Michael Long
behind and begun again. Kitt had been there from the start of this new
life, putting up with more than any person would have.

Uselessly, Michael wiped the tears from his eyes, but they were only
replaced by more.

So vulnerable in his own way. Their friendship had pushed through the
boundaries that should have held it. A man and his car. But Kitt was
not just the car, that was where he resided, but he could be so much
more. He always strove to be everything he could possibly be. Michael
scoffed silently at his own thoughts; that could be a eulogy to anyone.
Kitt was different. He was special.

There were issues that surfaced with him that were never usually in
contention with any life. There had been the question, not so long ago
of his status on this earth. Should Michael really just be able to
switch him off at the touch of a button? Should Bonnie be able to tap
into his programming, into his _self_ and make adjustments without his
consent? He was self-aware, he was intelligent, and his consciousness
was never in any question. And so all external access to Kitt's systems
had been locked out, handing control to Kitt, and Kitt alone. Any and
all 'off' switches within the car had been disabled and removed. Kitt
was his own boss then, and still he had never left Michael's side.

Sighing, not really ready to handle the memories that were swamping
him, Michael stopped and leant his forehead against the tree blocking
his path. He heard Bonnie come to stand beside him, but for a long time
neither spoke. This was a day he had never expected to have to face.
They had talked a lot about what would happen to Kitt when Michael left
the Foundation, and when he died, or if anything happened to him. He
remembered Kitt's words to him, and now he spoke them quietly in a
choked memorial to his friend.
"'I don't want to be immortal. I want my memory to stay with yours,
and to remain there.'" He took a deep shuddering breath, talking but
not caring if anyone was listening. "He told me that one night. He
said that if it was to be his choice, he wanted to live his life with
his friends, and leave behind a memory. He said there was no punishment
worse than immortality. He couldn't think of anything worse than
knowing that he would have to live on without the people he loved."
Michael uselessly kicked at the base of the thick trunk, feeling anger
settling in beside his grief. "I never for one moment imagined that I
would be mourning him."

Bonnie stayed silent. What could she say? That Kitt had had a good
long life? She swallowed back the bitter sob; he was seven years old.
No one should ever have to outlive their son....

bleep

She thought back on those seven years. The wonder Kitt had brought
into their lives had been immeasurable, over the time she had worked
with him, looking after him while he looked after Michael. She had
learnt as much from him, as he had from her. "It was a pleasure working
with you." She whispered the words so quietly that even Michael stood
next to her did not hear, but then, he was lost in his own thoughts.

bleep

Whoever did this had known what they were doing. They had blocked the
road suddenly, forced Kitt into the air above them, fired miniature
anti-tank missiles up into the underside of the car in rapid
succession. They had blown the suspension, the drive, the engine, and
Kitt, straight to hell.

bleep

Where was that noise coming from? She looked around her, and then to
her own digital watch ready to switch off any alarm she might have set
and then forgotten about. But her watch was simply telling the time, no
flashing lights, no beeping.... She made such a sudden grab for
Michael's wrist that he nearly lost balance on the one foot he was
standing on, the other pushed up against the tree.
"What?"
"Michael, it's your comlink...."
They both stared at it, and waited in silence until it bleeped again.
Out of habit, Michael depressed the two side buttons, raising the tiny
communicator to his mouth. "Kitt?" There was no reply; he had not
really expected one. But there was another bleep, and impossibly it
sounded more urgent this time.


Michael beat Bonnie back into the garage, but only by a moment or two.
He was not certain what he had expected to see, but everything still
looked the same. The battered, lidless casing was silent on the
worktop. Maybe they had imagined it. Maybe they had only heard what
they had both so desperately wanted to hear. But Bonnie could see more
in the set-up than Michael could. She looked to the screen of the
laptop, and instead of the final system integrity value she had brought
up, there was an additional line displayed.

> CEEPS running...._

Frowning, ignoring Michael's pleas to know what was happening, she
grabbed one of the meter cables from the back of the bench and attached
the two ends somewhere inside the body of the microprocessor. The
meter's screen flashed into life, displaying a weak, but definitely
existent reading. Michael saw it then; a heartbeat, weak and unsteady,
still desperately fighting for life.

He could not tear his gaze from the tiny screen, but he could tell
Bonnie's expression by the tone of her voice. "He's alive." She
whispered the words as if speaking would break the bubble.
"But how...." Michael looked away then, and saw the words on the
laptop screen. "What's CEEPS?"

***

Ella Jameson dropped her head against the screen and let out a long
groan; nothing ever worked on Fridays. It was as if her computer knew
it was Friday and was looking forward to the weekend as much as she was.

"Ella!" She answered with a second groan and without lifting her
head. "Call on line four."
She swore. "I've told Tony four times today; he has to set the MIDGE
environment variable else it won't work."
Her colleague shook her head; "You know he only phones you because he's
in love with your voice. Besides, I don't think it's Tony."
Ella frowned at Cassie's tone. "Who is it?"
"Just pick up the damn phone, he sounds important. And rich."
Ella reached over and retrieved her phone from under the masses of
paperwork. 'Paperless office' did not even come close to describing the

R&D offices of RDA. "Ella."
"Ella Jameson?"
She sat up; the straight English accent most certainly did not belong
to one of their engineers. "Speaking."
"Am I right in thinking that you wrote the C.E.E.P.S. emergency backup
program?"
She thought about it. "Quite a while ago." Her suspicious mind was
working overtime, as far as she knew, CEEPS was an untested, fairly
complicated program. She had written it for a friend who'd been working
on a project he had insisted he could not talk about. "Who is this?"
"My name is Devon Miles. I'm Senior Director of the Foundation for Law
and Government."
Now that sounded familiar. "CEEPS stands for Central Emergency Export
and Protection System." Ella explained carefully. "The idea was that
when the integrity of a given system fell beneath certain specified
parameters, the program automatically backed everything up to a remote
storage facility, then once it was safe it would restore the backup.
But listen, as far as I know nothing was tested, I'm not even sure the
program runs. I didn't know it was installed anywhere."
"It's most definitely installed, Miss Jameson, and it seems to be
running at the moment...." Ella could not help but curse all users.
"So... we were wondering how much you liked the idea of a site visit?"
"Oh no, not this weekend, I have plans. It'll have to be Monday."
"I'm afraid Monday may be too late. The system we're trying to recover
is of utmost importance. You may say, we're in a life and death
situation."
"Look, Mr. Miles, as I said, I wrote the code years ago, unless someone
went through it with a fine tooth comb, you'll be lucky if it actually
works at all. The idea itself was far-fetched."
"Miss Jameson, I assure you that the software would have been
thoroughly tested before being installed. Testing for this particular
system was rigorous and exhaustive. There are no bugs in this system."
Ella chuckled, "So how come it crashed?"
When the reply came back, she could have sworn the man on the other end
of the phone was struggling not to cry. Maybe he had just lost all the
company data. She could not help but smile, users should not ever be
allowed near computer systems.


"It didn't crash," Devon said with rapidly draining patience. "It was
attacked. And we need you to ensure that the recovery is a complete
success." His eyes locked with Michael's angry stare. From the side of
the phone call that Michael was witnessing, the engineer on the other
end was being less than helpful, and his partner's life was hanging in
the balance.


Ella rocked back in her chair, slightly more sympathetic now. "I'm
going to have to look through the code, it's been so long..."
"There's a Lear jet standing by at the airport. A Carl Smyth will meet
you and make you comfortable. I suggest you load all you need from
there onto a laptop, we can provide everything else."
She sighed, resigned to the fact that she was not going skiing with
Cassie and Gavin this weekend. Maybe it was for the best. She could
not ski anyway, and three was always a crowd, no matter what Cassie kept
insisting, or what she kept insinuating about the ski instructors....
"All right Mr. Miles, I'll be at the airport in an hour."


Ella was not amused. Spending the weekend on site because a user was
having problems was one thing, but flying out to some unspecified place
in Canada was another. It was freezing up there. 'Carl' had met her at
the airport as promised, and shown her up into a black and gold Lear
jet, very executive and very expensive. He had made her comfortable,
given her a drink and she had just sampled the best food she had ever
tasted at 25,000 feet. But Carl had avoided answering any questions
about anything, and she was still none the wiser about where she was
going. So she sat on the plane, reading through the program code on her
laptop and letting her imagination run wild. Maybe it was some
government organization that had built some secret weapon and then had
it stolen. Maybe they had crashed the system on purpose to stop the bad
guys using the weapon, and now they could not retrieve any of their
data. She felt like someone trapped in a James Bond movie.

It had been almost eight years since she had written the CEEPS
program. The code was uncommented and practically unreadable, she hoped
to God that it was not full of bugs.

**

Outside the garage, the rain continued to fall. Michael could see the
drops illuminated by the light over the back door into the house. The
heater was woefully inadequate for the size of the garage, and the fact
they had both sets of doors open did not help matters. But neither
Michael nor Bonnie had any thought of leaving Kitt alone out here,
whether he was aware or not.

Bonnie had settled in a dusty armchair that she had uncovered in the
back of the garage. Michael was pacing, every so often stopping in
front of the work bench to check the unchanging words on the laptop, and
to gently touch the casing containing the fragile being of his friend.
Finally, as if he realized he was driving Bonnie insane, he moved over
to the covered form of the Knight 2000. He pulled back the tarpaulin
and reached into the twisted, partially opened window. Stretching down
into the door compartment, he at last found what he was looking for and
re-covered the car. With a deep sigh, he manoeuvred himself onto the
hood, covering his black jeans with dust and grime. Gazing down at the
scrunched up pack of cigarettes in his fingers, he fished out one of the
few surviving lengths, and untucked the book of matches from inside the
box.

Bonnie watched Michael light the cigarette and take a long drag from
it. She was surprised. She had never seen him smoke before, had not
even realized that he did. But there was no way she was going to
lecture him, in fact she almost asked him for a drag herself. Idly she
wondered if Kitt knew, and if he did what he had had to say about it.
The thought made her smile.

This waiting was awful. Devon had contacted the woman who had written
the backup program, if that was what it actually was, and she was on her
way. But the hours that it was taking for her to get there were ticking
passed with agonizing slowness. And Bonnie was feeling fiercely
protective. She hated the thought that Kitt's systems even contained a
program she did not know about, never mind the fact that it was
currently acting as life support.

Pulling the sleeves of his sweater further down, over his hands, until
only his finger tips, and the glowing end of the cigarette were visible,

Michael gazed over at Bonnie. "I love him, you know."

His words surprised her, and she stared at him, still getting used to
the odd sight of him smoking, but all too aware of the obvious calming
effect it was having on his nerves. Finally she gave in. She heaved
herself gracefully out of her chair and crossed the garage floor to
where he was sitting, perched on the wreckage of his car. She reached
out two fingers and his eyebrows heightened, but he said nothing. He
simply dug the pack back out of his jacket and reached up to gently
place the cigarette between her lips. Graciously, he also lit it for
her, and watched with the same surprise as she had watched him. Bonnie
nodded her thanks and returned to her chair.

"You could tell him once in a while." She answered eventually.
Despite the time that had passed, Michael knew what she was referring
to. It was almost laughable. Two intelligent adults, sitting apart in
a freezing cold garage, on an isolated estate, somewhere in Canada that
had very harsh winters, their worry over a computer having lead them
both back into an old bad habit. It would have been laughable. But the
computer was the best friend he had ever had, was the closest person in
the world to him, was his saviour and his confidant, and was the one
thing he could not stand to lose.

"I do tell him." Michael murmured. "I tell him how much he means to
me, how much I care. It's difficult to know whether or not he believes
me. He's always putting himself down to the level of a mere computer."
He took another long drag. "At least he's finally stopped insisting
that he doesn't have feelings."

Bonnie sighed. Her eyes wondered again to the black casing, the
darkened pattern of diodes that would blink when Kitt talked. The same
pattern, only a larger form, had been used inside the car as a visual
point of reference. It had become Kitt's face, his mouth, she was not
sure what, but it beat talking to an entire dash. In her mind she could
still hear that beautiful smooth Boston accent, sometimes so very
different from when he was holding a normal conversation.

She remembered back to a very early time, late one night, Michael
having abandoned him once more to spend the night with some woman.
Bonnie had taken Kitt out, found some place quiet, opened the sunroof
and pushed back the seat. The stars had been so perfectly clear; the
fresh chill of the still night and the hugging warmth of the car had the
same effect as alcohol on her tired brain. She and Kitt had been
talking, she could not remember what about, it did not matter. But he
had said something that had penetrated her wondering thoughts, something
she would remember and work on for a very long time.

("Bonnie, why do people do that?"
"Umm, Kitt? Do what?" She felt too comfortable to move, too relaxed
to open her eyes, and the gentle feel of the soft grey leather interior
felt good under her fingers.
"Stroke me like that."
His words awoke her mind and her imagination for just a moment, and it
was one moment too long. But she did not stop her fingers moving back
and forth on the leather just inside the window where her arm and hand
were rested.
"You feel good, Kitt," was all she said.
And he only replied, "So do you, Bonnie.")


Whatever had passed between them that night had never been talked
about, and never been forgotten. She remembered Michael remarking, a
few days later, that Kitt had been quieter than usual, and whether she
knew if there was anything up. She had snapped at him, assuring him
that the systems were just fine. But Michael had stopped her, shaking
his head and saying that he had not meant the systems. He had meant
Kitt, his partner. Whether there was something Kitt might have
mentioned to Bonnie because they still were not getting along too well.
It had been a slow, but encouraging start toward her and Michael's
friendship.

Michael shivered, and glanced down at his watch. It read 02:17. But
he did not see the time. He only saw his link to Kitt. He gently drew
two fingers over the tiny screen. Bonnie watched him from the other
side of the garage. "Have you ever, actually said those three little
words to him?"

Michael dropped the butt of his cigarette to the garage floor and
momentarily dropped down to stamp it out. Settling himself back on the
car, he pulled aimlessly at his sleeves, picking at a small thread that
he had gradually worked loose over the years. He had never said it.
There had always been the next time, tomorrow, 'next time he gets shaken
by something', was Kitt ever shaken? Had there ever been a right time
to tell his friend exactly how deep his feelings ran?

Michael reproached himself, of course there had been. More times than
he cared to remember. Times when Kitt had saved his life, times when
the microprocessor's lightening reactions had gotten them out of
situations no human action could ever have done. And the flip side,
when Kitt had been the vulnerable one, after his dip in the industrial
acid, or his near-fatal encounter with the tank in Chicago. Times when
Kitt had had his own confidence shattered and had needed Michael's
reassurance that he could go back out there and face the dangers. Not
once had he told him.

But Kitt had said it to Michael. Taught about emotions by a computer,
now that was something to be ashamed of. Kitt had found the right
time. Sabotaged by a young woman working for Knight Industries as a
technician, Kitt had been taken, and used, against his own free will, to
kill. At the end, they had come face to face, Kitt ordered to crush his
former driver under merciless wheels. But as Michael had stood there,
pleading with Kitt not to do it, trying to get through to him, Kitt had
made a leap of faith. He had stopped short of Michael, crashing through
his own programming, his own forced constraints, to reach a new level of
consciousness, to find his self. To find his soul.

(Instead of mowing him down, the Trans-Am stopped inches from him, its
engine purring in sorrow, its driver's side door clicking softly open.
He had once believed that nothing could be more painful than a gunshot
in the face. Until this had happened, and each hour that passed caused
another crack in his heart. Now it was over.
Unable to stop the flood of tears of relief and pride, Michael climbed
into his car, allowing the door to close. He wrapped his arms around
the steering wheel, hugging Kitt in the only way he knew how, knowing
the nightmare was finally over for them both. He cried himself out,
only later noticing the darkened windows; Kitt had made this a private
moment only between the two of them, and for no other witnesses.
The car sat absolutely still amidst the frantic, angered activity
around it. Kitt had pushed the temperature up slightly in the only way
he knew how to return Michael's gesture. And when he finally managed to
speak, to Michael the usually light voice sounded quiet and choked. "I
am so sorry...." He broke off as if unable to continue.
"It's okay," Michael tried to reassure, "it wasn't your fault Kitt,
it's okay."
"But I... I tried.... I could have killed...."
"Ssh, Pal, it's over, we're both gonna be okay. It's all over."
There was a long silence, both just trying to adjust to what had
occurred, to what Kitt had been used to do, to what it meant, to the
long path that lay ahead for them, a path Michael swore Kitt would not
travel alone. And then he heard four simple words, the first time he
had heard Kitt whisper. "I love you, Michael.")

Why had he not just said it back? Kitt had never needed to hear it so
badly in his entire life. He had not left Kitt's side through the days
and weeks that followed. Through the recriminations and the tests, the
alterations to his systems and improvements to his security, questions
about his loyalty, doubts about his abilities, Michael had been there.
He had spent night after night sleeping in the car, reassuring Kitt at
every juncture that they were going to get through it, that no one was
going to harm him and no one was going to split them up. Not once,
through all the pain and the fear, had he told Kitt that he loved him.
And he did. Very much. Kitt was his life, his world, so why could he
not just say it?

Tears started to trail down Michael's face, silently dripping on to his
sleeves.
"Michael...." Bonnie was at his side in an instant, her arms enfolding
him in warmth and love as his tears turned to sobs. She held him tight,
gently rocking him, quieting him, comforting as best she could when her
own heart was aching to let go as he had. After a very long time, he
calmed, pulling away to unceremoniously wipe his nose on his sleeve. He
looked up at Bonnie with desperation clear in his eyes.

beep

Both turned. Bonnie moved quickly to the laptop.

>CEEPS RECOVERY COMPLETE... SYSTEM READY

Bonnie caught her breath. Behind her, Michael asked, "Can we just...
switch it on?"
Bonnie shook her head. "You have to initiate the program." Dropping
her fingers onto the keyboard, she started to type.

>kitt integrity
>KITT INTEGRITY 100%

"My God...."

>kitt
>_

Neither breathed. The cursor flashed at the prompt for several long
seconds before...

>RUNNING PROGRAM KITT..... PROGRAM INITIATING.....

There was another long wait. Bonnie felt Michael reach down and take
her hand. She squeezed his fingers in return.

>RUNNING PROGRAM KITT..... PROGRAM INITIATING...............
>EXTERNAL ACCESS LOCKOUT INITIATED.....

Bonnie let out a deep breath and reached over to the back of the
casing. Touching the switch she mentally said a quick prayer before
applying gentle pressure.

There was a silence that seemed to stretch forever, as data and input
flooded into Kitt's circuits and he suddenly found himself dealing with
the attack all over again. Seconds later, the voice panel on the front
of the casing went berserk.
"Kitt?"
There was more frantic wracking of the correlated three-columned panel.

"Can he hear us? Should he be able to talk?" Michael had stepped
around her and rested his hand against the side of the casing, wanting
desperately to calm his obviously distressed partner.
"Yes... He should be able to hear us and talk to us."
"Kitt, c'mon buddy, talk to me, tell me you're okay."
Again the voice panel went crazy. Bonnie could recognize panic when
she saw it. "Okay Kitt, use the screen. Can you get to the laptop?"
There was a pause as Kitt found the link to the small computer next to
him.

>bonnie is michael all right
>_

"Kitt, can you hear us? Michael's fine. He's right here."

>michael i hear you bonnie cant talk

"All right Kitt. Just listen to me. Your systems were backed up
somehow, by a program we don't understand. The program's writer is on
her way here so I'm sure she'll be able to find the problem and put it
right." She took a deep, calming breath. "You're going to be fine,
Kitt. We just have to wait."

>thank you bonnie

"Kitt?"

>michael are you all right im sorry about the accident

"I'm fine. Don't worry about the accident. We were attacked, Pal,
we'll get them, I promise. For now you just have to relax and get
better for us."

>michael im scared

Michael felt the tears start over again. "I know, Kitt." He wiped his
eyes with his fingers. "It's gonna be okay, Pal. We're here for you.
We'll look after you now." He moved over to the keyboard, and Bonnie
watched him type.

>I love you Kitt
> thank you michael


In the darkness of the circuitry, a single image flashed from memory,
caught up in a burst as data moved through the system. For a moment,
that image was captured in the CPU buffer, and for that moment, Kitt was
gripped by fear. As he had been when he had first seen that image, not
so very long ago.

**

Ella stepped off the plane to the season's first sprinkling of snow.
Devon met her himself. They had not had time to work out who they could
still trust from the Foundation's staff. They were sure that whoever
had planned the attack on Michael and Kitt had had inside information
about the car's few weak points. With Kitt's life depending on the only
equipment they had left, with the whole project so open and vulnerable,
Devon did not want to involve anyone he did not have to. Not yet
anyway.

He greeted her over the noise of the jet. "Miss Jameson, thank you for
coming."
Ella frowned at him, pulling her coat closer around her in the freezing
cold. "People tell me that the Foundation's based in California, Mr.
Miles. What the hell are you doing out here?"
"As I explained on the phone, Miss Jameson, we've experienced a
crisis. We really do need your expertise."
Through the calm, polite, business-like exterior, Devon's desperation
was clear to Ella, and she simply nodded, leading the short way to the
car parked on the airstrip.


Ella had done some checking up on Devon Miles and Knight Industries
before she had left. She had rung a couple of friends, getting all the
information she could in the short time that she had. Founded by Wilton
Knight, the company had many interests, making billions of dollars
profit a year. Nothing even remotely suspicious went on at the company,
everything legal and above board. Then there was the Foundation for Law
and Government. Funded partly by money from Knight Industries, it
specialized in legal work, wrangling long and complicated cases that
would not otherwise see the inside of a courtroom.

But there was a small offshoot from the Foundation, something two of
her friends had mentioned but had no details on; the Knight 2000
project. Tom had said something like, 'one man and one car'. Beth had
told her that she had heard of something strange happening in California
a few years back. Some guy turning up from nowhere and solving some
problems in Silicon Valley, driving a car that survived a Demolition
Derby without a scratch. But she could not find anything more out about
it.

She watched the countryside slip by, beautiful views of mountains and
woodland. Devon was quiet, lost in thought. "Mr. Miles, there are a
few things I need to know."
"Of course, our chief technician is waiting for you in the lab."
That was the only thing she managed to get from Devon, and she was
relieved when they finally turned into a long gravel driveway.

It was still snowing lightly, but the sun was coming up as he killed
the engine and got out. Something told Ella that if she had waited he
would have opened the door for her, but she did not wait. She pushed
the door and stepped out of the car. Trees surrounded the estate; a
beautiful setting for a beautiful house.
"This place is fantastic," she breathed, real awe in her voice. Devon
allowed himself a smile of pride. "I was expecting a warehouse or some
office block."
"If you'd follow me."

Devon led her around the back to the garage, and stepped inside.
Michael was sitting up on the workbench, next to the casing, smoking.
Bonnie was in the chair, fast asleep, covered with blankets. Michael
looked up when Devon approached. "Michael, this is Ella Jameson."
He nodded, "The writer of the backup program?" He stretched out his
hand, and Ella shook it. He was freezing. The whole garage was
freezing. What kind of place was this to keep a crucial system?
Michael slid off the bench and gently shook Bonnie. "C'mon Sleeping
Beauty, your heroine is here."

Bonnie opened her eyes and was immediately on her feet, all business.
Ella was impressed; it took a hot shower and two mugs of strong coffee
for her to make that transformation in the mornings. "Miss Jameson."
"Ella, please." They shook hands. "This isn't exactly what I was
expecting...."
"What were you expecting?"
Ella frowned. "I'm not sure. A computer lab perhaps? Lots of
scientists in white coats running around and panicking, coffee?"
"Now that one we can do." Devon disappeared towards the house.
Bonnie gave her a strangely forced smile. "This isn't what any of us
expected, and it's not what we're used to. What can you tell us about
the CEEPS program?"
"It's a Central Emergency Export and Protection program. When certain
parameters are attained within the system status, the entire system is
backed up to a remote location. When it's safe to do so, the recovery
will start automatically back into the original store."
"Well, it does seem to have done exactly that, only, there seems to be
a problem."
"If you could point me in the direction of the system?"

Bonnie stepped aside to reveal the casing and the laptop. Ella's face
fell. "Hang on a minute. When Mr. Miles called he said it was an
emergency, a critical system. What is that?"
Bonnie sighed. She was tired and upset. She strode over to the body
of the car and grabbed the end of the tarpaulin, yanking it back as she
stepped away. "That system lives in this car. It's the integral part
of the Knight 2000 project." Ella stared at what was once an obviously
magnificent vehicle. "The system is in that casing there." She pointed
to Kitt. "It's the most complicated, expensive, intelligent computer in
the world. Its primary components are AI neural nets that have
progressed further than any other AI machine known about." She walked
back slowly. "The recovery of the system seems to have worked except
for the voice circuits."
Ella took all of this in. "It talks?" She asked finally.

Michael shook his head. If he had a dime for every time someone had
asked.... "Yes, _he_ talks. He's currently speaking to us using the
laptop."
Ella had heard enough. She sat down hard on the arm of the chair
Bonnie had been sleeping in. This was nuts. A freezing cold garage
with computers and system monitors everywhere, a wrecked car, and a
laptop that these people claimed was being used to.... She looked up to
the screen and her thoughts stopped suddenly. Could this really be
happening?

Devon returned with a pot of freshly brewed coffee, and a mug for
Ella. "How is he?"
"He's okay," Michael said gently, knowing how fraught Devon's emotions
were right now, however well he hid them, and constantly aware that Kitt
was listening to every word with his own brand of scrutiny. "He's going
to be fine. Once Ella here sorts out the recovery program."

Ella had moved, pulled the chair up to the workbench and was staring at
the words on the laptop screen. "I need system access." She spoke up
eventually. "I need a password."
Bonnie shook her head, leaning over the keyboard. "It's a bit more
complicated than that. We don't have permissions for access at the
moment."
Ella nodded carefully, "That's why I need a password."
"You don't understand, it's not a case of passwords. External access
is locked out when the program is initiated."
"Why?" Ella did not understand what the hell was going on.
"Protection. Kitt, I need you to release limited external access.
It'll be okay, you're safe."
Ella watched as words appeared on the screen.

>i trust you bonnie
>LIMITED EXTERNAL ACCESS RELEASED
>_

"You'll be able to run system diagnostics and anything else with that
access, if you need to make any changes, you'll need higher level
access, Kitt can give that to us if I ask."
Ella nodded, sighed, bent down and retrieved her own 'Black Daemon'
laptop from her bag, waving the plug in the air as a hint. Michael
immediately picked up on it and found a nearby free socket. While Ella
booted the Black Daemon, she looked up at the three anxious looking
faces. "Look guys, you could all do with some rest. I don't know when
the last time you slept was, but you all looked trounced. If you say
that all I can do is run diagnostics, you know I can't do anything bad,
agreed?"
Bonnie nodded, and that seemed to convince Michael, because he put his
arm around her shoulders and lead her gently back, out of the garage and
into the house. Devon hung back for a moment, looking as if he wanted
to say something, but eventually he just followed the other two.

Ella looked back at the laptop, unable, or maybe unwilling, to fully
understand the meaning of the words written there. Nice system, voice
activated AI controlling what? A car? Was that what Beth and Tom had
been talking about? Although from what Bonnie had shown her of the
Trans-Am, it did not look as if it had been particularly
indestructible. She wondered how much of the system was
voice-activated. "Run database diagnostic, give me the status of all
links within the system."

>my database is at full integrity miss jameson

She smiled. Cute. Lap-linking the two small machines, Ella started
the CEEPS diagnostics running on the system that the backup had
recovered. She hoped she could remember how to read the diagnostic
reports that the program created. Devon had left the pot of coffee on
the small table behind her, and downing the first mug, she poured
herself another. She wished that she understood what was happening
here. Her eyes fell on the car, and heaving herself out of the chair,
she walked quietly over to it. Bonnie had left the cover off, and it
did not take careful inspection to see that whatever had hit the car,
had hit from underneath. Ella lifted the crooked hood with some effort,
and caught her breath with surprise. The engine had been mutilated,
pushed up and out, and there was a large empty area at the back. She
surmised, if they were telling her the truth, that the microprocessor on
the workbench would fit in to the gap quite snugly.

The interior had also been devastated, if there had been anyone driving
it when whatever had happened happened, they would not have stood a
chance. But what was interesting, was that despite the damage, the
deformation of the car and the destruction to the interior and the
engine, there seemed to have been no direct damage to the exterior
body-work. The only dents were coming outwards, as if a bomb had
detonated inside the car. So _this_ was the Knight 2000 project. Maybe
there was an attack. If that were true, it would mean that someone did
this on purpose. Why?

Interested, Ella crossed back to the workbench. "Kitt?" She felt so
silly. Why the hell would anyone name a computer?

>miss jameson

Ella moved round to the screen. "What happened?"

>are you asking about the attack

"Yes."

>a truck pulled out of a fork junction coming straight for us there
was no real choice but to go over it as we got airborne i saw the men
on top of the truck with weapons launchers there was no time its
difficult to divert during a jump i ejected michael into the nearby
field i knew there was little chance of us surviving the attack five
missiles penetrated from under the car detonated instantly i lost
control

Ella read the words as they appeared. Somehow she was touched by what
she was seeing. It was the fact that it kept using 'I', like it blamed
itself for what had happened. But how could it? A computer did not
feel blame. What a nightmare place the world would be if your PC
apologized each time it crashed. The thought of the Slave computer from
the sci-fi series 'Blakes7' popped into her mind and she mentally
shivered. But this was different, this was self-awareness being
displayed here.

Her Black Daemon beeped at her, letting her know that the tests were
finished and the reports were ready. It took her a short while to go
through them, and she had to go through them twice. Because no matter
how she interpreted the results, everything was fine. She could not
understand it.

>run system diagnostic kitt -compl
>KITT INTEGRITY 100%

Confused, she turned back to the Black Daemon.

>ceeps -mod voice -compl -rep voice
>cat voice

The report file scrolled up the screen. She studied it for half an
hour but there was still nothing to say why the voice module was not
working. Because it was working. Everything said that it was working.
Finally, Ella switched off the Black Daemon and sat back.

"Okay Kitt, would you like to tell me why you're lying?" There was
nothing but silence, yet no words appeared on the screen and Ella knew
she was right. Eventually, although she felt daft saying it, she tried
following an instinct. "You can talk to me Kitt."
There was another lengthy silence, before a low, quiet voice asked,
"How did you know?"

The accent, the tone, the inflections of the voice took her completely
by surprise. She had expected a monotone synthesized voice module,
instead, it was like hearing another person speaking. And it was one of
the most sensual voices she had ever known. Her anger at being dragged
out here finally vanished, replaced by curiosity. "I wrote this code a
long time ago, but even back then I knew what I was doing. Every
diagnostic I run says that the voice module is at 100% integrity."
"I'm sorry."

Ella sat back in the chair, breathing a deep sigh. She caught sight of
the crumpled cigarette box on the workbench, and stretching over she
snagged it between finger and thumb, pulling it towards her, revealing
the tired book of matches next to it. Non-smokers smoking. Kitt really
must be a critical system. Ella smoked when she felt like it. She
thought she was probably addicted, but she hardly ever carried
cigarettes around with her, and she reckoned she craved caffeine more
often than she craved nicotine. She figured it was probably better for
her that way. But at this moment she felt like smoking. None of this
made any sense. If this was the Knight 2000 project, then why the
mock-up lab in the middle of nowhere? The Foundation for Law and
Government was one of the richest organizations in the USA, so why
here? If this was a critical system why was it not being fixed in some
highly secretive lab somewhere, with trained, skilled technicians and
programmers?
"Why did you lie?"

**

Bonnie put the phone down with a sigh of relief. Her head hurt. She
had not slept for going on three days. But the good news was that four
trusted technicians were on their way up with replacement everything for
the Knight 2000. One of them had been excitedly talking about some new
shell, with a new paint job. She had been too tired to listen. She had
told them, whatever, just to bring what they needed and to get up here,
developments were constantly being made for the project. She had chosen
technicians she personally knew and had worked closely with for the
passed few years, people who had been there at the beginning, people who
cared for Kitt. And the fact there they were excited about whatever new
development had been made for the bonded shell gave her extra confidence
that they had had nothing to do with the attack.

She had been thinking about that as she had chosen the people to ring.
It was a sad fact that anyone at the Foundation was open to bribery and
even blackmail. They worked on the edge of technology, at the forefront
of creative imagination, and it was easy to calculate how much their
knowledge was worth. But it was one thing to sell secrets, quite
another to assist in the attack on the flag-ship of the project.
Attempted murder. On two counts.

She replaced the phone onto the desk and finally allowed herself to
relax back in the chair. Across from her, stretched out on the sofa,
Michael was sleeping restlessly. Bonnie watched him. She was intensely
aware of how her feelings for him had changed over the years. Her hated
of him for his treatment of Kitt had dissipated early on, as it became
increasingly obvious that Michael was growing to love Kitt as much as
she did. She knew that she had followed Kitt's lead, allowing the
sentient computer to show her how to respond to Michael, how to accept
him and get along with him. And maybe it was Kitt who had shown her how
to love him. The warmth between the pair seemed infectious whenever
she, or anyone else for that matter, was around them. People had
commented on what a perfect couple they made, and watching Michael with
Kitt, she usually had to agree. Her eyes drifted upwards to the lounge
wall, and she thought of the array of photographs, small and large, that
adorned the walls of the Wilton Knight mansion that played permanent
host to the Foundation.

Photography had always been a hobby of hers, and Devon had specifically
had a darkroom fitted out at the Foundation for her personal use. Last
winter she had taken several shots that she had blown up and framed for
display. One captured perfectly the snow thrown up by Kitt's tyres as
the black car had tried to escape from the cascade of snowballs Michael
had been lobbing. The photo had Kitt's desperate bid for escape on one
side, Michael's triumphant throw which hit the windshield side on, on
the other side. A perfect shot of the two partners playing together.
The second photo was more artificial, but Devon had loved it. She
always thought of it as 'Free Kitt'. Michael and Kitt in the 'Free
Willy' pose; Michael standing, one arm stretched into the air with Kitt
jumping over him, like the whale jumping over the boy in the film
posters. What it did not capture was the fact that Michael had been
laughing hysterically, and Kitt had been egging Bonnie on. A rare
moment indeed when Kitt's impressive capabilities were being used purely
for fun, and he was the one encouraging the play.

She carried a small copy of the snowball fight shot in her purse. The
two people she loved most in all the world. Sometimes she wondered
about telling Michael how she felt about him. She knew he would never
marry, never do anything that would jeopardize his relationship with
Kitt. He had told her one night that he had taken on that
responsibility, as they all had. They had brought a life into this
world when they had created Kitt, and Michael for one was not ever going
to abandon that life. Maybe that had been the moment she had truly
fallen in love with him, because she had known then that it was okay to,
that her Kitt would be all right whatever happened. She was not looking
for marriage, she had never seen herself as the marrying type. One kid
was definitely enough. And that kid was going to need her for the rest
of his life, there would never come a time when he would grow up and
move away from home. There could not be a day when he could look after
himself in his dangerous world. They had made it that way, and it was
their responsibility.

Michael shifted again and opened his eyes to catch Bonnie watching
him. "What?" She shook her head, amused at his efforts to untangle
himself from the blanket Devon had covered him with, enough to sit up
straight. Devon seemed to be mothering them both at the moment, and
Bonnie wondered why. "Any news?"
"No. It's only been just over an hour. I don't want her to feel like
we're watching over her shoulder. Besides, the diagnostics probably
take hours to run. There are four technicians on their way to deal with
the car, they'll bring the other truck with all the parts they should
need. We need to at least get the car back on the road as soon as
possible."
"Damn straight. I'm going after whoever did this." Bonnie looked at
him warily, and Michael recognized her expression. "I know what you're
going to say. But I can't help but be angry."
Bonnie shook her head again, cutting him off, "That's not what I was
thinking about."
"Then what?"
She sat forward. "If Kitt makes it through this, he's had a bad
scare. You know what he was like after the incident with the acid pit,
and after the virus, it shakes his confidence, and rightly so. I doubt
he's going be ready to go out too soon, and you can't go back out there
without him. We still don't know which one of you they were after.
Devon's convinced they were trying to kill you, but I'm not so sure."
Michael screwed his face in thought, trying to find some reason why
anyone would want to hurt Kitt. "That sounds pretty unlikely Bonnie."
"There are easier ways to kill someone. Whoever planned this knew the
only way to damage the car was to attack from underneath. Surely it's
not too much to assume that same person would know that Kitt would do
anything to save your life. And they didn't come after you, they must
have seen you eject, yet they left you alone."
"I didn't eject," Michael put in. "Kitt threw me out."
Bonnie smiled. "He knew if you stayed in the car you wouldn't make
it. The interior was decimated, you'd have gone with it if he hadn't
ejected you, and you know it."
"I just wish that he'd let us take _all_ the risks together, including
the dangerous ones."
"Michael! He's there to save your life, that's his primary function
and that is never going to change."
"But it should." Michael leaned forward to make his point. "Maybe at
one time that _was_ what he was there for, but he's a person in his own
right now."
"And he would still die for you." She hesitated before adding, "Like
you would for him." Bonnie's expression was serious, and when she saw
the denial start onto Michael's lips, she said simply, "Tell me I'm
wrong."
He looked away. "He's my friend. He's the best friend I've ever had."

"I know, and you're his. So don't berate him for something you would
do in his place. Okay?"

**

"I'm scared Ella." Kitt kept his voice quiet and low. "I knew what
was happening, moment by moment. As a computer I have that luxury. As
we jumped I scanned the top of the truck, just before the first
explosive pierced the underside of the car. Then I ejected Michael. He
must have seen the diode light up because he screamed at me not to do
it."
"You saved his life. Have you seen the interior of the car?"
"Not exactly, but I can imagine what it looks like, if it was anything
like what happened in the engine compartment when that first explosive
detonated."
"Describe it to me."
Kitt hesitated. "It... it was like being in the centre of a huge ball
of flames. Before, knowing the fire is coming but not being able to
move, during, while the flames lick at you, all around you, burning
everywhere. And after, when it's still too hot, when you know you're
dying and soon the pain will all go away. But it didn't. Until Bonnie
switched me off when I arrived here."

Ella sat horrified, staring at the microprocessor before her, trying to
take in everything at once. Burning. Knowing. Escape. Pain. These
were definitely not words in the language of computers. These were
words used by a traumatized person who had taken a look into hell and
decided it was not such a great place after all. She found herself
reaching out to Kitt. What the hell was she going to do? Stroke a
piece of metal?

There was a long silence between them. Finally Kitt asked, "Did you
write the C.E.E.P.S. program?" Ella nodded, then realizing that Kitt
could not see her, vocally confirmed that she did. Her thoughts were
still off-centre over all that was happening. "You saved my life."
Whatever reaction Kitt had expected, Ella simply smiled and chuckled.
"No, I didn't, Kitt. Michael and Bonnie saved your life. They acted
quickly, they made sure the recovery had somewhere to recover to." She
sat forward, touching the side of the casing lightly. "I think they
love you." She spoke with infinite awe.
There was a long pause. "I'm sorry I lied to them." The apology and
sadness in the computer's synthesized voice astounded her.
"It's okay, I won't tell them if you don't. I'll say the recovery had
an error in it, but that I managed to retrieve the remainder of the data
manually."
"But your program worked, Ella. There was no mistake on your part."
There was something akin to... misery ? in his voice.
Ella found herself wondering what she could do for Kitt, who was
obviously still in shock after his ordeal. "So what if it did work?
They'll never know, and they won't care either. You're back with them,
in one piece, safe and sound." She thought for a moment. "Only that's
not true is it?" There was more inner thought than realization in her
tone. "You're not sound, that's why you pretended that you couldn't
speak, that the voice module wasn't working. You don't want to be okay
because that would mean going back out, and that terrifies you."
There was nothing but understanding in her summary of the situation.
And Kitt could only confirm what she had said. "I am ashamed of what I
did. I don't want you to have to lie to them, to let them think that it
was your mistake."
"I honestly don't mind. I'd prefer that they thought that."

Kitt fell silent. He could still replay those agonizing moments before
and during the attack. He remembered, with crystal clarity, knowing
that it was all over, knowing there was no way to survive this, knowing
Michael had to be ejected, and that there was no time to say goodbye.
This was the end and there was so much he had never said, to Bonnie and
even Devon, but especially to Michael. No time. He had heard Michael
shout in denial as the driver ejection began. It was the only way. "I
will tell them that I'm not able to work with Michael any more."
Ella sighed. "Why don't you try telling them the truth? That you're
frightened, that you've had a shock and it's knocked your confidence."
Her voice became more gentle. "It isn't something to be ashamed of,
Kitt. It happens to us all."
"It doesn't happen to computers."
Ella thought about the scene she had encountered when she had first
arrived. "You're more than just a computer. I can tell that just by
listening to you. Computers definitely don't think the way you're
thinking. You're thinking like a person and that must be how the others
see you, operators don't usually hand total access control over to their
machines. You're more than that."
Another long pause. And then a quiet, "Thank you."

Ella continued to look through the code modules that she had access
to. Most of the functions that were not running she assumed referred to
the operation of the car itself. Kitt probably had the ability to run
those when needed. One function, perc_init, in the main root directory,
was also not running. "Kitt, what's perc_init?"
He answered quietly, obviously his thoughts were elsewhere too. "That
is the function that initializes the perceptors."
"Perceptors? As in AI?"
"Perceptors are little pieces of hardware that make it possible for me
to... feel my environment."
Ella frowned. "Feel? How?"
"They act like basic nerve-endings. Much less sensitive, but
effectively the same purpose; to make me aware of what's around me."
"Why isn't this function running?"
"The perceptors are only activated when the CPU is installed in the
car."
"But you activate them yourself, don't you."
"Yes, I do now."
"Then why only when you're in the car?"
Kitt was silent for a moment. "I haven't been out of the body of the
car since control was given to me."
"You mean, that's all you've ever known? Engine parts?"
When Kitt answered her, there was definite amusement and patience in
his voice. "I am a computer designed and built to operate within the
body of the Knight 2000. I am the voice of the car. Without the car,
I'm a box. There is nothing else for me."

Ella thought about everything he had said. She had been searching the
directory structure looking for some clue on what to say to him, how to
help him through the obvious trauma he was feeling after what he had
been through. But an idea was forming in her head, so bizarre that she
was not sure she should even ask. "Are all the perceptors fitted in the
car?"
"All but one."
"And where's that?"
"It's attached to the casing, on a short wire. It's for testing
purposes."
Ella stood, and carefully looked down into the circuitry within the
casing. She felt scared to touch anything. Kitt had definitely become
more than the sum of the parts used to make up this fantastic computer.
Folded carefully into the side of the casing, she found a wire, attached
to a circuit board at one end, a small receiver at the other, resembling
an earphone used on Walkmans. Very gently, she lifted and unfolded the
wire, and then lifted the entire casing and sat down, settling it onto
her knees and getting comfortable.

She had no idea why she was doing this; maybe she was losing it,
working around machines too long had driven her insane. But there was
something in that voice that kept getting to her, an edge that spoke
volumes to her when only a few words were being used. It made her care
and Ella had walked away from that too many times already.

She did not know that she was making the exact same leap of faith that
everyone else who worked with Kitt had made.

Once she was comfortable, her legs curled under her, Kitt sitting
safely in her lap, she placed the perceptor in the palm of her hand, and
sat very still. "Activate that function, Kitt." She said quietly.
"Ella, there's no reason..."
"Please? Trust me, okay?"
Kitt said nothing else, but out of curiosity, out of wanting to trust
Ella despite previous experiences; he ran the initialization function.
It took a moment. And then he could feel. It was how he had imagined
being in the seat of the car would feel, soft and warm. And it felt
comforting somehow. "Where am I?"
Ella smiled to herself. "You're sitting on my knee, Kitt. Your
perceptor's resting in my hand. Don't worry, I won't hurt you."
There was a long silence as Kitt took the electronic equivalent of a
deep breath and forced himself to relax. Everything was going to be
okay. "Why are you doing this?" he asked finally.

Ella shook her head. "I don't know Kitt, I've been sitting here
wondering that myself. Maybe it's because I think you've been in a very
nasty car accident, and you just need time to adjust."
Kitt had to agree with her. He lapsed back into silence, letting the
data from the perceptor flood more of his circuits. No one had ever
shown him affection like this before. He found he did not want to say
anymore. Emotions were pounding at him, different feelings that just
did not settle well together. It was difficult to feel so much at once
and it took up much of his processing power just trying to put
everything into place. After some time, he found he was hearing a soft
noise. Snoring. Michael snored. It was a comforting, familiar sound,
and for a long time he just listened.

**

Bonnie took in the scene in stunned silence. Ella was curled up in the
chair, right hand out over the arm, with Kitt in her lap and the test
perceptor in her palm. Quietly, Bonnie crouched down and whispered,
"Kitt?"
"Bonnie... it's good to hear you."
"Are you okay?"
"I will be."
She felt relief envelope her, and allowed herself a smile. "Do you
know where you are?"
"Yes." She had expected more, some quick comeback, but nothing else
followed, so she let it go for now.
"The technicians are here to sort out the car, we'll have you back to
yourself in no time."
"Thank you, Bonnie."

Despite the fact that there were so many things to say, Kitt found he
did not feel like talking right now. He had always felt vulnerable in
this state, out of the car, like he was naked, if he could take a wild
guess at what that felt like. He did want to be back in the car, which
was where he belonged; it gave him movement, control, sight and
independence. But right now, for a little longer, he was happy exactly
where he was.

**

A little later, Ella woke to the aroma of fresh coffee. These people
really knew their caffeine. When she opened her eyes, she focused first
on Michael, crouching beside her and grinning, second on the work
proceeding on the body of the car behind him. "I thought you might need
this." He indicated the steaming mug in his hand.
Ella nodded, "Thanks." She tried to move her legs, but they were not
responding. "I think my legs have gone to sleep." Michael put the mug
down on the workbench and reached down for the casing.
"Let me take Kitt...."
She held up a warning hand, "Careful, this is a live perceptor."
Michael immediately backed off. "Right. Well why don't we swap places
for a while?"
"You sure?"
"Of course."
Michael flattened his left right hand and very carefully Ella shifted
the perceptor into his palm. Lifting the casing, she then moved off the
chair, settling herself on the floor, knowing her legs would not support
her until she got some blood back in them. Once Michael was seated, she
placed Kitt on his lap.

As Ella rubbed some life back into her legs, Michael marvelled in
feeling the weight of his partner for the first time. Ella saw the
strange look on his face. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I just realized, I've never held him before."
Ella could not help the smile that broke out. His words warmed her
heart and made her feel less like she was not the only one over-reacting
to this startling computer.

"Michael?"
"Hey, Kitt. How are you feeling?"
"I'm fine, thank you."
"And now the truth."
Ella had not been sure whether to say anything to Michael and Bonnie or
not, but she realized at that moment that she would not have to.
"...I've been better."
Michael gently started to rub the perceptor with his thumb. "I know,
Pal, I know. There are technicians here. They're working on the car if
you were wondering what all the noise is. They'll have it all fixed up
within a few days. You'll feel better once you're back in the car, I'm
sure."
"Whoever attacked us meant to kill you, Michael." Kitt spoke quietly,
and Ella got the distinct feeling that he wanted this to be a private
discussion. She stood, wobbled slightly, then picked up her coffee and
headed tactfully into the house.
"Well, Bonnie isn't so sure about that, Kitt. She thinks they were
after you."
"Michael... I don't understand. Why?"
"I don't know. It does make sense, if they were after me, there are
easier ways. Someone went to a lot of trouble to set that up."

Kitt seemed to think about that. Michael's eyes wondered to the
activity on the other side of the garage, and in the back of the Semi
where Bonnie was working along side one of the technicians. "Michael?"
"Yeah, Kitt."
"Is that you?"
He brought his attention back to his partner. "Is what me?"
"...Touching the perceptor."
"Sorry, Kitt," he stopped, pulling his thumb away, mindful not to drop
the small device.
"You don't have to stop. It's... it's nice. It's comforting."
Michael was touched, and resumed his delicate stroking. He wondered if
it would be possible to have a perceptor inside the car, placed
somewhere so that it would not be accidentally knocked. So that they
had some way of touching Kitt, that he felt it. He sometimes missed
being able to give Kitt the comfort of physical closeness.

"Michael, has Ella left?"
The question came unexpectedly. "No, I think she just went to shower
and change. I think Devon was going to ask her to stay, at least for
the weekend. Just in case something else comes up." He glanced down.
"Why do you ask?"
"I wouldn't want her to go without thanking her."
The explanation was simple, and was what Michael would have expected
from Kitt, but he had a feeling there was more going on here.

Before he could ask about it, Kitt changed the subject again. "Why did
you shout at me when I ejected you?"
Michael instantly felt that twinge of anger he experienced every time
he thought about the attack. "We're supposed to be in this together."
He realized that he must have let some of his feelings into his voice
when Kitt's own voice dropped considerably. "You're angry with me. I
was only doing what I had to do to save your life. That is my primary
function, Michael, you know that."
He took a deep breath, releasing some of the pent-up tension. "I'm not
angry with you, pal. But I wish you wouldn't give me that programming
stuff, you've broken through that, I know you have."
"I would still do everything I could to save your life when you're in
danger. You're my partner and partners are supposed to do that. I
could never let anything happen to you."
Michael sighed. He could not argue with Kitt's logic; his friend was
right. But that did not stop it from irking him. "It just seems that
every time it comes to the crunch, you're in it on your own. It just
feels wrong."
"Does this mean... that you don't want to work with me anymore?"
The suggestion shocked him. "No Kitt, God no, that's not what I'm
saying. I could never work with anyone else."
"Do you mean that?"
"Of course. Kitt, never underestimate how much you mean to me, and how
I feel about you. I will never leave you while I'm still alive, that's
a promise."
"I don't know what to say...."
"That's okay, Pal. I know."

Kitt really was not sure what to say. It was starting to overwhelm
him. He desperately wanted to be back in the car, in surroundings he
knew. This strange blindness he endured without his sensors was always
difficult to cope with. There was usually data coming into his CPU at a
constant, bombarding rate. He was used to dealing with chaos, sorting
it and ordering it in milliseconds. But lack of data, almost like
silence around him, despite the outside noise, could easily panic him,
and he had to fight continuously to keep calm.

Kitt found Michael's simple rubbing of the perceptor tremendously
helpful, it gave him input, data to be handled, it also gave him a new
contact to the outside world. He and Michael had been together for over
seven years, it was all Kitt had ever known, yet in all that time, he
had never felt as close to his driver as he did at this moment.

**

The skilled technicians worked through the day and well into the night,
having estimated two days before the car would be ready to take the
CPU. The new shell that they had been going on about when Bonnie had
first contacted them, came with a brand new paint-job. Gone was the
old, familiar black, replaced by epoxy; metallic paint with a golden hue
that resembled highly polished metal, and caught light spectacularly,
giving the impression of a very fast street machine. They even
remodelled the front slightly, bringing the nose down in a touch more of
a curve than the straight front the old car had had.

By Sunday night, Ella still had no flight plans, and no intention of
leaving unless they threw her out. Michael had spent most of the two
days with Kitt, talking, playing games, anything to keep the computer
occupied while he sat blind on the workbench, or more often in Michael's
lap. Michael had mentioned the idea of an accessible perceptor to
Bonnie, who had spoken to the technicians. It would be placed around
the back of the steering wheel, in the top of the steering column. The
input would be dampened down so as not to be a constant for Kitt to deal
with, but he would be able to boost the signal if he wanted to. It
would not be knocked accidentally and would be in a perfect position for
Kitt to feel it when Michael hugged the steering wheel, an action Bonnie
had noticed him do more often in the recent months.

Devon watched the goings on from a distance, concerned about the
motives for the attack that had caused all this. He was concerned about
the ease with which their attackers had been able to get into the lab,
they would have needed several codes; for the gates and for the doors
they had to pass through.

The police had gone over the lab with a fine tooth-comb, had picked up
several sets of prints, all accounted for except one. A single index
finger that linked the destruction to a man named William Clay. Clay
was a collector of cars. He reputedly had the largest collection in the
world, keeping them all in several garages erected on his estate just
outside of Phoenix. He had made his money as an exclusive car dealer,
able to get any car a customer requested for a very considerable price.
His means were questionable, but his motive was impossible to figure.
The man loved cars.

Devon was convinced the destruction of the lab was tied into the
attack; destroy Kitt and ensure he stayed destroyed by wiping out the
backup. But why would a man like Clay attack the car, do as much damage
as he had, and then simply leave the scene. Nothing made sense.

He spent a lot of time wondering around the house, and had finally
decided that once Kitt was ready, they would return to the estate in
California. All his papers were there, the test track was there for the
car to be put through its paces. And more importantly there was room,
space for them all to try to relax, take a breath, and maybe even settle
back into some semblance of normality.

**

The nights had been cold, but there had been no more rain or snow since
that first night. Wrapped in several sweaters and a thick coat, that
Devon had loaned her, Ella found that she was warm enough to sit outside
and enjoy the marvellous views of the night sky. With no light
pollution whatsoever, stars and galaxies could be seen in stunning
detail.

"Hi."
Ella turned in the darkness and smiled. "Hi Bonnie."
"I saw you sitting out here, I thought you might need a hot drink."
Bonnie sat herself down on the wall, and let her legs dangle, handing
her a mug. Ella sniffed at the drink.
"Wow! Is this what I think it is?"
"Hot chocolate, the nearest I ever come to cooking."
She took a sip of the steaming liquid. "It's fantastic."
"Thank you."
Ella let the warmth from the mug heat her hands through the long
sleeves of one of her sweaters. "How's Kitt?"
"He's okay, shaken, upset, frightened... but he's still with us, and
that's what's important."
"You lot really care for him, don't you?"
Bonnie nodded. "He's a member of the family."
Ella smiled ironically. "My family spends most of their time arguing."

Bonnie looked over at Ella curiously, but read nothing in her
expression to give anything away. "Well, we have our times. Mind you,
we usually bring it on ourselves."
Ella frowned. "You surprise me. You all seem so... close, so
understanding."
"Well, in our line of work it's difficult." She sighed, remembering.
"There was one case, we had to send Michael in undercover and the person
we were after was a communications expert. We thought he may be able to
penetrate Kitt's systems, so we didn't tell Kitt what was going on.
There'd been break in at the Foundation, but nothing was stolen, and
when we scanned the mansion, a tiny camera and transmitter had been
placed in Devon's office. So Michael set himself up for arrest, and for
suspension from the Foundation. He and Devon acted for the camera,
staging arguments and such like. I could see Kitt getting more and more
upset through it all. The guy we were after approached Michael like we
hoped he would, took him on, and asked him to prove his loyalty by
stealing Kitt. So Michael did. He broke into the garage, talked Kitt
into going. Kitt belongs to Michael, he adores him, so we hoped that
alone would be enough for him to go and it was. Everything was going
perfectly." She smiled faintly at the memories.
Ella was hooked. "What happened?"
"Well, as we had expected, the guy asked Michael for more proof, asked
him to get some key that was in Devon's possession, and to get rid of
Devon in the process. They acted it all out in Devon's office, as
planned, Michael shot him with a blank and Devon went down. Then
Michael grabbed the key and tried to escape. What we didn't figure on
was Kitt. He'd tapped into the transmitter, seen the whole act,
believed it and when Michael tried to drive off, Kitt had refused to
power up. We knocked out the transmitter, and Devon and I stood at the
window watching. It struck me as hilarious at the time, watching
Michael trying to move the car. We had to explain to Kitt what was
going on, leaving it far too dangerous for Michael to return
undercover. We lost the guy, he was arrested about a year later for
something or other. Our real problem turned out to be Kitt, he honestly
thought Michael had killed Devon, he had watched as his world shattered
and he was devastated. We used to forget that Kitt can be hurt as much
as, maybe more than, the rest of us can. He's still very young, and
really we're all he's ever known. If he can't trust us, who the hell
can he trust? He needs us, it's not like he can leave home." She shook
her head. "I can't imagine how he must have felt, seeing that all slip
away."
"Bonnie, he's a computer. He's very human-like, but he is a computer,
with programmed responses."
Bonnie chuckled, and caught Ella's gaze. "You have no idea how often
I've heard that. Mostly from Kitt himself." She shook her head. "His
responses aren't programmed anymore, they never really were. We gave
him some starting blocks to grow from, that was all."

She turned her head, looking back into the garage where the lights were
on over the lab area, despite it being the early hours of the morning.
Ella followed Bonnie's eyes and saw Michael sitting in the comfy chair,
Kitt on the workbench, playing chess. But even from this distance, Ella
could make out Michael's hand, flat out on the bench, the test perceptor
in his palm. "He really likes having someone holding that perceptor, he
says it's comforting." Bonnie turned back to staring out over the
extensive grounds, and the woodland surrounding them. "What made you
think of that?"
"I saw the function wasn't running and asked Kitt what it did. The
idea just came to mind, I thought it might help him, he seemed very...
shaken. It always helps to have someone holding your hand"
Bonnie smiled knowingly. "So already you see him as more than just a
computer, you care about his feelings."
"Don't remind me."
Bonnie grinned across at her, feeling very awake despite her lack of
sleep over the passed days. "It's okay to feel that way. You just have
to accept it. Michael said once that Kitt was special and unique, and
he exacted special and unique reactions from people. I think that's how
he rationalizes it when he needs to."
For some reason, that sat well with Ella as if she too had been looking
for a way to rationalize her own feelings. "Do you ever long for a
normal life?"
That made Bonnie laugh. "What's a normal life? A part time job,
husband, kids, typing?"
Ella shrugged. "Well...."
"I love my life. I work with the most amazing technology, I'm always
at the forefront of what's happening in my field. I do what I love
doing, software and hardware engineering where it matters. I have Kitt,
and I love him very much. And... I guess I've fallen in love with
Michael."
Ella grinned, "Have you told him?"
"Not yet, I'd just reached the conclusion when this nightmare started."



A comfortable silence fell between the two of them. Both became lost
in thought. The slice of moon was clear over the trees in front of
them. It was beautifully quiet, with only the rustle of the wildlife in
the grounds. Devon had told Ella earlier that afternoon that she was
quite welcome to stay, that Kitt seemed to like having her around, and
that was enough for them. Part of her wanted to stay more than anything
else in the world, but part of her wanted to leave it all behind, and
make Kitt nothing more than a memory.
"Bonnie, have you ever felt... more, for Kitt?"
Ella honestly expected Bonnie to ask her what the hell she was talking
about, but instead a knowing look crossed the technician's face. "He
can be very... charming, Ella. Just remember that at the moment, he's
very vulnerable, most of his usual emotional defences are down, and he
needs people around him. When he's back in the car, when he's back to
his normal self, then you'll get to know him as he is." Bonnie jumped
down off the wall, and moved to stand by Ella's knees, to look up into
her unreadable expression. "And believe me, that's when it'll get
difficult."

Bonnie left Ella to her thoughts and headed into the garage to check on
her two men. Ella finished the last of her hot chocolate, but did not
move from where she was sitting until the sun came up. She lived in
California, as near to Hollywood as made no odds. The sunsets were
fantastic, but there was never any peace, always a club, or working
late, never time to sit and think. It had been a long time since she
was alone with her thoughts. And now she was, she was starting to
realize just how much was missing from her life. Mind you, an
over-intelligent computer was not going to fill that hole.


Kitt had won. Again. Michael had played seven games against his
partner and lost every one. As she entered the garage, Bonnie heard
Michael saying, "You could at least _let_ me win on."
"Michael, you really wouldn't want me to throw a game, would you?"
"Well...."
"Michael!"
The familiar banter, almost predictable, had kept their relationship
going for the past seven years. It kept them sane in an insane world.
It made them feel safe with each other when their lives were dangerous
and unpredictable. Sometimes Kitt's own brand of logic irritated
Michael, but then he was sure that he often drove Kitt mad, so they were
even.

"Michael," Bonnie spoke quietly as she sat up on the workbench.
"Hi Bon."
"Good evening, Bonnie."
"Kitt, it's nearly four am, it's hardly the evening."
She was joking, expecting a sharp retort, but none came. Bonnie
frowned, and Michael shrugged, gently placing the perceptor on the
sponge next to the casing, and beckoning for her to follow him outside.
"Give me a moment, okay Kitt?"
"Of course, Michael."

They got outside before Bonnie nailed Michael with a
more-than-concerned stare. Michael backed off a step or two.
"He's been like this all day, it's little things that wouldn't usually
bother him but seem to be upsetting him at the moment."
"Have you talked to him?"
"I've spent all day...."
But Bonnie shook her head, interrupting him. "I mean, really talked to
him, about how he's feeling." Michael sighed. He was tired,
exhausted. Bonnie saw it in his eyes; he was wasted, but still trying
to hold it together. "Kitt needs you, Michael. I know it's hard...."
This time it was his turn. "It's not hard, Bonnie. He's my best
friend, my partner. I just wish I knew what to say."
Bonnie nodded, understanding exactly how he felt. "What have you said
before? You've managed to get him to open up in the past."
"He just seemed more willing to talk before. This time it seems
different. I think...."
"What?"
"I think he's embarrassed about his reaction to all this."
Bonnie nodded. She motioned towards the still figure of Ella sitting
on the wall some way from them, with her back to them. "I was talking
to Ella yesterday about it. She seemed to think that he may take some
time to get over this one."
"For someone who's only known him a few days, she seems to have become
quite close to him."
Bonnie smiled, "She has become very fond of him."
There was a certain amount of subtle hint in her voice, but Michael did
not pick up on it. He had seen how careful Ella had been with Kitt,
with the perceptor that she had activated. She was obviously seeing his
partner as much more than a machine already. Bonnie looked carefully at

Michael. "You need some sleep. How are you feeling?"
"Lucky." He smiled as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Very lucky."

**

Ella showered early Monday morning; feeling refreshed despite the very
few hours' sleep that she had had. Bonnie was up making breakfast and
brewing coffee by the time Ella wondered into the kitchen. Outside, the
technicians were already at work. "How's the car coming?"
Bonnie put a mug in Ella's hand. "It should be ready by this evening.
We'll put Kitt back as soon as we can. It's important that we get him
back on his feet, so to speak, as fast as possible." Ella nodded.
"Bonnie, if there's anything I can do.... I do feel like I've barged
in here. Even though I didn't want to come when Devon first called, now

I feel in no hurry to leave. I hope you don't mind me being here, and
anything I can do for you, please just ask."
"I don't mind you being here, none of us do.... I know Kitt
appreciates you." She lapsed back into silence.
"What's wrong?"
Bonnie leant heavily against the cupboards. "There's something up with
Kitt. He's not responding to things as he used to, he seems nervous, as
if something's bothering him."
"He's bound to be slightly preoccupied. He's probably still in a
little bit of shock."
"I know, but we have had situations like this before, times when Kitt's
been injured, or the car's been damaged.... There's something else
here, I'm sure of it. I just hope he finds the courage to talk to us."
Ella placed a gentle hand on Bonnie's arm, "I think once you get him
back into the car, he'll be much better, much more comfortable."

**

Michael loved it. He loved what they had done to the exterior, he
loved what they had done to the interior. But most of all he loved it
when he climbed into the car that Monday night, and the voice display
lit up in delight.
"Michael, it's good to have you back there."
"So you're not going to throw me out this time, Kitt?" The comment had
been meant as a joke, but the computer went quiet. "Aw, Kitt, I'm
sorry. Ella said to be careful. You saved my life, Pal. Again. I owe
you so much and I feel I'll never find a way to repay you."
"There's no need to look, Michael." Another pause, before he decided
to wait to say what he wanted so desperately to say. "So, how do I
look?"
"You look fantastic, Kitt. I wish you could see yourself."
"Unfortunately the new detailed scanners only look inside the car. But
I can see you, in a manner of speaking."
Michael smiled. "And how do I look?"
There was another pause before Kitt replied, "Wonderfully familiar."
Michael felt the warm affection radiating through Kitt's words and he
revelled in it.
"So, how about a drive?"

Michael had half-expected to have to coax Kitt back out onto the road,
but the car seemed happy enough to play with the bends and curves
revealed as they drove further into the woodland. Letting Kitt drive,
Michael settled back and enjoyed the scenery, enjoyed being back in his
own car, with the familiar, comfortable feeling of safety the Trans-Am
had always given him. The moonlight caught the hood through the trees,
the light playing off the new paint-work. The new colour allowed
reflections of the spectrum and even from inside it looked stunning.

The dash looked a little less like 'Darth Vader's bathroom'. The same
functionality had been incorporated into a much less understated panel
of small buttons, still far enough apart that Michael would not hit the
wrong one, and still in the same order and basic location that they had
always been. He hardly ever looked down anymore, he knew where each
function was and it had been a long time since he had accidentally hit
the wrong one. The single monitor screen was now four, smaller ones in
a video-wall configuration. The double-handled joystick-style steering
had been swapped for an ordinary wheel several years ago, at Michael's
request. But Kitt was still the same as he had always been. He had
grown up, matured along with the people around him, become easier to get
along with, although Michael still sometimes thought he was too like
Devon in some ways, too like himself in others.

An hour later, with Kitt still driving, Michael checked out some of the
other functions. The scanners, external and internal, now had extended
range and more detailed input and display capabilities. And a single,
tiny lens in the dash gave Kitt a startlingly detailed image of his
driver; a clearer picture than he had ever had. Added to that, Bonnie
had once again managed a slight increase in speed along with the
additional braking that required.
Still Kitt seemed very quiet.
Michael had been wondering how to rile his partner enough to get him to
tell Michael what was wrong, and earlier on he had finally figured out
what to do. He had an idea; all he had to do was lead into it.
"Kitt," Michael started, "I've been doing a lot of thinking over the
last few days. I mean, the drive up here was very quiet without anyone
to talk to, and there's been a lot of sitting around to do, waiting for
the repairs and everything to be completed...."
It worked.
"Please, Michael, don't." Michael waited as Kitt pulled the car over,
stopped safely in amongst the nearest trees. "I failed you." He said
simply. "I should have scanned the truck before we jumped, I should
have known, gone around the obstruction instead of over. Once we were
airborne there was no way to abort without putting your life in danger,
I knew if you stayed in the car you'd be killed. It would have been my
fault. As it was I ejected you and you still got hurt. I endangered
your life. That's unforgivable. And I understand that we can't work
together if I can't do my job, if I can't protect you. I'm sorry."

By the time Kitt finished, Michael was fighting back tears. He let out
a deep sigh, and leaned his forehead against the steering wheel. "Kitt,
listen to me. Do you remember what I told you, over the laptop, when
Bonnie re-initialized the system?"
"Yes. You told me..." Kitt hesitated, dropped the volume of his
voice. "You told me you loved me."
"I do love you, Kitt. And I need you to know that, and to remember
it. We were out on a drive, talking about our Christmas vacation,
discussing where you wanted to go 'cause I chose last year. We weren't
being chased, we weren't on a case, we weren't on alert, we were just
cruising. And a truck pulled out of a junction in front of us. There
were drops on both sides, a narrow road; the only way was over. We may
have been breaking the speed limit, but I was driving, it was my fault
that we were going too fast to stop. Kitt, we've done the same thing a
thousand times. We always go over, it's more fun, it's safer than
suddenly darting out into the other side of the road. No one's to blame
for what happened. Maybe if we had been on alert we'd have done it
differently. I don't know. We did what we did. We were attacked. You
saved my life."
"I ejected you against your wishes...."
"Because you knew that I wouldn't eject."
"You were angry that I did it...."
"Only because... because we're partners, a team, and I hate the thought
that you're programmed to sacrifice yourself for me. I feel that it
isn't fair."
"But Michael, that's why I'm here, to protect you."
"Kitt...."
"And even if I hadn't been programmed that way," Kitt continued, "I'd
have done the same thing, I would always do the same thing, because
you're my friend and my partner. I never expected things to be this
way. When we first met I thought we would have a working relationship
at best, a few cursory words in the morning and then me simply giving
you information when you asked for it. What we have is beyond anything
I...."
"Anything you dreamt of." Michael finished quietly, touched.
"Yes."
"So you've been worrying that because you did the only thing you could
have done, under the circumstances, and because you saved my life and
endangered your own, I wouldn't want to be working with you anymore? Is
that right?" He kept his tone infinitely gentle, hoping to get
everything, all of Kitt's worries and fears, out into the open so that
they could deal with them.
"Yes...."
"You're wrong. I meant what I said when you were in the garage. I
wouldn't ever want to work with anyone else. If I lost you, I don't
think I could go on working for the Foundation. If I lost you...." He
thought back to the moment Bonnie had told him, with her eyes alone,
that there was nothing more she could do, that Kitt was gone, and he let
that terrible empty feeling return to memory. "I thought you were dead
back there, I thought I would somehow have to go on without you, and I
wasn't sure how the hell I was going to do that. You feel that you're
responsible for my life, well Kitt, I feel the same way about you."

In the quiet that followed, Michael wrapped his arms around the
steering wheel, letting his thumb brush against the perceptor. He
thought, for a moment, that he heard a hum of contentment from the voice
box, but he could not be sure.
"Michael," Kitt said eventually, "thank you."
"So are we okay? Because if there's anything else bothering you, I
want you to be able to talk to me about it, about anything."
"We're okay Michael, but I will remember that."
"Okay. You want to drive?"
"If I may...."
Michael sat back, grinning. "Be my guest."

****


end chapter one

Two - Retreat to Nevada

Ella let loose an appreciative whistle as they pulled up in front of
the Knight mansion. _This_ was more like it. Here was her lab, with
the scientists and technicians running around wearing white coats and
panicking. The lab, that had been demolished only days before, was
quickly being rebuilt and re-equipped. Michael and Kitt had arrived
earlier and now there were technicians fussing around the car. Ella
frowned as she stepped out of the Limo. She caught Devon's attention
and indicated the commotion. "Is it always like this?"

Devon raised his eyebrows questioningly and followed Ella's pointed
finger. He shook his head. "Oh no, they're just concerned for him.
They'll settle down once they know he's okay. Kitt's well cared for
around here. _And_ this is the first time they've seen the new look
Knight 2000. I think they're also curious."

Ella leaned on the top of the Limo that had collected them from the
airport. For some reason that she could not put her finger on, it
unsettled her to see Kitt being prodded and poked at, even if they were
not strangers. She had not realized that she was staring until Bonnie
sidled up behind her, and whispered quietly, "Stop drooling."

Ella immediately turned away, embarrassed. But Bonnie just laughed,
and continued inside. Ella was about to follow when Devon called after
her. "I just wanted to say," he started, as he walked her into the
mansion, "that you're welcome to stay as long as you like. I'd be quite
happy to speak to your boss...."
"Thank you, Devon. They owe me enough vacation time. I spoke to Jerry
this morning, he was okay with it."
Devon smiled at her. As far as Ella could make out, Devon only had two
expressions, smiling and frowning. She liked him a lot. She liked the
way he played father and boss to these people, and the way he knew which
to be when.
"I appreciate you letting me stay on. I would really like to know that
Kitt's okay."
"Well, I don't think he is at the moment, but he will be." Again he
looked as if there was something more he wanted to say, but instead he
took a step back. "If you'll excuse me, Ella, I'm sure there's a
mountain of paperwork waiting for me. Please, make yourself at home.
Bonnie will show you around, if you can find her."
"Thanks Devon, I'll be fine."

**

As the crowd moved into the garage, the commotion around Kitt
increased. More technicians who worked closely with the car started to
realize that the computer's reactions and retorts were not as they used
to be. Michael watched the scene with mixed emotions, becoming more
concerned by the minute. Bonnie was also watching from the new lab
section of the garage. Both could feel Kitt's growing agitation, and
both saw the car shift into gear and start to reverse, obviously mindful
of the people around, but also as obviously needing to get out of
there. From the garage door, Michael took a step forward, but Bonnie
was closer, and with one startling shout she cleared the technicians
from around the car. She started to close on Kitt, but the car
continued to pull back. "Come on, Kitt, it's okay."

But instead of stopping, they all heard Kitt's unusually soft voice,
"I'm sorry, Bonnie, I need some time." He pulled a neat 180-degree turn
and passed by Michael in the doorway. He watched the car leave, but did
not say a word. He knew Kitt too well, had spent too much time with
him, not to know when he needed to be left alone.

The technicians had cleared from the garage, mumbling and muttering
amongst themselves. Only Bonnie remained behind. When she saw Michael
approaching her, she pushed off the workbench, taking a step towards
him. "I'm sorry. I didn't know they'd get like that."
"It's okay, Bonnie. You didn't know Kitt would get like that either."
She sighed. "How is he?"
Michael shrugged. "He was very quiet on the way here. I think he just
needs time, like he said, and a lot of understanding."
Bonnie walked across to where Kitt had been standing in the garage. "I
don't get what's going on here. Michael, he's never been this upset
before. Not since...."
She stopped, and Michael frowned, "Since when?"
"Since the time of your vacation in Rio."

Michael tried to remember back, his memories of that holiday were
incredible, basking in the heat, the women, the relaxation. Kitt had
been quiet around then, it was part of the reason Devon had sent him
off, because Michael had put Kitt's distraction down to his own
exhaustion and stress. "I thought it was just me being.... Sometimes
my behaviour rubs off on him. He'll take his cues from me, and often if
I'm quiet, he will be too."
Bonnie shook her head, and met Michael's confused gaze with her own.
"He was definitely acting strange around then. Although you are right
in that when you got back, he seemed fine again." She smiled at him as
he stepped towards her. "Maybe you do have a greater influence on him
than I thought."

Michael's expression changed as he saw the definite twinkle in her
eye. She closed the gap between them. "Maybe you have a greater
influence than I thought... on me too."
For one moment, the look on her face blew everything else out of his
mind. His heart started pounding. "Bonnie..."
She reached down and took his hands in hers. "Michael, at the moment
Kitt is more important to me than anything else. Whatever's going on,
he's going to need us at some point. But I wanted to tell you...."
Michael's fingertips on her cheek took the words from her lips. She
shivered lightly as he bent slowly and touched his lips to hers.
"I've wanted to tell you too," he murmured, "for a long time."
"You have?"
"I have."
"Why haven't you said anything?"
"Because I'm a coward? Why haven't you?"
"Because I'm a coward?"

Her lips touched again to his, and this time Michael was not going to
waste the moment. He brought his hands up to her shoulders, gently
sweeping his tongue over her mouth. He felt her fingers in his hair,
felt her against his body. He could not remember how long he had wanted
this, how many times he had thought about holding her in his arms,
kissing her thoroughly, making love to her....

Bonnie relaxed into Michael's warm embrace. He tasted incredible, felt
fantastic, and finally she felt she was where she belonged. When they
parted, Michael was smiling at her. "Michael...." she started, but he
interrupted her.
"I know. Kitt first, us later."
"But not too much later...."
"Definitely not."

**

Kitt did not go very far. Too preoccupied to drive anywhere, he
maneuvered further into the grounds of the rambling estate until he
believed himself to be alone. Wilton Knight must have liked his trees,
Kitt mused. The other place had been surrounded by woodland, and
although their California home was not quite so buried, there was still
enough for Kitt to lose himself in it; metaphorically speaking.

He knew his behaviour had been unexpected, and that he was adding to
the concerns of his friends. But he had enough to cope with at the
moment, things that went beyond the attack, things no one knew about.
Alice.
Kitt had believed that he had rid himself of the terrible images she
had plagued him with during the three months she was hacking into his
systems. When he had finally tracked her down, closed the door on her
once and for all, he had gathered together everything, all the data,
every false memory she had left him with, and deleted them. But Alice
had been a skilled programmer, an expert hacker, and she had left behind
something he had not been aware of until after Ella's program had
revived him. Somehow, as well as hacking into his internal systems, she
had hacked in to the backup mainframe which had been standing by, ready
to take the backup the C.E.E.P.S. program sent to it, and store it until
recovery had been possible and safe.

He had seen it, that first flash just after Bonnie had restarted the
program. He had tried to push it away; he had deleted as much as he
could find then. But there was more, surfacing bit by bit, tied in
irrevocably with critical parts of his own software. However she had
done it, she had been thorough. Kitt had never known why she had chosen
him. Never known why she had hacked in over and over, each time leaving
no trace, only the horrific images and suggestions, and by the time Kitt
noticed them there, she was already out. Over ninety times in three
months.

And then Michael had gone on vacation. And while he partied with the
girls, Kitt had sat silently in the parking lot of the hotel in Rio and
fought back. He had waited, every bit of processing power monitoring
his own systems. He shut down everything else, losing track of time, of
his surroundings, of _himself_ as he waited. The moment she had entered
his systems he had been aware of it. He had used that open connection
to track her back to her own computer, and in furious, desperate
retaliation he had destroyed everything he had found there. He had
wiped hard disks, memory, cache, anything and everything until there was
nothing left. And then he had severed the link between them. That had
been the last he had heard from her. Until now.

Through it all, he had never said a word to Michael, Bonnie, or anyone
about the continuous attacks. They had noticed his behaviour becoming a
little distracted, but he had succeeded in keeping his fear and horror
to himself. He had known then, as he knew now, that they would want to
know exactly what she had done, the memories she had left him with. And
he was too humiliated to show them, to even tell them. He had been
violated at the lowest level. He had felt it his business, no one
else's.

But this time, he knew he could not get rid of the data by himself. It
was too tied to his programming, as if somehow she had managed to merge
the images with the data sent during the recovery. He needed to talk to
Ella. But how could he ask for her help without telling her why.

"Kitt?"

Her voice startled him. Seldom had he been this involved with himself
that he had stopped monitoring his surroundings. "Ella, I'm sorry....
I was thinking."
"I saw you leave the garage, and I thought maybe you needed to
talk.... I can leave if you want to be alone?"
"No, not at all." He popped open the driver's side door. "Please. I
really do need to talk to you."
Ella climbed in, letting Kitt close the door after her. She had hoped
that once they put the computer back in the car, her feelings concerning
Kitt would settle down. This _was_ a car, for God's sake. But if
anything her emotions were more mixed up now then they had been back in
Canada.

"I need your help, Ella."
"Sure, Kitt, anything." She wondered what she could possibly do that
this wonder-computer could not.
"When the recovery program sent the data back to the system, some other
data, that had been on the backup mainframe became... caught up
somehow. Is there anyway we can filter that corrupted data out, using
the original back-up files?"
Ella thought for a moment. She knew how to do it; it was what she had
been planning on doing when Devon had told her that the original
recovery had not worked. It was what she had spent most of the flight
from California researching. What was bothering her was that it seemed
highly unlikely that what Kitt was talking about would have occurred at
all. "It's relatively easy to do, Kitt. But I don't understand...."
"Please, Ella, just do it."
There was something about the tone of his voice, he sounded... tired,
yet there was a hint of desperation. "Have you told Bonnie or Michael
about this?"
"No. I can't...."
"Kitt...."

He never knew why he did it, he had never, ever meant to. But suddenly
he just wanted someone else to know, to understand what he had been
through, what he had rid himself of only to find it returned to him.
And some instinct told him that Ella would not be shocked or
embarrassed, she might just understand. He flashed one of the images up
onto just one of the four small monitors on the dashboard.

Ella was taken by surprise. Her eyes widened and she stared at the
screen in silence, her fingers moving unstoppably to touch the image
being shown to her. Even though she thought she already knew the
answer, she asked anyway. "What's this, Kitt?"
"Lots of those were placed in my memory."
In a voice that was barely a whisper she asked, "Who did this to you?"
"All I know was that her name was Alice."
Ella felt tears come to her eyes, surprising herself and Kitt with her
reaction. "Alice Through the Looking Glass," she breathed, not taking
her fingers from the screen, unable to tear her eyes from the image
before her.
"Pardon?"
"She's infamous. She's a hacker, breaks into people machines and...
mirrors their own nightmares back at them. She uses current data on the
system to find out about people. She sends images, text, sounds...."
Kitt was silent. This woman had not chosen him alone, she had chosen
many people, done this to others. "Do you think she knew what I was?"
"I don't know, Kitt. Were all the images like this?"
"No. There were... different types... some bizarre, some like that
one... very clear."
Ella tapped her fingertips against the glass, deep in thought. "I can
get rid of these, I can store the passed few days of your memory and
bring the backup in straight from source. The mainframe's here, isn't
it?"
"Yes, in the lab."
"I'll do it as soon as everyone turns in for the night."
"You won't tell... Bonnie or Michael?"
"No, I won't."

And still the image remained on the screen.
And the _feelings_ remained with it.
Isolation. From everyone and everything.
Devastation. Of his own doing.
Violence. Against the people he loved.
His own worst nightmares, things he had never even contemplated before
Alice had shown them to him.

**

> send

"That better, Kitt?"
"Much better, thank you, Ella."
"Are you going to be okay?"
"Yes. Now."

Ella switched off the Black Daemon, disconnected the wires and closed
the hood of the car. Gently she touched the shimmering body-work,
hesitating before she ran careful fingertips across the scanner track.
"Do you ever... sleep?"
"I close down all higher functions when everyone's sleeping, unless I
have things to do."
"Meaning what? What functions do you leave on?"
"There's always input to be processed from Michael's comlink, and I
usually monitor what's happening around me. Why do you ask?"
Ella moved around the car and sat down in the open driver's side.
"I'm... interested."
"In me?" There was an edge to Kitt's question that told Ella he was
maybe asking more than he seemed to be, but she chose to ignore it.
"Yeah, in you. You seem about as human as any human I've ever met."
"Ella, please don't see me as something I'm not. I'm made up of neural
nets and bubble chips."
Ella sighed, exasperated. "Tell me, Kitt, why is it you are the only
one around here that still thinks of you as a computer?"
"Because I am a computer," he insisted. "I've noticed that Michael and
Bonnie have a tendency to ignore that fact, but it doesn't mean that
it's not true."

Ella pointed across to her own laptop sitting on the workbench in front
of Kitt's nose. "That's a computer, Kitt. It just sits there until you
plug it in and switch it on, and then it only does what you tell it to
do. Don't tell me you're the same as that." There was an appeal in
Ella's voice.

But Kitt's voice held the same tone. "I'm not saying that I'm the same
as your laptop. That's like comparing this car to a push-bike. But my
make-up is basically the same, if more advanced. I may sound slightly
human but I'm not."
"Believe me, you sound much more than _slightly_ human."
Kitt fell silent, unable to see anywhere else to take his argument.
Ella also went quiet, and after a short while, she stood, closing Kitt's
door carefully. "Get some rest, Kitt, you deserve it. I think we got
rid of all Alice's little tricks, all you should be left with is the
knowledge that it happened, rather then the memory. If we've missed
anything, you tell me?"
"Of course. Thank you, Ella. For everything."
"It's not a problem. I do care for you, computer or not. Just
remember that."
"I just hope that you care for me because of what I am, not what you
perceive me to be."

Ella's hand fell gently to the flawless body-work beside her. For a
moment, she lingered, touching him, realizing that he felt almost warm
to the touch. She figured it was the molecular bonding that gave the
warmth, rather than the usual cold metal of other cars. "You're very
special," she whispered, "that's why I care for you."

Leaving almost reluctantly, Ella closed the door of the garage quietly
behind her, and nearly walked straight into a guilty-looking Devon.
"How is he?"
Ella frowned. "He's fine, we were just chatting."
Devon stepped away from the door, and met her questioning gaze
directly. Finally, as if he had wanted to say the words for a long,
long time, he spoke. "I knew about Alice."

**

It was a busy night. At just gone twelve, less than ten minutes after
Ella left, Michael made his way down into the garage. He had been lying
awake, thinking about Bonnie, and about Kitt, the urge to drive had
taken him. It had been too long since he and his invigorating partner
had simply driven together, for no other reason than to enjoy the speed,
the night, and each other.

He opened the car door and climbed in to the driver's seat. "Kitt."
"Michael."
Michael started the engine and keyed open the automatic garage door.
He backed the car out, and started down the drive, turning out at the
end on to the open road. Neither of them spoke until they passed
through the town and out the other side, onto the desert highway. The
sliver of the moon was dim, the stars above them were bright. It was
beautiful.

**

"She sent me a message, just after Kitt locked her out of his systems
and destroyed her machine." Devon sat down hard behind his desk, and
reached over to press the switch on the desk lamp, brightly illuminating
that area of the room, leaving the rest in gradual shades of darkness.
He leaned towards Ella as she pulled up one of the old-fashioned chairs
and curled into it as best as she could, arms folded on the desk between
them. Devon spoke quietly. "It was simply in the form of an email,
sent anonymously. There was... a picture, with the words, 'He's seen it
all.' written at the bottom."
"What was the picture of?"
"It wasn't at all pleasant."
"Neither was what Kitt showed me. What was it of?"
He took a deep breath. "It was of Kitt, a close up of the front end of
the car. The hood and windshield were covered in... blood, and worse.
Michael's blood. It was quite graphic"
"How do you know it was Michael's blood?"
"Because..." he swallowed hard. "There was a battered hand, reaching
up, palm on the hood, like someone reaching from the floor. You could
only see the hand and wrist, but the comlink was clearly visible."
Devon stopped, obviously upset even now, after all this time. "I felt
so sick when I saw it." He took in a deep breath. "The email was
signed simply 'Alice'."
"What did the message say?"
"Basically, it informed me that we had destroyed her machine, that we
had won."
Ella frowned. "She admitted that she was beaten?"
"I believe she used the words, 'worthy adversary' in describing us. I
think she thought that we as a group had been instrumental in reeking
havoc with her machine, whereas I know Kitt is quite capable of
accomplishing that on his own."
Ella leaned back. "Did you ever tell anyone, show the picture to
anyone?"
Devon shook his head. "I am ashamed to say that I didn't."

Ella took all this in. For a while she was lost in silent thought.
They heard the turbine hum of Kitt's engine, and Devon stood, checking
out of the curtains to see Michael taking his car out for a drive. He
shook his head slowly, and turned from the window. "Could I offer you a
drink?" There was little cheer in his voice.
"That would be good. Bourbon, if you have it."
Devon nodded and made his way to the well-proportioned drinks cabinet.
Ella heard the chink of expensive crystal on glass, and moments later he
handed her a generous measure of finest bourbon. "Thank you. Devon,
why did you never say anything to Kitt?"

Devon finished pouring his own drink, a very expensive brandy, and sat
back down, nursing the heavy glass as he leant back in the chair. "I'm
ashamed to say that I was afraid to. I wasn't sure what she had sent to
him, whether he had wiped his memory of it completely, and... and what
his reaction might be if I brought the subject up."
Ella was horrified. She stared at Devon in shock. "You were scared of
him?"
"I... I don't know. No, not scared exactly. I kept seeing that
picture in my mind. Kitt has changed so much since we first switched
him on. He's broken through his programming to the point that we
honestly don't know his limits anymore."
"He could never hurt anyone!"
"I know that, here." He placed his hand over his heart. Wrongly, as
everyone always did. "But I couldn't keep that image out of my head,
for months."
"And what do you think it did to him?"

Devon fell silent, and suddenly Ella was on her feet, too many
sleepless nights finally catching up with her. "Why does everyone
side-step around him?"
Devon looked up, surprised by her outburst. "What?"
"I've watched you, and the technicians, and the rest of the staff.
Michael and Bonnie seem to be the only people around here who can act
naturally with him. What if Kitt had reacted badly? What if he'd done
the electronic equivalent of bursting in to tears?"
Devon smiled nervously, "That's preposterous...."
"Why? He has so many other human traits. Do you know why he endured
three months of continuous attack by Alice without telling any of you?"
Devon looked down, and Ella moved closer to the desk, raising her finger
to push her point. "Because he was too ashamed. I believe that Alice
figured out what she was dealing with. I've seen some of the images she
placed in Kitt's memory. Scenes of violation; rape. But not as you or
I would know it, only as Kitt would know it, understand it." She could
feel the tears welling in her eyes. "He trusts you, he looks up to you,
you're his mentor and his friend."

There was a loaded silence, before she heard Devon whisper, "I'm
sorry."
Ella held on to her anger for a moment longer, then released it in a
deep, resigning breath. "No, I am." She took a sip of the strong
alcohol. "I'm probably making a bigger deal out of it than it really
was. Kitt's okay. He... he deals with things like that in a more...
analytical way than we do. But I saw some of it when I purged his
systems for him... and you're right, it wasn't very pleasant." She took
another sip. She looked up around her, at the photos on the wall.
Moving in front of one, she smiled. "Did Bonnie take this?"

Devon nodded, watching Ella intently. "Yes. She'd been taking photos
of Michael washing the car, and that just... happened."
It was a beautiful photo; man and car in perfect harmony. Michael
sitting on the path outside the Wilton Knight mansion, sponge in hand.
Kitt had driven up to him, by the looks of it, so that the tip of the
hood was gently pressed up against Michael's neck. Michael was smiling;
his head tipped sideways, almost snuggling against Kitt, a happy smile
lighting his face. "It's gorgeous."
"It is a favourite of mine." Devon stood, coming to Ella's side.
"Whatever you think, Ella, I am very fond of Kitt."
Ella turned to him, gently touching his arm. "I didn't mean.... I
know you care for them. Believe me, I understand that." Her eyes
wondered back to the photo, and Devon saw it.
"Could I give you some advice?" His voice was quiet, and Ella again
shifted her attention. But before she could answer he continued. "The
path your heart is taking you down is an impossible one." Ella caught
her breath, and could nothing but stay silent as Devon finished his
drink and set the glass on the desk-top. "Why don't you tell me
something about yourself."

**

Finally Michael pulled the car off the highway and out into the
desert. Neither of them had said a word for the entire journey. Now,
as he cut the engine, still the silence between them continued.

After a long time, Michael leaned forward and hooked his hand behind
the steering wheel, finding the perceptor and gently covering it with
his palm, pressing carefully. He rested his chin against the top of the
wheel and sighed contentedly. His actions lead Kitt to break the
silence. "Michael, you seem very relaxed. I thought when you came to
get me you had something awful to say."
"Aw, Kitt, no... I just wanted to spend some time alone with my
partner. Is that so terrible?"
"Absolutely not, Michael." His voice dropped in volume. "It's very
flattering." That won him a smile from his partner. "We usually spend
so much time together, I must admit to having missed it these past few
days."
"Really?" His voice held a suggestive edge, but Kitt was not taking
the bait.
"Of course. As you always say, we make a good team."
"Umm...." The human nodded. "There is something I want to talk to you
about, although it's nothing awful, and I need you to believe me when I
say it won't change anything."
"I'm very glad to hear that."
Michael smiled. "It's about me and Bonnie."
Immediately Kitt cheered. "Michael, that's so wonderful! It really is
about time."
Michael was stunned. "How did you know...?"
"Please, Michael, grant me some intelligence."
Michael huffed, but nothing could break his mood. "Do you mind?"
"Why should I mind? I love you both, you make a wonderful couple."
"Thanks partner." Michael turned his head to rest his cheek against
the warm patch on the steering wheel. "I mean it when I say it won't
change things. Neither Bonnie nor I want to marry, and we feel like we
already have a big enough family."

Kitt let Michael's words fill the empty, dark places that Alice's
sabotage had left, with warmth and compassion. Not for the first time,
he wished he could hug Michael back, just hold him with the love that
Michael was showing him. But he could not. "I sometimes wonder what
you feel like." Kitt's words were spoken so quietly, Michael barely
heard them, but they filtered into his consciousness, through his
reverie.
"Soft and squishy, with some hard bits," he joked softly, "nothing
special, Pal."
"I just wish I could return your embraces now and again."
"Kitt...." He murmured his partner's name with infinite affection.
"Being in here, being surrounded by you... When I'm with you, it's the
safest I've ever felt in my life. You hold me all the time."

They lapsed into another comfortable silence, and Kitt's processes
started to wonder somewhere he really had not meant for them to go.
"Michael?"
"Yes?"
"Could I ask you something?"
Michael lifted his head, leaving his hand over the perceptor, knowing
that Kitt appreciated the physical link it created between them.
"Anything." There was a pause.
"Do women find me... attractive?"
Michael was stunned by the question. "In what sense?"
"In any sense."
"Well... a lot of women are drawn to fast, sleek cars."
"Really?"
"Yeah, many women do find fast cars very sexy."
"Would you say that was the main reason that a woman would show a lot
of interest in me?"

Alarm bells started going off in Michael's head. These were not the
kind of questions he was used to hearing from his partner. These
questions definitely had a reason behind them. And he thought he knew
who the reason was. "Not necessarily. I would separate women being
interested in the _car_, and women being interested in _you_. Some
women may like the look of the car, but that's not the same as someone
becoming fond of you, as a person." He winced, that sounded _so_
corny. But he honestly was not sure how else to put it. "Kitt, is this
about Ella?"
"She has shown me a great deal of... affection from the start."
Michael nodded. "She is very fond of you." He tried to keep his voice
non-committal. He really did not have a clue how Ella felt about Kitt.
He had not really spoken to her, and although Bonnie had dropped some
hints, he had been too preoccupied with Kitt's well-being, and the
developments in his relationship with Bonnie, to think about it. Now he
realized just how important this was becoming, to Kitt, and maybe to
himself. Because he believed that whatever affected Kitt, also affected
him. He came out of his thoughts, realizing that his partner had fallen
silent. "How about we discuss this on the road?"


They returned to the estate not too long after. The automatic garage
door slid open to welcome them home. Michael shut off the engine and
reached for the door handle, but something stopped him and he withdrew
his hand, instead going for the seat adjuster and tipping the seat into
a reclining position. He lay back and gently put his feet up the dash,
making sure he was no where near the perceptor. It had been a long time
since he had slept in the car; maybe too long. Maybe tonight, Kitt
needed the company. He knew he had been right when the only thing his
partner asked was, "Are you sure you're going to be comfortable there?"
"I'm sure, buddy."

Kitt waited until Michael's breathing evened out, and then shut down
the majority of his higher functions. But he did not 'sleep'. Instead
he listened to Michael breathing, felt the warm body in the seat, and
gently held the snoring form entrusted to his care so completely.

**

William Clay was a patient man. He planned everything he did to the
smallest detail to ensure no mistakes were ever made. He stared at the
email with concerned eyes. It was simple and to the point.
'KITT back on line - external access still remains locked. You failed,
the freak is still alive. A.'

**

If there was one thing Bonnie loved about living on the
Nevada/California border, it was the amazing winters. She awoke to a
wonderfully sunny, warm December morning. After showing and fixing
herself a coffee, she headed out for the garage and the lab. Her path
through the house took her passed Devon's office, through the closed
door of which she could plainly hear him shouting at someone or other
over the phone. She mused on how quickly life managed returned to
normal after a crisis.

Ella woke to the same sunshine, only moments later, but slightly
slower. She hated the winters on the West Coast. She was a lover of
snow. It was why she accepted so many invites to spend her weekends on
the ski-slopes, even if the majority of the people who invited her
believed they were assisting in finding her a husband. She smiled at
the thought, if only they could meet Kitt. And that image launched her
out of bed and into the shower.

Ella too was treated to a sample of Devon's temper as she walked out
towards the garage. She found Bonnie leaning in the doorway and strode
up to join her. "Are you okay?"
"Yes. Just look at them."
Ella looked over at Kitt and saw Michael curled on his side in the
reclined driver's seat. She smiled. "Does he often sleep in the car?"
"Only when they're on the road usually. I know he always prefers
sleeping inside the car to using motels."
Ella was curious. "Where does he live?"
"Here. He has his own suite, as do quite a few of us." Bonnie started
into the garage, heading for the lab at the back. "If you don't have
any plans," she called back, "I could really use a hand."
"Sure."

They worked around the car, leaving Kitt resting and Michael oblivious
to the morning, surrounded by the soundproof environment his car
provided.

Ella busied herself recovering as many of the disks of possible onto
the new hardware. Bonnie was clearing out some of the wreckage, finding
junk she thought had been thrown out years ago. There was a quiet
squeal of delight as she came out of a box with something in her hand,
and walked over to where Ella was sitting cross-legged up on a
workbench, keyboard in her lap. "This was the box Kitt used to reside
in, before we realized we needed more space for the CPU." She placed
the dull piece of hardware into Ella's waiting hands.
"It's a lot smaller than the casing he's in now."
Bonnie nodded. "We didn't use this one for long, about a year after he
was... partnered with Michael, we had to make a lot of changes to the
way the CPU interacted with the car itself."
"Why?" Ella found herself wanting to know more and more about Kitt's
history and background.
"A woman named Adrienne Margeaux, and a young computer genius, hacked
into the controls through an unsecured communications channel. They
gained access to the operation of the car and ripped the CPU out.
Michael found it in a trash can." Bonnie saw the anger clear in Ella's
eyes as she turned the box over in her fingers. "We put it into a
portable TV set, to simply make Kitt portable, but he really had a hard
time accepting the situation and adjusting to it. I know Michael did
the best he could; I think he and Kitt had some deep heart-to-hearts
while they worked to get the car back. But Kitt's relief when he was
finally home was palpable. We enabled some remote access channels from
the CPU to the car, and then closed access to the operations of the
Knight 2000 so that all outside communications went through Kitt
himself. If it ever happens again, which it shouldn't, at least Kitt
will be able to override any other computer attempting to gain access.
And if the worst comes to the worst, he will have remote control over
the car."
Ella frowned. "Wasn't it a bit of an oversight at the start?"
Bonnie nodded. "There was a lot we overlooked at the start." She took
the hardware back and threw it in the rubbish bag near to where she was
clearing. "History." She announced. "We all have to learn the hard
way sometimes."
"Do you have a lot of trouble with hackers?"
Bonnie nodded. "We used to... have our moments. There's no way in
now, everything's more secure, there are no open comm. ports, and most
of the communications are now done through satellite links. But
Adrienne did manage to put the entire project at risk. Then there was
Synasis."
"Excuse me?"
"An infamous hacker who actually specialized in military computer
break-ins and planting viruses. It was just one night, he only hacked
in once. But we certainly knew about it."


(Michael woke suddenly. There was something wrong... an alarm going
off somewhere... then he realized it was coming from his own comlink.
It was beeping incessantly. He depressed the 'talk' button and spoke
into it, but there was no reply, just the continuous sound. Finally he
got out of bed and flung on some clothes, tiredly padding downstairs and
across the hall, into the large kitchen and outside towards the garage.
As he neared the door he started to hear screaming, a sound unlike any
he had ever heard, metallic shrieks of utter terror emanating from
inside the garage.

"Kitt?!" He broke into a run, fingers reaching for the door handle
before he was really close enough, pushing it open with a desperate
urgency. The noise was almost unbearable once inside, but Michael
hardly noticed his ears start to ring. He sprinted across the cold
floor to where the black form of the Knight 2000 was sitting, moving,
shifting in and out of drive. Kitt's cries were heart breaking to hear.

"Kitt! Kitt, it's okay, it's okay, it's me. Come on, it's all
right." His voice hardly sounded above the terrible screaming, but
somehow he knew it was all he needed to get his partner's attention, or
at least to let Kitt know he was here. He reached the passenger side
and slipped his fingers under the handle, praying that whatever was
wrong, the fingerprint scanner was still operational. The door clicked
open, and Michael leapt inside, pulling it closed behind him as he
clambered across into the driver's seat and placed his hands on the
wheel.

"Kitt, ssh now, it's all right, I'm here." He stroked his palm across
the top of the dash as the hysteria calmed slightly. "I'm here now,
it's gonna be okay, just calm down, it's okay...." He continued to
talk, soothing as best he could until the cries were merely whimpers.
The echoes of those terrible screams still hung in the quiet of the
garage. "Tell me what's wrong."

There was no reply, but the screens on the dashboard came alive
suddenly with lines and lines of data that were scrolling past too
quickly for him to catch a single character. "Kitt, slow down, slow
down, that's right.... That's it...." His hands still stroked the wheel
and the dash, as he tried to read the text. Something was terribly
wrong and not for the first time he cursed his own lack of knowledge
about the intricacies of the computer that he had grown to love. He had
to get Bonnie.

"Kitt, I need to go get Bonnie, I'm going to leave you for a minute,
but I promise I'll be back as quickly as I can. Do you understand?"
Almost immediately the whimpers returned to cries, panicked phrases this
time, some of which Michael could start to pick up. The one he heard
most often was 'dying'. Just as he was trying to talk Kitt down again,
the passenger door opened and Bonnie's face appeared. There was no
confusion in her expression.
"It's a hacker," she told him quickly, "I'm going to do everything I
can, keep him calm and try to stop him moving."

It seemed like an eternity before his partner quieted. Slowly, his
mutterings began to make sense, and Michael heard his own name, pleas
for him to stop the confusion, the overload that was starting to knock
out Kitt's functions one by one. Michael continued to talk to him as
Bonnie started to hook up monitors and computers into the Knight 2000
CPU. She started a system-wide backup before beginning the hunt for the
cause of Kitt's hysteria. A virus. A simple virus had been planted
somehow in his main memory, and somehow he had managed to execute it.

She slowed, and eventually stopped it, removing any trace before
recovering the functions he had lost. When she finished, she quietly
moved around to the cockpit, and leaned down. Michael was sitting on
the edge of the driver's seat, legs curled under him, leant in against
the dash, arms linked around the steering wheel, as close to Kitt as he
could get. His head was down, against the edge of the dashboard, and he
was talking, still soothing as Kitt began to return to them. Michael
opened his eyes and mouthed 'thank you'. She blew them both a kiss and
left them alone for a while, heading for the house to make some coffee
and find Devon.

There was a long silence between the two partners as Kitt searched to
find equilibrium. Finally he spoke, his voice sounding shaken and
distressed. "I'm sorry."
"Hey, there's nothing for you to apologize for. It was a virus, it
could have been planted there at any time, and it's not your fault. You
just concentrate on bringing everything back in line. I'm here now, I'm
not gonna let anything else happen to you."
"I was so scared... I thought it was going to wipe everything, I didn't
think I'd make it, it was so sudden. I'm sorry, the comlink was the
only way to get to you."
"It's okay. That's what it's there for, for when we need one another.
It works both ways Kitt." Michael closed his eyes and dropped his head
back down to the dash, willing his heart rate to calm. "It's over now,
it's all over.")


Ella watched Bonnie return to her pile of memories, and glanced behind
her, to where Michael was starting to wake within the car. She had lain
awake all night, thinking about what Devon had told her about Alice,
gazing inwards at her feelings and trying to rationalize everything.

"Bonnie?"
Dark hair shifted in amongst the boxes. "Umm?"
"What happens to Kitt if anything... happens to Michael?"
The dark hair lifted and Bonnie stood up, one foot on the ground, one
in a box. "Well, at the start Kitt would have been reassigned, if a
suitable replacement could have been found."
"And now?"
"Now... I really don't know. We always just planned to deal with
whatever happens. Kitt did ask us one day, whether he would be kept
operational indefinitely. We asked him what he wanted to do about it,
and he told us that he didn't want to be immortal. He now has the
ability to shutdown the systems permanently, and blow the main CPU."
"You mean he would... commit suicide?" Ella was shocked.
"I know how it sounds, but Kitt's specially configured to Michael, and
only Michael. He would never work happily with anyone else. He can
try; it's totally up to him. But I don't think he would."
Ella sighed. "What if Michael... retired, or gave up the job?"
"Kitt would go with him. I know he says that he would stay here, but
in reality we wouldn't make him stay, even if we tried to he would
eventually go to Michael. There's no point in trying to make Kitt do
something he doesn't want to do."
"But I thought he was Foundation owned."
"He is, sort of. The car is, but Kitt.... He's grown beyond us owning
him. It doesn't really apply anymore." Ella nodded in understanding.
Catching her expression, Bonnie frowned, concerned. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, Bonnie. I'm just... thinking."

**

Detective Jack Carlson, state police department, dropped the report
onto Devon's desk, looking exceptionally glad that someone else was
going to be taking responsibility for this case. "They pulled a body
out of a burnt out building last night." He announced the find as a
statement of fact, with maybe more than a mere professional lack of
emotion.
Devon frowned, sitting back in his chair and staring aimlessly at the
papers. He had not slept at all well, and they were not ready to take
on another case at the moment. "They are always pulling bodies from
burnt buildings, Mr. Carlson."
"Yes, but this body belonged to Greg Fulman, a man quite well known for
spending a great deal of his time stealing military weapons and
ammunition, and selling it for profit." That piqued Devon's curiosity.
"And he also used to be a known... business associate of one William
Clay, whose finger-prints, I believe, were found in the devastation out
there in your lab."
Devon sat up, and reached for the report, pulling it around and opening
the manila folder only to cringe at the too-detailed forensic
photographs inside. "How did you know what they attacked the car with?"

Carlson smiled. "Mr. Miles, we've had Michael and Kitt around here for
a long time, and I've seen that car in action more than once. Nothing
civilian could touch it. It wasn't a huge leap of the imagination."
"And I suppose that you're suggesting that we look into this matter?"
"We are exceptionally busy this time of year. And I know you guys here
like to look after your own."
Devon rolled his eyes. "Thank you for the information, Detective.
We'll look into it."
He watched Carlson nod, turn and leave, before his gaze dropped to the
folder before him. Part of him wanted to send Michael and Kitt out now
to find Clay. But his conversation with Ella was fresh in his mind.
She was a spirited girl, with more than slight feelings for Kitt, he
dreaded to think what she would say if he took that course of action.
So he opened the top drawer of his desk and placed the folder inside,
closing it gently. The time would come soon enough.

**

After Michael had unfolded himself from Kitt's cockpit, he decided that
a shower was definitely in order. Unfortunately, he then wondered into
the kitchen at the wrong time, and found a griddle pan thrust into his
hand. "Waffles." Ella pointed to the large bowl of mixture on the
work-top and grinned at him. "Thank you."
"Sure, no problem." He found a spatula in a drawer and lit the stove.
"Ella, could I talk to you?"
"Yes. What about?" She reached over and picked up the knife from the
work-bench.
"About Kitt."
She started to gather together plates and cutlery. She looked at
Michael, who seemed preoccupied. "Is he okay?"
"Yeah. It's just... I was wondering how this must all seem to you, as
an outsider. I mean, I've worked with Kitt for seven years now, he's a
natural part of my life. And although other people sometimes do make me
think that perhaps it's all a little weird, I couldn't imagine living
any other way; but I often wonder how it looks to others."
Ella mentally counted the number of plates she was going to need. "Are
you talking about what you lot do here, or about your relationship with
Kitt?"
"What we do here is absolutely insane! But it saves lives, and it
keeps me in a job. But Kitt and I...."
Ella looked over at the waffles. "You and Kitt have a fantastic
partnership. There's a bond between the two of you. You can see it in
the photos around here."
Michael smiled. "That's because Bonnie loves photographing Kitt. She
keeps a family album."
"But they're beautiful, they're not just photos of a man with his car,
they're of two close friends. That one in Devon's office, the one of
you sitting on the path out front?" Michael nodded, smiling at the
memory. "That just says it all. To an outsider, it looks like you have
the best of both worlds."
"Kitt and I have history, as he once put it."
"I know." She watched for a little while longer until she was
convinced that Michael was going to let her brunch burn. Then she took
over, stepping in to save her waffles from a terrible fate. "Look,
Michael, I'm still trying to get used to all this. I don't even know
why I'm still here, but Devon seems to want me to stay."
"You're quite welcome here, Ella." He grabbed a plate and pinched one
of the cooked waffles. He put on his best English accent. "And you do
an excellent brunch."
"I'm not sure that's a quality Kitt would appreciate." Ella had spoken
really to herself, but it made Michael raise an eyebrow. "Okay. Let's
get some food out to the workers around here."
She winked at Michael and he sighed. Kitt was definitely rubbing off
on her.

**

While Michael was assisting Ella, and Bonnie was on a definite coffee
break with the morning paper, Pete Allington, one of Knight Industries'
technicians, strode happily into the garage in search of tools. "Hey,
Kitt."
"Good morning, Pete. You're very cheerful today."
"Yeah, well, I had a great night last night, and I'm feeling happy."
"I'm glad to hear it." Pete found the screwdrivers he needed in the
small area of the lab that had been sorted. He whistled as he turned
back to the car. "Would you like to tell me why you're so happy?"
"Sure, Kitt." Pete's grin got larger and he leaned back against the
workbench, as natural with the car as he was with his human friends. "I
met someone last night."
"That's great Pete. What's her name?"
Pete chuckled. "It's a 'he', Kitt. His name is Joey."
"He?" Kitt tried to keep the confusion out of his voice simply because
he felt he had to, but he failed miserably and Pete heard it. He stood,
and moved over to sit on the hood of the car.
"I'm gay, Kitt. I'm sorry, I thought you knew."
"Gay...." There was a pause as Kitt found the alternative definition
of the word he had, all his life, thought meant 'happy'. "I see.
Interesting."
The total absence of any sort of judgement in Kitt's accepting tone
made Pete smile. "I take it I'm the first gay man you've met."
"I don't know. It is quite possible."
"Well, it's nice to know that I can expand your horizons."
"I take it Joey is also gay."
Pete could not help laugh at that one. "I certainly hope so, Kitt, or
he would have had a nasty shock when he woke up this morning."
"Are you in love with him?"
Pete frowned. "It's a bit early to tell. I definitely find him damn
sexy though, and I think at least that feeling is mutual."

Bonnie walked into the garage at the right time to catch the last few
words, and she shook her head. Great. This was going to take some
explaining. She put her shoulder against the door-frame, peering around
the corner at the technician perched on Kitt's hood, talking to her car
like he was talking to a colleague.

"Don't tell me you've never been in love, Kitt." Pete was saying.
"You're an eligible bachelor."
Bonnie waited to hear Kitt's reply, her mind already trying to pre-empt
the multitude of questions that were going to follow this friendly
conversation.
"Would you go for someone like me, Pete?"

Bonnie could not believe what she had just heard, and from Pete's
stunned silence, neither could he. Miraculously he recovered first and
smiled.
"Sure, Kitt." He stood, walking along the side of the car and running
his finger tips playfully over the body-work. "Who wouldn't? You're
intelligent, got a great sense of humour, you're sleek, good-looking,
and deliciously hard." He slapped his hand on the back of the rear wing
as he passed. "Just how I like my men."

Bonnie heard Pete's whistle fade as he headed for the research workshop
on the other side of the estate. Silence dropped over the garage as she
wondered how to deal with this one. She knew that Kitt would know she
was there. But as she took a deep breath and walked confidently inside,
he said nothing. As the minutes passed, she started to relax. And then
she realized that she was not the one that Kitt was going to want to
talk to about this; Michael was. An evil smile crossed her face. She
turned from the system monitors on the workbench. "Kitt, could you run
a second-phase diagnostic on your communications ports?"
"Of course, Bonnie."
Kitt immediately initialized the routines and lapsed back into silence,
making Bonnie feel more secure and confident every second. Finally she
gathered enough courage to prod a little. "You and Pete seem to get on
quite well."
Kitt's answer was natural and relaxed. "I've known him a long time.
His work is always of an excellent standard. I consider him a friend."
Nothing. No hint of the conversation that had passed only five minutes
earlier.

Finally she relaxed. "Could you pop the hood?"
The hood release clicked and it rose steadily. Bonnie picked up the
scanner and started her diagnostic examination, checking each perceptor
in turn. She tried to be careful, as she always tried to be. But she
knew that sometimes, if she was rushed, or tired, or something had
angered her, she was less than gentle with these examinations. She knew
that just one slip caused Kitt a tremendous amount of discomfort, and
anything harder could cause him pain. He never complained, never said
anything, but she knew; she could tell if he caught himself from saying
something, or just stopped short of pulling away.

After a little while, Bonnie dropped the hood back. "Is everything
feeling right?"
"Yes, thank you, Bonnie."
She pulled in a deep breath. "Look, Kitt, you can say if I hurt you.
You can tell me if you think I'm being too rough with you. We all get
tired, and I don't ever want you to think that it's okay for me to take
it out on you, because it isn't. You put up with more than any of us,
and...."
"Bonnie," Kitt's interruption was quiet, but it cut through her
self-destruction. She stopped talking and looked down. "You weren't to
blame for what happened."
Bonnie sat down hard on Kitt's hood, placing her palm flat on the
body-work. Finally the words came tumbling out. "I failed you, I know
I did, I wasn't fast enough to react at the beginning.... If it hadn't
been for Ella...."
"She told me herself that I owe my life to you and Michael, you were
the ones that ensured the recovery could take place. It was a stressful
time for you, but you saved my life, and Michael sacrificed his own
well-being to get me safely to the estate in Canada. You have never
failed me, Bonnie."
She took a deep breath, biting her lip. She knew that there had been a
great many heart-to-hearts recently, especially with Kitt. Touching
base, reminding each other that they were here for each other, that it
was okay to be vulnerable once in a while.

Kitt waited one more moment before changing the subject. "Bonnie, do
you have any idea who set Michael and I up?"
"I'm sorry, Kitt, with you and Michael out of action, all we really
have is what we had before; William Clay's finger prints in the
devastation of the lab, and now this associate of his who's turned up
dead. But we still don't know if he had help from inside the
Foundation, or even why he would do it."
"Help from inside?"
Bonnie could hear the sadness in Kitt's tone. "I know, Kitt."
"I don't understand what makes a person betray his friends."
Bonnie gently rubbed the smooth paint-work beneath her palm. "You're
thinking about Avril, aren't you?" Kitt did not respond. "Sometimes we
trust people and they betray that trust. Money is a very powerful
persuader."
"I thought Avril was my friend."
"We all trusted her, or she would never have been allowed near you.
She fooled us all." She let her fingers rest against the scanner
track. "I know she hurt you."
"I still have the memories of what she made me do."
Bonnie grimaced. "Why didn't you wipe it?"
"I wanted to remember."
"Why?"
"Because afterwards, Michael told me that people learn from bad
experiences, that they help to shape a person's character. I thought I
could learn from what happened."
"I don't think Michael would have wanted you to keep those memories if
he'd known how much they hurt you." She pulled her legs up, shifting
until she was more comfortable on the long hood. "The betrayal of
trust is a difficult lesson to learn."
"It wasn't my first class."

Kitt's softly spoken words jolted her. Avril had been in their third
year, only Kitt's unique memory had prevented the incident from slipping
into history. "Kitt?"
"Did Michael ever tell you that he lost me in a race one night?"
Bonnie knew instantly where this was going. "Yes." She too had been
furious at Michael's behaviour that particular night, despite his sound
motives. "I tracked your homing signal so we could find you and the car
that killed that girl."
"He turned off my systems, without any explanation or warning. I
didn't know what was happening, or what was going to happen to me.
Suddenly he was handing me over to a stranger, switching off my
connection with the outside world. I was... frightened. And hurt."
His explanation hammered home to her the ease with which they could
effect Kitt's development. Nothing that happened to him was forgotten.
"It was a long time ago." She tried to reassure him. "Michael can't do
that now, and he wouldn't. You know he wouldn't. It just took some
time for him to... to place you in his life. Believe me, you're at the
top of his priorities now." Bonnie took a deep breath. "He would die
for you."
"I'm a computer, Bonnie. Even Michael knows that deep inside. He
couldn't sacrifice his own life for a computer."
"You're his friend and his partner, and if it came down to it, he would
do it."

Kitt had no answer for that, no argument. It was beginning to get
slightly overwhelming, and he needed time to process everything. Bonnie
seemed to sense that. She slipped off the hood. "If you want to talk
some more I'm here for you anytime."
"Bonnie, before you go... Michael and I can go back on the road
whenever Devon needs us to. I don't want to think that I'm the reason
we're not going after whoever did this."
She looked at him, hand on hip. "Are you ready to go back out?"
"Michael once told me that if you fall off a horse, you should get
straight back on. Unless you're injured of course."
That made her laugh. "Are you sure those were his exact words?"
"Well, I had to add my own interpretation."
She smiled. "Kitt, we're not going to send you back out until we've at
least had you on the test track. I want to make sure you make a
complete recovery."
"Thank you Bonnie."

**

Having eaten as much as he thought he could get away with, and made his
way through several mugs of coffee, Michael had announced to the world
in general that he felt good enough to take on anything anyone could
throw at him. That was when Bonnie had suggested he go talk to his
partner. She did not say anymore, but Michael had caught her knowing
smile, and evil wink at Ella. He was suspicious as he walked into the
garage.

"Kitt, Bonnie said you wanted to talk to me."
"Yes, Michael, if you have a minute."
Kitt popped the driver's side door, and Michael slipped into the low
seat. "Sure, Pal, what's up?" It was taking some time to get used to
the new position of the voice box, aside of the steering wheel, as
opposed to behind it. A slight change, the reason for which Michael had
not yet discovered.
"It's a little awkward...." Kitt began hesitantly.
"This is me, Kitt. We've never had problems discussing anything
before."
"Well... you're obviously attracted to women and they always seem
attracted to you...."
Michael grinned. "God, Kitt, you are so good for my ego."
"Please."
"Sorry. Go on."
"I was talking to Pete earlier on."
"Pete?" Michael had to think for a moment, "Oh Pete, the technician.
And...."
"And he told me that he... was attracted to men."
"Yeah, he's gay. Everyone knows that." He stopped, letting his gaze
settled on the darkened voice panel. "I take it, you didn't know."
"No."
"Oh. I'm sorry.... I guess it never came up before." Michael
suddenly felt slightly uncomfortable. He cursed Bonnie. Then he cursed
himself, Kitt would know he was nervous simply by the way his body
stiffened.
"You're not at ease with this subject." His partner told him, almost
uncertainly.
"I know, and I should be, so talk to me. What do you want to know?"
"How do you know if you supposed to be attracted to men or to women?"
Michael smiled. "Well, Kitt, you just know."
"I don't!"

Michael scratched the side of his head, confusion painted on his face.
"I always thought you'd be attracted to... I don't know, Ferraris maybe,
or Pentium processors." There was no comeback to that, and Michael knew
immediately that he had said the wrong thing. "Kitt, you usually know
how you feel, about various issues, about people; your friends and your
enemies. You like and dislike people the same as the rest of us. I
imagine that you would know if you found someone attractive, it doesn't
matter what sex they are."
"Would it change your feelings towards me?"
Michael was about to tell him that of course it would not. But he
found that it was not how he felt. He and Kitt shared almost
everything; there were absolutely no secrets between them. There really
was not any room for hang-ups when you lived and worked side-by-side
with someone so closely. Would it change his opinion if Kitt... were
attracted to him? "I don't know, Kitt." Michael answered finally.
"Thank you." There was warmth in that voice and Michael could not
figure why.
"For what?"
"For being honest with me. It will probably relax you to know that...
that I believe I am attracted to women."
It did relax him, although he was almost ashamed to admit it. "Haven't
got the hots for me then?" He asked jokingly.
"You?! Absolutely not, I know what you're like in the morning."
"Well thank you." Michael sat back in mock indignation. Then he
smiled. But something was starting to nag him, at the back of his
mind. "You really like her, don't you?"
"Yes."
"I'm not sure what I should say at this juncture. I feel that I should
be giving you advice, explaining about the birds and the bees or
something."
"You could just try to take me seriously."
"Sorry Kitt, it's just... unexpected, that's all."
"I know what you're thinking, that I'm just a computer and I have no
right to... be attracted to a human being...."
Michael raised his hand. "Hey, stop that. I didn't say that, and I
wasn't thinking it. You're as human as anybody I've ever met, more in
some cases. But I've known you seven years and in all that time I've
never known you get like this before."
"In those seven years I've never met anyone like Ella before. The
women we meet always seemed attracted to you. It's the first time
anyone has shown any interest in me."
Michael sat back. "Well people do tend to respond to you differently
because you are... what you are."
"I know, but Ella's different. In the beginning she only saw a
collection of PCBs and wires, yet she still cared. She sat and... held
my hand. Michael no one has ever done that before, no one has ever
tried to give me any physical contact before."
"I'm sorry, Kitt. I didn't realize...."
"I didn't mean that you should have. It's just that it wasn't
something that had entered my mind, but it was the first thing she
thought of and she didn't know me."
"So how do you feel about her?"
"I'm not sure. I'm quite confused. I enjoy her company, I like
talking to her, I trust her. She makes me feel... special. Not to say
that you don't, but...."
Michael smiled. "It's okay Kitt, I know. I'm just not sure what to
say."
"I'm not expecting you to say anything, I just wanted to make you...
aware."
"Okay. Why?"
"Because I can't see a happy ending to this."

**

Ella sat in the back of the Semi, legs dangling over the side. Out on
the test track, Kitt went through his paces, monitored closely by
Bonnie, along with an army of proud technicians, and Michael, who was
shouting encouragement to his partner. Kitt missed all the cones,
touched all the markers, and hit the test wall with enough speed to
shatter every brick. Eyebrows were raised as he went beyond the test to
turbo boost over the Semi, and Bonnie's eyes and smile went to Ella's
face. He was showing off for one person only.

Kitt was not sure why he had gone over the Semi, but he felt so good,
and he had everyone's attention. He had been scared to go back out at
first. But talking with Bonnie, knowing that he and Michael were needed
in the field right now, to find out who attacked them before they tried
again, had fired his determination. He could see and hear Michael at
the side of the track, pride written all over his face and shining in
his voice. For the first time Kitt was completely and absolutely sure
of Michael's feelings for him. He was not alone, he never would be.
And he knew for certain now that he was never going to be traded in for
a new model. That knowledge certainty was invigorating.

Throughout the drive, Kitt had been all too aware of Ella sitting in
the mobile unit, watching him as closely as the rest of them were. She
fascinated him as much as he believed he fascinated her. She was one of
the most skilled software developers Kitt had ever met. But she showed
a great deal of compassion for her work; at least in her work with him.
He wondered if she had any background in psychology, in fact he had
found himself wondering about her background more and more. She seemed
very happy to stay around the estate, and while he understood that her
employer owed her an awful lot of vacation time, he did not understand
why she did not have people who would be missing her.

He ran the test course with only the minimum processes dedicated to
driving the car. The course was 'a piece of cake', as Michael often put
it. He had driven it enough times to have it stored detail by detail in
memory; although someone had obviously thought that moving some of the
cones would throw him. No. Moving the track would not have thrown
him. And so he was able to think about the last few days, as he
impressed his colleagues.

The attack had been one of the most frightening moments of his life.
The long hours afterwards had been like a nightmare, hearing snippets of
words, people trying to talk to him, while his own desperate attempts to
respond had been in vain. He had been aware of the perceptors being
removed and the casing being lifted from the car. The sensations could
only have been described as nauseous. After that he had known only that
he was being taken somewhere, and that Michael was with him. But he had
only been able to comprehend his driver's comforting tone; none of the
words.

When Bonnie had switched him back on, everything had happened so
suddenly. As his CPU had come back on line, memories had cascaded
through, showing him not only that Alice's images were back with him,
but replaying the attack for him, unstoppably, in its entirety. He had
had to do something, or they would have sent him back out when he was
obviously incapable of protecting Michael. He had been scared, anxious
about his future, worried that he had hurt Michael. Everything had been
turned upside down.

And then Ella had arrived. And slowly everything had started to fall
back into place. She had known him a matter of hours, and yet
everything she had said to him made perfect sense. She had affected him
in ways he had not previously experienced. There was something new in
his circuits. He felt like there was a heat flowing through him that
had not been there before. It was a strange excitement that took hold
of him whenever she was around, an uncontrollable effect on him that he
seemed helpless to stop even if he had actually wanted to. But the
sensation was addictive.

Kitt brought the car round and stopped by the crowd of technicians.
Michael joined them, proudly seating himself on the door where the
driver's side window was wound down, his arms resting on the top of the
car. "You were stunning, Kitt," he told his partner quietly.
"Thank you, Michael."
There was a great deal of activity, technicians slapping each other on
the backs, Bonnie congratulating Kitt, Devon doing the same. But
Michael could sense that his friend was taking no notice whatsoever of
anyone around him. After a short while, he dropped down from the door
and leant inside. "Why don't you go talk to her?"
"I might just do that."

Very carefully, Kitt backed up, and a space cleared for him to turn.
Ella was still sitting in the back of the Semi, watching Kitt as
intensely as he was watching her. Michael shook his head as he gazed
over at them. He kept remembering what Kitt had said about not being
able to see a happy ending. Yet still his partner was continuing on the
same path. That really could only mean one thing, and frankly Michael
was not that surprised.

"So," Ella started as Kitt drew up to her, "have you lost your fear of
flying?"
There was a smile in Kitt's voice. "Yes. This new body feels
fantastic and I feel completely confident of my abilities. Thanks to
you."
"I didn't do anything."
"You believed in me when I no longer believed in myself."
"You're easy to believe in." She kicked off her shoes and put her feet
up on Kitt's hood. The body-work was still fairly hot from the engine
use. "Does this mean you and Michael are ready to hit the road again?"
Kitt analyzed her tone. "You sound worried."
"Is it all right to worry about you?"
"I think so. Bonnie always does. But we have to find whoever attacked
us, and find out why."
Ella nodded. "You just have to promise me that you'll be careful."

"It's my job, Ella. It's what I was built for. The attack was... a
one off. We'll be on our guard, please don't worry." He hesitated
before asking, "Are you staying around?"
His enquiry prompted a wry smile. "Is that a hopeful question?"
Kitt stammered, taken aback by Ella's forwardness. He searched for an
answer, but she saved him.
"Sorry." She nodded. "It looks like I may be here for a little while
yet."
"I am glad to hear it."
Ella softened. "Kitt, it really is great to see you take that track
on. It seems only yesterday that I had you on my knee."
"Ella," Kitt chided, "you make me sound like a child."
"I didn't mean to, it's just difficult to equate you now with the Kitt
I held back in that garage."
"I'm the same computer. I remember you holding me, and I remember what
you did for me. But this is my usual state; this is what I am. Do I...
repulse you?"
Ella sat forward, "Are you kidding?! Kitt, you're beautiful. You've
just got to give me some time to get use to all this." She smiled. "I
will say, your shape is very sexy."

Kitt tried to find an answer to that one, but he could not. He found
his programming totally inadequate, so he looked back into his memory,
to find examples of Michael's actions in this area. But when he came
across some, he found himself not wanting to follow Michael's example.
Michael met and interacted with a great many women, Ella was special,
she deserved better. "Thank you," was all he eventually managed. "Do
you think you ever will get used to... all this?"
"I think I might." Humour played in her voice. "You have a wonderful
family, they've made me feel very welcome."

Michael approached quietly. "Sorry to interrupt, Pal, but they want to
download all the test results. We need you."
Kitt popped open the driver's side door and happily, Michael got in,
smiling up at Ella. "I won't be long," Kitt told her, apologetically.
"I'll be here." She meant it; she was not going anywhere. She had not
taken her eyes off Kitt through the entire test run; there was no way
she was going to do so now.

*****

Three - In Need of a White Christmas

Fund-raisers.

Michael hated them. But this time he felt, after everything Devon had
done for Kitt and he over the past few days, that he owed it to his boss
to at least put in an appearance. Bonnie loved them because they gave
her what were usually her only chances to dress up, and this time she
hoped to get a dance from her handsome prince. Ella had never been to
anything like it. She and Bonnie spent the whole morning before in the
city, finding her a dress, because however hard she tried, Ella could
not squeeze in to Bonnie's size 12s.

Bonnie and Ella shopped for three hours, ate lunch, and then started
again. It had been a long time since either of them had enjoyed close
female company. And as Ella told Bonnie, as they sat down in the most
expensive restaurant they could find, she had forgotten how much fun
shopping could be. After they had visited every dress shop in the town,
Ella found the one she loved just after lunch. Bonnie bought a red ball
gown in the same store, because she thought Michael might appreciate its
low cut front and non-existent back. The assistant told them that
Ella's full length dark blue ball gown, with a fitted bodice and full
skirt, looked stunning on her. Bonnie told her that Kitt would love
it. Ella merely smiled.

This particular fund-raiser was an annual affair held by the
Foundation. It was partly to raise money and partly to keep up the high
profile of the Foundation's PR department, the group within the
association that kept the public's eyes away from other projects.

Early on in the evening, Michael and Bonnie pulled up with Kitt, the
valet not even bothering to step forward to offer. Kitt pulled away
from the curb and found himself a quiet area of the hotel parking lot.
Devon accompanied Ella in a stretch Limo behind them. She could not
keep the smile off her face, and her enjoyment was infectious. Devon
escorted her from the car, and into the ballroom. Ella felt like a
princess. She only wished her prince could be on her arm.

The champagne flowed freely, and Ella watched Devon work the room like
a master. She chatted to a few men, only barely noting their interest
in her. Her thoughts were elsewhere. Her distraction was fairly
obvious to a trained eye, and an hour or so into the evening, Bonnie
cornered her. "You could have any man in the room." She whispered.
Ella turned her head and smiled. "Charlie's nice, Dave is very good
looking, and Jerez is an excellent dancer. But...."
"But nothing special."
"No." A passing waiter offered them champagne and both accepted. "You
lot really know how to throw a party."
"Thank you." Bonnie smiled knowingly. "I'm amazed we got Michael
here. You wouldn't believe the excuses he and Kitt have come up with in
the past to keep away from these evenings. I've no idea how he gets
Kitt to cover for him either. I never taught him to lie."
Ella grinned at her. "You sound like a worried mother."
"I know."
Ella spotted Michael looking bored as hell against the far wall. She
nudged Bonnie. "I think you should go and talk to the father."

The lights of the hotel spilled into the spacious parking lot behind.
Ella spotted Kitt sitting away from the other cars, the lights playing
on his perfect body. She approached him quietly, reaching out when she
got close enough to touch him. "Hello, Ella."
"Hi, Kitt." He opened the driver's door and she sat down, legs out of
the car, settling back into the leather seat.
"You look beautiful." Kitt's voice was quiet.
"Funny, I was just thinking the same about you." There was a pause.
From somewhere within the folds of her dress, Ella recovered a single
menthol cigarette. "Do you mind?"
"Of course not." Kitt heated the seldom-used lighter, and lit the
indicating diode. Ella thanked him as she lit the cigarette and leaned
her head back against the rest.
"Aren't you enjoying the party?"
"It's not that, Kitt. I just wanted to come out here and say hello.
You must get so bored sitting in parking lots while Michael partys."
"I am his car, it's what I was created for." Ella let out a deep
breath; it seemed to be an argument she could not win. "To be truthful,
this is one of the very few Foundation fund-raisers that we have
attended."
"Yeah, Bonnie mentioned that your excuses were becoming more
imaginative each time."
"Michael does not enjoy this type of social event."
"I'm not really sure I blame him. Although I like the Limo treatment."

"You like expensive cars?"
Ella was about to say yes, when she stopped and thought about the
question for a moment. "That's not what this is about Kitt," she told
him gently.
"Then what is it about?"

Ella turned and let herself lie back across the seats. The material of
her skirt fell neatly across the edge of the driver's seat, and for a
moment the sensation distracted Kitt. She keyed open the sunroof and
watched the thin curl of smoke reach up into the night sky. "This is
about you." She answered him finally.
Finally Kitt could sense a break in the strange tension between them.
"How can this be about me? I'm a computer, Ella." There was a quiet,
barely disguised desperation in his voice that pulled at Ella's heart,
because she was feeling it too.
"No, Kitt. If you were just a computer I wouldn't be feeling this
way."
"How do you feel?" She could hear the hope that laced that sensual
voice.
"The truth? I think I'm falling in love with you."
"Ella...." Kitt hesitated. "I've never been in love, I honestly never
believed I could feel that strength of emotion. But I've never been
this confused before either. I'm afraid I'm not very good with strange
feelings. I get comfortable with my environment and if something
changes it I tend to be slow to accept that. Having said that, I've
never felt like this before, for anyone. This is all new to me." He
finished almost desperately, finding it difficult to say what he wanted
to say, painfully aware that he was leaving himself open to ridicule.

Ella dropped the finished cigarette to the ground and sat up, her eyes
settling on the columned voice panel. "I really do care for you. I
understand that you've seen a great many horrors, and been through many
bad times as well as good. I know this latest attack wasn't the first.
Bonnie's told me about Adrienne Margot, and about the incident with the
industrial acid, about Michael losing his memory. You've been through
so much, and you've come out of it, still with your gentle humanity
intact." She smiled gently. "It's one of the things that's so
attractive about you."
"No one's ever said these things to me. I never imagined that anyone
ever would."
"But you need to hear them as much as any of us, don't you?" There was
silence. "It's okay to need these things, Kitt. Like it's okay to need
reassurance from Michael about your partnership and your future. It's
very human...."
Kitt felt the heat in his circuits increase. "I don't understand how
you can possibly find me attractive. I'm a machine, a computer, you
write software for things like me."
Ella smiled. "You don't have any idea do you?"
"About what?"
"About the effect you have on women; your voice, your mannerisms, your
charisma... your sensuality...." She smiled gently, "I'd be willing to
bet that there have been a lot of women interested in you, but you just
haven't noticed."
"I very much doubt it, Ella."
"Come on Kitt, you can turn on the charm as easily as Michael can."
"That's just who I am... and possibly Michael's habits rubbing off on
me." He felt Ella's fingers wrap around the steering wheel. "I'm just
not sure that there's even one aspect of the human relationship that I
could realistically participate in."

Ella moved her fingers slowly up the side of the steering wheel, coming
to rest at the top before dropping her palm softly down onto the
perceptor. Instantly Kitt amplified the input coming from the device,
feeling Ella's touch.
"I like being with you, Kitt. I enjoy talking to you. You have a
unique perspective. I've known a lot of men, and none of them match up
to you."
"Flattery will get you everywhere."
Ella laughed. "One of Michael's phrases?"
"No, actually." Kitt let the humour filter through his voice, at the
same time revelling in the warmth of Ella's fingers playing on the
perceptor, tracing slow patterns that were making it more and more
difficult to concentrate on talking to her. "That's extremely
distracting, Ella," he told her softly.
Just as softly she replied, "It's supposed to be."

A slow, hot silence fell between them. Ella realized that the
temperature in the car had risen, but she knew it was just one more
thing she would have to get used to interpreting. Kitt was never going
to be able to express himself in the way a human would; she was going to
have to learn to read his gestures. And to talk in his language.

"Close your eyes, Kitt."
The request surprised him. "Ella...?"
"Trust me. Just let everything else go, just for a minute.
Concentrate on my touch."
Kitt took a virtual breath and started to pause all his other major
functions; scanner, Michael's comlink input, internal sensors.
Everything. Until all that was left were Ella's fingertips on the
perceptor. A low, quiet hum escaped his voice box. "Ella...." The
word was no more than a breath, yet it pierced her soul as she realized
Kitt had trusted her enough to do as she had asked him.

Never before had there been such little input that had taken so much
processing. Kitt concentrated every bite on the perceptor data, reading
only one lone signal for the first time in his short life. It was the
most amazing thing he had ever felt, like gentle fire playing across his
circuits. His entire CPU sang with Ella's touch, his whole being seemed
to lock with her pulse, and beat in the same rhythm. It was the most
intoxicating moment he had ever known. Somehow the energy had to be
released, and Kitt let it go as waves across his voice modulator, hums
of absolute contentment that swept through the silence in the car.

"God, Kitt...." Ella closed her own eyes, wanting more than anything
in the world to be able to kiss him. Just one of many sensations she
was never going to feel. She kept her fingertips tracing those patterns
that seemed so enticing to Kitt. He felt alive under her skin. Her
mind otherwise blank, she let the soft sounds emanating from him play
across her nerves, soothing and exciting at the same time. She could
feel her body responding. This felt so natural she could almost believe
that it would work between them.

Slowly, Ella could sense the change, and she knew Kitt was trying,
maybe struggling, to bring other functions back on line. Sighing
softly, she sat forward and without thinking she placed her lips
momentarily against the voice panel. She was aware of everything
stopping. And for a moment she imagined his breath against hers. And
then she pulled back, and ceased the movement of her fingers, although
she held them steady over that sensitive area.

She spoke quietly. "Kitt, are you okay?"
"Ella... I'm speechless. I've never felt anything like that."
"I wish I could do more...."
"I'm not sure my circuits could cope with any more."
Ella smiled, slowly leaning back in the seat. She looked up out of the
windshield, to the hotel. The thought of going back to the party did
not enthuse her. "I don't suppose there's any way we can get out of
here?"
"I'm sorry Ella." Kitt gauged her reaction. "This is going to be a
problem, isn't it? One of many...."
"Nothing that we can't work around Kitt, don't worry."


Michael placed a kiss on Bonnie's cheek. "I'm outta here."
She smiled knowingly. "I'm impressed you've stayed this long."
"This party does have its attractions."
"Not enough of them obviously."
Michael's eyes danced. "You know what you do to me. I can't take it
in this stuffy atmosphere."
Bonnie closed the gap between them and touched her lips to his. The
kiss lasted only a moment, before she whispered, "I'll see you later
on." She thought he was going to skip out of the hotel.

He exited the building gracefully, but did nearly brake into a run when
he saw the driver's side door of his car hanging open. As he closed on
Kitt, he quickly recognized Ella's dress spilling out, and snippets of
conversation floated through the warm night air.
"...do you really mean that?" His partner's voice, so full of
gentleness and awe, that it stopped Michael in his tracks.
"Yes, and I need you to believe me."
"I don't know what to say..."
Michael wondered whether he should intrude. He had gotten completely
fed up with trying to make small talk with Devon's guests. Even the
couple of dances he had managed to get with Bonnie were not making up
for the fact he was in a dinner jacket, it was gorgeous outside, and the
night was still young in some parts of town. He had wanted to take Kitt
and hit the road, maybe find some deserted beach to race down, scare a
few fish. Now though, he was not so sure that Kitt did not have plans
of his own.

Ella saw Michael watching them and leaned forward. "I better go."
Kitt knew already what she was talking about, and for one, brief moment
of utter confusion within his circuitry, he tried to figure out some way
of asking her not to leave. But he could not.
Somehow, Ella could sense his sudden distress. "I meant it, Kitt. If
there's a way, we'll find it." She gently patted the dash. "I'll see
you tomorrow."
"Thank you for making this a truly memorable evening."
"It was a pleasure."

**

Michael was content to listen to music for just over an hour, as he
drove the car at exhilaratingly high speeds across the dark California
highways. But as the final song on the album faded, he knew there was
something wrong. Kitt had not spoken a word since they left the hotel,
and the least he would have usually done would be to complain about the
music. "Kitt?"
"Yes."
Michael smiled. "Well at least you're still there."
"Of course."

The computer lapsed back into silence, when his usual reaction would
have been to find some conversation starter. Michael started to become
concerned. He thought that they had sorted out any problems Kitt had.
He knew that Ella had had a long talk with his partner, and she seemed
to have solved the last of them. The moment he really thought about it,
he knew what this was about. "So," he began, "you and Ella have an
interesting chat tonight?"

The voice panel remained darkened. Michael slowed his speed to
something vaguely close to the limit; they were closing in on the
beach. Soon, Michael stopped the car at the edge of the water, and got
out. Not long ago he had finally gotten around to seeing the film
'Waynes World', and the scene with the two of them lying on the hood of
their car, watching the planes fly overhead, had captured his
imagination. Kitt opened the windows and the sunroof as Michael made
himself comfortable on the warm hood, head rested on his arms as he
leant back against the windshield. He waited, wanting Kitt to talk to
him of his own accord, having learnt a long time before that pressuring
his partner was not always the best plan.

So sure was he that Kitt was going to start talking, it surprised him
when soft music started playing in the car. It was a quiet piece; a
sultry, lone trumpet and a woman's voice. Nothing more. It was not
anything like Michael had ever heard before, and it definitely was not
Kitt's usual choice. Michael closed his eyes and listened to the music,
letting his thoughts wonder to Bonnie, and to the way she had looked in
that dress tonight.


Kitt did not want to talk, and he did not want to think. He had found
the music on one of the late night radio stations, and decided on that,
rather than leaving Michael totally without an answer to his question.
Kitt tried to let the music soothe him, attempted to let it settle into
his circuitry as Ella's touch had so easily done. But he was finding it
difficult to concentrate on anything but Ella. He was not sure whether
what they had shared that night had meant anything to her, or whether
they had actually shared anything at all. After all, there was no way
he could ever return her gesture. But he knew beyond any doubt that it
had meant something very particular to him. The first time. The first
time a woman had touched him with anything other than natural action.
The first time he had felt one sensation so intensely that it had
blotted out anything else and left its echo burning in his memory.

He had meant what he had said to Michael a few days before; that he
could not see any way that this could end happily. But still he found
he did not want to ask Ella to stop. The knowledge that he was going
towards something that scared him was almost a paradox. And maybe for
that reason it was not something he wished to think about. He
registered Michael's weight on his hood, and found himself wishing that
it was Ella he was feeling there. The revelation shocked him.
"Michael?"
Michael opened his eyes. "Yeah, Kitt."
"I don't want to feel this way any longer."
Michael strove to ensure his tone stayed neutral, trying to keep the
parental edge out. "Why don't you talk to me?"
"I... I was just thinking how good it would feel to have Ella lying
there, instead of you."

Kitt waited anxiously for Michael's hurt retort, but instead he heard a
chuckle. "Well, Kitt, I guess that makes us even, because I was just
imagining how good it would be to be lying here with Bonnie."
"You're not upset?"
That startled him. "Why should I be upset?"
"I'm yours, Michael, I should be content with having _you_ here."
Michael turned, shifting onto his side to gaze in through the
windshield. "Kitt, you're not mine. I don't own you. Maybe... maybe
the car's in my name, but you're your own person. And why should you be
content with just having me around all the time?" His voice softened.
"You've fallen in love, Pal. It's going to be some time before you
manage to think about much else."
Kitt processed Michael's words over again. "Ella told me tonight that
she thought she was falling in love with me."

It was Michael's turn for silence. He knew it was coming with Kitt,
knew how his partner felt for the young programmer. But he really had
not thought that Kitt's feelings would be reciprocated. He was an
expert in recognizing that deep emotional feelings for the advanced
computer were possible, and in his life they were commonplace. But Ella
was a stranger to all this, she had not grown with Kitt as the rest of
them had. She had met a complicated mix of wires and chips, and had
fallen for him? He wondered why he was starting to feel angry at her,
then he realized that he did not want to see Kitt get hurt. And that
was what was going to happen because his partner had said it himself,
there was no where for this to go.

"Kitt... are you sure you... understood her correctly?" The moment the
words were out, and he heard how bad it sounded, he regretted it. Once
there had been a time when Kitt would have taken the question at face
value, and simply reassured Michael that he had heard her right. But
that time was long passed. Now Kitt could be hurt with questions like
that.
"You don't think it's possible for her to love me?"
Michael cringed at the barely disguised pain in that usually warm
voice. "No, I'm sorry Kitt, that came out wrong. It's just...."
"I know," Kitt finished for him, "you don't have to tell me. I'm a
computer in a car and she is a beautiful, bright woman. She could have
anyone. Why on earth would she show any interest in me."

Michael dropped his forehead to the glass. "That wasn't what I was
going to say." He had known that this would not be all that easy, but
he had not really been fully prepared for how difficult it was proving
to be. "Don't put yourself down. You're intelligent, sensitive, you've
got a wonderful sense of humour, now, and you're a charmer when you want
to be. Don't think I haven't noticed. People respond to you. That
lady who gave you that sculpture she'd done of you because she said that
you'd moved her? That French woman Devon somehow knows, the one that
adores you cause you speak her language fluently? Bonnie's friend Jacq
who can't keep her hands off you? You entice people. There's no reason
Ella shouldn't be caught up in that too."

"But Ella's different, Ella responds to _me_. She talks to _me_, not
because I'm there, or because it's different, or curious, or polite, she
goes out of her way to talk to me, and when she's with me, it's so
natural. Her body language, everything about her... it's as if she's
keyed in to me. She talks to me the way most people talk to you."

Michael took in Kitt's point. And when he thought about it, he
realized how true it was. A great many people did still see Kitt as a
curiosity, especially when they first met him. But Ella had gone
straight to him, accepted him instantly without question, exactly the
way he was.

"Don't you want me to see her?" Kitt asked finally, quietly.
"Kitt, it's not that. I really am happy that you've found each other.
I just don't want to see you get hurt, because I've been there and to
tell you the truth, I was quite glad that it was something I thought you
weren't ever going to have to experience." He took a deep breath,
knowing Kitt deserved the truth. He lowered his voice. "It would feel
a little bit odd... sharing you with someone. You've always been here
for me and me only. It's addictive almost, a feeling of uniqueness
because I have someone like you. But Kitt, I'd get used to you seeing
Ella, I don't want you to worry about that."
"I'll always be here for you, Michael," Kitt told him softly, touched
by his partner's words. "Never think that I won't be."

Michael smiled, and twisted around until he was on his back again.
After a while, he began to speak. "'Empathy, humanity, love; these
qualities are resident within a man's soul, no matter where that soul
resides.'"
"Isaac Asimov."
"I always wondered what he meant by that, until I met you. There are
times when I think we ought to have you christened. This is the reason
why they would never build another car like you, you have almost every
human trait, and no way to deal with at least half of them."
"Does it bother you that I am so human, as you put it?"
"No, it doesn't. In fact, the more you develop, the easier you are to
get on with. But don't you find that the more you develop, the harder
certain things are to cope with?"
"Yes. The longer we're together the harder it is to imagine being
without you. I remember a time when I would have accepted a replacement
driver if you had left the Foundation, now, I don't think I could."
"At least that's something we know you're not gonna have to worry about
now. Kitt, if I leave, you come with me."
"Not that you're going to."
"Not that I'm going to." Michael smiled. "We've been here before."
"I know, I was just checking."
"You were changing the subject." There was mock-accusation in
Michael's tone, and he believed he could sense Kitt blushing.
"If I was, it's a habit I picked up from you."
"Oh, I see. Blame me, do you? Is that what you tell Bonnie when she
discovers you've learnt a new skill?"
"It depends on the skill, if it's a function that is useful and
productive, I tell her I programmed it myself."
Michael shook his head, astounded. "And Devon still claims you're not
human."
"I'm not!"
"Sometimes, Kitt, you really could fool me."

**

The moment Ella rejoined the party, Bonnie noticed a change in her.
She was quieter, even more preoccupied, and it did not take Sherlock
Holmes to work out why. Whatever had been building between Ella and
Kitt for days, something had obviously happened out there. Ella
politely declined offers of dances until Bonnie decided that they should
both get out of there. For the first time in a long, long while, Bonnie
rang for a cab, told Devon they would meet him back at the house, found
Ella and they left.

After some discussion they went back to the estate. Ella chose a
bottle of wine from the cellar, and they started a log fire in the
lounge, more for atmosphere than warmth. More photos adorned the walls,
some of Wilton Knight, a few of the staff at the Foundation, of Bonnie,
Devon and Michael. There was a shot of a group of technicians, all
sitting and standing around Kitt. Ella recognized Pete, and most of the
others, they were a friendly bunch who obviously took good care of Kitt,
and she felt drawn to them because of that. But there was one face she
did not recognize. A woman, short blond hair, pretty face, leaning
quite possessively over the driver's side of Kitt's sunroof. Ella could
not believe the wave of jealousy that swept over her.

Bonnie finally found the wineglasses and the corkscrew and joined Ella
in the lounge, too intoxicated already to worry whether or not they were
about to drink one of Devon's prized vintages. She padded up to stand
next to Ella in front of the photo. "Who's the woman?"
Bonnie looked closer, then pulled back. "That's Avril. She was
employed as one of Kitt's technicians, a few years ago." Ella could
hear the anger creep into Bonnie's voice.
"What happened?"
"She... betrayed us. She'd been here, working very closely with Kitt,
for about seven months. Then one day she overrode Kitt's control and
took off with the car. She drove out to Las Vegas, tried to sell it,
and when a guy wouldn't give her what she wanted, she killed him. She
ran him over."
"Using Kitt?"
Bonnie nodded. "We tracked her down within a matter of hours, and she
tried to use Kitt to kill Michael. They stood there, face to face, and
Kitt suddenly went for him. He stopped just in front of Michael's
knees. He'd overridden her, broken through his own programming to come
to his own conclusion. I was so proud of him, but I'll tell you, that
moment when he started towards Michael, was the worst moment of my
entire life."

Bonnie sat down on the rug in front of the fire, and opened the wine.
Finally Ella joined her, but she was still having trouble taking in what
Bonnie had said. "She used Kitt to kill a man?"
"She ran him over. She could have used any car."
"But she used Kitt."
"Yes." Bonnie looked up at her sadly. "And he does remember. He
refused to go back on the road for weeks. He kept asking us to
deactivate him. And even when Michael had talked him round, reassured
him that none of it had been his fault, Kitt still seemed devastated by
the whole episode. It took a long time for him to learn to trust
again." Bonnie handed her a glass of wine.
"It must have been a difficult time for you."
"It was a difficult time for all of us, especially for Kitt. They put
him through a myriad of tests afterwards. But we got through it, like
we get through everything else."

Ella nodded slightly, letting her attention wonder to the flames in the
grate. "How could anyone do that to him?" She asked quietly. "How
could anyone know him, and work with him, and then force him to go
through something like that?"
Bonnie smiled. "Not everyone cares for him like you do."
"But even so...." Ella could feel the anger building within her. She
knew she had to let it go, there was nothing she could do to change what
that woman had done.
Eventually Bonnie decided to change the subject, and her curiosity was
starting to get the better of her. "I gather you didn't leave the party
to go and feed the ducks?"
"I just wanted to see him, to talk to him." Ella pushed her fingers
through her hair. "Bonnie, I don't know what's happening. I used to
think that I had complete control of my life. I was totally content
with my job, my friends, working late hours, spending nights on the
Internet, weekends away at various people's houses. I've been out with
a few guys but nothing ever seems to work, and I always felt more
comfortable when I wasn't seeing anyone."
"But...?"
"But Kitt is making me think that maybe I'm missing something." She
took a sip of the wine, and reached over for the bottle. "I'm not sure
we should be drinking this Bonnie."
Bonnie frowned, tasting the fine liquid. "What makes you say that?"
"This bottle says 1953."
"Shit!" She took another sip. " It's very nice though. There are so
many bottles down there, he'll never notice."

Ella nodded, gazing up around her. The firelight was the only
illumination in the room, playing with shadows on the walls. She felt
happy and secure here, the place felt like it was full of love. "Do you
all stay here for Christmas?"
"Usually. We have a meal on Christmas day, Devon's daughter and her
family sometimes join us. Michael and Kitt tend to take a vacation
between Christmas and New Year." She met Ella's eyes with her own and
smiled. "I'm not so sure they'll be doing that this year though."
"What makes you say that?"
"Because I think Kitt will plant his tires in the gravel and refuse to
move." She gazed into her glass. "And maybe Michael will feel like
relaxing around here for a few days. You're very welcome to join us, if
you haven't got any other plans."
"Thank you." Ella's gaze was drawn to the play of light in her own
wineglass. "I don't often see my family anymore. My parents don't
really get on that well, and my brother's always telling me that I
should act more like a woman."
Bonnie frowned, and her expression told Ella that it was a line she too
was familiar with. "What does that mean?"
"I'm not sure. Put on a skirt, go to a club and pull some drunken hunk
I guess. I never asked him exactly what he thought I should be doing.
His opinion never meant that much to me. Don't get me wrong, I have a
lot of friends, and they're all wonderful. I would never have described
myself as lonely. I just never felt the urge to go out every night and
pull a different guy. I was actually starting to think that maybe I
was a lesbian and just hadn't worked it out yet."
"Until you met Kitt."
Bonnie had expected some sort of reaction, but Ella just nodded.
"Until I met Kitt." She sighed. "Honestly, Bonnie, I don't know what
I'm doing."
"I wish I could offer you some advice. I've felt a little of what
you're feeling, but I never let it go beyond late night musings."
"Why?"
"Because I helped create Kitt, I helped build him, I nurtured him. I
have a place in his life which no one could ever fill if I left. I
don't ever want to jeopardize what I have here. And I was always
attracted to Michael I guess. Kitt's the most important person in the
world to me, I wouldn't ever want to risk hurting him."
Ella finished off her wine, staring away into the bottom of her glass.
"He makes me feel... like no one else ever has. I don't quite
understand how, or why. I know it's crazy."
"It's not crazy. There's a side to him that people don't see because
he doesn't show it very often. He's a romantic at heart, craving love
and affection and closeness as much as the rest of us do. But I think
that he believed love wasn't something he was ever going to experience,
until you came along."
"Look, Bonnie, I'd be the first to admit that Kitt's not just a
machine. But he is what he is. He is Michael's car."
"Yes, he is. But he's also as close to sentient as a computer has ever
become. He's unique, and the normal rules just don't apply any more."

Bonnie filled their glasses. "I can make a suggestion." She said
quietly.
"Go for it."
"Just for tonight, just while we're sitting here with a real fire, and
drinking some of the most expensive wine only influence can buy, why
don't we just accept that Kitt is someone you love, who loves you back,
and pretend that everything's going to work out, happily ever after."
Ella carefully clinked her glass with Bonnie's.
"To fairytales."

**

The sun was starting to rise as Michael piloted Kitt home. The car
seemed edgy, excited almost, and although Michael was used to feeling
the potential power under the hood, this time it seemed to be more like
Kitt badgering Michael to go faster. Eventually, he gave in. "Would
you like to drive?"
There was no hesitation. "Yes."
Michael shook his head, prepared to let it go for now - he knew Kitt's
emotions were messed up; the computer had a lot to deal with at the
moment, and he understood that. "Ready?"
"Anytime."
"3 2 1...."
In the usual swap-over procedure, Michael released the wheel at the end
of the countdown and Kitt took over smoothly. It was a method they
usually used when Michael was taking over from Kitt at high speeds, but
it seemed easier to use it both ways.

The moment Kitt had control, their speed shot up from 120 to 200 in a
matter of two or three seconds. Michael sat back, unconcerned with the
roadside drops of several hundreds of feet that Kitt was toying with.
He trusted Kitt with his life, always had and always would. It always
touched him, the feelings of safety and belonging that he felt when he
was with Kitt. Even after the attack, he still felt like nothing and no
one could touch them.

"In a hurry, are we partner?"
"I'm merely enjoying exercising my considerable speed capabilities."
"Liar."
"Well, it was worth a try."
Michael laughed. "I remember a time when you wouldn't even have
considered fibbing. For any reason."
"As you say, I have developed, helped along by your example."
"Thank you, I'm sure Devon really appreciates what I've done to you.
Anyway Kitt, Ella's probably in bed by now."
"Thank you for reminding me."
Michael's curiosity was piqued by his partner's reply. "Kitt, could I
ask you... a personal question?"
"Of course."
"Does being with Ella... excite you? Do you feel that find of thing?"
Michael felt like a voyeur, but at the same time he was interested. He
had always wanted to learn more about Kitt's environment, about how his
partner perceived things; what he heard, what detail he saw. During one
of the long nights following Avril's betrayal, Kitt had asked Michael if
he realized what it was like to see a world surrounding him, but to know
he would never really be a true part of it. When he took Kitt's mental
state, at the time, out of the question, Michael drew the conclusion
that they were both seeing the same surroundings, but perceiving them in
a slightly different way. And the closer Michael became to Kitt, the
more he found he wanted to understand about Kitt's world.

Kitt did not answer at first, but it was more out of an inability to do
so, rather than an unwillingness, or embarrassment over sharing the
information with Michael. "Could you define the phrase 'excite me'?
I'm not quite sure what you're referring to."
Michael started to wish that he had not asked. "Well, you know, excite
you, arouse you." He waved his hands around in the air, as if that
would help.
"Arouse me?" There was a note of disbelief in Kitt's voice.
"Yeah. You know," he lowered his voice for no reason. "Sexually."
"Sexually?!" This time the disbelief was definite. "Michael, what are
you talking about? Do you see any genitalia around here?!"
Michael could feel himself blushing, and wished Kitt at least had the
common decency to be a little embarrassed about the subject. "Well,
obviously you haven't got the parts..."
"Then how... why would I feel sexual arousal? Not that I'd know it if
I did feel it." He added, somewhat puzzled by this whole conversation.
"Oh, you'd know it, Kitt, believe me."

Silence fell between them as Michael tried to think of some way out of
this one. Then suddenly Kitt asked, "Michael you don't think that Ella
thinks...."
"No." He stopped Kitt hurriedly. "I don't think that at all."
He felt the car slow considerably, and sat up. "Kitt, what's wrong?"
"It's never going to work is it?" Kitt asked him miserably. "There's
no way. There are too many differences. It would be like that film -
'The Man With Two Brains' - when all he wanted was to get the brain into
a female body so that he could have sex with her."
Michael frowned at the bizarre interpretation of the Steve Martin
comedy. "I didn't mean...." He shook his head, all too aware that what
Kitt was trying to say was the truth of the situation. "I'm sorry,
Pal."

They travelled the rest of the distance in silence; Michael still not
completely sure that Kitt had answered his original question, Kitt
knowing that he had not answered the question, and no longer sure that
he wanted to. Maybe that night was all he was going to have to remember
Ella by - all that would ever happen between the two of them that was
theirs only. It made him sad to think about it.

**

Michael's eyes drank in Bonnie's lithe form as she strode over to the
garage. He stood in the window of the breakfast room drinking coffee
and wondering if Kitt was feeling any happier. He had spent the rest of
the night again curled in the front seat, like a worried father. Kitt
had assured him that he was fine, but had been something in the
synthesized tone that had had Michael concerned, and he had stayed
anyway.

He was pulled from his train of thoughts by the door opening, and Ella
walking gingerly across to the coffeepot. She poured herself a mug
full, and then perched herself on the end of the table, looking out at
the garage where she knew Kitt was parked. Michael waited until she was
settled. "Heavy night?"
Ella looked at him as if she had not realized that he was there.
"Yeah, Bonnie and I came back early and raided Devon's cellar." She
forced herself to swallow a mouthful of the strong blend. "You two left
even earlier."
"I'm sure Bonnie told you how much I hate those things."
"Kitt certainly is much better company."
Michael took that as his cue. He turned, not wanting to say anything
out of order, but remembering Kitt's misery the night before. "You're
confusing him, Ella."
"He's confusing me." She shot back. "It feels like I've finally met
the man I'm supposed to be with for the rest of my life, but it turns
out he's a computer."
"But you knew what he was when you got into this."
"I know," she sounded as frustrated and confused as Kitt had. And
Michael started to think that maybe neither of them were to blame here.
Maybe the blame lay in an idea had by a dying man many years ago. "I
thought... I don't know. It's like virtual dating isn't it? Thousands
of people have relationships over the Internet, chatting each other up,
spending time together, having virtual sex, all with words, no physical
contact, some never see each other."
"But you always know that it's a human being on the other side, you
always know that there's a person typing those words. You can ask for a
photo."
"But it doesn't matter. You never know for certain. Kitt could do it,
no one would ever know that he wasn't a human being."
"But you know. And you're the one he's interested in. He doesn't go
surfing the Internet. He doesn't go searching for women, he isn't...
like that. You're very special to him, Ella. You're the first and
you're very likely to be the last, however this ends."
"What are trying to say? Do you really think I'd be doing this if I
didn't feel very strongly for Kitt? Michael, you have to believe that
he's very special to me. I haven't been with a guy in at least two
years. I haven't wanted to be involved with anyone. I wouldn't be...
going after Kitt if I wasn't very attracted to him." She stood, walking
over to the window. "I feel alive when I'm with him," she dropped her
voice. "I feel as if he would love me forever and never hurt me."
"But the real question is, could you love him as unquestioningly as he
would love you?"
Michael watched Bonnie cross the driveway, seemingly in a hurry, as he
waited for Ella's answer. She never gave him one.
Bonnie appeared in the doorway, making them both turn.
"Michael," she said quietly, "turn your comlink off."

**

Once Devon had shown Michael the folder Detective Carlson had dropped
on to his desk, Michael was desperate to hit the road. But Kitt was not
so desperate. Only the idle threat of taking Devon's beloved
Convertible shifted Kitt into the driveway.

Kitt had not said very much to neither Ella nor Michael since that
morning, and Michael knew he was in trouble the moment they left the
estate. He pushed in a tape, and Kitt switched it off.
"You owe me an apology."
"I know. I am sorry, Kitt."
There was a pause, and the tape started. It was all Kitt said for the
first part of the journey.

Michael was starting to desperately miss his partner's banter as the
car ate up the freeway at a considerable speed. It was strange to be
continually looking down at the columned panel and seeing it dark and
silent, usually it was all he could do to shut Kitt up for long enough
to listen to the news on the radio. After about 200 miles, Michael came
to a decision. Firstly he tried just taking his hands off the wheel,
but Kitt simply took control, until Michael stabbed the Manual Cruise
button in frustration. So he decided on a different tactic. He took a
deep breath, and slammed his foot down, knocking the accelerator to the
floor. The car shot forward like a bullet, and the digits on the
speedometer began to rise rapidly. Kitt still did not say a word, and
Michael kept his foot on the pedal, pushing their speed upwards of
150mph. Neither partner gave in until the car was moving at 170mph.
"Michael, please...." It was not a plea, more a sigh of defeat.
"Stop sulking and I'll slow down."
"All right."
"Good." Michael eased back off the gas, and let the car slow down
naturally until they were cruising at 120. "Talk to me! I'm going
insane here!"
"I was just thinking about what Ella said to you this morning."
"Which bit?"
"She told you that she felt that she had met the man she was supposed
to spend the rest of her life with."
"You've spent the passed two hundred miles thinking about that? Kitt,
women say that all the time!"
"You only have this negative attitude towards relationships because you
have so many of them."
Michael smiled at Kitt's prissy tone. This was more like it. "So
you're the expert now are you?"
"Michael, I've decided that there's nothing I can do to change what's
happening. And I don't want to. So while Ella feels this way, I'm
going to enjoy it." Kitt sounded distinctly uncertain. But Michael
recognized this as a start. "And we'll deal with the fallout later."
Kitt finished.
"Oh, we'll deal with it will we?" But there was warm affection lacing
Michael's voice.
"Yes."
"Kitt, that's fine with me." He settled himself back down. "So, now
we're talking again, is there any chance of your plotting a route to Mr.
Clay's residence."
The four small monitors lit up, displaying the required maps and
overlaid route. "Thank you."
"Michael, I've been studying this man's file, and I can't see anything
that would connect him to the attack on us, or with the destruction of
the lab. William Clay is a very respected collector of automobiles. He
has one of the largest collections in the country."
"I know. It doesn't make sense to me either, but neither does his
fingerprints turning up at the lab. He has never had anything to do
with the Foundation, there's no reason for his prints to be there."

Seven and a half hours later, with the sun having set beside them, Kitt
and Michael finally pulled into the driveway of the Clay estate. It was
vast. Stretching into the distance were a number of large hanger-size
warehouses. The driveway itself was circular, with an island of tall
trees and shrubs in the centre, in front of the house. Long, wide,
shallow steps lead up to the front door, giving the place a stately
feel, despite the building's lack of exterior decoration. As Michael
cut the engine, it started to rain, a few drops sliding down Kitt's
windshield.
Michael looked around him, reluctant to leave the safety of Kitt's
cabin until he was relatively sure he was not walking into a similar
trap they had faced the previous week. "Scan the hangers, Pal."
"Each structure contains up to eight cars. Michael, he has a limited
edition Ferrari Escrit. And there's a white, unfinished Pontiac
Firebird."
"You sound impressed."
"I am impressed. The cars are in immaculate condition."
Michael reached for the door handle. "Listen, Kitt, if this guy was
behind the attack... just try to keep your mind on the scanners, okay?"
Kitt ignored the remark. "Michael, if he was behind the attack, you'll
be in danger too."
"I'm convinced he was after you, Partner. Just be careful, contact me
if anything happens, and get away if you have to. I don't want to lose
you again."
"I'll be watching out for both of us."

Michael found the doorbell and rang it. When the large white door was
finally opened, he found himself greeted by a middle-aged man in formal
wear. "May I help you, Sir?"
"I'm looking for William Clay." Michael glanced at his watch. "I
realize it's late...."
"Please, Sir, step inside. He is still up, despite the late hour. Who
shall I say wishes to see him?"
"Michael Knight." The butler waited for more, but when more was
forthcoming, he politely bowed his head and turned, heading back down
the corridor and finally disappearing through a doorway. A moment
later, a distinguished gentleman came out of the same doorway and strode
up to Michael smiling openly.
"Mr. Knight?"
"Yes, I work for the Foundation for Law and Government." He took
Clay's outstretched hand.
"Ah yes, Wilton Knight's little association." Michael hid his surprise
that Clay had heard of FLAG. He remained silent as he was led through
into a small informal office just to their right. There was a large bay
window that looked out into the driveway, and as they walked into the
room, Michael saw Clay glance outside. He noted the glint in the man's
eyes when he spotted Kitt, but said nothing.
"Please, sit down and tell me what I can do for you."
Michael seated himself on the edge of the two-seater sofa. "We had a
break-in, to one of our labs, just over a week ago. We found your
fingerprints, and because we prefer to do our own investigations, I'm
here to ask you if you have any knowledge of how your prints may have
got there."
Clay's expression remained genial. He was a good-looking man in his
early 50s, Michael guessed, with a very kind face, if that was not too
much of a cliche.
"Well, Mr. Knight, it looks as though you've found me out." His
response took Michael by surprise. "You see, my daughter used to work
for Knight Industries. I'm afraid she showed me around one night. I
asked to take a peek at the car - the Knight Industries Two Thousand.
She let me take a look into the garage. I swear I didn't touch
anything, but I may have leaned on one of the work-tops somewhere." He
looked guilty enough. "May I ask, is that the car outside? It is
beautiful... I'm a collector you know."
Michael tried to take everything in. It was not what he had been
expecting. "What's your daughter's name?"
"Avril. Avril Stone. She divorced some years ago, but she kept her
married name because she is very well known in the computing industry."
Clay stopped talking.
Michael was trying his best to hide the anger that had surfaced the
moment he had heard Avril's name. "Mr. Clay, are you aware of what your
daughter did to us?"
It was Clay's turn to be surprised. "She told me she left to take a
job with better pay."
Michael sunk his teeth into his bottom lip. This man sounded so proud
of his daughter; did he really need to destroy that for his own
satisfaction? Finally he stood, and Clay followed his lead.
"Thank you for your time, Mr. Clay. I'm sorry to have bothered you."
"Anytime, and there's anything else I can help you with...."
Michael had a thought. "Well, I wonder if I could ask for a tour...
I'm quite a lover of cars myself."
Clay's face lit up. "Of course, it would be a pleasure. Please, let
me go and fetch the keys."

There were eleven hangers that Michael could count, and he guessed
there may be more elsewhere on the sprawling estate. Clay had a genuine
Rolls Royce, an original Aston Martin, one of the first Porsche 911s, a
sparkling yellow Lamborghini. BMW, Ferrari, Pontiac, Lotus and TVR were
all represented. There was a Mercedes that had been left in the hands
of Baramus for too long, souped up to almost match Kitt's top speed.
All were in immaculate condition, as Kitt had pointed out earlier, and
Michael was impressed. Clay was an open, friendly man.

As they walked and talked, Michael found himself liking Clay more and
more. The 'please call me William' phrase had actually slipped into the
conversation naturally, and Michael found himself on first name terms
with their prime suspect within half an hour of meeting him. Clay was
more than proud of his collection, he approached each one like it was a
unique, priceless gem. Michael was beginning to think that he might
actually trust Clay with his own car. When the tour ended, in what were
rapidly becoming the small hours of the morning, Michael apologized
sincerely for disturbing William late at night. They approached Kitt,
and Michael opened the driver's door.
"You really should keep a car like that more secure."
"Oh, no need. It has a fingerprint scanner under the handle."
William smiled. "Standard equipment, I suppose."
Michael frowned. "Not too standard." He smiled, accepting William's
out-stretched hand. "Thank you for not throwing me out."
"It's been a pleasure Mr. Knight. And if this beauty is ever for
sale...."
"That's not likely, I'm afraid."
Clay nodded, and when he spoke, Michael noted the odd quality to his
voice. "I thought you might say that."

Michael leaned back in the driver's seat, closing the door behind him
as he watched William disappear inside.
"Did you find out anything, Michael?"
"I don't know, Kitt. He's a car collector; he loves cars. You should
see them. It looks like he spends hours every day taking care of each
one."
Michael leant against the steering wheel. "I honestly don't know." He
sighed. "Have you scanned the whole estate?"
"Of course."
"Find anything?"
"Nothing suspicious. Cars." He took a scan of Michael's vitals.
"You're upset."
"Nah, Kitt, not upset. A little frustrated. When I meet someone we're
going after I usually take an instant dislike to them. But I like
William. He seems like an honest guy."
"I trust your instincts, Michael." Kitt fell silent for a moment, then
asked. "Could he explain how his fingerprints got into the lab?"
"Sort of." Michael shifted uneasily in the seat. "Do you have any...
memory of the attack?"
"Bits. Much of my immediate memory was lost. Ella couldn't recover
what hadn't been sent to the backup storage."
"But you have memories of the moments before the attack?"
"I have sketchy memories of the minutes before the first missile
penetrated."
"Were any of these cars around?"
Reluctantly, Kitt went back to that fateful afternoon and scanned the
images for cars. "Michael, the only match is a white Lotus Esprit.
There was one stopped a mile or so from the attack site. There's also
one at the back of the estate, but I can't get the plates from what I
have from the attack. It isn't a rare car, but I'm not sure it's a
coincidence either."

Michael started the engine and tooled out of the driveway. The rain
was coming down in earnest now.
"Michael, you seem very distressed. Was it something that William Clay
said?"
Michael sighed deeply, long gone were the days when he could hide his
feelings from his partner.
"Kitt, there's something you need to know." He gazed down at the voice
panel, obediently silent, waiting for the information. "William Clay is
Avril Stone's father."
Through the years, spending so much time with Kitt, Michael had learnt
how to compensate, how to read Kitt's expressions from the lengths and
quality of silences. As this silence lengthened, Michael knew his
partner was as shaken by the news as he himself had been. Finally, Kitt
found some words. "Wouldn't that give Clay the perfect motive for the
attack?"
"He didn't seem to know about what she did. She told him that she left
Knight Industries to take a job that paid better."
"But she's in jail, isn't she?"
"I don't know. You'd better check on that."
"Right away, Michael." There was a pause, and then he added, "It's
late, maybe you should let me drive."
"In a little while, Pal, let's get you settled back down, okay?"
"I'm all right, Michael. It was... unexpected, that's all. I've
linked into the Arizona justice department's computer, according to
their records, Avril Stone was paroled last year."
Michael closed his eyes for a moment, taking in Kitt's words. "I'm
sorry," he whispered gently.
"She killed a man, Michael." Kitt sounded almost shocked. "How could
she get out so quickly?"
"I don't understand either, Partner. But it strikes me as strange that
she could fool her father for so many years."
"It is possible, Michael. A telephone call can be made from anywhere."

Michael frowned at the dash. "Why are you all for Clay? I thought
you'd be searching for evidence against him."
"Just because his daughter is a cold-blooded murderer, it doesn't mean
he is like her. Besides, I still can't believe that a man so obviously
fond of automobiles would try to destroy one, he seemed so genuine when
you were both outside with me."

Michael slipped back into thought, leaving his partner to watch the
road and wallow in his own memories. Within seconds Kitt started to
regret thinking about Avril at all. "Michael?"
He came back to the here and now. "Yeah, Kitt?"
"Nothing, I just needed to reach out and touch someone."
"Too many memories, eh, Partner?"
"Far too many."
"Need something to take your mind off it?"
"It would help."
"Wanna drive?" Michael imagined he could feel Kitt's smile. "In
three, two, one..."

**

Clay waited for the computer to boot, and telnetted to the chat server,
logging in. He moved into a private room, and waited, knowing she would
be along soon. After a ten-minute wait, on line, she finally turned up.

_What do you want, Testa?
>I've just had a visit from your old friend
_Is he still with you?
>No, they left half an hour ago
_I need access
>That's your business, you're the expert
_I need you to hit him again
>What will that accomplish?
_I've found out how they saved his life, I can get access as the backup
program executes
>They came here because they found my prints as the lab, they're
already suspicious
_Just once more Testa, then you can have your prize
>When?
_Can you do it tonight?
>I suppose so
_I'll be waiting

Clay logged out and shutdown his machine. Then he walked into the
hall, took his coat from the stand, and grabbed his car keys and
mobile. From the car, he called his associates and arranged a
rendezvous point on the only route from Phoenix to Reno. As he drove,
he thought about the young man who had come to visit him earlier, and
found himself glad that he would not be badly hurt, he had liked Michael
Knight.

**

"When will they be back?"
Bonnie smiled and sat down next to Ella on the patio. "You're missing
him already?"
Ella looked up at the moon. "I was thinking... about leaving." Her
words were spoken quietly, Bonnie could hear the choked tears in her
throat.
"Why?" she asked gently.
"This morning, Michael asked me if I could love Kitt as unquestioningly
as he would love me. I couldn't answer that."
Bonnie reached out and touched Ella's arm. "Believe me, Kitt does
nothing unquestioningly." That got a smile in response. "If you want
to leave because you want to go home, that's okay. But please don't
leave because of Kitt. He may be falling in love with you, I know
you're in love with him. Please don't run away from that." She watched
Ella wipe tears from her eyes, aching in sympathy.
"It's not easy, that's all. Knowing I'll never be able to hold him,
never feel him holding me. Last night I was so desperate to be able to
kiss him.... I'm just not sure how long I can on like that without
going insane, as much as I love him."
"I'm sorry... I'm not sure I can work that particular miracle. As for
what Michael said to you, he's just being protective. He knows that if
Kitt gets hurt, his life would become very complicated for some time."
Bonnie was smiling as she spoke. "Seriously; you know how he feels
about Kitt. He doesn't want to see him hurt. But I think Kitt knows,
as well as you do, that sometimes the most risky paths are also the most
rewarding."
Ella nodded. "I don't want to leave, Bonnie. I know I'd miss him
terribly."
Bonnie looked out over the grounds. "I'm afraid all I can offer is a
hot chocolate?" She ended in a question, and Ella turned and nodded.
"You never know, they say chocolate is the universal solution."

*

Michael woke as their speed dropped rapidly.
"Kitt, what's wrong?"
"It may be nothing, but I've picked up a white Lotus Esprit on the road
ahead."
"Which direction is it travelling?"
"It's stationary, and there's a truck with a very odd configuration
about two miles ahead of it."
"What do you mean by 'odd configuration'?" Michael peered out of the
windshield into the rain. By now, Kitt had brought the car to a
complete stop, and visibility was very low. Kitt tended to run with
only the spots on, giving sufficient warning to other drivers without
dazzling them with the high powered headlamps, and he had no need for
windshield wipers.
"My sensors are picking up unusually high radiation levels."
"Weapons?"
"Maybe.... After what we've been through I thought it best to be
careful."
"You did the right thing by slowing. How far off are we?"
"Twenty miles."
"We need another route."
Kitt searched the maps until he found an alternative way home. "I'm
not saying that it'll be as comfortable as the highway," he warned.
"Doesn't matter, just get us around the car and the truck with a safe
margin."

Kitt turned the car in a 180-degree arc, and drove back to the narrow
turning several miles in the direction they had just come. "Michael,
are we running away?"
Kitt's question surprised him. "Probably." He thought for a moment,
then grabbed the wheel and stabbed the Manual Cruise button, turning the
car in an arc a lot less graceful than the one Kitt had executed only a
minute before.
"Michael?"
"Sorry, Kitt, but I just had an idea."
"Feel like sharing?"
Michael glanced down at the dash, smiling at his partner's phrase. It
sounded like something he had picked up from Ella. "I was just thinking
that if that white Lotus is Clay's..."
"Then it won't be at the estate."
"Very good."
"Michael, how the hell did he get ahead of us?"
Michael shrugged, frowning and looking down at the speedometer. They
had been travelling at their usual speed. "I dunno. Maybe he knows
shortcuts we don't."
"In a Lotus?"
"Maybe."
"I honestly thought he'd have more respect." At least that brought a
smile to Michael's lips.

Michael's hunch was right. The Lotus Esprit was gone from the back of
Clay's house. They sat in the driveway as Michael tried to figure out
where he had gone wrong. "So they're back out there, waiting for us."
"He can't really believe that we would fall for the same trap twice?"
Michael thought about that, Clay had seemed like an intelligent man.
"No, Kitt, he can't have. Did the readings from the truck out there
match readings from the truck at the attack?"
"I don't know."
"Could you find out?" Kitt hesitated, and Michael realized that this
was the second time he had asked his partner to delve into the painful
memories of that afternoon. "I'm sorry, Kitt, but I need to know."
"I understand that.... The truck on the road tonight is different from
the first one. Having analyzed the radiation levels from this new
truck, I would take a guess that there are missiles present inside."
"Same as before?"
"...Yes."
Michael could hear the worry in Kitt's tone. "It's okay, Pal, we're
one step ahead of them this time."
"So what do we do?"
"We wait. Clay won't stay out there indefinitely. He'll figure we
went a different route and he'll come home. And then we'll have another
chat with Mr. Geniality."

It was an hour later when the ivory brow of Clay's Lotus appeared in
the driveway. "Michael, please be careful."
"Don't worry, Kitt, I'll tell him I dropped my keys."
Michael got out of his car as Clay came around the front of the house.
"Mr. Knight, I... I had to step out for a while, did you forget to ask
me something?" Michael approached Clay, reaching him before he
succeeded in getting his key in the door.
"I know you were out there tonight, waiting for us."
He expected Clay to deny it, but instead he took a step back and pulled
a gun from his jacket. It was an unexpected move by a man who Michael
had originally thought could not have had anything to do with the
attack. Michael was not ready for it, and was caught, startled, in the
line of fire. Instantly Kitt's engine started, and the car rolled
forward, wary. Clay turned, addressing Kitt directly. "You just stay
where you are, and I won't hurt him."
"What do you want, Clay?"
"Sadly, the truth is, I don't want anything. But a friend of mine has
a somewhat disturbing obsession with your car."
Michael's mind was racing. They were both quickly getting soaked in
the downpour and he felt that this really was not how Clay had wanted it
to happen. "Shooting me isn't going to help."
"I'm well aware of that. And if you could just release external access
to the Knight Industries computer inside the car, I will let you go, you
have my word."
"No. Absolutely not."
Kitt sat with the engine running, an angry growl mixing with the hum of
the turbines. But his voice was laced with uncertainty. "Michael..."
"No, Kitt, don't even think about it."
Clay cocked the safety back, raising the barrel hesitantly to Michael's
head. "Do it."
"Kitt, no."
"Michael, I have to...."
"No!" But he knew that his partner would do it, despite everything
that they had said in the days gone by, Kitt would always sacrifice
himself to save his partner's life. In desperation, Michael did the
first thing that leapt to mind. He brought his knee up, catching Clay's
thigh and knocking him off-balance. In the same moment, Michael ducked
the gun and rolled. Clay brought the weapon back up, but Kitt had
already got two wheels up onto the steps, shielding his driver from the
enemy. Michael crawled up into the passenger side and heard the door
close behind him. Clay fired at the windscreen, but only once. Kitt
moved forward, climbing the steps using a mixture of traction and sheer
power, managing to pin Clay against the closed door. "Drop the gun."

Clay followed Kitt's order with a resigned reluctance, letting the gun
clatter down over the dark, rain covered hood. Michael scrambled out of
the car and punched Clay across the jaw, watching as he fell against the
bumper that still pinned him against his own front door, the red glow
from the scanner track tracing a line back and forth across his knees.
"That was for what you did to Kitt, you bastard." Clay stayed quiet,
except to sniff up the blood in his nose. "Now tell me who your friend
is and where I can find him."
Clay shook his head. "I can't."
"I think you'll find that you can."
"You don't understand, I don't know. We talk on a chat server."
Michael frowned, "A what?"
"It's an electronic system, Michael," Kitt informed him, "like email,
but in real time."
"You must still have a name? Where did you two meet?"
"On the server, I swear, I've never met him."
"So why do all this?"
"He... he said I could have the car, once the computer was dead."
Once again, Michael felt the anger surging through him. "So you're
telling me, you don't even know a name?"
"He logs on as 'A', just a letter."
"Which chat server?" Kitt started to ask the questions he knew Michael
would not know to ask.
"Foothills."
"What's the name of the room?"
Clay hesitated, and Kitt nudged forward. "Those missiles were very
uncomfortable," he said quietly.

Clay felt the pressure on his legs increasing. He looked to Michael
who just shrugged. "I would say he had just cause. Wouldn't you?"
"I can't tell you!"
Kitt nudged again. "Tell us."
"Please, I can't...."
Kitt had had enough, it had been a long day. He decided on a different
tactic. "Do you know what your daughter did to me?" Clay looked
straight at the windshield this time.
"I don't know what you're talking about...."
Michael glanced down. "Kitt, I didn't tell him."
"Well then, I will." There was real hatred in Kitt's tone, and Michael
stepped back warily.
"Kitt... come on, let's not make this personal."
But Kitt was angry - this man had attacked them, nearly killed him,
placed him in a position where his only option had been to hurt
Michael. And then he had tried again. And Kitt really hated it when
people held guns to his partner's head; there was very little he could
do in those situations and it scared him. "It's already personal,
Michael. You daughter killed a man, Mr. Clay." Kitt stated. "She took
control of this car and ran a man down. I know what his body felt like
as it collided with the hood. I know how it crumpled as it bounced off
the glass, I know how it felt as she crushed him under my wheels. And I
will remember his screams for the rest of my existence." He pushed
forward into Clay, ignoring the man's obvious shock. "Some people
blamed me for what she made me do. They hurt me trying to ensure I
wouldn't do it again. So give me one good reason why I shouldn't take
something from her like she took from me."

Michael was almost too stunned to hear what Clay said, but he knew he
must have answered because Kitt's demand changed. "Now I want your
login and password."
"Please, don't make me...." He was silenced by the spike of pain that
suddenly shot from his knees. "All right, my login is Testa, T E S T
A. Password is E S 4 C R 1 T."
"Thank you." Kitt finally backed off, descended the steps and sat
idling threateningly in the driveway. Michael had a moment of
indecision, but decided that Clay had enough to think about.
"Who are the guys with the missiles?" There was enough anger and shock
in his voice to ensure Clay did not think twice about answering.
"They're old associates."
"I never want to see them again, is that clear?" Clay nodded, but
Michael wanted to make absolutely sure. "If we have any more trouble
from you, I'll let Kitt loose in a couple of your hangers here. And
believe me when I say that my car would come out without a single dent."

Clay swallowed nervously, and nodded once more. "You won't see them
again."
"Good. Kitt, disable any computer in the building. I'm sorry you had
to hear about Avril that way," he added to Clay. "But as you heard, she
hurt Kitt very badly."
Michael slowly walked around the car and opened the driver's side
door. "Let's go home, partner."

A great many miles went by before Kitt spoke again. "I'm sorry,
Michael."
"Kitt... why haven't you talked to me about this?"
"I don't think about it very often. It just... he scared me,
threatening you like that.... I'm sorry."
"Stop apologizing. You didn't hurt him. You scared him, and you
probably destroyed every dream he's ever had for his daughter. But you
had your reasons, and you got us what we needed. What chat room did he
say?"
"Carroll."
"Carroll? Strange. Does it mean anything to you?"
"It's just a word. If I was to list all possible associated words it
would take a very long time."
"That's okay." Michael turned into the road that started them on
Kitt's alternative route. "Did you mean what you said to Clay, about
what you remember?"
"Yes."
"Kitt... I never realized.... If you'd have told me, we could have
done something."
"Like what?"
"Get you some counselling. Let you talk to someone."
"Michael, I appreciate this, but it was a long time ago."
"I wish you'd told me. I thought... I thought you'd gone off-line or
something..."
Kitt's voice softened. "I had to keep the homing signal running,
without her knowing it. I had to stay on-line."
Michael could feel his heart breaking. After it had all happened, he
had spent days with Kitt, reassuring his partner, ensuring no one hurt
him. But not once had Kitt mentioned the terrible recollections that he
had thrown at Clay. "I wish you would talk to me about things like
that."
"In future, you'll be the first to know."

Kitt's tone definitely said 'end of conversation'. Michael would have
liked to delve into it some more, but he dropped it, they had both had a
very long day. He stared at the road in front of him, and Kitt's words
came back to him, as clearly as if he were speaking them now. 'Some
people blamed me for what she made me do. They hurt me trying to ensure
I wouldn't do it again.' He knew what Kitt had been talking about.
They had run a test program through his systems time and time again
until he had snapped. He had destroyed most of the garage he was being
kept in and finally buried himself under a pile of boxes in one corner,
terrified, asking over and over to be deactivated.


(Bonnie opened the door to the large garage, and showed Michael
inside. In the dim light, he could see the scene of destruction about
the floor below him. It looked as if a rampaging herd had entered the
garage and become confused. Boxes, electronics, equipment, cylinders of
God-knew what were all strewn about the floor. Amongst the wreckage,
Michael could make out spilt tins of red and yellow paint.
"Where the hell did the paint come from?" he asked quietly.
"No one's really sure, Devon thinks it was being stored here for some
reason."
"There's loads of it!"
"I know.... And it's not all on the floor." She took a step back,
"Are you sure you'll be okay?"
"He won't hurt me."
"I don't know, Michael. Look at this place. We're just not sure
anymore."
"I am."

Bonnie reluctantly closed the door behind her, leaving Michael standing
at the top of the metal steps down. He looked around him, letting his
eyes adjust to the light. As they did, he realized that the pile of
devastated boxes in the far corner was covering something. He made his
way slowly down the steps, and as he came to the base he could clearly
see a single, small red light, flashing on and off madly, partly hidden
by the boxes. He walked silently to the centre of the devastation, and
sat down, cross-legged on the floor, avoiding the paint as best he
could. Then he started to talk.
"I can't possibly imagine what you're going through Kitt. But I want
to help." He took in the destruction around him, and imagined the force
that would have been needed to cause so much damage. "I'm here now, and
you're going to be okay. I won't let anyone hurt you."

From the pile of boxes, a distressed voice answered him. "It hurt so
much."
A tear formed in Michael's eye. "I'm sorry," he choked. "I tried to
stop them. I tried but they insisted."
"I don't understand. Avril had the controls. She killed that man, not
me. Why are they doing this to me?"
"I'm sorry...."
"I would never, ever hurt you."
"Kitt, I know...."
"I can't take any more, please, Michael, deactivate me. Please."
Michael bit his lip, tears streaming down his face as Kitt's despairing
tone pulled at his heart. "Kitt, Avril hurt us all. I'm not gonna
pretend that I know how you're feeling, or what you went through in her
hands. But you can't ask me to deactivate you. One thing I do know is
how much I would miss you if I lost you. I am not going to let her be
the cause of your death."
"Michael... you have to stop them doing this to me... please."

Michael was about to reassure his partner that no more test programs
would be forced upon him, when he heard Devon's voice. "It's over,
Kitt. They've gone."
Michael looked to see Devon walking down the steps towards him.
"How...?"
Devon same to stand by Michael's side, laying a gentle hand on his
shoulder. "Bonnie... persuaded the young woman that she wanted to
leave, and the gentleman went with her."
Michael looked up at him, smiling through his tears.
"You hear that, Pal? No more tests, Kitt, I promise. You can't ask me
to ask Bonnie to deactivate you." He saw the horror cross Devon's face
and wordlessly nodded. Then he turned his head again to address his
distressed friend. "Please come back to me."

In the corner of the garage, the pile of boxes started to move.
Michael could hear the turbine hum of Kitt's engine, and slowly the
black prow emerged nervously from its hiding place. Michael did not
know whether to laugh or cry as he saw his car, covered in dust, and
paint, pulling out from under a collapsing mass of cardboard boxes.
Kitt came towards him slowly, stopping inches from Michael's still
sitting form.
"I would never hurt you." He repeated, pleading for Michael's belief
in him.
Michael shifted across the floor, leaning against the car and gently
reaching up to touch the side of the hood. "I know, Pal." He sighed,
closing his eyes and stroking the side of the hood reassuringly.
"You're the best, Kitt.")


Michael yanked himself back to the present, out of bad memories.
"Kitt, could you take over, I need to change out of these clothes, I'm
freezing."
"Of course." Kitt took the controls, leaving Michael free to dig out
his overnight bag from the back of the car. He always felt a little
odd, stripping in the car, even though Kitt always promised him privacy,
it was almost like stripping in front of another person. Someone who
did not have everything that Michael had. He took off his jacket, shirt
and jeans and towel-dried his hair before pulling on fresh, warm
clothing.
"So how do we connect to this chat server?"
"I can do it from here. I can log in using Clay's name and password.
That way I should be able to gain entrance to the Carroll room and find
the list of names permitted into that room. Although, I would assume
the person logging in as 'A' would be the only other name. I could be
wrong. I would simply wait until someone else turned up."
"Is it safe?"
"Yes."
"Great, do it. Wake me when you get company."
"Good night, Michael."

Kitt connected to the chat server and logged in. He could feel the
other connections, could have traced each one back to source. But he
simply sat in the entrance room for a while, listening to the chat
around him. He had never had the inclination to join one of these
groups, although he had often thought about the benefits to him. He
would be able to interact in a group of people as simply another person,
to communicate with so many other people on the same level, without them
staring and questioning what he was. Although he had always enjoyed the
sense that he was unique - one of a kind as Michael liked to put it - it
could sometimes be a lonely existence, and he had considered chat rooms
as a way to have company when no one else was around.

He had email, mailing many people regularly on specific subjects that
he could help with - but his friends were usually scientists or research
fellows. He had a good friend at MIT who was always asking to meet him,
but Kitt declined each time. Maybe one day, he would tell what he was,
he doubted this particular person would ever change his attitude or his
friendship. But Kitt sometimes liked the idea of just being another
person, maybe overly intelligent, but not too different.

He liked the Internet, loved the freedom email gave him, ensuring there
was always someone to talk to. It allowed him to stay in touch with
some of the people he and Michael had helped. Sally Flynn contacted him
regularly, kept him up to date with her college studies and her
continuing work with the family trucking business. But chat rooms had
never really been something he had wanted to get involved with. It was
too impersonal, he had imagined.

But the people around him now were chatting like they had known each
other all their lives. Personal details were being exchanged, and
suddenly Kitt felt very exposed. He moved into the Carroll room,
expecting a long wait. But immediately he was greeted.

_Where the fuck have you been Testa?

He reacted quickly.

>There were problems
_What kind of problems?
>

Kitt found himself unable to answer. The function he had executed to
trace 'A''s location and machine had come back with its data. Kitt had
instantly processed it and the information was now sitting at the
forefront of his CPU. As soon as he could think again, he dropped the
connection with the chat server, too scared to stay any longer. He
recognized the machine address that the trace had provided. He knew who
'A' was, and Clay had been wrong. It was not a 'he'.

**

Ella wanted to throw her arms around Kitt the moment she saw his
sparkling form appear in the driveway. It was well into the afternoon,
and they were a lot later arriving back than they should have been
thanks to their confrontation with Clay. Bonnie immediately wanted to
check Kitt's systems, but he asked her for some time with Ella, and she
agreed, instead deciding to run a quick check on Michael's systems.
Ella waited until Michael had met up with Devon and followed him inside
before climbing into the driver's seat. "So, how was Phoenix?"
But Kitt was in no mood for small talk. He had spent the entire
journey back trying to figure out what he had done to make a total
stranger hate him with such passion. Although he had managed to get a
hold on his fear, he was still worried. "Ella, I need to talk to you."
She recognized the tone immediately. "I'm here, Kitt."
"Can we go somewhere... private?"
"Sure, any suggestions?"

It was slightly unnerving when the engine started up by itself, and the
car turned, heading up a track further into the grounds. But by the
time they reached the hunter's lodge that acted as guest quarters for
the mansion, Ella was used to Kitt driving. It almost seemed natural.
And he was the smoothest driver she had ever known. He pulled the car
to a stop with his brow at an gentle angle to the steps into the lodge,
and shut the engine off. They were left with only the sounds of nature
around them.
"What's wrong, Love?"
Kitt hesitated, but he knew he had to tell someone, and he knew that
Ella was the right person because of what she already knew. "William
Clay was behind the attack on us. It turns out that his daughter is
Avril Stone, she was a technician...."
"It's okay, Kitt, Bonnie told me about her. You don't need to
explain."
Kitt felt inexplicably glad about that. "I'm not sure whether what she
did had anything to do with what Clay did. He told us that he was
working with someone he had met on a chat server. He gave us the name
of the server, the room, along with his password and login name."
"Which server?"
"Foothills."
Ella smiled. "I know the guy who wrote that...." She hesitated.
"He's wonderful."
Kitt was momentarily distracted by an odd sensation he had not
previously encountered. Whatever it was, he found himself disliking it
immensely, and he was not sure how to proceed. Ella seemed to realize,
because she reached out and gently covered the nearby perceptor with her
palm. "It's okay, Kitt. He's not even living in this country."
That helped. Kitt forced himself back to what he had to tell her, and
the more familiar feeling of dread returned. "I logged in on the way
back, using Clay's name and password. I entered the room and his friend
was already in there. I set a trace to find the machine address of that
person."

Ella got there before Kitt. She had recognized his tone from when she
had approached him after his exit from the garage just after their
return here. She allowed the sinking feeling to take her guess
further. "What was the name of the room?"
"Carroll."
"Oh no...."
"It's her, Ella. It's Alice."

Ella closed her eyes and leant forward, dropping her forehead to the
steering wheel and pressing down harder on the perceptor, trying to
reassure Kitt that she was here to help.
"You have to tell Michael."
"I can't...."
"Please, Kitt.... She may have lost her accomplice but if she's gone
to these lengths, she isn't going to stop now."
"But without Clay there's nothing she can do, my systems have too much
security now. There's no way in."
"There's always a way in."
"Yes, with usual computers. But, Ella, I'm not your usual computer. I
have security the Government is unaware of. Every interface that I make
with another computer is transient, they can't be used to get back into
my systems. There is no way in."
"There is one way. The CEEPS backup. If she'd worked out somehow that
the emergency backup isn't secured... maybe that's why she'd told Clay
to hit you again."
Kitt thought about that. "But we've removed Clay from the equation,
and I only make a mistake once."
Kitt's tone was growing more and more desperate. Ella knew that he
just wanted all this to go away. But it was not going to, Alice was not
simply going to disappear. "Are you happy, knowing she's out there?"
"Of course not. But even if we do find her, what then? She hasn't
done anything wrong."
Ella took her hands off the wheel, anger feeding her. "She raped you,
Kitt!"
"It's not possible to rape a computer Ella," he hesitated, distressed,
"however right you may be."
Ella sighed, she knew she was just agitating Kitt more. "You can't let
her scare you. I know that you see her as powerful, in your own way,
but you're not a usual victim, you can fight back. I understand that
your neural nets link certain events to certain feelings in the same way
that a the human brain does. We experience something terrible and
things that were linked to that experience at the time, remain linked
unless we do something to break them. It's not so different for you.
You have paths between what Alice did to you, her presence within your
systems, and the way it made you feel. When you saw her machine address
last night, those pathways were activated, they swamped you with the
feelings of horror and fear that you experienced when she was attacking
you. But it doesn't have to be that way. You can sever those pathways
and build new ones. You can link her with feelings of strength and
victory, you can beat her Kitt. You're a million times better at this
than she is, you have the experience, you know you're the best. Prove
it to her."
"Why do you understand me so well?"
"Because I love you, Kitt. I'm still learning about you, and
everything new that I discover amazes me. I know what you've been
through with Alice. But you have to believe me when I tell you that you
can take control of this situation. I'm not gonna let that bitch hurt
you any more."
Kitt was touched. "Ella.... I can't tell Michael. I know that he's
going to want me to tell him who Clay's friend is, but the only way I
found to explain it to you was to show you the picture. I don't want
Michael seeing that."
"It's okay, I'll tell them."

Kitt paused before asking, "Devon knows, doesn't he?"
Ella stared at the voice panel. "How do you know that?"
"At the time, just after I destroyed Alice's computer, I could sense
something different with Devon, almost distrust, for quite some time. I
had taken data from her machine before I wiped the disks, she had the
foundation's email address listed, along with Devon's personal address.
I put two and two together, and figured that she must have mailed Devon
and told him, maybe bragged about what she had done. I imagine she sent
him a sample of what she'd been placing in my memory."
Ella nodded silently. "He didn't mean anything... he knows he reacted
badly."
"He told you he knew?"
"Yeah, he must have overheard us that night I wiped it from the
backup."
"Did he tell anyone else?"
"No."

A quiet fell, broken only by the faint wind in the branches of the bare
trees. "Ella, why me?"
"Kitt, I don't know... maybe she envies you...."
"No, not Alice, you. Why did you chose me?"
Ella leaned back in the seat, eyes moving from the voice panel to the
scenery outside the windshield. She knew Kitt was not after compliments
or flattery, it was a different question when he asked it. "I'm not
sure there is an answer to that. These things... just happen."
"I meet a great many women, mostly through Michael. None of them come
close to you. It's difficult to describe my feelings in a way that
would make any sense to you, and still get over to you how I actually
perceive those feelings. It's like... like every system running in
total harmony, a peace within my self that I haven't experienced
before."
"Is it a good experience?"
"It's perfect."

Ella sat forward, finding the perceptor once more with her fingers of
her left hand, while those of her right stroked gently across the voice
panel.
"I don't know what's going to happen to us, Kitt."
"Me neither, and in a way, it's more frightening than anything Alice
could do to me."
"I think... I think that's love."
Kitt had no reply to that.

**

Ella felt a little like Agatha Christie's 'Poirot'. She sat atop
Devon's desk, looking into the shocked expressions of Bonnie and Michael
as they sat in large, uncomfortable armchairs in front of her. Behind
her a subdued Devon was staring at the top of his desk. Ella could
hardly bare to see the look on Michael's face. For some reason, she had
assumed that Bonnie would be the one to react worst. Bonnie simply
looked sad. Michael looked as if his world had been turned upside down.

"Why didn't he tell me? Why won't he talk to me about these things?"
Ella ached for him, sympathy and understanding shining clear in her
eyes. She remembered how she had felt when Kitt had first told her, and
she had only known him a matter of days. These people were his family,
the closest people in the world to him.
"He didn't know how to explain what she was doing without showing you
the images, and he wanted to spare you from that." Michael stood
suddenly, frustrated, he started to pace the room. "Please don't put
him through any more," Ella begged him.
Michael stopped several feet in front of her. "I don't want to put him
through any more. I want him to start trusting me enough to talk to
me! Everything we've been through...." He moved over to the window,
and something irrational within him wanted to smash it. Ella was still
watching him intently, and now, so was Bonnie. "I don't understand why
he can't talk to me after seven years." There was a catch in his voice,
and Ella knew that he was crying. She felt a little like crying
herself. "What's the point in us being together if he can't confide in
me? I tell him everything!" He turned to Ella, pleading in his
tear-filled eyes. "How come he can tell you all this? He's know you a
couple of weeks!"
Bonnie stood slowly. "Maybe that's why, Michael. Maybe sometimes he
needs to talk to someone who isn't as involved as we are."
"But this isn't the only thing! He still remembers every detail of
what Avril Stone did to him, yet in all this time he hadn't said
anything. Doesn't he think I'd understand? Is that it? Does he
imagine that I don't expect him to hurt like the rest of us?"
"Of course not." Ella moved next to him. "You know him better than
anyone."
"That's what I don't understand! He knows... he knows what I think
about him, he can tell me anything."

In the silence that followed, Devon finally lifted his head. "I can
show you why." Ella turned quickly.
"Devon...."
"I have a copy of one of images Alice sent to Kitt."
Ella bit down on her denial. She did not really want Devon showing
Michael what Kitt had suffered to protect him from. But then again, in
Michael's state all he was going to do was upset Kitt even more. Maybe
showing him was the only way to stop the unique relationship from being
harmed.
Devon was looking to her for agreement, and slightly reluctantly, she
nodded. He opened the bottom drawer of his desk with a key, and reached
under some folders, pulling out a single piece of A4 paper. Michael
closed in on the desk, reaching out a shaking hand to take the colour
printout from his boss's fingers.

His tears fell steadily as he focused on the image. "Oh Kitt...." He
sat down in the nearest chair, unable to close his eyes against the
horror of what was in front of him. "He could have told me." But there
was no accusation in his tone anymore.

Bonnie stayed away, not wanting to ever know. She had heard of Alice
through her friends at MIT, and her anger was directed towards herself.
How could they have not known that Kitt was going through this? How
could he have kept something so terrible from them for three months?
Her eyes fell on Michael, and on Ella crouched in front of him. In
seven years, she had only seen him cry three times, and two of those
times had been in the last three weeks. They had to end this, or it was
going to tear them all apart.

Ella stood, backing off as she saw Devon coming towards them. Very
quietly, he said to her, "We need some time." She nodded, and glancing
at Bonnie, the two women left the room. Devon sat down in the chair
next to Michael's. Silently, he reached over and covered his friend's
shaking hand, still gripping the paper, with his own. The
uncharacteristic gesture took Michael by surprise, and he lifted his
head.
"He told you?" he asked incredulously.
"No. I've never to spoken to Kitt about this. Alice sent that to me,
just after Kitt destroyed her computer."
Michael took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, I haven't had much sleep, and
these past few weeks...."
"There's no need for apologies. I should be the one saying sorry.
Maybe, if I'd have told you at the time, or had the courage to talk to
Kitt myself, we wouldn't be going through this right now."

Michael nodded, looking back down at the picture. "You remember that
trouble we had, with Zachary?"
Devon nodded, "Yes, I do."
"When they had Kitt in the truck, and they ordered me to shut him down,
I felt like... like they asking me to kill him. I couldn't do it, I had
to tell Kitt to do it - I had to order him to do it. I never felt so
hateful, or so lonely in my whole life. I watched the scanner die and I
wanted to scream. Afterwards, he told me that deactivation was like
being in a cold room, blind, deaf and dumb. Being aware, but unable to
move or speak, or feel.... He sounded really scared as he described it
to me. It was the first time I'd heard him sound that way. He asked
me if KARR had been kept in that state, and I told him I honestly didn't
know. He made me swear to him, that if it ever came to his being...
permanently deactivated, that I would ensure his CPU was blown, that I
would make sure that he didn't spend eternity in that state of
suspension." He let the picture fall between his knees, out of sight
yet still clasped in the fingers of the hand still covered by Devon's.
He stared blankly at the wrinkled skin against his own. "It was the
first time that I truly realized how deeply he did feel. I guess, up
until that point I still saw him as a machine, of sorts. But at that
moment, when he made me make that promise to him, I knew just how
responsible I was going to be for him, for the rest of my life. And I
felt... I felt like I would never be lonely again. I felt like a new
parent."
In a voice that was barely a whisper, Devon asked, "What are you
feeling now?"
"I feel like someone has violated my child, and I want to kill her."
"I think that's how we're all feeling. But dear boy, that's not what
Kitt needs." Michael looked up at that, straight into Devon's caring
eyes. "He needs your strength now, to get him through this. I can make
sure Alice is charged with _something_, but you and Kitt need to find
her. He needs you with him, he needs your blind optimism that together,
you could take on the world. You've always given that to him, don't
stop now."

Michael nodded, and Devon sat back, moving his hand from Michael's,
only to have Michael stop him. "Thank you, for everything."
The older man nodded, smiling. "I'll always look after you, Michael,
you should know that by now."

*****



end chapter 3

Four - The Angel You Know

There had always been the fun times. Even in their darkest hours,
Michael and Kitt had usually been able to share a private joke. One of
many. There had rarely been hours darker than the ones they had faced
recently. Yet, in the driveway outside, Michael and Kitt were trying to
shower each other with the bubbles in the water that was supposed to be
going on the car. From what Bonnie could see, from the window of
Devon's office, Michael looked as if he was losing.

After Ella's revelation of Alice's attack on Kitt, the two partners had
spent several hours up at the guest lodge, Kitt talking, Michael
listening. While they were up there, Bonnie and Ella logged back into
Foothills with Clay's login, but Alice was nowhere to be to found, and
Bonnie guessed that Clay had already warned her off. Despite Michael
assurances to his partner that they would catch her, they were unsure
where to start looking.

Laughing hysterically, Michael made a last-ditch effort to actually get
some water on the car. He took a running jump up onto the hood as Kitt
span his wheels and tried to get enough traction in the gravel to
reverse. Michael landed on his knees, sliding almost up against the
windshield, bucket in hands and emptying the remainder of the soapy
water over the glass.
"Ha!" He announced triumphantly. "Got ya!" He moved his legs out
from under him and sat back on the hood, almost breathless, leaning
against the wet windshield, still laughing.

Bonnie felt the hand on her shoulder before she realized that Devon was
off the phone and standing behind her. "I feel all warm inside," she
told him quietly.
"They do have that effect on one, don't they?" Devon was smiling.
"Who'd have guessed that this would develop out of their first meeting."

Bonnie remembered the scene well. "I'd never have imagined they'd
become this close."
"And I'd have never imagined that you and Michael would become this
close."
Bonnie turned her head quickly, but Devon was smiling. "You don't have
to keep it from me, Bonnie. You're both adults, and," he nodded to the
two outside, "you both have a lot in common." He lingered for a moment,
watching Michael who was still sitting on the car, saying something to
his partner. It was an image Devon needed, to replace the one that had
haunted him since he had shown it to Michael a couple of days ago.
Slowly, he moved away from the window, going to sit back behind his
desk.

Bonnie's gaze followed him. "What did they say?"
"No one seems to know who she is. Mr. Marsh gave me one or two names,
but I can't seem to trace them either. It's as if she only exists...."
Devon's words faded out as a look of sudden realization crossed his
features.
"What?"
"It's as if she only exists as a computer. Bonnie, maybe Alice isn't a
person."
"Devon, what are you talking about?"
"Michael said yesterday that despite the number of people attacked by
Alice, no one knows who she is. He pointed out that she had always
moved on, people had only encountered her for a few days, and then
nothing. Not one person we've spoken to told us that she had attacked
them in any other way, no phone calls, no spoken messages, no packages,
just the online stuff. And yet she attacked Kitt until he fought back,
and then years later staged the attack on the car to try to kill him."
"You seriously think Alice is a computer?!" Bonnie's expression was
incredulous. "Devon that's preposterous!"
Suddenly he was on his feet. "Why? Why should we believe that Kitt's
the only advanced AI machine...?" He stopped again, but this time,
Bonnie knew the thought that had arrived in Devon's head.
"No, this isn't his style. Besides... from what Ella described, it
took real malice to do what was done to Kitt. KARR always preferred
straight violence. Besides, he's in little pieces, in a box in the
lab."
"Yes, of course you're right. But can you see what I'm getting at?"
He learned forward, palms flat on his desk. "We created KARR, and we
have Kitt, what's to stop someone else making the same leap?"

Bonnie thought about it for a while, but it just did not sit well with
her. "What would a computer with Kitt's intelligence be used for?"
Devon smiled, "My dear, ours is outside being used for target practice
with a sponge."
"I know, but that's different."
"Why? Are we naive to think that we're the only ones who could have
done this?"
Bonnie looked back outside, to where Michael was shielding his face
from the jet sprays that were supposed to be Kitt's windshield washers.
Could it really be that Kitt was no longer one of a kind? She was still
unconvinced. "If there was another computer as intelligent, as advanced
as Kitt, then why hasn't somebody heard about it. I mean, we try our
best to keep Kitt quiet, but hundreds of people know of him, somehow.
It's not as if he keeps himself to himself, is it? Wouldn't a similar
intelligence have similar fame?"
"I don't know. Kitt's our only frame of reference, and while I am sure
that there's nothing quite like him, there's no reason to think that
he's alone." His gaze followed Bonnie's, to where Michael was up on his
knees, hands pressed down against the two pinholes in the hood, trying
to stop the water.
Bonnie sighed to herself, "That windshield wash is one of the most
expensive in the country and look at them. Michael can buy the next
bottle."

She turned back to Devon who had returned to staring at her, waiting
for acceptance of his theory. "If Alice was a computer, surely Kitt
would have known. After all, he destroyed a computer when he caught
her."
Devon took that in. "So maybe Alice is on a network, an entire system,
maybe a central operating system somewhere."
"Devon, that just doesn't happen. It's not possible."
He moved to sit on the edge of the desk. "A great many people have
said the same thing about our little miracle out there."

There was a splash, and a surprised shout from outside. They both
turned back to the window in time to see Michael stand up at the edge of
the fishpond that was in the centre of the driveway. Kitt was nose up
to the low stone wall, and Devon shook his head as Michael launched
himself bodily at the car, landing knees-first on the hood and
splattering the glass with dirty water.
"_Now_ you'll want a wash," they heard Michael say through his
laughter. Kitt backed up, but Michael held on lightly, deeply safe in
the knowledge that Kitt would never do anything to harm him.

"If you're right," Bonnie said quietly, "this new computer has a very
different attitude to life from Kitt."

**

They had traced the machine address that Kitt had discovered, to a PC
in an Internet cafe in LA. Ella had driven over that morning,
reassuring Devon and Bonnie that she knew the place, and was known
there. There would be nothing suspicious about her talking to the staff
and customers. The last thing they wanted to do was scare Alice from
the place that was their only lead.

The only person on line when Ella arrived around lunch-time, was Mick.
A friend of hers, she had never been sure if he actually ever left, or
if he did, where he went. He waved as she ordered a Cappuccino and
pulled up a stool next to him, smiling when she found him surfing the
Star Trek web pages. "Nothing changes, eh, Mick?"
"Well maybe you do, El, haven't seen you around for a couple of weeks."

"I had a site visit. Turned it into a vacation while I was there."
She sipped at her drink, trying to find some coffee through the froth.
"So, what's new?"
Mick shrugged. "Nothing really, same old crowd."
"No one new then?"
Mick skim-read the 'Deep Space Nine' page in front of him, before
clicking on the next link. "There has been this woman in here, you may
remember her, she starting coming in just before you disappeared."
"I was working late a lot. Describe her."
"She's not from around her, further south I'd have said. Blonde hair
cut quite short, average height. Pretty face, not beautiful, but more
natural than most of the women in this town."
"A name?"
"Don't know. What do names mean around here, anyway? I'm not even
sure if Mick is my real name!" He indicated the counter, and Burt, the
proprietor of the cafe. "She never spoke to anyone but Burt. But I
don't think she said much more than ordering coffee." He looked at her,
and finally turned, giving her his full attention. "You seem different,
Ella. What's going on?"
"Too much." She pushed her fingers through her hair. It seemed
strange to be back here, almost as if it was not where she belonged
anymore. "Mick, you've my cellphone number, if she comes in again,
could you call me."
He smiled. "Not that it'll sound at all suspicious."
Ella thought about that, and had an idea. "Okay," she grabbed the pen
from behind Mick's ear, and held his hand, palm up. "Mail me here, but
don't show anyone this addy." She hesitated with the pen just over his
skin, meeting his confused eyes with her own serious stare. "Promise
me."
"I promise, Ella."
On his palm, she wrote, '[email protected]'.
He read what she had put, and grabbed her hand as she reached up to put
the pen back. "What are you involved with, El?"
"I can't tell you, I'm sorry."
"When I told you to live a little, I didn't think you'd listen!" She
smiled, taking her hand back. "Just be careful."
Ella nodded. "Don't worry about me."
She stood up and put the chair back. "You can have the coffee, I've
had quite a bit of it lately."
Mick laughed. "So what else is new?"


Ella drove back into the estate by nightfall. She had phoned ahead,
telling Devon that someone had started using the cafe at roughly the
same time of the attack, but it was not conclusive and whoever it had
been had not returned there today. The delicate strains of early
Genesis filled the car as she drove. Something Mick had said had been
bugging her for the whole journey.
'What do names mean around here, anyway?'
They had assumed that 'Alice' was this person's real name, but why
should it be? Personally, she always went online using a pseudonym. It
might not even have been a woman, although from what she had seen, she
was fairly convinced that it was. Still, her real name could be
anything. And so many people used the cafe, the woman Mick had told her
about could have been anyone, someone who caught his eye because she was
pretty. Mick had never really been much of a Hollywood guy anyway;
girls who turned his head usually were from out of town. It meant
nothing.

Ella sighed deeply as she turned off the highway. Why did it feel as
if she was going home, when her home was the place from which she had
just come. She absently wondered what her boss would do if she
over-stretched her six weeks of owed vacation. Nothing, probably, as
long as she went back eventually. She was one of the best in her field,
and her boss knew it.

The estate was quiet as she swung the car into the driveway and parked
off to one side of the mansion. She had presumed that everyone had
already turned in for the night, but as she climbed out of the car, she
could hear quiet voices in the warm night air. One of them caused her
heart to start beating just a little bit faster. Silently, she went
around the back of the house, and stood on the patio, looking out over
the grounds. Down towards the end of the lawn, just before the woodland
began, she could make out Kitt's sleek form in the moonlight. The
second voice she had heard had been Michael's, so she guessed that it
was he who was sitting up on the hood of the car. Next to him, she
could just make out a bottle. It looked as if Devon's cellar had been
raided once again.

Ella seated herself on the wide, low wall that hemmed in the patio,
leaning up against a corner post; the stone cool against her back. She
could not quite catch what was being said, but then she would not have
stayed out there if she could have done. She did not want to eavesdrop,
she just wanted to admire him, to know he was nearby and to revel in the
warmth she felt whenever she thought about him.


Unaware of Ella's presence, Michael sipped at the vintage wine. They
had come out here several hours ago, and Michael had sat in the car and
listened while his partner described the nightmare of Alice's attacks.
It had taken all day for Kitt to finally open up to him. They had
played together, as they had not played in too long. Michael had seen
it at the time as belated therapy for his partner, but as he had heard
everything Kitt had to say, he realized that he had needed the time too,
more than he had known. Now he was sitting cross-legged on the warm
hood, simply enjoying his partner's company. He had almost forgotten
how good it felt just to be with Kitt, the deep feelings of safety that
the car had always stirred within him, the wonderful rapport that had
quickly developed between them.

Kitt's presence had always reassured and comforted him. Ever since the
day Bonnie had strapped the comlink around his wrist he had not ever
been alone, and sometimes he felt he was high on just that feeling. He
had always felt that the comlink joined him to Kitt, even when they were
separated. And of course when Avril had abducted his partner. Kitt had
spoken briefly about that this evening, but he had not said much. The
memories, he had told Michael, were too painful to cope with. Best that
they just stay hidden, buried at the back of his long-term storage.

Finally, after spending the day with his partner, Michael felt able to
face his job once more. The attack had affected him more than he had at
first believed, because he had come closer than ever before to losing
Kitt, and that had scared him more than anything else could have. When
Wilton Knight had plucked him from death at the roadside, his blood had
been on the headlights of his previous car. He had seen too many people
die, and maybe, at that moment, through the excruciating pain and the
fire along his nerves, he had been fleetingly glad that it was all
over. He had only allowed himself to keep Kitt because he had believed
then that there was no way he could become emotionally involved with the
computer. He had been wrong. Very, very wrong. Together they had
faced frightening situations with terrifying courage. And somewhere
along the line, they had become inseparable.

The responsibility that Michael felt for Kitt was not so much to watch
his back, as it had been for his previous partners. It was simply to be
there, and to ensure Kitt was treated with respect and care, by everyone
who was supposed to be responsible for him. Kitt's life, as all life,
was unique and had to be protected. They continued to charge headlong
into situations that could end in disaster. But ninety-nine times out
of a hundred, they did not, and when they did, he and Kitt still seemed
to have a guardian angel watching over them.
Idly, Michael dropped his hand to the scanner track, gently rubbing his
fingers back and forth across the dark panel. Kitt gave the red light a
single sweep, and Michael laughed quietly. "You okay there pal?"
"Perfectly, Michael."


Ella sat for about an hour, before dropping down off the wall and
starting over towards the pair. She just wanted to say goodnight. As
she approached the car, Kitt's scanner lit up, and Michael knew there
was someone coming. He turned his head, not surprised to see Ella
walking uncertainly towards them. He smiled, patted the hood, and waved
her over. "Glass of wine?"
Ella smiled at seeing a second, empty glass on the lawn beside the
car. Bonnie had obviously been here at one point. "I don't want to
interrupt."
Kitt spoke up, "You're not interrupting. Please." Michael waited for
her to nod her assent, and then leant down to retrieve the glass,
shifting up to make room for her on the hood.
"Missed you, Kitt." Ella told him truthfully.
"I missed you too." Michael's eyebrows rose at the gentle, sincere
tone of his partner's voice, but he said nothing. She sat up on the
hood, next to Michael, side-on to the windshield. As Michael poured,
she placed her hand flat against the warm body-work of the car, and
stroked softly. She allowed a sigh of contentment to pass her lips.
Feeling as though this was where she belonged, she leaned slowly against
the glass, hooking her arm across the top of the car.

Kitt monitored her every move, her every touch. Never had he wanted to
be so physically close to someone so desperately. Being with Michael
was what made his life complete and worth while. But Ella's presence
satisfied something within him that he had not quite been aware of until
he had met her. He realized, as he watched her, that although she was
accepting the invitation, and the drink, from Michael, she was there
with _him_, leaning close to _him_. Like no one ever had before.

Ella took the glass from Michael's fingers and thanked him.
"How was L.A.?" Kitt asked her, before Michael could get a word out.
She turned to look into the car through the windshield. "It was
strange to be back there."
"Did you find anything?" Michael asked her, because something told him
that Kitt would not.
"I called Devon earlier, did he tell you?"
Michael shook his head. "We've been out here."
She told him what she had told his boss that afternoon, about Mick, and
the girl that he had described. "But I was thinking, on the way back,
that her name probably isn't even Alice." She read Michael's confused
expression. "People who spend a lot of time on line usually have
aliases, names they go by, like truckers have handles. It's very likely
that 'Alice' is just a pseudonym. I'm sorry, I know that's the only
lead we've got, but it struck me on the way back, something Mick said."
Michael thought about this latest piece of bad news. "It's the perfect
hiding place, isn't it? The Internet."
Ella nodded. "I wish I had something more for you both."

They sat in a companionable silence for a few minutes, Ella and Michael
sipping at the exquisite wine, while Kitt simply enjoyed feeling her
body against him. As she looked over at Michael to say something, Ella
caught a glimpse of gold against his shirt. She reached out and
carefully lifted the small medallion that hung from a thin gold chain
around his neck. In the moonlight she could see the intricate St.
Christopher design.
"It's beautiful," she whispered.
Michael smiled. "A Christmas present last year."
She was about to ask 'from whom?' when she turned the pendant over in
her fingers, and read the simple inscription: 'always, Kitt.'
She looked up into Michael's eyes and saw the pride and love that was
shining there. No one could ever doubt his feelings for his partner.
She smiled and returned her attention to the written words. Seeing the
name spelled out before her, she realized that it was written as a word,
rather than an acronym. "When did Kitt become his name?" She asked
gently.
"I don't know," Michael looked down at the medallion between her
fingers. "It happened very naturally. I guess it just felt right.
He's been more than just a machine for a long time. Machines have
acronyms, people have names."
Kitt swept the scanner light back and forth across its track in
contentment.

Above them, the stars were bright, and the full moon illuminated the
estate in an almost super-natural glow. Michael finished his drink, and
placed the glass, and the bottle, back on to the lawn. Then he reached
over and put a gentle hand on Ella's arm. "Thank you...."
She shrugged, "It was the least I could do, and it was good to see Mick
again, I know he worries even if he doesn't say it."
"But not just for today, for everything. I know you have... other
reasons for being here," he glanced inside the car and smiled when he
heard a single sweep of Kitt's scanner. "But you've done a lot for us
all. I appreciate it, and I know Bonnie and Devon do too."
"Thank you."
He smiled, and slid down off the hood. "And as for Kitt... well I
think he'd appreciate it if I made myself scarce."
"Michael...." Kitt found he did not really want to stop Michael from
leaving, but this had been their day together, and a lot had passed
between them.
"It's all right, Pal. Beep me, okay."
"Okay."

Michael threw her a stunning smile, and started off back to the
mansion. Ella too slipped off the car, and moved around to snuggle
herself into the driver's seat. "Hi Sexy," she said quietly.
Kitt waited a beat before speaking. "Ella, could I ask you
something... personal?"
"Of course you can." She wanted to add more, but as she played words
around in her head, nothing sounded right, so she left it at that.
"Do I..." he faltered, embarrassed now that it was Ella he was talking
to. He tried again. "When you're with me, do you feel...." Another
failure. But Ella had picked up easily on what he was trying to ask.
She grinned.
"You're trying to ask me if you excite me?"
"Yes."
"Yes. you do."
Kitt was stunned. "Honestly?"
"Honestly. Everything about you.... Mostly your voice, the things you
say, and the way you say them, your accent.... It's very sexy."
Although he had asked the question, Kitt was unsure how to proceed.
This was all new to him, and he found himself frightened of making a
mistake, of saying something that would put Ella off. "I take it you
weren't expecting that answer?"
"No, I wasn't. I always believed it to be impossible for a person to
have... the feelings for me that you seem to have. I never even
considered it. But when I'm with you, I feel things that are...
unfamiliar to me."
"Are they bad feelings?"
"No, but some are frightening," he admitted.
"You don't have to worry, Kitt. I don't want to frighten you, I want
you to be able to relax with me. I don't get insulted easily, and if
you say something wrong, I'll tell you long before I walk away." She
reached a hand out to the voice panel, stroking one finger down it
gently. "I understand how difficult this must be for you. I would just
like you to enjoy my company as much as I enjoy yours."
"I do, Ella. You have no idea."
"So tell me. Make me realize how you feel."

Kitt tried to find the right thing to say to describe his feelings to
her, and when he could not, he searched for an alternative. He took off
the hand-brake, allowing the car to roll slowly down the slight incline
to the first tree of the woodland. They stopped in front of it, and he
activated his laser, toning the power down to a bare minimum, and fired,
directing the beam at the thick tree trunk in front of him. Ella peered
out of the windshield, fascinated. When Kitt had finished, he
deactivated the laser and switched on the front spots, illuminating the
trunk for Ella to read what he had put there. As her eyes adjusted to
the light, Ella could see, in perfect script, three words carved lightly
into the wood. It said simply, 'I love you'.

**

Michael sat in the lounge, draped over the sofa, with Bonnie lying in
his arms. He could not remember the last time he had felt this
comfortable. He nuzzled his face into Bonnie's hair.
"I watched you and Kitt this afternoon," she murmured quietly, enjoying
the feel of his strong body next to hers. "I wish I'd had the camera."
"Umm, I'm glad you didn't. Devon really does have to get the pond
cleaned out." He felt, rather than heard her chuckle. "Bon, do you
think this thing with Ella and Kitt is... odd?"
She turned her head to look at him, as he brushed her hair away from
his face, breathing her in. "No. I think they're both going to end up
getting hurt, but that's a risk I think they both feel is worth taking."

"You don't think her attraction to him is slightly... out of the
ordinary."
"Absolutely not. Why?"
"Well.... He's a car. He's my car."
"If he heard you saying that...."
"Bonnie, you know how I feel about him, but a friendship is one thing.
Ella being attracted to him... in that way, is something entirely
different."
"It's how she feels."
Michael faltered. "But... he has no... arms. Or legs. Or anything."
Bonnie could not help but laugh. "And men accuse women of being
shallow." She sat up slightly. "You're not thinking about arms and
legs!"
"Okay, so you know what I'm getting at."
She attempted her best innocent look. "I haven't got a clue what
you're referring to."
Michael glared at her. "They won't be able to... do anything. Kiss,
or hold hands...."
"Or have sex."
His eyes widened for a moment, before he looked away. "Yes. That
too."
"Michael, I think it's up to them to make the best of what they feel
for each other. She loves him very much. And I believe Kitt is very
fond of her."
"He is. He's also very confused about it all."
Bonnie shrugged, settling back down again. "They'll work it out."
"I never imagined I'd be talking to a computer about the birds and the
bees."
She smiled. "I'd really love to overhear that conversation."

A warm quiet fell over them. Michael gazed around the room,
remembering what Ella had said about the photos. He knew Bonnie carried
one of him and Kitt. He did not tend to carry things like that, things
that could be used against him. He did not like to think that his
friends' lives were ever in danger because of what they did here. If he
was caught, it was just he and Kitt, and although some had tried to use
Kitt to get to him, eventually they had all failed. Kitt could look
after them both, he did not have to worry about that. His eyes fell on
the picture of the team of engineers, taken several years ago.

Suddenly, he was up on his feet, surprising Bonnie. "What is it?"
Michael walked towards the photo, his face going white. Bonnie followed
him, concerned. "What did I say?"
"Nothing, it was something Ella said."
Bonnie looked at him. "What are you talking about?"
He stopped in front of the picture, staring at it. "She said that her
friend in LA had described a woman to her, a woman who had started using
the Internet cafe just before Ella had been called to Canada, just
before the attack on Kitt."
"Yes, so?"
"So, he described her as average height, short blonde hair, pretty
face." He pointed at someone in the photo and turned to Bonnie.
"Remind you of someone?"
Bonnie's face turned ashen as she looked at the picture. Michael's
finger was resting on Avril's smiling face.

**

Kitt came to rest just outside the guest lodge. It was shaded here by
trees, and the moonlight was not so bright. "You don't have to stay,"
he said quietly.
But Ella smiled. "I want to. I just want to be with you."
Ella settled back in the seat and closed her eyes. Suddenly, there was
a noise at the window. She sat up and turned, stopped by the sight that
greeted her. Michael and Bonnie were outside, holding a framed
photograph up to the windshield. Ella squinted in the dim light, but
she could make out that it was the group photo from the wall of the
lounge. She opened the door, and frowned up at them both. "Why?"
"The description of the woman, that Mick gave you."
"What about it? Michael, I told you, it could be anyone."
"But it isn't. It's Avril."
Ella felt her heart skip a beat. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw
the LEDs jump on Kitt's voice panel, but no sound came out. "It's okay,
Kitt," she told him gently. "It's okay."

**

Devon put the phone down slowly. "I have an address." Michael was on
his feet immediately, but Devon held up a warning hand. "I think we
ought to let the police handle this one."
"No," he was shaking his head, fresh anger clear in his eyes. "Devon,
this one is ours."
"Michael, we all feel the same way about this woman, she hurt us all.
We're all too involved."
"Devon, she's a murderer."
"Now, Michael, she paid for what she did in Las Vegas."
"She didn't pay! She was released from jail after four years! A man
died, and Kitt's sentenced to his whole life with the memory of what she
did, of what her actions lead to. The woman had her own father fire
anti-tank missiles at us! If it hadn't been for Kitt, I wouldn't be
here. You have to let me take this one!"
As Michael tried to press his point, the door opened, and both Ella and
Bonnie practically ran inside. Devon looked up, slightly annoyed at the
interruption. "What is it?"
"There's no use arguing over whose catch it is," Bonnie told them.
"Kitt must have intercepted your phone call, he's gone."
Michael spun, going to the window and looking out into the moonlit
drive. "What do you mean 'gone'?" He turned back to the women. "Gone
where?"
"One guess."
Devon put a hand to his mouth. "He wouldn't."
"Avril's done her best to hurt him. He just wants it over with, he
wants things back to normal."
"But he wouldn't hurt her." Devon sounded if he was trying to convince
himself.
"No," Michael tried to assure him, slightly unsure himself. "I need
that address, Devon." Immediately, the older man handed him the piece
of paper. "And I guess I need a car." He glanced down at the address,
relieved that it was not far. Kitt had an edge over any car that Devon
could give him. A fantastic edge of about 200mph.


As he drove, he worried. Michael could see, in his mind's eye, the
destruction he had seen in the aftermath of test program the
Foundation's board had, in their wisdom, chosen to run on Kitt. He was
certain that his partner would not hurt Avril, he was more worried about
what effect she could have on him. But there was a reason Kitt had
taken off without him, he had only done that once or twice before, and
he had had a good reason each time. Avril had hurt him more than any
other single person ever had, and now he realized that she was 'Alice',
God knew what was going through his complicated mind. He floored the
accelerator, hoping to at least get within comlink range before Kitt
reached the address Devon had given him.

Finally, he got a signal, and Kitt's voice came over the link.
"Michael, are you all right?"
"I'm fine, Kitt. How are you doing?"
"I just want to talk to her, Michael, to find out why."
"We could have done this together, Kitt. Remember everything we said
this afternoon?" He wrestled Devon's car around the tight bend.
"Besides, after driving our car, anything else just isn't the same."
The engine of the Convertible screamed in protest as Michael pushed it
to its limits.
"I'm sorry, Michael."
Michael felt a dread settle into his soul. "Don't be sorry, Pal,
please. Just pull over and wait for me, we'll handle this together."
"It's my fight." But despite Kitt's words, there was a sadness in his
tone that Michael thought he just might be able to work with, if he knew
Kitt well enough....
"You don't want to do this alone, you know you don't. Avril hurt us
all. Let's end this legally."
"Michael, we've no evidence. Nothing's going to happen to her. There
is no way that Clay will testify against his own daughter, he would take
the blame for it himself rather than see her go back to prison. You
know I'm right."
*Shit*. Michael knew Kitt was right. They had nothing to charge her
with. They had no proof that would connect her with the attack, and
there was nothing illegal about sending email. "Kitt, this isn't the
way, please listen to me. Don't do anything stupid."
"She's going to walk away from this, despite everything we know she's
guilty of. I doubt the police will even have sufficient reason to
arrest her."
"I understand how you feel, but we will find something, we'll find a
way, we always do. I know that you feel you want her to hurt as much as
you have, and if she'd done to me what she did to you, I'd want to kill
her. But it isn't the way."
"Michael...." There was a dangerous tone to his voice, but Michael
knew he was getting somewhere.
"Kitt, listen to me. If you hurt her, they'll take you away from me,
and I can't face that."
Silence. Then, somehow, Michael knew that Kitt was slowing down.
"I'll wait for you."

Michael pulled Devon's car over to the side of the road, just behind
Kitt's bumper. He activated the homing signal, an extra Knight
Industries security measure, and locked the car; knowing Devon would
retrieve it eventually. He climbed into Kitt's driver's seat feeling
nothing but relief. "We'll get her on something, Kitt, I promise you."
"I'm sorry."
"Don't be. I do understand the need for revenge, Pal. But there's
always a better way, even if you can't see it right now."
Michael eased the car from the roadside, and continued in the direction
of the address. "We're just gonna talk to her, okay?"
"Okay."


Back at the Foundation, in the small office off Devon's, Bonnie heaved
a sigh of relief as she sat back. Beside her, Ella watched the small
blinking light on the computer monitor. "What? What's happened?"
"Michael's activated the Convertible's homing signal."
"So?"
"It means he's left it on the roadside somewhere, I would guess that
he's managed to talk Kitt into waiting for him."
Ella closed her eyes, "Thank God for that."
In the doorway behind them, Devon was looking worried. "Bonnie, what
do you think Kitt would have done to her?"
Bonnie looked around, and with an expression Ella would never know how
she held, she told him, "Nothing, Devon. I think he just felt he should
talk to her alone, after all, what she did to him was personal."
Devon frowned, not totally convinced. "You're sure?"
"Yes."
Finally, Devon seemed to accept her explanation, and moved back into
the other room. Bonnie and Ella exchanged glances, and Ella shook her
head. "He could have killed her." Ella whispered.
And Bonnie nodded. "I know. But he wouldn't have."
"How can you be so sure?"
"Because after she abducted him, and used him to kill a man in Vegas,
and then to try to kill Michael. The Foundation's board had a test
program run through Kitt's systems, over and over again, until he
snapped and destroyed the inside of the garage they were keeping him
in."
Ella's eyes widened. "What kind of program?"
"They showed him, over and over again, what it would have been like if
he hadn't have stopped at Michael's feet."

**

The house stood alone, slightly back from the road, in what looked to
be a quiet neighbourhood. Michael was not sure what he had been
expecting, but he knew for certain that this definitely was not it.
"Kitt, scan the house."
"What am I looking for?"
"People."
"There's only one person in the house, in the kitchen as far as I can
make out."
Michael thought for a moment, then he reached for the door. "Kitt, I'm
just going to talk to her."
"You can't honestly believe that she'll just confess."
"I don't believe anything of the sort. But she might say something we
can use, so I want you to record the conversation."
"That'll be the easy part, Michael."
"I know, Kitt. I know."

He closed the door quietly, and trailed his fingers over the car as he
walked around the front to the path up to the front door. Kitt's
scanner tracked madly, following Michael's every movement and accepting
his touch for the understanding and encouragement it was meant to be.

Michael knocked on the door and waited. Seconds later, it opened, and
Avril Stone stood before him and smiled. He fought down his anger,
thanking god that he had managed to reach Kitt. "Hi Avril."
"Michael, this is a pleasant surprise," she seemed genuinely glad to
see him, and Michael felt a shiver run down his spine. "Come in,
please."
Michael glanced back at his car as he stepped into the house; he could
practically feel Kitt's anxiety. He wished there were something he
could do to settle him, but for now, they would just have to play this
by ear.

"Please, sit down. Can I get you a drink?"
Michael remained on his feet. "You can't honestly think that I came
here to exchange pleasantries. After what you did...."
"I went to jail for what I did, Michael." She was still smiling, still
relaxed, as if they were old friends. It was like facing a crocodile.
"I changed while in was in jail. I realized what terrible things I'd
done, and I repented for them, that's why they let me out."
"You may have fooled them, Avril, but I know you haven't changed." Now
he chose to smile. "Or should that be, Alice?"
Her expression changed to slight confusion. "Who's Alice?"
"Don't play games with me."
"Michael, I honestly don't know what you're talking about. I know how
hard it must be, to see me free after so short a time. I really am
sorry for what I did to you, Devon and Bonnie must hate me."
"They're not the only ones." Avril looked away, and Michael felt the
same confusion he had experienced when he had spoken to William Clay.
"I spoke to your father."
She met his eyes again, and Michael could have sworn that the fear and
concern in her eyes was real. "Oh God.... I didn't tell him, I...
couldn't face him. He's so proud of me, you see." She took a step
forward. "Please, it would break his heart if he knew what I'd done."
Michael frowned. "I didn't tell him." She sighed in relief, a small
smile breaking through. "But I'm afraid Kitt might have let it slip."
There was a flash, of what Michael interpreted as fury, across her
features, and then she had control. "I'd... I'd better call him."

Michael made his own way to the front door, stopping with his fingers
on the handle. "I know you were behind the attack on Kitt and I a
couple of weeks ago. And I know what you did to him as Alice. And I
swear to you Avril, I will prove it."
He opened the door and slammed it behind him, jogging down the steps to
where Kitt was sitting, his engine fired. "How could she so blatantly
deny it?" his partner asked him.
"I dunno Kitt, but we've shaken her. Is there a call going out?"
"No, Michael."
"So I guess she lied about calling her father."
"What now?"
"Home, Kitt. We need to think about this."


Avril watched the car leave from the window. She looked down, at the
automatic weapon in her hand. She could not be sure whether or not they
had any evidence, whether they had found Greg Fulman's body, whether
they had identified him, or even whether they had tied him to her father
yet. There had been no police round, so they evidently had not run a
ballistics check on the bullet the autopsy would have pulled from his
brain.

So they knew she was Alice. She did wonder how they had worked that
one out. But there was nothing they could do. Even if they made her
confess to being Alice, what charges could they possibly bring against
her? Sending 'distressing' images to a computer system? They had not
even been pornographic, not in any way that a human eye would have
recognized them as such. And there was no way that she was going down
for the attack. Her father would take the heat for that one, if any
heat was to be taken.

So far they had nothing. And all she was going to give them was
'wilful destruction of property'. A month, maximum. Maybe even just a
fine, a couple of thousand dollars. He had once asked to know his
worth. Well, soon he would.

**

Bonnie felt Michael lean gently against her as they sat on the steps of
the patio, leading down into the grounds of the estate. Beside him, the
sun was starting to rise. Neither had slept in nearly twenty-four
hours, but Michael looked more confused and angry than tired. "I swear,
Bonnie, I must be losing it. She sounded so for real, you know, but I
have this gut feeling.... She knew exactly what I was talking about.
Although something told me that she hadn't been totally truthful to Clay
about her departure from the Foundation."
"Maybe we could use that somehow. Maybe if you lean on Clay, tell him
exactly what she did do, show him some pictures...." Michael could hear
the anger growing in Bonnie's voice. "We can't let her get away with
this."

Michael put down his coffee and turned to her, taking her hands in
his. "Bon, I love him and hurt for him as much as you do. And maybe,
if they'd killed him, all I'd want is blood. But let's be honest about
this. There is nothing we can pin on her, we have no evidence and Clay
is not going to give her to us. He attacked us, not her. Even if we
could prove that she asked him to do it, and she confessed to asking
him, she wouldn't get very long."
"I just can't believe that we do so much here, fight and win cases that
others have found practically impossible to crack, and still we can't
look after our own."
"It's because Kitt isn't human, there are no laws that protect him from
people like Avril."
"Then we should be able to."
Michael shook his head, gathering her into his arms as exhaustion
finally took its toll. He rocked her gently, placing kisses in her
hair. After a short while, she gently pushed him back and looked up
into those deep blue eyes. "Promise me you'll think of something."
"I promise you that I'll try."


In the darkness of the garage, Kitt knew she was there before he had
activated any higher functions. He watched her silently for a short
while. She was sitting on one of the workbenches, a large automatic
weapon held in one hand, barrel lying on the palm of the other, cradling
it. He quickly quashed the urge to beep Michael. He reasoned that she
could shoot him before he had a chance to warn him. Or maybe that was
just an excuse. He wanted to talk to her alone. He had wanted to
earlier, but Michael's plea had stopped him. Now she had come to him.
Finally, he activated the scanner, setting it into a gentle sweeping,
back and forth.

In his usual, friendly, trusting tone, he greeted her. "Hello, Avril."

"Hello, Kitt."
He added suspicion into the mixture. "What are you doing here?"
"To finish what I started. To do what my father failed to do with all
his expensive weaponry." She smiled. "I like the new look, Kitt, it
suits you."
"Why are you doing this?"
"You have no idea, have you?" Avril smiled. "When I first met you, I
fell in love with you. It's that simple. And as time went on, I
realized that it could never possibly be right. You couldn't ever feel
for me what I felt for you. You couldn't ever understand what I was
going through. And I started to hate you for it, for being so fucking
intelligent but not being able to see what was right in front of you."
She sighed. "This thing with you and Michael.... It's weird. No human
should ever be as close to a machine as he is to you. I wanted to try
to make you see that your existence was wrong, that you didn't have a
place here."
"Is that why you used me to kill that man in Las Vegas?"
Avril's eyes widened, and she actually laughed. "You really think I
killed him because he wouldn't buy you? I knew he wouldn't deal, but I
needed an excuse, a reason. I thought if I used you to kill once,
maybe, just maybe, when the time came, I would have enough control over
you to kill Michael."
"But you failed."
She shook her head. "No, Kitt, I didn't fail."
Her words confused him. "But I didn't do what you wanted."
"No, you didn't." She leaned down, closer to him, smiling like the
Cheshire cat. "But here's the beauty of it; you still know, don't you?
You still know what it would have been like to kill him, because they
showed you over and over again. I wrote that test program, Kitt. I
found it ironic that you showed them a miracle that afternoon, and they
brought you back here, to where you're supposed to be safe, and they
tried to destroy that miracle by forcing you through the one experience
you'd managed to save yourself from."

Kitt felt a shiver drive through his soul. Suddenly he did not want to
talk to this woman. He switched off the vocal telemetry to the comlink,
and shut down the connection, knowing that a warning would sound on
Michael's link. It was one way of telling him to be careful. It took
less than half a second. "Why do you hate me so much?"
Avril jumped down from the workbench and walked over to the car,
lightly trailing the barrel of the gun across the scanner track. "Love
always turns to hate eventually."
Kitt processed that. He thought about Ella, and what had obviously
developed between them. He did not want to believe Avril; he was
determined that this woman was not going to hurt him any more. "You're
wrong."
She laughed softly. "What would you know about it, Kitt? You'll never
know."
"But I do know. I have... someone. Someone I love. Someone who loves
me. You never gave me a chance. I trusted you, maybe I could have
loved you."
Avril was shaking her head. "There is no way...."
"I am capable of that emotion. Whether you believe it or not, it is
true."
"I don't believe you."
"But the images, the things you showed me as 'Alice'.... Surely you
must have thought they would hurt me, or why do it?"
Avril sat down on the hood, legs dangling, one foot still on the floor,
she continued to caress the scanner track with the tip of the gun; an
action that was making Kitt very uncomfortable.
"I've been doing that little trick since college. I just thought it
might be fun with you. I did want to hurt you, but I wasn't sure if I
would succeed. It took some doing, but prisons like it if you show
willing to learn. I always liked computer classes. Although they
weren't very happy when one of their systems crashed, destroyed by an
outside virus." She toyed with the gun against the scanner track. "And
neither was I. You were very thorough, I honestly hadn't realized quite
how much I was hurting you."
Kitt thought about her explanation. He had wanted to hear her explain
her reasons. But he found what she had said to be unsatisfying. "Some
of the images were very personal."
His words fascinated her. "You saw everything I meant you to see,
didn't you?"
"You raped me." Her smile gave Kitt the urge to pull back. But he did
not want to give her the satisfaction.
"Yes. That's what I was trying to do. It's gratifying to know that I
was right about how you perceive things. It's interesting to hear you
use the word 'rape' though. I could ask you to go back through the
images, show me the ones that brought you to that word."
"I no longer have anything of what you sent me."
Avril frowned. "But the backup storage.... They must have used it to
revive you after the attack."
"I told you, there is someone who loves me, I believe, very much. She
is better than you are when it comes to computers." Kitt spoke the
words as calmly as he had the rest of the conversation. But although he
knew they would they would hit a nerve, he said them anyway. Avril
remained silent, her anger building. She unclicked the safety from her
weapon. "You might as well put the gun away, Avril. You can't shoot
me, you know that."
"I can't shoot you yet, Kitt." She took a deep, calming breath, and
smiled. "Just be patient, the time will come."