Meanwhile, Bonnie had thrown a few things into a bag and had left, sneaking downstairs as though she were a criminal to get out without detection. She took Devon's red Mercedes convertible, parked out front, to Bay 4. There, she did some 'modifications' to KITT's sensors, then hopped back into the car and took off. She didn't even wave to the security guard as she shot past his booth in the Mercedes. She was so angry, she wasn't really aware of where she was going until she had gotten to downtown L.A. She looked up and seemed surprised to find herself there. She had been brooding about what had happened that night when KARR blasted into the back of the semi. The fact that Michael had insisted, and Devon had agreed, that they should assemble the laser at the Foundation and then bring it to KITT seemed to rankle her. If he had only listened to her, the entire episode might not have happened. At least, KARR would never had obtained the laser that was rightfully made for KITT! It was their fault, darn it! And Devon was going to fire her because of it!! The more she thought about it, the madder she got, until she was absolutely furious with the both of them. How she wished she could make them suffer some of the anguish she felt right now.
Seeing a 'no parking' zone, she quickly pulled in and turned off the Mercedes. Leaving the keys on the floor mat, she locked the door and shut it. Now, the car would be towed, Devon would be notified, and he would even get his keys back. She got on a bus and rode several miles to the south side of town. Not wanting to be seen by any merchant or vendor (knowing they were always the first ones Michael would go to for help in identifying any 'customers' that they might have had that he was looking for), she paid a young man on the street to go buy her a hamburger. After eating it, she dumped the paper in a bin, and then picked up her suitcase and started walking. She ended up staring at a "Help Wanted" sign in front of a men's club. A sleazy, dirty club where women performed half dressed. The thought crossed her mind that at least they were appreciated for what they did, regardless of how 'respectable' the work was - or wasn't. In she went, not having a clue what it was like inside. It was depressingly dark and dingy, and smelled of liquor and Pinesol. Rock music blared from a corner juke box, and several scantily clad women were waiting on tables. Her stomach lurched, but she swallowed down the bad feelings she had, ignoring her conscience. One half hour later, the manager of the club, Tom Greene, had hired her as a waitress/dancer. She felt an odd sense of accomplishment, for she was a very reserved, shy girl. Tom had been super impressed by a classy girl like that wanting to even be in his club, called, "Greener Pastures". It was obvious that she was running away from something - or someone- and he would give her all the help he could in keeping that person away.
In fact, Bonnie had decided she wanted to get as far away from the Foundation as she could. She had thought about it, and it seemed to her that her life had been too perfect. She'd been a straight "A" student, she'd had parents who adored her, and a great job straight out of MIT - where she'd graduated top in her class. Devon and Michael had seemed to dote on her - at least at first - and for the most part, her desires while at FLAG were met almost before she had finished asking for them. Perhaps, she thought, she needed a little break from perfection. She had never been 'bad' in her life, and although she had never had a desire to be, her perverse mood right now envisioned putting Devon and Michael through all sorts of tortures worrying about her. How far could she go before one of them found her? Would they even bother looking? Since Devon planned to fire her anyway, would he simply say, "Good riddance?" and be done with her? She had to know the answer to that, for she knew she would never be happy or be satisfied until she understood just how deep Devon's and Michael's feelings for her were. She needed a closure to that part of her life, if they wanted her gone, in order to move on to the next part of her life, whatever that may be. She truly felt that this was not the career move she would chose for herself, but it would prove to be an interesting experiment. One thing she did know, however, was that the sign outside read "XXX". That alone would keep Devon Miles out!
Meanwhile, Devon had become concerned when Bonnie didn't show up for work. He'd gone up to her room, knowing she, too, was worn out from worry with the recent case. He'd knocked on the door lightly. If she were still asleep, he didn't want to disturb her. If she were not feeling well, he'd give her the day off, and ask her about San Diego. With any luck, they could be there tomorrow, checking into the Hotel Del Coronado. When he got no answer, he turned and left, smiling to himself that at least she was getting some good rest. He had a cup of tea, and looked through some files. One case interested him, and he did some research. Deciding it was a case that they could handle and that could wait until Michael returned from Mexico to be started, he called and told them that he would have his man call by on them within the next 10 days. They were delighted with that, and he dismissed the other cases as either too pressing to wait, turning some over to the police, or too impossible. So, with the next case waiting in the wings, so to speak, he again went up to Bonnie's room. It was nearly 12 o'clock now, and she should be up. He knocked again, and then again, louder. When it brought no response, he called to her. When he still got no response, he said out loud, "I didn't realize she was this exhausted." One iron-clad rule he'd made was that he would never go into the room of a guest or one of the employees there without a serious concern. At this point, his concern was niggling, not serious.
At 1:30, he received a phone call that his car was at police impound. That surprised him, because he didn't even know his car was gone. He called security to find out if anyone had driven his car out. He was shocked to hear that Bonnie had, several hours before. He was confused, but then he became worried. He once again headed up the stairs, but this time he was determined that if he got no answer, he would enter anyway. He didn't get an answer, and he did go in. To his surprise, her room was deserted. A quick glance in the bathroom told him that her toothbrush, hairbrush, etc. were gone, implying she had packed to go and had left of her own free will. But, why? What had gotten into the girl that she would just up and leave like that, without a word? It was totally out of character. Where on earth could she have gone? He was now as close to panic as he'd been in years.
He loved Michael as a son, but Michael's job of itself entailed a good deal of danger. As prepared as he tried to be, he still worried everytime Michael got into a fix. He did have a great deal of confidence in Michael's ability to get out of trouble. Bonnie was different. She was confident, but sweet, and there was an innocence about her that he adored, and protected. He didn't expect her to have to put herself in danger. Not often, anyway. So to realize she could be in trouble frightened him. He simply wasn't prepared for it. His concern was heightened by the fact that Michael had gotten onto an airplane bound for Acapulco not an hour before, and he would not ruin this vacation for him, no matter what happened. Truth be told, though, he certainly could use his help right now.
The next person in line to seek help from would be KITT. So he called for a car and had them drive him out to Bay 4, where KITT had been kept for a complete refurbishing. "Total tune-up", Bonnie had called it. He got into KITT and sat for a moment, not sure how to approach things. "KITT," he began, "do you by any chance know where Bonnie has gone?"
"Don't you?" KITT responded.
"I'm afraid not," Devon answered, with a small laugh, trying to keep it light.
"No, I haven't even seen her today."
"Are you sure?" he asked, for he was certain that the technician at the gate had told him that Bonnie had been in earlier.
"I'm sure, Devon."
Devon's eyes narrowed. As farfetched as it seemed for a grown woman to behave like this, he knew KITT couldn't lie unless Bonnie had actually programmed him to do so.
"KITT," Devon said, "I'd like to check your diagnostics. Would that be all right with you?"
"Certainly," KITT told him. "After all, you did it all the time before Bonnie came along."
"Ah, you remember those days, eh?"
"Of course. Unlike people, my memory doesn't fail."
"Unless it's been programmed to fail, " Devon muttered. He hooked KITT up to the diagnostic scanners, and soon found that he had, indeed, been 'tampered with'. It seemed to him that Bonnie had fixed KITT so that he could not be used to track her down. Her biorhythms and her heart scan had been removed, so that even if they used KITT, he would be unable to detect her. And although that process had taken her less than thirty minutes, he knew that if she had access to her records - and he had no doubt that she did - it would be nearly impossible for Devon to re-enter those records into KITT's memory banks. At least, not any time soon. He gave KITT to Dr. VonVoorman and asked him to get a few other techs together and begin trying to re-enter Bonnie's medical info. He knew he was going to have to go back to the old fashioned leg work he used to use working for MI6. Sighing, he called for a car.