Chapter 12

Sinjin returned to the hanger with Caitlin in tow. They walked inside and found Dom and String both waiting for them with Sam at the computer. He cheered, "I brought ya McDonald's, Dom." He handed him the food.

Dom grinned, "A Big Mac?" he took the food and placed it on the table that also held the engine. He began to dish out the fries and goodies. "Here's Sam's cinnamon roll. You get a Big Mac too Sinjin?" he asked finding extra food.

"I got the other Big Mac." he grinned looking directly at his brother as if he was about to challenge him.

"Hey a Quarter Ponder!" he retrieved the other burger.

Sinjin grasped it from his hand and then handed it to String like a prize.

"You know I won't eat that junk." he barked not amused.

Dom teased him, "Oh…Mister 'I won't eat McDonald's' over here." He opened the box that contained the burger and dug right in as String looked on in disgust.

Sam suggested, "I'll eat half the quarter ponder if someone will split it with me." She then asked, "Who got the pie and muffin?"

Caitlin stated, "Me! I'll split the burger with you, Sam." She retrieved her pocket knife and began to cut the burger that String had rejected in half.

String asked, "Did you bring me a cinnamon roll?" He looked about for he found the only thing he liked out of the establishment was a cinnamon roll.

Sinjin gasped, "You mean you actually like someone from McDonald's?"

"I don't mind a cinnamon roll once in a while." he confessed.

Sam handed him her roll. "Here…I'll get another one later." She found half the burger and some fries was filling enough.

String gratefully took the roll. He asked, "You get that coin collection, Sinjin?"

"Right here!" he held up the book.

String grasped the book and opened it. His eyes lit up, "This is really nice. Looks something I would enjoy doing."

"Actually you bought it when they program started in 1999. You filled first three years in but then you had a harder time doing it so I took it over for you. I offered to give it to you but you refused. Told me to keep it." Sinjin informed.

"Huh," he found the story interesting as he wondered why he could not do something so simple.

Dom insisted, "This time when the program comes out we can all get one of them map books and collect the quarters." He grinned at the idea.

Caitlin swallowed hard. She stated, "I'm not sure that will happen. Sinjin drove me to the graveyard where both of you are buried. Nothing has changed yet."

Sam explained, "It won't until we stop the bomb that kills Dom and injured Uncle String. Then the timeline changes. We're kind of in a limbo timeline right now."

Dom asked, "Timeline? What ya mean, limbo timeline?"

String grabbed a piece of paper from the nearby ink jet printer wirelessly connected to the computer. He started to draw, "We think of a timeline as one straight line that goes in one direction." He held up the paper with a line in the middle. At one end of the line he wrote 1984 and the other end he wrote 2022. "This is how we perceive our situation." He then made a dot on the line, "This dot represent the day and time that Dom is killed and I'm wounded. If we interfere at that point," he drew a line going slightly off and then perpendicular to the first line, "We change the timeline. We are in this early part of the timeline where nothing had happened yet. So, mine and Dom's grave will remain until we change it."

Sinjin confessed, "I thought it would be more instantaneous."

String replied, "All we got is theories up until this point. Now we actually have an established wormhole that allows a subject to travel back and forth through time, we can start mapping out the timeline and what happens."

"Something else for my book." Sam agreed. "Ah, found it!"

Caitlin asked, "Found what?" She then looked at the computer screen and spied a picture of a black Trans Am.

"KITT." she figured. "Providing they left the computer intact. It's in a junk yard being sold for parts."

String asked, "Why are you looking for Knight's car?"

"Because it's cool." she replied. "I get the car, restore it, update KITT and I have my own ride."

Sinjin sighed, "Millennials."

She pouted, "What? It's this cool car with a computer that can self drive. I need that."

String asked, "We do you need a self driving car?"

She explained, "So I can do other things while it drives me around." She grinned, "Think about it! KITT can drop me off at the store, wait from me and pick me up. It will be like having a chauffeur."

Dom laughed, "Kids!"

She rebutted, "I think it's a good idea."

String asked, "Got anything more on Hinkley?"

She shook her head, "Just his blog and his Youtube channel. Watched a few downloads. He's chasing lights in the sky."

Caitlin asked, "Isn't Mr. Hinkley your teacher, Sam?"

She nodded, "He claims he was given this red suit by aliens and he was a super hero in the 80's but the aliens took his suit and wiped everyone's memory."

"The guy in the red suit?" she asked. "That's him!"

Sam brought up the blog before her. "You remember it too."

"I saw it firsthand flying highway patrol. He's been in the news. I have a whole book of newspaper clippings. One of my side mysteries I'm trying to solve." she stated. "There is a guy in a red suit who can fly around like Superman."

Sinjin stated, "I have no memory of it. I asked older you last night and Jo if they remembered it and both said they did not and looked at me like I was nuts. Older you doesn't remember any guy in any red suit, Cait."

"How could I not remember?" she asked. "What about the scrapbook with the articles?" She instructed Sinjin, "Ask older me about that."

"I will." he agreed.

Sam debated, "I wonder if X-Files was based on real events?"

Her father asked, "Why?"

She smiled and looked at String, "Tell dad about the kid in your class named Ferris Bueller."

"Little smart ass." he huffed. He looked to his brother, "What?"

"There is a movie called Ferris Bueller's Day Off." he told him. "A cult classic from the 80's."

"Stupid movie." Sam told him.

Caitlin paused and then stated, "That does make you wonder."

Later - 1984

They had returned from the future after the meeting with Sinjin. It was getting close to closing time when a familiar black Trans Am pulled into the airfield and drove up to the hangar.

Sam leaned against the door frame gazing at the slick car. How she wanted that car. It was dream car for the young scientist. Not only was it vintage and cool but housed an artificial intelligence that she couldn't wait to dive into. She spoke to herself in a gaze, "Now that is a car with style."

Caitlin grinned for she knew Michael had come for a briefing. Then she realized it was Sam who was the source of the money and Michael's investigation would lead to not only to Sam but the engine as well. Her smile melted as she figured she had to lie to her friend to protect the engine.

Michael Knight climbed out of the car sporting his black leather jacket over a red shirt, tight jeans, wavy hair that seemed perfectly in place and a smile that would put his face on toothpaste ad.

String held out a hand for he spoke with Michael as the school, "Michael. Good to see you again. I figured we could talk here."

Michael shook his hand, "Good to see you again to, String." He gave a devilish grin to Caitlin, "Cait."

"Mike." she called him by a name few could get away with. Only a fellow officer could get away with calling him 'Mike'.

Dom held out a hand, "Nice to meet ya, Mike." He had no idea that he just insulted the man.

He shook his hand and corrected, "It's Michael. Only Cait calls me 'Mike'." His eyes settled on Sam who he assumed was a student. "Sam Santini!" he greeted her. "I'll have you in my class for advanced English Lit." He held a hand out to her.

She didn't shake his hand and crossed her arms instead as she played her role. "Don't count on it." she shook her head as she knew she would need to stay with Mr. Hinkley if she were to find out if there was an alien presence as she suspected. She stated, "Nice car! Can I check it out?"

Cait watched in amazement as the brilliant scientist morphed into a smartass sixteen year old for her cover. She slowly nodded as she figured Sam would have made a great cop.

Michael figured he would wow the teen with KITT. He agreed, "Sure…just don't touch anything." He gave her permission.

Sam grinned happily, "Great! Thanks Mr. Knight." She nearly skipped to the car happy to check out KITT. The door swung open on its own and Sam slid down in the driver's seat without hesitation.

Michael looked on. He cocked his head because usually when KITT opened the door the subject would be shocked and stand in amazement. But Sam acted as if it was normal.

Sam looked over the cockpit of the advanced vehicle. She grinned, "Hi KITT. My name is Sam."

A smooth voice with a slight accent replied, "Hello Samantha. I am the Knight Industry Two Thousand. I am pleased to meet you."

She cheered, "You are so cool." She placed her hands on the controls and gently ran her fingers over the contours. "I wish I could upgrade you." she confessed.

"I am state of the art." he told her. "Samantha…are you aware there is strong radio signal coming from your pocket in your jeans?"

She leaned over and retrieved the phone, "Just my phone, KITT. I need you to enact a protocol for me."

KITT asked, "Under what authority?"

She stated, "Access key number 001WK."

He replied, "Wilton Knight's access key number. That is a company trade secret. May I ask why he gave it to you?"

She explained, "He didn't. I read about it. You are picking up the radio signal of my phone. I am accessing protocol code name: Dark Winter. I am accessing and enacting protocol: Armageddon." Sam had given KITT commands that would allow her to take control of his programming and prime missions.

KITT came to attention, "Those codes can only be accessed in a dire situation of global consequences."

"I'm giving you permission to access my phone, KITT." she told him.

KITT then accessed her phone and soon discovered the phone was decades ahead of the time in technology. He found her true name and future date. "Might I ask what this is about Samantha Hawke?"

"I'm engaged in an experiment in the future that led to a wormhole opening through time. The money was accidentally brought back here and we need to get the money back without disrupting the timeline. I need your help in doing so. This is top secret and Michael Knight cannot know the true mission. Neither can anyone else at Knight Industries. You report findings to me only. Okay?"

"I understand the mission." he replied. He wanted to tell Michael but was ordered not to and Sam had the proper authorization codes and thus overrode his programming.

"I'm sorry I have to do this to you, KITT. It's important though. It's for the sake of the future." she explained.

He told her, "I understand, Samantha."

Michael sauntered to the car as Sam quickly hid her phone. He leaned against the roof with his arm and looked in. "Well, what ya think?" He expected the usual response of awe and amazement.

Sam shrugged, "Kind of quaint. Could use a little work." She then climbed out as her mind churned the upgrades she would do to the car she wanted for her own private vehicle.

Michael paused, gapping for just a moment.

Caitlin came up with a cover, "Sam is really into computers."

String understood that for Sam, KITT was obsolete and outdated. He worked on the laptop computer in the future but also knew she liked the car. He asked, "What ya think of the Trans Am?"

She grinned, "Now this is cool." She looked about, "Huge back seat, roomy interior…just needs a cup holder…" she figured.

Michael closed is eyes for just a moment and then asked, "Cup holder?" The most advanced vehicle on the road needed a cup holder. It was an insane and nearly mocking statement for the man.

Caitlin decided she needed to rescue Sam from Michael's irritation after her last assessment. She grabbed her by the arm, "Teenagers! All about the food. Come on!" she pulled her away from the car.

Dom understood what Caitlin was trying to do. He laughed, "Never knew with teenagers."

Michael sighed and had agree, "I know…she's a kid." He then reached into his jeans pocket, "Guess what else we got circulating now." He handed a quarter to String.

He took the money and looked at the back, "Crossing the Delaware. 2021." he read. He figured it was one of the quarters that Sam spent at the mall. He didn't look to Sam for he didn't want to give her away. He looked to Michael. "Coins now?"

"Yeah, coins now and they are real. Matter of fact there is a whole series of coins that are to be called State Quarters that are in design right now. They plan launching them in 10 to 15 years." he informed. "That places our time traveler to at least 2021."

String glanced at Caitlin and Dom and purposely did not look at Sam to protect her. He thought perhaps if he passed the coin to one of the others they might be able to keep it and get it back to Sinjin in the future. He handed it to Dom, "Take a look."

The old man grasped the coin and looked closely at it. He tried to come up with something to say that would throw Michael off the trail, "Kind of looks warn out. Got scratches on it."

"It's been circulated." Michael agreed. "Back at Knight Industries we ran it through a spectrum of test. Looked for viruses, bacterial, finger prints…everything."

Dom gulped, "Find any prints?"

"Partial print but too smudged to lift." he informed.

Caitlin stated, "It's been circulated. Prints are useless."

"I know." he agreed, "They went over that coin with a fine tooth comb." He held out his hand for the coin as he was ordered to bring it back to Devon who kept it in a safe.

Caitlin paused and looked at him with pleading eyes.

"I need it back, Cait." he told her.

She asked, "Where are you keeping it?"

"Devon locks it up in a safe in his office." he told her clutching the coin.

String figured they would have to break into the office to get the coin back. He stated, "Better keep it save."

He assured him, "I will. You guys find anything yet?"

They traded glances.

String shook his head, "Nothing! So, far we have come up empty handed."

Caitlin agreed, "So far nothing."

Michael found it odd that the Airwolf team, who came highly recommended by the FIRM, found nothing at all. He sighed and figured, "Keep me posted if you do." He gave a wave, "Got a meeting to catch." He climbed back into the car and slid down behind the wheel. He stated to KITT, "We have a meeting with Bonnie and Devon."

"I have the location." KITT reported.

Michael then started the engine and soon drove off the field.

Caitlin watched her friend drive away and felt terrible. She hated misleading him. She sighed, "Wish we could tell him the truth. Michael would keep this a secret."

String asked Sam, "Did those commands I found work?"

She nodded, "Yup! We got control of KITT."

Caitlin asked, "Commands?"

He explained, "I found KITT's manual online earlier. Found the core override commends. Commands only reserved for Wilton Knight. I had Sam use them to get KITT under our control."

Sam reported, "KITT could read my phone and connected with it, got my real name off it."

String mentioned, "That phone could easily hold KITT's memory and programming. Your phone has more computing power than KITT. Just need to strip out most of those silly apps you got."

She countered, "My apps aren't silly."

He made a face, "Really? Candy Crush! Bubble Pop Mania!"

She defended, "Those are games."

He suggested, "Delete those and get real games."

"Like what?" she asked.

"Chess!" he suggested.

She rolled her eyes and complained, "You sound like my father."

Dom offered, "I'll play chess with ya, Sam. I got a set in my room."

"Sure," she agreed.