Knight
Rider 2000
Flash II
The Season
Premiere
Written by
Scott Kirkessner
Based upon KNIGHT RIDER
Created by
Glen A. Larson
Original KNIGHT RIDER 2000 Concept by
Rob Hedden
New concept by
Scott Kirkessner
In the second season opener
of the series, this episode resolves the cliffhanger originally left in Flash,
last season’s finale. The Knight
Foundation teams up with the FBI to continue the extensive manhunt for the
serial killer, as well as begin a new manhunt for Shawn McCormick, the killer’s
latest victim.
Rated R for strong
violent content, strong profanity and suggestive dialogue.
Last time on Knight
Rider 2000:
“What have the investigators found?” asked Sheriff Mason Kerber asked.
“Just the usual signs of a struggle, and something else.” Replied Deputy Jason Mackenzie walking back into the room.
“What?” Kerber asked.
“Written with a magic marker are the letters J-J-F, right on the carpet.” Mackenzie said, pointing.
“There’s something wet in there.” Kerber said, reaching down and touching it. He smelled the liquid on his fingers. “It’s gasoline.” He said.
“Hell of a calling card.” Mackenzie said.
=====
“Have we had a crime like this before?”
“No, not like this, but I do remember reading about it somewhere. It was in a crime report from 1989, a similar crime to it in Los Angeles. Some guy would kill people and leave the letters JFK by the bodies. Turns out the guy was a Kennedy freak.” Kerber explained.
“So this could be a copycat crime.” Mackenzie said.
“More than likely. I guess I should call the people who wrote the report.”
“And who wrote the report?” Mackenzie asked.
“A corporation called the Knight Foundation.”
=====
Maddock sat up. “I’m sorry, your name again?”
“Sheriff Mason Kerber, of the Magoffin County Sheriff’s Department.” Kerber replied.
“All right,” Maddock said,
when he finished writing down the name, “a copycat crime you said?”
“Yes. Although we
don’t have a confirmed murder just yet.
The intruder, left a calling card, much like the 1989 murder. The letters J-J-F were written in magic
marker on the carpet, and were soaked with gasoline.”
“Wow, that sounds too much
like a coincidence.” Maddock said. He
leaned back in his chair. “Well,
Sheriff, what I can do is fax you the report, see if you can get some clues
from that. Also, keep in touch as well
and let us… hello?”
“Sorry Mr. Maddock I was talking to my deputy. They just found a body.”
Maddock looked at his
screen. “Let me guess… a body with all
its clothes on, with its arms tied behind its back with electrical cord and
legs crossed and tied together with industrial strength electrical tape. Broken jaw, broken neck, broken wrists.”
The other end of the phone
was silent. Maddock could hear Kerber
murmur ‘holy shit.’
“Mr. Maddock.”
“Yes?”
“We have a problem.”
=====
“Where was the body found,
Sheriff?” Shawn asked.
“In one of Brown and
Williamson’s tobacco crops.” Kerber replied.
“B and W security found it when cameras found tire tracks inside the
farm.” He said, walking out with everyone.
“Hold on,” Bonnie said,
stopping them. She flipped through the
1989 case file she had with her. “Did
you do a black light exam?” she asked the coroner.
“No, why?” the coroner
asked.
“Just a hunch,” Bonnie
said, walking back into the room, with the others following. “You do have a black light back here,
right?”
The coroner nodded and
produced one from a desk. He handed it
to Bonnie.
“Shawn, get the lights,
will you please?” Bonnie asked.
Shawn nodded and turned
the lights out. “What are you getting
at, Bonnie?”
“Something,” Bonnie said,
uncovering the body and turning the black light on. Everyone looked at Lacie’s face, which had the letters JJF
written on her right cheek. “Oh shit.”
Bonnie said.
“The same initials from
the room.” Kevin said.
“The same God damn style
from the 1989 murder.” Bonnie said, looking at the letters.
=====
“Shawn, the FBI is
calling.” KITT said.
“Put it through, KITT.”
Shawn said.
“Hello, this Special Agent Natalie Markins from the FBI, to whom am I speaking with?”
“This is Agent Shawn
McCormick of the Knight Foundation, thank you for contacting us.”
“I understand that you are investigating a murder in Salyersville?”
“That’s right. The murder is a complete mirror of a 1989
murder in Los Angeles which the Foundation investigated as well.” Shawn
explained.
“Would you be able to fax both case reports over to my office?
“No problem at all.” Shawn
said.
“Excuse me, Shawn, but I believe
you should take a look at this.”
Shawn looked at the
screen. “Agent Markins, I think you
should listen to this…” she said, turning the volume up.
“Police in West Carrollton tonight are baffled as to the
discovery of a body in a construction site.
Ironically, the grizzly discovery follows another one in Salyersville,
Kentucky, about 12 hours ago. Police
representatives in both cities are keeping a closed-lid on the murders, only
revealing that they are both similar in nature. We’ll keep you informed of this recent discovery as more news
comes in…”
“Agent Markins?” Shawn
asked.
“I’ll meet you at the crime scene tomorrow morning.”
=====
“Shawn, it’s
Russell.”
“What’s going on?” Shawn
asked.
“Shawn… Lima PD
just called us, they got wind that we were handling this case.”
“Go on.” Shawn said.
“There’s been
another one. A female, again, in her
mid-twenties, same MO, same signs.”
“Shit.” Shawn said,
pushing down the antenna and closing the cover. “We got another one!”
=====
“We have to think long and
hard here. This guy has just killed
three people in the past 48 hours,” Markins said, “is there anything we can
figure out?”
“What was the clue of
yours, KITT?” Kevin asked.
“The killer wears an
exceptionally rare pair of hiking boots, which were discontinued in the
1990’s. Only a few pairs remain now.”
KITT explained.
“Why so rare?” Bonnie
asked.
“The company which
produced them based their entire market around that type of boot, it was their
first product. However, only a few
people bought the shoes, and the company went bankrupt.” KITT said.
“Is there any chance-“
Bonnie started, only to be interrupted.
“That we can track down
the records of those who bought these shoes?” Kevin said, finishing Bonnie’s
statement.
“There should be no
problem in doing that at all.” KITT said.
“There is a fax coming through, it is from the coroner’s office.”
“I’m dealing with more
coroners this week than I care to.” Shawn said, getting up, leaning into KITT’s
window and grabbing the piece of paper.
Knowing what it would say, she crunched it up and threw it onto the
floor.
Markins got up and grabbed
her jacket and put it on over her blouse.
“I’m going back to my hotel for some rest. Call me if anything comes up.”
“You got it.” Shawn said,
pressing the button that lowered the trailer door.
“So now what?” KITT asked
“What choice to we have
but wait?” Shawn said. “There’s nothing
we can do.”
=====
“Three weeks and no
murder. What is the guy doing?”
“Getting some rest,” Kevin
said, “he killed three women in 48 hours.
I think that took a lot out of him.”
“Yeah well something
doesn’t seem right.” Shawn said, looking at the homicide reports of the three
women.
“No news is good news.”
Kevin said, trying to crack a smile.
=====
Kevin looked at the map on
the wall that had six pins sticking out of it.
The killer’s last strike happened in Bay City, Michigan, and before
that, Burton, Michigan. Kevin shook his
head.
He walked over to KITT,
who was shut down while Bonnie was working on his systems.
“How’s it going?” he asked
Bonnie.
“Just fine,” Bonnie said,
“hopefully this will increase his connection speed to the satellites.”
The phone started
ringing. “This is Kevin Williams…
uh-huh… okay… where?!”
“He’s turned!” Kevin yelled
to Shawn over the phone.
“Turned, what do you mean
he’s turned?!” Shawn said. She was in
Markins car coming back from the Bay City crime scene.
“He’s just killed someone in Millston, Wisconsin.”
=====
Maddock sat down. “Shawn, I’m just letting you know, that if
we don’t see any progress made in this case after we investigate this body, I’m
handing it over to the FBI.”
Shawn sat there for a
while. “And FLAG continues to assist?”
“No,” Maddock said,
shaking his head, “FLAG is removed from the case altogether.”
=====
"We are in week four of the nationwide manhunt for
the Initial Killer. So far, this unidentified man has murdered eight
women in the states of Kentucky, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. Officials from the Knight Foundation and the
FBI continue to have an official 'no comment' on the case. Many speculate
their silence to be attributed to the fact that both organizations have so far
failed to catch the dangerous pattern killer."
Maddock turned off the TV before the reporter
continued. He lowered his tone and volume. "Shawn, we are this
far from losing all of our beneficiaries.
This is a sour case and we have to ditch it."
"I can't accept that." Shawn said.
"Well you damn well better accept it!" Maddock yelled. "This is a direct order, the Knight
Foundation is dropping this case."
=====
Kevin walked up the stairs and knocked on Shawn’s hotel room door. No one answered. “Hmm.” Kevin said to himself. He looked into the window and saw that the light was on, but the curtain was closed. He rang the buzzer again and waited.
Kevin’s impatience grew stronger and he knocked on the door. “Shawn?” He knocked on the door again, harder this time. “Shawn!” He looked around and didn’t see anyone in the area. “Shawn!” he yelled.
Kevin set down his backpack and backed up. He kicked the door in. He pushed the door open and cautiously walked inside. “Holy shit.” He said, looking at the mess in front of him. The furniture was over turned and out of place. It was the obvious signs of a struggle.
Kevin was in panic mode now. “Shawn!? Shawn!?” he yelled, ripping through the suite. He opened the door to the bedroom and his mouth dropped open when he looked inside.
“Oh my God…” he said, looking at the disorganized bedroom. In a spot on the floor which was purposely cleared out, he saw an all too familiar sign, written in the oil compound, doused in gasoline, were the letters: JJF.
And now the conclusion:
The telephone began to
ring in the hotel room. It rang five
times before the occupant opened up the bathroom door wearing a bathrobe and a
towel slung over his shoulder walked over to the nightstand and picked the
receiver up.
“Hello?”
“She’s gone!!!” a frantic
voice yelled on the other end of the phone.
The man switched the phone
to his other ear and turned on the light.
“Who’s gone?” asked Russell Maddock.
“Shawn!!!”
“Kevin, slow down, what’s
happened?”
April 26, 2001
2218 Hrs CDT
Location: Worthington,
Minnesota
Several police cars were outside
the hotel. Their functioning Visi-Bars
illuminated the entire area with red and blue lights.
An Oldsmobile Aurora
pulled up to the scene. The door opened
and a female got out. She had an FBI
badge hanging off of the lapel of her suit.
A cop saw her coming and he raised the crime tape for her.
The woman walked through
the lobby, various police officers acknowledged her presence and
seniority.
A confused guest in the
hotel somehow made it past the police barricade outside and walked up to her. “What is going on? When are we going to find out?
Why have we all been evacuated?”
“Ma’am,” the agent said,
“I am going upstairs to find out all of the answers, and everyone will be
apprised of them soon.”
As much as politeness would allow, the agent pushed aside the guest and
continued into the elevator.
The elevator opened and
the female agent walked out. She walked
down the hall, looking at police officers and forensics reporters hovering in
front of a hotel room. Flash bulbs went
off as pictures were taken of the crime scene.
A balding man in his 40’s
walked up to her. It was the same man
she met with the same evening, talking about the transfer of the Initial Killer
case to the FBI.
“Hello Agent Markins.”
Maddock said.
Natalie Markins shook his
hand. She could tell he was
apprehensive. “Evening, sir. What do we have here?”
“Sorry I couldn’t say much
over the phone. At around
nine-something, Kevin came up here to Shawn’s room and found this.”
“Is there a body?” Natalie
asked.
“Nope.” Maddock said.
“No body?” Natalie asked,
walking into the room. She looked
around. “But the markings.”
“Yeah, this guy changed
his MO again,” Maddock paused, “or he changed it for Shawn.”
“Eh?” Natalie uttered,
turning around.
“Maybe this guy has been
after Shawn the whole time.” Maddock said.
“As a former DA, you
should know better than to take a jump like that,” Natalie said, “Detective,
get together a team of investigators and search the area for Shawn McCormick.”
“Body?” asked the detective.
“Just search, okay?”
The detective nodded. “Yes Agent.”
Natalie walked over to the
oil marking and looked down at it.
JJF. She bent down, touched it,
and found the wet gasoline around it.
“Damn.”
Kevin was outside of the
room, down the hall with Bonnie. Bonnie
had a tear running down her face and Kevin looked like he was struggling to
hold it in.
“We can’t assume she’s
dead,” Bonnie said, “they haven’t found a body.”
“Yeah. How’s KITT taking this?” Kevin asked.
“Oh no, KITT.”
Bonnie and Kevin walked
towards KITT who was sitting in the parking lot. Kevin stopped her. “Hey,
how can we be sure he wont wig out on us like he did when he saw Benjamin Tenet’s
body? I mean, this is going to be a
serious trauma.”
Bonnie turned to Kevin. “Well I worked on his systems… the new
programming should prevent another emotional outbreak.”
“Bonnie, he is more than
just a car. He feels.”
“You don’t think I know
that?” Bonnie asked. “Listen, junior, I
know KITT inside and out.”
“Did you know he would
react to see Benjamin being carved?” Kevin asked.
Bonnie stopped. “Tact like that will really help KITT. Let’s talk to him with some sympathy and
compassion okay?”
Kevin nodded.
“KITT,” Bonnie said,
slowly approaching the car, “KITT, do you know what’s happening?”
KITT sat silent. His red scanner light shined on the building
across from him.
Kevin walked over to the
driver’s side and opened the door. He
got in and sat down. “KITT, we’re going
to find her. Whatever it takes, we’ll
find Shawn alive, and bring her back.”
“I wasn’t monitoring the
room. I thought she was safe.” KITT
said.
“That’s okay, KITT,”
Bonnie said, “so did we. Do you have
any video feeds of the area? Any chance
we can see who this guy is?”
The central monitor came
to life and a video feed of the hotel parking lot around KITT came on and
flashed by. “My video surveillance
shows no indication of anyone leaving the area with Shawn.”
“Except that.” Kevin said,
pointing at the monitor.
“What?” Bonnie asked.
“KITT, go back point seven
six.”
KITT complied and the
video froze. “What are you looking at
Kevin?”
“Zoom in on the upper
right quadrant, enhance image.”
The image zoomed in; it
was blurry and scrambled at first, but cleared.
“I’m looking at that.” Kevin
said, pointing at a car. “It looks
suspicious. KITT, cross reference this
car with your other video images of the previous crime scenes.”
Images flashed by on the
central monitor at light speed.
“You’re right, Kevin,”
KITT said, “this car has been present at each of the crime scenes.”
“Yes!” Kevin said.
“KITT, zoom in on the
license plate!” Bonnie said.
The image zoomed in and
the license plate on the car showed up, clear as day.
“Shit, yes!” Kevin said.
Bonnie turned around and
called back toward the hotel. “Agent
Markins!”
2300 Hrs CDT
“You’re watching Siouxland’s News Channel, KTIV-4. Tonight, there has been a major break in the Initial Killer Case. The FBI has issued a new report, which will hopefully lead to a breakthrough in the case. This picture, taken at a recent crime scene in Worthington, Minnesota, reveals a late model black Chevrolet Caprice, license plate reading RFL-417. The FBI regards this car and its driver as an investigative lead.
“KTIV has been getting scattered and sketchy reports of another recent attack by the killer who started his spree in Kentucky over three weeks ago. A body was found in a swimming pool in Worthington earlier today, and the FBI is keeping a tight lid on the rumors of another attack almost ninety minutes ago…”
“I got our scumbag!” Kevin
yelled out of KITT’s window as Maddock, Natalie and Bonnie walked over.
“Miles Jacobs, convicted
on three counts of sexual misconduct with a minor, once on sexual assault,
rape, four times on aggravated assault, and two times on assault with a deadly
weapon.” Kevin said.
“Damn.” Maddock said.
“And he lives in South
Dakota, too.” Kevin added.
“Where in South Dakota?”
Natalie asked.
“Uhh… Lemmon, South
Dakota, to be exact.” Kevin answered.
“He’s been following I-40,
which runs right through the state.” Bonnie said.
Kevin looked at the file
on their suspect. “Jesus, look at this
guy. His senior class in high school
voted him the most likely to become a cashier at McDonald’s. He graduated with a 2.5 GPA, never went to
college, and moved away from his parents when he was 29!”
“Sounds like a real
fucking loser.” Maddock said.
“That’s probably why he is
killing these women.” Natalie simply said.
“This guy was taunted all of his life, most likely by girls who rejected
him. He feels that he is getting
revenge by going out and killing these girls.”
“And how about the
markings he leaves behind?” Maddock asked.
“More than likely, he found
that aspect of your old case intriguing and decided to leave initials of his
own. Remember, he is somewhat mirroring
your case.” Natalie said.
“Except for the fact that
he turned.” Kevin said.
“Well think about it,”
Natalie said, “what if the 1989 case ran out of interstate just like Miles
did? He would have turned.”
“Like a computer program
being systematic.” Bonnie said.
“Exactly.” Natalie said
punching the air with her fist. “I
think you should have a chat with your suspected killer from ’89.”
“Shawn is alive.” KITT
said.
Kevin turned around. “How do you know for sure, KITT?”
“Her memory chip is still
active.”
“Memory chip?” Natalie
said.
“No shit, I forgot she
even had it.” Kevin said.
“KITT, what can you do
with that thing?” Maddock asked.
“Theoretically, if we can
find the right carrier waves, we can actually tap into the chip, be able to see
what Shawn sees and communicate with her in some way. Theoretically.”
“Theoretically my ass,
KITT, get to work on that with Kevin and Bonnie! Agent Markins, you’re coming with me.” Maddock said.
“Where are we going?”
Natalie said, grabbing her suit coat and car keys.
“We’re gonna talk to the
other side of the looking glass.” Maddock said.
Natalie nodded. “What’s this guy’s name?”
“Roger Souza.” Maddock
said as they walked to Natalie’s car and got in.
“What help do you think he
will give us?” Natalie asked, starting the engine and driving down the road.
“I don’t know, hopefully
enough so we can anticipate this guys next move.”
“Where is he at? Is he in jail?” Natalie asked.
Maddock flipped through
the report. “Yes, he is. In a sense.
He was declared legally insane and committed to Los Angeles County
Mental Institution.”
“Oh God, I love talking to
head cases.” Natalie said.
“Okay, KITT, first things
first,” Bonnie said, “can you figure out where Shawn is by accessing the memory
chip?”
“I’m working on that now,
Bonnie.” KITT said.
Kevin looked at KITT’s
three monitors. “Jesus, KITT, you have
all these programs running at once, don’t exert yourself.”
“My systems are running at
90 percent efficiency.” KITT replied.
“Yeah, well that’s
downgraded from your usual operating speeds,” Kevin said, “when you get down to
83, I’ll hook you up to another power source.”
“I will keep you alerted,
Kevin. The memory chip has been
retooled since I had it. The RNA Center
must have installed a scrambler in it.
Probably to prevent what we’re trying to do.” KITT said.
“So how did you know it
was active?” Bonnie asked.
“Detecting activity is
easy. Trying to trace the chip and tap
into it, that’s difficult.”
“Anything you need me to
do?” Bonnie asked.
“Yes, if you can plug your
laptops into my system, we would be able to work on the same tasks
simultaneously and hopefully have a better chance of success.” KITT said.
Kevin grabbed his laptop
and Bonnie’s. The two of them plugged
into KITT’s extra data ports.
The two computer whizzes
began typing away on their keyboards at a high rate of speed.
Windows popped up and source
code began to scroll as their fingers flew over the keyboards.
“Let’s see if this
snowball stands a chance in hell.” Bonnie said.
April 27, 2001
0227 Hrs PDT
Los Angeles
Internationl Airport (LAX)
Location: Los Angeles,
California
The Knight Foundation’s
private Learjet touched down at LAX.
Maddock looked out the window and saw an unmarked sedan with a single
red bubble light affixed to the roof, parked on the tarmac. The plane came to a stop and the engines
died down. The pilot got up and opened
the door. Natalie got out, followed by Maddock.
Walking over to the grey
Chevrolet Impala, Maddock yawned, and was soon followed by Natalie. The two got inside the car and Natalie drove
off of the tarmac.
Maddock pulled out a
cell-phone and dialed a number. “Los
Angeles County Mental Institution please….
Yes, this is Russell Maddock from the Knight Foundation…. Right, Knight Foundation…. K-N-I-G-H-T!…. You have a patient there by the name of Roger Souza…. Don’t give
me that shit, I do know what time it is!”
Natalie laughed to
herself.
“Roger Souza may be an
investigative lead in the Initial Killer case, so if you like, I can put you in
contact with the agent in charge of this case and you can deal with her and also
deal with the FBI red-tape of standing in the way of a federal
investigation…. Yes… Yes…. I knew you’d see it my way. We should be there within the next
half-hour.” Maddock hung up the phone.
“I bet that was fun.”
Natalie said.
“No shit.” Maddock said,
rubbing his eyes.
“Dammit!” Kevin said.
“What happened?” KITT
asked.
“I was so close, and then
the chip’s programming booted me.
Dammit!”
“Kevin… relax, it’s okay.”
KITT said.
“How the hell can it be
okay?”
“Because that has happened
to me seventy times.” KITT said.
Kevin snickered. “You?
Of all people?”
“Yes, me, Kevin. Shawn is just as important to me as she is
to you. I am intent on finding her, no
matter what.” KITT said.
“You’ve never loved her.”
Kevin said.
“Yes, I have.” KITT said.
“What?”
“Shawn and I share more
than just spare parts… I don’t know how
to explain it. She and I just have a
mutual understanding of each other. We
can tell what each other is thinking, and why we’re thinking it.” KITT
said. “I love Shawn as I would love a
sibling if I had one. I think of her as
a sister to me. Not necessarily older,
or younger, but just… just a twin. And
I feel that I failed in my programming in looking out for her.”
“I remember the first day
I met Shawn…” Kevin began.
***
It was April first. I remember, it was April Fools Day. The guys at the lab reversed everything I had in storage and switched my Palm Pilot with another one which had those indecent images from Alchemy’s website.
I was working under you on your exhaust systems when I heard someone walking up and getting in. I knew that no one was authorized with me to take you out, so I got out, and of course, I was pissed off.
“Hey, what the hell do you think you’re doing?!” I screamed.
So this woman with stunning blonde hair got out and turned around. The first thing I noticed was her eyes. They were stunning, very starry, and… just, I don’t know.
“I’m taking the car out, Dad, I’ll have it back before curfew.” She said, with a smirk.
“Mind telling me who you are? Or who you even think you are?” I asked.
She walked up to me, and I was amazed that she wasn’t mad or anything. She opened up her wallet and flashed her ID. “Agent Shawn McCormick, Foundation for Law and Government.”
I looked at her ID and realized I just screwed myself with
the next Michael Knight that FLAG had just hired on.
She extended her hand and I shook it. I was speechless and had no idea what to say. Since the new project was just getting started, Knight Industries was just tasked to working on you, and we didn’t work with FLAG. I heard that FLAG had hired a female driver, but I figured she would be some arrogant ball-buster. Little did I know that she was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen.
“I’m sorry about the outburst,” I said, “I thought it was another April Fools joke.”
“Oh it is April Fools isn’t it…uh?”
“Oh, Kevin. Kevin Williams.” I said, introducing myself. “And yes, my colleagues in the lab reminded me the importance of today.”
“Well Kevin, don’t let it bug ya. Besides, the day is young, so you should come up with something to do to them.”
I smiled. “You’re right.”
Shawn smiled back at me, got inside, closed the door, and
drove off.
***
“I liked Shawn ever since
I saw her for the first time at FLAG.
As we worked together in close situations, I realized that I had fallen
for her…”
As Kevin continued, Bonnie
rounded the corner and started up the ramp, but then stopped and walked back
out of sight and listened.
“…and when she went after
her father in Billings… I realized that it wasn’t just my hormones talking, it
was real. Remember when we kissed in
the warehouse?”
“How could I forget? The two of you were right inside the
cockpit.” KITT said.
“Something about that kiss
just felt right. When that psycho took
her, it felt like a piece of my heart was taken with her. When we found her, I knew right then and
there…”
“What happened between the
two of you?” KITT asked. “I remember
you talked to me about liking Shawn before that mission.”
Kevin looked up at the
ceiling of the semi. His eyes started
to get glassy. “It just didn’t work
out.”
“Kevin, you will be able
to talk to me, and everything can be kept confidential.” KITT assured.
Kevin shook his head. “No, I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Are you sure, Kevin? I know that talking things out can help a
situation.”
Kevin nodded. “Yeah, I’m positive, KITT, let’s get back to
work.”
Bonnie walked into the
semi, pretending she had just got there.
“Hey, how’s it going?” she asked, sitting down.
Kevin was startled and
looked up. “Oh, nothing much. Still trying to work on the tracking.”
Bonnie nodded and handed
Kevin his orange soda.
Kevin opened the top and
took a swig. “We did get close at one
point, but the scrambler kicked us out again.”
Bonnie nodded and ate a
mini-pretzel. “Maybe we need another
way of looking at it.”
“Kevin’s our local
hacker.” KITT said. “What would you
do?”
Kevin rubbed his eyes and
tapped his head. He looked up and his
eyes widened. “I got it. Let’s think there, what if that chip
malfunctioned and Shawn had to go in and get it repaired?”
“The RNA Transfer Center
would have to have a special code for maintenance and repairs, right?” Bonnie
asked.
“Right, so that leaves us
a special entrance, a place where we haven’t been looking.” Kevin said.
“You mean a maintenance
back door!” KITT exclaimed.
“Correctamundo!” Kevin
said.
“Okay,” Bonnie said, a
little confused, “we know where to look, so how do we get there?”
“Oh that’s easy,” Kevin
said, “we use a high frequency signal.”
Bonnie turned back to her
laptop. “Okay, what do we do?”
Kevin leaned over. “I’ll show you. What we have to do is send this high frequency signal along the same
transmission frequency we were using to communicate with the chip in the first
place.” Kevin said, as his fingers flew over the keyboard.
“Okay, I think I see what
you’re getting at.” Bonnie said.
“You do? Good.
Now that first burst signal should open up the maintenance door what we
wanna go through, and then after that, we should be able to access anything we
want.”
Bonnie grinned at
Kevin. “The boy genius prevails!”
The two of them returned
to their keyboards and began work on the new process.
0300 Hrs PDT
Roger Souza rubbed his
eyes and looked at the two suits in the room.
“It’s three am in the morning, don’t you people have anything better to
do?”
“Trust me, I know what
time it is,” Maddock said, “we probably have the worst case of jetlag
ever. But I don’t care, because the
life of an agent is at stake.”
Roger smiled. “You guys are from the case in the Midwest.”
Natalie nodded. “Right, I’m Senior Agent in Charge Natalie
Markins, and this is Russell Maddock from the Knight Foundation.”
Roger smiled again. “The penny drops, that’s why I’ve been
summoned from the luxury of sleep.”
“That’s right,” Maddock
said, leaning closer to Roger, “so I expect you to cooperate, and maybe we can
get you back to your siesta, and also shave a few years off of your
commitment.”
“I’ve been watching the
networks. They’re playing upon this
like it was an elementary school field day.
Not to mention that this is happening during sweeps.”
“What can you tell us that
will help us?” Natalie asked.
Roger looked at the two of
them for a minute. “He has her, doesn’t
he?”
“Who?” Maddock asked.
“That pretty agent who
drives that flashy car.” Roger said.
Maddock looked at Natalie,
who gave him a sign to go ahead. “Yes,
he has her.”
“And you know who he is.”
Roger said.
“Yes, we do.” Maddock
said.
“And of course, you want
my help.”
“Of course.” Natalie said.
“Well I don’t know how I
could help you.” Roger said.
Maddock slammed the
table. “Well you better figure
something out. Do you have any idea
what time it is?!”
“No shit!” Roger
yelled. “What the hell am I supposed to
tell you? Your flyboys from 89 caught
me before I could even start a spree!”
“Life’s a bitch.” Maddock
said. “Give me your motive.”
“Oh Mr. Maddock, it’s
right in front of you. I mean, it’s so
easy, you could see without seeing, darkness would be as light as day.”
“A bat.” Maddock said.
Roger smiled. “You got it.”
“You killed for the sake
of sending people on a wild goose chase of a riddle? To figure out the JFK.”
“You know, it was so easy,
I should have challenged myself and used the JJF like your man.” Roger said.
“Do you know what that
means?”
“I do know that his motive
is more complex. Those initials are
also clues to the case.” Roger said.
“What about the initials?”
Natalie asked.
“You know if any of your
investigators smoke?”
“I’m not certain.” Natalie
answered.
“Because if they did,
that, gas, gas, gas can go up in a flash.” Roger said, grinning from ear to
ear.
Maddock rolled his
eyes. “Let’s get out of here.” He said,
taking a notepad out of his coat.
“I do hope I helped you.”
Roger said.
“Yeah, yeah, whatever.”
Maddock said, writing something down on the notepad. He turned to Natalie. “Do
you know what time it is?”
“About 3:20.” Natalie
said, yawning.
“Thanks for your time,
Rodge.” Maddock said, opening the door for Natalie and walking out.
0345 Hrs PDT
“We must be missing
something here.” Maddock said, drinking out of a water bottle, looking across
the airplane aisle at Natalie.
“What?” Natalie asked.
“This killer’s
motive. It’s too simplistic, we have to
be over looking something.”
“I get the same feeling.”
Natalie said.
“Well you are the
criminologist.”
“I know, that’s what is
bothering me,” Natalie said, “most of the time I am able to crack these head
cases wide open, find a motive, predict the next hit, ding, dang, dong, we make
a bust and haul the guys ass in.”
“And now?” Maddock asked.
“Now we’re screwed. I have no idea what to do.”
“I wouldn’t put it like
that.” Maddock said.
The small jet shook as
they entered some turbulence. A bag
fell off of the seat in front of Natalie and hit Maddock’s seat. The sudden jolt activated the owner’s
Discman.
Maddock bent over and took
the Discman out and looked at it, trying to figure out a way to turn it
off. He looked at it as the music
played.
Natalie’s eyes went
wide. “Don’t turn it off!”
“Huh?” Maddock asked.
Natalie picked up the
earpieces and stuck one in her ear and handed one to Maddock who put it in
his. They both listened to the song
playing:
I was raised by a toothless,
bearded hag,
I was schooled with a strap right across my back,
But it's all right now, in fact, it's a gas!
But it's all right, I'm Jumpin' Jack Flash,
It's a gas! Gas! Gas!
Maddock looked over at
her, confused. “It’s the Rolling
Stones, Jumping Jack Flash.”
“Listen.” Natalie said.
I was drowned, I was washed up
and left for dead.
I fell down to my feet and I saw they bled.
I frowned at the crumbs of a crust of bread.
Yeah, yeah, yeah
I was crowned with a spike right thru my head.
But it's all right now, in fact, it's a gas!
But it's all right, I'm Jumpin' Jack Flash,
It's a gas! Gas! Gas!
“Holy shit!” Maddock said.
“Roger was telling us the
answer the whole time!”
“J, J, F. Jumping Jack Flash.”
“And the circle of gas,
with three dots of it inside.” Natalie said, with her mouth open.
“I’ll be God damned, it
was right under our faces.”
“Agent Markins.” The pilot
called back.
“Yeah?” Natalie answered.
“The Knight Foundation is
calling.”
“Thank you.” Natalie said,
picking up the phone. “This is Agent
Markins… yes… okay… where?… Murdo, South Dakota. How far is that from Lemmon?… okay. Any luck with Shawn?”
“None yet,” Kevin said on the
speakerphone, “but a new tactic is getting us close. How’s your luck going?”
“We’ve cracked the killer’s code. The initials stand for Jumping Jack Flash,
the Rolling Stones song.” Natalie replied.
“Rolling Stones?” Bonnie
asked.
“Yeah, that’s right.”
Natalie said.
Bonnie typed on the
computer. “Whoa, check this out. All of the bodies that were found were
either on or near some kind of stone gathering. Be it a quarry or just a field of stones.”
“I figured as much,” Natalie said, “this guy has been playing us for a bunch of fools. We’re gonna check out the murder in South Dakota. Keep in touch.”
“Aren’t we going to make a
move in Lemmon? Shawn might be there.”
Kevin said.
“Too risky,” Natalie said, “not to mention that it might be a blind spot. We can’t be certain that she is there, or if he has a trap waiting for us. Once you get a fix on Shawn, then we’ll make a move. Good luck.”
“You got it.” Kevin said,
hanging up the phone. He turned over to
Bonnie, who was sitting at her laptop.
“Okay, here we go again.”
“Fifteenth time is a
charm.” KITT said.
“Ready?” Bonnie asked.
“Yes,” Kevin said, “you?”
Bonnie nodded. “Ready to go KITT?”
“I always am.” KITT
replied.
“All right, let’s go.”
Kevin said. “KITT, start your decryption
sequence.”
“Decryption sequence
KI-2943X started.” KITT said.
Kevin typed quickly on his
computer. “Bonnie, get ready to knock
on the door.”
Bonnie typed on her
computer and nodded to acknowledge Kevin.
“Ready.”
Kevin typed more on the
laptop. “Computing new high frequency
signal…. It’s charging.”
“I’m knocking.”
“The signal is sending.”
Kevin said.
“The decryption sequence
is working.” KITT said.
“Come on, someone’s at the
door. Someone’s at the door.” Kevin
said.
“Still knocking.” Bonnie
said.
Kevin looked at the status
on his monitor. “Come on, dammit! Come on!”
“Kevin!” Bonnie said.
“What?”
“Someone’s answering!”
Bonnie said with a grin on her face.
“Yes!” Kevin
screamed. “KITT?”
“There’s a definite
pattern here! Kevin, I think we have
it!” KITT answered.
“All right!” Kevin said,
looking at Bonnie’s monitor. He walked
over and looked back at his. “Oh yes!”
Bonnie laughed. “We got it!”
“Kevin!” KITT yelled. “Kevin, I have the sequence! We’ve got it, we’re in!”
“Yeah!” Kevin yelled.
The two humans began
yelling and screaming in victory.
“Whoohoo!” Kevin
said. “Okay, okay, okay, okay, okay,
okay, let’s focus here. KITT, what do
we have?”
“Everything we could ever
want.” KITT said. “What would you like
me to do?”
“Track the chip!” Bonnie
and Kevin both said in unison.
1037 Hrs MDT
Location: Murdo, South
Dakota
Maddock yawned and looked
at his watch. He had been running
without sleep for over 30 hours. He
rubbed his eyes again and looked around at the crime scene.
“Well we got the rocks.”
Natalie said, kicking a few stones.
“And those dumb ass
initials.” Maddock added.
“Agent Markins,” an
officer said, walking up to her, “we do have several witness accounts of seeing
a black Chevrolet Caprice in the area.
The same license number and everything.”
“Thank you, officer.”
Natalie said. She turned to
Maddock. “All right, we have a
confirmed murder by the same jack ass.
Let’s get to these media idiots and have them work for us for a change.”
Maddock nodded.
“This is a special report from KOTA Territory News. The FBI has announced their prime suspect in the serial killer case, which has been plaguing the mid-west for weeks. We’re going live to a press conference being held with agents from the FBI and Foundation for Law and Govern