Race Against Time

Full Summary: Devon's search for the truth of his ancestry has begun. When meeting with someone from his past, he is poisoned. Now, Michael, Laura and Rodrigo must find the antidote to save his life, which can be found in only one place: South of the border, through enemy territory!

Disclaimer: Knight Rider and its characters belong to Glen Larson and Universal Studios. Marissa, Laura, Rodrigo, etc belong to me.

Chapter 1: A Special Day

In the garage of the Foundation mansion, Bonnie was working on an enhancement that would be applied to Kitt and the comlinks.

Behind her, sitting on a small chair was Marissa, and at the moment, she was talking to the AI himself.

"Let's go over first aid procedures. What do you do if you find someone that has slipped into hypothermia?" he asked.

She thought for a moment, then replied, "Keep the person as warm as possible, preferably by blankets, coats, et cetera. If you have to, have the person carried to the paramedics."

"Good! Now, if someone is choking, where do you put your hands for the Heimlich Maneuver?"

"Right underneath the sternum."

"That's right. If someone has been accidentally poisoned, what do you do?"

She thought hard for a few seconds, then said, "Get the item and either call poison control or 911."

"That works. Remember that speed is of the essence, so if someone offers a ride to the ER, don't turn them down."

"I'll remember."

"What if it is intentional poisoning?"

She frowned and after a minute, she replied sheepishly, "I forgot."

Kitt replied, "If you have a suspicion as to the object used to administer it, take the object with you, then call 911 immediately. If Michael and I are close by, tell one of us right away."

Marissa nodded and wrote something down on a tablet of paper.

Bonnie chuckled and turned to the young girl and the AI, asking, "Kitt, why have you been teaching her first aid procedures so much?"

The younger female looked up at her and replied, "I asked him to…I don't want to be caught flat-footed again, like I was back in March."

The technician winced as she said, "In March…the True Liberty Movement."

"Yeah…that's when father slipped into hypothermia…and I panicked because I didn't know what to do."

Bonnie walked over to Marissa and ruffled her hair as she replied, "It's great you want to learn first aid…but don't get obsessed over it, okay?"

"All right." She then asked, "What time are we supposed to be at the Knight Airfield?"

Kitt immediately answered, "Just as I told you half an hour ago, at 3:00."

She winced, "Sorry, Kitty. It's just…father's been away on business for a whole month and I'm hoping he makes it back today."

Bonnie smiled and replied, "I'm sure he will. Last I heard, he got on the plane this morning." She checked the time, then said, "Kitt, can you get a hold of Michael? Might as well leave a little early. It's almost 2 now, and it'll take an hour to get to the airfield."

"Right away, Bonnie."

"And you, young lady…it's time to get changed. You're not going to the airfield wearing that."

"What's wrong with this…?" she asked, then looked down.

Marissa's brown jumpsuit had gotten some grease on it from when she was helping Bonnie with getting whatever tools she asked for.

"Oh," she added, sheepishly.

The older woman smiled, shook her head, then said, "How about that emerald green dress we bought yesterday? He'll love that!"

"Sounds good to me!" Marissa said, got down from her seat, then followed Bonnie outside to the main part of the mansion.

Once both girls were out, Kitt spoke, "Michael? The girls are getting ready to go to the airfield." There was a pause before he added, "Rissie's getting very anxious. After all, Devon's been gone for a month on business…"

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Once everyone was ready, Michael, Bonnie and Marissa piled into Kitt and took off. RC3 had opted out of this reunion, saying that he would catch Devon later.

On the way, Bonnie chuckled and said to Michael, "If you took Marissa when we first met her and Marissa now, it's almost like two different people."

"Hey!" she exclaimed.

"Nothing bad about that, munchkin," Bonnie quickly put in, "It just means you've done a lot of catching up since then."

"Oh," she replied, "I see what you mean."

"Hard to believe it's been a full year since the day that we cornered Kitt and found out he was protecting you," Michael said.

"Yeah," Marissa answered, "I remember. I didn't talk to anyone but Kitt at first…"

"Nobody could blame you for that," Kitt put in, "But I'm glad at all the progress you've made since then…and rather proud of you. So is everyone else here, and I know Devon is too."

There was a low chuckle and she blushed.

"Hey Bonnie, who was it that called earlier, looking for Devon?" Michael asked.

"You'll find out when I give him the message. Michael, what's going on?"

"What do you mean?"

"You've been pretty jumpy for the past few months when it comes to Devon or Marissa meeting with someone outside of the Foundation. You needing a vacation or something?"

He shook his head and replied grimly, "That's not it, Bon…it's not something I can openly discuss."

Marissa nodded as she said, "I know what it is, but he's right. Please, can you just trust us and not ask?"

There was a silent moment before the older woman replied, "Okay, I won't ask…but if something comes up where I need to know, you'd better tell me, because I'd hate to have to go to Devon himself."

"Agreed," Michael and Marissa said simultaneously.

There was a lot of truth in Michael's statement. Near the beginning of the year, he had been inducted into the Mystics' Third Line of Ancestry. In the eyes of Rodrigo, Laura and the others that had attended that moonlit night, he had been reborn as Michael of Line Knight. In any case, he had taken the duties that the oaths dictated rather seriously, knowing that there was a secret society that was out to eliminate the Mystics…and that included Marissa and Devon.

Not something to be discussed around Devon, nor with any regular person.

Bonnie nodded, satisfied for now, and sat back with a sigh.

The little girl sat back as well, a somewhat sad expression crossing her face. Bonnie, Michael and Kitt had been extremely closemouthed about another landmark in her little life, exactly one year that day. It was…as if they had forgotten already.

Almost before they knew it, the trio of humans and Kitt had arrived at Knight Airfield.

"Okay. Everyone out, but you stay close to us, Marissa," Michael said, "No need for you to get into an accident out here."

"Sounds good to me," Marissa replied as the doors opened and they got out. As soon as the doors closed again, she added, "What direction is the plane coming from?"

Michael peered at the sky and said, "It'll be coming from your right."

She stared off in the direction indicated, then pointed, asking, "Like that one is coming…?"

"Hey now, your father would tell you not to point," Bonnie said quietly.

"How am I gonna show exactly where something is without pointing?"

Bonnie couldn't find an answer and Michael had said, "She's got us there."

The technician grumbled and looked in the direction that the little girl had indicated. After a couple of moments, she grinned.

"That's the plane, all right," she simply said.

A few more minutes passed as the airplane slowly came in for a landing, the vehicle stopping some distance away, with the side door facing the small group.

Michael looked down and laughed, seeing that Marissa was watching…while keeping her hands over her ears.

"You'll get used to this with enough exposure," he said in a louder tone.

"Before or after I go deaf?" she shot back in a near shriek.

"Before," both adults replied, bemused.

The side door of the airplane opened with assistance from the ground technicians as the engine began to quiet.

"You can uncover your ears now," Bonnie said.

"What?"

Michael faced her, with hands over his own ears, then lowered them.

Marissa nodded and removed her hands from her head as Michael moved back to where he was.

The first one to disembark looked around, then gave one of his rare wide smiles as he saw the little welcoming party.

"Rissie!"

Marissa grinned and hurried over to him, even though Michael tried to get her to at least slow down.

As soon as she was close enough, Devon quietly laughed, scooped her up and hugged her tightly while Bonnie and Michael walked up to them.

"I've missed you a lot, father," she said to him.

"Not as much as I've missed you," he replied, "Have you been a good girl while I was away?"

"Yes, I have," she answered.

"That she has," Michael replied.

"Wonderful to hear," Devon remarked, set her down, then squeezed the younger man's arm affectionately. "Now don't you go and start thinking that I haven't missed either one of you as well."

"Not a chance of that happening," Bonnie replied as she hugged the older man, "How was your trip to Venezuela?"

"As you two would say, it had its ups and downs."

"No place like home, though," the technician said, then her face brightened. "I almost forgot! Someone called this afternoon, looking for you. Said her name was Cassa and that you know her."

Michael looked at Devon, startled. "Cassa? As in Cassandra Miles?"

"That would be her," the Englishman replied, "Bonnie, did Cassa say anything else?"

"Yeah. She gave an address where she would be staying and suggested that you and Marissa come visit," was the answer as she gave Devon a slip of paper.

Michael whispered something to the Englishman, who nodded, a mischievous spark in his eye.

"So…who's Cassa?" Bonnie asked, "Or is this another 'don't ask' thing?"

Devon looked puzzled and Michael replied, "Not this one. Cassa is Devon's older sister."

"Yes, and I have been trying to locate her since March," Devon elaborated, "I haven't seen her in…years. Well, we'll go over there tomorrow night. For now…we should be getting home. Rissie, I have something for you in my briefcase."

"I know better than to ask now," she replied, although her eyes shone with curiosity.

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As Kitt pulled into the Foundation grounds, Devon said, "As soon as we near the garage, I want you and Marissa to stay put until Michael tells you to come in. Understood?"

"Yes, Devon."

"Yes, father," the little girl answered at the same time.

He shook his head, bemused, then motioned for Michael and Bonnie to come with him. They did so, making sure the doors were closed.

"Um, Kitty…? What's going on?" she asked after a few minutes.

"I can't tell you, I'm afraid."

"Won't tell, you mean."

"I mean exactly what I say, little one."

"Oh, pooh-pooh!" she mumbled, frowning a little.

A few minutes more passed when Michael finally came out.

"Okay, you two, come on in. Marissa, eyes closed," he said.

Kitt went from park to drive and slowly went inside the garage with Marissa inside, her eyes shut.

Once she felt him stop and heard the turbines shut off, she thought about opening her eyes but decided not to.

"Okay, kiddo, open 'em!" Michael said to her.

As soon as her eyes were open, her jaw dropped.

"SURPRISE!"

The entire garage looked very different than it had been earlier. It was now dressed up, with presents on the floor, drinks, glasses and common favorite foods on a nearby table, a banner on one of the walls and balloons to the side.

The banner, with a green background and red print, said, "Happy Birthday, Marissa."

Rodrigo, Laura, Kathy, April, RC3, Michael, Bonnie, Devon, Jack and Becky were there, wide smiles on their faces.

"Happy birthday, Riss," Laura said with a laugh.

Marissa managed to close her mouth before she said as she got out of Kitt, "I thought you guys had—"

"Not on your life, dudette," RC answered.

"There's no way we would forget, poppet," Devon replied, "Why do you think I came home early?"

She chuckled, blushing.

"Now c'mon over here, birthday girl," Bonnie said.

"Yeah," Jack agreed, "But this isn't just the little lady's day."

"Got that right," Michael agreed, "One year ago today, we caught Kitt in a lie and when we cornered him, we found that he had been protecting Marissa and brought him with her when things got nasty."

"Yeah and life's been one heck of a ride from there on in," RC added, "Not like it wasn't already, boss—"

"I'm not arguing with you, Reginald, I quite agree," Devon replied.

"Now, c'mon…time for the food, then you can open your presents, little one," April said.

There were plenty of things to eat, with favorites for everyone, especially for Devon and Marissa. Even Kitt had some premium quality oil. After the meal was eaten, Michael motioned to shut all the lights off as he, Bonnie and Devon went to an adjoining room.

A few minutes passed as the trio came back in…carrying a cake with white frosting that had ten red candles on it, all lit. In the center in red icing, was written, "Happy 10th birthday, Marissa."

"Aww guys," she said quietly as the cake was brought in and put on a small table. Afterwards, Michael conducted while everyone else was singing "Happy Birthday".

After the song, Devon led the young girl over to the cake as Bonnie said, "There's a tradition that goes with that cake. You silently make a wish, then blow out as many candles as you can in one or two shots. You saw Devon do that at his birthday party, right?"

"Uh-huh," she replied, and closed her eyes, thinking. After a moment, she smiled in a mysterious way, then took a deep breath. She blew out the candles in one try.

Everyone applauded and Devon helped her with cutting the first slice of the cake, another birthday tradition, he had said.

There was plenty of sound and commotion in that garage well into the night.