02x24 - Big Iron

[bunniefuu]

Let's go get them! Give me a systems check.

My systems have never gone underground before.

We're going for it.

I broke it up because, whether you two know it or not, you need each other.

They just ripped me off for another piece of equipment.

I am in the market for a skip loader at a decent price.

Go ahead, if it will make you feel any better.

Knight Rider, a shadowy flight into the dangerous world of a man who does not exist.

MichaeI Knight, a young loner on a crusade to champion the cause of the innocent, the helpIess, the powerless, in a world of criminals who operate above the law.

MichaeI, It's hard to believe that millions of dollars in heavy construction equipment is stolen and illegally resold each year.

KITT, Devon checked it out.

The equipment is mostly unregistered and hard to trace, and the authorities don't have the time or the manpower to help people like Frank Sanderson.

That's why he contacted us.

He's desperate.

Cowboys ain't easy to love.

and they're harder to hold.

They'd rather give you a song.

than diamonds or gold.

See you later.

Lonestar belt buckles and old faded Levis.

And each night begins a new day.

Hello.

Hi.

If you don't understand him, and he don't die young.

He'll probably just ride away.

Mamas don't let your babies grow up to be cowboys.

Don't let 'em pick guitars or drive 'em old trucks.

Let 'em be doctors and lawyers and such.

You'd better have a good story.

I'm looking for Frank Sanderson.

You found him.

What do you want? My name's Michael Knight.

Devon Miles from The Foundation, he sent me.

Oh, yeah.

Yeah.

I'm sorry about this.

But I don't know who I can trust any longer.

Yeah, we were hit again two nights ago.

Almost k*lled my guard.

They did drive off with my brand-new D6.

The deputy's working on it.

What can we do? There's only one deputy for the whole county.

Hello.

Hello, John.

Yeah, I got a little bit of a problem.

I can't finish the job without the equipment, and I can't pay you until I finish the job.

I'd like to come by and talk to you about it.

All right, about 15 minutes.

I've been working for about 30 years, and about all I've got left is memories.

Boy.

They get you between a rock and a hard place and there's no place to turn around.

I believe the only thing that can save me is a - is a miracle.

You mentioned a guard.

Any idea where I can find him? Yeah, Joe Glover.

You should be able to locate him down at Tulley's.

It's down-down on Main and- Main and Adams.

All right.

I'll see what I can find out.

Any help I'd appreciate.

Say, uh, I'd like to invite you to dinner, meet my wife.

One of the best cooks in the state.

Sounds great, thanks.

Cowboys like smokey old pooI rooms.

and clear mountain mornings.

Little warm puppies and children.

and girls of the night.

KITT, give me a rundown on a piece of heavy equipment called the D6.

Of course, MichaeI.

It has a turbo-charged dieseI engine, bore and stroke of 5.

4 by 6 inches, a compression ratio of 18-to-1, and 1, 100 cubic-inch displacement.

Obviously, April has over-programmed you with that new ultra-phonic analyzer.

Impossible.

There's Tulley's, MichaeI.

It looks singularly unprepossessing.

You never know, KITT.

Never know.

Mamas don't let your babies grow up to be cowboys.

'Cause they'll never stay home.

and they're always alone.

Even with someone they love.

Can I help you? I'll have a beer, please.

It's on me.

Really? Thanks.

What's the occasion? No occasion.

Name's Vance Burke.

I'm in, uh, equipment sales.

Michael Knight.

Just passing through town.

When I see a new face in town, I like to let 'em know I'm here, just in case they need any big iron.

Big iron, huh? Sorry, I'm not in the market.

You never know.

Anything else? Yeah, I'm trying to find Joe Glover.

I heard he hangs out here.

He didn't come in today.

He's been feeling pretty rotten.

I heard he had an accident.

Some accident.

He was run off the road and nearly k*lled.

You from the insurance company? No, no.

I'm a friend of a friend.

Frank Sanderson.

You know, I told Joe to quit that job months ago, when all the trouble started.

He wouldn't listen.

Never does.

He's been out there every night in the cold, with his bad heart and arthritis, like a sitting duck.

What do you mean, "sitting duck"? Joe said it himself.

Whoever's stealin' from Sanderson knows the jobs he's workin', the rigs he's runnin', the guard schedule, everythin'.

Any idea where I might find him? You don't trust me, huh? You've never seen me before, you don't exactly know what I'm up to, and you don't care for my aftershave.

I didn't even notice it.

I'm not wearing any.

Well, you can catch him at home after 8:00.

That'll be the easy part.

What's the hard part? Getting him to talk.

I think I'd bring a little hair of the dog if I were you.

KITT, give me all you've got on Frank Sanderson's company history, will you? It's rather brief, actually.

In 1956, he went into partnership with a Lloyd Newald.

Three years ago, they dissolved their partnership and Sanderson's been working by himself ever since.

That's, uh, 25 years.

A silver anniversary, and then they split up.

I wonder if they argued over community property.

Oh, yeah, we argued, all right.

We argued like cats and dogs.

We couldn't agree on anything.

But after 25 years, that's kind of normal, isn't it? I'm sorry about this, but this is gonna be dinner.

I forgot to call Lucy and tell her that we were coming home, and she made some other plans.

You know how women are.

Yeah, I know.

That's no problem.

Now, 25 years, that's a long relationship.

Why did you and Newald finally split up? Well, he got the bug.

He wanted to start speculating in real estate.

I wouldn't go along with him.

Did you guys have any problems with money after you split? You could say so.

You see, I put a lot more money into the business when we first started and like a couple of dummies, we didn't write anything down on paper.

And after 25 years, it's real hard to remember who contributed what.

You know, he's just like some old pit bull.

Once he got his teeth into something, he wouldn't let go.

And you know that we haven't had two words together since then.

Frank, I'm leaving.

Oh.

Well, honey, this is Michael Knight.

He's here to help us.

Hello.

Michael, this is my wife Lucy.

Hi, Lucy.

Don't wait up, hon.

No, no, I'll be sawing wood at 10:00.

I know.

Well, it was nice to meet you, Mr.

Knight.

I hope you can take a rain check on the dinner.

Uh, your husband says your cooking is the best in the state.

It's worth the wait.

She's a beauty, isn't she? Yes, sir, she is.

Well, looks like Joe Glover's home.

Yes, but you forgot the hair of the dog.

Guess I'll have to rely on boyish charm.

Good luck, MichaeI.

Joe! Joe? What's bothering you, MichaeI? I don't know.

Something just doesn't wash.

The medicaI examiner's report states the cause of Joe Glover's death as cardiac arrest.

I know, I know.

No sign of struggle, nothing out of the ordinary.

Very, very convenient.

What about those pills? A form of nitroglycerin, commonly used as a vasodilator.

When Joe was having a heart att*ck, those pills were halfway across the room.

KITT, that chain could have been torn from his neck and thrown out of his reach.

That's possible, but it doesn't necessarily follow, MichaeI.

Something in my bones tells me I'm right.

The ultra-phonic analyzer indicates there's absolutely nothing unusuaI about your bones.

I'm talking about a feeling here, I'm talking about a gut reaction.

And I'm showing no unusuaI activity in your gastrointestinaI system.

Okay, okay, let's just drop it.

We'll follow the only lead we've got.

Looking for something, mister? That's, uh, freshly painted, isn't it? Yeah, we take real good care of our equipment.

I said, uh, what are you looking for? Lloyd Newald.

Well, this ain't his office.

You're trespassing.

I'll take care of this, boys.

Yeah, what can I do for you, Knight? Word gets around pretty quick.

I'm trying to find out what happened to Frank Sanderson's equipment.

So you came to talk with me.

I don't like the implication.

None intended, sir.

I'm just trying to get some information.

I'll give you some.

Frank Sanderson isn't the only one around here losing equipment.

A lot of us are.

Practically everybody gets hit now and then.

I- I lost two pieces in the last six months and I've got police reports to prove it.

Well, Frank's lost over twice that much.

And whoever's hitting him knows his operation inside and out.

Meaning me, right? Is that what Sanderson said? Because if he did, he is a liar.

I make enough running my company.

I don't have to steal from his.

Frank just lost a D6 just like the one you painted over there.

This is my equipment.

I've got a right to paint it if I want.

You and Sanderson better get that straight or you both are gonna have some real trouble on your hands.

I want him out of this yard.

Now.

That's okay.

No problem, guys.

I can find my own way out.

Would you stop it? No, I can't.

You know that.

Look, someone just came in.

I'm going to have to call you back.

Bye.

I called Frank's office.

They said he was on his way home.

I'm, uh, I'm real sorry if I'm interrupting anything.

Would you like a drink? Please.

I'm sure Frank's still at the site.

He's always at a site somewhere.

That's Frank's life.

That's all he ever talks about.

We took a vacation about 3 years ago.

Went to, uh, Vegas for the weekend.

There just happened to be an equipment show going on.

Frank's idea of a big night on the town is a chicken-fried steak at the truck stop cafe, a beer at Tulley's, and the late-night movies on TV.

I love Frank.

He's my husband.

But I will not dry up and wither away.

Look, Mrs.

Sanderson- What did you want to speak to Frank about, anyway? Bad news, I'm afraid.

Joe Glover d*ed last night.

I think he was m*rder*d.

I can't believe it.

Who'd k*ll Joe, and why? Somebody must have been afraid that, uh, Joe recognized him the night they hit your place.

That couldn't be true.

Otherwise, he would have said something.

Maybe.

Unless he felt some kind of divided loyalty.

I know what you're thinking.

Newald.

No, I just can't believe he'd be involved.

Frank, Newald's nursing a grudge.

Against you.

And he's spread so thin right now, he's about ready to rip.

What? I did some checking.

From the outside, it looks like he's making big bucks, but when actually he is losing his shirt in real estate.

He's in bad financial trouble.

Hmm.

Hello.

Oh, no.

All right, goodbye.

They just ripped me off for another piece of equipment.

The most expensive grader I own.

KITT, did April also program you with information regarding earth graders? Yes, MichaeI.

It's a 500 horsepower dieseI engine in a V8 configuration.

It redlines at 2, 100 rpm, and develops a maximum torque of 1,350 pounds.

KITT, Remind me to talk to April about your ultra-phonic analyzer.

MichaeI, we're approaching the spot where Frank's grader was stolen.

Okay, pal, let's keep an eye out.

KITT, check out these tracks for me, will you? They look like they're from a big truck or something.

And they're fresh.

MichaeI, I've found something rather interesting.

Silicon dioxide in the tracks.

Silicon dioxide? You mean sand? Pal, we're in the middle of a desert.

If you'II let me continue, I've also detected a miniscule amount of horizonthalonium, better known as Echinocactus which only grows in one small section of the state, the Silver Bell Mountains, a few miles west of our present location.

Yeah, if that's where the truck came from, then it's probably where the truck went.

A logicaI conclusion.

You know where we're going? Of course.

The flora and fauna of an area can be read like a road map.

Well, keep reading, pal, because I sure don't.

I'm lost.

MichaeI, my ultra-phonic analyzer is detecting an extraordinary amount of iron with small amounts of carbon, manganese, coaI- Speak English.

SteeI at approximately 47 degrees north by northeast.

Steel.

Let's check it out.

Looks like we just hit pay dirt.

MichaeI, my sensors indicate some activity down there.

Perhaps it would be wise to affect a strategic departure.

Sit tight, KITT.

I'm gonna go down and see who's behind this operation.

Hey, you! Hold it! Stop! Stop! MichaeI, are you all right? KITT, I need you, pal.

Let's go! MichaeI KITT, give me a systems check.

It's hard to tell, MichaeI.

My systems have never gone underground before.

Neither have mine, and I don't like it.

What's our depth? It's impossible to tell.

The granite composition of the soiI around us has rendered my sonar useless.

How much air we got left in here, pal? Five minutes.

Well, looks like we only have one chance.

April's new gadget.

I don't believe the traJectory guide was designed with excavation in mind.

And I wasn't designed with being buried alive in mind, either.

Right.

Whatever happens, pal, I want you to know one thing.

You're the best, huh.

Thank you.

All right, here we go.

There doesn't appear to be enough oxygen to achieve combustion for turbo boost.

What if we use the air in here? In the event the traJectory guide should faiI, you would not have enough oxygen left to survive.

Well, if we don't make it out of here, that five minutes will go pretty fast, anyway.

I cannot willingly endanger human life, MichaeI.

You know that.

Sorry, KITT, I'm overriding your systems.

Right.

We're going for it.

All right! MichaeI, are you all right? Yeah.

Good job, pal.

As a machine, I believe I'm quite fortunate not to have your human dependency upon oxygen for survivaI.

As a human, I'm pretty lucky to have a machine like you for a friend, let me tell you.

MichaeI, my sensors indicate a vehicle on the road east of us moving away at a rapid rate.

Let's go get 'em! That looks like our guys, KITT.

KITT, we're losing them! My diagnostic scanner indicates a plethora of mechanicaI malfunctions.

To put it in your terms, MichaeI, I'm trashed.

Can you give me the license plate? Q17425.

All right, run a DMV.

I think we've got a lot to talk about.

Oh.

I, uh, I seriously doubt that.

I think you'd better listen, and I think you'd better listen real close.

You see, I just found a whole collection of stolen equipment hidden in the Silver Bell Mountains.

Is that a fact? Good.

Chances are some of it's mine.

I seriously doubt that.

You see, someone driving one of your trucks tried to k*ll me out there.

Not one of my trucks? Now, that-that- that's impossible! I've got the license plate and the DMV identification.

Then it had to be stolen.

Had to be.

You know, that's what Frank would say.

He thinks you're an honest man.

But me, I, uh, I'm not so sure.

Knight, you haven't lived long enough to stand there and judge how things are between Frank Sanderson and me.

Sure, we-we don't see eye to eye, but we have spent the best part of our lives together.

And there's nothing in this world could ever make me lend a hand to taking away things he's worked for.

You can be sure of that.

I don't like this.

Let's get him out of here.

Don't worry, Mr.

Newald, we'll take care of him.

It's all right, Sam, everything's cool.

Guys, we're not finished talking.

Oh, you are, for now.

Junior! Stop it, you guys.

Come on.

Come on, knock it off.

Hey, look at you.

You're-you're all out of steam.

You got no punch in you.

You're lucky the kid broke it up, or I'd get you I broke it up because, whether you two know it or not, you need each other.

Let's get out of here and find a place to talk.

Huh? Looks like somebody is having a party.

Yeah, looks that way.

Lucy.

Excuse me, guys.

Hello, darling.

What are you doing home so early? Well, this is my house.

What's going on? I'm having a party.

This is my house, too.

Why didn't you tell me? Come on.

Come on out and join the party.

No, I've got some business to take care of inside.

You always do.

Frank, I'm just gonna tell you straight out.

I don't like being accused of stealing, especially behind my back.

You know what's funny? I don't like to be accused of cheating behind my back.

Let's keep the past where it belongs, huh? We've got to talk about getting the rest of the stolen equipment and whoever stole it.

You just give me half an hour with my crew.

I'll find out who's been driving my company truck.

Guaranteed.

It's not that easy.

We got to find out who's pulling the strings.

And who k*lled Joe.

How do we do that? Whoever's been sitting on that equipment in the quarry knows he's got money in the bank.

Now, we've taken away his goods.

He's going to be real anxious to get his hands on some new merchandise.

We dangle some bait in front of his nose.

There's a real good chance he's gonna go for it.

Bait? What do you mean by bait? We find a buyer with a wad of money who's willing to spend it, and a piece of equipment he wants real bad.

That's a mighty nice piece of equipment.

Yes.

But the opening bid is mighty inflated.

Yeah.

Well, they make big bucks at these auctions.

Not from me, they don't.

However, I am in the market for a skip loader at a decent price.

That's not always easy to find.

If you have the right contacts, you can get the right piece for the right price.

Unfortunately, I'm from out of town.

I haven't got the time to shop around.

Maybe I could help you out.

Really? Could you? Sure.

Let me show you around.

Thank you.

Looks like Devon's got him hooked, KITT.

KITT, we got a nibble.

There's a call going out.

Trace it.

Do you want the number or the address, MichaeI? I'll settle for the address.

Coming right up.

I'm still not certain why we're here.

What are you looking for? A connection.

The final piece in the puzzle.

Then this should be of interest.

There's a car heading this way, and my monitors indicate it belongs to Frank Sanderson.

Frank? MichaeI, that's Lucy Sanderson.

And Vance Burke.

I think we just discovered the connection.

So this is how you really make your living.

Spying on people.

I just wanna know one thing.

How much is Frank paying you? Frank doesn't know anything about this.

Oh, then what are you following me around for? I wouldn't be interested in your relationship with Burke if it wasn't for the fact that he's stealing your husband's equipment.

What? Now, wait a minute.

What I want to know is how and why you're helping him.

Lucy, do you really hate Frank that much? Why would I steal from Frank? He gives me everything I want.

Materially, at least.

Which is funny, because all I ever wanted was someone to love me.

Vance Burke sells heavy equipment.

His operation depends on knowing things about your husband's business.

Things that only you and Frank would know.

That's not true.

I have never told Vance anything about Frank's business.

And he never asked.

You had to make arrangements to see him, didn't you? That meant discussing Frank's schedule.

Where he was working, when.

All right, Lucy, if it wasn't deliberate, there's only one thing left.

He's been using you.

No.

He loves me.

There's one way to find out.

Pick up a telephone, call Burke, tell him Frank's busy tonight, moving a skip loader down I-19 toward Nogales.

Tell him you'll be free to see him.

See if he can get away.

Yeah, I understand.

Tomorrow, maybe.

Okay.

Bye.

How we doin'? Did we get a bite? Yeah, we got a big one.

I think we're all set for tonight.

Great, let's celebrate.

Lucy, get a bucket of ice.

Frank, we've got to talk.

Right now.

I'll be outside.

What's the matter, Lucy? MichaeI, your palms are clammy.

Your heartbeat, blood pressure, and perspiration rate is up.

When it comes to human emotions, my ultra-phonic analyzer can be quite confusing.

Is it anger? Fear? No, KITT.

It's anxiety.

There's a shaky marriage in there just about to blow up.

That's too bad.

Frank.

Go ahead, if it will make you feel any better.

Meet you at Tulley's, okay? Okay.

Cowboys ain't easy to love.

and they're harder to hold.

.

I never thought I'd be setting myself up for a hit.

It's the only sh*t we've got, Frank.

than diamonds or gold.

You know, this thing with Lucy, I just don't get it.

Everything was going along fine, and then one day, out of the blue Look, you've got a couple of years on me and a whole lot of experience.

So if I'm out of line, you just let me know.

Maybe what's happening isn't out of the blue for Lucy.

Maybe she's been unhappy for a real long time, and, uh, you just haven't noticed.

Well, she could have told me.

I mean We've been married for 10 years.

All she had to do was to talk to me.

You know, you turn your back on your construction site, the weeds are gonna take over.

I don't know that marriage is much different.

Well, what time have you got? I think it's time we toss out the bait.

Right, come on.

That's it.

Come on, that's it.

That's it.

Easy.

That's it.

Okay, come on.

Come on.

Come to the right.

Whoa! Okay.

Okay, come on.

Come on.

Come to the right.

Hold it! What makes you so sure Burke's gonna hit this particular run? Call it an educated guess.

Besides, someone helped me set it up.

Who? First things first.

All right.

I'm following you guys.

At the first sign of action, I'm there.

Ready? Let's go.

MichaeI, my sensors are picking up two additionaI vehicles coming onto the highway from a side road.

Where? Five miles up the road.

MichaeI, It's going down now.

Get out of there, both of you.

Take it easy.

Come on, snap it up.

Burke, what are you doin' here? This has gotta be the dumbest thing you guys ever pulled.

Shut up.

Let's go, move it.

Uh-oh, trouble.

Let's get out of here.

Let's spread some oil on Mr.

Burke's troubled waters, huh? I'm afraid the only big iron you'll be handling for a long time is going to belong to the Department of Corrections.

I couldn't have said it better myself, pal.

Come on.

It's gonna be just like old times.

Lloyd and I used to take on a bar full of truckers and come out on top.

Well, we were a lot younger then.

We sure made one hell of a team.

You probably still would.

No.

Maybe it's for the best.

Frank, you asked who helped me.

Lucy did.

She phoned Burke and helped set up the whole thing.

Now, she could have told him what was happening, but she didn't.

Well, Michael, thanks for everything.

Hey, listen, if you ever come across a good woman who'd like a nice house built, you call on me.

Okay.

MichaeI, I'm picking up a radicaI fluctuation in your friends' hormone levels, very similar to that experienced when they were angry.

Yet all indications are that they have formed a reconciliation.

I'm picking that up, too, pal.

But if the chemicaI reactions to both happiness and anger are similar, how do you know which you are experiencing? I'm still quite confused.

All it proves is that you can't analyze everything.

Some things you just gotta feel.