Monk and Natalie received their FBI visitor passes and headed towards the office Stottlemeyer had instructed them to come to. After a slight disagreement on whether to take the stairs or the elevator, Natalie convinced her husband to take the elevator, and they made it safely to the twelfth floor. Monk opened the door and immediately saw Captain Stottlemeyer seated at a long, rectangular conference table, along with two other men and a woman, all wearing dark suits, who he immediately deduced were federal agents. They looked up and Stottlemeyer said, "Monk, Natalie, come in."

The agents stood as they crossed the room to the table. Stottlemeyer introduced them. "Monk, Natalie, this is Special Agent Rick Sanchez," he said, gesturing to a thirty-something man with shortly cropped, black hair. "This is Special Agent Jackie Lewis", he said, pointing to the younger, African-American woman beside him, "and this," he said, pointing to the tall, slim, grey-haired man at the end of the table, "is U.S. Marshal John Harris. Agents, this is Detective Adrian Monk and his partner and wife, Natalie Monk."

Everyone shook hands and exchanged pleasantries before taking their seats. Monk cleaned his hands with a wipe and handed it to Natalie. While putting the used wipe in her purse, she couldn't help but notice the slight smirk which appeared on John Harris' face as she did so.

"Detective Monk," I'm sure you are wondering why we requested your presence," said the U.S. Marshal.

"No, I think I know why," he said.

Stottlemeyer lifted an eyebrow, unaware of Monk and Natalie's afternoon with Bertinelli's brother.

"Well then," said Harris, with a lift of his own eyebrow. "Why don't you tell us what you know, or at least what you think you know."

Monk smiled. "Here's what's happened so far. Antonio Bertinelli, born Antonio Rossi in Chicago, to a family of Italian immigrants, went to work for Luigi Caprioli Sr. in 1978 at his new casino, The Desert Queen. He was employed as the Casino's head chef, and eventually worked his way into Caprioli's good graces, and became his personal chef. In 1989, Rossi was approached by the FBI to testify against Caprioli in exchange for immunity under the Federal Witness Protection Program, otherwise known as WITSEC. He and three other men testified and Caprioli went to jail, where he remained until he was killed in a prison raid on December 3rd of last year. Rossi and the other men went into the program. Rossi became Bertinelli, and he and his wife, Gia were moved to San Mateo, California. Gia died of cancer in December 2008, and in her memory, he opened his restaurant, Antonio's, in March of last year. Bertinelli was murdered this past Sunday night, at his restaurant by a mafia hitman, most likely employed by Luigi Caprioli, Jr. as an act of revenge after his father was killed in prison. Frank Romano, born Frank Gotti of Greenville, South Carolina, was also killed this week, also by a professional hitman. We don't know how these men were found, which of course mars the U.S. Marshals perfect track record, but I suspect there was an informant, possibly from within the Marshal Service itself."

"Is that all Detective?" asked Harris.

"No," said Monk. "There are two other men who testified against Caprioli, then went into WITSEC, who are most likely targets, as well."

Harris scowled while the two FBI agents sat with their mouths agape. "How…" Special Agent Lewis began to ask.

Harris' scowl slowly turned into a condescending sneer. "Well now Mr. Monk, I have heard they used to call you the defective detective. I don't know where you got your information, but you are correct. I see why Agent Sanchez insisted on you remaining on this case even though I was initially opposed to the idea."

Monk rolled his shoulder and squirmed in his seat as Natalie's eyes flashed with anger. She bit her tongue and discreetly put her hand on Adrian's leg under the table. He instantly calmed under her touch.

"You were only wrong on one account, Mr. Monk," continued Harris. "There is now only one witness left. The third was killed in Grants Pass, Oregon last night. We, at the U.S. Marshal Service, are obviously very upset that someone, who was privy to information only available to our agents, apparently tipped off someone who wanted those men killed. We would very much like to catch whoever did that, and whoever ordered the hits, whether it be Caprioli or someone else."

"I would like to see them caught as well," said Monk, "but what does this have to do with me? This case is now in the hands of the FBI, isn't it?"

"Yes, Mr. Monk," said Sanchez. "We are handling all three of these cases now that we are almost certain there is a connection, but we would like to employ your help."

"Why me?" asked Monk.

"First of all," said Sanchez, "you have intimate knowledge of the Bertinelli incident. We also think your powers of observation and deduction would be most helpful in connecting his murder with the one that took place in Oregon last night."

"Oregon? You want him to go to Oregon?" asked Natalie.

"Yes, Mrs. Monk, said Lewis, leaning across the table towards her. "We would like for him to come with us to Grants Pass, Oregon to examine the crime scene there and see if he thinks there is a link between these two west coast murders, beyond the fact that they were both witnesses on the same trial. Plus, there may be clues found at the crime scene that could lead us to both the informant and the hitman, perhaps even Caprioli."

Monk looked over at Stottlemeyer who nodded in approval. "When do you want me up there?" he asked.

"We would like to go up tonight," said Sanchez.

"Tonight!" exclaimed Natalie, "but Adrian can't fly."

"They know," said Stottlemeyer, looking towards Natalie. "We'll be driving up. If we can leave within two hours, we'll be there by 11:00 pm. We'll check into a hotel, then look at the crime scene fresh in the morning. The body was taken to the morgue, but the scene has been preserved."

"I'm not sure Adrian..." Natalie began, but then turning to the captain, she said, "Wait, did you say we?"

"Yes, I'll be going too. You and Monk can ride with me."

"Ok, I'll go," said Monk. "Did you say Natalie is going too? What about Sophia?"

"I already talked to T.K.," said the captain. "She'll keep her until we get back. I knew there'd be a better chance of you coming if Natalie came too," he said, smiling.

The two FBI agents looked at each other with curious looks at the unusual exchange, but Harris' sneer returned. "Ok, now that the Monks' child has a babysitter and Mr. Monk has his own babysitter, let's get on with this."

Monk, Natalie, and Stottlemeyer left the conference room to get ready for their trip to Grants Pass. The FBI agents and U.S. Marshal would be meeting them there. As they walked down the long hallway towards the elevators, Natalie fumed.

"What is his problem," Natalie said, her tone unmistakably angry. "It's like he had something out for Adrian from the moment we walked in there. Do you know him from somewhere?" she asked her husband, but as she reached for his hand, he pushed it away. "Adrian, what…" Her question was cut off when Monk went through the door to the stairwell instead of stopping at the elevators along with herself and the captain. She started to follow him, but a gentle hand grasped her arm.

"Natalie," Leland said, drawing her to a stop. "Let him go. He'll be ok."

"I've got to…" she said, starting for the door, but again Leland held her back.

"Natalie, listen, if Monk is ever going to really get better, you've got to quit babying him. You've got to let him stand on his own two feet and be a man."

"Leland, I don't baby him. I just worry about him."

Leland released his grip on Natalie's arm and took a deep breath. "I know you worry about him, and rightfully so. For many years, he needed someone to worry about him and take care of every little thing. I don't think he would have survived without you, and truthfully, I still do it too. We both tend to be a little motherly because we care about him, but I think we both forget how much he's changed in the last year. Sometimes, I barely recognize him." He put his hand on her shoulder and looked directly at her. "Your love has had a lot to do with that young lady, but let your love drive him to be better, not hold him back."

Natalie looked down at her feet. If she were honest with herself, she would have to admit that she did baby him sometimes. Tears sprung to her eyes as she realized how much she had probably embarrassed him in front of the agents as if he needed her permission to go to Oregon and then announcing to everyone that he couldn't fly. It just came out. It was almost instinctive. She had taken care of him for so long that it had become ingrained in the way she interacted with him, but she was more than his assistant now. She was his wife and his partner, and she needed to let him be the man she knew he really was. "Oh Leland," she said, pulling a tissue out of her purse. "Do you think he's really mad at me?"

Leland put his arm around her shoulders as he pressed the down arrow to call the elevator. "He might be, but you guys will work it out. You always do."

Monk was waiting for them when they arrived at the lobby. "What took you so long?" he asked.

"We just had a little talk. I'll pick you guys up at 5:00," Stottlemeyer said as he waved goodbye.

Adrian and Natalie were quiet until they were back in the car. "A talk?" Adrian asked, turning to look at his wife. "Did you talk about me?"

"Yes," she said, avoiding his gaze.

"You know Natalie, I can answer my own questions, and I didn't really need you to announce to the whole room that I am scared of flying."

"I…I know," she said through her sniffles.

"As if that Marshal wasn't enough…" He breathed deeply. "I love you Natalie, and you know how much I value you, but that was kind of…embarrassing."

She blew her nose, which made Adrian adjust his neck. "That's what Leland told me. He also told me I need to quit babying you."

Adrian turned and looked at her in surprise. "He did?"

She lifted her head and looked at him. "Yes, and he's right. I'm so sorry, Adrian! I worry about you because I love you, and I can't bear the thought of anything happening to you. I also can't stand it when people talk to you like that guy in there. What a jerk! Can you believe him! He doesn't even know you…"

Adrian was glad Natalie was looking straight ahead at that point because he let a slight smile escape his lips. She was cute when she got riled up.

"Anyway," she said, "I'm really sorry I embarrassed you. I'll try to let you speak for yourself from now on."

"It's ok, sweetheart," he said as they pulled into their driveway. He reached over and took her hand. "Just let me be the man you deserve."

Placing her other hand over his, she looked into his eyes. "You already are."

As soon as they got into the house, they had to scramble to change into more comfortable clothes, pack their bags, and make a call to T.K. with some instructions for Sophia. Natalie thanked her for the umpteenth time, then joined her husband in the living room, who was staring at their bookcase.

She walked up to him and put her hand on his back. He had been awfully quiet since they got home. "You're not still mad at me, are you?" she asked, looking up at him.

He looked down at her and smiled. "Now, how can I be mad at you when you do that?" he asked.

"What am I doing?"

"You know that thing you do with your lip, the way you bite it."

"Oh?" she said, slipping her arms around his neck.

"Then you do that."

"Hmm, and what else do I do that makes it hard for you to stay mad?"

"That thing you do with my hair…that's always distracting," he said, getting lost in her eyes.

"You mean this," she purred, threading her fingers through his curls. "Anything else, Mr. Monk?"

A smile played on his lips. "The way you're looking at me doesn't help either."

Natalie gently pulled his head towards her and kissed him. She pulled away but held his gaze. "How about that? Does that make it hard to stay mad?"

Adrian pulled her tightly to himself and caressed her back. "I would love to continue this conversation," he whispered in her ear, "but unless we really want to embarrass Leland when he comes, we should hold off until later."

"Promise we'll come back to it later?" she asked seductively.

"Promise," he said, pressing his lips to hers with a longing that left her breathless.

They held each other until they heard a knock and Leland's "Hello" as he opened the door. They jumped apart, smoothing clothes and hair as they did. Leland smirked. "Did I interrupt something?"

"Nothing," said Monk, feigning innocence. "Let's get going."

"Nothing, huh?" said Leland. "Well, in that case, you won't need to check the mirror before we leave."

Monk frowned at him but casually looked in the entryway mirror as he passed it. That's when he noticed some of Natalie's lipstick smeared across his own lips. Just as he finished cleaning his face, the captain walked by with one of Natalie's bags. "Glad to see you lovebirds made up," he said.

A few minutes later, Adrian and Natalie had finished placing their bags in Leland's car, and Adrian was just getting in when he said, "Wait! I need to go back and grab one more thing." Moments later, he added a book to his bag in the trunk.

Leland, Adrian, and Natalie were about half-way through their six-hour drive to Grants Pass. Adrian had caught Leland up on their lunch with Vince Rossi, after the funeral. He retold the story to the captain, which confirmed Monk's theory that Antonio had been a witness for the Caprioli trial, then placed under witness protection. Rossi was also convinced, along with Monk, that Caprioli was the one behind the hits. They traveled in companionable silence for a while until both men noticed Natalie was sleeping in the back.

"She must be really tuckered out," said Leland. "I suppose that cute little girl of yours is keeping her busy."

"She is," said Monk, smiling. "She's a cyclone of activity, but she's so smart. She loves books and she's learning new words every day.

Leland chuckled. "Well, I wouldn't expect any less. She may not share your DNA, but she's still your daughter. She'll probably be reading by the time she's two and solving crimes by the time she's twelve."

"Oh no, no crime-solving for her until she's at least thirty."

"I don't suppose she'll be able to date until then either."

"Date?" said Monk. "I don't know if I'll ever let her do that."

They both laughed and Leland looked over at his friend. "It's good to see you happy, Buddy. I was starting to worry about you for a couple of days there."

Monk sighed, wishing he could forget what an idiot he had been. "We had a rough couple of days. I was being impatient and critical. I couldn't see how hard Natalie was working..."

"You're not the easiest person to live with, you know, and now you've got a toddler who probably seems bound and determined to mess up your perfect order."

"I know. Dr. Bell is going to help me cope with things a little better."

"I'm glad you're getting some help," said Leland, but I think a lot of this is pretty normal. I don't know how it was for you and Trudy, but most newlyweds go through some rough spots. Heck, T.K. and I still go through them. While you and Natalie complement each other well, you are also two very different people trying to combine your two worlds. You both lived on your own for a long time, and you had your own way of doing things, so you're coming into this new life, each with your own set of expectations and trying to blend it all in a way that makes you both happy. On top of that, you've got a baby with her own needs thrown in the mix. Marriage isn't easy. It's hard work, but it's worth it, right? I remember at your wedding; your pastor spoke about true love. Do you remember that? True love isn't the Hollywood version. It comes from a deep commitment and sacrifice, and I know you and Natalie have that. I think you've had that kind of love for each other for a long time, even when you were just friends, so I know you'll get through all of this. Just don't forget how special she is and how special your love is, and it will all work out."

Monk looked at his friend with a slow smile. "You know Leland, for a man who 'shouldn't be giving relationship advice', you sure give some good relationship advice from time to time."

The trio arrived in Grants Pass, Oregon just after 11:00 pm that night. They checked into their hotel rooms, noting the FBI agents and Marshal were already checked into their respective rooms. Despite her nap, Natalie fell asleep quickly, but around 1:00 am, she woke to find her husband sitting in one of the armchairs across the room from the bed. She turned on the bedside lamp and sat up.

"What are you doing?" she asked, noting the book in his lap, which he was reading with a small flashlight.

"Remembering," he said, looking up at her.

"Remembering what?" she asked.

He picked up the book and showed her that it was the Gideon Bible from the hotel nightstand. It was opened to 1 Corinthians, chapter 13. "Oh, that's the chapter Pastor Grady spoke from at our wedding, isn't it?" she said.

He nodded. "I remember him saying this is a blueprint for marriage. Romantic love is great, but it has to go deeper to last."

"I remember that too," she said with a soft smile. "So, what does it say love is?"

"Well, right off the bat, it says, 'Love is patient and kind. It says it doesn't insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful,' but this is my favorite part: 'Love bears all things, believes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.'" He closed the Bible and set it on the end table beside him. He walked back to the bed and sat down next to her. He turned and took both of her hands in his. Looking into her eyes, which sparkled in the soft light, he said, "Natalie, I say I love you all the time, but this is showing me that while I feel it, I don't always show it. I have not always been patient or kind, and I've been irritable and resentful."

"Adrian…"

"No, let me finish. First of all, I want to ask you to forgive me. Then, I want to ask you to continue to be patient with me while I work through some things that have been bothering me. Dr. Bell is going to help me. In fact, I'm going to start seeing him twice a week for a while, but I need your help as well. Natalie, I want to be the husband you deserve, and the father the girls deserve, but I know I can't get there on my own. You must be the most patient woman in the world to stay with me, and I don't really know why you do, but you have, and well, here I am asking for your patience once again while I figure things out."

Natalie squeezed his hands, then she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Yes, my love, I forgive you, and yes, I'll be patient. I said before you were worth the wait, and you still are, but if our love is going to be what we both want it to be, you can't hide things from me. Please tell me what you're afraid of, and we'll walk through it together, okay?"

Adrian's head dropped. He hadn't thought of not telling her as hiding something from her. He had thought of it as not burdening her, not making her worry. He lifted his head and found her eyes again. He took a deep breath. "I'm afraid of failing you and the girls."

"Failing us? How?"

"What I did...yelling at you and Sophia...there's no excuse." Tears were forming in his eyes.

"Adrian," she said, placing her hand on his cheek. "Please don't keep beating yourself up for that. Yes, you scared us, but it's over. I told you that I forgive you, and Sophia does too. That little girl loves you as much as she ever did."

He lowered his head. "I was afraid I would end up like my parents, or you would give up and leave me. I couldn't bear it if you left."

"Adrian Monk," Natalie said, gently lifting his head so she could look in his eyes. "You are nothing like your parents. Your mother was unloving and harsh: you are gentle and kind. Your father was proud and selfish: you are humble and giving. Would I have wanted to be your wife, or would I have wanted you to be the father of my children if I thought for a moment you would be a harsh, unloving disciplinarian or you would walk out on us?"

A tear ran down his cheek, and he was having a hard time speaking. He slowly shook his head.

"No," she said, "I wouldn't have, but I did want to be your wife and I did want you to be the father of my children because I knew that's not who you are. Now, as far as me leaving...never! I told you I was in this for the long haul and I meant it. We're on this journey together, you and I. We're learning how to love each other, and we're learning how to be good parents. We're going to make mistakes along the way, but as long as we learn from those mistakes and love to the best of our abilities, it will be okay."

Adrian's tears were flowing freely now, so Natalie pulled him tightly to herself and he rested his head against her neck. He clung to her as she ran her fingers through his hair. Once his tears were dried, he lifted his head and took her face in his hands. "I don't deserve you, you know."

She started to protest, but before she could, he put his finger to her lips, then he slowly traced them with his thumb. She felt her heart beat faster as his dark eyes grew darker still, and his hand went to the back of her head. He gently pulled her closer, capturing her lips with his own, kissing her with a passion fueled by a need from deep within to express what was in his heart, feelings he knew he would never have adequate words for.