Jedediah and Monk ran out into the parking lot as Leland grabbed Randy to provide more coverage should they need it. Leland always kept a couple of service pistols in his car when he travelled just in case there was trouble. While Leland opened the lock box, Jedediah laid out the plan.
"Leland, you and Randy go into the North entrance. I'll radio ahead and let them know you're coming. Adrian and I will go in through the east. Hopefully, we can outflank him and achieve a peaceful surrender."
Randy grabbed Stottlemeyer's keys and announced, "I'll drive." Stottlemeyer looked up with agitation. "You will not drive! This isn't even my car!"
"I have to drive. You need to load the weapons. Now get in. He's getting away."
Stottlemeyer grabbed the locked box and stomped over to the passenger seat and got in as Randy burned rubber exiting the parking lot, turning the corner so quickly that he knocked the mirror off of the passenger side door.
Monk road shotgun as Preacher called the station, the airport and the Secret Service to let them know what was going on.
At the airport, Fernandez was tipping the porter and he and his pilot had just walked through TSA Pre-check when he noticed airport staff and security beginning to look suspicious. Security personnel speaking through walkie talkies and staring at him only caused him to pick up the pace. Turning the pilot, he said "walk faster."
The pilot's phone rang, and he answered "Chad speaking…"
Fernandez pulled a revolver from his suitcoat and placed its barrel in Chad's back. "Move!"
As they walked quickly through the airport, the two teams arrived with several vehicles following closely behind. TSA was warned that they were coming, and airport security ushered them right in. Air traffic control kept all flights away from the area that the Secretary of State's helicopter was parked. The two cars arrived at precisely the same time as additional security vehicles poured in behind them.
Fernandez was seen walking very closely to his pilot and once they reached the parking lot, began to run towards the helicopter pad.
Monk, unarmed, jumped out of the car and began to run towards him on foot.
"Lord? What is this fool doing?" Jedediah said, trying to provide cover for his foolish friend.
"Get in the helicopter and go!" ordered Fernandez!
Chad nervously complied. He slid into the pilot's seat and buckled up as Fernandez opened the passenger side door and started to climb in.
"Fernandez! I know you did it!" Adrian yelled as Fernandez whirled around and took a shot at him.
The bullet missed him and ricocheted off the ground causing it to bounce and hit a fully loaded luggage carrying train parked midway between him and the helicopter.
Monk looked around as Fernandez got into the helicopter and shut the door.
Preacher ran up beside him and Monk grabbed his walkie talkie and announced, "I'm going to try something. You guys, provide me cover!"
"Adrian! Now what are you going to do?" protested Preacher, as Leland said over the line "Now, Monk. Don't go doing something dumb."
Adrian crouched low and ran over to the luggage bay and grabbed onto a thick tether rope used to raise heavy cargo on a lift for loading onto trailers. The tether had a loop on one end and a hook on the other and he fed the hook through the other and attached it to the trailer hitch on the luggage carrier in front of him.
The helicopter began to lift off, and as it did, Adrian took the other end of rope in his hands and ran as quickly as he could towards the helicopter
Grabbing onto the landing skids with his legs, he latched onto the right landing skid with his right arm as the chopper began to ascend. He was about 12 feet in the air when he was able to get the hook end of the tether in his hands and attached it to the landing skid. As the helicopter continued to rise, the tether became more taught and he used it to slide down far enough to minimize injury as he jumped to the ground.
Landing on his feet he turned and watched as the chopper continued to ascend; but he had to move out of the way when at around 50 feet the luggage carrier began to roll across the runway. The helicopter continued to try to rise, but now it was faced with also attempting to lift several tons of baggage, throwing off its center of gravity on the right-hand side. It was too much for the craft and the pilot to handle and the Secretary's flight soon ended with a thud as the helicopter came crashing down to the ground.
FBI, Military and Secret Service came running onto the runway with guns drawn as Fernandez shakily opened the helicopter door and stepped out with his hands up. He stumbled and fell to the ground and a local cop put on handcuffs behind his back as they called for a doctor to come check him out before taking him in for questioning.
Just then, the Presidential motorcade pulled up and President and Mrs. Stoddard exited the vehicle. After returning salute for the military who were present, Stoddard walked up and said "will someone please tell me what the heck is going on here? Luis? Why are you under arrest?"
As Fernandez watched from within police custody, Monk walked over to the President and explained.
"Here's what happened. The First Lady travelled out to San Francisco as an effort to raise awareness about ISIS persecution of Christians in Iraq. At least, that was the official story. In reality, it was a good will visit where diplomatic connections could be made that would hopefully support the upcoming peace talks you have planned in Saudi Arabia. Luis Fernandez was well aware of these plans and felt like he needed to somehow interfere with them and bring them to a stop."
"Why in blazes would he want to stop them?" asked Stoddard.
"Well sir, I'm sure you've been around D.C. enough to know that everyone makes money off everything else and people become quite wealthy based upon who they know and what deals do and do not come across executive and legislative tables.
For Fernandez, his friends at your party were primarily the Vice President and Harry Kingston, both known for their investment savvy. Fernandez shared this love for investing and apparently had invested heavily in Middle Eastern oil, military development and technology. War is sometimes a necessary thing, but along the way some unscrupulous characters have also learned there is big money to be had in making sure it happens. As Secretary of State, Fernandez was in a position to directly influence both sides. He would play the part as diplomat while pitting both ends against the middle, forever in negotiation and never getting anywhere and getting very wealthy off of the game he was playing in the interim.
The last thing he wanted was for there to be actual peace in the area, so he hired Jack Hauser to kill Haley Bernard and frame the First Lady and break up the peace party. Bernard was young, single and alone so people would have a difficult time ascribing motive for her murder, and would blame it on marital instability, thus casting doubt upon the moral character of the Stoddards and bringing into question America's role as a stable negotiator of peace.
Hauser was assigned as the chauffeur on the flight to and from San Francisco. He and Fernandez concocted the plan as soon as they saw the passenger list, and with that in mind he waited for his moment on Air Force Two when the First Lady went forward to greet guests. He slipped into Mrs. Stoddard's office where he knew Haley was organizing some papers, grabbed the Scotch decanter and slammed her in the head with it. Dragging her body by the arms, he lifted her up and put her in executive suite closet, and with gloved hand took a knife and plunged it into her heart. Shutting the door behind him, he waited for the First Lady to make the discovery.
Mrs. Stoddard opened the closet door and the body fell out onto her, bleeding profusely on her dress, and the rest, as they say, is history."
"Luis Fernandez, you are under arrest for co-conspiracy to murder Haley Bernard, co-conspiracy for attempted murder of Natalie Albright and Adrian Monk, Conspiracy to commit kidnapping, fraud, and I'm sure we'll come up with quite a few other crimes before we are finished. Do you have any questions?" said Special Agent Schaeffer from the FBI.
"Yes" said Luis. "What was my mistake? What gave me away?"
Monk looked a Luis and said, "When you greeted us at the reception for the Zenith flight, you tried your best to throw suspicion back onto Mrs. Stoddard. Only one problem. You mentioned that the Bernard had been killed in the First Lady's office. This was not public knowledge as for all the rest of the passengers knew, it occurred in her private cabin."
"Anything else?" asked Schaeffer, looking at Fernandez.
"Yes. Can I call my lawyer?" he replied as they took him away.
"Monk, you have certainly lived up to your reputation." Said the President. "That was amazing."
"Mr. Monk, I cannot thank you enough. You were a man of your word. Any time you or your friends wish to come back to DC, please let us know. You can stay as our special guests at the White House."
"Thank you, Ma'am. I may take you up on that offer." Said Adrian,quietly.
"Well, Monk. You've done it again. You travel out to Washington D.C. to be honored as a cotton-pickin Astronaut, for goodness sakes! And you end up solving one of the most scandalous high profile cases to hit the city for some time." Said Stottlemeyer.
"Just amazing." Said Randy. "But that's Monk."
"What are you going to do now?" asked Preacher.
"What am I going to do?" Adrian repeated. "I'm going to go back to the hospital and see Natalie and try to let go of all of this stuff and just settle down and relax and enjoy life."
"Adrian Monk? Settle down and relax?" asked Leland.
"It could happen." Adrian said with a smile.