The Wrong Note

Mr. Monk Says Goodbye (and Allison Dubois Helps a Friend)

Good things come in threes, so how can Allison Dubois help Mr. Monk a final time? Perhaps this chapter will be revelatory ;) I hope you enjoy!

xXx

"Mr. Monk, stop taking so many pictures!" a woman laughed, shaking her head as a camera flashed. Her short blonde hair stopped a few inches above her shoulders. "You're going to run out of film before everyone gets here!"

"I can't help it, Natalie," Monk said with a wide grin. He wore a brown sweater instead of his usual beige jacket. "I'm too excited! It's the first time Sharona and Benjy have met Molly."

A young woman with much longer blonde hair gave Monk a warm smile. She resembled...

Trudy.

Yes, she resembled Trudy in a way that was not eerie but deeply, wonderfully beautiful.

"I'm excited to meet them, too, Adrian," she said, "but you should probably save some film. How else will you be able to take pictures of us all together?"

Monk blinked. "Oh. Right."

There was a knock that echoed from the other side of the apartment, and a third woman—the youngest yet—stood from the dining table she was seated at. Her long brown braid swung forward over her shoulder.

"Don't worry, I'll get it," she said, smiling before disappearing into the adjacent hall.

"Thank you, sweetie!" the first woman called after her before returning her attention to the other blonde still seated. "Molly, do you mind helping me set up the rest of the food in the kitchen? I got distracted by Mr. Monk trying to blind us with his camera flashes."

The girl—Molly—laughed and nodded. "Of course, Natalie." She, too, stood up, a wide grin pulling at her lips. "Still organizing everything in sets of 10, right?"

Natalie winked at her. "Just how Mr. Monk likes it."

Monk rolled his eyes at their teasing as the two women headed into the kitchen. "You'll thank me later!"

The brown-haired girl returned to the small dining room with an older, mustached man and a woman with loose, dark brown curls in tow.

"Captain, TK!" Monk exclaimed. "It's great to see you again!"

The man raised an eyebrow, a wry grin pulling at his lips. "Monk, you see me every day."

"Well, yeah—" Monk hesitated, then turned towards the brown-haired woman. "TK, it's great to see you again!"

The woman—TK—laughed, giving Monk a gentle smile. "It's good to see you, too, Adrian. How's Molly?"

"Oh, she's wonderful," Monk said, almost... gushing. "She finished up a review for an indie film from that festival in New Orleans she went to a couple weeks ago. It's worth watching the movie just so you can read her thoughts on it."

"Adrian, I thought we agreed not to talk about work," Molly lightheartedly admonished as she and Natalie returned from the kitchen.

"We agreed not to talk about my work," Monk corrected. "Your work is good. Your work is great!"

The mustached man chuckled. "He was just like this with your mother, Molly. Never stopped raving about Trudy's latest article."

Molly laughed, too. "Guess I'll have to get used to it."

Before Monk could protest, the doorbell rang a second time.

"Ooh!" Natalie exclaimed. "Julie, could you—"

"Already on it, Mom!" the girl with the braid called, disappearing into the hallway again. A moment later, she returned with Sharona, a man with light brown hair, and a boy who resembled Benjy Fleming.