Summaries

Synopsis

In Washington, D.C., after a six-week leave of absence, Secret Service agent Jay Killian (Charles Bronson) returns to work on the day of President Calvin Craig's (Charles Howerton) inauguration. Killian is assigned to protect First Lady Laramie "Lara" Royce Craig (Jill Ireland), whom the Secret Service has given the code name "One Momma." A brash and smart-mouthed feminist who intends to push her husband to support the Equal Rights Amendment, Lara is dismissive of Secret Service rules, saying that no one has ever tried to kill a president's wife. She takes an immediate dislike to Killian, who is offended that he was not assigned to protect the president.

While Lara rides in the inaugural motorcade in a convertible, a police motorcycle riding alongside her explodes. Killian pulls Lara down to protect her, but she insists she is all right. Killian does not think the explosion was an accident and he reports that the cop on the motorcycle looked like terrorist Eddie "Reno" Bracken (Erik Stern). Secret Service agent Charlotte "Charlie" Chang (Jan Gan Boyd) comes to the rundown Hotel Farragut where Killian has been living since his divorce was finalized ten days ago. He tells Charlie that his ex-wife, Imogene, was sleeping with many senators and looted their joint bank account. Although Killian and Charlie have been having an affair, he initially resists her attempts at seduction. However, later, they make love at Charlie's apartment in the Watergate complex.

The first lady requests Killian be replaced, but when she leaves the White House without prior clearance, Killian is the only one available to go after her. She boards a private plane at Andrews Air Force Base, heading to her father's estate in Newport Beach, California, where she intends to take his yacht to Catalina Island. The yacht is being scrubbed for barnacles and repainted, but one of the workers plants a plastic explosive on the bottom of the boat. The yacht explodes in Newport Beach Harbor, but Lara insists it was not an assassination attempt.

Killian gets Lara back to Washington, D. C., where an investigation shows that one of the men who painted the yacht was Pritchard Young, a terrorist connected to Reno Bracken. The White House Chief of Staff, Senator Hector Bunsen (Michael Ansara), orders Killian to take a week off at the first lady's request, but Killian's boss, Fitzroy (Stephen Elliott), orders him back to work.

Lara takes a helicopter to give a speech at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia, but Killian forces the aircraft to land in a field. He transfers the first lady to a motorcade, where he believes she will be safer. As the helicopter takes off from the field, someone launches a bazooka at it and shoots it down, killing the pilot. Killian chases after the shooter, who runs into a barn. Killian fires a bazooka at the barn, causing it to erupt into flames, but the shooter escapes on a motorcycle. Killian believes the shooter was Reno Bracken. Lara concedes that someone is attempting to assassinate her and thanks Killian.

Later, Killian follows her to a museum to which she is donating her inaugural gown, but she changes clothes, puts on a wig, and leaves the museum unrecognized. Killian chases after her and catches up to her at a gas station. Lara asks him to help her find out who is behind the assassination attempts on her life and takes him to hide out at a local motel, explaining that she is trying to disappear until they can find whoever is trying to kill her. However, Pritchard Young (William Hayes) has been following them and fires a machine gun at her motel room. Killian gets Lara to safety, then they take a bus to Kokomo, Indiana, where they buy two used motorcycles.

While riding across the country, Lara confesses to Killian that she and the president, Calvin Craig, have an "arrangement." They met in college in Berkeley, California, but he was injured while serving in the Air Force and is impotent. Lara believed in him, but knew a bachelor would not get far in politics. Thus, they put on a show of a great romance and eventually married. They agreed that once Craig was elected president, Lara could do as she pleased and discreetly divorce him. Killian points out that a divorcee would never stand a chance of being re-elected, but a widower would. He wonders if the president is behind the assassination attempts.

On back roads, a pick-up truck follows them and opens fire. Killian and Lara escape from the truck and board a train. However, as the train lunges forward, Lara falls into Killian's lap. Although both are aroused, they argue. When they notice a helicopter following the train, they get off and hitchhike into a small town where they buy a used dune buggy. Lara confesses that she told her husband where they are, which convinces Killian that he is behind the assassination attempts.

Meanwhile, in Washington D.C., Chief of Staff Hector Bunsen secretly meets with Reno Bracken, whom he paid $1 million to kill the first lady. Bunsen reprimands Bracken for not finishing the job.

Killian and Lara arrive in Lake Tahoe, Nevada, at the lakefront estate of her father, movie director H. H. "Harry" Royce. A man riding a jet ski pulls a boat loaded with explosives toward the lake house, but Killian spots him, and gives chase on a speedboat. The man ditches the jet ski and runs through the woods. When Killian fires at him, the would-be assassin fires back and Killian pretends he is shot. As the man approaches, Killian shoots him in the face, and recognizes him as Bracken.

Killian and the first lady return to Washington, where they have Hector Bunsen arrested. It is revealed that Bunsen acted to preserve his job security, knowing a widowed president stood a better chance of being reelected. Lara is upset when Killian announces he is retiring from the Secret Service and going to work for her father, Harry Royce, as a personal bodyguard. After he says goodbye to Lara, Killian leaves the White House where he runs into Charlie Chang outside. Charlie tells Killian that she is also retiring and plans to join Killian. Charlie suggests they get married, but Killian wants to take their relationship slowly.