Protection
"What do you need, Annie?" Mindy asked.
"Holcombe escaped from the work crew she was on," Annie said as Mark and Mindy entered her office.
"Is that so," Mindy snarled.
Mark closed his eyes, chuckled silently, and shook his head. "If she wants another ass kicking all she has to do is show up for it. I'm sure Min will oblige."
"Happily," Mindy said, and Annie frowned at her expression.
"While I'm sure a rematch is just fine with you, I'd prefer that didn't happen," Annie said. "You fucked her up, Mindy."
"She was fucked up to begin with," Mindy said scathingly.
Annie nodded, "Yeah, but at least she could talk right and breath through her nose," Annie shook her head. "Seriously, Mindy, her face looks like she was run over by a truck."
Mark chuckled. "The B.A.G. truck."
Mindy smirked and looked sideways at her fiancé. "Well she's lucky that knife she had with her never came out. I'd have shoved that up her ass."
"No doubt," Annie said, and Mark nodded.
"Your personal skills aside, I'd prefer you stay undercover for a while," Annie said.
Mindy shook her head. "Not happening, "she said. "I've got fittings for the dress, caterer screening, and venues to look at. The wedding is six months out, you know how fast that time goes."
"Annie," Mark said, and she turned to him. "Listen, we're mostly here at the Space center or at home, our section of Sugar Lakes is gated and guarded, and I'd like to see her try to swim in from the back. I chased our ten footer off the pool deck again day before yesterday."
"You had a ten foot alligator in your back yard?"
Mark laughed. "We've named him Ralph," he said, and Mindy chuckled. "He shows up about every three days or so to bask. We were a bit freaked out initially, but the gator removal guy showed us how to deal with him."
"He actually comes like a dog to Mark now," Mindy said with a shake of the head. "We call him down to the shore, feed him a chicken, and shoo him back in the lake with a broom."
"Are you two afraid of anything?" Annie said with a shake of the head. "Well, Holcombe is marginally smarter than an alligator, so be aware, and I'd like Mindy in particular to never go anywhere alone."
"That I can do," Mindy said.
"Good," Annie said and smiled. "In addition to being two of NASA's prized assets you're two of my favorite people, so don't fuck around. This crazy fucking bitch is dangerous."
"So am I," Mindy growled
(*)
"Number seven scarpered from her chain gang, did she?"
"Sadly zey do not 'ave chain gangs 'ere. She just walked away."
"She should never have got close enough to them for Park to have to deal with it. We bolloxed that one up, Jan."
"She will try again, 'Annah, you know zat."
"Yes she will, and this time we'll be there."
"Oui."
(*)
Christopher Beck set his wine glass on the table and looked at his wife next to him, Beth smiled back. "Well, Lewis married us, but we were on the Hermes. She was captain of a ship in 'international waters'," he said, making the air quotes. "As you so astutely pointed out, Mark. Don't know if she could legally do it here on Terra Firma."
Beth Beck, who had debated keeping her maiden name for a while just because of the alliterative nature of her married name, chuckled. "They'll make any arrangement for us we ask for, get real, Chris."
Mark looked at his two friends and his fiancé as they chatted and enjoyed his cooking. He was momentarily overcome with pure joy. People don't get how important this is, he thought. Until you're absolutely alone you don't get it, how much you need people. Just this, just having a mundane conversation about a wedding over dinner is more important than goals or planning or profit. Anything. This is what being human is.
"Earth to Watney," Beth asked with a giggle. "You in there?'
He nodded. "Just lost in thought for a moment."
She smiled, she knew. "If you want Lewis to do it, it'll happen," she said.
"I'd like that." He turned to Mindy. "You fine with Commander Lewis officiating?"
Mindy kissed Mark's cheek. "As long as I'm Mrs. Watney at the end of the day I don't give a shit," she said, and they all laughed.
"Annie still pressuring you to move to a bigger place?" Beth asked Mindy.
Mindy smiled and chuckled silently. "The U.H. Chapple holds two seventy five, and we're only using a hundred fifty. She's getting a hundred and twenty five. If that's not enough, too bad."
"Should be plenty," Chris said.
Mindy shook her head. "Most of the heads of state from all over the world have asked to attend, we even got an invite request from King William. He, Kate, and the crown princes and princesses are huge fans."
"You gonna do it?" Beth asked.
Mindy smiled at her and nodded. "Uh, yeah."
"We're probably going to release some more seats to Annie here in a week or so." Mark said. "My family and friends only get to fifty one, including the crew and the Vogel and Martinez hordes, and even with Min inviting most of control we're only up to a hundred and twenty."
"That should make her happy," Chris said.
"You don't spend a lot of time with Annie, do you?" Mindy asked with a laugh.
(*)
Mindy's mother opened the door of the dress shop and Mindy followed her in. Clara, her maid of honor and best friend from childhood closed the door behind them. It was the oldest and most prestigious wedding shop in Houston. They had come to Mindy two days after the announcement, offering any dress in the store. I could get used to this celebrity thing she had thought at the time. That time had passed.
Every face in the store turned to her.
"Hello everyone," Mindy's mother said in a loud voice. "We're doing the final fitting today, so if you want to see it, that's fine, but there will be NO PICTURES! Is the mother of the bride understood?"
The smiling faces in the store laughed and Mindy heard a chorus of yeses.
Clara followed Mindy into the back of the store where the fitting rooms were, and they were met by Elsa, a young blond woman who was Mindy's assigned seamstress. "It's on the hook," Elsa said and pointed to a fitting room. Clara and Mindy went in and closed the door.
Fifteen minutes later Mindy emerged in a custom Pronovias Pladie wedding dress. The dress had the same style and cut as the standard Pladie model of the dress, trumpet cut, dip neck satin, with a lace sleeveless bodice, but the lace that covered the dress was entirely custom and hand made. Stars, planets, galaxies and nebula were all worked into the incredibly elaborate design, and the Hermes cruised across the court length train. The entire room gasped as she walked into the gallery area with the full length mirrors, and Mindy liked what she saw in those mirrors.
The woman in the mirror was stunning. The makeup Clara had applied had made her plain face stylish, the constant exercise she and Mark engaged in had toned her body, and sheer happiness made her glow with an inner light. Her hair was up in a carefully crafted half updo, and a silk flower crown held the veil in place. Her mother was barely hanging on, unshed tears shimmering in her eyes.
"It'll do," Mindy said smiling.
(*)
"We'll have it at the Chapple by seven am, Miss Park," Elsa said. "I'm delivering it personally."
"You have your credential from Annie Montrose?" Mindy asked. "You won't get within half a mile of the place without it."
Elsa nodded her head and pulled the plastic laminated card on a lanyard around her neck from her jacket. "I kinda don't take it off." She rolled her eyes. "Little paranoid."
Mindy chuckled and handed her a card. "My cel number, you run into any trouble on game day, call. Mom will pick up."
"Thanks, Miss Park," Elsa said grinning from ear to ear.
"Mindy."
"Thanks, Mindy."
Mindy took her hand. "See you next Tuesday, Elsa." She turned to her best friend and her mother. "Ready, I'm hungry."
"You didn't have breakfast," her mother admonished as they left the shop.
Mindy laughed, and said, "Wanted the dress to look good."
Mindy's mother stopped and hugged her in the stoop of the shop. "It's so beautiful. Mark won't know what hit him."
Mindy hugged her mother and then froze. Maryanne Holcombe was walking diagonally across the street toward them. "Get back in the shop," Mindy said through gritted teeth, and then turned and shoved her mother and best friend through the door. "Stay!"
Mindy spun, trotted down the three steps to the side walk, and started toward Holcombe. "Wanna dance again, bitch? I'm ready," she shouted.
Maryanne Holcombe drew a gun from her purse. Mindy had just enough time to register that the woman had a gun in her hand before a strong arm pulled her into the door way next to the dress shop. "I'm a friend," a feminine British voice said, as a bullet ricocheted off the bricks next to where Mindy had just been. Chaos erupted in the street. Screams and shouts were followed by panicked people running willy-nilly. On the sidewalk another woman had appeared out of nowhere behind Holcombe. She rammed a Taser into Mindy's assailant's back and pulled the trigger. Holcombe jittered and danced as the current coursed through her.
"Let her cook in it a little while, Jan," the woman in the doorway with Mindy yelled amid the confusion.
"Who are you guys?" Mindy said in wonder.
"Protection," the tall, muscular woman said. "This is all cocked up. You're not supposed to know we're here."
"Really, NASA ponied up the money for security?" Mindy said in slight wonder.
"No," the woman said. "Mark has a fan base that includes some very… powerful people, people whose activities are generally frowned on by the authorities, and they are quite interested in his continued happiness." She chuckled, but there was very little mirth in it. "They are very wealthy and unencumbered by legalities, so that means they can hire people like us, and we make sure you're alive and healthy."
"Thanks."
"You're welcome. We missed this slag the first time round," the woman said. "That's not happening again."
White foam was sputtering from Holcombe's mouth as she still twitched and shuddered. "Not that I care, but are you just gonna just roast her?" Mindy asked chuckling.
The woman next to her shrugged. "Eh," she said. "Right, ease off, Janice."
Janice, the blonde woman with the Taser stuck in Holcombe's side, grunted and pulled the sizzling instrument from Holcombe's body. She crumpled to the ground and didn't move.
"She alive?" Mindy asked with mild curiosity.
Janice kicked the unfortunate woman in the side, eliciting a moan. "Oui. Time for us to leave, 'Annah" the French accented woman said, looking around at the gathering crowd and Mindy's mother rushing from the shop next door.
"I'm Hannah, and this is Janice," Mindy's new friend said. "To the police we were just two concerned citizens, got it?"
Mindy smiled and nodded. She watched as Hannah and Janice melted into the crowd and vanished. Then her mother collided with her.