By this time, Max had joined the group and decided to share his opinion. “I think a mirror image of Mary Kate to spoil and love would be pretty special. I plan on being around to do a lot of both.”
Mary Kate turned to him and took him in her arms for a warm loving embrace. When she drew back she had tears in her eyes and all she could say was thank you.
Max looked at his dad and asked, “May I dance with Mary Kate?”
“You better ask her yourself,” Alex replied.
“Mary Kate, I would be honored if the most beautiful woman at the ball would dance with me,” Max declared to Mary Kate.
She replied, “The honor would be all mine Max, but you must forego the fancy footwork.” They both laughed as they entered the dance floor.
**********
With his slow Texas drawl, John commented to Alex, “You know that young lady should be home in bed not flying around the dance floor.”
Alex looked at him and then back to Mary Kate and Max. “That is exactly what I was thinking when you walked up.”
“Probably not for the same reason though I bet,” John replied as he looked straight at Alex without cracking a smile.
Without missing a beat Alex informed him, “It better not be,” and they both started laughing.
Manny started laughing and walked away to make his rounds to check on the various security posts. As he made his way through the ballroom and other various areas of concern he found that all appeared to be okay. The evening progressed without a hitch.
Several hours later, Alex decided it was time to get Mary Kate home and in bed. It had been a long day and she was exhausted. He alerted the team that they were leaving as soon as Mary Kate finished dancing with AJ. Everyone began to move to their position for Alex and Mary Kate to exit. He was relieved that they had made it through the evening without any attempts on anyone’s life.
Max knew that Mary Kate and his dad were getting ready to leave, so he made a request to the band to play “Georgia on My Mind” as their last song of the evening. That was their favorite song and he dedicated it to them. Christina was so devastated by her son’s actions; she got up and walked out without Jessie.
AJ delivered Mary Kate back to her husband and they danced to their song. Everyone else vacated the dance floor and let them have it to themselves. It was such a beautifully romantic sight to see two people so much in love to finally have some peace in their lives after all they had been through. When the dance was over the crowd applauded the lovely couple as they left the floor.
Alex told Mary Kate he was ready to go home. She informed him that she needed to visit the ladies room before they made the long drive out to the ranch. This was becoming a habit that was only going to get worse before it got better. Alex watched her closely even though there were security people in the area of the restrooms.
Mary Kate went into the restroom and as she was exiting she was met face to face with Jessie Alvarez. She looked at him funny and started to step back when he grabbed her. “You are in the right restroom, but instead of going back to your husband, you’re going with me.” With a gun pointed at her side and his arm around her, they headed to the ballroom.
A female deputy, Mary Kate felt sure someone sent to check on her, entered the restroom. Jessie hit her over the head from behind and she slid down the wall to the floor, out cold. Mary Kate was afraid that he had killed her.
“Are you crazy? You killed her!” Mary Kate growled at him as she tried to squirm free of him.
“Let me remind you that I have a gun pointed directly at your baby and won’t hesitate to shoot if you try that again.” He paused for a second before continuing, “You better remain close and do what you’re told, or your family will be preparing for another memorial.”
Mary Kate froze and remained as calm as possible and decided to just wait to make her move when the time was right. Someone had sent that deputy to check on her and when neither of them returned it would alarm the rest of the team.
**********
Peter addressed the team over the radio that he had just received a call over the sat phone from Lardenez with information regarding the rogue gunman. They needed to be looking for a man going by the name of Jessie Alvarez.
Everyone knew he had come to the dance with Christina, so he was in the ballroom. They were all looking around trying to spot him, and Alex headed for the restroom to find Mary Kate. As he started toward the area Jessie came into sight with Mary Kate at his side. Alex pulled his earphone out of his pocket and put it on so he could communicate with the team.
Alex called out on the radio, “He has Mary Kate and is moving around the south end of the ballroom headed for the main exit. She is very close to his side, so he probably has a gun on her.”
Peter responded, “He’s headed my way. I’m moving to the foyer so as not to crowd him. Parking lot get ready they’ll be moving your way in about thirty seconds.”
Alex announced to the team, “Give them plenty of room and get this outside without incident, if possible. He’ll want to draw me out, so I’ll be right behind them.” Alex continued to move in the same direction as Jessie and Mary Kate as he continued to speak to the team. “Manny, move out to the cars and see if you can get a shot when I confront him. We can’t let him get away with Mary Kate, or” Alex paused to force the bile back out of his throat, “or let him shoot her again.”
Alex could see Mary Kate looking around for security personnel. She spotted Peter, and as they passed him he could see her eyes full of fear and close to hysteria. “Boss, she is holding it together, but barely. You better move fast.”
Within minutes Jessie had Mary Kate in the parking lot headed for his car. Manny radioed that he had them both in sight, but for no one to get between Jessie and the main highway. He was positioned on the back of a black truck parked by the main gate to the parking lot. They were ten feet into the parking lot when Alex called to Jessie. “Stop, it’s me you want not her!”
Jessie stopped, turned around, and faced him with Mary Kate pulled close to his side before he spoke. “On the contrary Chavez, she’s exactly who I want.” He jerked her closer before he spoke again. “I have a Sig Sauer pointed at her stomach and your unborn child.” Alex let out an audible gasp, but knew he had to keep his cool until Mary Kate was safe.
Alex shouted at him, “Let her go, Jessie. You know I’m much more valuable to you than she is.” Keeping calm under the circumstances was the hardest thing he’d ever done. “If you kill her you’ll never make it out of here alive, but if you let her go and take me, you can get on a plane headed for home within the hour.” Hoping that sunk in, Alex waited with hope for his reply.
Jessie pulled her around in front of him, and jammed the gun in her back. “You are going to suffer like I did when I lost my brother in those rig explosions in the Sea of Cortez. Since the Cartel won’t make you pay, I will.”
“Jessie, you know there is no way out for you unless you let her go unharmed. There are guns pointed at you from every direction, and if you hurt her you won’t last two seconds. Let her go, Jessie!”
Mary Kate started crying and telling Jessie she was going to pass out and fall on this hard asphalt. She was begging him to let her go. Alex had a complete view of Mary Kate and she made eye contact with him. He knew she was up to something. She began to complain about her shoulder and hand hurting. Alex looked to her shoulder and then down to her hand and noticed she was repeatedly using her fingers to count to three. He informed everyone with a radio that she was planning to faint and fall clear of Jessie and that should give Manny a clear shot. He would call the count as Mary Kate gave it.
Mary Kate held out the first finger and Alex began counting so the team could hear. Then Mary Kate held out the second finger. When she hit three, she collapsed giving Manny a clear shot. Jessie was down, and Mary Kate rolled clear of him. Before she could get up and run, Alex was lying over her until someone cleared that Jessie was no longer a threat.
; The crowd had been kept inside with AJ and John being the only exception. John moved quickly to Mary Kate’s side trying to get Alex to let her go, so he could see about her. AJ was there by that time and got Alex to let go of her long enough for John to check her out.
Alex told Peter to bring the car around, and called for Manny to let him know they were taking Mary Kate home. He told Jaime and Cougar to get Max to the ranch immediately and for AJ to bring John.
As soon as Peter pulled up beside Alex, he lifted May Kate and climbed in the back seat. Manny shut the door and got in the front seat just as Peter slung gravel for the ranch. Alex held Mary Kate and rocked her as he talked to her calmly. Peter broke speed records getting to the ranch. Mary Kate was shaking and sobbing with her face buried in Alex’s chest holding on so tight he could barely breathe. When they were about halfway to the ranch she began to ease her grip a little, but would not let go.
Manny called to the ranch to inform security of what was happening. The guards at the gate needed to let people through without delay, and to alert Maria of their arrival. Within a few minutes, they arrived at the ranch with AJ and John right behind them. Bringing up the rear of the three cars was Max, Jaime, and Cougar.
Alex carried Mary Kate straight to their bedroom and to the bed. When he tried to lay her down she wouldn’t let go of him. Mary Kate was still shaking; Alex sat down on the bed with her and held her until John arrived. John cleared the room of everyone except Alex, and told Maria to get a glass of brandy. He looked at Alex, and changed his request to two glasses of brandy. John moved closer to Mary Kate and Alex smoothed his hand across her back and began talking to her to try to calm her down. Maria returned with the brandy. He gave it to Alex to try and get Mary Kate to drink it. John then told Maria to get a gown for Mary Kate so they could get her out of these clothes.
Within a few minutes, Mary Kate began to settle and drink some of the brandy. As she became more relaxed she turned loose of Alex enough to get changed, so that John could check her vitals and see if she was hurt. While she was changing, Alex drank the other glass of brandy and sent Maria after the bottle.
John asked her if she hurt anywhere, but she assured him only on her knees where she hit the asphalt in the parking lot. She also told him her shoulder hurt from rolling on the asphalt. She did add that she was sore from when Alex laid on top of her and wouldn’t get off. John knew they were rounding the corner back to normalcy with Mary Kate’s humor returning. Alex sat down beside her and drew her close. “You are the only person I know that could make a wise crack about something so serious.”
She put her arms around his neck and kissed him fiercely. “You two please behave, I can’t examine you Mary Kate with you two getting frisky.” He waited for them to settle down before continuing his examination. “Don’t you realize that’s how you got in this shape to begin with?”
Mary Kate looked at Alex needing reassurance when she asked, “Is it all over now, is Jessie dead?”
He assured her, “Yes, Amada, it’s all over.”
After a few minutes, Alex let her go so John could examine her and most importantly check her heart rate, blood pressure, and the baby. He continued his examination and gave her a clean bill of health as far as her shoulder was concerned. With an apprehensive look on his face, but not voicing any alarm, he brought his stethoscope back to Mary Kate’s abdomen as if checking the baby’s heartbeat.
Alex was getting very uneasy, and could sense the alarm in Mary Kate as he felt her body stiffen with John’s actions. “What’s wrong? You already checked the baby’s heartbeat and said it was fine.”
John motioned for Alex to be quiet so he could hear. “Uh-huh, just as I thought.” John put his stethoscope back in his bag and looked into two of the most panic-stricken faces he had ever seen, and laughed. Mary Kate relaxed, because she knew John well enough that if it was something serious he wouldn’t be laughing.
Alex gave him a look that could peel paint off a barn. “What the hell is so funny?”
John continued to chuckle at Alex and then responded. “I was just imagining you trying to herd two little redheaded girls about the ranch at your age.” Mary Kate turned to look at Alex’s face as John continued to talk. “Oh boy, I do believe that I hear two heartbeats besides Mary Kate’s.”
John stood and continued to snicker as he left the room and called over his shoulder that he wanted to see her tomorrow at the hospital instead of waiting until Monday. Mary Kate answered John, because Alex was speechless about the news of twins.
“We’ll be there, but not at the crack of dawn,” Mary Kate responded.
“Just call when you head to the hospital and I’ll meet you there.” With that said, John left the room to let the others know that Mary Kate was going to be fine. He wasn’t so sure about Alex, and explained why.
Alex looked down into his wife’s sparkling eyes and saw the same tears of joy that she saw in his. He was still speechless. “Alex, are you alright? You aren’t disappointed at the possibility of two babies, are you?”
He looked at her with the most perplexed look, “How could I be disappointed at the possibility of having two of you running around here? Oh Amada, what an adventure this will be!” He held her in his arms until she fell asleep. He had Maria stay with her while he took care of some unfinished business and then he would return.
The men had gone into the living room to hash over the evening’s events and wait for Sam to bring them up to date. Alex joined them to thank the men for all they had done tonight and over the last few weeks and even months for some of them. He had a drink with them then excused himself to make a phone call on the satellite phone in the security office. He called Sr. Lardenez to thank him for the information on Jessie, and to let him know he saved Mary Kate’s life. He returned to the den and asked Max to send Maria in when Sam arrived, so that she could sit with Mary Kate while he visited with Sam. Alex returned to the bedroom to be with his wife.
When Sam arrived later, Max came to sit with Mary Kate while Alex met with Sam and the others. Sam informed them that Jessie was a member of the Cartel that disagreed openly with Lardenez when he would not retaliate against Gallagher/Chavez Securities after the Sea of Cortez incident. He lost his following and became the rogue desperado when his buddies realized he was carrying out his own vendetta, instead of that of the Cartel. Lardenez wasn’t sure if it was him because when he lost his following, Jessie went underground and disappeared.
“Thank God it’s all over and we can get our lives back in order. Good night, gentlemen. Stay as long as you want, but I am going to be with my wife.” Alex left the room.
He returned to the master bedroom and gave Max a hug, and told him good night and to go to bed and get some rest. When he finally was alone with his wife, he undressed and slipped in to bed next to her and pulled her close to his side. Alex entered a peaceful sleep with his wife tucked securely in his arms.
Epilogue
Mary Kate was in the garden with Maria enjoying another beautiful spring day in South Central Texas. She was sitting on a stool working with the tomato plants listening to Maria fuss about her working in the garden. Maria fussed when Mary Kate worked anywhere. She had started using the stool to sit on, because she could no longer get up and down from the ground with the weight of two babies. Everyone, especially Alex, didn’t think she should be doing anything anywhere at any time. She had yet to convince them that pregnancy was not a disability.
She sat back on her stool and looked around her, absorbing the warm sunshine and enjoying the view of the fields and pastures of her home. Whenever she missed the crystal clear aquamarine waters of the Cancun area, she just walked down to the creek and spent the afternoon reading or napping as she had at the compound in Mexico. Walking to the creek had become more difficult in the last few weeks, so when Alex was not too busy he would drive her there and they would spend the afternoon together.
They had a lot more time to spend together now that Manny was the ne
w CEO of Gallagher/Chavez Securities International. Mary Kate and Alex were still involved with the company as board members and consultants, but she did not miss the field operations like she thought she would. Alex had adjusted to full time ranching better than she expected, but he was much more involved with the company than she was.
Maria brought Mary Kate out of her daydream when she inquired if she was alright, because she was so quiet. Mary Kate assured her she was fine, just thinking about how content she was with her life. Maria left Mary Kate in the garden and went in the house to get them both something cool to drink.
Max drove up and parked by the garden just as Maria went inside. Mary Kate forgot it was Friday and Max was coming in from school for the weekend. It was great to have him living here and attending school at Texas A&M at Corpus Christi. She was finally having an opportunity to get to know him and Alex loved having him around, especially if he was away from the house. He knew with Max always close by, Mary Kate wouldn’t be alone at the house.
She was never by herself anymore. The closer it got to the arrival of the babies, the less time she had alone. She really didn’t mind it, but sometimes she just wanted some peace and quiet solitude.
Even though Manny was running the company, Peter was stationed permanently at the ranch in what was now called a satellite extension of the headquarters. This allowed Alex to communicate and work with the company whenever he needed to. She had only worked with them on one case in the last few months and she imagined that her consulting would become less and less after the babies came. She knew someday she would get back into it, but not anytime soon.
Mary Kate waved at Max as he walked toward her. “Welcome home, Max. How did the week go?”
“It was great, Little Mama,” Max referred to her with his new nickname. “What are you doing out here in the garden in this hot sun?”
“Please don’t start on me. I am just fine, it’s not too hot, and if I don’t do something I’m just going to get fatter and sassier,” Mary Kate shook her head at him as he leaned over and gave her a big hug and a kiss.
Twice in a Lifetime_A love story you'll never forget! Page 16